Chapter 2683: Chapter 2683: Merciful Voyage Immortal Sect, Immortal Lord?!
Nine snow-white steeds appeared to be no different from ordinary horses in the secular realm, but upon closer inspection, their bodies emitted faint waves of Immortal Origin Force.
Clearly, these steeds were Immortal Beasts.
In the heavenly realms, Immortal Beasts are divided into two categories: those with awakened intelligence and those without.
The former possess intelligence comparable to humans, can transform into human form, and cultivate like humans, virtually indistinguishable from them;
The latter haven’t awakened intelligence, surviving purely by instinct, even though their cultivation is solely the result of innate instinctive training and human nurturing.
The nine steeds pulling the roofless carriage now appearing before Wyatt Barnes were raised by King Cooper’s household, each possessing the cultivation level of a ’Purple Moon Golden Immortal.’
The speed at which these nine steeds pulled the carriage was in no way inferior to that of a typical ’Daai Law Golden Immortal.’
"Is he King Cooper?"
The eyes of Wyatt Barnes, hidden beneath his black robe, suddenly flashed as his gaze fell on the middle-aged man clad in a purple-golden long robe seated in the roofless carriage.
The middle-aged man had a face like a jade crown, tall and imposing, seated there with an aura of authority naturally radiating from him, overshadowing the authority emitted by the governors from various regions of King Cooper’s realm present.
The authoritative aura naturally exuding from the middle-aged man made the aura from the governors of various regions under King Cooper’s command seem insignificant.
The two were on completely different levels.
"It’s King Cooper!"
"King Cooper has arrived!"
...
As the roofless carriage drawn by nine white steeds appeared, a commotion arose among the people present.
"Greetings, Your Majesty!"
"Greetings, Your Majesty!"
...
Moments later, those gathered around the platform from the sixteen counties under King Cooper’s command all respectfully saluted him.
The group in the VIP audience also saluted King Cooper, "Greetings, Your Majesty."
Even Wyatt Barnes followed Flying Dragon Sect’s others and performed a gesture of respect toward King Cooper.
Currently, if anyone present was indifferent to King Cooper’s arrival, it would be only the person cloaked in gray beside County Governor Carter King of Pingshan County.
"Hmm?"
Seated in the roofless carriage, King Cooper stood and, after waving to the crowd around him, noticed the indifference from the gray-robed person beside Carter King.
His brow furrowed slightly.
Could someone dare show such disdain for him in a territory governed by King Cooper?
In an instant, King Cooper’s sharp gaze fell upon the gray-robed individual.
In no time, those present also turned their attention to the gray-robed figure, who became the ’focus’ of the entire scene.
"Damn it! What does this guy think he’s doing? Is he trying to ruin us?"
The elders and sacrificial officers of Pingshan County’s faces changed drastically.
"Who is he really? He shows no reaction in front of King Cooper and ignores him."
Pingshan County’s young powerful individuals felt speechless and concurrently worried that the gray-robed figure could bring trouble upon them by being disrespectful to King Cooper.
"Governor King... The person next to you seems to have an issue with me."
King Cooper’s gaze left the gray-robed figure and turned to Carter King beside him, stating calmly.
Although King Cooper’s tone was calm, those present detected slight anger, causing Carter King to change color dramatically and break into a cold sweat, "King... King Cooper..."
The fifteen other counties’ governors now looked at Carter King with varying degrees of schadenfreude.
"Senior, greet King Cooper... If you reveal your identity, Wyatt Barnes, even if he was planning to show himself, might be scared away."
Carter King sent a voice transmission to the gray-robed person.
Upon hearing the transmission, the gray-robed figure didn’t respond but slightly raised his head, exposing the sharp gleam in his cloudy eyes to King Cooper.
"Are you King Cooper of Cooper’s Estate? I’m from the Merciful Voyage Immortal Sect... Today, my appearance here is under the order of our Sect Leader, tasked to kill someone. If you alarm my target, I will obliterate everyone in your Cooper’s Estate!"
As King Cooper saw the cloudy eyes and wrinkled face beneath the gray robe, these words timely rang in his ears.
"Merciful Voyage Immortal Sect?!"
His heart trembled, as he saw the gray-robed figure’s right hand, usually hidden under the sleeve, move slightly, letting a token flash before his eyes.
"Merciful Voyage Immortal Sect... core elder?!"
Though the token flashed briefly, King Cooper clearly recognized it as an identity token, uniquely belonging to a core elder of the Merciful Voyage Immortal Sect.
"Merciful Voyage Immortal Sect’s core elders... seem to be all ’Immortal Lord’ level figures!"
Recognizing the gray-robed individual’s identity and realizing he was an ’Immortal Lord,’ King Cooper drew a sharp breath and quickly retracted his gaze from Carter King.
"Senior... I had my subordinates find an excuse. If we have offended you, I hope you will forgive us. After all, given the current situation, if I do nothing, I will certainly expose your profound and unfathomable presence, Senior."
King Cooper withdrew his gaze from Carter King as he transmitted a message to the gray-robed man.
"Hmph!"
The gray-robed man responded with a cold snort, tacitly acknowledging the transmission.
Soon after, King Cooper transmitted a message to Carter King.
Instantly, Carter King’s pupils constricted, revealing astonishment and disbelief in the depths of his gaze. Nevertheless, he quickly composed himself and bowed to King Cooper: "Lord King Cooper, the person beside me is deaf and mute. If he has been disrespectful, I hope for your forgiveness."
"Since he is deaf and mute, I naturally will not hold it against him."
King Cooper accepted the ’way out’ offered by Carter King, while also withdrawing his gaze and swiftly moved behind the curtains that enveloped the VIP audience area.
"It seems King Cooper has come for Ares Cooper!"
"Isn’t that obvious? It seems Ares Cooper might truly be related to the Fourth Prince who disappeared from the King Cooper Palace years ago."
"I heard that before the Fourth Prince left the King Cooper Palace, he gravely injured King Cooper... If Ares Cooper is related to the Fourth Prince, would King Cooper seek revenge on Ares Cooper?"
"You’re overthinking it! Everyone knows that the reason the Fourth Prince gravely injured King Cooper was because he lost his mind... King Cooper and the Fourth Prince are brothers, their relationship has always been good. If Ares Cooper is the descendant of the Fourth Prince, King Cooper would surely treat him well, not trouble him."
"Perhaps... King Cooper will even have him recognized and claim his ancestral heritage!"
...
The attention of the crowd surrounding the arena shifted away from the gray-robed man beside County Governor Carter King, back to the area enveloped by curtains in the VIP audience section.
Now, King Cooper, the Third Prince, and Ares Cooper were inside.
As for what was happening inside there, they didn’t know, as the curtains prevented them from seeing through.
Moreover, the curtains had sound insulation, preventing them not only from seeing but also from hearing what was happening on the other side, leaving them completely in the dark.
Approximately a quarter of an hour later.
"Ares Cooper withdraws from the Sixteen County Martial Arts... Sixteen County Martial Arts resumes!"
Behind the curtains, the person from King Cooper Palace responsible for hosting the event once again stepped into the air, announcing loudly above the arena.
His words immediately plunged the entire venue into silence.
"Ares Cooper withdrew from the Sixteen County Martial Arts?"
"What’s going on?"
"It seems that Ares Cooper really is related to the Fourth Prince... If he is the Fourth Prince’s son, then naturally he doesn’t need to continue participating in the Sixteen County Martial Arts. As the son of the Fourth Prince, a direct descendant of King Cooper Palace, King Cooper Palace surely wouldn’t mistreat him."
"That’s fate... Being born well, compared to not being born well, makes all the difference in the world!"
...
The venue remained silent for a moment before getting lively again.
"Ares Cooper... Congratulations."
In the VIP audience section, Wyatt Barnes withdrew his gaze from the curtains and murmured to himself: "When I get the chance, I’ll congratulate you in person."
Wyatt Barnes’s appearance here in disguise was due to his concern that nearly a year ago, a powerful old crone who went to Bloodshade City and Nine Nether County City to kill him was still lurking, waiting for him to reveal himself.
Though he was unaware of the depths of the old crone’s background, he remained cautious nonetheless.
Thus, he had not exposed his identity until now.
To others, he was just a ’low-grade alchemy Immortal Master’ from the Flying Dragon Sect.
"It’s thanks to this ’Kun character Sky Master’s robe’ that declares my status as low-grade alchemy or low-grade crafting Immortal Master... Otherwise, with my attire, I’d certainly draw many divine senses searching."
Wyatt Barnes imagined:
Without the disguise of the Sky Master’s robe, there would certainly be countless people probing him out of curiosity, extending their divine senses to examine the long robe concealing his face and figure.
The Sixteen County Martial Arts continued.
...
Behind the curtains in the VIP audience section.
Ares Cooper stood there, and beside him stood ’King Cooper’, the lord of King Cooper Palace, and ’the Third Prince’ from King Cooper Palace. Presently, the two were staring intensely at Ares Cooper.
On the contrary, Ares Cooper appeared somewhat restrained.
"Robert... Where is your father?"
The Third Prince asked.
"My father... has already passed away."
Ares Cooper sighed.
Swish! Swish!
Upon hearing these words from Ares Cooper, both King Cooper and the Third Prince’s expressions changed drastically.
