Chapter 323: Chapter 322: Meeting in Mount Dabie (Please Subscribe)
Two old men, one in yellow clothes, the other in blue, both with robust builds and dignified demeanors, were now kneeling before Shi Xiaole, their heads bowed in respect.
Shi Xiaole was filled with surprise, "How did you find this place?" he asked, a frown on his face.
The fifth-generation descendant of the Wind Demon, named Huang Huan, said, "Surely, Holy Young Master has not forgotten that the Divine Monarch once possessed a Heaven’s Mandate Compass. Given that you possess his martial arts essence and are a direct descendant, the compass naturally points to your location."
Shi Xiaole had no idea what a Heaven’s Mandate Compass was and hearing about such a mechanism left him speechless. "Get up," he said with an air of nonchalance. "Didn’t I tell you not to search for me unless it was necessary?"
He was secretly relieved he was still wearing Xie Xiaofeng’s mask. If they had found him here without it, they would surely suspect him of possessing a disguise technique and would inevitably link him to his true identity.
The two elders finally got up.
The fifth-generation descendant of the Rain Demon, named Lan Ye, said in a respectful tone, "Holy Young Master, we are here on an important matter concerning the Divine Monarch."
The Huang and Lan Families were servants of the Black Devil Divine Monarch’s household, and they referred to themselves as ministers within their circle.
Shi Xiaole gave Lan Ye a frosty glance.
Speaking less lessened the chance of making mistakes. Better to be enigmatic and elusive.
As expected, after exchanging a glance with Huang Huan, it was Lan Ye who said, "Please forgive our boldness, Holy Young Master. The fact is, we are much more invested in the capture of the Divine Monarch by the Protector of the Sky Edge Pavilion than you."
What?
For a moment, a jolt ran through Shi Xiaole’s mind.
With the current standards of the Great Cold State, why would the Sky Edge Pavilion come here to seek out talented males and females?
Why did the Sky Edge Pavilion show up as soon as the Black Devil Divine Monarch’s hand appeared?
But according to this line of reasoning, the Sky Edge Pavilion should have initially sent their best warriors deep into the Black Devil Ridge.
Unable to make sense of it all, Shi Xiaole sighed, "I understand the depths of your concern. Rest assured, everything is under my control. But what if you were caught by the hypocrites of the Righteous Path upon venturing here alone? Wouldn’t that be dangerous?"
Seeing Shi Xiaole’s calm demeanor but the worry hidden deep in his eyes, the two elders were deeply touched; they even felt a lump in their throats.
Such a deep-seated compliance and allegiance, rooted in their bloodline, left a profound imprint on the souls of the Huang and Lan families. It never weakened with time or distance.
Huang Huan laughed heartily, "We were indeed overly paranoid. We believe that with the Holy Young Master’s extraordinary prowess, you will undoubtedly shine at the upcoming meeting on Mount Dabie, successfully enter the Sky Edge Pavilion, and find a way to locate the Divine Monarch."
What does he mean? It almost seems like the Divine Monarch isn’t dead.
Shi Xiaole’s mind was in turmoil as he said, "I too hope our ancestor is still alive."
Lan Ye said, "The Divine Monarch had once ingested a pill refined by the Immortal Scholar, which extended his life by several centuries. Considering the timeline, there’s a high probability he’s still alive."
It struck him like a bolt of lightning. If not for Shi Xiaole’s strong composure, he would have lost his cool!
Wasn’t it said that even the most advanced martial artists could only live for up to 300 years?
Who was this Immortal Scholar, and how was he able to extend one’s life by hundreds of years with just a pill? Surely that couldn’t be true?
"Holy Young Master, to avoid drawing attention, we won’t be able to travel with you to Mount Dabie. Please take care!"
Apart from reminding Shi Xiaole of the upcoming meeting on Mount Dabie, the main reason Huang and Lan had come was to assess the future Divine Monarch’s comportment.
They were satisfied with the outcome. The Holy Young Master was not only calm and composed, but he also exuded an uncommon powerful aura and impressive dignity. Indeed, he bore a striking resemblance to the Divine Monarch as depicted in various records.
After the two men left, Shi Xiaole stood in place for a long while, sighing deeply.
He never wished to be treated like a prized talent, but given the current situation, it seemed as if he had no choice but to attend the meeting on Mount Dabie. The Heaven’s Mandate Compass would allow the descendants of the Wind and Rain Demons to easily track him down.
Damn it!
Was his every move henceforth to be controlled by them? No, he needed to find a way to destroy that compass.
After pondering for a while, Shi Xiaole decided to remain silent for now and not make any moves until the current issue was resolved.
...
Mount Dabie was already buzzing with activity.
Whether to cater to the emotions of the crowd or to showcase the prowess of the disciples within the Sky Edge Pavilion, the Sky Edge Pavilion didn’t prevent the martial artists of the Great Cold State from ascending Mount Dabie to watch the meeting on the fifteenth of August.
Of course, ordinary people wouldn’t be eligible to go.
Since the venue had limited space, the Sky Edge Pavilion eventually agreed, under the coordination and application of numerous forces, that the top ten forces of the Great Cold State could bring five high-ranking individuals and twenty disciples to watch, while the first-rate forces could bring five high-ranking individuals and ten disciples.
The disciples permitted to ascend the mountain were, of course, overjoyed.
Aside from other factors, just the fact that the Sunset Little Sword Marquis, Little Fist King, and Divine Wind Young Master hadn’t made any all-out moves for years already left everyone wondering about their current strength.
Rumors had it that after the Sunset Little Sword Marquis breached the fifth level of the Silver Bull Horns, he fought off a Spiritual-Passage Realm level one expert despite being at only the seventh level of Xuan Qi cultivation, which astonished many in the Martial World.
Naturally, people were even more awestruck by the Sky Edge Pavilion disciples.
A few days ago, a disciple from the Sky Edge Pavilion attempted to breach the Silver Bull Horns and successfully ascended to the fifth level.
However, he was not the most remarkable one. The one who stood out the most dismissed the rewards of the sixth level of the Silver Bull Horns as unworthy of his attention!
One could imagine just how fearsome this group of Sky Edge Pavilion disciples was.
In terms of Xie Xiaofeng and Shi Xiaole, the former was on another level altogether compared to everyone else and hence, there was no need for comparison. As for the latter, despite having a higher aptitude than the Sunset Little Sword Marquis, whether he was stronger was uncertain, given their disparity in cultivation levels.
At the foot of Mount Dabie was the Cloud Mist Inn.
A handsome young man in elegant attire with a long sword on his waist walked in. He said to the innkeeper, "Hello. I heard that the Sky Edge Pavilion has left an invitation here?"
The innkeeper looked up with a start, his voice trembling, "Who might you be?"
"I am Xie Xiaofeng."
Whoosh!
The entire inn fell silent, and then exploded into action.
"It’s Xie Xiaofeng?"
"Wow, Senior Brother, he looks so commanding."
"Emerald Cloud Mountain, Green Water Lake."
Those who were chatting, eating, and drinking; all the martial world guests who heard the sound, all raised their heads to look. Even those who didn’t hear the sound, upon seeing the reactions of others, could guess what was going on.
In the Martial World of Great Cold State today, there are only two young people who can create such a stir, and the only one who can make such a sensation is Xie Xiaofeng!
"Young Master Xie, this is your invitation card."
The innkeeper handed over a gold-inlaid invitation card with a flushed face, saying, "Young Master Xie, I have prepared the best room in the inn for you free of charge."
"Thank you."
There were three days left until the 15th of the eighth month, and Shi Xiaole really needed a good rest.
After the innkeeper and Shi Xiaole left, the discussions in the inn ignited.
"With Xie Xiaofeng’s strength, becoming one of the top five hundred golden boys will be a breeze."
"Xie Xiaofeng is strong, but have you noticed that he only got the second-tier gold-inlaid invitation card, in the eyes of Sky Edge Pavilion, he might not be that legendary."
"All that talk is useless, in three days we’ll find out anyway. Speaking of which, Xie Xiaofeng is here, but why is there no sign of Shi Xiaole?"
Someone spoke up.
In their view, even if Shi Xiaole had left the Great Cold State, he should definitely hurry back as soon as he received the news.
"Maybe he was delayed by something."
With the passage of time, top tier and first-tier spectators from various forces rushed over and ascended Mount Dabie on the morning of the 15th of the eighth month.
And the town at the foot of Mount Dabie was already crowded.
For many martial arts masters, even though they couldn’t watch the battles in person, being able to get the news in the fastest time and feel the tense and exciting atmosphere was consolation enough.
"This time, it seems I’m really going to handicap myself."
Inside the Cloud Smoke Inn, Shi Xiaole woke up from mediation, and couldn’t help but give a wry smile.
Whether it was Meteor from the Sky, Eclipse Eight Forms, Moon Concealing Sword Technique, or the Bird Crossing Skill, their characteristics were all too distinctive, he couldn’t use any of them.
As for the Death Claiming Fifteen Swords, although he could slightly conceal it, it was still better not to use it to avoid people seeing through it.
Luckily, he had learned several new martial arts in the past few months, which could help him hold his own.
What Shi Xiaole was most concerned about was that he was only at the third level of the Spiritual-Passage Realm, but his Qi aura was at the sixth level of the Spiritual-Passage Realm. At that time, he would have to resort to some tricks.
Standing tall, Shi Xiaole left the Cloud Smoke Inn, followed the crowd up Mount Dabie, and along the way, people kept pointing at him and exclaiming in surprise.
The top of Mount Dabie was a flat platform as if cut off by a person. The arena was spacious, with a wide view, indeed an excellent place for watching martial matches.
At this moment, the crowd was bustling, and all the top figures in Great Cold State had arrived.
"Guānqún, this time, you should see the difference between yourself and a genius."
On the chair to the east, an old man spoke to the boy with a wooden crown standing behind him.
The boy in the wooden crown looked at the disciples of the Sky Edge Pavilion standing in two rows at the first place, and felt an invincible feeling from their mere aura, his heart full of bitterness.
Every generation of the Shi family had outstanding talents emerge, this was how the family was able to stand among the first-tier forces. But in the generation of the boy with the wooden crown, he couldn’t even be regarded as a first-tier genius. It would be a lie to say that he was not discouraged.
In a trance, the boy in the wooden crown thought of Shi Xiaole, whom he had met in Qingxue State. The latter had fled and come to this place filled with talents in Great Cold State, but was still able to overshadow the heroes. This must be the true nature of a genius, right?
"Senior Brother, do you think Little Stone will come?"
In the direction of the Jade Moon Palace, Lan Xiaodie looked eagerly around.
Tao Xingyu said, "Given Brother Shi’s indifferent nature, it’s hard to say."
Not far away, Lady Bizan seemed thoughtful, and her eyes also showed a different color.
Back then, when she heard that Shi Xiaole had stayed on the sixth floor of Silver Bull Horn for a full half a day before accepting this fact, she wondered, how far had he reached in his cultivation now?
"Perhaps, he can now compete with a master of the first level of Spiritual-Passage Realm."
Many people said that Shi Xiaole was too young and was not a match for Sunset Little Sword Marquis in terms of strength, but Lady Bizan somehow felt that he might not be inferior to his opponent.
"Brother Xie."
Ge Ruyuan, the eldest disciple of the Jade Moon Palace, was also lost in thought, his eyes searching through the crowd for something.
Handing over the invitation card, Shi Xiaole, led by a maid from Sky Edge Pavilion, arrived at the contestant area in the south.
Many people standing there looked at him.
"You must be Brother Xie Xiaofeng, I admire you."
A young man with bright eyes sighed. From his clothes, he appeared to be a disciple of Sky Edge Pavilion.
Other people also looked at Shi Xiaole with complex expressions, their eyes filled with resentment, anger, and even shame that Shi Xiaole could not understand.
There were also three young men, clearly standing on the other side, also sizing up Shi Xiaole, who happened to be the three geniuses of Great Cold State.
Shi Xiaole nodded to the crowd, but was full of doubts in his heart.
Why did he seem to have become a public enemy?
Also, these six participants from Sky Edge Pavilion all looked to be under twenty years old, and the highest cultivation only reached the seventh level of Xuan Qi, with Sky Edge Pavilion’s resources, even if they were young, they couldn’t possibly be at this level, right?
If Sky Edge Pavilion was intentionally hiding their strength, then for what purpose?
