"The Supreme Battle Sect huh?" John replied, a little bit surprised. "Sure, lead the way."
The Elder nodded, and John quickly followed behind the Elder who sped towards the War Hall Palace.
'The Supreme Battle Sect? They must be here to question me again about how I obtained the Supreme Battle Art. Weren't they supposed to wait for me to go to them? Whatever, it's easier this way I guess, as it saves me a trip.'
They arrived shortly after, and the Elder escorted John to the top of the War Hall Palace, which was the chamber his master ruled the War Hall from. Several Elder's were guarding the entrance, and quickly let John inside.
The parting doors to the chamber caught the attention of those inside, who all turned around to look at John enter the room. His Master sat atop her throne at the other end of the chamber, while there were several men standing before her.
They all wore sleeveless brown robes, revealing bulging muscles containing incredible power. John felt as if he were looking at rampaging beasts instead of humans.
'They're the Supreme Battle Sect guests, no doubt about it.'
The power of their bodies surprised John, especially the one who stood in the middle of the group. It was an elderly man, who had a long white beard and a bald head. The man appeared to be in his eighties or nineties, but the power emanating from his body made John realize that he was the strongest one of the group.
'Dao Transformation. No doubt about it.'
John could easily tell that the elderly man was in the Dao Transformation Realm just from the powerful presence he was emitting. The fact that John could not detect his cultivation also alluded to the fact that he was in the Dao Transformation Realm, but John would have been able to tell regardless.
The elderly man inspected John as he approached, and John felt like he was being stared at by a powerful beast. He knew that the man had the power to crush him in one blow.
"John, you're finally here," Lilian called out from her throne as she watched John walk towards her. "In that case, we can get finished with whatever you came here to do, Sect Leader EarthFist," she said as she glanced at the elderly man.
'Sect Leader? He's the Sect Leader of the Supreme Battle Sect!'
John arrived before Lilian and stood before her as he turned around to face the group from the Supreme Battle Sect. There were five people, all men, with four standing slightly behind the elder in the front.
They gazed fiercely at John, as if they were inspecting each and every detail of him. John felt powerful divine senses scan over him, but was expecting such a thing to occur and so did not show any reaction.
The scans lasted for a moment before they faded away, and a smile suddenly broke out on the face of the elderly man.
"Quite the impressive disciple you have here," Sect Leader EarthFist said to Lilian. "I still don't know how he accomplished it, but the rumors of your disciple destroying the Bloodfiend Sect have spread far and wide. That he used the Supreme Battle Art in the process brings glory to our sect as well."
John raised his eyebrows slightly at the man's words, as they seemed to be complimenting him slightly. He had been expecting to defend the fact that he could use the Supreme Battle Art, as it was the secretive battle art of the Supreme Battle Sect, and outsiders were forbidden to learn it.
However, the elderly man seemed to be impressed instead of angered, surprising John slightly. Sect Leader EarthFist began to walk over to John, and another one of the men behind him walked forward as well.
The man was a middle aged man who appeared to be in his twenties, and his cultivation was in the Late Heaven Tribulation Realm. He had an incredibly powerful body, and John could tell that he would have a hard time battling against this man if they were to ever fight.
The two of them stopped before John and stared at him for a moment before the elderly man clicked his tongue and gestured to the man behind him with a frown on his face.
"What are you waiting for? For the grass to grow and the sky to turn dark? Give it to the boy already!" the elderly man commanded.
The man behind him scowled slightly, as a scroll suddenly appeared in his hands.
"You don't have to make it so embarrassing for me, you old fart" the man in his twenties grumbled as he stepped towards John and handed him a scroll.
A confused frown appeared on John's face as he reached out and took the scroll. The man took a step back towards the elderly man after giving John the scroll, and before John could open it to read it, he heard a sound before him that caught his attention.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
John's eyes popped open wide as the elderly man started beating the man who had just given John the scroll.
"You dare talk back to me like that?" the elderly man yelled out as he rained down blows on the man. "It seems I haven't properly instructed you even after all these years."
"Goddamnit you old geezer! Fuck off already!" the man cried out as he tried to fight back against the elderly man, but was unable to get the upper hand.
The two of them traded punches and kicks for a short while as the War Hall chamber shook violently from the power of their punches. The old man landed almost all of the blows, while the younger man did everything he could to fight back.
However, his power was lacking in the face of the leader of the Supreme Battle Sect, and before long, the younger man had two black eyes and many other bruises on his body.
John stood there in stunned silence as he watched the scene unfold before him, while Lilian sat there with a slightly amused expression on her face, as if she was thoroughly enjoying the show.
The elderly man stopped beating the younger man eventually, who laid on his back, pained from the beating he had just taken.
"Get up already, or I'll continue training your body," the elderly man commanded, and the younger man immediately bound to his feet and stood there as if nothing had happened. However, the two black eyes on his face and the man's bruises on his body were lingering reminders of what had just happened.
The elderly man turned to face John once more, and a small smile appeared on his face.
"Forgive my useless grandson for his poor manners. I had to give him a little lesson there," the man said to John. "However, this is how we teach lessons in the Supreme Battle Sect. I hope you don't mind."
John stood there in stunned silence for a moment longer before he snapped out of it and waved his hand before him in a dismissive manner.
"Not at all," John replied quickly as he glanced sideways at his master. He wanted to say something sarcastic about his master giving similar lessons, but the glare he got from her made him swallow his tongue before he could say anything.
"Not going to open that?" the elderly man said as he glanced at the unopened scroll in John's hands.
John glanced at the scroll in his hand, as he had forgotten about it as he watched the shocking scene earlier. He quickly regained his wits and unfurled the scroll, his eyes going wide as he read the contents contained within.
"This...this is the Meridian Forging and Heaven Tribulation steps to the Supreme Battle Art!" John exclaimed.
His eyes quickly shifted from the scroll to the elderly man, who was standing there smiling slightly.
"Why?" was all John could ask, as he truly couldn't understand the man's reasonings.
The original Supreme Battle Sect elder that had come many months ago had made it quite clear that outsiders were not permitted to learn the Supreme Battle Art, and that John was to be punished in one way or another for such a grave offense.
However, the very leader of the Supreme Battle Sect was now giving him the next steps to the battle art, which he sorely needed. With his cultivation in the Meridian Forging Realm, the Supreme Battle Art had become useless to him as he only knew the steps up to the Core Formation Realm.
However, this scroll solved all of his problems regarding that issue.
"I'll let this useless grandson of mine explain," the elderly man said to John as he guested for the younger man to speak.
The younger man, who acted as if the beating he had taken earlier never occurred, looked at John closely for some time before speaking out.
"I still don't see the resemblance at all, but the rumors are undeniable that you are from that clan, and also his son," the man said to John.
"His son? You mean this matter relates to my father?" John replied, slightly shocked.
"Yes," the man replied, as he began to tell a story of the past.