Volume 3: The Grand-Orient Sect
Endless clouds spread out before Li Tianming. An uninterrupted series of mountain peaks broke through the clouds, upon which countless rivers flowed.
It was like a land of immortals, filled with flora and birdsong.
And among the mountains, hazy outlines of tens of thousands buildings could be seen on the steep mountain peaks!
Without fail, every single building would be considered a spectacle if it were in Vermilion Bird. Together, they seemed to link up to form a dragon hidden in the clouds, with its body hidden and only its head revealed. From his position, Li Tianming could only see the tip of the iceberg when it came to the Grand-Orient Mountain Range.
What struck Li Tianming the most wasn’t only the Grand-Orient Sect’s scale, but also the thick spiritual energy present! An endless amount of it roared past, then gathered in his body. Cultivating here would bring twice the results with only half the effort.
Astride his shoulder, the little chick inhaled deeply, one single breath leaving him intoxicated.
“The Grand-Orient Sect is even bigger than I imagined! Furthermore, this is them after having been dethroned as the overlord of the Grand-Orient Realm—I expect the current Heaven’s Elysium is even more grand. Still, the Grand-Orient Sect can’t be that inferior, looking at it.” Li Tianming was moved, his shock a natural reaction to seeing such a place for the first time.
Regardless of his talent, he was still from a small kingdom, after all.
“It’ll really be impressive if you can really become the junior sect leader of this place. It won’t be difficult to give up Ling’er and establish a harem!” The little chick snorted, which earned it a glare from Jiang Feiling, upon receipt of which it hurriedly shrank back.
“Junior sect master?” Li Tianming shook his head. On the way here, Li Jingyu had already come clean. She had admitted that she was going all out in trying to lure Li Tianming over.
Li Tianming really could become the junior sect leader if he came. However, the current sect master was derided as the weakest in history; what prestige could the junior one have?
However, Li Tianming remained openminded. Regardless of how hard it was to explain, he would still end up countless times stronger than if he had stayed in Vermilion Bird. At least, what he was looking at wasn't an illusion.
……
“Those shameless bastards! I leave for just a bit, and here they are revolting again!” Li Jingyu turned furious as soon as they arrived. She led Li Tianming, Li Qingyu, and Jiang Feiling to one of the outermost mountain peaks of the sect, Fatepath Peak.
Fatepath Peak was far from the main mountain peaks, and even seemed to be at the foot of the mountain range. From afar, it looked run down, with weeds covering the land and lacking in any sense of grandeur.
No one would expect it to be the official residence of the sect master.
According to Li Jingyu, one of the Li Saint Clan’s four great bloodlines, the Wind Bloodline, resided on this peak. They were also the leader of the four great bloodlines, due to the existence of the Apex Branch.
Back in its heyday, the power of that single bloodline had been even mightier than the then-rising Heaven’s Elysium.
The kunpeng quickly reached the mountain peak in a blink of an eye.
Atop the peak was an old and dilapidated palace. It had a board attached to it, inscribed with the words “Kunpeng Sacred Hall”. The sign was mottled with moss, old, and even covered with dust, clearly marked by the passage of time.
Li Tianming reached the hall’s gate, finding a dense throng of people numbering in the hundreds congregated outside.
They all seemed to be in a bad mood as they gathered outside the black gate. Several of them were even heavily knocking on the gate, each hit heavy enough to cause much of the hall’s dust to shake off.
“Li Wudi, get your ass out here! If you don’t, we’ll drag you out, even if we have to take this place apart! Don’t think you can just hide away here! Our whole Wind Bloodline was ruined by you. Now that our legacy is at risk, you still dare to hide your face?
“Today, all the people from seven branches have gathered here. We’re not here as a joke!”
Li Tianming had thought the numbers were a little on the high side, and it turned out that most of the Li Saint Clan’s Wind Bloodline had shown up. It was clear just how low the bloodline had fallen.
Li Jingyu said that the Wind Bloodline consisted of eight branches, one main and seven sides. The main branch was known as the Apex Branch, while the seven side branches were known as the Seven Starry Wind Branches. They were the Alpha Ursae Majoris Branch, Beta Ursae Majoris Branch, Gamma Ursae Majoris Branch, Delta Ursae Majoris Branch, Epsilon Ursae Majoris Branch, Zeta Ursae Majoris Branch, and the Eta Ursae Majoris Branch.
Any of these side branches were massive clans that could shake the Grand-Orient Realm... thousands of years ago. That was even notwithstanding the fact that other than the Wind Bloodline, there were still three other great bloodlines!
All four great bloodlines were led by the Apex Branch. It was also this very branch that Li Wudi and Li Qingyu hailed from. It had even produced hundreds of figures with four bane-rings in its time; however, it had still fallen to this state today, eliciting pity.
Even the seven side branches of the bloodline were now forcing their way into the Kunpeng Sacred Hall. A man from the Alpha Ursae Majoris branch was there. He was middle-aged, and his cold gaze and narrow eyes combined to make him seem like a snake. This man was the branch leader, Li Xuanhe.
“Just break the gate down and drag him out,” Li Xuanhe said.
In response, many strong young men prepared to break the gate down.
Li Tianming could see from one glance this Li Xuanhe had an imposing presence, and he seemed to be another figure of Li Jingyu and Ling Yichen’s level. There were five or six more people in the crowd of similar level to him, proof that, despite its decline, the Li Saint Clan was still something far beyond Vermilion Bird’s ability to imagine.
“Li Wudi, you can’t hide anywhere today!” the branch leader of the Beta Ursae Majoris Branch, Li Chenhong, shouted. Dressed in blue robes, his sturdy figure gave the impression of a mountain.
“How dare you hide away for so many years after ruining our bloodline! Today, we’re going to drag you out here and humiliate you!”
The Seven Starry Wind Branches were filled with angry people. Just as they were about to destroy the gate, the kunpeng landed with such a heavy impact that over ninety percent of the people were sent flying.
Only those like Li Xuanhe and Li Chonghe were able to remain stable. Their eyes narrowed as they looked at the white-haired Li Jingyu, who leaped down from the kunpeng.
All of the Li Saint Clan’s hair tended towards white. Li Jingyu was already old, so it was hard to tell, but Li Qingyu’s hair was a light grey that was similar to Wei Jing’s. Not many youths had a color the same shade. As for the rest of the Li Saint Clan members present, it was slightly darker.
Hence, Li Tianming’s silvery hair immediately drew some attention. However, they mostly assumed it was dyed, which was considered a derided action here.
“Matriarch, you’re finally back. We’ve been waiting.” Li Xuanhe narrowed his eyes, which didn’t contain the slightest iota of respect in them.
“Waiting? Waiting for what, to drink the water I use to wash my feet? What the hell are all of you crowding around here for? Get lost!” Li Jingyu sounded furious as she held Li Qingyu’s hand. Her annoyance implied this wasn’t a rare event.
“Matriarch, we’re not leaving today. There’s a big matter Li Wudi needs to come out for today! If he doesn’t, then Matriarch, make the decision,” Li Tianyu, the Delta Ursae Majoris Branch leader, said with a voice like a gale. He had long, fluttering hair and his eyes seemed to hold a storm within them.
Li Tianming needed to adjust to the sudden appearance of so many experts as soon as he arrived.
“Just spit it out.” Li Jingyu glared at them.
“No. This matter is too big. Matriarch, please open the gates so we can talk inside!”
“You dare go so overboard?” Li Jingyu said furiously.
“Haha. We all know what state the Apex Branch is in. How could I not dare?” Li Xuanhe sniggered, prompting a round of laughter all around. Obviously, they hadn’t come with good intentions.
“I’m really curiousto see what a bunch of trash like you can do.” Li Qingyu grit her teeth, out of breath from her exasperation. She pulled Li Qingyu along, motioning for Li Tianming to follow.
“Trash? Matriarch, it’s your son that’s the most trash sect master in all of our sect’s history! Even an ordinary disciple can refer to him by name, because there’s no respect. And you actually want to say that we’re trash?” Li Xuanhe’s cold laughter drifted over from behind.
Li Jingyu stopped, but after suppressing her anger, she opened the gates to the Kunpeng Sacred Hall and the group of people quickly swarmed in.
Li Tianming saw a massive hall. Right in front of it was a towering and majestic seat that overlooked the entire place! However, it was already rotting, and it was aesthetically at odds from the rest of the hall, obviously moved over from somewhere else.
“Li Wudi, get your ass out here!” As soon as they entered, the troublemakers immediately started making a racket.
“All of you shut up! Li Xuanhe, Li Tianyu, whatever fart you want to let out, just let it rip!” Li Jingyu snapped.
Li Qingyu gently patted her grandma’s back, and everyone crowded in and exchanged looks.
“It seems Li Wudi won’t be appearing.”
“Whatever. He’s useless anyway, so just let the Matriarch choose.”
They had a quick discussion, then Li Xuanhe stepped forward.