While Wu Yuan cultivated in seclusion, word of his feats spread like wildfire, reaching beyond the confines of the sect.
The Heavenly Dragon City in the Dragon Star Immortal Realm was reserved solely for Void Refiner Eminences, serving as a gathering place for the higher echelons of the Dragon Star Immortal Sect.
Hovering above the city was a grand and ancient bronze temple, its presence commanding attention.
The sect’s Void Refiner Eminences and Earth Immortals would look at this temple with a mixture of reverence and longing whenever they passed by.
This temple was the Veteran Elders Hall, a place of legend among the sect’s disciples. Only the sect’s veteran elders were allowed entry. And only Tribulation and Universe Architect level immortal cultivators were eligible to become veteran elders.
Within the bronze temple, a colossal oval table stretching approximately a hundred meters in length and thirty meters in width stood in the center, flanked by towering bronze chairs on either side.
Save for the grand bronze throne at the head of the table, the remaining chairs were of a smaller stature and lighter hue.
At the present moment, the bronze throne remained unoccupied, while numerous figures already took their places on the smaller chairs.
Among them were High Immortal Hei Yuan and the red-robed abbot.
If Earth Immortals like Qing Feng and Xiang Sheng were present, they would recognize this gathering as the legendary Veteran Elders Assembly.
“With thirteen veteran elders in attendance, more than half of the attendees are present. The Veteran Elders Assembly shall hereby commence,” remarked the red-robed middle-aged man seated on the chair to the right of the bronze throne.
His gaze swept across the assembly of powerhouses.
Though he wasn’t the strongest of the veteran elders, as the abbot, he was undeniably the nominal leader of the Dragon Star Sect.
“We have convened today for a simple reason: Li Xia,” the red-robed man began in a low voice.
“Li Xia is under fifty years old, a sword cultivator at the third-stage Golden Core phase. He established a third-degree immortal root, and has forged nine lifebound flying swords.”
The final mention of nine lifebound flying swords immediately surprised many of the veteran elders who were unfamiliar with the situation.
This was rare!
“His soul is incredibly robust, and the rate of his soul’s growth is astonishing. Currently, it is on par with a sixth-stage Amethyst Cradle cultivator,” the red-robed man continued.
“He first contemplated the Land Dao, then inherited Great Eldritch Kua Fu’s Celestial Body Law Codex from the Star Origin Soil and began comprehending the Celestial Body Dao. In eight years, he has reached the fourth-level Domain stage of the Celestial Body Dao.”
“He has cleared level fifty-seven of the one-star tower.”
“Based on a holistic assessment, his talent ranks within the top three of all Golden Core disciples in the past ten million years.”
“Throughout the billions of years of our sect’s history, his talent ranks in the top ten. And over the last hundred million years of the Redmoon Immortal Continent, within the top hundred,” the man in red declared solemnly. “If anyone has a contradicting opinion, please raise it now.”
He was met with silence.
“At present, the full extent of Li Xia’s talent, including the possession of the Great Eldritch inheritance and his ownership of nine lifebound flying swords, remains undisclosed. Consequently, the various factions have based their evaluation of Li Xia on incomplete information,” remarked the man in the red robe. “Yet, even the publicly available information is more than enough to prove his remarkable talent.”
“There is a ninety-nine percent probability that the Moonsilver World will conduct an assessment to determine his eligibility for special recruitment,” the red-robed man stated.
“From our judgment, the likelihood of his acceptance is one hundred percent.”
“Therefore, I propose that we formally petition the Immortal Hall to allow us to officially designate Li Xia as a disciple of our sect. In return, we will compensate them with the corresponding divine crystal deducted from our sect’s contribution.” he proclaimed with gravity.
Many of the veteran elders furrowed their brows.
“Abbot, the Moonsilver World is subordinate to the Immortal Hall. If they insist on recruiting a disciple, even first-rate sects of the immortal continent will find it difficult to convince them to withdraw their decision,” declared a veteran elder veiled in a shroud of black mist, his voice resonating with authority.
“We could pay the price to prevent the Moonsilver World from recruiting him, but the cost is exorbitant, a staggering three hundred cubic meters of divine crystal.”
“Such a quantity of divine crystal is enough to drive a Divided Soul Earth Immortal mad.”
“Even for us, mustering such wealth is no easy task. It could fetch over a hundred pieces of high-grade spirion equipment. Is it truly worth expending it all to keep a mere Golden Core disciple in our sect? Perhaps we should give this decision more thought,” the veteran elder shrouded in black mist suggested.
For beings of their level, ethercrystal held little value. Only the fabled divine crystal was precious enough to entice them.
The words of the veteran elder enveloped in a black shroud struck a chord with many of the other veteran elders.
“Indeed, Li Xia’s talent is exceptional, but history has shown us countless geniuses who fell short of fulfilling their potential.” An elderly man clad in purple robes spoke coldly.
“Most of us here did not start as top talents of our generation. But step by step, we overcame countless trials and tribulations to reach our current level.”
“If Li Xia has already reached the Void Refiner phase, I might consider the sect’s investment justified.”
“However, he is only at the Golden Core phase. The risks are too great, and the possibility of an untimely death is high,” the purple-robed elderly man shook his head. “I disagree.”
“I disagree as well.”
“Even if we keep him, what then? Even if he does grow to maturity, he will eventually have to join the immortal hall, just like us.”
“On the other hand, if he enters the Moonsilver World, the immortal hall will compensate the sect. He will still be labeled as a former member of the Dragon Star Immortal Sect label, and when he becomes a Divided Soul Earth Immortal, we can invite him to rejoin the sect.”
The veteran elders expressed their opinions, most of them objecting to the proposal.
The middle-aged man in red robes sighed inwardly, feeling helpless.
He understood why the veteran elders opposed the idea—the stakes were high, and they were reluctant to give up their interests.
The divine crystal contribution that the sect offered to the Redmoon Immortal Hall could be exchanged for corresponding precious items.
The amount contributed was accumulated through generations. It was also a result of the hard work of numerous veteran elders present.
“Veteran Elders, while the divine crystal contribution is important, we must also consider Li Xia’s talent,” the red-robed elderly man spoke softly.
“He has the potential to become the next Senior Brother Dong Yang. If we compare their talent at the same age, Li Xia may even surpass him.”
“It’s not the same. Senior Brother Dong Yang’s journey was one of steady growth, culminating in his position as the top sword immortal in the immortal continent. How can Li Xia compare?”
“I disagree.”
“How about we negotiate with the immortal hall?” Some elders suggested, but the majority remained opposed.
Sometimes, it was even more difficult to convince someone to give up their interests than it was to move their hearts.
“Very well, let us proceed to the final vote,” the red-robed middle-aged man sighed. “All veteran elders, please state your position—in favor or against.”
“In favor,” he stated.
“Against!”
“Against!”
“In favor,” High Immortal Hei Yuan declared.
“Against.”
“Against.”
…Each veteran elder voiced their stance, following the rules set by the immortal ancestor. Abstaining from the vote was not allowed.
“Thirteen veteran elders, four in favor, nine against—the proposal is rejected,” the middle-aged man announced, disappointment evident in his tone.
Despite his hopes, the outcome was not in his favor.
As he prepared to conclude the meeting, he was suddenly interrupted.
“The outcome is invalid!” a cold voice pierced the air. “As First Veteran Elder, I hold the right to veto the rejection of this proposal.”