Chapter 4010: The Intermediate Emperors of Gods of the Profound Jade Mansion
Duan Ling Tian did not reply after listening to Zhen Ping Fan's words, but he complained inwardly, 'He's not one to hold grudges? If he doesn't hold grudges, why would he provoke Huang Qi Yuan from the Profound Jade Mansion's Fortune Sect as soon as he arrived? If he doesn't hold grudges, why would he ignore the Leader of the Alliance of Benevolence and Justice when the other party took the initiative to greet him?'
Duan Ling Tian only shook his head silently. He knew that Ye Chen Feng could act the way he did due to his strength. Perhaps, Ye Chen Feng would not have dared to act in this manner 10,000 years ago. However, if Ye Chen Feng's strength was what it was 10,000 years ago, the Leader of the Alliance of Benevolence and Justice also would not have taken the initiative to greet Ye Chen Feng.
After the old man exchanged pleasantries with Ye Chen Feng and Liu Feng Gu and led his people to their designated small floating island, the people from the Seven Kills Valley and the Pure Yang Sect no longer spoke.
"The people from the Seven Kills Valleys are here. The people from the Dragon Martial Divine Sect should arrive soon, right?"
Duan Ling Tian looked around. He could see more and more people arriving. He only needed to look at the small floating islands to roughly determine how many forces had yet to arrive. After a moment, he confirmed there were fewer than ten forces that had yet to arrive.
Soon after, another group of people appeared and greeted Ye Chen Feng and Liu Feng Gu, attracting Duan Ling Tian's attention.
"Elder Ye, Elder Liu."
Among this group of people, Duan Ling Tian saw two familiar faces. As such, he knew they were from the other top force in the Eastern Ridge Mansion, the Dragon Martial Divine Sect.
The Dragon Martial Divine Sect was slightly weaker than Pure Yang Sect, but it was stronger than the Wanqi clan.
Ye Chen Feng and Liu Feng Gu rose to their feet and smiled.
"Elder Xiao."
Seeing this, Duan Ling Tian no longer had to ask Zhen Ping Fan. He knew Ye Chen Feng definitely did not have any conflict with this Elder Xiao from the Dragon Martial Divine Sect.
After exchanging pleasantries, the people from the Dragon Martial Divine Sect greeted the people from the Seven Kills Valley before going to the small floating island next to that of the Seven Kills Valley.
......
Following that, Duan Ling Tian saw most of the remaining small floating islands had also been occupied.
From the beginning to the end, apart from the forces in the Eastern Ridge Mansion, the other forces from the other six Mansions did not greet them at all.
With this, Duan Ling Tian speculated that the relationships between the Mansions were not very close. It seemed like they were not familiar with each other at all. After all, if they were familiar with each other, they would have greeted each other. Otherwise, they would ignore each other. It was not surprising if the only time they crossed paths was only during the Seven Mansions Feast.
However, not greeting each other or ignoring each other on the surface did not mean they did not pay attention to each other's movements.
Although no one from the other six Mansions came to greet Ye Chen Feng and Liu Feng Gu, Duan Ling Tian saw many people looking in their direction from time to time. He knew they were not looking at him. Although he had become somewhat famous, no one knew what he looked like. Hence, he knew they were looking at Ye Chen Feng.
Clearly, news of Ye Chen Feng's prominent divine artifact with a complete artifact sword had spread. Otherwise, with Ye Chen Feng's previous achievements alone, they were not enough to draw such attention.
Duan Ling Tian was still observing his surroundings when a loud voice rang in the air.
"Friends and young talents from the various Mansions, welcome to the Profound Jade Mansion!"
Following that, Duan Ling Tian saw four people flying up from four different small floating islands. Earlier, Zhen Ping Fan had told him the four top forces in the Profound Jade Mansion would also be seated on the small floating islands.
The four people flew to the center and stood side by side. They were three old men and one middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man who had spoken earlier looked around before he said loudly, "It's a great honor for the Profound Jade Mansion to host the Seven Mansions Feast this time. Many people present on the scene are old friends, but there are also many new faces who are participants of the Seven Kills Mansion. My name is Lin Dong Lai, and I'm the Golden Rock Elder from the Profound Jade Mansion's Howling Flames Sect."
After introducing himself, the middle-aged man introduced the three old men next to him. "The person on my left is the Decreed Elder of the Fortune Sect, Ding Jian Chu. He's known as the Profound Jade God of Sword, and he's the best sword cultivator in our Profound Jade Mansion."
After listening to the introduction, Duan Ling Tian could not help but look at the Decreed Elder of the Fortune Sect a little longer. Despite his age, Ding Jian Chu stood tall and straight like a javelin. Although it was very faint, he could sense a slight piercing and fierce aura from Ding Jian Chu. Ding Jian Chu was clearly restraining himself so one could imagine how terrifying his aura would be if he did not restrain himself.
'It seems like this Elder Ding is about to master the... Sword Dao?' Duan Ling Tian, who had mastered the Sword Dao, could vaguely sense it from Ding Jian Chu's aura.
At this time, Ding Jian Chu shook his head and said, "Everyone, Elder Lin's overpraising me. I'm no God of Sword. I'm just an ordinary cultivator who's interested in the Sword Dao. In regard to the Sword Dao, who in this place dares to say that he or she can beat Elder Ye Chen Feng from the Eastern Ridge Mansion's Pure Yang Sect? In the Seven Mansions, Elder Ye is the only one who's mastered the Sword Dao."
As soon as Ding Jian Chu's voice fell, everyone's attention shifted toward Ye Chen Feng immediately.
Ye Chen Feng only smiled faintly and said, "Elder Ding, you're overpraising me as well. Moreover, you're just one step away from mastering the Sword Dao yourself."
Ye Chen Feng, who had also mastered the Sword Dao, naturally could sense this just like Duan Ling Tian. Due to his cultivation base, he could sense it even more clearly than Duan Ling Tian. Duan Ling Tian might not be able to confirm it, but Ye Chen Feng could.
Ding Jian Chu's eyes shone upon hearing Ye Chen Feng's words. He laughed and said, "Elder Ye, you have a good eye. After the Seven Mansions Feast, I'd like to invite Elder Ye and everyone from the Pure Yang Sect to stay in the Fortune Sect for a while. Our sect will treat all of you as honorary guests. Of course, the most important thing is that I have a few questions to ask Elder Ye."
While Ding Jian Chu spoke, Lin Dong Lai and the other two old men seemed to tense up. Although they knew Ding Jian Chu's swordsmanship was good and that he had comprehended the rudimentary form of the Sword Dao, they had no idea he was only a step away from comprehending the real Sword Dao. Moreover, Ding Jian Chu's intention could not be more obvious. He had flattered Ye Chen Feng and invited Ye Chen Feng and the others from the Pure Yang Sect to stay as honorary guests in the Fortune Sect in order to curry favor with Ye Chen Feng, hoping that Ye Chen Feng would be able to help him smoothly comprehend the real Sword Dao.
Ye Chen Feng exchanged a glance with Liu Feng Gu before he replied with a smile, "It'd be my pleasure."
The Pure Yang Sect had no reason to reject Ding Jian Chu's invitation, after all. Even if Ding Jian Chu mastered the Sword Dao, it would not threaten the Pure Yang Sect. Even if Ding Jian Chu had ill intentions, it would be difficult for Ding Jian Chu to do much, especially when the Profound Jade Mansion was so far away from the Eastern Ridge Mansion.
Ding Jian Chu's smile brightened as soon as Ye Chen Feng accepted his invitation. However, he no longer spoke since now was not the time.
Subsequently, Lin Dong Lai, the Golden Rock Elder from the Howling Flames Sect, continued to say, "This person is the Supreme Elder of the Duanmu clan in the Profound Jade Mansion. He's Duanmu Yun Fan."
Duanmu Yun Feng only nodded slightly in response to Lin Dong Lai's introduction.
Then, Lin Dong Lai introduced the fourth person. "This person next to Elder Duanmu is the Vice Sect Leader of the Profound Jade Mansion's Nether Sword Villa. He's Leng Shi You."
Leng Shi You was a thin old man dressed in a black robe. His expression was stern. Similar to Duanmu Yun Feng, he only nodded slightly in response.
"This time, the four of us will personally oversee the Seven Mansions Feast, and I'll be the spokesperson for the four of us. We'll make sure all the outstanding prodigies won't suffer unnecessary harm. After all, the battles during the Seven Mansions Feast are meant to help the participants improve; participants don't need to risk their lives for this. As for the rules of the Seven Mansions Feast, they're the same as what they were in the past. If you don't know the rules of the Seven Mansions Feast, I'll give you 15 minutes to speak to your elders."
Following that, the three old men returned to their respective small floating islands while Lin Dong Lai continued to stand in the center.
'The Seven Mansions Feast is about to start...' Duan Ling Tian's eyes shone with excitement. Previously, Zhen Ping Fan had already told him about the rules and process of the Seven Mansions Feast.
First, they would draw lots to determine their opponents. As the host, the Profound Jade Mansion could cheat, but it would not affect the Seven Mansions Feast much. After all, at most, they could only help their young prodigies survive a little longer by helping them select weaker opponents in the beginning. Those who were weak would still be eventually eliminated as the competition progressed.
During the previous Seven Mansions Feast, none of the hosts bothered cheating since it was pointless. Moreover, if they were found out, their reputation would suffer a huge blow. In the end, there were more downsides to cheating.
At that time, Zhen Ping Fan had said, "After the opponents are selected for the first round, if you defeat your opponent, you'll enter the novice group. Participants can challenge those from the novice group. If the challenger wins, he or she will take the place of the person they defeated. However, those in the novice group can only be challenged once, and the challenger also only has one chance to issue a challenge. In the end, half of the participants will be in the novice group. Those who failed to enter the novice group aren't without hope. In the next round, they'll have a chance to make a comeback."