Chapter 96: Assembly of Light (Part 1)
Xie Qing was speechless when he saw the catalog in front of him, which did not contain any incredible immortal items, but…
“What is this pervert set?!” he thought, losing his speech: “A whip? Eh… what is this even? A mask with a ball?”
What the young man saw in front of him was nothing but a compact sex shop. On the first pages with the heading “Recommended” BDSM products appeared, but he did not know about it.
His perverted… or rather, cultured intuition suggested that these things were not for battles, although they could be attributed to the category of “fight”, but only in bed.
“Well… you see all kinds of nonsense in your life,” thought the young man and closed the store, having previously reviewed the entire assortment.
…it seems you should hide your interest if you pretend to be innocent. Despite such a sudden offer, Xie Qing kept his stately expression and looked out the window.
“Hm, what shameful items are being sold! Not a drop of honor in this damned system!” he thought, snorting.
…dude, what are you clenching in your hand there? Hey, that’s a whip!
****
At sunrise, the darkness retreated under the bright beams of the sunlit pavilion, which created a sense of power and majesty, and was filled with people.
“Greetings, young master…”
“Long live the Wei family!”
“Oh, and you’re here, Mr. Bai!”
There was no hustle and bustle, each of the visitors to this pavilion was a person of high position – either the heir of a great family or the heir of an entire sect. It was notable that each of them had an aura of at least at the peak of Qi Condensation.
This was the day of the gathering of cultivators from all over the world to discuss worldly affairs, decide the future of some aspects of the lives of young cultivators, and also discuss cultivation.
In its early years, this gathering played an important role for the entire cultivation world, where questions about the future were decided and nails were hammered into the coffin of devil cultivators.
The founders of this gathering were four cultivators – Xu Mei, Zhang Mei, Liu Yan, and Feng Gu. Their names were still known, and each of them had a respected title.
Xu Mei – Sword Princess.
Zhang Mei – Ice Princess.
Liu Yan – Spring Flower.
Feng Gu – Mountain King.
Once upon a time, these four, in this pavilion located in the very center of the capital, made an important decision that helped them destroy the forces of devil cultivators.
If one looked closely, one could see that the aura of that day was still preserved – majestic, oppressive, and full of fearlessness.
But times have changed. Centuries have passed, and in the end, the pavilion was still used as a place for gatherings, but the gatherings themselves and their participants were no more than ordinary people.
Their decisions could not influence the strengthened and static cultivation world, and what they discussed was so unimportant that soon the reputation of the “Assembly of Light” became comparable to a simple party.
A great shame for the ancient cultivators, but not the most significant event for the new generation.
“Li Yuilan!” a gentle and friendly voice came from the entrance.
Li Yuilan, turning to the source of the sound, feeling the familiar qi and the smell of medicinal herbs, gently smiled and hugged her friend – Lu Yin.
“Lu Yin! It’s been a long time!”
“Yes, it’s been a long time… how are you? Feeling well?” Lu Yin began asking about her health, examining Li Yuilan’s body.
“Eh… y-yes, everything is fine, don’t worry!” Li Yuilan answered embarrassedly.
Every time they met, Lu Yin examined any wounds and diseases. Although Li Yuilan was grateful for this, she was embarrassed by such attention.
Well, as soon as these two beauties were together, the young lords immediately stared at them with their eyes wide open, looking like a dog in heat.
Of course, no one dared to approach these two. A year ago at the gathering, when someone tried to stick to Li Yuilan, Lu Yin mercilessly beat this young master.
…although this girl looks friendly, with a gentle smile always on her face, in some moments she turns into a real sadist who can crush your bones without any problems for an insult.
That’s why, no matter how much some men wanted to approach them to talk, their eggs and buns shrank at the mere memory of Lu Yin’s cruelty.
Apart from this, the gathering was going on as usual. At one point, even Huang Jing arrived, who was here to get to know influential people better.
“Oh, who else but young master Huang? Greetings, greetings!” a voice full of contempt and mockery came from the side.
Turning his head, Huang Jing looked indifferently at the man who came out of his entourage. His head was a mess as if a chicken had shat on it.
“I didn’t know that even despised worms could speak. The heavens have truly surprised me,” Huang Jing replied to the contemptuous tone of some master’s subordinate.
“Who are you to talk about worms, Huang Jing,” a rough male voice came from afar.
The subordinate who first started mocking Huang Jing was all red with shame and anger, but when he saw and heard the voice of the man, he quickly ran back like a dog whose tail had been stepped on.
“Hey…”
“It’s him…”
“His Qi is still powerful and oppressive…”
A man walked out of the crowd, emitting a high and proud aura. His long hair was tied in a high ponytail, his cold and emotionless dark brown eyes looked at Huang Jing, his face was not so much handsome as it was ugly.
The man was tall, 197 cm. He looked muscular, and by his appearance, one might think that he was no more than thirty years old.
“So you’re here too, Bai He,” Huang Jing nodded, and his gaze became wary when he saw the appearance of this man: “It seems that you still haven’t been able to teach your dogs how to speak human language properly.”
“Heh.”
Hearing the obvious sarcasm in Huang Jing’s voice, Bai He just smiled, and his aura soared to the skies.
“Oh-oh… damn!”
“This monster has broken through again!”
Bai He’s aura grew like yeast. Starting from the peak of Core Formation, he broke through the wall of Soul Nascent’s first stage, then the second stage, the third stage… fourth stage… Fifth stage!
The fifth stage of Soul Nascent!
Everyone felt their breath catch, the air in the pavilion became heavy, and it was difficult to find a few streams of air to breathe in greedily.
Bai He was a genius among the young generation thirty years ago, reaching Core Formation at the age of 23 and Soul Nascent at the age of 42.
This was considered a high cultivation speed, and his main strength was his body, not Qi. It was as if he was woven from divine metal, he was strong, emitting an aura of power and invincibility!
If any young man happened to meet his gaze, their hearts would sink into their heels, as if hiding from a terrifying master!
Huang Jing felt the tension. Compared to Bai He, he was nothing. Twenty years ago, Huang Jing personally saw how his sect’s elder brother killed more than ten Core Formation cultivators while being a Qi Condensation cultivator.
A powerful, no doubt, master!
“Hmph. I thought you had learned something from your brother, but it seems you still like to hang out with all sorts of scum!” Bai He snorted disdainfully, looking at Huang Jing’s subordinates. His eyes gleamed with mockery: “Do you think you can defeat Huang Baizhi this way? Tsk, tsk! Zero chances! Zero!”
“Hmph…”
Huang Jing narrowed his eyes, this was his sore point. Huang Baizhi was his elder brother, who initially had no interest in inheritance and the struggle for it, but a month ago he announced his participation.
This was serious. His brother was at the fourth stage of Soul Nascent. Moreover, there were many Core Formation cultivators in his entourage.
However, Huang Jing decided not to argue and left Bai He with an indifferent expression, which did not stop him.
Silence crept into the pavilion, which was still lively a minute ago. Many were afraid to speak loudly, not wanting to provoke Bai He.
Fortunately, the man left after looking at Huang Jing, who was walking up the stairs.
The atmosphere of joy returned to the pavilion, despite the still lingering tension in the air.
The place where geniuses gather has always been a dangerous place. If someone lit a match, the whole pavilion would explode.
In the distance, Li Yuilan and Lu Yin silently observed what was happening. They were not personally acquainted with Huang Jing, so they did not rush to help him.
“That Bai He again… always causing trouble,” Lu Yin muttered, frowning her beautiful brows: “One of the few people I hate with all my soul. He is arrogant and his character is terrible!”
“I agree. He emits a bloody aura, obviously killed more than a dozen people. The threads of fate around him are always colored with blood,” Li Yuilan muttered, twisting her mouth: “But that young man’s threads of fate were light. It seems that he is a good person.”
“I am not personally acquainted with him, but I have heard of his noble character. He helps the poor and wandering cultivators, Huang Jing is known as the most generous person in the Huang family,” Lu Yin began to explain: “They say he was the closest to the status of the next head of the family, if not for the appearance of Huang Baizhi.”
“What a misfortune… but I am sure that fate will help him. Good people and pure karma are always loved by the Heavens,” Li Yuilan said with a kind smile.
Lu Yin only sighed and fell silent. She was not in as positive a mood as Li Yuilan.
In any case, the gathering continued, even despite some unpleasantness. After the party, it would be appropriate to discuss something important.
“Recently, news has been received… the devil cultivators have managed to break free from control!”
The whole hall fell silent!
