novelraw Chapter 166 - 164: Invitation [1]
Chapter 166 - 164: Invitation [1]
Once the female disciple had turned and left, Han Yuan was the only one who remained.
His expression finally darkened completely.
His palm opened and clenched.
His mind was clearly in turmoil.
After all, they had clearly been at the same level in the beginning.
How much time had passed since then? The other person had actually broken through to become a Qi Dao Grandmaster.
After a long moment,
he let out a long sigh, his expression returning to normal.
’So what if she’s a Qi Dao Grandmaster? With a little time, I can definitely do it too.’
...
As time passed,
the news of Helinta’s breakthrough to the Qi Sect spread rapidly.
...
「Suyuan City, at the headquarters of the Sealed Wolf Sect.」
Inside a cemetery.
Lu Xin stared at the photograph on the tombstone.
She didn’t say a word.
"Junior Sister Lu, try not to be so distraught. If Master is watching from heaven, he wouldn’t want to see you like this."
To her side, a tall, well-built man reached out and patted Lu Xin’s shoulder.
His name was Guan Xiong, the very same one who had gone with them to the Shexin Sect last time.
Now, however, he was the new Sect Leader of the Sealed Wolf Sect.
"Is there any news from the Holy Rain Sect?"
Lu Xin turned her head and spoke.
Her eyes were bloodshot, and her voice was extremely hoarse.
Guan Xiong was silent for a moment, then shook his head.
Upon hearing this,
Lu Xin’s expression soured.
"My grandfather was working for that person. Now that something has happened, they’re just ignoring it completely..."
"Junior Sister Lu, don’t you understand yet? Master is dead. We have no value anymore. Naturally, no one is going to stick their neck out for a Lower-tier School and offend the Shexin Sect, which has two Qi Dao Grandmasters. Besides, that person you mentioned can’t represent the entire Holy Rain Sect."
Guan Xiong sighed and interrupted her.
Ever since Sect Leader Li Fengtian died, the Sealed Wolf Sect had been in gradual decline.
Although he had taken over as Sect Leader,
a Martial Arts Family member was, after all, not a Qi Dao Grandmaster.
The few Lower-tier Schools that had previously been vassals of the Sealed Wolf Sect had now completely severed ties.
They wanted to seek help from the Holy Rain Sect, but the other party simply ignored them.
Lu Xin’s figure trembled, her face ashen.
But she knew he was right.
Still, she just couldn’t accept it.
She didn’t understand why things had turned out this way.
How could they have so coincidentally run into a Middle Black Blood Species?
After thinking it over for the past few days, she now strongly suspected that the Black Blood Species was connected to the Shexin Sect.
Therefore, she wanted to ask the Holy Rain Sect to help her avenge her grandfather and thoroughly investigate the Shexin Sect.
But reality taught her a cruel lesson.
It was only natural, though. To launch a full-scale investigation into a Middle-tier School with two Qi Dao Grandmasters, all for the sake of a single Secret Martial Artist in the Qi Blood Realm?
You’d have to be delusional.
...
When the news of Helinta’s breakthrough to the Qi Sect spread,
the immediate reaction from the various Schools was shock.
They had originally thought that the Shexin Sect would decline after losing the support of a Qi Dao Grandmaster due to Jiang Zuo’s death.
But as it turned out, not only did the Shexin Sect not decline, it grew even more prosperous.
Two of their disciples had actually both reached the Qi Dao Grandmaster Realm.
Two Qi Dao Grandmasters, even if only at the Initial-Level Qi Sect, would still place them at the forefront of the Middle-tier Schools.
After the initial shock, aside from the Seven Upper-tier Schools,
almost all of the other Middle and Lower-tier Schools sent people with congratulatory gifts.
A Qi Dao Grandmaster and a Martial Arts Family member were simply incomparable.
A Secret Martial Artist of this level was considered part of the absolute upper echelon, even within the Xia Federation.
They could not be ignored.
As for the ordinary powerful and influential figures, they didn’t even have the opportunity to present gifts.
Previously, when Du Wang broke through to become a Qi Dao Grandmaster, considering he needed to stabilize his cultivation, the decision was made to announce it after the New Year.
Unexpectedly, they were then hit by the gray fog invasion. He barely survived, nearly dying in the process, and is still in seclusion to this day. This caused the matter to be delayed.
「A few days later.」
Disciples from the various Schools arrived in Anshan City bearing congratulatory gifts.
The gifts, of course, were not vulgar items like money, but rather the Schools’ unique Secret Medicines and various weapons.
These were items that could help Secret Martial Artists at the Qi Blood Realm or the Martial Arts Family level.
However, to Hu Qi, who was already a Qi Dao Grandmaster, they were nothing special.
Although they were useless to him,
he did not refuse the gifts. Instead, he accepted them all to replenish the sect’s inventory and reward the disciples within the sect.
As for the visitors, Hu Qi sent them back, explaining that he had no intention of holding a celebratory banquet.
"The Celestial Crocodile Sect is also a Middle-tier School. We came all this way to deliver a gift, and we don’t even get to meet him."
After coming out of Zhu Xi Mansion, a plain-looking young man furrowed his brow, seemingly dissatisfied.
Beside him were his fellow disciples, dressed in the same uniform.
SLAP!
However, he had barely finished speaking when a slap struck him squarely across the face.
The immense force sent the young man stumbling, and he nearly lost his footing and fell on his butt.
"Ah... Who the hell... Eld... Eldest Brother, why did you hit me?"
The young man looked up, about to erupt in anger, but when he saw the face of the person who had hit him, his rage was instantly doused as if by a bucket of cold water. His words started to stutter.
After all, this Eldest Brother was the strongest person in the sect, second only to their Master.
"Why? Who the hell do you think you are, expecting a Qi Dao Grandmaster to grant you an audience? Don’t forget, our task was just to deliver the gift. Once it’s delivered, we’re supposed to leave."
"If it weren’t for the fact that you’re Third Junior Sister’s little brother, I wouldn’t have even brought you here. Now hurry up and go. Don’t embarrass us here."
The Eldest Brother said coldly, glancing out of the corner of his eye into the distance.
Over there stood two Shexin Sect disciples dressed in black and red Martial Arts Uniforms.
At that moment, the two of them were looking in their direction.
Their gazes were filled with a palpable Evil Energy, giving off a very uncomfortable feeling.
Seeing this, a chill went down the spine of the young man who had complained earlier. He didn’t dare to linger and quickly left the area.
There were quite a few disciples from various Schools who thought like that young man. It was one thing for the disciples of Lower-tier Schools, but it was especially true for those from Middle-tier Schools.
This practice of accepting the gift and immediately sending the person away clearly made them a bit uncomfortable.
However, any complaints were met with a harsh rebuke from their team leaders.
While social etiquette is important, one must consider the place and the status gap between the two parties.
Among ordinary people, such behavior between colleagues or friends would certainly be unacceptable.
But this was a world where the Extraordinary was real, and power resided within the individual.
With Hu Qi’s status as a Qi Dao Grandmaster, only other Secret Martial Artists who were also Qi Dao Grandmasters were worthy of his reception.
For people like them, the fact that he accepted their gifts was enough.
If he actually received them personally, it would, on the contrary, be a loss of face for a Qi Dao Grandmaster.
Besides, Hu Qi didn’t have the time right now anyway.
...
In the vast reception hall, Hu Qi was sitting across from two people.
One was a handsome young monk in plain white robes, holding a string of red Buddha Beads.
Fa Ji, from the Golden Buddha Temple.
The other was a burly man with long arms, a narrow waist, knotted muscles, and a rugged face.
This hulking man not only had no hair, but no eyebrows either.
Just looking at his face, he seemed strange and rather ferocious.
Guo Yi, a Qi Dao Grandmaster from the Thunder Gate.
According to him, he had lost his hair and eyebrows while tempering his body with lightning strikes.
This couldn’t help but make Hu Qi wonder if all the disciples of the Thunder Gate were hairless...
"I’ll have to trouble you both this time!"
Hu Qi said.
In his palm, he toyed with two dark silver rings.
On the face of the rings was a design of a soaring dove with outstretched wings. Every line of the engraving was exquisite and delicate—the symbol of a Federation Member.