Chapter 1343: Windfall
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The mighty ones from the Zhong Clan stood frozen as they saw more and more mighty ones from the other side showing up. They felt a massive pressure on their chests.
They were unable to fathom what was going on.
What the hell was this?
Why were so many mighty ones showing up all of a sudden? There were even several Holiness of Nirvanas standing right behind Ye Futian. All of them were addressing him as City Lord and acting very respectful toward him, as if he were their leader or something.
All who had showed up seemed to know him as well.
With such a lineup and Qi Xuangang added to the mix, the few Holiness of Nirvanas in the Zhong Clan were apparently no match at all.
At that moment, another group of people emerged—Prince Chi Shang and Yu Shifei of the Crimson Dragon Realm. When the teleportation had gone wrong and disintegrated, they had held each other’s hands, and because of that, they had remained together, showing up at the same place. They had met up with the others at the event later, and they had found more of their own.
They were trying to see if they were able to find anyone from the Crimson Dragon Realm among the vast crowd that day. It was apparent that everyone had shared the same thoughts and gathered at the event.
Ye Futian was even bold enough to cause a scene at the event.
“I’d heard of the exploits of the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan throughout the days I spent in the imperial city. I didn’t expect to find both clans more forceful than I could have imagined. These two clans really are capable of throwing their weight around in Emperor Qi’s Territory.” Chi Shang smiled and continued, “His Majesty Emperor Qi should really keep his people in check.”
Qi You felt it rather out of place for so many mighty ones to show up one after another. All of them had exceptional bearing, and many among them felt extraordinary, especially several of the younger ones. While their training had apparently not been the strongest, their bearings were nonetheless superb, so much so that it seemed that the geniuses in Emperor Qi’s Territory appeared to be beneath their notice.
While Emperor Qi’s Territory was indeed said to be a place ruled by a Renhuang, it was but one of the places ruled by a Renhuang throughout the entire Heavenly Mandate Realm. There were many other stronger places, and because of that, they were unable to keep the best of the best around. If talents were to be compared, the geniuses who stood at the very pinnacle would not have been inferior to those from Emperor Qi’s Territory. They would have only been stronger.
There were many among those who’d emerged who were descendants of Renhuang themselves.
That day was the day on which the Palace Examination of Emperor Qi’s Territory was held, but it seemed that things had changed altogether. A storm had arisen all because of Yun Qianyue.
To put it precisely, it was that silver-haired young man who’d caused such a scene.
Just who the hell was that young man?
Zhong Li’s expression had turned completely glum. The Zhong Clan had intended to forcibly overpower Qi Xuangang and those with him, sweeping the matter under the rug. They would have apologized to Emperor Qi at a later date. It would have been better to be caught in a disadvantage at such a place.
However, this turn of events had rendered them utterly helpless.
The parties were no longer in the same weight class to begin with.
Even if the Zuoqiu Clan were to be added the conflict, siding with the Zhong Clan, they would still have lost. Now only the Zhong Clan was caught in such a predicament.
Those from the Zuoqiu Clan sported expressions that were equally as interesting. The mighty ones from the Celestial Sword Li Clan and the Yun Clan of Luo City were all stunned by the turn of events before them.
“Telling me to keep my people in check… You people really are bold indeed.” A voice was heard from afar, and everyone saw a holy, dazzling beam of light descending from the royal palace. A figure in royal garb walked in front of them, heading towards the crowd.
His appearance caused countless people throughout the vast place to bow solemnly and say, “Greetings, Your Majesty.”
Many mighty ones from the Zuoqiu Clan, the Zhong Clan, and the others bowed one after another as well.
Emperor Qi came before them with a single step. Qi You rose as well and called out to the person right before him, “Father.”
Emperor Qi nodded slightly to the crowd, waving his hand to tell everyone to be at ease. His eyes then turned towards Ye Futian, Chi Shang, and the others.
“Greetings, Your Majesty. I’m Chi Shang from the Crimson Dragon Realm,” Chi Shang said and bowed.
“Greetings, Your Majesty. I’m Ye Futian.” Ye Futian bowed as well. While those people had been there causing a ruckus, they were nonetheless still very polite seeing a true Renhuang, showing appropriate manners and respect.
Emperor QI smiled and said, “You sure are bold. I assume you’re a member of the royal family in the Crimson Dragon Clan then? Would you mind doing the introductions, Sir Qi?”
Qi Xuangang nodded and looked at Chi Shang, saying, “This is His Highness, Prince Chi Shang of the royal palace of Crimson Dragon Realm in the Crimson Dragon Region. The one by his side is his wife. The others are all from the Crimson Dragon Region. Ye Futian is my student, and he hails from Emperor Xia’s Realm in Crimson Dragon Region. All of them are here in the Heavenly Mandate Realm on a pilgrimage. The Ancient Road of Space that we were on disintegrated. We were scattered all over the place, and we all gathered here today.”
“So that is to say that there are probably several children of Renhuang in the Crimson Dragon Realm then?” Emperor Qi asked and smiled, turning his eyes to several of them. He was able to feel something special from those few.
“Indeed.” Qi Xuangang nodded, and crowd was rattled.
Several children of Renhuang?
No one had expected the lineup that had showed up out of nowhere to be so terrifying, and it looked rather ridiculous. The Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan had no doubt been very much of a big deal in Emperor Qi’s Territory, but they were rather tiny when compared to the ones on the other side.
It was no surprise that Ye Futian showed neither fear nor respect for them or that he had even gone on to make sarcastic jabs at them.
They were curious what kind of a character Ye Futian had been in the Crimson Dragon Region.
They were curious about his status.
“Seems like you have your own motives for coming to the royal palace then, Sir Ye. You people have taken the venue where the Palace Examination was to be held to be your meeting place, I see,” Emperor Qi continued, looking at them.
“I beg your forgiveness, Your Majesty,” Qi Xuangang said and bowed slightly.
“You’ve made it a point not to stay here for long, so what can I fault you for? However, that student of yours really is a cocky one, stirring up all that trouble in the Palace Examination.” Emperor Qi turned his attention to Ye Futian and asked, “Someone who was able to overpower top-notch geniuses from Emperor Qi’s Territory… What is the status of this student of yours, Sir Qi?”
“No status worth mentioning. He is but a cultivator from Emperor Xia’s Realm who joined the Crimson Dragon Realm,” Qi Xuangang answered.
“You refuse to tell me the truth then?” Emperor Qi looked at him and the few Holiness of Nirvanas around him. All of them had emerged only because of him, just as a show of force.
Qi Xuangang had actually said that someone like that was of no status worth mentioning.
“If you really would like to know of his status, Your Majesty, then I’d say that Ye Futian is someone who loved stirring up trouble back in the Crimson Dragon Realm. He is a City Lord who has a great many mighty ones serving him.” Chi Shang smiled and continued, “By the way, Ye Futian is also the number-one cultivator in his generation in the Crimson Dragon Region. A genius who stands at the very pinnacle, if you would. I’m afraid none in the Palace Examination would be able to compare to him, let alone Zhong Qiu of the Zhong Clan.”
“Number-one cultivator!”
Chi Shang spoke so highly of Ye Futian that hardly any appraisal could have surpassed what he’d said.
That number one apparently took the prince into consideration, so it was saying that the prince was inferior to Ye Futian.
Furthermore, he had said “Crimson Dragon Region” instead of “Crimson Dragon Realm.”
Emperor Qi knew, naturally, that there were a great many top-notch geniuses gathered from all over the Crimson Dragon Region in that realm, yet Chi Shang still claimed that Ye Futian was the number-one young cultivator in the Crimson Dragon Region.
That appraisal alone spoke volumes about how tremendously powerful Ye Futian was.
It was no surprise that Zhong Qiu had not been able to withstand even a single hit. He really was unfortunate for having met someone like that.
The corner of Zuoqiu Yan’s mouth twitched. He had been rather dismissive of Ye Futian until the other man had actually taken down Zhong Qiu with a single hit. Only then had Zuoqiu Yan felt truly shaken.
“Sir Ye, number one in Crimson Dragon Region.” Yun Qianyue’s expression turned rather dazed, wondering if this was truly the soft-spoken and polite Sir Ye that she knew.
All of the mighty ones from the Crimson Dragon Region, even the likes of princes, were proud of him.
That being said, Sir Ye’s talents would have definitely overpowered many geniuses throughout the Crimson Dragon Region then.
“So that is how it is.” Emperor Qi smiled and said, “In that case, the Palace Examination today has turned out rather meaningful, for we are able to see how different those from this territory are compared to the number one in the Crimson Dragon Region. You all should be more diligent in your training from here on out in order to prevent what happened today from happening again. Your emperor is losing face today.”
“We will definitely do our best to scout geniuses within the territory, Your Majesty,” the leader of the Zuoqiu Clan said to Emperor Qi and bowed.
“While what Chi Shang said sounded rather unpleasant to the ear, it would seem that he has a point. I really do need to keep my people in check,” Emperor Qi said. The states of mind of the mighty ones from both the Zuoqiu Clan and the Zhong Clan continued to plunge after they heard that.
“We’re responsible for what happened today. Please see to it that we’re punished, Your Majesty,” the leader of the Zuoqiu Clan said, asking to be punished voluntarily.
“Qi You, have someone investigate the Zuoqiu Clan’s abuse of power by trading candidate slots for the Palace Examination, and do everything in your power to cooperate. Zuoqiu, you have been following me for many years, and it is impossible for you not to do anything wrong at all. I simply hope that you know where your responsibilities lie.” Emperor Qi continued, “As for the Zhong Clan, there will no longer be any need for them to participate in anything related to the territory. Qi You, look into the training methods of the Zhong Clan and see if they have been forcing or threatening others in anything.”
“Yes, father.” Qi You rose and nodded. Zhong Li’s expression became as pale as paper. The mighty ones of the Zhong Clan were all shuddering slightly.
That was the end of them.
The emperor had stripped the Zhong Clan of all their power right there and then.
Furthermore, there was also to be an investigation into their clan, and all of them knew what they had done so far. That large clan had had many shady dealings in the past. If any of that were to be brought to light, the emperor would surely not let them off easy.
The emperor had truly taken advantage of the commotion to straighten his people out.
“Finally, I shall see to it that the Palace Examination is organized again at a later date, and the selection shall be done fairly,” Emperor Qi said to the crowd.
“All hail our wise emperor.” One person after another bowed. Hope lit up in the hearts of many.
Yun Teng and Yun Ni both smiled. It seemed that Qianyue would turn out all right after all.
The Zhong Clan would face extremely severe punishments.
Yun Qianyue had already walked back to Ye Futian on the platform. She looked at Ye Futian with teary eyes, but there was a smile on her face as well. She asked, “Are you really willing to take me as your student, sir?”
“I am indeed.” Ye Futian smiled and said, “But while I’ve agreed to take you as my student, you’ll still be relying on yourself to further your training, for I won’t be able to take you with me.”
“Indeed.” Yun Qianyue nodded. “I understand.”
She did not dare ask for more.
“Let her stay in the royal palace and train under me then,” Emperor Qi said. Ye Futian and Yun Qianyue were both dumbfounded as they looked at Emperor Qi.
“The Zhong Clan served me, and I was at fault in this as well. Just take it as compensation,” Emperor Qi said.
“You indeed are generous and fair, Your Majesty.” Ye Futian bowed and continued, “Thank you very much, Your Majesty.”
Yun Qianyue smiled as well. Her eyes seemed to become even wetter as she smiled.
Her family had thrown her away and sent her off to become a servant girl in order for Yun Mo to get a chance at the Palace Examination.
Right then, however, she had acquired the right to train by Emperor Qi’s side. It all just seemed so ironic.
The Yun Clan looked upon the scene with ashen faces. No one could have comprehended what they felt.