Chapter 394: The Cloud Hall Token
Morning came in a burst of light and color, sending a stream of light into the waking world.
In other places, one could only see rainbows after rain stopped. However, it was something that was as commonplace as a stray cloud in Cloudy City.
The view could always be traced back to the giant rock floating above the city, and the magnificent palace built atop it, floating over the land like a cloud borne sentry.
The palace was surrounded by layers of clouds, and only when the sky was crystal blue could the citizens see the vague outline of the palace. The sight of it rendered the onlookers speechless. It was a masterpiece of architecture-an ode to its very workmanship.
For those who had chanced to lay their eyes on the palace, it was a view worthy of the gods. And whoever lived in it was seen as such.
In the eyes of mortal men, many martial artists were no different from ranks of gods. They were the closest examples of divinity on Earth. These men could accomplish incredible feats exceeding an ordinary mortal-they could fly in the sky, burrow into the depths of the Earth, move mountains and drain the seas. Some of them could even live for hundreds or thousands of years. What else could they be except gods?
But, like the ordinary civilians of the city, there were also martial artists for whom the magnificent palace held a different meaning. It could not compare to the true palaces of the gods in the tales and legends of old, but it was something that signified it. Cloud Hall, another name they called the floating palace, was a fourth-rate sect which was famous in Central Region.
Cloud Hall was built on this giant floating rock whose origin was unknown to all. When it was built, there was an array absorbing the energy around the palace for the martial artists in it. The energy it obtained was so immense that even the clouds surrounding the Cloud Hall were drawn to it, forming a curtain of white and hiding the palace from view.
That day, the array in Cloud Hall's left side began shimmering. Beams of light fell to the Earth, and from it, people began to walk out one after another.
Zen instinctively sniffed the moment he stepped out of the light. He was feeling lightheaded. The rich vitality in Cloud Hall had almost gotten him drunk with energy. His body thrummed with the excesses. There was no place in the whole Eastern Region foliaged with such dense energy.
Patrick, Lewis and Rocher, the disciples of the second-rated sects, were having the same feelings as Zen. Their legs gave off slight trembles from under them.
Upon seeing them seemingly affected by the rich vitality, the disciples from Cloud Hall all cast them haughty glimpses.
These supercilious bunch, including Lennon, had not cultivated themselves in Cloud Hall. For most, they trained themselves in a place called “Cloud School” in Cloudy City. From there, handpicked disciples who were the finest of finest, like Lennon, were given chances to enter Cloud Hall. As for Frank, he often cultivated in Cloud Hall thanks to his father.
Since they were all disciples of Elite House of Cloud Hall, they were befitting of entry to Cloud Hall.
Following Fernandez, the disciples headed towards Elite House.
The gargantuan palace towered over Zen and the others. They fixed their eyes on Cloud Hall, unable to take their gazes off its grandeur. The most illustrious of praises fell short of its magnificence. It was a truly incredible sight to behold.
A floating palace was hard for one to fathom, but Zen thought it would be possible to understand the mechanism if he started with its basic principles.
He had already seen floating rocks back in Cloud Road. These rocks seemed to repel gravity, hence they were capable of floating in the air. A palace could be built on a floating rock, if it was big enough.
But Cloud Hall was gigantic structure-it needed a rock which should be as big as an island in order to support it. As for the origins of a rock of such size, it was something that was beyond Zen's knowledge.
Mist floated around like a translucent curtain of moisture, lending a surreal aura to the place and making the disciples look to be walking on air. They walked through Cloud Hall following Fernandez.
Before long, they arrived at the Elite House.
All of the disciples, regardless of their origins, were thrumming with excitement. After years of fierce competition with others, they finally became an elite disciple of Cloud Hall. It was a much-coveted position, the pinnacle of their calling, for many of them.
However, for Zen, it was only a beginning.
Fernandez led them to Elite House and handed them over to another person. Soon enough, murmurs filled the hall as the disciples began chattering with one another in uncontainable excitement. There were exchanges of stories, and the disciples from Cloud Hall even started boasting of the things they saw and heard. After all, growing up in the Central Region had a lot of advantages. They had a wider experience than the disciples from the second-rated sects. Lewis and other disciples all listened to their tales carefully and with interest.
It seemed that a rank system would be employed in Elite House. It closely resembled the point system of Cloud Sect.
“Everyone in Elite House will be given a Cloud Hall Token. It comes in five different colors: purple, yellow, golden, cyan and red. Each of the colors represents ranks of power. With these tokens, we can enter countless mystical places to cultivate ourselves. Since we have just entered Elite House, we start with the lowest rank. The red Cloud Hall Token will be given to us.”
“But don't you look down upon these red tokens. The mystical places we can enter with it are hundred times better than the places where you used to cultivate yourselves!”
In the middle of their boasting, two steward guards of Cloud Hall came in.
Zen sized the two up and found that they were all in Internal Elixir Realm!
Though their momentum was inferior to Kenneth, they were martial artists of impressive prowess. It only went to show how Cloud Hall was filled with people of overwhelming power and talent. From here on, Zen knew they had their work cut out for them.
One steward guard of Cloud Hall cast a sweeping glance over them, his face unreadable. “Now, you will be given a Cloud Hall Token. This token will serve as a pass to Cloud Hall and mystical places for cultivation. Do not be careless with it,” he said sternly.
Then, he began calling out names according to the list.
A disciple would step forward and take his Cloud Hall Token upon being called.
True to the words of the disciples from Cloud Hall, the ones who had just entered Elite House were given a red token, the lowest rank.
A glimpse of the Cloud Hall Token reminded Zen of the voice-transmitting token Tia gave him. Both had clouds carved in their surface. The only difference was that the token Tia gave him was white, while his was red.
According to the disciples of Cloud Hall, the Cloud Hall Token was ranked by five colors, namely purple, yellow, golden, cyan and red. He wondered what rank was the voice-transmitting token that Tia had given him.
While Zen was pondering over this, the guard suddenly called out his name. A look of surprise flashed across the faces of the two men--Zen, at the sudden sound of his name; the guard, upon seeing the color of the token.
It was purple. A while ago, he was given the Cloud Hall Tokens. Knowing that it would be for the newcomers of Elite House, he did not bother to check them one by one and threw them straight to the space ring. All he would do was pass them out to the new disciples one after another and call the name on its back.
Or so he thought. He gaped in astonishment at the purple token he was holding in his hands. For a moment, he thought that there had been some mistake.
Why was it purple?
There were very strict rules about the colors of the Cloud Hall Tokens giving out, precisely because it was what decided which kind of mystical places the disciples could go into.
Under normal circumstances, the new comers would only be given a red Cloud Hall Token.
However, it was true that there had been some exceptions. For instance, there had been times in the past when cyan Cloud Hall Tokens were given to the new disciples. Those who possessed a great deal of talent were given this in place of the red one. But the chances were very slim. The most recent case of this happening was almost a decade ago.
Even the leader of Cloud Sect, Kenneth, only had a golden Cloud Hall Token-a middle ranking. These two stewards at the Internal Elixir Realm only had a cyan Cloud Hall Token. The golden token was a dream, which would take much more time and work for them to realize.
A golden Cloud Hall Token, would mean the opening of more mystical places-ones that were far better than the ones at the accessible to a cyan Cloud Hall Token holder.
But getting a golden Cloud Hall Token was a feat of extremely difficulty. Even long years of service at Cloud Hall had not been enough.
So how was it that this kid, a newcomer of Elite House, could get a purple Cloud Hall Token?
There must have been a mistake. It might have been a mix-up. There was no other plausible explanation for it.
Zen came to his sense quickly and stepped forward to take the purple Cloud Hall Token. To his surprise, one of the steward guards told him to wait, without further clarification. He then trotted away with the purple Cloud Hall Token.
Soon, the hall was filled with the low sound of questioning murmurs. “A purple Cloud Hall Token? Even if Zen is the champion of the Cloud Road, there is no way that he would be given one!”
“Is this some sort of joke? The purple Cloud Hall Tokens are usually given to the elders, and even then, only a few of them manage to obtain one. How is it possible that Zen would be given one?”
“Poor man. Soon enough his excitement will turn out to only be disappointment. He's no different from us. A red Cloud Hall Token is more than enough to him!”
Before long, the steward guard came back with a complicated expression. “This purple Cloud Hall Token truly belongs to you,” he said.
The words that he uttered were like a thunder clap in the clear sky, silencing everyone in the room with shock.
As an old saying goes, people don't worry about poverty, but fear the unfair distribution of wealth. Since everyone else were given a red Cloud Hall Token which represented the lowest rank, why was it that Zen got the purple token? It was ridiculous!