Chapter 146 (3): Long Time No See

"It's said that Master Nine once went to the Heavenly Palace to request reinforcements during the Guardians' most severe crisis. However, the Heavenly Palace refused to oblige, leaving Master Nine with no choice but to take drastic measures. He and Master Xue, along with several other top warriors, abandoned their posts to target the Heavenly Palace instead, placing the sect on lockdown to prevent anyone from entering or leaving while also killing its members on sight.

"Master Nine had declared to them that if the Heavenly Palace was going to stand by passively and watch as the world burned, then he was going them down with him! At the time, there was also a lot of internal pressure within the sect to answer Mater Nine's call, so in the end, they sent out three thousand top-tier swordsman to help the Guardians ward off the Church of the Self-Righteous and weather the storm.

"However, due to the Heavenly Palace's belated intervention, Master Nine was forced to make some concessions. In the past, there used to be many more lists like the Cloud Weapon Archive for categories like young prodigies, assassins, etc. but all of them were abandoned. Master Nine was forced to sacrifice many weapons in order to save the continent on that occasion."

A sense of righteous fury instantly rose up in Fang Che's heart upon hearing this story.

"Is the Heavenly Palace not part of the world that we live in? What gives them the right to stand by and watch as the rest of the world suffers?"

"The Heavenly Palace is like a self-contained supercity. Ever since the aforementioned incident, they've only become more closed off to the rest of the world," Feng Xiangdong sighed.

***

The remaining twenty-seven Kings and Ye Meng had already sat down in the spectator stands, while Fang Che was in the stands reserved for the combatants taking part in the friendly matches.

There were four disguised figures in the crowd behind Ye Meng and the others, and they were none other than Mo Ganyun's group.

Even further out on the edge of the crowd was Ding Jieran.

They had already been here for quite some time, and they had spotted Fang Che and the others, but couldn't greet them.

They had to keep a low profile and ensure that they weren't noticed by the enemy. In particular, if high-ranking figures were to discover the energy of the Amethyst Soul within Mo Ganyun and the others, then that would be a catastrophic disaster.

On the other side, many people from the Church of the Self-Righteous had also arrived, and there was a very clear divide in the spectator stands, with each side regarding the other with undisguised animosity.

If it weren't for the special setting that they were in, an all-out war would've already erupted between the two sides.

Amid all the noise and chatter, Xue Fuxiao and the others suddenly turned to look into the distant sky.

Before long, a small black dot appeared on the horizon, and it rapidly expanded in everyone's field of view, arriving above the mountain in almost no time at all.

𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

It was a black and menacing flying ship over ten thousand feet in length.

All of the people from the Church of the Self-Righteous present immediately rose to their feet with fervent looks in their eyes, while the leaders of the reclusive sects hurriedly excused themselves from Dongfang Sansan before making their way toward the flying ship.

Clearly, they intended to greet Yan Nan just as they had done with Dongfang Sansan.

A warm and understanding smile appeared on Dongfang Sansan's face, but Xue Fuxiao and Bing Qianshan were much less empathetic.

"Are you going over there as well, Gu Changhan?"

Gu Changhan stopped in his tracks, then turned around with a wry smile as he replied, "There are certain things that I must do to keep up appearances."

"Have you already forgotten the ten thousand disciples who lost their lives?" Bing Qianshan sneered.

"Qianshan!" Dongfang Sansan snapped in a stern voice.

Bing Qianshan fell silent, but the sneer on his face remained.

A guilt-ridden look appeared on Gu Changhan's face, but he ultimately still left after several elders from the Frost Sword Sect called out to him.

Fang Che had already spotted Gu Changhan, and the fact that he was a high-ranking member of the Frost Sword Sect explained why so many disciples from that sect had been sent to the Hall of Protectionists.

With that in mind, Fang Che heaved an internal forlorn sigh.

He knew that there was a very good chance that the Frost Sword Sect would suffer a horrific fate.

Indecision was a cardinal sin when it came to taking sides.

They had lost over ten thousand disciples to the Church of the Self-Righteous, and several thousand more had joined the Halls of Protectionists, so it was already very clear where their allegiances lied.

In that case, what was the point in doing something like this just to keep up appearances?

They were not taking this opportunity to get closer to their allies, instead choosing to try and appease the enemy. Once the next all-out war inevitably commenced between the two sides, the Frost Sword Sect was undoubtedly going to be subjected to a terrible fate.

The cabin doors of the black flying ship slowly opened, and an incredibly imposing black-robed figure appeared at the entrance, gazing upon the spectator stands reserved for the Guardians with an unconcealed look of provocation in his eyes.

His emergence was met with a wave of thunderous cheers.

"We pay our respects to Deputy Pope Yan Nan!"

Yan Nan stood with his hands clasped behind his back, and he took a cold and arrogant glance at the Guardian camp, then began making his way out of the flying ship. There was nothing but air beneath his feet, but it was as if he were making his way down a staircase.

Bi Changhong emerged behind him, and he was also welcomed with raucous cheers.

Then came the other deputy popes one after another, and the people of the Church of the Self-Righteous were close to losing their voices from excessive screaming.

Never had they imagined that so many deputy popes would appear here at once.

How many years had it been since they last saw more than three deputy popes appear in one place? It was far too distant a memory...

Duan Xiyang was the last of the group to emerge, yet he was met with the most thunderous cheers.

As the top-ranked warrior on the Cloud Weapon Archive, he held a special place in the hearts of all demonic church members as an inspiration to marvel at and a role model to strive for.

Duan Xiyang remained expressionless as he drifted out of the flying ship before descending onto the spectator stands, followed closely by Yan Nan and the others.

In response to all of the greetings from the high-ranking members of the reclusive sects, Yan Nan and the others merely gave slight nods of acknowledgment, putting on a very cold and arrogant display that came in stark contrast to Dongfang Sansan's warm and polite reception.

Clearly, they had no regard for these people, but the smiles of the high-ranking sect members didn't waver in the slightest, and they didn't seem to mind at all.

After taking a seat on the spectator stands, Yan Nan cast his gaze across to the other side as he greeted in a booming voice, "Long time no see, Dongfang."

Even though it was a greeting, his voice was brimming with a natural sense of aggression and intimidation.

"You haven't aged a day since I saw you last, Deputy Pope Yan," Dongfang Sansan said with a faint smile as he rose to his feet and cupped his fist in a salute. "I have longed to see you again."

"You long to see me or you long to see my head on a silver platter?" Yan Nan guffawed.

"The latter does sound more appealing," Dongfang Sansan replied with an amused smile.

"It's a real shame for you that there still exists no one capable of claiming my head. That must be sorely disappointing for you, no?"

"There's no hurry," Dongfang Sansan replied with a composed smile. "It's been a pleasure competing against you for all these years."

"Has it been a pleasure dealing with me as well?" Bi Changhong chuckled.

"What about me?" Chen Gu chimed in.

"The two of you seem to be in a very good mood today," Dongfang Sansan remarked. "Could it be that you have some good news to share with us all?"

Bi Changhong and Chen Gu immediately fell into a sheepish silence.

How did he know? All we did was make a joke, yet he's managed to see right through us! I can't keep speaking to him!

"Reuniting with a fierce rival is always a joyous occasion, is it not? It's no wonder we're all in such a good mood," Yan Nan chuckled. "What are your thoughts on these matches today, Dongfang?"

"I don't really have any thoughts to share. You already know my objectives, and I yours. Now that we're all here, I'm sure we'll all get our wishes."

"It's not every day that so many of us old fellas are gathered in one place, don't you think we should raise the stakes a bit?" Yan Nan asked. "Otherwise, it wouldn't do justice to the occasion."

A cautious look appeared on Dongfang Sansan's face as he asked, "What do you propose, Deputy Pope Yan?"

"Our side is sure to emerge victorious, so of course I want there to be more on the line," Yan Nan said with a confident smile.

"Your side is sure to emerge victorious?"

"That's right!"

"Don't you think you're a little overconfident," Xue Fuxiao interjected with a disdainful sneer.

"You don't believe me?" Yan Nan challenged.

"I believe me ass!"

"Fuxiao! Don't be so vulgar!" Dongfang Sansan reprimanded.

"Fine! In that case, I believe my arse!"

"How about you put your money where your mouth is, Xue Fuxiao?" Yan Nan challenged. "Do you dare to raise the stakes or not?"

"How much more do you want to add?" Xue Fuxiao asked.

Simultaneously, Dongfang Sansan replied, "That's out of the question!"

The two of them then fell silent in unison.

"Which one of you calls the shots here?" Chen Gu sneered.

Xue Fuxiao remained silent, while Dongfang Sansan sighed in a resigned manner, "Even if we're going to raise the stakes, we have to discuss the matter first."