Finally, Venerated Skysoarer’s rant came to an end. The senior executives of the Celestial Cicada Court heaved collective sighs of relief and their boiling fury died down as well.

They did understand some of his spiel, which was enough for them to realize that the old man’s criticism was spot on. He clearly knew what he was talking about.

Su Huanzhen took a deep breath. “Young lord Jiang Chen, if may I ask who the senior...”

Jiang Chen chuckled. “Do you remember when I said that your sect has something to do with an ancient sect, Sect Head Su? The senior has proven my speculations. Congratulations, the ancient heritage you possess belongs to the Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect, one of the leading factions in the ancient times. Venerated Skysoarer is a senior from that ancient sect. He was one of its top three figureheads.”

Every senior executive, including Su Huanzhen, gaped in disbelief.

All the hostility they harbored evaporated in an instant. The martial dao world valued heritage the most. It was a sect’s foundation, prestige, and history.

The older the heritage, the more solid a sect’s foundation.

The Celestial Cicada Court was a successor of one of the ten ancient leading factions! What a surprising and thrilling discovery!

And the senior was from that very same ancient sect. In other words, he was their forefather!

They wouldn’t be disgruntled by their forefather’s criticism, were they? Especially since his criticism had been entirely correct.

Suddenly, the senior executives wanted nothing more than for Venerated Skysoarer to whale on them for a few hours more. They’d been too enraged to listen to the old master before and thus missed many of the key points.

Noting their shock, Jiang Chen chuckled. “I’m here today to introduce Venerated Skysoarer to your sect, Sect Head Su. And I have a proposal to make. Of course, this is simply an idea. If you aren’t interested, you’re free to turn me down.”

“Please speak candidly with us, young lord Jiang Chen,” hurried out Su Huanzhen.

“Then I will. More than a decade ago, I announced that a few ancient factions would gradually resurface. The news sent a shockwave through the human domain. Does everyone remember that?”

Su Huanzhen nodded. “I do.”

“And after the human domain’s spirit veins are restored and the ancient sects resurface, the order in the human domain will continue to change. Do you agree?”

She nodded again. “Of course.”

“Over the past decade, the major factions in the human domain have been at each other’s throats. None of that escaped my eyes. To my delight, the Celestial Cicada Court kept its composure and stayed true to yourselves. That is very commendable. That’s why I’m paying you a visit.”

Everyone let out a relieved sigh. The senior executives looked at Su Huangzhen with newfound respect in their eyes.

They’d considered her overly conservative and cautious. Now, it turned out that they were the fools! None of them had seen the depths of their sect head’s vision.

The young lord held the sect head in high regard, which meant that the aggressive factions in the domain would end up getting nothing for their effort.

“After the restoration of the spirit veins, the domain should’ve focused on cultivating and building ourselves up,” Su Huanzhen declared solemnly. “Spending our time and effort on expansion is going to hinder our fight against demons in the near future.”

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

“Exactly!” Jiang Chen clasped his hands and smiled. “What determines the domain’s order isn’t territory, but the ancient heritage. Whoever integrates an ancient heritage first would be the winners. Having a large territory doesn’t matter much compared to an ancient heritage.”

Everyone perked up. Can it be...

Jiang Chen smiled frankly. “That’s why I came. The Celestial Cicada Court has passed my test. You qualify for the ancient heritage. Moreover, the court itself descended from the Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect. There’s a shared history there. If you’re willing, we’d like to rebuild the ancient sect upon the Celestial Cicada Court, restoring the sect’s legacy. What say you?”

The crowd was stunned. The offer had practically fallen into their lap. And what a great offer it was!

The one downside was that there would be no Celestial Cicada Court in the human domain. In its place would the the Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect.

That didn’t matter, though. The court had stemmed from the ancient sect. No individual or faction was going to turn down the opportunity to go back to their roots.

The name of the sect held no sentimental value to them. It was but a name passed down through the generations.

Becoming an ancient leading sect could only benefit them. Most importantly, they would get the sect’s heritage in return!

All the senior executives itched with excitement. They didn’t even have to think to make the decision.

Su Huanzhen, though, calmed down from her glee. She looked at Jiang Chen seriously. “That’s great news, young lord Jiang Chen. However, I’d like to ask a few questions.”

Jiang Chen chuckled. “Of course. Ask away. This is an offer, not an order.”

“I have only one question: How much of the Celestial Cicada Court will be preserved in the future Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect?”

Jiang Chen chuckled. “At least seventy to eighty percent, I’d say. What do you think, Venerated Skysoarer?”

Skysoarer cackled. “It’s natural for you to care about your own people. I’m not going to deny you that. I care only that the sect is rebuilt. You’re an interesting one, girl. I have high hopes for you. Under my guidance, perhaps you’ll be able to make great progress in cultivation and your understanding of formations. Not much of young master Chen’s attention lies with the Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect. I have to find us a future sect head.”

That further cemented the court’s members’ resolve. One of them spoke up, “Young lord Jiang Chen always fulfills his promises, Sect Head, and the senior is a real master. More importantly, we share a history with the Ancient Crimson Heavens Sect. It’s a match made in heaven.”

Before Su Huanzhen could say anything, a man barged in hurriedly. “Sect Head, a large group of cultivators suddenly showed up at the portal you’ve assigned this subordinate to guard. They’re all severely injured...”