Silence.
A profound silence, as if all sound had vanished from the world.
Shock.
Utter shock, as if witnessing the unbelievable.
Every single person present, from the lowest Foundation Establishment steward to the highest Golden Core expert who had survived the Longevity Tribulation, stood up without exception at this moment, their faces filled with astonishment.
Beyond the shock, the eyes of the Three Elders of Yunxia and Jin De, among others, also brimmed with boundless delight and surprise, as if they had never imagined that Wen Jingshan could...
Could actually fuse the three colors into one.
Laying down a colored foundation was already no easy feat.
Opening three successive colors was even more difficult.
But to be able to fuse the three colors of nature together was no longer a matter of difficulty; it was an exceedingly rare occurrence. Since the Great Calamity, over the past century, the Qingyang Region had produced many colored geniuses, but those who could fuse three colors were absolutely few and far between.
No one had expected Wen Jingshan to achieve it.
What was even more shocking was that among his three colors was a golden color. This was far, far more difficult than fusing three ordinary colors.
In the century since the Great Calarmity in the Qingyang Region, there might have been geniuses who fused three colors, but those were all three ordinary colors of nature.
To fuse two ordinary colors of nature with one golden color of nature—looking across the entire Qingyang Region, Wen Jingshan was the first.
This could not help but shock people, could not help but awe them, leaving them in awe of the terrifying power unleashed after the fusion of the three colors.
"Disciple, you...
You actually...
You actually really fused the three colors together...
Truly... truly remarkable!"
Jin De was very excited, also very agitated, his face flushed red with emotion, his words becoming incoherent.
"Mere fusion of three colors, what difficulty is there?"
At this moment, Wen Jingshan's expression was arrogant, his tone becoming especially brazen as he said, "Not to mention merely fusing two ordinary colors with one golden color, even if it were three golden colors, if I, Wen Jingshan, wished to fuse them, it would be no difficult matter."
On the high platform, the Three Elders of Yunxia were similarly excited and agitated, but they were not so carried away by their excitement that they lost their heads, because Mo Long was dead.
And Mo Long was Wei Qing's man. Wei Qing represented the Nine-Hua Alliance.
The purpose of holding this banquet to establish the heir apparent was precisely to test the attitude of the Nine-Hua Alliance.
At this very moment.
That Wei Qing was still sitting upright in his seat, holding a cup of fragrant tea, sipping it slowly. Throughout, he had not watched the fight between the two. Even when Mo Long was blasted to death by Wen Jingshan, he had not looked up once. From beginning to end, he sat upright, slowly savoring his tea.
Shui De stood there, his face ashen, opening his mouth but not daring to speak.
Elder Hui stood beside him, always bowing slightly, his brow tightly furrowed.
The four towering, mountain-like fierce giant warriors behind them had been standing there from the start, their faces ferocious and menacing. One hand rested on their scabbards, the other on their hilts, as if they would not hesitate to unleash a massacre the moment Wei Qing gave the order.
"Lord Wei, before the fight, we made it clear that fists and feet have no eyes, and casualties are unavoidable. Mo Long's death is also a great pity to us."
Yun He True Being spoke solemnly, his gaze fixed tightly on Wei Qing.
Wei Qing remained silent, still sipping his tea, not looking up.
Yun He True Being glanced left and right, waited a short while, then spoke again: "For the position of Heir Apparent, Wen Jingshan is the victor. Therefore, our Yunxia Sect has decided to establish Jing Shan as the Heir Apparent. I wonder if Lord Wei has any objections?"
After Yun He True Being finished speaking, everyone in the hall grew tense, all eyes fixed on Wei Qing.
Because Wei Qing's response would determine the attitude of the Nine-Hua Alliance.
If Wei Qing objected, the Three Elders of Yunxia would argue their case. If Wei Qing resorted to force, they would resist to the end. At that time, other sects would also join in, helping the Yunxia Sect resist together, thereby opposing the Nine-Hua Alliance.
"Lord Wei?"
Seeing that he did not speak, Yun He True Being asked again.
Wei Qing still did not respond.
Shui De stood there, feeling very anxious. According to the original plan, if Mo Long failed, Lord Wei would declare the Nine-Hua Alliance's stance. And the Nine-Hua Alliance's stance was very clear: eradicate the Yunxia Sect. Otherwise, Lord Wei would not have brought the Four Diamond Guardians.
But now Mo Long had already failed—not just failed, but even died.
Why wasn't Lord Wei speaking?
He didn't know.
Shui De also dared not ask further.
He didn't know, but Elder Hui beside him, having followed Wei Qing for a longer time, could more or less guess Wei Qing's intention.
In his view, the reason the Young Master had not responded was because he was waiting.
Waiting for one person.
Elder Hui also knew the person the Young Master was waiting for was Gu Qingfeng.
This was indeed the case.
Wei Qing was waiting for Gu Qingfeng.
He was a cautious man by nature. When faced with someone he could not understand or see through, and whose purpose was unknown, he would not reveal his own stance.
He had originally thought that Gu Qingfeng had also come today to compete for the Heir Apparent position, but he had not. He hadn't even participated.
What was his intention then?
Unknown.
Wei Qing felt he must wait. Even if he couldn't see through who the other party was, he at least needed to know their purpose.
Though he did not look, he knew that in the distance, Gu Qingfeng was still chatting and drinking with Huode.
"Lord Wei, if you have no objections, then..." Just then, Wei Qing, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke. His voice was also very calm. "Mo Long lost, and died. Of course, dead is dead. However..." His tone shifted. He picked up his teacup and took a gentle sip. "Since the selection of the Heir Apparent must be from among the Direct Disciples, Mo Long is not the only Direct Disciple, is he?"
"That is correct. The other several Direct Disciples have already voluntarily withdrawn."
"Heh heh..." Wei Qing gave a faint laugh, placed the teacup in his hand on the table, and without looking up, said, "As far as I know, there is one Direct Disciple who has not withdrawn."
"Oh?"
The Three Elders of Yunxia uttered a sound of surprise, not understanding what Wei Qing meant.
"His surname is Gu, given name Qingfeng, Dao title: Young Master Chiyan."
Hmm?
No one had expected Wei Qing to suddenly bring up Gu Qingfeng.
In their minds, Gu Qingfeng had always been the person Huode brought in to compete for the Heir Apparent position.
Even Huode hadn't made a sound, so why would Wei Qing of the Nine-Hua Alliance...
Not to mention the Three Elders of Yunxia being confused, even Huode himself was somewhat bewildered. He sent a sound transmission to inquire: "What does this Wei Qing mean? Why drag us into this for no reason?"
Gu Qingfeng sat with his legs crossed, drinking his wine, glanced at Wei Qing, and chuckled. "This fellow is quite cautious."
Cautious?
Huode did not understand.
On the high platform, Yun He True Being said, "That's how it is. Although Gu Qingfeng is a Direct Disciple, we do not acknowledge him. Moreover, he failed his Foundation Establishment and has no qualification to participate in the competition."
"Whether you acknowledge him or not is none of my concern. In my eyes, he is a Direct Disciple of the Yunxia Sect."
Wei Qing continued, "If he does not participate in the competition, I likewise will not acknowledge the Heir Apparent you establish."
"This..." The Three Elders of Yunxia were momentarily unable to grasp what Wei Qing truly meant.
"Heh."
At this moment, Wen Jingshan in the hall suddenly stepped forward, giving a faint smile. "Since Lord Wei has said so, then I, Wen Jingshan, will let you see with your own eyes..."
"Hold on!"
Jin De stepped forward, about to say something, but Wen Jingshan smiled and said, "Master, do you not trust me?"
"No!"
Jin De shook his head, then cupped his hands towards Wei Qing and said, "Lord Wei, if Jing Shan defeats that Gu Qingfeng, will you then acknowledge him as the Heir Apparent of the Yunxia Sect?"