The crowd looked over to see two figures walking into the center of the gathering.
One of them was not tall, short and stocky, almost dwarfish in stature, wearing a tight-fitting black robe. His hair was slicked back, and the thin, horizontal mustache above his mouth was particularly eye-catching.
Many recognized this stout man—it was Fei Kui, the big boss who had been managing the affairs of the Black Buddha Lord all these years.
Walking ahead of Fei Kui was another man.
He was a young man who appeared carefree and unrestrained, with a handsome face graced by a smile as gentle as a spring breeze. Yet, his deep, dark eyes were as still and profound as an abyss.
He wore a robe whiter than snow, and his ink-black hair cascaded loosely behind him. Strangely, though he seemed young—barely over twenty—he was neither a reincarnated soul nor a reborn one. Yet, there was none of the youthful vigor one would expect; instead, he carried an aura of twilight, like the fading sunset or the onset of dusk—a lazy, languid sense of evening.
The assembled crowd recognized him at a glance as the newly emerged Monarch Chixiao of Yanluo.
But for most, this was their first time seeing this Monarch Chixiao. Besides surprise, they also felt astonishment.
They marveled that this Monarch Chixiao truly was as the rumors said: possessing no cultivation whatsoever, no destiny, and not being a reincarnation or rebirth. By all appearances, he looked like an ordinary person, utterly ordinary.
And yet, it was precisely this seemingly ordinary individual who had successively wiped out over a dozen Chixiao People in Yanluo, and at the Yunchuan Garden, with just the force of his voice alone, had paralyzed numerous elders from the Four Great Families and Seven Great Sects. Ancient Earth Immortals could not even stand steadily before him, and Feiyu Immortal Lord, who possessed a Human Dao Edict, had been shaken until blood flowed from all seven orifices.
Could such a person be ordinary?
The answer was certain.
He was absolutely not ordinary.
He claimed to be Monarch Chixiao, but who dared to say he was definitely a fake?
No one dared.
Just as everyone was speculating, a shocked cry suddenly rang out across the grounds: "He is not Monarch Chixiao at all! He is the Chiyan Young Lord!
He is Gu Qingfeng, the Chiyan Young Lord from the Great Northwest nine years ago!"
No one knew who had shouted this.
At this moment, no one cared.
Everyone was deeply stunned by the name 'Chiyan Young Lord Gu Qingfeng'.
Although they were all cultivators from Yanluo, they had all heard that nine years ago, a Chiyan Young Lord who claimed to be the Monarch's heir had emerged in the Great Northwest. It was said that this Chiyan Young Lord's strength was also extremely terrifying; before the Heavenly Mandate descended, he had killed dozens of Immortal Dynasty nobles in one breath.
But they had also heard that this Chiyan Young Lord had been annihilated into dust nine years ago while seizing the Heavenly Mandate.
And the one who said this was none other than the renowned Fairy Su Hua.
Since it was Fairy Su Hua who said it, it could not be false.
Why, then, were people here now saying he was the Chiyan Young Lord?
And not just one person, but many were saying it.
Were these people mistaken, or what was going on?
No one knew.
Everyone was somewhat bewildered, unsure who was telling the truth and who was lying.
They felt this way.
The Immortal Dynasty side was no exception.
They had all heard about the events in the Great Northwest nine years ago. Moreover, many of the Immortal officials who had descended upon Yanluo today had also descended upon the Great Northwest nine years ago, including Star Cloud Immortal Official Xun Fa from the Haoran Xun Clan.
Nine years ago, Xun Fa had been ordered to accompany Long Qianren and a group of nobles from the Liuguang Clan to the Great Northwest, where they encountered the Chiyan Young Lord. Dozens of Immortal Dynasty nobles had been slaughtered on the spot.
Over a thousand Immortal officials from the dynasty had either died or been crippled.
Long Qianren had been delayed on the road due to other matters at the time and had not gone to the Great Northwest.
As for why Xun Fa was still alive, it was because the Chiyan Young Lord, representing Monarch Chixiao, had said he would spare him out of respect for the Haoran Xun Clan.
To this day, Xun Fa still vividly remembered how the Chiyan Young Lord Gu Qingfeng had annihilated dozens of Immortal Dynasty nobles with a mere flick of his finger nine years ago. The memory still made his heart tremble.
Later, when this matter reached the Immortal Dynasty, they were furious and dispatched many Loose Immortals and even True Immortals to the Great Northwest. Unexpectedly, Fairy Su Hua then declared that the Chiyan Young Lord had been annihilated into dust.
The Immortal Dynasty believed Fairy Su Hua.
Xun Fa also believed.
But now, as he stared at the white-robed man walking into the center, he was completely dumbfounded.
He thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.
But they were not!
He was certain that the white-robed man walking in was absolutely Gu Qingfeng, the Chiyan Young Lord who had killed dozens of Immortal Dynasty nobles in the Great Northwest nine years ago!
There was no mistake!
Absolutely!
"Xun Fa, you saw that Chiyan Young Lord nine years ago. Is this person really him?"
The one asking was Xun Nian, also from the Haoran Xun Clan and one of the three chief administrators appointed by the Immortal Dynasty.
When Xun Nian asked, the others from the Immortal Dynasty also looked over, including even the Immortal Dynasty Envoy, Yunbao.
"He is...
he is...
he is the Chiyan Young Lord!
That's right!
It must be him!"
Nine years ago, not only Xun Fa had descended upon the Great Northwest; there were dozens of Immortal officials present now who had also gone to the Great Northwest back then. Like Xun Fa, they were all as if they had seen a ghost, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief. Despite this, they were all certain that the man was Gu Qingfeng, the Chiyan Young Lord from the Great Northwest.
"But...
Didn't Fairy Su Hua say the Chiyan Young Lord was dead?"
Xun Nian asked in astonishment and doubt.
His confusion was shared by everyone.
It was also Xun Fa's confusion. He shook his head, indicating he did not know what was going on either.
If one person said that this newly emerged Monarch Chixiao from Yanluo was the Chiyan Young Lord from the Great Northwest, perhaps it was not credible.
Two, three, even ten people might not be credible.
But here, not just ten, but hundreds of people were saying with certainty that the man was the Chiyan Young Lord from the Great Northwest. Among them were Xun Fa and a group of Immortal Dynasty officials who had seen the Chiyan Young Lord and even fought against him. Naturally, they could not be mistaken.
As everyone calmed down and thought carefully, the more they pondered, the more plausible it seemed.
Rumors said that the Chiyan Young Lord from the Great Northwest had once fused with a remnant consciousness of Monarch Chixiao. Because of this, the Blood Fiend Dragon-Elephant of the Chixiao People had shown him immense reverence.
Now, this newly emerged self-proclaimed Monarch in Yanluo could also command the reverence of the Blood Fiend Dragon-Elephant.
Was this a coincidence?
No!
It was absolutely not a coincidence!
But if he were indeed the Chiyan Young Lord from the Great Northwest, everyone found it unbelievable.
Could it be that Fairy Su Hua had deliberately lied nine years ago?
Fairy Su Hua was a renowned immortal maiden throughout the world. In her previous life, she was a Mystic Maiden of the Nine Heavens, and in this life, she was an Envoy of the Nine Heavens. Why would she lie?
There was simply no need!
Wait!
That's not right!
It was said that nine years ago in the Great Northwest, Fairy Su Hua had shielded that Chiyan Young Lord Gu Qingfeng not just once. Could it be that Fairy Su Hua's claim of his death was also a way to shield the Chiyan Young Lord?
Upon careful consideration, this was indeed possible!
All cultivators knew that Fairy Su Hua had always been searching for Monarch Chixiao. Not only that, she had retraced every path the Monarch had walked, every place he had visited, and every person he had met. Moreover, Fairy Su Hua had publicly acknowledged more than once that Monarch Chixiao was a hero, one she admired and even revered.
No one knew why Fairy Su Hua did this.
Fairy Su Hua had never explained.
If that Chiyan Young Lord had truly fused with a remnant consciousness of the Monarch, it meant the true Monarch was already dead. Perhaps Fairy Su Hua, in her sorrow and regret, could not bear to see the Monarch's only heir die at the hands of the Immortal Dynasty, and thus falsely declared the Chiyan Young Lord's death.
This was not impossible.
In fact, it was highly possible.