"This matter... I'm afraid we have to thank that Young Lord Chiyan."
"Thank him?"
Ancestral Patriarch Fenghua opened his mouth, asking in disbelief, "Don't tell me...
Did Young Lord Chiyan really help you achieve enlightenment through direct transmission?"
"Whether he helped me achieve enlightenment or not, I don't know."
Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie opened his gourd and took two swigs, wearing an expression that was both amused and exasperated. "I only know that after he slapped me a few times, I felt as if I had been reborn from the flames. Your junior brother has never felt as comfortable as I do now. I feel my whole body brimming with power. It's truly exhilarating."
The expressions of everyone present changed repeatedly as they listened to the conversation between Fenghua and Fenglie. No one had expected Elder Feilu's earlier jest to actually come true. Young Lord Chiyan had not only not killed Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie but had truly helped him achieve enlightenment. Otherwise, how could Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie's cultivation have leapt from the eighty-first transformation of the Nascent Soul stage, skipping over the Materialization, Spiritization, and Divinization stages, directly condensing a Dao Heart in just a few short days?
This was simply too unbelievable.
Too miraculous!
So miraculous it was hard to believe, yet Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie was standing right here, alive and well, forcing them to believe.
Within the hall.
Ouyang Ye, Han Dong, and Qian Shan were also stunned.
They all remembered that not long ago, Gu Qingfeng had said he had met Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie and that the Patriarch would return after some time.
At the time, Han Dong and the others hadn't believed him, thinking he was boasting.
Later, when many said Gu Qingfeng had killed Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie, Han Dong had questioned him. At the time, Gu Qingfeng hadn't explained, merely saying he hadn't killed him. Since Daozun Xuanxin had testified to this, Han Dong hadn't known whom to believe.
Only now did she realize that Gu Qingfeng hadn't been boasting back then, nor had he deceived her. He truly had met Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie and truly hadn't killed him. Not only had he not killed him, but he had also helped Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie achieve enlightenment, allowing the Patriarch to break through four or five realms in just a few days and directly condense a Dao Heart.
What made Han Dong and the others feel even more miraculous was Daozun Feiyan.
They had never been able to understand why, even after the truth had been revealed, Daozun Feiyan still seemed bewitched, unwavering in her belief in Gu Qingfeng's identity and holding him in such awe and reverence. No matter what outsiders said, she firmly believed Gu Qingfeng would not have killed Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie, saying the Patriarch was Gu Qingfeng's benefactor and he would not, could not, raise a hand against his own benefactor.
Why?
Why was Daozun Feiyan so certain?
Could it be that Daozun Feiyan had discerned from somewhere that Gu Qingfeng truly was Young Lord Chiyan and truly the Heir of the Monarch?
They didn't know.
No one was clear.
It seemed Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie also wanted to know the answer to this question. He asked, "Feiyan, just who is that Young Lord Chiyan?
Is he truly the Heir of the Monarch?"
"I've said it before, who he is doesn't matter at all. What matters is that his surname is Gu, and he comes representing the Monarch. Nothing else is important..." Daozun Feiyan's expression had remained calm from beginning to end. She showed no surprise at Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie's appearance either, only a hint of worry seeming to fill her eyes. She added, "Several Patriarchs, if you do not wish our Yaoyue Palace to suffer utter destruction, conclude this matter as quickly as possible."
Having said that, she glanced at the people from Wuse Mountain and advised, "Senior Ku Yu, as for Senior Ku Mu's safety, you need not worry at all. Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie has shown kindness to Young Lord Chiyan, and Senior Ku Mu even more so. He will not kill Ancestral Patriarch Fenglie, much less Senior Ku Mu. If he says he will help Senior Ku Mu rebuild his Nascent Soul, then he certainly will."
"Palace Mistress Feiyan, you...
On what grounds are you so trusting of him?"
Daozun Feiyan did not respond. Instead, she looked at the sect heads and elders of the various major sects and said again, "For the sake of past affections, this old woman also advises you all: whether you truly seek to avenge your disciples or covet the Xuan Turtle in Young Lord Chiyan's possession, cease now. If you do not, when the time comes, it won't be just a few direct disciples who die. His existence is something you simply cannot provoke. No one can afford to provoke him..."
"Mystifying nonsense!
A pack of lies!"
Immediately.
A young man brimming with arrogant pride stepped forward and shouted sharply. It was none other than Murong Tian, the leader of the Twenty-Four Immortal Prodigies of the Immortal Manor.
"That person's identity is still unknown. Never mind if he isn't the Heir of the Monarch, Young Lord Chiyan. Even if he is, so what? How could our dignified Immortal Manor fear him?"
Following suit, Cao Hongyun, the leading direct disciple of Hunyuan Gate; Wang She, the leading direct descendant of the Huwei Wang Family; Young Master Zhu Chi of Heifeng Cave; and Zhong Yulong, the leading direct disciple of Yaoyue Palace, all stepped forward to express their lack of fear and refusal to submit.
"Whether that person is the Heir of the Monarch or not is beside the point for now. However, the fact that he killed so many people at Wuse Mountain remains true. Even if he truly is the Heir of the Monarch, our Chizi Head will not shield him because of it."
The one who spoke these words was Wan Dongfang, the leader of the Nine Dragons and Eighteen Elephants of the Changhong Branch.
Immediately after, Qi Hang, Lei Guang, Gao Yuan, and others from among the Nine Dragons and Eighteen Elephants also stepped forward to support Wan Dongfang's words.
Clearly, these leading figures among the Great Northwest's younger generation were all arrogant due to their talents. Though not stated explicitly, anyone could hear from their words that they did not revere Lord Chixiao the way the older generation did, and naturally would not regard the so-called Heir of the Monarch with any importance.
Even they were like this.
Let alone those reincarnated individuals.
The reincarnated individuals had all been Immortals in their previous lives, so naturally, they looked down upon Lord Chixiao, a sinner who had been judged by the Immortal Dao back in the day.
Daozun Xuanshui, who had come representing Heifeng Cave this time, was one such person.
"Never mind just a minor heir like Young Lord Chiyan returning from the dead. Even if the once-powerful Lord Chixiao himself returned from the dead, what of it?"
As Daozun Xuanshui's words fell, several of the Chixiao veterans from Chizi Head—Xue Feng, Hong Wen, and others—glared at him with furious eyes and shouted sharply, "Daozun Xuanshui, watch your mouth."
"If we hear you disrespect the Monarch again, even if you are a reincarnated individual, we will still cut you down!"
"Oh?"
Daozun Xuanshui narrowed his eyes, sweeping his gaze over Xue Feng and the others. A flickering killing intent appeared in his eyes, but for some reason, as if he had some concern, that flickering killing intent soon dissipated.
"Several senior Chixiao veterans, if you still hold any reverence for the Monarch in your hearts, do not involve yourselves further in this matter."
Daozun Feiyan's voice came again. "On that day at Wuse Mountain, those who attacked Young Lord Chiyan either had their bodies smashed to pieces or were utterly annihilated. Most have already died violent deaths. Only the few from your branch, though their cultivation was crippled, at least still live. Presumably, he was also mindful of Chizi Head's reputation and, more importantly, your faces. That is why he showed mercy. Do not betray the face he gave you."
Xue Feng, Hong Wen, and the other senior Chixiao veterans exchanged glances, all feeling deeply puzzled. They asked, "Feiyan, what exactly do you know?
Just who is that Young Lord Chiyan? Could he truly be the Heir of the Monarch?"
"What should be said, I have already said. Even what should not be said, I have said. Whether you listen or not, believe or not, is your own decision. Do not ask me again who he is. I've said I do not know who he is, nor do I wish to know. For me, knowing his surname is Gu and knowing he comes representing the Monarch... that is already enough..."