This was bound to happen. After all, there could only be one chosen one. If the Sects weren’t there to suppress them, killing off everyone else would be the fastest and most convenient method.
Noticing Wei Zhenghong’s appraising and scrutinizing gaze, Tang Xiuqi’s eyes flickered. He smiled faintly. "No need to stare. We can’t compare to your new Star Seed."
Wei Zhenghong paused for a moment, then burst out laughing. "Has Su Chen’s reputation already reached your Profound Celestial Sect?"
"A Star Seed from the moment he appeared, acknowledged by the Ancient King Stele as soon as he arrived at the Bronze Sect, and took the top spot among Tier Fives while still being Tier Four himself. If we didn’t know about a powerhouse like that, we’d be hopelessly out of the loop." Tang Xiuqi rattled off the facts with ease.
Hearing Su Chen’s name, the three men behind them exchanged a look filled with complex, unspoken meaning.
The three of them had become recognized candidates and distinguished themselves from the others years ago, but none had ever managed to gain a decisive upper hand over the others.
Yet this Su Chen had popped out of nowhere and immediately become the Bronze Sect’s Star Seed. The comparison between him and them stirred up truly complex feelings.
"I heard that this Su Chen has already advanced to Tier Five?" Liao Yunfan suddenly asked.
Wei Zhenghong glanced at him and nodded. "That’s right. He did advance to Tier Five a while ago. Why? You want to test your skills against him?"
He had asked bluntly, and Liao Yunfan actually nodded in response. "I am indeed curious. If he were still Tier Four, defeating him would feel like an empty victory."
’An empty victory?’ Wei Zhenghong felt no anger at the words. In fact, he found them somewhat amusing.
"Shut your mouth," Tang Xiuqi snapped, his eyes showing his displeasure.
On their way here, these men had been quite curious about Su Chen. Since they were all around the same age, they couldn’t help but feel a sense of rivalry.
These three were quite impressive in their own right, each with a record of Reverse Tier victories, though they hadn’t reached the point of being able to defeat every Tier Five Professional in their own Sect.
But the Profound Celestial Sect’s advantage lay in the Profound Celestial Instrument. It could enhance their Talent, which meant that at the same Professional Tier, they had more time to plan for special Professions.
Their strength at any given Tier was a cut above that of other Sects.
These guys had mentioned several times during the journey that they wanted to witness the prowess of this new Star Seed for themselves. Being so close in age, a sense of rivalry was only natural.
Tang Xiuqi was well aware of this. What angered him was Liao Yunfan’s lack of tact in asking the question so openly.
"You’ll have to go ask him yourself, then," Wei Zhenghong said, unconcerned as he casually picked up the thread of conversation.
At the head of the group, Chu Lingyuan discreetly pulled his gaze away from those behind him.
"Are those the people from the Royal Court?"
Following at the very rear of the party were a few inconspicuous figures, huddled together as they tried to minimize their presence while waiting to board the Flying Device.
"That’s right. I was supposed to be heading to the Royal Court," Lu Huai nodded, letting out a cold snort. "Who knew this whole mess would happen? Does your side have any leads?"
Chu Lingyuan shook his head and sighed. "What leads could there be? The Royal Court keeps promising an explanation, but they’ve dragged their feet this long and have yet to produce one."
"They’ve gone too far this time," Lu Huai said grimly.
Chu Lingyuan nodded, his expression complex. "This Hanhai Emperor is incredibly ambitious. His methods have been quite aggressive ever since he took power. I fear he wants to achieve something no previous Emperor ever could..."
"Unify... the Dust Star Sea."
As the three of them discussed, the Flying Device launched, drawing ever closer to Copper Heart.
As guests from the Profound Celestial Sect, and guests who had brought the Profound Celestial Instrument with them, they were naturally given VIP treatment. Their accommodations were arranged on the Floating Islands surrounding Copper Heart, considered the very heart of the Sect.
Qing Cang listened to their conversation without interjecting, his gaze fixed on Copper Heart. He rarely left the Sect. This time, after returning from Red Thunder Star, he had immediately rushed to the Profound Celestial Sect without a moment’s rest.
All told, he had been away for nearly a year. Seeing Copper Heart now, he felt an inexpressible sense of homecoming.
But suddenly, his eyes narrowed. He saw a streak of light flash across the sky above Copper Heart.
Qing Cang’s expression darkened. ’Who’s so bold that they dare fly over Copper Heart?’
Chu Lingyuan also sensed the disturbance, his brow furrowing as he looked over.
But in the next instant, his expression changed dramatically.
’No, that’s not right...’ Qing Cang hadn’t gotten a good look at first, but a moment later, he saw it clearly.
That streaking light wasn’t a person at all—it was the Ancient King Stele!
’Hasn’t this stele always stood in the plaza before the tower? Why did it suddenly fly out?’
Astonished and suspicious, Qing Cang had never witnessed such a thing. His figure dissolved into a wisp of wind, shooting out of the Flying Device and into the void of space.
Chu Lingyuan was already by his side, his expression equally grave.
Lu Huai was a step behind but followed them out as well. A fiery light flickered in his eyes as he asked hesitantly, "That looks like the Ancient King Stele, doesn’t it?"
He recognized the object. Other Sects, and even the Royal Court, had similar artifacts. They were byproducts of a Moonlight Tier’s Spiritual power, fundamentally bound to that power’s source.
Under normal circumstances, they were completely immobile.
But now, the Bronze Sect’s Ancient King Stele was clearly acting abnormally.
’Could it be...’ His heart skipped a beat as the thought occurred to him. ’Did something happen to the Bronze Ancient King?’
The Bronze Ancient King had been sequestered in the Ancient King Hall for many years, suppressing the anomalies of the Flame Fire, and had not made a public appearance in all that time.
Qing Cang’s brow was deeply furrowed. His gaze fell upon Copper Heart, only to see that a large crowd had already gathered at its edge, craning their necks to look in the direction the Ancient King Stele had flown.
’Why now, of all times...’ Chu Lingyuan’s eyes flickered with worry. ’First, we need to get it under control.’
’Whatever is happening, Lu Huai is still here. I can’t let him notice that something is wrong.’
Just as Chu Lingyuan was preparing to intercept the Ancient King Stele, he saw it come to a halt almost as soon as it had flown past Copper Heart.
’It stopped?’
He froze, growing more bewildered. Not even he had ever heard of such a bizarre phenomenon.
Looking closer, he saw that the stele was hovering over one of the orbiting Floating Islands, even matching its rotation perfectly.
’Whose Floating Island is that?’ Chu Lingyuan wondered.
...
’Foundation... Moonlight Spirit... This is pretty complicated...’ Su Chen mused, looking at the panel and stroking his chin. He hadn’t expected it to involve the Candidate.
Candidate was a class he had obtained from the Ancient King Stele, one seemingly used to select an heir for the Bronze Ancient King. After it was devoured by Purifier, he had no idea if it still had any effect.
Still, Su Chen wasn’t too concerned. He was still a long way from the Morning Star Tier, to say nothing of the Moonlight Tier.
As the saying goes, ’we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.’ If devouring it really helped upgrade his Talent to the Divine Dawn Level, then so be it.
As he was lost in thought, Su Chen felt his heart lurch. The lights in the training room dimmed, replaced by a flashing red light—
"WARNING: EXTERNAL HIGH-INTENSITY ENERGY FLUCTUATION DETECTED!"
’What the hell? Did someone invade the Sect?’
Su Chen was bewildered. The alarm was coming from the Floating Island’s own defense system.
He didn’t dare waste a second, rushing out of the training room. He immediately spotted the object hovering over his Floating Island, emitting a faint golden glow.
"That thing..."
Su Chen was tense at first, thinking someone had thrown a bomb at him, but a closer look left him dumbfounded.
"Isn’t that the Ancient King Stele?"
’How did the stele get here?’ The question popped into his head, but an answer followed right behind it. ’It’s probably because the Candidate class was devoured. The stele must have sensed the anomaly.’
Su Chen’s breath grew shallow as he stared at the Ancient King Stele trembling overhead.
He couldn’t help but think, ’This stele... it’s not going to fall and crush me, is it?’
......
"It stopped! It stopped!"
At the edge of Copper Heart, a massive crowd had gathered, including many Stewards from various halls and even some Vice Hall Masters. Qin Tianlin and Zhou Yunyang were both in the throng.
It was hard for anyone on Copper Heart to not be drawn in by the commotion.
All eyes were fixed on the Ancient King Stele, which was hovering over a particular Floating Island.
"Whose Floating Island is that?" someone asked.
The Floating Islands all looked more or less the same, and they were shrouded by an Energy Barrier, making it difficult to determine an island’s number and owner with the naked eye.
But some of the quicker ones had already darted into a Flying Device at a nearby port. They used its navigation system to identify the number, their faces paling in shock as they shouted:
"It’s Su Chen! It’s Su Chen’s Floating Island!"