’Could it be caused by my foundation building? That shouldn’t be it...’
After confirming there was no danger, Su Chen relaxed slightly. He didn’t know why his Talent had manifested, but there wasn’t much to hide anyway. ’If it’s been exposed, then so be it.’
...
"The Ancient King Stele flew away!"
"It looked like it was heading toward Flame Fire. Did the Ancient King recall it?"
The crowd gathered at the edge of the Copper Heart watched the Ancient King Stele fly away, looking at one another in confusion.
They still didn’t know why the stele had come, or why it had left.
"I hope this strange phenomenon was really caused by Su Xingzhong, and not because something is wrong with the Ancient King himself."
Someone prayed silently.
"Does anyone have a good relationship with this Star Seed? Go and ask him."
In the crowd, a flicker of light crossed Zhou Yunyang’s eyes, but he remained silent.
"This Star Seed has been a recluse since he arrived at the Sect. He never comes out unless he has to and rarely interacts with anyone..."
As the crowd discussed the matter, many were already preparing to disperse.
Many of those present were Stewards, Vice Hall Masters, and the like, and they had matters to attend to.
But someone suddenly cried out in alarm, "Look!"
The people who were turning to leave stopped in their tracks and couldn’t help but look back. There, above the Floating Island, a pillar of dark golden light shot toward the heavens.
"What’s this now? Another pillar of light shot up?"
The crowd looked on, bewildered.
Someone couldn’t help but guess, "Could this be related to the Ancient King Stele’s strange movements just now?"
"It’s just a pillar of light. It’s probably unrelated, right?"
"But I can’t shake the feeling that the color of this light pillar is familiar. It looks like... it looks like... the color of a Star Amber Level Talent!"
Someone suddenly shouted, "I’ve seen the color of Wei Zhenghong’s Talent before! It was almost identical to this—a dark gold, the color of shifting sands. I remember it vividly!"
Star Amber Talent!
A hush fell over the area. Someone exclaimed in shock, "So this new Star Seed’s Talent is Star Amber Level? Not Mo Cui, and certainly not Profound Purple... but Star Amber?"
What did a Star Amber Level Talent signify?
A typical Star Seed was of this level. Both Wei Zhenghong and Shen Yi’an were the same, and it was already considered extremely rare.
Even for someone who wasn’t a Star Seed, barring any accidents, they were destined to reach the same level as the Chairman.
Someone couldn’t help but complain, "These rumors have gotten way out of hand. How could a Star Amber Level Talent be misreported as Mo Cui? Who started this nonsense?"
’He’s actually a Star Amber Level Talent!’ Qin Tianlin was deeply shaken. ’In that case, my own Talent is only a notch higher than his.’
From this perspective, unless he resorted to underhanded means and had Su Chen killed, there was almost no hope of challenging his position through normal channels.
This would be true even if his grandfather returned. All hope was lost...
Qin Tianlin’s expression grew dazed.
When Qin Yun had gone after Wei Zhenghong, he had been too young to understand the significance of being a Star Seed.
It was only after he grew up that he gradually came to understand the implications. By then, the matter with Wei Zhenghong was long settled, so he hadn’t felt too disappointed.
But Su Chen was different. He was a hope that had appeared right before his very eyes, only to be extinguished just as it began to rise. The feeling was completely different.
’Does this mean I’ll never have a chance to reach the Morning Star Tier in my lifetime?’
’I have a Divine Dawn Level Talent! How can I just wither away in obscurity!’
He was filled with resentment. The dark thought he kept hidden in the back of his mind surfaced: ’If grandfather were to have an... accident, a Morning Star Tier position would open up. At that time, perhaps I... ’
The moment the thought surfaced, Qin Tianlin startled himself. He hurriedly suppressed it, glancing around guiltily.
...
’It’s actually Star Amber Level?’ Lu Huai was quite surprised as he looked at the pillar of Star Amber light. It was pure and flawless—and it was even a Dual-Star Amber.
"Senior Brother Lu Huai, what is the meaning of this?" A hand landed heavily on his shoulder, and a chill ran down Lu Huai’s spine. Unbeknownst to him, Chu Lingyuan had appeared by his side, his gaze icy.
"I was just curious about your Star Seed’s Talent," Lu Huai explained. Probing someone’s Talent wasn’t a major offense.
After all, one’s Talent was one of the hardest secrets to keep, and few people would deliberately try to hide it.
Otherwise, the Prophet Council would never have been able to create something like the Talent Rankings.
Lu Huai wanted to find out if the Ancient King Stele’s earlier behavior was because of Su Chen, or if something had happened to the Bronze Ancient King.
If the man only had a Profound Purple Talent, then Chu Linyuan’s claims would be suspect; it would be unlikely for Su Chen to trigger the Ancient King Stele’s reaction so easily.
But if he had a Dual-Star Amber Talent, then it was plausible he could have caused the stele’s strange behavior, meaning it might not have been due to the Bronze Ancient King after all.
Chu Lingyuan stared at him, his eyes dark and profound, and said nothing for a long moment.
Only when Lu Huai’s back was slick with cold sweat and his skin began to crawl did Chu Lingyuan finally release his hand. "This is the Bronze Sect, not the Profound Celestial Sect," he said coolly. "It would be best for you to exercise some restraint, Senior Brother Lu Huai. Don’t use the Profound Celestial Instrument so casually."
"Understood..." Lu Huai hurriedly agreed, but he was also confused. ’If Su Chen has a Star Amber Talent, why did Qing Cang go to the trouble of requesting the Profound Celestial Instrument?’
Chu Lingyuan’s gaze swept over Qing Cang. He too was inwardly surprised. ’So Su Chen actually has a Star Amber Level Talent. Qing Cang certainly hid that well.’
’How did Su Chen’s Talent become Star Amber?’
Qing Cang was utterly bewildered. Before his return, the rumor spreading like wildfire was that Su Chen had a Double Profound Purple Talent, which he had already found somewhat suspicious at the time.
After all, during the trial in the Red Thunder Cauldron, Su Chen’s Talent had ranked even lower than Lan Hao’s.
He had suspected that Su Chen’s Talent was actually Scarlet, not Profound Purple.
But now, it had suddenly become Star Amber. And this result was from the Profound Celestial Instrument; there was no room for error.
’But did the Red Thunder Cauldron fail to detect it? Or did Senior Uncle Red Sun deliberately hide it?’
Qing Cang couldn’t figure it out. Everyone was now saying he was a deep schemer who had deliberately hidden Su Chen’s Talent to plot against Qin Yun. ’If only they knew how bewildered and lost I feel right now.’
The pillar of light above the Floating Island began to fade.
Chu Lingyuan and the others composed themselves and returned to the Flying Device.
Before a porthole, an unusual light glinted in Wei Zhenghong’s eyes. ’Su Chen actually has a Star Amber Level Talent, putting him on par with me.’
But then, a gratified smile spread across his face. ’I imagine Qin Tianlin must be utterly despondent right now.’
Still, he couldn’t help but feel a little puzzled. He just didn’t understand what had happened with the Ancient King Stele.
Compared to Wei Zhenghong, Tang Xiuqi and the others were less affected. ’A Star Seed with a Star Amber Level Talent... isn’t that normal?’
They were more interested in what had happened with the stele.
...
The pillar of light was gone...
On the Floating Island, Su Chen looked around, his brow tightly furrowed.
’This Talent manifestation was focused solely on me. It couldn’t have been triggered for no reason; there must be a cause.’
"What in the world is going on..."
He wanted to get to the bottom of it, but a glance toward the Copper Heart showed that the crowd was only just beginning to disperse. Going over now would undoubtedly cause a huge commotion, so he had no choice but to hold back for the time being.
...
On a certain Floating Island within the Copper Heart, the Flying Device entered a port. Chu Lingyuan emerged, leading Lu Huai and the others.
This place was designed for hosting guests, with many rooms available. Attendants were already prepared and had settled everyone in.
In the main hall, Chu Lingyuan announced in a clear voice, "The welcome banquet has been arranged. Everyone..."
Before he could finish, the Wristband on his arm began to vibrate violently. His expression shifted, and he offered an apologetic look. "Excuse me..."
He walked a short distance away before tapping it open. His expression changed abruptly. Without another word, his figure vanished from sight.
’What’s happened now?’ Lu Huai was genuinely amazed. He had only just arrived at the Bronze Sect and had already encountered one strange event after another.
A flicker passed through Qing Cang’s eyes as he said calmly, "Senior Brother Chu is rather busy. Allow me to host the welcome banquet in his stead..."
...
In the Ancient King Hall, the Bronze Ancient King stared at the Ancient King Stele suspended before him. His voice was low. "Bewilderment, anger, confusion... What on earth did Su Chen do?"
In all his years as the Bronze Ancient King, he had never seen the Spiritual essence residing within the stele produce such emotions.
"Truly..." He shook his head and put the stele away. For the time being, he had no intention of letting it out again.
"However, Su Chen’s Talent..."
As he was pondering, a sound came from outside the hall. Chu Lingyuan walked in with a grave expression. He seemed to be in a hurry, but he still lightened his steps as he entered.
His gaze swept over his master, and seeing that he looked the same as the last time they met, Chu Lingyuan breathed a slight sigh of relief before saying urgently, "Master, there’s news of Qin Yun."
The light in the Bronze Ancient King’s eyes flared. He listened as Chu Lingyuan continued, "A short while ago, Qin Yun suddenly appeared at one of our external outposts. He is in critical condition."
"According to him, only two people survived the Lost Flame. One was him. The other was the Prison King."