As night fell, the temperature between heaven and earth dropped as well. A half-moon shone brightly in the sky, stars scattered around it. Beneath the moonlight, three figures stood inside a pavilion on a mountain peak.
"How was it? Do you feel like you underestimated the heroes of the world?" Old Yao asked with a soft laugh as he looked at Xiao Heng. Thinking back on everything that had just happened, even he found it somewhat unbelievable.
Heavenly Mansion had always had one problem that was far from minor: it had been established too recently, and its cohesion might not be strong enough.
This was what Old Yao and the others worried about most. A lack of strength could be remedied through cultivation, and insufficient foundations could be addressed through other means. But cohesion, something rooted in emotion, was beyond anyone's control. After all, one could never truly know another person's heart.
Yet what had happened today was something not only Xiao Heng, but likely everyone else in the alliance, had never expected.
"Indeed." Xiao Heng nodded, a smile appearing on his face. "I considered many possibilities. I thought someone might leave at a time like this, someone might betray us, or at the very least, that there would be people feeling uncomfortable about it. But I never expected..."
"Not just you. I never expected it either." Xiao Yan shook his head. What had happened tonight had truly caught him completely off guard.
"Hehe!" Old Yao could not help laughing as he watched the two brothers. Then he said, "Do you think they are all fools? In truth, everyone who was qualified to sit with us just now had weathered countless storms. Queens, kings, and at worst, leaders of powerful factions commanding who knew how many people. If they lacked