Central Continent, Wind Thunder Pavilion.
The enormous, crowded square was deathly silent.
Countless Central Continent powerhouses whom Thunder Venerable had invited to witness Wind Thunder Pavilion make the ranking
were now looking at the embarrassed Thunder Venerable on the platform with amusement in their eyes.
They wanted to laugh but did not dare.
It was quite entertaining.
A few days ago, Thunder Venerable had sent invitations to every prominent family and faction near Wind Thunder Pavilion, inviting them to witness the Heavenly Dao Gold Ranking reveal the Ten Great Sects.
Even Myriad Sword Pavilion and Yellow Springs Pavilion, fellow members of the Four Pavilions,
had not been left out.
Everyone understood Thunder Venerable's intentions.
He simply believed that with a Peak Three-Star Dou Venerate like himself overseeing Wind Thunder Pavilion, it would surely make the ranking.
This was also what most people had expected.
After all,
the strongest sect forces in the Central Continent
were none other than the eleven: one hall, one tower, two sects, three valleys, and four pavilions.
Of those, the seven sects—Hall of Souls, Pill Tower, Tianming Sect, Flower Sect, Burning Flame Valley, Glacier Valley, and Sound Valley—
were all stronger than Wind Thunder Pavilion.
Thus, Thunder Venerable had never intended to challenge them from the start.
And aside from those seven great sect forces, the only notable factions in the Central Continent were the Four Pavilions.
Starfall Pavilion had previously relied on Venerable Wind, a Peak Four-Star Dou Venerate,
to suppress Thunder Venerable, a Peak Three-Star Dou Venerate.
Not to mention
that its strength had now soared.
After Yao Chen's resurrection, his cultivation had directly broken through to the High-level Half-Saint realm.
Moreover, Starfall Pavilion also had Xiao Yan, a monstrous genius who, with the cultivation of a Two-star Dou Venerate, had fought above his level and slain Old Ghost Xing Zhai, a Peak Five-Star Dou Venerate from the Hall of Souls.
Excluding the eight major forces listed above,
Wind Thunder Pavilion, with Peak Three-Star Dou Venerate Thunder Venerable stationed there, was already the strongest sect in the Central Continent.
And this was precisely what gave Thunder Venerable the confidence to invite the other factions to witness the event at Wind Thunder Pavilion.
As for forces beyond the Central Continent,
he had never considered them.
It was no secret that Central Continent sect powerhouses considered themselves superior and looked down from the bottom of their hearts upon the eastern, western, southern, and northern regions of the Dou Qi Continent...
Today,
Thunder Venerable had intended to make others envy and flatter him.
Yet the Heavenly Dao Gold Ranking had mercilessly slapped him across the face.
The last place among the Ten Great Sects' Forces belonged to Sound Valley, which he had never even considered challenging, and its strongest expert was merely an Initial Half-Saint!
This meant that...
Wind Thunder Pavilion
did not even qualify to join the feast of Heavenly Dao's rewards for sects.
At this moment,
Thunder Venerable's face was not the only one darkened.
Even Venerate Sword and Venerate Yellow Springs beside him
looked as though they had swallowed flies. Before the tenth place was revealed, both of them had also dreamed that their own sects might make the ranking...
Looking at the generous rewards bestowed upon Sound Valley by the Heavenly Dao Gold Ranking,
Thunder Venerable, Venerate Sword, and Venerate Yellow Springs were itching with envy, yet there was nothing they could do. Their skills were inferior, so they could only endure being humiliated.
After a long silence,
the three turned their heads and exchanged glances.
Then Thunder Venerable's unwilling murmur slowly rang out. "Sound Valley, with an Initial Half-Saint overseeing it, only ranks tenth. It seems the waters of the Dou Qi Continent run deeper than we imagined!"
"This time, among the Four Pavilions of the Central Continent, I fear only Starfall Pavilion will make the ranking!"
Meanwhile,
in a pavilion atop a towering mountain somewhere in the Central Continent,
aside from Hun Tiandi,
the clan leaders of the six ancient Dou Emperor Legacy Families—the Ancient Clan, Yan Clan, Lei Clan, Yao Clan, Ling Clan, and Shi Clan—were all seated in the pavilion, watching the Light Screen in the sky.
After seeing Sound Valley rank tenth,
Gu Yuan was first stunned, then said in surprise, "Sound Valley is tenth. It seems our previous predictions were greatly inaccurate."
"There are still powerful sects on the continent that we know nothing about."
At these words,
the Lei Clan's leader,
Lei Ying, a Late Eight-Star Dou Saint, immediately said, "Brother Gu, since the rankings differ from our predictions, how should we divide the quotas we discussed earlier?"
Meeting the gazes of the other clan leaders,
Gu Yuan pondered briefly and quickly came up with a solution.
He said, "How about this? Our Six Great Clans will first offer protection to the sects that make the ranking. As for resource distribution, we can discuss it after the sect ranking concludes."
"That works as well!"
Faced with Gu Yuan's solution,
Lei Ying, Yan Jin, Yao Dan, and the other five great clan leaders all nodded in agreement.
To their clans, although the rewards bestowed upon Sound Valley by the Heavenly Dao Gold Ranking were extraordinary, they were nothing special.
The coveted cultivation-level increase and Sect Protecting Grand Formation could not be seized... or traded.
As for the Earth-tier High-grade Cultivation Method and Dou Techniques, they, as Dou Emperor Legacy Families, had no shortage of such things.
There was even less need to mention ten Eighth-grade Pills. Which of the ancient clans present did not have an eighth-grade alchemist?
Since that was the case,
it was more reasonable to wait until the Gold Ranking's rankings were complete,
see what rewards the higher-ranked sects received, and distribute everything together.
While the various factions were shockedly discussing the matter,
Sound Valley, at the center of the storm, was split into two extremes. Some rejoiced, while others worried.
At that time,
in the void above Sound Valley,
stood a silver-haired old woman and a young married woman dressed in palace robes.
They were respectively Sound Valley Old Ancestor, Grandma Fengqin, an Initial Half-Saint, and Sound Valley's Valley Master, Fairy Miaoyin, a Five-Star Dou Venerate.
Although the two were very satisfied
with the ranking and rewards bestowed upon Sound Valley by the Heavenly Dao Gold Ranking,
there was not the slightest smile on their faces. Instead, they gazed beyond the sect with deep concern.
This stood in stark contrast to the elders and disciples below celebrating Sound Valley's inclusion on the ranking.
The reason they were so troubled
was very simple.
That was because
Sound Valley Old Ancestor had already sensed
many concealed yet powerful auras beyond the valley.
Clearly, the newly ranked Sound Valley had drawn the attention of certain factions. Moreover, those factions possessed formidable strength and backing, enough that they did not fear Sound Valley Old Ancestor, who was about to break through to the One-star Dou Saint realm.
"Miaoyin, although Sound Valley has never fought for anything in ordinary times,"
"if those people outside go too far, Sound Valley will never compromise!"
As Sound Valley Old Ancestor's words fell, Fairy Miaoyin immediately replied, "Rest assured, Old Ancestor. No matter how powerful the enemy may be, Miaoyin will defend Sound Valley to the death!"
Just as Sound Valley Old Ancestor was about to say something more,
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Countless dazzling golden beams suddenly flew from the Heavenly Dao Gold Ranking, plunging toward Sound Valley like falling meteors.
This spectacle
instantly drew cheers from countless Sound Valley disciples.
Everyone understood that the Heavenly Dao Gold Ranking was distributing the sect rewards.
Then, beneath countless watching eyes, an incomparably brilliant golden beam was the first to merge into Sound Valley's Sect Protecting Grand Formation.
It upgraded Sound Valley's timeworn Sect Protecting Grand Formation, allowing it to withstand attacks from a One-star Dou Saint, while also accelerating the gathering of heaven and earth energy within Sound Valley.
Immediately afterward,
a token controlling the Sect Protecting Grand Formation, two azure scrolls, and several Jade Bottles containing Eighth-grade Pills descended from the sky, hovering before Sound Valley Old Ancestor and the Valley Master.
The remaining golden beams
scattered like celestial maidens strewing flowers,
flowing into the bodies of Sound Valley Old Ancestor, the Valley Master, the elders, and every disciple.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Along with countless muffled cries of breakthrough that rang from the bodies of every Sound Valley member,
the entire Sound Valley gained one star in cultivation.
Fairy Miaoyin, the Valley Master, rose from a Mid Five-Star Dou Venerate to a Mid Six-Star Dou Venerate.
As for Sound Valley Old Ancestor, Grandma Fengqin, who had been an Initial Half-Saint,
after this Heavenly Dao golden light that raised cultivation flowed into her body,
her cultivation soared in a straight line as though riding a rocket, passing the Intermediate Half-Saint and High-level Half-Saint realms before finally settling at the Initial One-Star Dou Saint realm.
Boom—
Within Sound Valley below,
within Sound Valley below,
countless disciples clasped their fists toward Sound Valley Old Ancestor standing in the void and exclaimed excitedly, "Congratulations, Old Ancestor, on advancing to Dou Saint!"
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