A short while later.
Before an enormous gate.
It deserved to be called "enormous": the gate stood over twenty meters tall, looking at first glance like a small hill. Looking up, they could only see sunlight spilling down from behind it, leaving almost everyone shrouded in shadow.
Li Zhengfa had left after announcing the rules. Apart from a few attendants who had led the way, no one connected to the Immortal Palace remained.
These martial artists had little respect for servants whose names did not even merit a place on the roster. With no further directions forthcoming, someone immediately complained.
"Seriously, we've been waiting forever. Where's the person who opens the gate? Nobody can push something that huge open. You'd need your Immortal Palace's magic... Nobody's even shown up yet. Are we supposed to just stand here?"
The attendants offered no answer. They did not even seem inclined to acknowledge him.
They simply stood there with their hands hanging at their sides, like statues.
Disrespect was one thing, but nobody dared actually lay hands on them. A thousand or so people crowded before the enormous gate, and however impatient they became, they could only suppress their frustration and wait.
Another half hour or so passed like this.
As though receiving an order, one of the attendants raised his head and called out.
"The appointed hour has arrived. The immortal gate is open. Please enter." Hearing this, those at the front looked over in disbelief.
Open? The gate was still shut tight. How was it open?
Yet the attendants fell silent again.
This time, someone finally lost patience and reached out to shove one of them.
"Hey, what the hell's going on? Can you give us a-"
Before he could finish, the people behind him crowded forward, making him stumble. Instead