Before the residence atop Di Ta Peak.
"Please wait, Young Master."
Immortal Lianshan respectfully said, "Once you have everything prepared, Lianshan will await you in the Red Dragon Mountain Range."
Xia Manggan smiled. "I'll still have to trouble Lianshan then."
"It is Lianshan's honor to be of help to you," Immortal Lianshan hurriedly replied.
"Young Master Xia Mang, I shall take my leave as well," Beishan Yin said from the side.
"Mhm." Xia Manggan gave a slight nod without speaking.
At this moment.
Two streamers flew over from the distant sky.
As they approached Di Ta Peak, they revealed the figures of two beautiful young women.
Immortal Lianshan and Beishan Yin had also just flown away from Di Ta Peak.
The two parties passed each other, and Immortal Lianshan's gaze swept over them.
The killing intent in his eyes almost caused the two women to fall from the air.
"What a terrifying aura."
The silver-clad girl patted her chest, still shaken as she asked, "Sister Jiu Lian, who was that silver-haired elder just now?"
"That was Immortal Lianshan."
The long-haired woman in a watery blue Daoist robe, whose bearing resembled an immortal lotus, solemnly said, "One of the two Immortal leaders of the Anchan Commandery branch of the Yinglong Guard. He is an immensely powerful figure; even the Anchan Marquis Mansion would not dare offend him lightly."
"What?"
The silver-clad girl covered her mouth in shock. "Then just now..."
Though they had been some distance away, they had clearly seen the respectful manner in which that silver-haired elder had faced Xia Manggan before the residence.
Even someone of that stature acted so deferentially. No wonder Sister Jiu Lian had been so nervous and kept asking whether her makeup and hair were proper before they came.
Whoosh~~~
A transparent arched bridge, like crystal with faintly flowing water inside it, suddenly appeared beneath their feet.
At the same time, a clear voice sounded beside their ears.
"Do the two senior sisters require anything? If you do not mind, please come over and rest for a while."
They turned to look and saw that the flowing arched bridge beneath their feet extended all the way to the summit of Di Ta Peak.
At the end of the bridge stood a gray-clad youth, smiling at them.
"Then... we shall impose upon you."
The long-haired woman took the silver-clad girl's hand and walked down the bridge.
Only after Xia Manggan saw both women standing on solid ground did he lightly wave his sleeve, dispersing the bridge formed from water elemental energy under the power of the Dao.
"Thank you, Young Master Xia Mang."
The long-haired woman bowed. "My Daoist title is Jiu Lian, and this is Luo Qing. We are both third-generation disciples of the Academy... We would not dare accept your address of 'senior sisters,' Young Master Xia Mang. You may simply call us by our Daoist titles."
"Young Master Xia Mang." The silver-clad girl, Luo Qing, bowed as well.
"Jiu Lian, Luo Qing." Xia Manggan nodded with a smile.
At the present Black-White Academy, aside from the five Immortals and the headmaster, Jade Sea Daoist, everyone else let him address them directly by their Daoist titles.
The ways they addressed him were varied as well.
The second-generation disciples all called him by his Daoist title, Mysterious Yellow, or directly addressed him by his surname, Xia Mang.
Among the third-generation disciples, only True Person Sloppy, Fire Saint, Yu Wei, and a few old disciples at the leader level dared call him junior brother.
All the other old disciples, like Bu Ying at the beginning, addressed him as Young Master Xia Mang.
He had long grown accustomed to it.
"Come in and sit," Xia Manggan invited them.
Speaking of which, the reason Immortal Lianshan had pressured Jiu Lian and Luo Qing with his aura earlier—
Was simply because they had witnessed his deferential manner toward Xia Manggan, so he had released a trace of his aura as a warning.
Looking at it that way, compared to Immortal Lianshan, Beishan Yin was the one truly capable of achieving great things. He could endure what ordinary people could not and did not care about others' opinions.
In one corner of the courtyard.
Xia Manggan, Jiu Lian, and Luo Qing sat scattered around a stone table laden with fruit and fruit wine.
After exchanging a few words, Jiu Lian and Luo Qing saw that Xia Manggan was not as arrogant as they had imagined, and they gradually relaxed.
"Young Master Xia Mang," Luo Qing said, "was Immortal Lianshan of the Yinglong Guard also here specifically to visit you?"
"Not exactly a special visit."
Thinking that Immortal Lianshan still wanted to save face, Xia Manggan smiled. "I intend to join the Yinglong Guard, so I invited Immortal Lianshan over to first learn about the assessment at the Anchan Commandery branch."
"Isn't Young Master Xia Mang a member of the imperial clan? Why do you also wish to join the Yinglong Guard?" Luo Qing asked curiously.
In her view, the benefits available to ordinary members of the Yinglong Guard were of no use at all to an imperial clan descendant like him.
"Qingqing, imperial clan descendants receive privileges and clan rewards after joining the Yinglong Guard."
Jiu Lian smiled at Xia Manggan. "Young Master Xia Mang, am I right?"
"It seems Jiu Lian is quite familiar with our Xia Mang Clan." Xia Manggan smiled.
"Sister Jiu Lian comes from the Dongyan Clan, known as the Green Lotus Tribe."
Luo Qing said from the side, "Even across the entire Great Xia World, the Dongyan Clan is a top-tier major tribe."
"Qingqing." Jiu Lian shook her head. "Before Young Master Xia Mang, what top-tier major tribe could there be? We merely have a bit of foundation and can get by."
"I know of the Dongyan Clan." Xia Manggan nodded. "If your Ancestor Dongyan were not so low-profile, your clan could likely rank among the top twenty tribes in the world, perhaps even higher."
"Young Master Xia Mang knows of my clan's ancestor as well?" Jiu Lian asked in surprise.
Xia Manggan only smiled without answering.
Of course he knew.
Though the information on clan powers in his mind listed Ancestor Dongyan as a Heavenly Immortal—
He had read the original novel and knew that Ancestor Dongyan had actually broken through to the realm of Pure Yang True Immortal long ago.
He merely left behind a Heavenly Immortal clone within the clan to deceive others.
"Sister Jiu Lian, what rewards do imperial clan descendants receive for joining the Yinglong Guard?"
Luo Qing had no interest in Ancestor Dongyan. That was too far removed from her. She was more interested in why Xia Manggan wanted to join the Yinglong Guard.
She and Jiu Lian were among the few Purple Mansion disciples of the Black-White Academy's third generation.
They were preparing to break through to the Myriad Manifestations realm in the coming years, then leave the Academy to venture outside.
Joining the Yinglong Guard was also the first thing ordinary Black-White Academy disciples did when they went out to gain experience.
"I do not know much either. If I say anything wrong, I hope Young Master Xia Mang will not laugh at Jiu Lian."
Jiu Lian steadied herself before continuing, "As far as I know, if a Xia Mang Clan descendant successfully joins the Yinglong Guard, they can first enjoy all the treatment of an Inner Guard member, without being subjected to the strict control and military orders that ordinary Inner Guard members face."
"Furthermore, passing the Yinglong Guard assessment proves that the descendant is worth cultivating. The Xia Mang Clan will then reward them with a sum of Merit Points, allowing them to freely exchange them in the Yinglong Guard treasury for cultivation techniques, divine abilities, and even various treasures and cultivation resources."
"Isn't that just like our Black-White Academy? We are also rewarded with Black-White Pills when we enter." Luo Qing suddenly understood.
"Exactly." Jiu Lian nodded. "To us, the Yinglong Guard is beyond reach, and we join to gain the convenience of having an imperial dynasty identity.
"But to Xia Mang Clan descendants, the Yinglong Guard is their own hall for guest retainers and offerings, their private army, and a sect used to cultivate their younger descendants."
Jiu Lian sighed. "It is simply that this sect is too vast and too powerful. It is the number one sect and the number one force in the entire world! Apart from the Xia Mang Clan, every other tribe and power is utterly insignificant before the Yinglong Guard."
"..." Luo Qing held her breath.
At that moment, she finally truly realized what the identity behind this Young Master Xia Mang—who always wore a smile and seemed so approachable—actually meant.
No wonder so many powers had not come calling even though Slovenly Senior Brother had been the number one third-generation disciple for so many years...
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