The Grand Ceremony

Jiashen Month, Gengzi Day. Auspicious for weddings, sacrifices, religious offerings, and prayers for blessings.

The apprenticeship ceremony was to be held today, leaving the city of Xiangyin County bustling with crowds and overflowing with excitement.

All the restaurants within the county had been booked by the Xieling faction for the day; they were decked out in festive lanterns and streamers, open to anyone with an invitation.

At this moment, at the gates of Xiangyin, Zhang the Great Buddha and Er Yuehong stepped down from a military vehicle, followed by Zhang the Great Buddha's personal guard company.

Luo Laowai had been waiting there for some time. Seeing Zhang the Great Buddha, he hurried forward to greet him: "Honored guests have arrived! Zhang the Great Buddha, Second Master, it has truly been a long time."

Zhang Qishan looked at Luo Laowai's bandit-like appearance, frowned, and remarked with a pointed tone: "Chief Chen has stirred up quite a bit of trouble this time."

With that, Zhang Qishan swept his gaze across the street, noting that the city of Xiangyin was currently filled with all manner of monsters and demons.

Many Taoist priests in various robes, carrying all sorts of ritual implements, sat at small stalls along the roadside.

Strange individuals in bizarre attire kept their distance from the priests; some held venomous snakes and carried various insects and gu-poisons, while others wore bones or topped their heads with strange animal skulls...

There were also many bald monks walking along the bluestone streets, hands pressed together in prayer, silent and motionless.

Luo Laowai rubbed his buzzcut and chuckled: "With Zhang the Great Buddha here, no monster or demon would dare to make a move."

Zhang Qishan offered no comment, leading Er Yuehong and his adjutant forward.

Inside the Chen Mansion's parlor, Hua Maguai walked up to Chen Yulou and whispered: "Chief, Zhang the Great Buddha has arrived."

"Good."

Chen Yulou set down his teacup, stood up, and cupped his hands toward Lu Yan: "Master, I shall go to welcome them."

"The Zhang family, the Nine Gates, the Qilin blood."

Lu Yan opened his eyes, his fingers tracing the ebony and ivory, a sharp glint in his gaze.

At the Xieling training grounds, the scene was set with solemn grandeur, a long red carpet unfurling from the high platform.

"The apprenticeship ceremony begins!"

Hua Maguai, acting as the master of ceremonies in a brand-new silk jacket, announced in a loud voice.

The guest seats on both sides were already packed, primarily with wealthy clans and merchants from Western Hunan, along with many warlords and notorious outlaws.

Zhang Qishan sat in the front row as expected, chatting and laughing with Er Yuehong.

Lu Yan sat in the seat of honor on the high platform, while Chen Yulou knelt before him, respectfully holding a teacup high with both hands.

Lu Yan took the cup and drank a mouthful.

"The ceremony is complete!"

Hua Maguai struck a ceremonial gong with a loud clang and shouted.

In the viewing area a short distance away, an old man covered in gu-insects and toxins stared gloomily at Lu Yan on the platform, turning to ask his disciple: "Is it on him?"

"Yes."

The disciple beside him was obese, his hair braided into small pigtails, his face twisted with malice, and his body draped in gu-poison items; he was clearly no saint.

Not far from them, the former head of the Celestial Master Sect and current Supreme Elder, Zhang Daoyi, was also watching Lu Yan, stroking his beard with a smile: "So young, yet such powerful presence. This young friend Lu is no simple man."

As he spoke, Zhang Daoyi scanned his surroundings and whispered to the disciples and grand-disciples behind him: "Some old acquaintances have arrived. You need not come forward later; stay far away."

In Zhang Daoyi's perception, there were several others with Golden Core cultivation. The old monk Huiyun hadn't changed in a hundred years—still like a rock, foul and stubborn.

To his left, the Maoshan Supreme Elder Li Zhongkang maintained that dead-faced expression, saying nothing.

Not far ahead, the heterodox Shaka of the Five Poisons Sect had also emerged from his old poison den; it seemed he was determined to win.

As for the juniors of other major sects, Zhang Daoyi didn't take them seriously; their sects were left with only one old immortal guarding their grotto-heavens, unable to leave.

On the high platform, Lu Yan naturally noticed these four Golden Core cultivators. He gave them a faint smile, then turned to instruct Chen Yulou: "Four Golden Core cultivators have arrived. I fear I won't be able to get away later; handle the rest of those monsters and demons yourself."

Chen Yulou nodded, looking at the crowd of strange individuals below, and said worriedly: "Master, fighting four at once is too dangerous. Shall I send men to assist?"

"No need. You cannot intervene in a battle of this level, and besides, they cannot do anything to me."

Lu Yan wore a look of burning fighting spirit, staring at the four men below.

"Immeasurable Longevity. Zhang Daoyi of the Celestial Master Sect greets young friend Lu."

Noticing Lu Yan's burning spirit, Zhang Daoyi stroked his beard and smiled, flying through the air directly from the viewing area.

"Amitabha. Daoist Zhang, it has been a hundred years; your style remains unchanged."

The old monk Huiyun lowered his eyes, turning a string of prayer beads in his hand. With one step, he appeared directly on the high platform.

"Hmph."

Li Zhongkang of Maoshan let out a cold snort. With a flash of talisman light, he also appeared out of thin air before Lu Yan.

Shaka of the heterodox path was the most overbearing. A massive cloud of black mist and poisonous insects erupted around him, terrifying the nearby spectators into fleeing. Some who couldn't dodge in time inhaled a wisp of the black mist and collapsed to the ground, screaming, their faces turning pitch-black.

"Shaka of the Five Poisons Sect."

Shaka seemed to enjoy the fearful gazes of the crowd. He smiled triumphantly and stepped onto the red carpet, walking toward the high platform step by step.

"You."

Lu Yan stopped Red Maiden as she prepared to strike, shaking his head as he said, "I have this covered. You all go down and prepare."

Lu Yan looked at the four people before him, unleashing the formidable aura of a Level 2 Wizard, and said with a kindly smile, "Seniors, there are too many people here. To avoid harming the innocent, why don't we find somewhere else to settle this?"

Zhang Daoyi's expression shifted; he had initially assumed the youth was merely a junior with decent cultivation, but he hadn't expected him to have reached such a level.

Li Zhongkang also eyed Lu Yan with surprise, thinking to himself that Simu hadn't been boasting after all. To think that someone as young as Lu Yan possessed cultivation not inferior to their own—what a prodigious talent. He nodded and said, "That is well said. A secluded spot would indeed be better."

"Amitabha, that is a fine suggestion."

Huiyun remained with his eyes lowered, his fingers turning the prayer beads in his hand.

Seeing the other three staring at him after agreeing, Shaka's face twitched, and he muttered, "Fine, let's move."

The four figures flickered and vanished from the high platform. Lu Yan nodded to Chen Yulou, and his own figure dissipated as well.

Down below, the many cultivators were already whispering and murmuring amongst themselves.

"I never expected four Golden Core masters to show up. These are living immortals you'd be lucky to see even one of on a normal day."

"Hey, don't even start. Xieling has really hit the jackpot this time. To think Chen Yulou's master is also a Golden Core expert, and so young at that."

"Who knows if he's just some monster who's regained his youth? Besides, it's four against one; he's a dead man."

"There's definitely no share of the grotto-heaven for us. Should we still make a move?"

"I heard that Lu Yan is the Chief Instructor of Xieling and has passed down quite a few spells. Plus, Xieling must have endless wealth. Why not just rob the hell out of them?"

"Right, we're already here. Let's do it."