The Martial Arts Arena had been expanded dozens of times over, paved with "Nine Heavens Star Jade" and engraved with countless complex, powerful runic formations. At its center, a Preaching Platform a hundred zhang tall stood in towering majesty, destined to be the heart of the grand ceremony.
Every detail—protocol, guards, reception, banquets, the flow of the celebration—was proceeding in orderly fashion, striving for flawless perfection, all to display the supreme dignity of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect and the Tianlan Alliance.
And Li Yunjing, who was about to step down, was still seated cross-legged in the simple Quiet Room deep within Qiwu Villa, his eyes slightly closed, his aura calm and deep as an abyss.
Outside, winds and clouds surged, ten thousand sects came to pay court, yet it all seemed to have nothing to do with him.
He was merely waiting in silence for tomorrow's grand ceremony, one that was destined to be recorded in history.
The next day, before the sky had brightened, the Divine Firmament Mountain Range was already shrouded in an atmosphere of solemn grandeur.
At the eastern horizon, the first rosy light of dawn spread, illuminating the endless rolling mountains in brilliant splendor.
Today was the auspicious day when Li Yunjing, Sect Leader of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect, would step down and pass his position to his first disciple, Lin Xuan.
"Dang—dang—dang—"
A deep, melodious bell rang out from the Zixiao Bell Tower deep within the mountain gate of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect. Nine peals sounded in succession, shaking the land for a hundred li, sweeping away the clouds and mists, and announcing that this grand ceremony, watched by the entire world, had officially begun.
Before the lingering echoes of the bell had faded, outside the mountain gate was already a scene