Taihua Sect, Whisperwind Island.
The island was now the foremost branch after the Sea-Calming Gate.
Its population had flourished beyond measure.
Two cultivators who had survived the Second Nine Heavenly Tribulation stood guard on the island, and beneath them were more than a dozen who had survived the First Nine Heavenly Tribulation.
Across the sect, only Zhenhai Island surpassed such strength.
The reason was simple: the present Dao Venerable had once come from Whisperwind Island.
Much had happened in the East Sea over the past four years.
Two events had drawn the most attention.
The first was the Beast Emperor of the Myriad Beasts Sect attempting the Third Nine Heavenly Tribulation.
That day, before the tribulation clouds had even formed, they dispersed on their own.
Rumor had it that a Supreme Grandmaster was present, leaving the Beast Emperor no choice but to dismiss his tribulation.
The second was the sect master of the Fate Star Sect attempting the Third Nine Heavenly Tribulation.
As with the Beast Emperor, the tribulation had barely formed. This time, though, it had not dispersed on its own.
A bolt of purple lightning descended from the sky and forcibly split the Third Nine Heavenly Tribulation apart.
Both sect masters had failed their tribulations.
Neither event caused much of a stir.
After all, on the day the Dao Venerable faced his tribulation five years ago, more than a dozen Supreme Grandmasters had gathered in the East Sea. Beside that spectacle, the Beast Emperor and the Fate Star Sect master's attempts hardly measured up.
Taihua Sect's position was now even more exalted than the Fate Star Sect's had been in its heyday.
Three Supreme Grandmasters stood guard over one sect, holding the entire East Sea in check. No one dared utter a word against them.
In the past