In the Holy Dragon Sect's main hall, Tuoba Xi anxiously awaited word from Spirit Hall. He had barely slept for days.
The destruction of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had shocked him. Was Spirit Hall really so powerful that it could wipe out the clan in a single night?
And it had not stopped there. Spirit Hall was hunting down Soul Masters with the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul across the continent.
As he marveled at Spirit Hall's strength, he also wondered who would fill the vacancy among the Upper Three Sects.
Probably one of the Lower Four Sects. He was hardly alone in thinking so; most people expected the same.
But day after day passed without any move from Spirit Hall. He began to wonder why it had not nominated a sect to fill the vacancy.
Then a possibility occurred to him: was Spirit Hall waiting for a sect to pledge its allegiance? Would only that sect receive the title of an Upper Three Sect, along with its honor and standing?
He did not imagine he was the first to reach that conclusion. No one became the head of a sect by being a fool.
So why had Spirit Hall still not made a nomination? Were the other sects waiting to see what happened, without yet pledging their allegiance?
Once that possibility struck him, he could no longer keep calm. Could this be an opportunity for the Holy Dragon Sect?
If they pledged allegiance to Spirit Hall before the Lower Four Sects made their choice, could the Holy Dragon Sect become one of the Upper Three Sects?!
He knew it was a tremendous gamble. If it paid off, the Holy Dragon Sect would leap straight into the ranks of the Upper Three Sects!
After all, the Holy Dragon Sect was no weaker than the Lower Four Sects. Yet it was not counted among the Seven Great Sects. This was their chance!
So he had submitted his pledge to Spirit Hall. But days had passed without a reply, as if his letter had sunk into the sea. He could not help growing nervous. Had he guessed wrong?
Tuoba Xi sat restlessly on the sect master's throne. He took a deep breath and sank into thought. Did I guess wrong? If I did, it would be a disaster for the Holy Dragon Sect!
It has to work. It has to! I don't want to become a sinner against my sect like Yu Yuanzhen!
He knew why the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had been destroyed. The events leading up to it were no secret, and Spirit Hall had made no effort to hide them. Not everyone on the continent knew the details, but they were easy enough to learn.
Yu Yuanzhen had been shrewd all his life, only to make a disastrous mistake over his worthless son and incur Spirit Hall's wrath. Worse, Spirit Hall had given the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan a year to make amends, and the clan had done absolutely nothing!
As far as Tuoba Xi was concerned, it would have been stranger if a sect like that had survived!
While he waited anxiously for news from Spirit Hall, a Soul Master burst into the hall.
"Sect Master, good news! Good news!" The Soul Master rushed in and slid to his knees before Tuoba Xi.
"What good news?" Tuoba Xi sprang to his feet and opened the envelope the Soul Master held out to him.
"Hahahaha!" Tuoba Xi threw back his head and laughed, his relief complete. "I was right! It worked! The Holy Dragon Sect has made it!"
"We've gone straight past the Lower Four Sects and become one of the Upper Three Sects!" Tuoba Xi was beside himself with joy. He had barely slept these past few days, terrified that his guess had been wrong.
But he had been right. Opportunity favored those who were prepared. He had made his choice first and pledged allegiance to Spirit Hall.
That had brought the Holy Dragon Sect to the pope's attention. That was how they had become one of the Upper Three Sects!
"Sect Master..." Seeing his leader beside himself with joy, the Soul Master ventured, "Is it about that matter?"
He knew the letter had come from Spirit Hall, but he did not know what it said.
"That's right!" Tuoba Xi stroked the envelope. "Spirit Hall has officially nominated the Holy Dragon Sect to fill the vacancy among the Upper Three Sects."
"With Spirit Hall's nomination, it's settled. Who would dare defy Spirit Hall?!"
Spirit Hall's prestige had never been higher. It had just destroyed the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and was still hunting its survivors across the continent.
Now that Spirit Hall had nominated a sect to fill the vacancy, no one would dare challenge its decision.
"From this day on, the Holy Dragon Sect stands alongside the Clear Sky Sect and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect as one of the Upper Three Sects!"
"I need to step up my cultivation and reach Titled Douluo as soon as possible. Otherwise, we'll be an Upper Three Sect in name only!"
The Upper Three Sects held that position because each had a Titled Douluo of its own. They were the three strongest of the Seven Great Sects!
The Holy Dragon Sect might now be one of the Upper Three Sects, but its strength was still on par with the Lower Four Sects.
Perhaps it was the good news, but Tuoba Xi suddenly felt the bottleneck in his cultivation loosen.
He had been stuck as a Peak Level-89 Soul Douluo for years, unable to find an opportunity to break through!
And now his bottleneck had loosened. Two pieces of good fortune at once! Before long, the Holy Dragon Sect might truly deserve its place among the Upper Three Sects.
After all, even the former Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had only one Titled Douluo. If the Holy Dragon Sect had one too, how would it be any different?!
"Notify the other elders and arrange a celebration! I won't attend, though. I can feel my bottleneck loosening. I may break through soon!"
"Then the Holy Dragon Sect will truly deserve its place among the Upper Three Sects!" Tuoba Xi said excitedly.
"Congratulations, Sect Master! Two reasons to celebrate!" the Soul Master said, equally excited. Was the Holy Dragon Sect finally going to have a Titled Douluo of its own?
"Hahahaha!" Tuoba Xi immediately left the hall for his secluded cultivation chamber. He would not emerge until he broke through!
The news soon reached the other elders of the Holy Dragon Sect. They were ecstatic!
Spirit Hall had accepted their pledge of allegiance. They had become one of the Upper Three Sects, filling the vacant place.
And with the sect master's bottleneck loosening, once he reached Titled Douluo, the Holy Dragon Sect would truly deserve its new status!
For now, they had the title and the prestige, but without a Titled Douluo, their standing was only for show.
There was no hiding any of this, and the Holy Dragon Sect had no wish to. They were under Spirit Hall's wing now. Even if everyone knew, who would dare touch them?