Gathering (Part 2)

In the lush, verdant forest, a black-robed old man sat cross-legged atop an ancient cruciform altar.

The altar was entwined and covered with countless green vines and branches. Clear birdsong and insect chirps lingered all around, while fragmented sunlight spilled down from above.

Yet the old man remained utterly motionless, his eyes closed as though regulating his breath.

Before long, a group emerged from the distant forest. They all wore white, with a small vermilion bird emblem on their shoulders. The man at their head clasped his hands toward the old man from afar.

"Chen Yang Territory, Xiao Yi."

The white-clothed men behind him all wore solemn expressions and possessed remarkable skill. They stood in neat formation.

The old man nodded.

"Ying Dong Territory, Huang Kun." He returned the salute in kind.

"So it was Brother Huang Kun." Another voice drifted over from afar, faintly ethereal.

"The man is still several miles away, yet his voice has arrived first. Brother Hu Nan's Thousand Mile Sound Transmission Technique has become ever more exquisite," Xiao Yi said with a smile.

"Are there only a few of us?" Huang Kun, clad in black, asked quietly.

"They have arrived, but many are resting in the distant town and have not come over," Xiao Yi explained.

"How many have come in total this time?"

"Wasn't it said that each major region would have ten suppressors?"

"I was merely checking. Do we know how many major regions have been mobilized altogether? Perhaps dividing us into regions was meant to let us choose a leader beforehand?" Huang Kun said with a frown.

"Possibly..." As they spoke, a yellow shadow suddenly arrived, appearing in an instant at the edge of the altar and landing atop a thick vine.

"Brother Hu has guarded the borderlands for many years. That