The Fish-Dragon Assembly

Seven days later.

Peals of melodious bells rang out over North Island.

Fang Hong and Su Yao emerged from the Jade Tower, summoned their flight lights, and flew toward the summit of North Island.

At the same time, flight lights rose from cave abodes all across the island, all heading toward the highest point at its center.

The annual Fish-Dragon Assembly had finally begun!

The Fish-Dragon Assembly took its name from the image of a fish leaping through the Dragon Gate, and all its participants were Qi Refining disciples of the Yin-Yang Sect.

Each assembly lasted anywhere from several days to more than ten, and mainly involved Furnace Disciples and outer disciples challenging inner disciples. The strong rose, and the weak fell.

To outer disciples, the words "inner sect" held an enormous allure.

After entering the inner sect, they could not only cultivate the sect's three great Nascent Soul-grade cultivation arts, but also obtain a [Grade A] cave abode and enjoy a first-tier upper-grade spiritual vein.

If they performed exceptionally well at the Fish-Dragon Assembly, they could even acknowledge a Foundation Establishment True Disciple as their "patron senior brother" and receive his guidance.

Of course, there were exceptions.

According to Chai Hongzhou's inquiries, after some Foundation Establishment True Disciples lost their Dao companions, they would sometimes take the initiative to seek out inner disciples of the opposite sex and guide their cultivation.

Before long, the two arrived at the summit of North Island.

A large Dharma Combat Platform stood here, built entirely of massive stones, with formation patterns and magical restrictions laid within. It was imposing and sturdy.

To the east, south, west, and north of the Dharma Combat Platform stood four tiered spectator stands.

Following sect rules, Fang Hong and Su Yao went to the northern stand.

This stand was extremely spacious, with elegant, antique-style tables and chairs arranged on every tier.

Quite a few inner disciples had already arrived at the stand one after another, calling over their friends and exchanging greetings.

After Fang Hong and Su Yao descended in their flight lights, Chai Hongzhou immediately came forward with a smile.

"Senior Brother Fang, this way, please."

As he spoke, he led Fang Hong to a square table on the highest tier. At several nearby tables sat Xiao Yuansha, Xiao Xiaoxiao, Fan Yunjing, and the others.

"As is customary, newly promoted inner disciples like us have to sit a little farther back..."

Chai Hongzhou explained.

Fang Hong nodded unconcernedly, then greeted Xiao Yuansha and the others.

Their group gathered once every month, but Su Yao had never attended.

Although Fang Hong attended, he only traded some things with the others and had never joined them in taking on duties from the Primordial Demon Hall.

After he and Su Yao sat down, he leisurely surveyed their surroundings.

Flight lights of various colors were continually descending from the sky, most landing at the southern stand, with only a scattered few coming to the northern stand.

The southern stand was for outer disciples and Furnace Disciples. At a rough glance, several hundred people had already gathered there.

The northern stand, meanwhile, held only a few dozen.

The eastern and western stands were completely empty, without a single person.

"There are still quite a few outer disciples." Fang Hong turned to Chai Hongzhou and asked, "How many Qi Refining disciples did we lose in the earlier war with the Li Fire Heavenly Palace again?"

Chai Hongzhou replied, "Compared with two years ago, the number of Qi Refining disciples has fallen by almost half. Apparently, there are now fewer than eight hundred outer disciples and Furnace Disciples combined, while fewer than seventy inner disciples remain."

At these words, even Su Yao, who usually paid no attention to sect affairs, could not help frowning slightly.

As they spoke, Gu Hongchen and his Dao companion, as well as Chu Yuechai, arrived one after another.

All three came over to greet Fang Hong. After returning their greetings with a smile, Fang Hong's gaze settled on Chu Yuechai. "Junior Sister, it's been many days since we last met. Your cultivation has advanced greatly. Congratulations."

Ever since she had been injured while out on sect duties, she had remained in seclusion to recover and had missed the subsequent gatherings. Who would have thought that, upon seeing her today, her spiritual aura would actually seem a notch stronger than theirs?

Su Yao was at the Qi Refining Eighth Layer, yet even she was a notch weaker by comparison.

Chu Yuechai now clearly possessed the magical power of the ninth layer of Qi Refining.

She really had encountered a fortuitous opportunity.

Fang Hong marveled inwardly. Fortuitous opportunities capable of making one's cultivation advance by leaps and bounds had always been rare. She certainly had some luck on her side.

With a smile on her face, Chu Yuechai first glanced at Su Yao with her lovely eyes, then looked at Fang Hong with a gaze like water and replied sweetly, "It was merely a lucky breakthrough. Thank you for keeping me in your thoughts, Senior Brother."

Keeping you in my thoughts, my ass...

I was only being polite, yet you made it sound so suggestive.

Fang Hong chuckled and said no more.

Chu Yuechai then said to Su Yao, "You must be Senior Sister Su Yao. You truly are as beautiful as a celestial maiden, with a pure elegance beyond the mortal world. Senior Brother Fang is truly blessed."

Su Yao's expression was cool as she replied mildly, "You flatter me, Junior Sister."

"It's a rare pleasure to meet you today, Senior Sister. I hope we can grow closer in the days ahead, and that you won't mind my troubling you," Chu Yuechai said with a smile.

Su Yao raised her brows slightly and said with a half-smile, "Not at all. I'd very much like to exchange a few moves with you too, Junior Sister. If you wish to visit, you're welcome anytime."

Just then, Fang Hong suddenly sensed something and looked toward the southern stand.

Among the outer disciples there, a woman in a splendid long dress was studying him from afar.

Fang Hong frowned. When their eyes met, she actually licked her red lips and held his gaze with an intensely aggressive look, the corners of her mouth curling slightly upward.

"Who is she?" Fang Hong looked at Chai Hongzhou and pointed across the way.

Chai Hongzhou glanced over and said, "She's She Yutang."

"So it's her." Fang Hong looked across, understanding dawning in his mind.

She Yutang was very well known among the Yin-Yang Sect's Qi Refining disciples.

She loved seeking people out to spar and had challenged nearly every inner disciple.

It was said that fewer than a handful of inner disciples could reliably defeat her.

At the previous few Fish-Dragon Assemblies, she had repeatedly fought an old rival, each winning and losing in turn. Thus, she had gone up and down, spending one year in the inner sect and the next in the outer sect.

After that person died at the hands of Li Fire Heavenly Palace cultivators, she had killed quite a few of their disciples in her fury to avenge them. She had even captured several male Li Fire Heavenly Palace cultivators and brought them back to the Yin-Yang Sect to harvest their essence.

"Senior Brother Fang, it looks like she has her sights on you," Chai Hongzhou said.

Fang Hong smiled easily. "I've been wanting to test myself against these veteran disciples too. By the way, which one is Yan Feihuang?"

Chai Hongzhou immediately pointed someone out to him.

He was a handsome youth dressed in fine robes, with sword-like brows and star-bright eyes, sitting leisurely in the stands and chatting and laughing with a group of men and women around him.

"Him?"

Fang Hong's expression turned somewhat odd when he saw the youth.

This youth was none other than the one he had happened across at sea that day, when he had seized the Azure-Snow Spirit Fish first.

Yan Feihuang seemed to sense his gaze as well. He turned to look at him and nodded in greeting with a smile.

Fang Hong responded with a faint smile.

Just then, three flight lights of extraordinary presence suddenly tore through the distant sky toward them.

Judging by their direction, they had unmistakably come from the Yin-Yang Sect's South Island.

"The True Disciple senior brothers are here."

Chai Hongzhou's expression shifted, his gaze fixed on those flight lights.

Every Fish-Dragon Assembly was presided over by several of the sect's True Disciples, and their leader was usually one of the ten great True Disciples.

If someone caught these True Disciples' eyes at the Fish-Dragon Assembly, they would have a chance to acknowledge one of them as a "patron senior brother" in the future, receive his guidance, and break through to Foundation Establishment sooner.

The dazzling light in the lead flashed across the sky and appeared above the eastern stand. Then its radiance faded, revealing a figure.

"It's Senior Brother Ying Yang!"

Chai Hongzhou looked quite excited as he introduced him to Fang Hong in a low voice. "Senior Brother Ying ranks fifth among the ten great True Disciples. His cultivation has already reached the peak of Foundation Establishment, and he has a chance of forming his core in the future..."