Nine seats stood in the great hall of Past Arrival Peak.
The seat at the very head and the one to its right were empty.
The Sect Master True Person and Yuan Qijing had not come.
Elder Bai Rujing and Elder Mochi had come to represent Heavenly Light Peak. Bai Rujing looked very grim. Liu S sui's adamant refusal to return to his tutelage had severely damaged his standing within Green Mountain. Elder Mochi's face was as dark as ever, but he was visibly nervous, whether because he would have to speak later or for some other reason.
Chi Yan, Duan Liantian, and several other elders had already arrived. Shangde Peak was still represented by that cold Three Feet sword.
True Person Guangyuan, the Shiyue Peak Master, was in seclusion and had not appeared either.
Cheng Youtian, the Jade Lake Peak Master, had come in person, but had declared beforehand that he would abstain on every matter, clearly intending to keep a low profile to the end.
The Cloud-Walking Peak Master and Nan Wang, the Qingrong Peak Master, sat in their respective seats.
Twofold Forgetting Peak also had a seat, beside which Guo Nanshan stood.
Divine End Peak's place was at the very end. Zhao Layue sat quietly in her chair, with Jing Jiu seated behind him.
Mei Li, Chi Yan, and the other peaks' elders also had their own places. Many teachers and elders of the Nine Peaks had come, but the Dao Hall was so large that it still seemed very empty.
A wisp of cloud rose from the black-jade-like floor, and Fang Jingtian slowly walked out.
He would preside over today's summit himself. As his gaze brushed across the faces in the hall, the already exceedingly quiet gathering grew so still that even the sound of clouds