Luo River Province.
The Drunken Immortal Pavilion!
It was a restaurant opened by a major orthodoxy.
Rumor had it that this orthodoxy was connected to the legendary immortal of the Primordial Chaos Realm. Its foundations were no weaker than those of an ordinary imperial clan, which was why it dared open a restaurant where the Primordial Chaos Realm's secret realm would open.
Gathered here were all the heavenly prides and experts from the Three Thousand Provinces of the Desolate Ancient Land who wanted to enter the Primordial Chaos Realm.
The heavenly prides and outstanding talents of the various great orthodoxies had come here to await the opening of the Primordial Chaos Realm, making it extraordinarily lively.
On the restaurant's second floor.
At a table off to one side sat a lean but upright man dressed in black robes and a hood, drinking a pot of wine in gloom as he listened to cultivators from all over speak.
A young cultivator at the next table said excitedly, "Have you heard? Several big shots have come for the Primordial Chaos Realm this time. Things are going to get lively!"
Someone asked, "What big shots?"
The young cultivator said reverently, "They're all heavenly prides on the Heavenly Pride Ranking: Wang Kunlong of the Wang Clan, Luo Tianci of the Luo Clan, Nangong Yu'er of the Nangong Clan, and Lin Yichen of the Lin Clan! All of them come from imperial clans!"
Only heavenly prides no older than fifty could enter the Heavenly Pride Ranking.
This was not a ranking one could casually get onto. It encompassed the heavenly prides of Archaic's vast three thousand provinces, as well as those of the great orthodoxies, supreme imperial clans, holy lands, ancient races, and other traditions with long-standing legacies.
It was an extremely authoritative ranking in Archaic, carrying tremendous weight.
Everyone who made the ranking possessed exceptional talent, a rare physique, and outstanding strength. They represented the future and hope of their respective factions.
Every name shone with dazzling brilliance, drawing countless gazes and admiration.
For every young martial artist, entering the Heavenly Pride Ranking was a supreme honor.
And now, these very heavenly prides had appeared.
Many cultivators' eyes brightened. "It's actually them! With several great heavenly prides meeting, this trip to the Primordial Chaos Realm should be quite a bit livelier!"
Many speculated that these heavenly prides had come to the Primordial Chaos Realm to seek Chaos Origin and open their Purple Palaces in one fell swoop!
Quite a few other heavenly prides sighed, unable to muster even a thought of resistance. "Looks like none of the good things in the Primordial Chaos Realm will fall to us this time."
"Oh, you youngsters. What do you know?"
"Your information is far too outdated. These people might ordinarily count as big shots, but the person I'm going to tell you about today is a truly resounding figure."
At that moment, a scruffy old man drinking wine shook his head. Keeping them in suspense, he looked smugly at everyone around him, seemingly enjoying their attention.
"Who?"
Many people cast curious looks his way. Even the lean man could not help raising his head to look.
The old man gave a mysterious smile, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "Take a guess! Ah, forget it. I doubt you'd ever guess who it is! I'll just tell you! This person is..."
"The Lin Clan's imperial scion, Lin Fan!"
"What?"
At these words, the scene first fell silent for a moment. Then, like a massive stone cast into a tranquil lake, they stirred endless waves, and an uproar erupted!
"Heavens!"
"The Lin Clan's imperial scion? That peerless monster who burst onto the scene a few days ago, said to rival Wang Teng?"
"Could some great opportunity be emerging in the Primordial Chaos Realm? To think a dignified imperial scion would come here. Things really are going to get lively in the Primordial Chaos Realm this time!"
"I heard this will be the last time the Primordial Chaos Realm opens, and the Primordial Origin Immortal's inheritance will appear. Who knows whether it's true!"
The cultivators discussed it animatedly, shock on their faces. Who did not know the Lin Clan's imperial scion?
He was the monstrous talent who had recently emerged from the Lin Clan.
He possessed two great divine physiques, the Chaos Gods and Devils Body and Double Pupils, and had accomplished all manner of record-breaking feats: forming ten core patterns during Core Formation, manifesting two legendary phenomena, and surviving the Nine-Nine Annihilation Divine Lightning.
A ruthless figure who had survived at the hands of a Quasi-Emperor and a Great Emperor.
Many older-generation experts called him a monster on par with Wang Teng and the Dragon Clan's Long Aotian.
As soon as this imperial scion appeared, he destroyed the Primordial Holy Land and killed Quasi-Emperor Shenshang and the Luo Family Ancestor. The Lin Clan's grandfather and grandson had even beaten the Luo Clan into seclusion, and a Great Emperor had fallen while attempting to assassinate Lin Fan.
As these incidents spread one after another, the world was left utterly shocked. The atmosphere rose to a fever pitch, and many cultivators spoke with flickering gazes.
"Speaking of the Wang Clan, I heard their Great Emperor Chiyan mysteriously disappeared after visiting the Lin Clan!"
Anyone could guess that the Great Emperor who tried to assassinate Lin Fan might have been the Wang Clan's Great Emperor. Many experts had thought the Lin Clan would swallow this hidden loss, never expecting Great Emperor Chiyan to vanish just after leaving the Lin Clan.
There was something rather thought-provoking about this.
Word had it that, upon learning of this, the Wang Clan flew into a thunderous rage, and several Great Emperors emerged from seclusion.
They suspected the matter had something to do with the Lin Clan, and that he might have met a cruel end at their hands. But without any evidence, the Wang Clan could only swallow the loss in silence.
"Hmph!"
"Who dares wag their tongue about my Wang Clan?!"
Just then, a cold snort came from a private room.
A Sage King Realm expert?
The speaker immediately let out a muffled groan. Feeling a Sage's might, his eyes filled with terror, and he dared not say another word.
The Drunken Immortal Pavilion had three floors in total. The third floor consisted of private rooms reserved for cultivators from great orthodoxies, such as experts from major sects, holy lands, and imperial clans.
Many recognized that the important guests being entertained in that private room came from the Wang Clan!
The speaker was most likely Wang Kunlong, the Wang Clan's heavenly pride on the Heavenly Pride Ranking.
With the Lin Clan's imperial scion traveling here, the Wang Clan's strongest Heavenly Dipper Realm heavenly pride and the Luo Clan's heavenly pride Luo Tianci were also present. Would the three encounter one another in the Primordial Chaos Realm?
"Why has the Lin Clan's imperial scion come?"
"I heard the imperial scion came for someone from a minor faction."
"What person from a minor faction could make the imperial scion lower himself to come here?"
"Some Xiao Huohuo or Xiao Shuishui from the Xiao Clan. I don't remember. All I remember is that the brat had audacity enough to fill the heavens. At the Spirit Sea Realm, he nearly wiped out an orthodoxy affiliated with the Lin Clan and injured several of its Sages!"
"Hiss! A Spirit Sea Realm cultivator injured a Sage? For realsies?"
"It's true! I heard the Lin Clan's imperial scion flew into a rage and ordered Xiao Tianzhan of the Xiao Clan killed and the Xiao Clan destroyed!"
Someone in the know described the affair vividly, leaving every cultivator present tremendously excited. They were even more shocked by how terrifying Xiao Huohuo was, having actually killed a Sage, while finding nothing surprising about the Xiao Clan's fate.
"Good riddance! He didn't know his own limits, daring to offend the Lin Clan!"
"Never mind a disciple from some minor faction. Even the Wang... pfft! Even the Luo... no, even a certain imperial clan wouldn't dare! Couldn't he have just offended them properly? He actually dragged his entire Lineage to their deaths!"
The man privately felt that the brat deserved it. His tongue had gotten a little loose, and he wished he could pinch that wretched mouth of his.
As the saying went, calamity came from the mouth. If he carelessly offended the two great imperial clans, he would have more than he could handle. He was no imperial scion with a backer, afraid of no one.
Many felt that he was right. Xiao Huohuo had dared injure the Lin Clan's Sages; having his entire family die was already a good outcome. Not exterminating an entire province of his was mercy on the Lin Clan's part.
"What?"
The lean man, who had been keeping aloof from it all, suddenly slapped the table and rose. His eyes were bloodshot as he questioned the cultivator who had just said the Xiao Clan was destroyed, his lips trembling slightly in disbelief.
"What did you say? Say that again. The Xiao Clan... what happened to the Xiao Clan?!"
This naturally drew everyone's eyes to him in confusion. Some shrewder people also had flickering gazes as they guessed his identity. Perhaps he was the disciple of that small clan they were discussing.
Seriously? Was he sick in the head?
The man glanced at him, thinking that the brat must be sick in the head. He had not been talking about him, so why was he getting so worked up? He replied dismissively.
"What else? They were wiped out!"
Those lightly spoken words left Xiao Huohuo frozen where he stood, as though struck by lightning, at a complete loss. A sharp pain pierced his chest. At that moment, it felt as though he had lost something, and he spat out a mouthful of heart's blood!
Pfft!
Connected by blood!
He understood that it was true!
Roar!
Just then, a heaven-shaking dragon roar came from outside the window.