Sacred Radiance Domain, Nine Mysteries Palace.
Today, Mo Chenxiao was dressed in a formal suit, a rare sight indeed. His black holy robe was incredibly majestic, and a gold and jade belt hung at his waist.
Standing behind him was Leng Qianshuang, and behind that were the disciples of the Dustless Palace.
Mo Chenxiao waited for a while, then suddenly turned to Leng Qianshuang and began to complain:
"You know, this kid, breaking through to the Holy Lord is such a big deal, and he didn't even inform his master first."
I only found out from a message sent by my master.
"How come I, as the master, found out later than outsiders?"
Leng Qianshuang glanced at him expressionlessly, her tone chilling:
"Isn't this all your fault as the master?"
Look at your junior brother, what guidance have you given him? Since he became your disciple, how many times have you taught him?
Mo Chenxiao was speechless, his eyes wide with disbelief. He opened his mouth to refute, but after racking his brains for a long time, he couldn't find any decent examples.
He probably spent less time teaching Han Xuanji than Leng Qianshuang, but he also had something to say.
Han Xuanji's cultivation progressed smoothly, and he did not need his guidance.
Furthermore, he was also afraid of misleading young people; of course, Mo Chenxiao would never say that.
After thinking for a while, he coughed dryly, trying to save face:
The Saint Emperor once said, "A teacher need not be more virtuous than his disciple, nor a disciple necessarily inferior to his teacher."
Xuanji has now become Holy Lord, surpassing his master in ability. As his teacher, I am very gratified.
Leng Qianshuang didn't reply, but her lips twitched slightly before she turned her head away from him.
Deep down, she felt somewhat helpless. Having such a powerful junior brother wasn't exactly a pleasant experience.
Back when Han Xuanji first entered the Nine Mysteries Palace, she could still offer some guidance as his senior sister. Now, the difference has grown so great that she is the one being guided.
Despite her helplessness, she felt no jealousy whatsoever about Han Xuanji's growing strength; on the contrary, she was genuinely happy.
The stronger her junior brother became, the more she, as his senior sister, benefited from it.
She thought for a moment and said:
"Now that you've entered the Holy Lord, the title of Young Emperor should be officially bestowed soon. I doubt many people will question it now."
Upon hearing this, Mo Chenxiao straightened his back, his tone carrying a hint of arrogance:
"Who dares to question it? They'll have to get past me first! Xuanji's position as the Young Emperor was personally decided by the Immeasurable Saint Emperor and my Mo Household patriarch; it doesn't need anyone else's approval."
He paused, then realized his words were inappropriate and added:
"If anyone has any objections, let him go and talk to His Majesty the Saint Emperor."
On the other side, the disciples of the Dustless Palace were also discussing the matter in small groups.
Li Taiqing stood at the front of the crowd, with Lu Fan, Lin Potian, and Nangong Wenjian beside him.
Li Taiqing looked towards the direction outside the palace gate and sighed:
"Back in the Immortal Realm, my master was the same way, breaking through limits rapidly every so often."
"Anyway, we can't catch up with him, as long as we can shout 'Master is mighty!', that's enough."
Lu Fan nodded in deep agreement and said:
"I was under a lot of pressure at first, but now I've come to terms with it."
"It's Master's breakthrough that's his business. We should focus on our own cultivation and not let it affect us. After all, Master's talent is unparalleled, even in the Eternal Continent."
Lin Potian chuckled:
"I've long since come to terms with it. Maybe we'll become the Saint Emperor's personal disciples in the future."
Jiang Hao, Su Ming, Lin Feng, and a few others stood further back, also whispering among themselves.
Jiang Hao lowered his voice and said:
"How powerful do you think Master will be this time, after breaking through to the Holy Lord?"
I remember that when Master was at the Dragon Terrace Sacred Banquet, he was already invincible among his peers, sweeping away all the contemporary prodigies. Now, I'm afraid even Grandmaster might not be able to defeat him, right?
Lin Feng stroked his chin and analyzed:
"It's hard to say. After all, our Grandmaster was the ruler of a province and a veteran Holy Lord. However, we cannot judge our Master by ordinary standards."
Su Ming simply shook his head and sighed:
"This scene seems familiar."
As they were talking, the teleportation array in the square suddenly lit up with a dazzling white light.
After the light faded, two figures emerged from the formation.
The leader was dressed in a blue robe, with a slender figure and an impeccable face, like the most perfect masterpiece of the Creator. His steps were neither hurried nor slow, and his aura was extremely well concealed.
But the way he stood there made everyone present instinctively hold their breath.
It was none other than Han Xuanji, the protagonist who had been the subject of much discussion.
Half a step behind him was a young man with a youthful face, holding an ancient longsword in his arms, looking around somewhat nervously. It was Chu Qi.
Chu Qi has now entered the Eternal Dao Master Realm. Although he is still not enough to compete with the experts in this square, he is much stronger than he was on the Heart-Tempering Road.
Mo Chenxiao was the first to step forward, giving Han Xuanji a once-over while muttering to himself:
"You're finally back! How come you didn't even send a message to your master first about such a big thing as breaking through to the Holy Lord?"
Han Xuanji bowed to him with her hands clasped, her tone carrying a hint of apology:
"After my breakthrough, I focused on consolidating my cultivation level. Later, I was busy with other matters and neglected my studies for a while. Please forgive me, Master."
Mo Chenxiao snorted, but didn't really take it to heart.
He patted Han Xuanji on the shoulder, his eyes filled with both relief and emotion.
The young man who walked out of Thousand Souls City back then has now reached a level he has achieved.
This feeling is both strange and complex.
Han Xuanji greeted everyone one by one, then pulled Chu Qi in front of him and introduced him to the group:
"This is Chu Qi, a disciple I took in at the Eternal Sword Pavilion. He's your junior brother."
The disciples of the Dustless Palace immediately surrounded him, welcoming their junior brother with a cacophony of voices.
As the eldest disciple, Li Taiqing stepped forward first, patted Chu Qi on the shoulder, and said gently:
"Junior brother, from now on we're family."
Chu Qi quickly bowed and addressed each of them as "Senior Brother".
When it was Little White's turn, the little tiger squatted proudly on the steps, its tail held high, looking down at Chu Qi with an expression that seemed to look down on all living beings:
Just call me Little White Brother Xiaobai.
Chu Qi looked down at the little thing that wasn't even as tall as his knee, and obediently called out, "Senior Brother Little White."
Little White nodded in satisfaction, jumped onto his shoulder and squatted down, acting like he was protecting his little brother.
Han Xuanji saw this but didn't say anything.
He wasn't worried about Chu Qi being bullied, nor did he reveal the other party's true origin as a reincarnated Saint King. He simply asked everyone to take good care of this new junior brother.
He then checked the progress of his disciples' cultivation.
Yun Wuji has already entered the Eternal True God Realm, merging the five top-level Dao Principles. His aura is serene and his foundation is solid.
Nangong Wenjian, Li Taiqing, Lu Fan and others have also made great progress. Most of them have already entered the Eternal True God Realm, and even the worst of them have reached the Peak Eternal True Lord.
It seems these disciples haven't been slacking off lately.
First, the cultivation environment is excellent, and resources are plentiful. Second, there is constant internal competition among them. Although they say they are lying down, they are all more ruthless than anyone else when they go into seclusion. Many of them secretly ask Mo Chenxiao for special tutoring and go to places where they can change the flow of time to cultivate.
That's not what we're aiming for yet.
"Good, they've all worked very hard."
Han Xuanji nodded in satisfaction, then casually bestowed some treasures upon them, offered words of encouragement, and told everyone to return to the Dustless Palace first.
After the disciples dispersed, Mo Chenxiao approached and said half-jokingly:
" Xuanji one, I'm afraid even I'm no match for you now."
Han Xuanji quickly cupped her hands in greeting:
"Master is too kind. I owe my success today entirely to your guidance."
Mo Chenxiao laughed and didn't dwell on the topic any further.
He dropped his joking expression and said seriously:
"You came back this time for other reasons, right?"
Han Xuanji nodded and steered the conversation toward the Heavenly South Desolate Domain.
He mentioned the potential beast tide and said he intended to personally intervene to resolve it.
Upon hearing this, Mo Chenxiao's expression also became more serious.
He pondered for a moment and said:
"It's certainly possible. In fact, I also received a reply from my subordinates that there are strange disturbances in the Desolate Domain, with a large number of powerful ferocious beasts gathering there."
This is probably the most ferocious beast tide in the Nine Mysteries Prefecture, or even the entire Sacred Radiance Domain, since the High Antiquity holy war between the two major factions.
Are you confident you can solve this?
Han Xuanji didn't say anything boastful, but calmly said:
"Let's give it a try."