Chapter 623: Blocking

"Not the right time?" "Go back?" Zhang Xuan frowned. This didn't seem like a welcome; it felt more like a provocation! How could a welcome involve immediately telling someone to leave?

The other master teachers on the backs of their spirit beasts also craned their necks, curious to see what was happening. They wondered who dared to speak so boldly in front of Master Hong.

"Feng Yu?" Master Hong's brow furrowed at the name.

"That's me." The person on the leading spirit beast chuckled softly. By now, the two groups had flown closer, about a few hundred meters apart, allowing them to clearly see an elder in his fifties. He wore a light golden robe, and three wisps of bluish-gray beard swayed in the wind, giving him an ethereal, scholarly appearance.

"I came here specifically at the invitation of the Master Teacher Pavilion and the Illusory Feather Empire, so I naturally won't be returning. If Brother Feng wishes to go back, however, I could offer you a ride!" Master Hong declared.

After speaking, he lowered his voice to explain, "This Feng Yu is the Head of the Master Teacher Pavilion in the Fengyuan Empire. We've never gotten along. Our Hongfeng Empire oversees twenty-eight powers that hold a grand competition, and they also held one..."

"The Fengyuan Empire? One of the Four Feudal Kingdoms?" Zhang Xuan nodded.

On their journey, although he spent most of his time cultivating, he occasionally asked the five-star master teacher about various matters, learning about the Illusory Feather Empire's hierarchy.

The Illusory Feather Empire was a second-tier empire, divided into four feudal kingdoms: the Hongfeng Empire, the Fengyuan Empire, the Qianfeng Empire, and the Zhuyue Empire.

These four nations were granted by Emperor Ye Huanyu, the founder of the Illusory Feather Empire, to his four brothers who helped him conquer the land. They claimed to be equal to the Illusory Feather Empire but were, in fact, slightly lower in rank.

Each of the four feudal kingdoms controlled numerous smaller nations and powers. For instance, the Hongfeng Empire, where Master Hong resided, governed twenty-eight powers, including the Myriad Kingdoms Alliance and the Flowing Cloud Sect.

The other three feudal kingdoms were similar, each with its own sphere of influence and national divisions.

If measured by the tiers of his previous life, the Illusory Feather Empire was a complete nation, while feudal kingdoms like Hongfeng and Fengyuan were like provinces. The twenty-eight powers were akin to counties or cities, the Xuanyuan Conferred Kingdom to townships, and first-tier and second-tier kingdoms were comparable to villages or local administrative units.

Since the feudal kingdoms controlled numerous powers, they, like the Hongfeng Empire, also held master teacher grand competitions and naturally had quotas and opportunities to enter the Purification Lake.

"Yes! I thought it would be someone from the Illusory Feather Empire's imperial family coming to greet us. I didn't expect them to get the news first. We're Master Teacher Pavilions of the same rank, so it's inevitable we'd compete, but blocking us directly suggests hostile intentions." Master Hong's brows furrowed.

Zhang Xuan nodded. The other party's words carried no courtesy, so this was clearly not idle chatter.

Indeed, as the two conversed, Master Teacher Feng Yu on the opposite side raised an eyebrow, his voice carrying over: "I was trying to tell you nicely, but you wouldn't listen! The Hongfeng Empire is the furthest from here, and you arrived late, so perhaps you're unaware of some things. Let me explain. Although the total number of spots to enter the Purification Lake hasn't changed this year, the former Crown Prince Ye of the imperial family requested three extra spots, which naturally reduced ours. This means you... no longer have a place. You should just go back now, or you'll only embarrass yourselves!"

"Requested three extra spots?" Master Hong's brow tightened.

Like the Yin-Yang Pond, the Purification Lake had limited quotas, but they were usually pre-allocated. How could arriving late mean no spots, and how could a dignified Crown Prince seize quotas from a feudal kingdom?

"Exactly. I suggest you report to the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy first. There's no point in staying here any longer anyway!" Feng Yu chuckled softly.

"Whether it's meaningful or not isn't for you to decide, Master Feng. You don't need to worry about it!" Knowing the other party had blocked them with an ulterior motive and not wanting to waste time, Master Hong waved his hand and turned to instruct, "Control the spirit beasts. We're going to the Master Teacher Pavilion first."

These flying spirit beasts were rented and controlled by members of the Beast Hall, capable of obeying commands and flying in formation.

*Whoosh!* With the command, under the control of the beast tamers, the many spirit beasts formed a line, ready to spread their wings and soar at any moment.

"Hong Qian, this is pointless. I kindly came to inform you, and not showing gratitude is one thing, but turning to leave immediately? What's the meaning of this?" Feng Yu's brow furrowed.

"Whether the quotas are sufficient or not, I will ask my teacher and His Majesty myself!" Master Hong waved his hand.

*Swish!* The flying spirit beasts beneath them simultaneously spread their wings, about to fly past the opposing group and ascend higher.

"You refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit, Chen Mo!" Seeing that he wouldn't heed his dissuasion and was determined to leave, Feng Yu's eyes narrowed as he turned and called out.

"Yes!" A young man behind him responded, flipping his wrist. An ancient zither appeared in his palm, and with a light strum, music filled the air. *Ding-dong, ding-dong!*

The zither's notes, rising and falling, echoed through the air, entering their ears with a delicate, pleasing quality.

"Why is he playing the zither?" "I don't know..." The music contained no hint of aggression; instead, it was a continuous, extremely soothing melody, leaving everyone puzzled.

Blocking them in mid-air certainly had a purpose, but why play such an innocuous tune when they were trying to leave?

Although there was a profession called "Demonic Music Master" who could use sound waves to attack people, those attacks targeted the soul, creating illusions. This music was calm and peaceful; it couldn't possibly harm them... could it?

More importantly... although their group wasn't overwhelmingly strong, they were all peak four-star master teachers, with one even being a five-star. How powerful would the attack need to be to affect everyone?

"No, it's not attacking us; it's attacking the spirit beasts!" Master Hong suddenly realized, his face darkening.

"Spirit beasts?" Everyone was startled and quickly looked at the beast tamers responsible for piloting. Sure enough, their faces were ashen.

"Not a slow reaction, indeed. Chen Mo's 'Heavenly Sound of Utter Stillness' can indeed hypnotize spirit beasts, preventing them from moving forward! In other words, as long as the music doesn't stop, you won't be able to advance..." Feng Yu chuckled softly.

"'Heavenly Sound of Utter Stillness'?" Master Hong tried to urge the spirit beast beneath him forward, but true enough, he felt as if the spirit beast had lost its connection with him. It could only hover in the air; moving forward was utterly impossible.

It was as if they were confined in a cage, unable to move forward.

Unable to advance, they naturally couldn't reach the imperial capital, let alone enter the imperial city.

"Feng Yu, what exactly do you want?" With a grim expression, Master Hong glared at him.

"Nothing much, just to keep you all waiting here for a day!" Feng Yu chuckled softly, then turned to instruct, "Chen Mo, keep playing the zither here so they can't move forward!"

"Yes!" The young man named Chen Mo replied, his hands dancing as the zither music grew louder.

"Hmph, do you really think I'm out of options?" Unexpectedly, the other party resorted to force when persuasion failed, directly preventing them from advancing. Master Hong's eyebrows shot up in anger. He pointed his fingers like a sword and flicked them lightly. *Woo!* A sharp sound, and a sword qi shot from his fingertips, directly piercing towards the ancient zither in Chen Mo's hand.

As long as the zither was shattered and the music stopped, the spirit beasts' restraints would naturally be lifted.

However, before the sword qi reached its target, there was a *humming* sound, and the air vibrated. A massive protective barrier appeared in front of Chen Mo, impenetrable even by Master Hong's attack.

"It's a formation. The people on the dozen or so spirit beasts have joined forces to set up a defensive array specifically to protect Chen Mo. At this distance, with that array guarding him, we can't attack him at all!" Zhang Xuan shook his head.

He had wondered earlier why the other party brought so many people. They were all master teachers; it was unlikely they would truly fight. So, this was their purpose.

These people were likely formation masters, carrying some items and using their spirit beasts as formation flags to set up a defensive array around Chen Mo.

If they were close, let alone Master Hong, even he could smash it with a single punch. But at a distance of several hundred meters, their attack power was already diminished, and with the opponent's prior preparation, hitting and stopping them from playing the zither would be very difficult.

This was the terrifying aspect of Demonic Music Masters. Wherever their sound could reach, they could launch an attack, ignoring all physical obstructions.

The other party had clearly calculated this, which was why they were so brazen.

"Damn it..." Master Hong gritted his teeth.

What Zhang Xuan could discern, he naturally could also understand.

Trapped here by the other party, at least a thousand meters above the ground, unable to descend or leave, they were in serious trouble.

"What he said about the spots might be true. The results will probably be out today. If he traps us for a day, we might very well miss out... He must be counting on that!" Master Hong said.

"Indeed!" Zhang Xuan nodded. The situation was easy to guess. Master teachers were highly perceptive; if the other party's intentions were so obvious and they still couldn't see them, they might as well smash their heads against a wall.

"From the air, the imperial capital looks close, but on foot, it would take at least half a day to reach. Moreover... we're currently in the air, and our spirit beasts can't fly, meaning we're trapped here, unable to go down or up... What should we do?" Master Hong was filled with anxiety.

If they truly lost the spots because of this, it would be useless to cause trouble for the other party afterward. But now... trapped in the air, unable to stop the other party from playing the zither, were they really just going to watch the spots slip away?

"Actually, solving this is quite simple!" Zhang Xuan smiled.

"Simple? How simple?" Master Hong was stunned. "The distance is too great to attack, and we can't possibly fly over there..."

"Fly over? That's too much trouble..." Zhang Xuan shook his head, then turned and instructed, "Everyone, have your spirit beasts close their ears."

"Alright!" Hearing him speak, everyone paused for a moment but still nodded. They had considerable trust in the top-ranked individual from the Master Teacher Grand Competition.

Soon, all the spirit beasts closed their ears.

With preparations complete, Zhang Xuan smiled faintly and looked forward.

"Simple? Not old, but quite boastful. Master Hong, is this your student? How has he become so regressive, not understanding proper decorum? When elders speak, there's no place for a junior to interrupt..."

Overhearing their conversation, Feng Yu sneered. Just as he was about to reprimand them, he saw the young man opposite open his mouth, and a faint sound emerged.

*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!* Before Feng Yu and the others could react, the spirit beasts beneath them went into a freefall, plummeting straight down.