Chapter 1337: Gathering of Distinguished Guests

In the Coral Sea region of the South Sea, Lingbie Market was home to Mingxiang Tea House, the largest teahouse in the market. It was a well-known hub for various factions to gather intelligence, teeming with spies.

Wang Chun, a frequent patron of Mingxiang Tea House, had a wide circle of acquaintances. His real name was Wang Huachun, and he hailed from the Wang family of Qinglian Island. More than thirty years ago, he was dispatched to the Coral Sea region to operate within Lingbie Market, gathering various intelligence. He had now reached the seventh level of Foundation Establishment.

Early one morning, Wang Huachun arrived at Mingxiang Tea House as usual, encountering many familiar faces who greeted him. He ordered a pot of spiritual tea and two plates of pastries, then settled into a seat by the street.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, have you heard any news lately?" a middle-aged man with a monkey-like mouth and pointed cheeks leaned over, asking somewhat mysteriously.

"What news?" Wang Huachun paused slightly, asking casually.

"The Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign is holding his Nascent Soul Ceremony! Haven't you heard about it?"

"Oh, Fellow Daoist Liu, I thought you were talking about something important! Who doesn't know about this? For the past six months, groups of cultivators have been arriving in the South Sea, heading to Qinglian Island for the Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign's Nascent Soul Ceremony!" a corpulent red-robed man dismissed nonchalantly. It was no secret that a large number of cultivators had been passing through the Coral Sea region on their way to Qinglian Island for the past six months.

The middle-aged man smiled triumphantly, then said mysteriously, "Many people indeed know about this, but what I believe you don't know is that the Qianyang Immortal Couple from the Northern Frontier cultivation world have personally traveled all the way to the South Sea to attend the Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign's Nascent Soul Ceremony. You might not have heard of the Qianyang Immortal Couple, but they are very famous in the Northern Frontier cultivation world. They rose to prominence even earlier than the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple. The fact that they traveled thousands of miles to attend the Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign's Nascent Soul Ceremony truly shows how extensive the Wang family's connections are."

"Look, it's more cultivators from the Wang family. This must be the seventh group this month! Judging by their attire, they seem to be from the Northern Frontier cultivation world."

Wang Huachun and the others looked towards the street. A group of cultivators wearing identical green robes walked by. Their clothes were embroidered with several azure lotus flowers, and each cultivator had a confident expression. A pockmarked man in yellow robes walked in the middle; the man in yellow robes was corpulent, and his yellowish teeth made him appear somewhat lewd.

"Pockmarked Huang! It's actually him!" Wang Huachun recognized the yellow-robed elder. The elder's name was Huang Fugui, and he hailed from the Eastern Barren cultivation world. The Wang family had intelligence on Huang Fugui.

"If only I were from the Wang family! So many experts are going to Qinglian Island for the Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign's Nascent Soul Ceremony. The Wang family truly has immense prestige. Relying on the Ten Thousand Swords Sect as their backer, probably no one dares to provoke the Wang family anymore." The middle-aged man spoke with an envious tone. His gaze shifted to Wang Huachun, and he playfully quipped, "Fellow Daoist Wang, you also have the surname Wang. You're not from the Wang family of Qinglian Island, are you?"

"Oh, if I were from the Wang family of Qinglian Island, would I be here drinking tea and chatting with you? I would have gone back long ago to attend the Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign's Nascent Soul Ceremony, even if it was just to make an appearance before the high-level cultivators!" Wang Huachun said with a bitter smile, looking enviously at the departing Wang family cultivators.

As a spy for the Intelligence Hall, he would not easily expose his identity. There were certainly many spies like him in the Coral Sea region. After the collapse of Huanglong Island, the Sun-Moon Palace supported a cultivator family surnamed Li, who inherited most of Huanglong Island's territory to counterbalance the Taiyi Immortal Sect. Wang Huachun's mission was to ascertain the whereabouts of cultivators from Huanglong Island, especially Huang Yuxu's.

Upon leaving the market, the Wang family cultivators each conjured a blue lotus spiritual artifact, leaping onto them. Dozens of blue lotus flowers flew towards the sky, and Huang Fugui transformed into a yellow light, chasing after them. Before long, they vanished into the horizon.

---

Meanwhile, on Qinglian Island in the Five Dragons Sea Region, a team of Wang family cultivators was on patrol, led by Ye Zhongren. Before Ye Bin's demise, he revealed the existence of two Immortal Suppressing Tokens. After acquiring these tokens, the Wang family allocated a large sum of merit points to Ye Zhongren. However, he diligently remembered Ye Bin's last wish to do more for the family, knowing that the family would not neglect those who contributed.

As the Nascent Soul Ceremony approached, a large number of cultivators from all corners of the world flocked to Qinglian Island. Many of these cultivators were high-level, and could not be treated lightly. With reception staff stretched thin, Ye Zhongren voluntarily offered to take charge of welcoming the guests. Given the attack five years prior, entry to Qinglian Island now required an invitation issued by the Wang family.

Ye Zhongren was leading his team on patrol, each member standing tall and confident. During this period, large numbers of cultivators arriving from all directions kept them extremely busy, yet inwardly, they were overjoyed. The more guests who came to attend the Nascent Soul Ceremony, the greater the influence of the Wang family.

"If only we could have a drink there, too!" a fair-faced youth in green robes said with a smile, his face full of envy. "So many high-level experts have come this time. We usually don't get such a good opportunity to see so many of them."

"The spots are limited," Ye Zhongren quipped. "Who told you not to cultivate diligently? If you cultivated hard and earned a rank in the family competition, you would certainly get to have a few drinks."

Just then, a loud dragon roar echoed from the distant horizon. A golden light appeared in the sky, rapidly flying towards their location.

"Someone's coming. It must be guests. Tidy up your attire and look serious," Ye Zhongren instructed, tidying his own attire to make a good impression on the arriving guests.

Before long, the golden light stopped, revealing a magnificent golden flood dragon, over fifty zhang long, appearing before them. The golden flood dragon had a brilliant golden horn, and its body was covered in golden scales, reflecting flashes of golden light under the sun. A graceful, well-preserved middle-aged woman stood on the head of the golden flood dragon. A team of cultivators in lavish brocade robes stood behind her. The woman's clothes were embroidered with several lifelike golden swallows, seemingly symbolic of something.

"We are members of the Great Yan Dynasty's imperial family. Invited by the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple, we have come to attend the Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign's Nascent Soul Ceremony. Here is the invitation." A tall middle-aged man flew over, took out a shimmering blue invitation card, and handed it to Ye Zhongren. The card had an azure lotus pattern on its surface.

Wang Qingshan had a good personal relationship with Zhou Yunxiao. The Azure Lotus Immortal Couple had previously assisted the Myriad Immortals Bureau in apprehending evil cultivators. The Great Yan imperial family intended to give the Wang family face by sending Zhou Ningshuang to lead a delegation to attend the Azure Lotus Sword Sovereign's Nascent Soul Ceremony.

Ye Zhongren carefully inspected the invitation, and after confirming it was valid, he made a welcoming gesture and respectfully said, "Junior Ye Zhongren. Senior, please follow me. Due to the large number of guests recently, our family has activated parts of the protective formation. We hope for your understanding regarding any inconvenience."

Zhou Ningshuang nodded. "Lead the way!"

Ye Zhongren flew northeast on his spiritual artifact, and the golden flood dragon followed. Half an hour later, they stopped. Ahead was a vast expanse of dense blue mist, obscuring the view of what lay within.