At the Du Cang Mountain ferry dock.

Hundreds upon thousands of ferry vessels from various cultivation sects across Chenping Continent came and went at this place, the clamor of voices rising to the heavens.

The greatest difference from the previous Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry was that figures of Upper Three Realm cultivators now appeared in considerable numbers at the Du Cang Mountain ferry dock.

One had to understand that across the vast expanse of Chenping Continent, there were currently only a little over seven hundred Upper Three Realm cultivators in total.

In more than ninety percent of Chenping Continent's territories, a Fifth Realm cultivator could already hold their own and command respect.

In some places where immortal cultivation had developed more slowly, even Qi Sea Realm cultivators could throw their weight around with impunity.

Yet at the current Du Cang Mountain ferry dock, even great powers at the Myriad Transformations Realm, cultivators whose cultivation levels were sufficient to serve as Peak Elders in the Five Great Sects, could hardly hold their heads up high.

After all, standing on the streets of the dock, a single casual glance in any direction would reveal several figures radiating the oppressive might of Upper Three Realm greats.

This was the first time in over sixty thousand years, since the destruction of Heavenly Summit Mountain, that Chenping Continent had witnessed such a spectacular sight.

Even so, the Du Cang Mountain ferry dock remained perfectly orderly, because—

...

Just then, the sky suddenly darkened once again.

An incomparably massive tower ship was slowly descending toward a berth at the Du Cang Mountain ferry dock. This enormous ferry vessel was suffused with a purple hue throughout, and both sides of the hull were carved with intricate Dao patterns of soaring dark-feathered birds spreading their wings, every detail rendered with lifelike precision.

"It's a ferry vessel from the Dream Nether Palace."

A knowledgeable cultivator exclaimed in a hushed, startled voice.

The Dream Nether Palace was a top-tier sect in the Eastern Domain of Chenping Continent. Three hundred years ago, they had produced an exceptionally brilliant genius who had consecutively defeated three Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquirers from the Five Great Sects during the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry, only to lose in the next round to a disciple of the Weaving Dreams Tower from Mirage Palace.

That match had also been extremely theatrical, because the genius from the Dream Nether Palace had indeed been holding the upper hand throughout his entire exchange with that Weaving Dreams Tower disciple of Mirage Palace.

Almost everyone had believed that the scales of victory had already tipped in favor of that Dream Nether Palace disciple, and that the match was about to be decided, when that genius from the Dream Nether Palace suddenly revealed an extremely low-level opening during a fierce assault.

Then he was caught by that Mirage Palace Weaving Dreams Tower disciple who seized the only chance to turn the tables, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat.

If he had lost to a Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquirer from some other sect in this manner, it might have been easier to accept, after all, he had exposed the opening himself, and his opponent had simply capitalized on that low-level mistake.

But the one who defeated him just happened to be a Weaving Dreams Tower disciple from Mirage Palace.

This made it very easy for people to let their imaginations run wild.

Many people began privately speculating whether the Weaving Dreams Tower disciple from Mirage Palace had used forbidden illusion techniques on the arena platform, causing that brilliant genius from the Dream Nether Palace to make such a low-level mistake during the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry.

Even the Dream Nether Palace itself, though never stating it explicitly, had begun a "silent protest."

They started sandbagging at the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry.

As a top-tier immortal cultivation sect that had been passed down for over twenty thousand years in the Eastern Domain of Chenping Continent, the Dream Nether Palace could naturally send exceptionally gifted disciples to participate in the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry every ten years.

But ever since that genius from three hundred years ago was defeated, at every single Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry since, the Dream Nether Palace's Dao Inquirer would choose to forfeit and concede defeat before the first round even began.

This move by the Dream Nether Palace was undoubtedly sending a message to the cultivation world of Chenping Continent.

And that genius disciple of the Dream Nether Palace was also believed by many to be someone who, had he not been covertly sabotaged by Mirage Palace back then, would most likely have defeated all the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquirers from the Five Great Sects that year, becoming an extremely rare champion of Heavenly Summit Mountain who did not hail from the Five Great Sects.

But what was the truth of the matter?

For Mirage Palace, their people felt as disgusted as if they had swallowed a fly.

Given Mirage Palace's sheer scale and stature, there was absolutely no need for them to employ such despicable tricks at the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry. Even if they lost, so what?

Moreover, that Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquirer from Mirage Palace's Weaving Dreams Tower had known from the very beginning that he could never claim the title of champion of Heavenly Summit Mountain that year. Whether he was eliminated a round earlier or a round later made no difference whatsoever. He had even less reason to do something that could potentially ruin his own reputation.

It was simply the Dream Nether Palace's people building up momentum for their "genius."

They were highlighting the image of a tragic hero while casting Mirage Palace as the villain. If one were to view it from Chen Yan's perspective, it more closely resembled an extremely shameless form of "marketing."

The problem was that Mirage Palace truly couldn't do much about the Dream Nether Palace.

The Dream Nether Palace was located in the Eastern Domain of Chenping Continent, far beyond Mirage Palace's reach, like the emperor being too far away to govern. Mirage Palace had no jurisdiction over them.

Moreover, the Dream Nether Palace had never engaged in any behavior that crossed the line. They had never once claimed that Mirage Palace's disciples had cheated. They simply sandbagged at the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry.

But because of this, that genius from the Dream Nether Palace had seen his fame and prestige skyrocket, even surpassing the champion of Heavenly Summit Mountain from that year's Dao Inquiry.

And it wasn't just that genius either. The Dream Nether Palace itself benefited just as much.

One could say that the Dream Nether Palace's current prestige across Chenping Continent had been built entirely by trampling on Mirage Palace's reputation.

After that enormous tower ship came to a stable halt, several streams of oppressive aura began emanating from within the vessel. Though their owners deliberately restrained themselves, the powerful pressure belonging to Upper Three Realm cultivators still caused the true qi flowing through the meridians of cultivators near the ship to become sluggish and hindered.

The first to step down from the ship were three elders clad in dark, blue-black colored daoist robes. The one in the center radiated an aura like an abyss and a sea, unmistakably a great power at the mid-stage of the Divine Ability Realm.

As for the two flanking him on left and right, their pressure and aura were considerably weaker than the one in the middle, they were merely two Unity Realm cultivators.

Three Upper Three Realm greats simultaneously emerging from a ferry vessel naturally drew the attention of many cultivators at the dock.

Following them, over twenty mid-to-high ranking cultivators of the Dream Nether Palace stepped down from the ship, also clad in the same blue-black daoist robes, their cultivation levels ranging from Qi Sea Realm to Myriad Transformations Realm. Finally came a hundred or so young disciples whose cultivation ranged from Qi Circulation Realm to Martial Spring Realm.

These young disciples of the Dream Nether Palace were filled with curiosity, gazing around in every direction at the Du Cang Mountain dock. Then, when they noticed that the vast majority of cultivators at the dock looked upon their sect's ancestral masters with expressions filled with awe and reverence, they too seemed to grow even more arrogant and puffed up.

These young disciples of the Dream Nether Palace who were able to participate in the Du Cang Mountain Dao Discussion were naturally the heaven-chosen talents of the younger generation within the Dream Nether Palace.

As young disciples who received considerable attention even within a top-tier immortal cultivation sect like the Dream Nether Palace, they naturally held themselves in high regard.

When these people sensed that the cultivators at the Du Cang Mountain ferry dock seemed to hold the Dream Nether Palace in such awe, as if it were only natural, they began to get a little carried away with themselves.

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