Chapter 476: Opening of the Celebration

The bells chimed, and guests gathered like gathering clouds, crowding around the altar.

Every gaze was fixed upon Lu Yang, who stood attired in ceremonial robes and a crown, his expression solemn and majestic.

Step by step, Lu Yang walked toward the altar, the surrounding crowd consciously parting to make way for him.

No one knew that at this very moment, a fierce internal conflict was raging within Lu Yang's mind.

"Come on, come on, let me take over!"

"Fairy, are you actually reliable? How about I do it for you instead!"

"This immortal was worshiped by mortals an eternity ago; I know the procedure far better than you do!"

After a brief struggle, Lu Yang was successfully forced to relinquish control of his body.

The Immortal Fairy ascended the altar carved from white jade, her steps steady and powerful, as though she had walked out from the ancient past through countless vicissitudes, carrying the heavy weight of history.

"Who is this person? He looks so young." The older generation watching the ceremony froze as they saw Lu Yang take the stage, unable to match him with anyone they knew.

"I heard he is the youngest disciple of Daoist Buyu, named Lu Yang. He has been making the most waves recently; some say he is invincible in the Golden Core Stage, the foremost youth of this generation."

"Invincible in the Golden Core Stage?"

The weight of this title was immense. The Golden Core Stage held a pivotal position across the entire system of cultivation; to reign supreme and be called invincible within it meant one's future achievements would be boundless!

"But that is not right either. Even if he is invincible in the Golden Core Stage, he should not be the one ascending the altar."

"Rumors outside say that Daoist Buyu intends to cultivate this youngest disciple, having appointed him as the acting sect master and leaving even such a grand event as this celebration for him to organize."

"External rumors are untrustworthy. In my view, that old scoundrel Buyu simply dares not show his face, so he pushed his young disciple to the forefront."

"That does sound like something the old scoundrel Buyu would do."

"To achieve such things at such a young age, his destiny is infinite. I wonder if this Lu Yang has a beloved yet; my family happens to have a few girls of suitable age and decent talent."

"But he is the youngest disciple of that old scoundrel Buyu."

"Never mind then."

Dong—

As the Immortal Fairy took the stage, the chime bells rang out, a melodious and clanging resonance, ancient and grand, transporting everyone back a hundred thousand years.

What the Fourth Elder and his disciples were performing was the ritual music used for sacrifices in the Wendao Sect.

As a Confucian cultivator, the Fourth Elder was well-versed in the temperament of music; a single tune on his flute could summon a hundred birds to worship. In his youth, he had relied on this skill to attract countless young maidens.

The altar enshrined three towering statues covered in red cloth. The Grand Elder cast a spell nearby, tearing away the red cloth to reveal the true countenances of the three statues.

Daoist Xiantian, who founded the Wendao Sect; Heavenly Venerable Guiyuan, the founder of the Immortal Gates; and Daoist Lord Hanhai, the ancestor of the sect's revival.

These three held a special significance in the Wendao Sect, collectively known as the Three Ancestors of the Wendao Sect. When Lu Yang took his master, it was witnessed beneath the ancestral tablets of these three.

Holding a jade tablet, the Immortal Fairy clasped her hands together with her left hand on top, palms facing inward, and performed three deep bows toward the ancestral tablets.

Below the altar, Yun Zhi watched the Immortal Fairy bow with strict formality, nodding in satisfaction.

Reasonably speaking, even if Lu Yang became the acting sect master, he lacked the status to represent the entire Wendao Sect in performing the sacrifice.

However, the one standing upon the altar was not Lu Yang, but the Immortal Fairy.

As one of the five ancient immortals and the possessor of the Immortal Dao Fruit, when the Immortal Fairy bowed to the Three Ancestors of the Wendao Sect, the question shouldn't be whether the Immortal Fairy was qualified, but whether the destinies of the Three Ancestors were resilient enough to endure it.

The Immortal Fairy lit the incense and candles, and amidst the curling wisps of fragrant smoke, she recited the sacrificial text, her voice ringing clear and echoing throughout the Wendao Sect.

"Oh, great and holy gods, born in the deep and ancient past... reverently we offer these ceremonial silks and sacrificial vessels, with abundant grains and various offerings..."

The sacrificial text had been commanded by the Immortal Fairy to Lu Yang, who then used her authority to order the Fourth Elder to write it.

As the most cultured person in the entire Wendao Sect, the Fourth Elder naturally took on the heavy responsibility without hesitation.

The Immortal Fairy could tell at a glance that the text written by the Fourth Elder was of an exceptionally high standard—she didn't even recognize many of the characters, and those she did know were tongue-twisters to read.

Once the recitation concluded, the Immortal Fairy smiled, thoroughly satisfied.

How refreshing.

In the past, it was always others who worshiped her; today, it was finally her turn to worship others.

As the acting sect master and an honorary elder, it was perfectly logical and reasonable for her to worship the Three Ancestors of the Wendao Sect.

"Our sect has prepared many activities. Please eat well and enjoy yourselves. Take a day's rest, for the finals shall commence tomorrow."

The celebration process planned by Lu Yang was: Celebration Begins—Guest Sightseeing—Finals Begin—Closing Ceremony.

The purpose of the righteous path was to find the ancient cultivators who had dispersed their cultivation to retrain, using this tournament as a cover.

However, Lu Yang felt that relying solely on performances during the matches made it difficult to discern whether someone was truly an ancient cultivator. Thus, he proposed organizing activities during the celebration to observe the contestants' behavior, combining those observations with their performance in the arena to make a judgment.

Once this idea was proposed, it immediately received the approval of the Emperor of Xia and the other sect masters.

Many observant cultivators had been planted within the Wendao Sect; some were sent by the imperial court, while others were from the Immortal Gates. All of them were experts in sycophancy, highly skilled at reading expressions and behavior.

The Wendao Sect, however, found it rather difficult to produce such sycophantic types, so they did not deploy anyone.

With the sacrifice concluded, a group of venerable elders of the cultivation world still maintained a grand interest in Lu Yang. Elder Sikong and Lu Baqian were among them, all being very close Daoist friends.

"I heard this junior possesses extraordinary combat power, beating the four great Immortal Gate masters so badly they lost all face and suffered no light injuries."

"Surely that is a rumor. To have such power in the Golden Core Stage, not even a reincarnated immortal could achieve it."

"You cannot put it that way. With the coming of the great era, it is not strange for any kind of genius to appear. Have you not heard that in ancient times, some were born into the Tribulation Transmutation Stage, their cultivation unparalleled under heaven, eventually proving their Dao to become immortals?"

"Putting it that way does make some sense, but I still feel something is amiss about this matter."

"Look, Qiu Jin'an and the others are right over there. Wouldn't we know if we just went and asked them?"

"Come, let us go ask."

Cultivators acted decisively, doing whatever came to mind.

Qiu Jin'an and the other three possessed darkened countenances, searching all around for Daoist Buyu.

When the matter of "The Legend of the Wendao Sect: Lu Yang's Chapter" reached their ears, they knew immediately upon hearing it that it was the handiwork of that grandson, Daoist Buyu.

After a month and a half of recuperation, the injuries of all four had healed. Yang Ding's hair had grown back out, Master Jiesha's hair had grown back in, and everything was as it had been.

"Daoist Qiu, I heard Lu Yang thrashed the four of you. Is it true?" The venerable elders approached Qiu Jin'an and the others, asking quite bluntly, their faces written all over with the desire to watch a good show.

The faces of the four turned entirely black in unison, completely unsure of how to respond.

"It is true, but..." Qiu Jin'an nodded helplessly, but just as he was about to explain, he was interrupted by Lu Baqian.

"Daoist Qiu, this is where you are in the wrong. A loss is a loss; it is perfectly normal to win some and lose some in cultivation. How can you make excuses?"

As a great power of the Tribulation Transmutation Stage, Lu Baqian's words carried tremendous weight.

"Indeed, indeed. Old Qiu, you always say cultivators must be open and upright, brave enough to admit their own shortcomings. How come your words do not apply to yourself?"

"Acting like this is detrimental to your future cultivation."

Everyone chimed in one after another, speaking with increasing enthusiasm. Having finally found an opportunity to mock Qiu Jin'an and his group, they could not afford to miss it for anything.

Unable to endure it any longer, Qiu Jin'an cast a glance at Luo Hongxia. Luo Hongxia understood perfectly, pulling out the Light-Confining Treasure Box. The box burst into a brilliant radiance, drawing everyone inside it.

Equalizing cultivation levels required the consent of both parties, but if it was merely a matter of pulling people inside, Luo Hongxia could decide that on her own.

"Get them!"

Inside the precious treasure box, Grandmaster Jiesha took the lead and struck first, with Qiu Jin'an and the other two providing cover, utterly routing the crowd of venerated elders.

The second update will be at eleven o'clock.

(End of this chapter)