71: Meeting the Emperor

After everyone had entered the plaza, an Old Eunuch holding a whisk flew out from the palace.

The Aura emanating from this person was on par with the Grand Elder of the Peerless Sect, clearly possessing a half-step Martial Saint cultivation base.

The Old Eunuch flew in front of everyone and asked in a sharp voice:

"Are you from the Peerless Sect?"

The Grand Elder and the other Elders quickly bowed and respectfully replied:

"Precisely, I am the Grand Elder of the Peerless Sect, leading a group of Elders and elite Disciples to participate in the Martial Arts Gathering."

The Old Eunuch's gaze swept over everyone and he said, "All of you, enter!"

Immediately, everyone followed the Old Eunuch towards the main hall.

Upon entering the massive palace, the first thing that caught their eyes was the majestic imperial throne directly opposite, exuding an emperor's domineering presence.

Below the throne, eight areas were demarcated, and seven of them were already filled with people.

Presumably, these were people from other Sects participating in the Martial Arts Gathering; including the Peerless Sect, there were a total of eight Sects.

Each Sect was led by an Elder, and in front of each team was a nameplate bearing the Gang's name.

Ji Mo looked around and finally realized which Gangs were present:

Qingyun Sect, Divine Blade Gate, Heavenly Sword Sect, Jade Maiden Sect, Shenwu Sect, Sea Overturning Sect, Fist Dao, plus the Peerless Sect, making exactly eight.

The Grand Elder led everyone, steadily standing in the Peerless Sect's designated formation.

As soon as everyone settled in, they began to size each other up.

Among the crowd, many Disciples had a similar Aura to Zhou Hao, and as their eyes met, hostility and displeasure quietly emerged. The entire great hall seemed to surge with an invisible undercurrent, a silent competition.

Ji Mo's gaze first fell upon the Shenwu Sect's team.

He had heard in the tavern earlier that the Shenwu Sect had a formidable character named Qi Tian.

In front of the Shenwu Sect's formation, Ji Mo quickly locked onto his target.

This person was truly eye-catching; his green robe fluttered without wind, his face was covered in bizarre tattoos, exuding a ferocious, terrifying, and evil spirits (evil Qi), and his entire body radiated an eerie Aura.

Ji Mo secretly mused, if the one who obtained the Ancient Demon Saint Legacy wasn't him, who else could it be?

Ji Mo stared intently at the other party. Qi Tian also seemed to notice the gaze and suddenly turned his head. In an instant, their eyes directly clashed.

At this moment, Ji Mo only felt his spiritual world undergo a sudden change, forcibly being dragged into an evil space.

The environment here was extremely harsh; at one moment, it was like a purgatory of raging fire, with scorching flames seemingly capable of incinerating everything;

At another moment, it was like a Hell of bone-chilling ice, with icy Qi directly penetrating the marrow.

At the same time, ferocious monsters would occasionally appear out of thin air, opening their blood-red mouths that could devour everything, savagely biting at Ji Mo.

At this critical juncture, an incomparably sharp Sword Intent suddenly burst forth in Ji Mo's spiritual world.

This Sword Intent was like an peerless divine sword, instantly cleaving through the evil world and steadily pulling Ji Mo's consciousness back to his body.

Looking at Qi Tian again, a bloodthirsty smile curled at the corner of his mouth, his eyes full of brutal savagery and murderous intent, staring fixedly at Ji Mo, as if Ji Mo was his prey waiting to be slaughtered.

The two exchanged a deep glance, then Qi Tian slowly turned his head away.

With this brief contact, Ji Mo confirmed that Qi Tian's strength was far above Zhou Hao's, not just by a little bit.

Afterward, Ji Mo's gaze was drawn to the Jade Maiden Sect.

Men, more or less, have an appreciation for beauty.

The hundreds of female Disciples of the Jade Maiden Sect were all beauties.

Under the long-term nourishment of spiritual power, cultivators, except for those affected by special Cultivation Techniques, all had supple skin.

A rough estimate placed the appearance of these female Disciples at least eighty-five points or higher.

The leading woman, in a white dress, with her sleeves fluttering, was like a Heavenly Immortal descended from the Nine Heavens, possessing an extraordinary temperament that made Ji Mo's heart stir slightly.

However, Ji Mo noticed that the Jade Maiden Sect Disciples looked at many Sect Disciples with hidden hostility in their eyes.

After a brief thought, he understood that with such beauty, these female Disciples would inevitably encounter incidents of rape and abduction.

Just then, Bai Ling, next to Ji Mo, trembled violently, her face turning ashen white.

Her pearly teeth bit her lower lip, drawing blood, and her eyes were filled with tears as she stared with hatred at a participating Disciple from the Divine Blade Gate.

Wang Caiwei quickly supported Bai Ling and gently comforted her:

"Senior Sister, don't be sad. If I encounter that beast in the competition, Junior Sister here will definitely not spare him and will avenge Senior Sister.

That beast used such despicable means to rape and murder Senior Sister's sister, and even tried to defile Senior Sister. He is truly heinous and deserves to die!"

Upon hearing this, Ji Mo understood the whole story.

These two Senior Sisters were quite friendly to him. Now that he knew of such evil deeds, Ji Mo immediately spoke to Bai Ling solemnly:

"Senior Sister, you don't need to worry. This person will absolutely not leave the imperial palace alive. He is destined to die."

Bai Ling gradually recovered herself, her eyes filled with gratitude, and she looked at Ji Mo with tender affection.

Just at this moment, a group of ministers filed out from the back of the main hall. The two leading figures had restrained yet unfathomable Auras around them.

Elder Mu quickly leaned close to Ji Mo and introduced in a low voice:

"The one walking on the left is Prime Minister Changsun, who was just in the sedan chair. He has reached the Saint Realm Second Heaven."

Ji Mo looked over and saw an old man, exuding a strong Aura of a great scholar. His face was gentle and his temperament elegant, making people's minds quietly settle without realizing it.

"And the one walking alongside him on the right is the God of War of the Heavenly Dragon Empire—Xuan Yuan Wudi, Saint Realm Third Heaven."

Xuan Yuan Wudi was extremely tall, over two meters, and his entire body was tightly covered by heavy armor.

Ji Mo observed, feeling that the armor alone was indestructible.

This person exuded an overwhelming domineering Aura. Even without deliberately revealing his presence, just standing there quietly gave off an immensely dignified and inviolable feeling.

"These two can be called the left and right arms of the Heavenly Dragon Empire's Emperor, one civil and one military, firmly controlling the Empire's lifeline."

Behind the two, a team of over a hundred people followed. Every person in the team actually possessed the Void Shattering Realm cultivation base. Presumably, these were all important ministers of the Empire.

Seeing this, Ji Mo secretly pondered that most Saint Realm Experts from various Sects chose to Cultivate in seclusion, while the Empire's Saint Realm masters openly displayed themselves to the world.

This might be a method the Empire used to restrict Sects, or perhaps the Sects themselves already lacked resources for Saint Realm Experts to Cultivate.

Of course, Ji Mo knew that there were certainly more than just these two Saint Realm Experts in the imperial palace.

After all, strictly speaking, these two were not direct members of the imperial family.

Ji Mo couldn't help but wonder how profound the Heavenly Dragon Empire's Emperor's cultivation base must be to subdue these powerhouses.

As he was pondering, a peculiar Aura, like a spring breeze nourishing rain, quietly spread.

This Aura was harmonious with all things; being immersed in it felt like returning to the womb, and a sense of security spontaneously arose.

The Aura also carried a sense of holiness, as if it could gently soothe the wounds in people's hearts.

"His Majesty the Emperor has arrived!"

A sharp voice suddenly rang out. In an instant, the palace was filled with radiant light, as if the heavens had opened, and golden lotuses bloomed out of thin air on the ground.