214: Nangong Chen

A short while later,

Jiang Ye used the aura of the Power of Thunder to mask his aura of fire and changed into the Disciple uniform of the Xuan Lei Sect. After entering Shen Xuan City, he used his Soul to locate the members of the Xuan Lei Sect and rushed over to join them.

He remained as inconspicuous as ever, hiding his Realm and following at the very back of the Xuan Lei Sect's group of over a hundred people. Since everyone was emitting the aura of the Power of Thunder, no one noticed him at all.

It wasn't until they entered the competition venue and were preparing to draw lots that a Venerable Realm Disciple next to Jiang Ye noticed him.

"Who are you? How come I've never seen you before?"

Jiang Ye said, "Oh, I only joined the Sect three months ago. The Sect is so large that it's normal for us not to have met."

"So you're a new Disciple. No wonder you look so unfamiliar. Hmm? What's going on with your Realm? Why can't I see through it?"

"I've just broken through to the Xuan Saint Realm and came out of seclusion recently."

"What? Xuan Saint Realm?" The Disciple's voice suddenly grew louder, and others looked over as well.

Lei Ming also noticed him, looked over, and said loudly, "Where have you been? Why are you only showing up now?"

Jiang Ye said, "I was relaxing outside and decided to just come directly here to wait for you all."

"Relaxing? Where did you go to relax for so long! The competition is about to start, and you didn't even return to the Sect."

"I stayed at the Jade Maiden Tower for a few days."

Lei Ming's mouth twitched. To think you'd dare to say that in public; you're certainly frank! The other Disciples also suddenly became interested in him, their eyes revealing an intention to befriend him.

"Alright! Everyone, get acquainted. This is Jiang Ye, a new Disciple who has joined under my tutelage. Help each other out in the future. Now, hurry up and go draw your lots!"

Lei Ming's son, Lei Jun, walked over and said, "So you're Junior Brother Jiang. I'm Lei Jun! I was in seclusion before and couldn't meet you."

"Hello, Senior Brother Lei. I've heard of your great name from Vice Sect Master Lei before. It's an honor!"

"Haha, no need to be so formal. We're all members of the Xuan Lei Sect. Let's go! Let's draw some good lots, and we'll all get together for a drink later."

"Alright!"

At that moment, they happened to encounter the Disciples of the Taichu Sect, all of whom looked dejected. An Dong, another Prodigy Disciple of the Xuan Lei Sect, teased, "Oh! The Taichu Sect has something to celebrate today, hahaha!"

"An Dong! Don't be so arrogant here. You'd better hope you don't run into me in tomorrow's match, or I'll make you pay for it!" a Prodigy Disciple from the Taichu Sect shot back.

An Dong looked disdainful. "I'm afraid if I run into you tomorrow, I won't be able to stop myself from hitting too hard and beating you to death on the stage!"

Chen Hua, the third Prodigy Disciple of the Xuan Lei Sect, said, "An Dong, hurry up and register for the draw. After all, the Taichu Sect just lost a Prodigy Disciple; have some consideration! We'll go have some wine later and happily hold a memorial for them."

"Great idea! We fellow Disciples should all drink together later and have some fun! Hahaha!"

The Taichu Sect Disciples were all extremely frustrated. Known as the number one power under the Shen Xuan Alliance, they were being constantly provoked, and they instantly felt that the Taichu Sect's prestige was completely gone.

Although the battle outside the city hadn't truly broken out, the news of a Taichu Sect Prodigy Disciple being killed had instantly spread throughout Shen Xuan City.

The hottest topic in Shen Xuan City right now was speculating who killed the Taichu Sect's Prodigy Disciple, but no one had a clue. Anyone who could kill their Prodigy Disciple right in front of their Xuan King Realm Vice Sect Master was thought to be the leader of some major power.

An hour later.

The Xuan Lei Sect Disciples had all finished registering and drawing lots. Jiang Ye noticed that among them, over a dozen had already broken through to the first stage of the Xuan Saint Realm. Among them, a person named Nangong Chen was very special; although he hid his Realm, Jiang Ye discovered through his Soul perception that he had actually reached the Seventh Stage of Xuan Saint Realm.

For a moment, Jiang Ye was very curious about this person. According to his guess, this person must have also forged a Thunder Body and wanted to use the Xuan Lei Sect's Heavenly Thunder Pool to Cultivate.

Inside a restaurant.

Jiang Ye was drinking with Lei Jun and several other Prodigy Disciples. An Dong leaned his head close to Jiang Ye's ear and whispered, "Junior Brother Jiang, want to go have some fun later? The Yan Yun Tower in Shen Xuan City is quite extraordinary."

"Huh?" Jiang Ye was stunned. He looked at him and said, "Senior Brother An, you're into that too?"

"Ahem, as they say, 'a fair lady is a gentleman's delight to... touch!' We Cultivate every day; occasionally, we need to relax just like you!"

"Uh... hahaha! You're right. Relaxing a bit makes cultivating and breaking through Realms faster."

Lei Jun and the other person were quite speechless. "You two take it easy; the competition is tomorrow."

Jiang Ye suddenly said, "By the way, Senior Brothers, do you know much about Nangong Chen from our Sect?"

"Hmm? Why do you ask?" Lei Jun was a bit curious.

"He's not a focused Prodigy Disciple, but his Realm is..." Jiang Ye didn't finish his sentence.

Chen Hua said, "I've actually had a few interactions with him. He's very reclusive and basically doesn't socialize. I also feel he's a bit strange, but I can't put my finger on what's wrong."

Lei Jun said, "I heard my father mention that he's an illegitimate son of the Nangong Family. Perhaps because of this, he works harder at cultivation than most people. Sometimes even I feel a bit inferior."

An Dong said, "Yeah, I've heard that too. Whenever he takes on Sect missions, he always takes a whole bunch at once before heading out, and he completes them very quickly."

Jiang Ye asked, "Then why hasn't the Sect made him a focused Prodigy?"

Lei Jun said, "Because he's from the Nangong Family. Even if the Sect focuses on him, he'll eventually return to the Nangong Family, so the Sect isn't willing to invest too much in him. However, Junior Brother Jiang, you're different. You come from a small Family in the Southern Region, yet you have your current strength."

The Xuan Lei Sect values you highly now. Otherwise, when you secretly snuck into the Heavenly Thunder Pool to Cultivate in seclusion, they would have kicked you out long ago. The higher-ups even closed the Heavenly Thunder Pool for a period of time just so you could break through in peace.

"Holy crap! So that's how it was. I thought it was strange at the time; after making such a mess, why didn't anyone come to kick me out?" Only then did Jiang Ye realize why his Breakthrough in the thunder pool had gone so smoothly.

"Haha, you kid, for the Xuan Lei Sect to seal off the Heavenly Thunder Pool for a newly joined Disciple, you're probably the first in history."

Jiang Ye felt a bit embarrassed. He had just joined the Sect and hadn't made any contributions yet, but he had already used such a massive cultivation resource.

"Then what should I do to compensate the Sect?"

An Dong said jokingly, "Then win the championship this time. The rewards are quite substantial; you can give some to the Sect then."

"I'll pass on that, but I'll help you guys win it!"

Lei Jun was a bit puzzled and said, "You'll help us win the championship? Junior Brother Jiang, what Realm have you reached? You've hidden it so well that we can't see through it."

"Seventh Stage of Xuan Saint Realm!" Jiang Ye answered truthfully.

"What?" The three of them looked at him in astonishment at the same time. Lei Jun said, "Are you really from a small Family in the Southern Region?"