57: Cao Bu concurrently serves as the Ninth Elder

Leng Yue watched the crowd discussing, and she couldn't help but feel a sense of pride.

She was Gu Feng's biological mother, and naturally, she was happy that her son possessed such talent.

In truth, under normal circumstances, she would not have wanted Gu Feng to become the Clan Chief of the Gu Clan.

After all, a jungle only needs one tiger king.

Now that Gu Yun had brought about his own destruction, among the younger generation, other than the children born to the Three Matriarchs, no one else was capable of taking on important responsibilities, so Gu Feng had to shoulder this burden.

The younger generation of the Gu Clan, having been modified by Gu Qingtian, possessed talent far exceeding that of the previous generation, but it would take anywhere from a thousand to ten thousand years for them to fully mature.

Perhaps only after their entire Family had achieved Ascension would these individuals truly be able to shoulder the responsibilities of the Gu Clan.

As for the Eight Great Elders, if not for Gu Qingtian, they would not have even been able to reach the Dharma Body Realm.

Their current Realm Emperor Realm cultivation was only achieved because Gu Qingtian had broken into the Forbidden Ground and obtained fruits that enhanced their talent, helping them achieve their Breakthrough.

Their strength was the weakest among those of the same level, and their potential had already peaked; they would never be able to make another Breakthrough.

"Enough."

Leng Yue spoke up, interrupting the discussion. After waiting for everyone to quiet down, she continued, "Let's leave the matter of the Clan Chief for now. Next is the position of Ninth Elder. Who should fill it?"

The hall fell silent once more.

The Gu Clan originally only had nine Realm Sovereigns, and now one was missing; the other deacons were all in the Realm King Realm.

They had also been beneficiaries of the talent enhancement, but given their aptitude, they would not be able to achieve a Breakthrough to the Realm Emperor Realm in the short term.

In the silence, the Grand Elder spoke first, "In the entire Gu Clan, only the eight of us have achieved a Breakthrough to the Realm Emperor Realm. Outsiders cannot fill this position; after all, the position of Ninth Elder manages one of the Gu Clan's lifelines."

"But if we select someone from the Realm King clansmen, others will certainly be unconvinced."

"I propose that Steward Cao temporarily act as the Ninth Elder. In the future, if any Gu clansman achieves a Breakthrough to the Realm Emperor Realm, we can have that person take over from Steward Cao."

"Everyone has witnessed Steward Cao's capabilities over the years. What do you all think?"

These words left the other seven Elders stunned.

The Grand Elder had always only followed the Clan Chief's arrangements and had never spoken up for anyone; this was the first time.

But upon further thought, since it was only a temporary appointment, they didn't dwell on it too much, though each of them began to have their own hidden agendas.

They were currently in the Realm Emperor Realm and could still live for tens of thousands of years.

Gu Qingtian's Family possessed great talent, so Immortal Ascension within ten thousand years would be no problem, but what about after ten thousand years?

Once their descendants grew up, Gu Qingtian's lineage might not necessarily remain as glorious.

In order to compete for the position of Clan Chief for their own lineages after ten thousand years, all of them set their sights on the position of Ninth Elder.

They made up their minds to return and immediately focus on cultivating clansmen to achieve a Breakthrough to the Realm Emperor Realm.

Consequently, the seven of them nodded one after another, "I agree to let Steward Cao act in this position temporarily."

"I agree as well."

"I agree as well."

In their view, Cao Bu only had a few hundred years of life remaining, so it was only right to let him enjoy some comfort before he died; after all, Cao Bu had made significant contributions to the Gu Clan.

Leng Yue nodded, then turned to Su Li and asked, "Third Sister, what do you think?"

Su Li nodded, "I agree."

Leng Yue turned back to Cao Bu, "Bu'er, do you have the confidence?"

A trace of excitement appeared on Cao Bu's face as he stood up, cupped his fists, and said, "Thank you to both my Adoptive Mothers for your kindness, and thank you to all the Elders for your trust. I, Cao Bu, will certainly handle matters in an orderly fashion and will never hold back the development of the Family."

The Elders all nodded and smiled.

Cao Bu never competed or fought, and never easily offended anyone. In their eyes, he was the ultimate workhorse—he did whatever he was told, making him very easy to deal with.

Leng Yue looked at Cao Bu, and the more she looked, the more satisfied she became; she felt that Cao Bu did not have a single flaw.

"Bu'er, it just so happens that in ten days, you will accompany me to the Central State."

She swept her gaze over the others and explained, "The once-in-a-century Spirit Realm Heavenly Pride Battle is set to begin in three years."

"This time, our Gu Clan has received an invitation to compete for the opportunity to be the host."

"If we can secure the hosting rights, it will be of immense benefit to the development of the Gu Clan."

Upon hearing this, the Elders all wore expressions of excitement.

Only those who are at least an Emperor-level force can host the Heavenly Pride Battle.

The Heavenly Pride Battle requires that participants be no older than one thousand years of age and have a cultivation level no lower than the Divine Power Realm.

In the last session, Gu Qingtian took first place on the Heavenly Pride Ranking while he was only at the first level of the Realm King Realm.

Although the Heavenly Pride Battle only determines the top one hundred, and most participants are merely there to make up the numbers, the gap between the top ten from the last session has already widened significantly.

It is said that the person who ranked second has only just achieved a Breakthrough to the Realm Emperor Realm.

This is the difference between a Genius and a Prodigy.

And the Three Matriarchs of their Gu Clan were all among the top three in previous Heavenly Pride Battles.

"I will strictly follow the orders of my Adoptive Mother." Cao Bu stood up and cupped his fists once more.

Leng Yue nodded, "It is decided."

"Bu'er, you stay behind. I have something I wish to discuss with you privately."

The Eight Great Elders immediately rose to take their leave. Su Li glanced at Cao Bu without changing her expression, then her figure flashed and she vanished from the hall.

With only the two of them left in the hall, Cao Bu bowed and asked, "Adoptive Mother, may I ask what instructions you have for me?"

He was still unsure to what extent the effects of the love gu had manifested, so he could only carefully test the waters, not daring to overstep in the slightest.

Leng Yue stood up and walked toward the outside of the hall. Cao Bu hurriedly followed, his gaze uncontrollably falling upon those snow-white, beautiful legs.