387: Chapter 388 A Celebration of Civil and Military Officials!

Auspicious signs filled the sky, and the sound of bells echoed melodiously.

On the main ceremony platform, Patriarch Gu Qingshan waved his dharma robes and formed hand seals with both hands.

"Open the ancestral shrine, pay respects to the ancestors!"

Rumble...

Deep within the Gu Clan Immortal City, a phantom image of a bronze ancestral shrine, standing one hundred thousand zhang tall, soared into the sky, obscuring the light of the sun, moon, and stars.

Ancient chanting echoed through the Void Realm; this was the obsession of the Gu Clan's sages, accumulated over countless epochs.

Before this aura, the one hundred thousand guests in attendance all held their breath, their scalps tingling.

Gu Changsheng, dressed in white as snow, ascended the stairs.

He walked to the massive bronze incense burner in the center of the main platform, forced a drop of pale golden heart-blood from his fingertip, and flicked it out.

The immortal blood fell into the incense burner, transforming into three pillars of purple incense that soared into the sky, burning slowly.

At the same time, a jade tablet engraved with countless profound dao patterns descended from the sky, hovering before Gu Changsheng.

This was the Young Lord Jade Tablet.

Gu Changsheng separated a wisp of his Divine Sense and branded it onto the tablet.

"Hum!"

The jade tablet erupted with an incomparably brilliant beam of light, echoing the phantom of the ancestral shrine in the Nine Heavens.

Endless Luck transformed into five-colored rays of light, pouring madly into Gu Changsheng's body.

The status of the master of Ziwei Hall was now completely set in stone!

From this moment on, every word and action of Gu Changsheng represented the will of the Gu Family, the hegemon of the Eastern Star Domain.

The ancestral certification was complete, and the celebratory banquet officially began.

On the white jade dao field, immortal delicacies and divine wines were brought to the tables by teams of exceptionally beautiful immortal maidens, flowing like water.

Eight hundred divine officials withdrew their dharma manifestations, and the atmosphere shifted from solemn and grave to warm and festive.

This was the best opportunity to observe the stances of all parties.

On the left VIP seating area, the allied clans belonging to the Gu Family camp spoke up first.

The leading Elder of the War God Palace from the Tianlang Realm raised his wine goblet and laughed heartily: "The Ninth Young Lord possesses the bearing of a celestial being; my War God Palace toasts the Young Lord!"

Following that, forces like the Nandou Tianqin Sect followed suit, with flattery pouring in like a tide and gifts being presented wave after wave.

In the scattered seating and secondary tables in the middle, a large number of envoys from neutral clans wore smiles, holding wine cups and exchanging pleasantries.

Their words were watertight; while congratulating the Ninth Young Lord on establishing his residence, their gazes kept drifting toward First Young Lord Gu Changge on the Eastern Extreme Cloud Terrace.

Hedging their bets, watching the situation.

However, the atmosphere in the seating area on the right was completely different.

The delegations from the Lei Clan and Yu Clan were sitting there.

Lei Tong leaned back in his chair with a domineering posture, not even touching the immortal wine in front of him.

The dozen or so young Prodigies from the Lei Clan and Yu Clan following behind him had particularly unkind expressions.

The guests present were no fools.

A few experienced True Immortals whispered to each other: "This group from the Lei Clan is clearly here to pick a fight; I'm afraid this wine today won't be easy to drink."

On the main seat, Gu Changsheng held a white jade luminous cup, his gaze sweeping calmly across the venue, taking in everyone's expressions.

He was in no rush to speak.

After three rounds of wine.

"Bang!"

At the Lei Clan's seating, a wine jar was slammed heavily onto the white jade table, sending shards flying.

A youth with a single purple horn and a bare upper body stood up.

His name was Lei Jun, a fierce god of the Lei Clan's younger generation, with mid-stage Heavenly Immortal cultivation, having torn apart more than one ancient remnant beast with his bare hands.

He pushed aside the table in front of him and strode into the center of the dao field.

"The Gu Family's Ninth Young Lord is establishing his residence, yet this immortal wine is so bland it's driving me crazy!"

Lei Jun's voice was like a thunderclap from the Nine Heavens, causing the blood of many weaker Cultivators to churn.

"A peerless Prodigy who ascended from the Lower Realm, entering the Immortal Realm at five hundred years old—I, Lei Jun, have heard so much about this in the clan that my ears have grown calluses. Since everyone is here today, just drinking is boring. Why don't we follow the ancient customs of our Eastern Star Domain and have a 'Literary Banquet and Martial Celebration,' how about it?"

On the main ceremony platform, Gu Changsheng stroked the rim of his white jade luminous cup.

The venue fell silent.

The envoys from various forces all stopped talking, their gazes shifting back and forth between Lei Jun and Gu Changsheng.

"Literary Banquet and Martial Celebration." The young Daoist from Wuji Immortal Palace, dressed in black and white robes, toyed with a folding fan and gave a light scoff.

"The Lei Clan really dares to bring this up. It's an ancient rule of the Ziwei Dao Domain: whenever a successor of a hegemon-level force enters the world, they must use this method to test their quality."

The accompanying Elder beside him lowered his voice in agreement: "Indeed. Martial combat tests killing power, which is easy to handle. This Ninth Young Lord ascended at five hundred years old; he must be a ruthless character with blood-stained hands from the Lower Realm."

"But this literary combat, discussing the Dao, tests one's understanding of the Heavenly Dao and Laws, as well as the foundation of one's Legacy. The Lower Realm has withered Spiritual Qi and incomplete Laws; what confidence does he have to compete with an ancient Legacy like the Lei Clan in the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth?"

The Wuji Immortal Palace Daoist closed his folding fan and tapped it against his palm.

"That's why this move is vicious. If one cannot withstand the crushing pressure of the Laws in the literary combat, their Dao Heart will collapse on the spot."

"The Lei Clan has calculated the weakness of those who ascended from the Lower Realm."

At the Lei Clan's seating, lightning patterns rippled across Lei Jun's bare chest.

The provocation could not be more obvious.

On the nine-layered cloud terrace above, Seventh Ancestor Gu Zhan crossed his legs and stroked the stubble on his chin.

"Big Brother, this Lei Clan brat is a bit jumpy; can that kid Changsheng handle it?"

Patriarch Gu Qingshan sat upright on his immortal seat without responding, his gaze fixed deeply on the scene below.

Gu Changsheng finally put down his cup.

The bottom of the cup tapped against the rosewood table, emitting a crisp clinking sound.

He stood up, his white clothes not moving in the slightest.

Facing such a direct act of slapping his face, he didn't even frown.

"Guests from afar are guests." Gu Changsheng spoke, his calm tone piercing through the heavy thunderous sounds on the dao field.

"Since the Lei Clan has this elegant interest, as the master of Ziwei Hall, if I don't accept, it would seem like the Gu Family is being neglectful."

Lei Jun laughed loudly, revealing a mouthful of stark white teeth, roaring with laughter.

"Hahaha, Young Lord Gu is indeed a straightforward person!"

"Since that is the case, let me be the one to learn of Young Lord Gu's majesty!"

On the guest viewing seats, many Elders looked at each other.

This Literary Banquet and Martial Celebration might sound elegant by name, but in reality, it is the most direct stage for conflict between the top orthodox traditions of the Immortal Realm.

Especially the Literary Banquet.

When a successor of a major force enters the world, the Literary Banquet involves discussing the Dao.

It is not about physical combat, but solely about the foundation of the Laws.

If one's Dao foundation is flawed, or one's understanding of the Heavenly Dao is shallow, one will be crushed by the opponent's Dao Laws the moment they step onto the field.

This pressure targets the Divine Soul directly; in minor cases, it damages the Dao Heart, and in severe cases, one can never advance another step in their lifetime.

The Lower Realm has barren Spiritual Qi; for an ascender, just raising their cultivation is already the limit. How could they have spare time to comprehend high-level Laws?

Clearly, the Lei Clan had planned this long ago!

Everyone's gaze was focused on Gu Changsheng.

First Young Lord Gu Changge toyed with the jade pendant at his waist, his gaze unfathomable.

Lei Jun did not waste words; he leaped out.

In an instant, he bit his fingertip and drew a talisman in the air.

A cyan Decree formed instantly.

The Decree expanded in the wind, transforming into a Formation Plate tens of thousands of zhang wide, hovering in mid-air.

Inside the Formation Plate, Chaos Qi churned, looking exceptionally profound and unfathomable!

"This is the Lei Clan's 'Taixuan Dao-Seeking Plate'."

The Wuji Immortal Palace Daoist revealed a meaningful smile.

"This Lei Clan, what a grand gesture!!"