Immortal of the Nine Realms

Chapter 394: Gathering Together

In the secluded courtyard, the door to the quiet room opened slowly, and a hint of joy appeared on Li Cang's face as he rushed forward.

"Young Master, you've come out of seclusion."

Fang Chen nodded lightly. "Yes, I did. When did you ascend to become a Martial Emperor?"

Li Cang tried to not show his joy as he explained softly, "It was just half a month ago. It was all thanks to the spirit stones you gave me. I was able to purchase some highly beneficial spiritual herbs for martial artists."

These spiritual herbs hadn't been cheap at all. Some of them had even been just as expensive as the spiritual herbs cultivators used.

Chang Feilan had been treating Jiang Tianai when she saw Fang Chen come out of his room, so she quickly brought Jiang Tinani forward to pay respects.

Jiang Tianai's face lit up with a happy smile. "Sir."

The respect she had for Fang Chen was clear in her eyes.

Suddenly, Chang Feilan knelt in front of Fang Chen and said in a low voice, "This servant has not taken good care of the young lady. I have let her have grievances. Please punish me."

Fang Chen nodded lightly. "I have a general idea of what happened. This matter involves a Golden Core Realm from Azure Cloud Empire. They came to the Fang Family with a purpose in mind. Even if they didn't take it out on you, they would have taken it out on someone else. This is something that is rather unavoidable."

Li Cang and Chang Feilan were shocked. How was the young master so well informed despite having been in seclusion?

Fang Chen casually asked, "Li Cang, has the date for the trade conference been confirmed?"

Li Cang replied promptly, "Yes, it has been. The trade conference will be held at the Southern Hunting Grounds in seven days."

The news was known to everyone in the entire imperial capital. People in circles like theirs, especially the martial artists, were secretly discussing and planning to test their luck at the southern outskirts on that day. Perhaps they might catch the attention of a certain cultivator, or maybe they'll get their hands on something good, propelling them toward the path of immortality. In any case, the trade conference was truly a gathering of opportunities!

"Now even cultivators from fourth-tier empires are appearing in the imperial capital. I wonder how many have come from fifth-tier empires?" said Fang Chen.

Li Cang replied, "Quite a few of them have arrived. There already cultivators from fifth-tier empires, such as the Grand Wei Empire, the Chao Xiang Empire, and the Hidden Immortal Empire that have already been welcomed into the palace"

Fang Chen nodded slightly. The Grand Qian Empire was considered top-tier among fifth-tier empires, mainly due to it having a grand completion Golden Core Realm cultivator in the imperial family. There were a few empires, like the Demon Cloud Empire, that only had cultivators at the early stages of the Golden Core Realm.

While those empires would still receive a decent amount of attention when they arrived, they still wouldn't receive as big of a welcome as the top three fifth-tier empires. Usually, the Absolute Divine Ancestor and the Fang Family were the ones who handled the reception duties. If they didn't, it would be representatives of the five major families in the inner city who would do it.

According to Li Cang, cultivators from these fifth-tier empires are almost all here, and many from sixth-tier empires have also arrived, such as the Fire Flame Empire and the Green Fox Empire, with Foundation Establishment cultivators arriving in the imperial capital.

Due to the trade conference, the number of Golden Core cultivators in Grand Qian's imperial capital has exceeded one hundred, and the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators had increased several times over!

"I heard that Grand Wei and the Grand Qian Empire don't get along. I hope that won't cause trouble now that they're here in the capital," Fang Chen said with a smile.

Li Cang's eyes revealed a hint of concern. "The Azure Cloud Empire is the one organizing the trade conference. Grand Wei and Chao Xiang are both affiliated with the Hidden Cloud Empire, but they shouldn't dare to cause trouble at such a time."

Fang Chen nodded. From the start till now, he hadn't inquired about the Fang Family. Apart from Fang Shang, he wasn't sure if there were any Spirit Blood Cult cultivators in the Fang family. He didn't want any rumors to reach their ears and make them suspicious.

Just then, a streak of light swiftly arrived and appeared at the entrance of the solitary courtyard.

Li Cang and Chang Feilan quickly bowed and paid their respects. "Elder Fang Ao!"

When Fang Ao saw Fang Chen, surprise appeared on his face. However, it was quickly replaced with joy. "Fang Chen, you've come out of seclusion?"

"Ancestor requests for your presence. Come, I'll explain more on the way," said Fang Ao directly, pulling Fang Chen along as they left.

Jiang Tianai instinctively followed, but Chang Feilan quickly stopped her. "Miss Tianai, we'll stay here. The young master has important matters to attend to."

Fang Chen smiled. "No need. All of you can come with me."

Fang Ao was slightly taken aback at first, but he didn't object. He gestured for them to follow him. "Come along."

Chang Feilan and Li Cang were immediately excited.

In the reception hall, Jiang Shun was chatting casually with Fang Tingjian. However, he suddenly stood up and smiled toward the door. "Daoist Fang, our old friends have arrived."

"Daoist Jiang, Daoist Fang, it's been many years since we last met. Why are your disciples competing with each other when we meet? That isn't good for our relationship."

A hearty laughter rang out, followed by a middle-aged stout man entering the hall. He was accompanied by several young people, some were in the Foundation Building Realm while others were in the Qi Refining Realm. They were evidently his disciples and juniors.

Upon seeing that man, Fang Wanli exclaimed, “Here comes that martial fanatic!”

Fang Wanli's heart skipped a beat. He nervously touched his right forearm.

"Is that... Immortal Tianwu from Grand Wei?"

The Foundation Building Realm cultivators of the Fang family exchanged glances. They had heard of that person. They heard he was a martial fanatic like Elder Jueti who advocated cultivating both martial arts and immortality. He had taken up a unique path.

Jiang Shun nodded and smiled. "Tianwu, it's been a long time."

Fang Tingjian smiled too. "Immortal Tianwu, the last time we met was about a hundred and sixty-eight years ago, right?"

"That's right. At that time, we had both just reached the mid stage of the Golden Core Realm," said Immortal Tianwu, laughing heartily.

After that, Immortal Tianwu began to introduce his disciples and juniors to everyone.

A hundred and sixty-eight years ago in the mid stage Golden Core Realm?

The members of the Fang Family were shaken. This meant that Elder Tianwu should also be at the late Golden Core Realm now!

In the next few moments, six or seven Golden Core Realm cultivators arrived one after another, comprising both men and women. Some looked fairly ordinary while others appeared quite strange, with red hair or green beards. The weakest of them was at the early Golden Core Realm, while the strongest had a cultivation on par with Fang Tingjian.

They had known each other for many years, and the trade conference came as the perfect opportunity for them to meet up again.

“I heard your bet is quite substantial. How about I act as the mediator and suggest that you don't make the stakes too high? Things like this can put a dent in relationships,” said Immortal Tianwu smilingly.

Jiang Shun glanced at him and replied casually, “The stakes aren't that big. Let's talk about the Purple Pole Daoist Academy. Don't tell me none of your disciples are cultivating there?”

Upon hearing that, everyone showed a wry smile. That was the number one cultivation sect in the Azure Cloud Empire. Why wouldn't a Golden Core Realm cultivator arrange for their people to enroll there? However, the academy's cost of entry was extremely high and it was something even Golden Core Realm cultivators found hard to bear. That's why Immortal Tianwu mentioned that the stakes of their bet were extremely high.

Immortal Tianwu chuckled. “It seems both of you are quite confident. We'll just sit back and watch the show then."

Jiang Shun glanced at Fang Tingjian and remarked, “I see that your junior hasn't arrived yet. Making us wait isn't very polite, is it?”

Fang Tingjian chuckled lightly. “Oh, there he is.”

Fang Ao rushed into the hall with Fang Chen and the rest.

Upon seeing Jiang Tianai and Chang Feilan, the female disciple from Jiang Shun's sect couldn't help but let out a sneer.