Chapter 708: Chapter 708: Gathering of Heroes
Kong Lietian stared at his multicolored imperial seal in shock and disbelief.
A crack? His imperial seal, the heavenly dynasty's imperial seal, had cracked? This was beyond belief. It was supposed to be indestructible.
Looking up sharply, Kong Lietian glared at Zhong Shan.
Zhong Shan had already put away the Fangtian Imperial Seal, and his flushed face gradually returned to normal.
Seeing Kong Lietian's furious and incredulous gaze, Zhong Shan added fuel to the fire, "You really are frugal. Already the ruler of a heavenly dynasty, and you use such poor materials for your imperial seal?"
Kong Lietian's rage soared at Zhong Shan's mocking tone.
"Bas—!" Kong Lietian was about to curse.
Shenya Daojun pulled him back, snapping him out of it. Shocked, Kong Lietian realized that Zhong Shan had nearly manipulated his emotions.
Feeling a chill at the thought of being controlled by his opponent, Kong Lietian threw a grateful glance at Shenya Daojun and turned a cold gaze back to Zhong Shan, filled with icy hostility.
"Mind your manners," Zhong Shan said sternly.
With that, Zhong Shan ignored Kong Lietian, as if speaking further was beneath him.
To Kong Lietian, this was an unbearable insult, reigniting his anger. However, this time he kept his fury in check, not letting it cloud his judgment.
Shenya Daojun observed silently, growing more wary of Zhong Shan.
Sacred lands had ancient legacies and unmatched foundations. Heavenly dynasties, while not as deep-rooted, could stand equal to sacred lands because their founders were exceptional. Zhong Shan, merely an imperial dynasty's founder, was already showing such prowess. What would it be like when he established a heavenly dynasty?
In Shenya Daojun's eyes, Zhong Shan's threat level had significantly increased.
Both groups fell silent, avoiding further provocation.
At that moment, two more figures arrived, traveling quickly across the sky.
Recognizing them, Zhong Shan, Di Xuan Sha, Kong Lietian, and Shenya Daojun grew cautious.
The newcomers were Gu Zhengyi of the Dayong Heavenly Dynasty and Monkey Supreme, Shen Qitian.
After the Netherworld Heavenly Sect issued the world-wide Monkey Extermination Order, disciples hunted the monkey tribe relentlessly. Over the decades, the monkey population dwindled, nearing extinction, and Shen Qitian remained hidden. Now, he appeared with Gu Zhengyi.
"Shen Qitian?" Shenya Daojun narrowed his eyes.
"Shen Qitian?" Di Xuan Sha looked at him with suspicion.
Shen Qitian smiled faintly, scanning the group.
"Who else could it be?" Shen Qitian said in a deep, steady voice.
This Shen Qitian was different from the one Zhong Shan knew. His tone lacked the previous naivety, now filled with a mature steadiness. This was the Shen Qitian of his past life. After awakening his beast soul to kill Jian Hong, he had fully regained his previous life's cultivation.
"Di Xuan Sha? Long time no see," Shen Qitian greeted.
Di Xuan Sha nodded, indicating their past acquaintance was minimal.
Shen Qitian then looked at Shenya Daojun. "Shenya Daojun? Are you still coveting my techniques?"
Shenya Daojun's eyes narrowed, but he didn't respond immediately.
The tension in the air was palpable as all these powerful figures gathered, each with their own intentions and grudges. The confrontation between Zhong Shan and Kong Lietian had already set a volatile tone, and the presence of Shen Qitian and Gu Zhengyi only added to the potential for conflict.
"Since you've regained your former strength, I naturally won't target you anymore!" Shenya Daojun replied coldly, indicating their past interactions were far from pleasant.
"Taishui Emperor? Kong Lietian?" Shen Qitian said with a faint smile, laced with an odd undertone.
Kong Lietian nodded without saying anything.
Finally, Shen Qitian turned his gaze to Zhong Shan, his eyes chilling. "Zhong Shan?"
In Shen Qitian's memory, Zhong Shan was his adversary in this life, bringing trouble whenever they crossed paths. When his previous life's memories resurfaced, his 'Purple-Gold Patterned Dragon Staff' was half-devoured by the beast accompanying Zhong Shan. Even now, Shen Qitian found it absurd.
Of course, this feeling wasn't exclusive to Shen Qitian. Shenya Daojun had a similar experience when his invincible Immortal-Slaying Flying Knife was eaten by the same beast. It took Shenya Daojun a long time to come to terms with that bizarre fact.
Zhong Shan merely nodded to Shen Qitian, finding nothing more to say. He could only think of Shen Qitian as extremely unlucky.
"How is Qianyou doing?" Gu Zhengyi suddenly asked.
"Gu Qianyou is my wife. Whether she is well or not is none of your concern!" Zhong Shan quickly shut down any further conversation.
Gu Zhengyi smiled faintly and shook his head, "What a pity, what a pity!"
No one knew what Gu Zhengyi pitied. The group fell silent, focusing on the 'world' before them.
To enter or not to enter?
"Let's go," Gu Zhengyi said to Shen Qitian.
Stepping forward, Gu Zhengyi entered the space with a composed demeanor.
Zhong Shan narrowed his eyes, recognizing the depth of Gu Zhengyi's mindset.
"Let's go," Zhong Shan said to Di Xuan Sha.
On the other side, Shenya Daojun and Kong Lietian exchanged glances and then stepped inside.
As they walked in, Gu Zhengyi, Kong Lietian, and Zhong Shan all suddenly found themselves wearing dragon robes.
Gu Zhengyi wore a purple nine-dragon robe with a purple imperial crown, walking steadily forward, Shen Qitian following closely behind.
Kong Lietian wore a golden nine-dragon robe with a golden imperial crown, Shenya Daojun following closely behind.
Zhong Shan wore a white nine-dragon robe with a white jade imperial crown, Di Xuan Sha following closely behind.
This grand occasion required full ceremonial respect for the guests from the great thousand worlds.
As they walked deeper inside, the first sound they heard was a series of gulping noises, the sound of something being devoured.
Gradually, through the green mist, they neared the Eternal Green Pine. Close to the enormous tree was a huge mountain of spirit stones, where a hideous green-skinned creature was voraciously consuming the stones.
"Taotie!" Di Xuan Sha transmitted to Zhong Shan. Zhong Shan nodded.
Below the Eternal Green Pine sat a man in red, meditating with his eyes closed, surrounded by ten silent subordinates.
Zhong Shan recognized that this man must be Sima Ce, with the ten subordinates being the Ten Earth Immortals.
Sima Ce showed no reaction to the arrival of Zhong Shan and the others, seemingly waiting for everyone to gather before he would open his eyes and commence the meeting.
Seeing Sima Ce's arrogance, everyone's eyes turned cold.
"The final group has arrived," Di Xuan Sha said calmly.
Zhong Shan turned to look. Although this green 'world' blocked the view from outside, it didn't obstruct the vision of those inside.
In the distance, a grand procession was approaching. The mighty Qin army paved the way, with nine enormous dragons pulling a pitch-black imperial chariot. On either side of the chariot stood palace maids and eunuchs, and Lü Buwei stood not far away.
So this was the arrival of the Qin Emperor Ying?
Seeing this, Zhong Shan, Kong Lietian, and Gu Zhengyi all frowned. What was Ying planning?
Everyone else had arrived with just one or two companions for convenience, in case negotiations broke down and they needed to retreat quickly. But Ying had brought so many people—was he still concerned with maintaining appearances?
"Stop the chariot!" a eunuch shouted, and the Qin army halted abruptly, as did the dragon-drawn chariot. Lü Buwei stood to the side.
Two palace maids slowly opened the chariot, and Ying, clad in a black dragon robe and wearing an imperial crown, stepped out slowly.
"Your Majesty, we have arrived," Lü Buwei bowed.
"Very well," Ying nodded.
Stepping forward, Lü Buwei followed closely behind.
"Stand by," Lü Buwei ordered as he left.
"Yes!" all the soldiers responded loudly.
Ying and Lü Buwei walked in, leaving the grand entourage outside.
Seeing this, not only Zhong Shan and the others but even the Ten Earth Immortals had strange looks on their faces.
Ying approached the group. He nodded at everyone, and they returned the gesture.
With everyone present, they all looked at Sima Ce, who was sitting beneath the Eternal Green Pine.
"The Luntian Conference? Is this the Luntian Conference?" Ying asked indifferently.
Hearing Ying's question, Sima Ce slowly opened his eyes, meeting Ying's gaze. He frowned slightly and then glanced at the others. His expression changed dramatically when he saw Shen Qitian.
"You, you, Sun...!" Sima Ce nearly exclaimed.
Everyone looked at Sima Ce curiously.
Taking a deep breath and fixing his gaze on Shen Qitian, Sima Ce said, "Forgive me, you just look remarkably like someone I once knew."
The group remained puzzled but refrained from asking further questions.
Sima Ce slowly stood up and made a gentle gesture.
"Hummm!"
Zhong Shan felt the surrounding space tremble slightly.
"He's sealing the 'world'," Di Xuan Sha transmitted to Zhong Shan.
"Got it," Zhong Shan nodded.
"Gentlemen, please," Sima Ce said, gesturing.
Suddenly, behind each person appeared three large thrones and a round stool.
The three thrones were positioned behind the three heavenly emperors, while the round stool appeared behind Zhong Shan.
Heavenly dynasty rulers and an imperial dynasty ruler, treated differently?
In an instant, all eyes focused on Zhong Shan. Ying, Gu Zhengyi, and Kong Lietian each had a large throne, while Zhong Shan was offered only a stool.
What did this mean? Was Zhong Shan expected to sit on a small stool?
Di Xuan Sha's eyes flared with anger. The others didn't show gloating expressions, as this scene was not just an insult to Zhong Shan but also a warning to everyone else.
Sima Ce wanted to demonstrate that he could determine the status of any of them.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone