"Brother, which faction do you think will be the first to arrive?"

Murong Han sat across from Murong Xue, his stern face not betraying much emotion: "We arrived too early, you’ll have to wait a bit longer."

Murong Xue didn’t agree: "Since the gathering is initiated by the Liuyun Sect, shouldn’t their people be the first to come?"

As soon as she finished speaking, two people galloped in on tall horses. As they reached the Phoenix Building, they leapt lightly and landed at the entrance with clean and swift movements typical of experts, and even the horses they rode instinctively raised their front hooves to stop. At the time, the waiter at the door had already been replaced by two burly men in black, who greeted the newcomers: "The two protectors are here, everything inside is prepared and ready for inspection."

It turned out the arrivals were none other than the Azure Dragon and Xuanwu of Liuyun Sect. They tossed aside the whips in their hands and strode into the restaurant.

For the invitation, Liuyun Sect had reserved the entire restaurant. When they arrived, Murong Xue pulled her brother over to have a look: "Do you recognize them?"

Murong Han found his sister’s actions a bit exaggerated and somewhat amusing: "I don’t recognize them, never seen them before. But since they are protectors, they must be from Liuyun Sect, because only Zhuge Liu Yun has the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Xuanwu, and Vermilion Bird as guardians under him. I’m just not sure if Zhuge Liu Yun will appear."

"If the leaders of other factions come, he might show up. But if it’s all second-in-command figures, then it’s hard to say. Let’s watch, surely we’re not the only ones secretly observing here."

—— 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

In Tianzi Suite No. 2 of Phoenix Building, Azure Dragon and Xuanwu sat on either side.

Azure Dragon furrowed his brows in silence, though a hint of impatience flashed in his eyes.

Xuanwu was elegantly leaning against the wall with his head resting on his arms, appearing relaxed and charming, but in reality, he was quite impatient.

After a moment of silence, Xuanwu could no longer sit still. He raised his arms in frustration and clapped twice. A man in black pushed the door open and entered, bowing respectfully, "May I ask what orders you have?"

"What hour is it? Who else has arrived?"

"Reporting to the two protectors, currently... only you two are present, no one else has shown up yet. There’s still over an hour to go, should we wait a little longer?"

After the subordinate left, Xuanwu stood directly by the window, looking down and muttering to himself.

"I’m most curious about the Yue Palace Saintess. That Yue Palace is amusing, creating some ghostly saintess? Do they really consider themselves celestial beings? Today I shall see how divine she is?"

Xuanwu pulled a mocking smile, his slender arms still tapping the table, showing signs that they have been waiting for quite some time.

In contrast, Azure Dragon appeared much more composed: "Show a little respect for your opponent. Yue Palace has always been the most mysterious among all factions. You keep insulting others, beware that habit becomes second nature, and in the end, they’ll deal with you!"

Xuanwu had a bit of male chauvinism, and he listened with disdain and scorn.

"As Xuanwu protector of Liuyun Sect, how could I not even defeat a woman? That’s simply ridiculous!"

Time ticked by slowly, and with only two quarter-hours remaining until the appointed time, the subtle presence of Shura Sect appeared.

The opposing faction sent two mysterious figures, a man and a woman, both dressed in black silk robes and wearing black hats.

They introduced themselves: "We are Xue Sha and Hidden Evil of Shura’s Twelve Lethal Stars, here representing the Sect Leader. We look forward to your guidance."

Murong Xue had always been quite ignorant regarding Shura Sect. The rumors about Asura initially considered a Good God, yet also a ferocious and belligerent Ghost God, both righteous and evil, eminent in the extreme pursuit of power, were mixed opinions. But after all, those were Western myth stories, and shouldn’t appear on this continent. Thus, in her subconscious, she believed her brother’s establishment should not be a righteous and evil existence, so she held hope and waited for Murong Han’s explanation.

Murong Han had no defenses against Murong Xue whatsoever. Since his sister asked, he naturally explained a little, never imagining his true identity had long been exposed...