Ten thousand years had passed.
Vroom!
A black car sped through the mountain valley. In the back seat sat two figures—one young, one elderly. From their demeanor and attire, they appeared to be influential members of the upper class.
"Grandfather, what's happened that you had to rush me out like this?"
The young man asked his grandfather with curiosity. His name was Tang Luotong. Currently 20 years old, he was the heir of the Tang Clan, one of the nation's most influential families renowned for their expertise in alchemy.
He had been busy practicing pill concoction, but today his grandfather, the head of the Tang Clan, had summoned him to come along.
And still refused to tell him the reason until now.
Seeing his grandson's puzzled expression, the elderly man with a dignified face let out a soft sigh.
"Something important is happening today."
Tang Tianjie, who held the position of clan leader, appeared quite powerless at the moment. From birth until now, Tang Luotong had never seen his grandfather, who was always magnificent, look so powerless as he did now.
"What is it, Grandfather?"
Tang Luotong asked, not understanding.
"...You'll find out soon enough."
.
.
.
Numerous cars surged up the mountain road. The villagers living in that area all came out to watch with interest, because aside from the expensive-looking vehicles, there was also a crowd of people hurrying up to the mountain peak.
"Young man, what's happening?"
An old man living on this mountain asked a young man who was walking up quietly. The young man didn't lack kindness and simply replied:
"Something great is going to happen on the mountain today."
"What is it?"
"It's better if you don't know, old sir. And stay away from the peak during this time. It's dangerous." The young man stared at the old man as if examining something, then smiled and warned him with good intentions, before leaving the still-confused old man behind.
Whoosh!
The body of the young man who had been walking slowly suddenly shot up the mountain like an arrow. Suddenly the old man noticed that besides the ordinary walking path, small shadows were racing up the mountain as well.
"...What on earth is happening on this mountain?"
Though invisible from below, thousands of people were now gathering at the top of the mountain. Besides those who walked up, a number of cars were all parked there, as the remaining path to the peak could no longer be reached by vehicle.
"The Tang Clan is here too?"
When Tang Luotong and Tang Tianjie stepped out of the car, the people around showed surprised expressions. Tang Luotong, who got out before his grandfather, swept his gaze around once.
There were both cultivators and ordinary people.
His Tang Clan was exceptionally prominent in the art of alchemy. This meant that wherever they went, they usually received great respect.
Because cultivation naturally went hand-in-hand with elixirs. Having good elixirs could tremendously reduce the time needed for cultivation.
This made ordinary cultivators greatly respect alchemists.
Moreover, the Tang Clan owned several hospitals throughout the country. They were a truly influential clan in the nation.
"Yes, this is the place."
Tang Tianjie, who stepped out of the car, looked around before his gaze stopped at the peak—the place where most people were gradually heading up.
"What's happening here, Grandfather?"
Tang Luotong asked his grandfather softly, because the number of cultivators gathering here seemed to come from all directions across the country. And each person possessed power at the cultivator level or above.
"There's going to be a duel between two supreme Grandmasters."
"Gr...Grandmasters!?"
Tang Luotong showed a clearly shocked expression.
The term "Grandmaster" was a tier that indicated the cultivation power of cultivators. When people could sense spiritual energy, it counted as the first stage of cultivation and was called the "Qi Gathering Stage."
And when they could break through the Qi Gathering Stage, they would be able to use the spiritual energy in their bodies with greater freedom. It could be used both to increase combat power and help extend their lifespan slightly.
At this stage, they would be officially called "Cultivators," because there were quite a few people who couldn't break through this stage and stopped at merely gathering qi.
The next stage was called "Martial Master." At this stage, one could freely release spiritual energy from the body. Just being able to break through this stage earned one great respect.
And the next stage was "Grandmaster." It was said they could fly and walk on air with ease. They were also dozens of times more powerful than ordinary Martial Masters.
At the Grandmaster stage, there were fewer than ten people in the entire country. They were like lofty existences in the eyes of ordinary people. Most of them held important positions in the military.
And today there would be a duel between two Grandmasters. It was no wonder it could attract so many people who knew about it to gather here.
"Eastern King Ma Fufeng and Sword Saint Zheng Renyi will duel today."
Tang Tianjie explained while heading toward the peak.
"Will we be alright, Grandfather?" Tang Luotong asked warily, because around him were powerful beings gathered together. His clan focused on the art of alchemy, making his cultivation power not particularly high. Currently, he was only a 9th-stage Cultivator.
Only his grandfather, the clan leader, was a 6th-stage Martial Master.
Though there were some bodyguards following them, compared to the skills of those gathered today, they probably wouldn't be enough.
"It's fine. Because today there will be a duel between these two great Grandmasters, it's been strictly forbidden for anyone to cause trouble."
"Old Tang, you're here early."
During the grandfather and grandson's conversation, behind them appeared the figure of an elderly man of similar age with a beautiful young woman walking in.
"Old Song?"
Tang Tianjie greeted with surprise, because the old man who followed was his close friend Song Weinan, with whom he often cooperated in business.
The Tang and Song Clans had been good friends since their ancestors' era. They had built their fortunes together, making it not strange at all that the leaders of both clans were close friends.
"Oh, is that Ruixi? Grandpa Tang hasn't seen you in years."
Behind Song Weinan was a young woman whose face was stunningly beautiful. She also appeared somewhat cold, making her seem like a goddess.
"Hello, Grandpa Tang."
Song Ruixi revealed a beautiful smile to her grandfather's close friend. The sight of her smiling made many young men who were secretly watching fall under her charm helplessly.
"Hello, Sister Ruixi." Tang Luotong greeted shyly. When they were children, they used to play together often, but when they grew up, he heard that Ruixi went to study abroad and disappeared for 3 years.
He didn't expect that when she returned, she would be this beautiful and full of charm.
"Hello."
Song Ruixi only smiled faintly.
"Old Tang, you came all this way today because of that matter too, right?" Song Weinan walked closer to chat with his old friend while continuing to walk. That question made Tang Tianjie nod helplessly in agreement.
"Ah... the new era should be starting soon."
"These past few years, the number of cultivators has been increasing." Song Weinan sighed. Looking back to when they were young, the number of cultivators wasn't this abundant. Nor were they this powerful. This meant that no matter how skilled you were, if hit by a weapon like a gun, ordinary people could fight back easily.
This made them not very noteworthy before.
But now, cultivators were appearing in increasing numbers.
"The government has been spinning its wheels over this lately." Song Weinan continued. The Song Clan itself held quite a few positions within, so they were always aware of inside information.
"What moves will they make?" Tang Tianjie asked softly.
"...No special orders yet."
Seeing the two old men whispering to each other in front, Tang Luotong, who was following, naturally couldn't interrupt. He could only turn to chat with the young woman who was following quietly.
"Where did you study abroad, Sister Ruixi?"
"A Western country."
"Oh..."
The two began talking as well, except it turned out to be a rather awkward conversation. It seemed only Tang Luotong was asking questions. Song Ruixi, who walked beside him, aside from a few brief answers, showed no interest in initiating conversation at all.
The young man felt uncomfortable, but to prevent the atmosphere from becoming more awkward, he still had to be the one to break the growing silence.
Before anyone knew it, they had reached the very top of the peak. A large open area appeared, surrounded by valleys. People all stood around the open area, but no one dared step into it.
Moreover, government personnel were scattered everywhere, watching to prevent any disturbances.
The Tang and Song Clans themselves were quite prominent in their circles. When they arrived, the crowd opened a path for them to stand beside the arena with ease.
The chatter continued steadily until 11 o'clock in the morning. Though it was an open area, the arena had no sunlight at all. It seemed the valleys on all four sides blocked out the hot sunlight completely. It even felt pleasantly cool.
Even though over a thousand people had gathered, when the time came, everyone fell completely silent. No one dared make a sound to disturb the duel that was about to begin.
"...Eastern King Ma Fufeng and Sword Saint Zheng Renyi have arrived!"
No one knew who spoke this sentence, but upon hearing it, everyone turned sharply in the same direction. From that direction appeared two male figures walking boldly side by side.
One was a middle-aged man with a face full of beard and mustache. But his fierce eyes and the aura he released were like a ferocious beast that had just escaped from its cage.
The other was an elderly man. His white beard was so long it reached his belly, reminiscent of martial masters seen on television. On his back, he carried a single-edged sword that emanated a sharp, dominating aura.
When both arrived at the center of the arena, they separated to stand at opposite corners. One left, one right, not moving but only staring at each other.
The spectators standing outside watching both men swallowed loudly. But suddenly, tremendous pressure burst forth from both sides and clashed in the middle of the arena!
Spectators who were ordinary people and those below Martial Master level all felt oppressed. Some even trembled and sat on the ground when they merely felt the pressure that both Grandmasters released to suppress each other.
"So intense..."
Tang Luotong murmured. His hands couldn't help but tremble slightly as he stared at the scene before him.
The young man turned to look at Song Ruixi. But what he saw surprised him, because the young woman not only showed no signs of trembling, but she could stand there quite comfortably.