“What are you doing here?” Lin Yun asked once he saw Li Wuyou. Guardian Plum’s residence could be considered a forbidden ground in the sect and no one was allowed to come close to it unless they received permission.

“The brothers of the Locket Mountain are worried about you. I was afraid that Guardian Plum might shatter another one of your profound veins, so I snuck over. I’ve been here for the past few days, but I can’t get into the goddamned place,” smiled Li Wuyou. He clearly suffered in the time he was here.

Lin Yun smiled. It would be strange if Li Wuyou could get past the restriction Guardian Plum created. “I’m fine. I received an unexpected harvest instead.”

Lin Yun only said that to dispel Li Wuyou’s concern. He didn’t go too in depth about it.

“What harvest?” Li Wuyou’s eyes lit up.

“I’ll tell you about it later,” responded Lin Yun. “Did anything happen recently?”

“Hehe, of course! After all, the Dragon Gate Competition is only one month away. Let’s start with Bai Lixuan. He went into seclusion the moment he came back. I even heard that he was so furious that he broke three mechanism puppets before he went into seclusion. More sects have started to gather in the capital recently and there’s even a bet that was opened.”

“A bet?” asked Lin Yun. “What is it about?”

“It covers everything. However, the main focus is the Dragon Gate Competition’s speculation. The hottest topic right now is who will take over Drifting Goblet’s position as a new title. Among the popular picks are Bai Lixuan, Situ Yi, and Zuo Yun, all of whom are ranked among the top three. Some people even came up with a Newly Risen Ranking for it.”

Hearing Li Wuyou’s explanation, Lin Yun was baffled. Did those people really think that the eight titles were invincible?

“Big Brother, are you dozing off? Aren’t you curious why you’re not in the ranking?” Li Wuyou smiled mysteriously.

Lin Yun pondered this briefly. He wasn’t surprised that Bai Lixuan and Situ Yi made it into the rankings, but Zuo Yun was a surprise.

“Stop with the suspense. Out with it.”

“Alright. The bet was set up by the Myriad Treasure Pavilion. You have an individual bet and that wager far surpassed the other bets.” Li Wuyou paused briefly and continued, “They’re betting if you’ll even show up at the Dragon Gate Competition. Some were certain that you wouldn’t show up. After all, you have a shattered profound vein, not to mention that you have also offended Qin Yu. Naturally, you will definitely die if you show up on the Dragon Gate Competition. Some people also say that you’re not a coward based on your actions back then.”

Lin Yun never imagined that something like this could be used to bet. Then again, there would be variables if he participated in the Dragon Gate Competition before he came out of Guardian Plum’s residence. As long as there were variables, it could be used to bet. Not to mention that the incident with Qin Yu’s wedding had just happened recently.

As the person standing in the center of the storm, it was unavoidable for Lin Yun to be discussed by others.

“Big Brother, can you tell me secretly if you’re participating in the Dragon Gate Competition?” Li Wuyou chuckled with a wink, but Lin Yun naturally ignored him.

“Actually, I can guess your decision even if you don’t tell me. I’ve already placed my bet, so I’m just waiting to receive my winnings. That aside, let’s talk about the important things.”

“Important things?” asked Lin Yun.

“The first thing is naturally the princess’ visit. The princess has been in the Locket Mountain for the past three days,” replied Li Wuyou.

Li Wuyou’s words stunned Lin Yun. He was surprised that the princess would visit the Sword Firmament Pavilion and had even waited for three days. It looks like Xin Yan wasn’t lying when she said that she knew the princess. Their relationship might not be so simple.

“Secondly, Senior Brother Ye is back. He’s currently exchanging pointers with someone in the Firmament Plaza. Even senior sister and the princess have gone there.”

“Senior Brother Ye? The first on the Heaven Ranking, Ye Feng?” questioned Lin Yun.

“Yeah, that’s him,” said Li Wuyou.

Ye Feng was ranked first on the Heaven Ranking. He had been in the sect for six years, but no one could threaten his position. His strength was unfathomable and he had practically been out of the sect for the past two years.

Lin Yun was also curious about Ye Feng. He wanted to know how strong Ye Feng was to dominate the Heaven Ranking.

“Who is he exchanging pointers with?” asked Lin Yun.

“The one exchanging pointers with Senior Brother Ye isn’t simple. I heard that he’s the junior brother of a titled figure and that his sword technique is extremely formidable. He’s also ranked on the Newly Risen Ranking.”

“Oh? Let’s go take a look then. I can also see senior sister there.” The two chatted as they headed towards the plaza. Along the way, they would encounter many disciples heading in the same direction as them.

When the disciples saw Lin Yun, their eyes would light up and they would greet him respectfully. There wasn’t a single person in the sect who didn’t look up to Lin Yun. Lin Yun’s fame was widely spread during the Princess’ Birthday Banquet. However, his action of snatching Xin Yan back from Qin Yu boosted the sect’s morale greatly. This filled all the sect’s disciples with respect for Lin Yun.

When the two got to the plaza, it was filled with disciples who wanted to see Ye Feng. After all, Ye Feng was a legend in the Sword Firmament Pavilion. Even Lin Yun was curious about him, not to mention that his opponent was someone on the Newly Risen Ranking.

On the way here, Lin Yun learned about the origin of this expert on the Newly Risen Ranking. He was the junior brother of Twilight, one of the eight titles.

Twilight was a special existence. After all, most titles were either from the four major sects, the Heavenly Qin Institute, or the royal family. But Twilight was special because of the Sword Cloud Pavilion.

The Sword Cloud Pavilion’s foundation was weaker than the four major sects and Heavenly Qin Institute, plus it was located at the borders of the empire. The Sword Firmament Pavilion and Sword Cloud Pavilion only had a one word difference in their name.

There was a rumor that before the Sword Firmament Pavilion was established, the Sword Cloud Pavilion was the strongest sect in the Great Qin Empire that prioritized the sword. However, it was a pity that they were defeated by the Sword Firmament Pavilion’s ancestor.

In the end, the sect was forced to move out of the Heavenly Qin County to avoid the Sword Firmament Pavilion. So one could imagine how terrifying the Sword Firmament Pavilion’s fame was back then.

Even the ‘firmament’ in the Sword Firmament Pavilion meant transcending the clouds. From then on, the Sword Cloud Pavilion dropped to a second-tier force in the Great Qin Empire and only barely made it to the first-tier recently.

Many people weren’t convinced by Twilight because they felt that he wouldn’t receive his current position if Xin Jue fought three years ago. Many people tried to challenge him, but all of them failed. It was only after all the failed challenges that everyone realized Twilight’s fame was forged by his sword in the Dragon Gate Competition. This meant that he fully deserved his title.

Lin Yun and Li Wuyou retracted their aura as they approached Xin Yan and the princess.

“Junior Brother!” Xin Yan smiled the moment she saw Lin Yun. “Did Guardian Plum make things difficult for you?”

Lin Yun looked at the princess and cupped his hands together as a greeting. Although the princess was wearing a veil to cover her face, it still couldn’t conceal her outstanding temperament.

“Hehe, look at how you can’t shift your eyes when you look at Her Highness,” teased Xin Yan.

Lin Yun revealed an embarrassed smile. He didn’t know how to reply because he could feel a sense of familiarity coming from Bloomphoenix Princess. Gradually, a figure appeared in his mind and the two of them overlapped. But it was still too blurred, so he thought he made a mistake.

“Take a seat. No need to feel so tense,” said Bloomphoenix Princess.

On the stage, a young man smiled, “The Dragon Gate Competition is one month from now. So I’m honored by your visit.”

“I dare not receive such flattery. I’ve heard that your strength is comparable to the titles despite not receiving a title yourself. The Newly Risen Ranking is truly blind not to include you in it. In my opinion, you’re the most qualified person to receive a title in this Dragon Gate Competition.” The person standing beside the young man was extremely respectful.

“The one who just spoke is Luo Yuhang, Twilight’s junior brother. I heard that he’s very powerful and that Senior Brother Ye invited him over. The elders are interested by the fact that he’s from the Sword Cloud Pavilion and wanted him to exchange pointers with Senior Brother Ye,” explained Xin Yan.

Lin Yun’s gaze fell onto another person, who was most likely Ye Feng. Ye Feng looked mature, but he didn’t look old. At the same time, his gaze was sharp, which was probably a result of the many people he slaughtered over the years. There was a drastic difference between his temperament and the other sects’ disciples. There were rumors that Ye Feng had even left the Great Qin Empire to gain experience around the nearby empires.

With a grave expression, Xin Yan continued, “The person by the side is Senior Brother Ye Feng. My Big Brother was extremely respectful of him and said that Senior Brother Ye Feng truly deserved to be first on the Heaven Ranking.”

Facing Luo Yuhang’s politeness, there were no changes to Ye Feng’s face. He smiled, “Brother Ye, we’re both from sects that focus on swords and you’re also Twilight’s junior brother. I believe you have a high insight in the way of swords. If you don’t mind, I wonder if we can exchange pointers? After all, just look at how excited my junior brothers are.”

Luo Yuhang revealed a profound smile and replied, “You’re too flattering. But it’s pointless to exchange pointers with words alone because there will always be someone unconvinced by the results. Since we’re exchanging pointers, then someone naturally has to be defeated by my sword.”

His words instantly dropped a bomb in the Sword Firmament Pavilion. Although what Luo Yuhang said made sense, anyone could sense the hidden intent behind his words. Was he so sure that everyone here would be defeated by him?