Chapter 711 The Ceremony Will Begin

In that instant, this sudden change exploded like a thunderclap in the square, and the surrounding crowd was instantly frozen in place. The expressions on their faces changed from initial astonishment to utter shock, and even the gasps of breath were frozen in time.

No one expected that what was originally a "rule-breaking challenge" against Xiao Ling would turn into such a fierce scene. This was the home ground of the ancient clan, yet someone dared to attack the elders of the ancient clan without hesitation, and even directly beat Gu Qian and Gu Xu, causing them to vomit blood and fly backward, seriously injured and on the verge of death.

This completely overturned everyone's understanding, leaving many people so shocked that their jaws almost dropped.

Although the person who made the move was Mang Tianchi, a half-saint elder of the Lei Clan, he was a person of great renown. As one of the top experts of the eight ancient clans, the half-saint realm was a height that most people could only look up to in their lifetime.

Even so, to run rampant like this on the territory of the ancient tribes is simply too audacious.

Everyone knew perfectly well that the ancient clan had an unfathomable foundation, and the clan had never lacked genuine Dou Sheng powerhouses, not to mention the clan leader Gu Yuan, who had already stepped into the peak of the nine-star Dou Sheng for a thousand years and was an unparalleled existence standing at the top of the Dou Qi Continent pyramid.

Ordinary half-saints would have to hold back in front of the ancient clans, even if they had a reputation. But Mang Tianchi was different. He seemed to have no regard for the ancient clans' home ground, nor did he care about the hidden Dou Sheng powerhouses. The ruthlessness and decisiveness of his attacks made everyone present tremble.

The ancient clan's Battle Saint, who had been hiding in the void and secretly maintaining order throughout the arena, finally snapped out of his momentary daze.

When his gaze fell upon Gu Qian and Gu Xu, who were lying on the ground severely injured and barely breathing in the square, and the lingering power of the lightning that filled the entire area, his expression suddenly changed drastically, and an uncontrollable rage surged in his chest.

In fact, this Dou Sheng elder was one of the more reasonable elders in the ancient clan. He had seen Gu Qian and Gu Xu making things difficult for Xiao Ling and Gu Xu by using the "rules" to their advantage, and he had already felt that their actions were indeed somewhat inappropriate.

No matter how inappropriate it may seem, this is still the territory of the ancient clan, the site of a coming-of-age ceremony that carries the honor of the ancient powerful clan. Now, their own elders have been beaten into such a state by outsiders in front of everyone, and the face of the ancient clan has been shattered in front of the guests and clan members of various ancient races.

This humiliation made it impossible for him to remain calm and detached, and naturally, he felt a surge of anger.

At that moment, he had no more hesitation. The unfathomable aura of a Battle Saint around him surged quietly, ready to tear through the void and reveal his form.

Regardless of the circumstances, he had to stabilize the current situation and at least make up for the loss of face of the ancient clan from this sudden turmoil.

However, just as this Dou Sheng elder was about to make a move, a man's voice with unquestionable authority suddenly entered his ears clearly.

The moment the voice fell, the Dou Sheng aura surging around him suddenly stopped, and his raised hand froze in mid-air, unable to move forward even an inch.

Upon hearing the familiar voice, the Dou Sheng Elder's expression changed drastically. The anger that had been ignited by the humiliation of the ancient clan vanished instantly, replaced by a look of doubt and confusion in his eyes. Normally, there would be no reason to sit idly by when one's own territory is provoked like this. Why would this person stop him?
Although he was full of confusion, his awe of the voice was already ingrained in his bones, and without the slightest hesitation, he immediately stopped all his movements.

His gaze unconsciously swept across the center of the square, landing on Xun'er's graceful figure, as if trying to find some answers. Then he quickly turned towards the core area of ​​the ancient clan and bowed respectfully.

After the ceremony, he completely concealed his aura and remained hidden in the void, but his gaze remained firmly fixed on the movements in the square, not daring to relax for a moment.

At the same time, he secretly circulated his battle qi and transmitted a few words to a half-saint elder in the clan, instructing him to immediately step forward and handle the current situation.

Gu Qian and Gu Xu were seriously injured and lying on the ground, looking extremely disheveled. They couldn't let themselves be exposed to the guests in this state. On the territory of the Gu Clan, such a disgraceful scene had to be cleaned up as soon as possible.

"Hehe, Dean, it's been a long time." Xiao Ling turned his head to the side and looked up at the sky. The lightning that had been raging across the sky had quietly subsided, and the figure of an old man in a white and purple robe was slowly landing not far in front of him.

The familiar silhouette and aura came into view. Needless to say, the person's identity was none other than Mang Tianchi, the elder of the Thunder Clan, with whom he had previously crossed paths in the Void Thunder Pool and Ancient Dragon Island. He immediately cupped his hands and said, "However, this time, I must thank the Dean for helping me out of this predicament."

Mang Tianchi threw his head back and laughed heartily, patting Xiao Ling's shoulder heavily, his tone full of protective and cheerful camaraderie:
"You are the most outstanding student of Canaan Academy in all these years. How can we let you be harassed by these old guys here? To go against you is to go against me, the dean!"

This was no exaggeration. While his actions were indeed to stand up for Xiao Ling, he also had another motive: to resolve the trouble before Xiao Ling could, so that Xiao Ling would not reveal his true strength too early in order to escape.

No one present knew better than Xiao Ling how incredible his cultivation level was. Reaching such a level at such a young age was already an astonishing feat, and revealing it to the public now would definitely not be a good thing.

The current situation is not optimistic for Xiao Ling. There are already many people in the ancient clan who are dissatisfied with him, and this coming-of-age ceremony is even more attended by members of the Soul Clan, who have been at odds with the Xiao Clan for generations.

Mang Tianchi understood the principle that a tall tree catches the wind better than anyone else. It was easy to attract attention and amaze the crowd for a while, but once it aroused the suspicion and attention of those with ulterior motives, it would only bring harm to Xiao Ling, not any benefit.

After greeting Xiao Ling, Mang Tianchi's gaze passed over him and landed on Xiao Yan behind him.

Before Xiao Yan could react, the figure in the white and purple robes had already teleported to his side, and a broad hand gently patted his shoulder.

"Haha, Xiao Yan!" Mang Tianchi's laughter was still loud and clear, carrying a hint of familiar warmth.
"I've often heard Su Qian mention you, kid. To have come this far, you're probably the most outstanding disciple in Canaan Academy besides Xiao Ling!"

As he finished speaking, he tightened his grip slightly, his tone becoming more serious: "If anyone dares to bully you in the future, just come to me, the dean! I'll stand up for you! Anyone who dares to touch someone from Canaan Academy is going against me, Mang Tianchi!"

Xiao Yan stared at the white-and-purple-robed elder who had suddenly approached him, still somewhat stunned by the series of events.

He had never interacted with Mang Tianchi before, nor did he know the other's identity. Seeing that the man had severely injured an ancient clan elder upon his appearance, and now was patting him on the shoulder and saying friendly words, he was momentarily at a loss, unsure how to respond. Just then, Xiao Ling's voice came from the side, carrying a hint of amusement and reminder.
"What are you all standing there for? This is Mang Tianchi, the dean of Canaan Academy. Quickly greet the dean."

Reminded by Xiao Ling, Xiao Yan snapped out of his daze. A few scattered pieces of information flashed through his mind, and he instantly matched the identity of the person in front of him with the information in his memory.

Although he had never met the dean of Canaan Academy, he was not completely ignorant of him. As Xiao Ling's cousin, although he was not as talented as Xiao Ling, he was still a direct disciple of Canaan Academy. He would inevitably come into contact with the academy's internal news on a regular basis, and he had occasionally heard some stories about this "hands-off dean" from the Grand Elder Su Qian.

Upon hearing Xiao Ling reveal his identity, Xiao Yan was no longer puzzled. He immediately realized that the old man in front of him, who had just severely injured an ancient clan elder and possessed an extremely strong aura, was none other than Mang Tianchi, the mysterious and powerful dean in the legends of Canaan Academy.

The more he learned, the more shocked Xiao Yan became, as he had never been able to connect the two before.

Although Canaan Academy is hailed as the number one academy on the Dou Qi Continent, it is ultimately a power located in the Northwest Continent, and the two strongest elders in the clan, Qian Bai and his sister, are only at the peak of Dou Zun.

Even though he had often heard people say that this mysterious dean had extraordinary deeds, he never thought that the other party could be associated with the high and mighty ancient race, and even dare to act in this way on the ancient race's home ground.

However, Xiao Yan quickly suppressed the turmoil in his heart, and a polite smile quickly appeared on his face. He bowed respectfully to Mang Tianchi and said,
"Student Xiao Yan greets Dean Mang Tianchi."

Upon seeing this, Mang Tianchi immediately threw his head back and burst into laughter. He then patted Xiao Yan's shoulder, his tone full of approval.

"Haha, I like your composed demeanor! Su Qian taking on two such outstanding students like you is a real honor for me, not bad, not bad..."

“Mang Tianchi, this is not the territory of the ancient clan. You have gone a bit too far.”

Just then, a slight ripple appeared in the void, and an old man with white hair dressed in black robes emerged from it like a ghost, then slowly descended from mid-air.

He first bowed slightly to Xun'er, whose face remained icy cold. His gaze swept over the mess in the square, then turned to Mang Tianchi. Recalling the instructions of the Dou Sheng elder earlier, and looking at his young mistress's attitude, he sighed helplessly, his tone softening slightly:

"However, in the end, it was Gu Xu and Gu Qian who were impolite first, and you, old man, insisted on standing up for these two young friends. Fine, this time I'll give your Lei Clan face and let this matter go..."

After speaking, the black-robed, white-haired old man's gaze did not linger on Xiao Yan for long. Only when it swept over Xiao Ling did it pause for a moment, like a fingertip. His eyes were calm and unwavering, revealing no emotion. Then he shifted his gaze to Gu Xu and Gu Qian, who were lying on the ground in a disheveled state.

With a flick of his finger, two lustrous pills, carried by his battle qi, flew from his palm and precisely entered the mouths of the two men. Within moments of the pills entering their stomachs, Gu Xu and Gu Qian's previously weak breathing became noticeably more stable, and the color in their faces returned slightly.

Seeing that the two had improved slightly, the old man in black robes waved his sleeve, and a gentle yet inescapable fighting spirit enveloped their figures. As if carrying two fallen leaves, he swept them straight out of the square and disappeared from everyone's sight in the blink of an eye.

"Tch, trying to act cool with me." Watching the old man in black robes walk away, Mang Tianchi curled his lip in disdain, his tone full of indifference.

He then turned around, his gaze returning to Xiao Ling. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he simply patted the latter's shoulder heavily, his tone becoming more somber:
“I can help you get rid of this trouble this time, but the ancient clans have too deep a foundation. Those arrogant old guys won’t change their opinion of you just because of a few words from others. If you really want them to look at you with new eyes, you’ll have to rely on yourself in the end.”

He paused, then added, "I believe in your ability and talent. But for now, it's best to keep a low profile and not be too flamboyant, lest you arouse the suspicion of those with ulterior motives and bring unnecessary trouble upon yourself."

Xiao Ling instantly understood the meaning behind Mang Tianchi's words and fully comprehended the good intentions behind his actions. After all, this was the territory of the ancient clan, and Mang Tianchi was able to withstand such great pressure and stand up for him without hesitation. Regardless, this sense of loyalty made Xiao Ling feel even more genuine goodwill towards him.

At that moment, Xiao Ling nodded slightly to Mang Tianchi and said sincerely, "Thank you for your guidance, Dean. I have learned a lot."

"Hehe, let's go then..." Mang Tianchi smiled and turned to walk towards a seat in front of the square.

Xiao Ling and Xun'er exchanged a glance, then turned to give Xiao Yan a wink. The three of them quickly followed and sat down in the empty seats next to Mang Tianchi.

As soon as she sat down, Xun'er leaned close to Xiao Ling and explained in a low voice, "The old man in black robes who came forward earlier is named Gu Shan. He is a senior elder of the Gu Clan with considerable strength. He is a half-saint level expert and has a lot of influence in the clan. Moreover, he is one of the people who strongly opposes our matter."

Xiao Ling nodded silently. With his current soul perception, he had already sensed that Gu Shan's cultivation had indeed reached the half-saint level, which perfectly confirmed Xun'er's statement.

As the two spoke in hushed tones, Xiao Ling's gaze swept over this core area. Those who could enter this place were mostly members of the ancient clan with prestige, or top guests who had been invited.

However, after scanning around, he did see a few familiar faces, namely Huo Xuan and his group, with whom he had a brief conversation on the warship heading to the ancient clan.

When Xiao Ling's gaze fell on Huo Xuan, the other person also happened to look over, and then smiled gently and nodded at him as a greeting.

Xiao Ling smiled back at Huo Xuan, then turned his gaze to the left, following the direction of the platform.

There was a group of people gathered there, mostly the younger generation of the ancient clan. Gu Zhen, whom they had previously interacted with, was among them.

Just then, a gaze, undisguised and sharp with scrutiny, shot directly at him. The gaze was so direct, almost undisguised, that it instantly drew Xiao Ling's attention away from the crowd and locked onto him. (End of Chapter)