The delegations of the Five Great Sects, along with numerous top-tier sects and many first-rate even second-rate cultivation sects, all arrived directly at the Heavenly Summit Mountain ferry aboard their own sect's ferry vessels.
This represented prestige.
And the Dao Inquiry Assembly of Chenping Continent was not a grand gathering meant only for true geniuses.
For relatively ordinary cultivators, this was also the case.
Tens of thousands of cultivators gathered in the towns at the foot of Heavenly Summit Mountain, holding another grand event of the Chenping Continent cultivation world here.
However, the cultivators here had at most the Qi Sea Realm as their highest cultivation level.
After all, the Spirit Connection Realm represented the ticket to participate in the Dao Inquiry Assembly of Chenping Continent.
But aside from the Five Great Sects and a few top-tier sects, very few Spirit Connection Realm cultivators came to attend the Dao Inquiry Assembly of Chenping Continent.
Because Spirit Connection Realm cultivators could often already serve as the sect masters of second-rate cultivation sects or even some first-rate cultivation sects on Chenping Continent. Yet under normal circumstances, at the Dao Inquiry Assembly of Chenping Continent, it was the sect elders who brought their generation's most outstanding disciples to Heavenly Summit Mountain for exchange and competition.
"Look! That ship!"
In the town, a large crowd of cultivators gathered together, lifting their heads to gaze at the enormous ferry vessel in the sky, which stretched over seven hundred zhang in length.
"Which family does that big ship belong to?"
"How can you not recognize that? Look at the cloud crane statue on the bow. Who else could it be besides the Kongshan Sect?"
"Oh, so the crane represents the Kongshan Sect... but I heard the Wild Crane Sect also uses a crane as their symbol!"
"What sect is that? I've never heard of it."
"The Wild Crane Sect? It's just that when I was a kid, he lived next door to me. His name was Zhang Hao, his nickname was Zhang Gougen. After he grew up, he was originally selling fried dough sticks on the street. Later, he got an opportunity and was guided by a passing cultivator. He's been cultivating for over fifty years now and is still at the mid-stage of Body Forging. He also picked up two disciples, rented a small yard at the east end of the village, found a scholar to inscribe a plaque, and the words on it were 'Wild Crane Sect.'"
A dead silence fell over the crowd.
Then, one by one, they ignored what that cultivator had just said and refocused their attention on the massive ferry vessel of the Kongshan Sect, which hung over eight thousand zhang in the sky, slowly moving toward Heavenly Summit Mountain.
"Say, how many spirit stones do you think it would take to build a ferry of this size and class?"
"At least a million-plus high-grade spirit stones, right?"
"Wow!"
"What else? I asked around at the Ningshi Mountain Ferry in the Southern Region before. Just a ferry a dozen or so zhang long, and they dared to ask for nearly three thousand high-grade spirit stones. And I heard that the Kongshan Sect builds a new flagship every ten years just to attend the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry!"
Another wave of exclamations rose up. The cultivators in the town were all marveling at the immense wealth of the Five Great Sects.
Although Chen Yan hadn't joined in their discussion, Su Hongzhen had heard everything they said clearly.
"Big Brother, does the Kongshan Sect's ferry really cost over a million high-grade spirit stones?"
Chen Yan didn't directly answer Su Hongzhen's question. Instead, he fixed his gaze on the sword scabbard at Little Su's waist:
"That scabbard at your waist cost a hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones."
"But this scabbard shouldn't have been worth a hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Little Su said.
Although it once belonged to Realman Cangyue from tens of thousands of years ago, it was just an ordinary scabbard.
"In the eyes of someone who thinks it's worth it, it's worth a hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones."
Chen Yan replied. Then, after a brief pause, he continued:
"The construction cost of the Kongshan Sect's ferry is over sixty million high-grade spirit stones. As for the gold and silver needed, that's negligible."
"Sixty million!"
Su Hongzhen couldn't help but be stunned. At eighteen years old, he was no longer like when he had first left Liaolong, completely ignorant of the cultivation world on Chenping Continent.
Although Chen Yan was always generous with money and never blinked when spirit stones were needed, Su Hongzhen still understood the value of spirit stones very well.
"But this ferry isn't replaced every ten years. On average, each of the Kongshan Sect's flagships can last at least several hundred years."
Chen Yan said.
He knew this very well.
Eight thousand years later, when Chen Yan first went to Heavenly Summit Mountain, he had traveled on the Kongshan Sect's flagship.
Later, when he rushed from the Kongshan Sect to Fusheng Island, Qiu Siruo used the same ship he had once ridden on to nail him deep into the ground.
In the end, he was tied up like a five-flower bind on the cloud crane statue at the bow.
The past was too painful to recall.
"Let's go, Little Su."
Chen Yan said to the young man beside him, whose features were sharp and whose brows and eyes were full of unrestrained spirit.
"It's time to head up the mountain."
As his words fell, Chen Yan took a step forward, and Su Hongzhen followed behind him.
Leaving this town and walking ever upward, that was Heavenly Summit Mountain.
There weren't many cultivators heading up Heavenly Summit Mountain. From what Chen Yan could sense with his spiritual sense, there were only about a few dozen people.
All of these few dozen were young people who had broken through to the Martial Spring Realm before the age of twenty.
They wanted to use this opportunity of the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry to make a name for themselves from now on.
From the foot to the summit of Heavenly Summit Mountain, it was a total of over eight thousand zhang.
But climbing this eight-thousand-zhang height was even harder than walking over eight thousand li.
However, for Martial Spring Realm cultivators, this kind of thing wasn't actually difficult—it just required a great deal of physical strength and true qi.
Especially for the Martial Spring itself, it would also put a certain burden on it.
From the foot of the mountain toward the summit, they had climbed over a thousand zhang, and Chen Yan and Little Su had already spent over an hour.
During this time, Chen Yan and Su Hongzhen had overtaken over a dozen Martial Spring Realm cultivators who were also climbing Heavenly Summit Mountain.
Those who saw Chen Yan and Su Hongzhen climbing the mountain with swift and steady steps all showed expressions of extreme shock and horror.
Chen Yan acted as if he didn't see them.
"How is it?"
He simply said to Su Hongzhen, who was following slightly behind him.
"No problem."
Little Su replied, though his breathing had become a bit rapid.
No matter how high his talent was, Su Hongzhen was, after all, just a Martial Spring Realm cultivator.
"Climb another thousand zhang, then we'll rest for a bit."
Chen Yan said.
"Big Brother, I think I can make it all the way to the summit in one go."
Su Hongzhen replied.
"There's no need to tire yourself out. You need rest. Once we reach Heavenly Summit Mountain, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to exert yourself."
Chen Yan said as he looked up at the steep road ahead.
"Besides, it looks like there are people up ahead who don't want us to get up there so easily."