Rather than saying all five great sects were waiting for Chen Yan, it would be more accurate to say it was four great sects.
These were Kongshan Sect, Mirage Palace, Wind Ravine Valley, and Lingxiao Temple.
Because the ferry from Star Heaven Sect still had not arrived at Heavenly Summit Mountain even now.
The meeting place was the Profound Scripture Hall at the very center of Heavenly Summit Mountain.
This ancient, simple building originally served a function on Heavenly Summit Mountain similar to the Scripture Halls established in the various sects today.
However, the Scripture Halls in today's sects serve the purpose of teaching disciples from the Body Forging Realm to the Martial Spring Realm within their respective sects.
But the Profound Scripture Hall was different.
The Profound Scripture Hall of Heavenly Summit Mountain was a place where all disciples from Heavenly Summit Mountain's six major peaks could attend and listen to teachings.
Those who lectured and taught the Dao in the Profound Scripture Hall daily were generally Divine Ability Realm cultivators, and every few days, there would occasionally be great experts from the Dao Union Realm.
In other words, the cultivation span of disciples who would listen to the Dao within the Profound Scripture Hall often ranged from the Body Forging Realm to the Unity Realm.
The Unity Realm was also the cultivation level of the current leaders of the five great sects.
Thinking of Body Forging Realm cultivators and Unity Realm cultivators sitting together in the same room listening to the Dao, Chen Yan felt a strange sense of absurdity in his heart.
But on Heavenly Summit Mountain at that time, this was an extremely common scene.
No wonder they said Heavenly Summit Mountain back then was the only sacred land for cultivating immortality in this world.
At this very moment, over a dozen cultivators were standing in the Profound Scripture Hall, all from the five great sects.
They were the Delegation Envoys from each sect and the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry participants from each sect.
Elder Zhong Yin and Chu Xiyao were also present.
"Chief Disciple Chen, where is Qin Yue?"
After Lin Qifeng brought Chen Yan to stand beside Chu Xiyao, Chu Xiyao lowered her voice and asked Chen Yan:
"Didn't she go looking for you? Why didn't she come with you?"
Both Chu Xiyao and Qin Yue were disciples of Qingchan Peak. Even though the Qingchan True Dharma and Qingchan Martial Discipline factions were at odds, their temporary residences on Heavenly Summit Mountain were next to each other.
"She ran off right after my master arrived."
"...What do you mean?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. She seemed very afraid of my master."
Chen Yan said.
Chu Xiyao was also confused.
Qin Yue saw Lin Qifeng and then ran away?
From what she remembered, apart from Chen Yan, Qin Yue shouldn't have had any interaction with people from Kongyuan Mountain, right?
"Elder Zhong."
Chu Xiyao lowered her voice and spoke to Zhong Yin, who was not far ahead:
"This disciple will go look for Junior Sister Qin."
Zhong Yin raised his sleeve and waved his hand:
"It's fine, no need to worry about her for now. Qin Yue may not be present, but the two of you cannot be absent."
"Yes."
Chu Xiyao bowed in acknowledgment.
Then, Zhong Yin glanced sideways in Lin Qifeng's direction:
"What are you still doing here?"
"Eldest Senior Brother."
Lin Qifeng grinned in Zhong Yin's direction:
"Just came to join in the excitement."
Right at that moment, outside the Profound Scripture Hall, the cultivators gathered on Heavenly Summit Mountain suddenly erupted with a large number of exclamations.
Everyone knew what had happened.
Star Heaven Sect had arrived.
After about another half-stick of incense time, an old man wearing a bluish-gray Daoist robe with a crescent moon emblem embroidered on the upper half of the left sleeve, along with three young cultivators, walked into the Profound Scripture Hall.
"Apologies for keeping you all waiting!"
The old man stepped into the great hall and declared in a clear, loud voice.
Star Heaven Sect, Moon Void Sect Leader, Hu Tianyuan.
Behind him followed two men and one woman. The two male cultivators wore the Daoist robes of the Sun Radiance Gate and Sword Chime Gate within Star Heaven Sect.
The female cultivator wore a light green gauze dress, with a thin, light green veil covering her face. Just from the eyes, nose bridge, and outline of her face visible, one could tell she was definitely a beauty.
Qin Qingyu.
There was no need to guess too much; her identity was obvious.
Star Heaven Sect, Moon Void Sect Chief Disciple, Qin Qingyu.
"Long time no see, Sect Leader Hu."
To the side, an old man wearing a misty-water-colored Daoist robe with dark patterns resembling shattered mirror surfaces embroidered on the hem of his clothes spoke up.
He was the Envoy of Mirage Palace, Mirage Palace, Mirror Ruins Tower True Dharma Elder, Yang Fan.
"Elder Yang!"
Hu Tianyuan laughed heartily and said:
"The last time we met was three years ago, during the encirclement and killing of that Sixth-Order Great Demon that emerged in Cold Marsh Country, right? How have you been lately, Elder Yang?"
A Sixth-Order Great Demon, in terms of combat power equivalent to human cultivators, is roughly comparable to a Myriad Transformations Realm cultivator.
No, slightly stronger by half a level.
Demonic beasts above the Fifth Order can develop spiritual intelligence.
Seventh-Order Demonic Beasts can take human form.
If a Sixth-Order Great Demon fights with its life on the line, an ordinary Myriad Transformations Realm cultivator wanting to retreat unscathed is impossible.
But no one wants to get injured during a demon hunt.
For this reason, cultivators adopt a method when facing demonic beasts of equivalent or slightly lower cultivation than themselves.
That is, encirclement and killing.
To minimize losses as much as possible.
Three years ago, a Sixth-Order Great Demon appeared in Cold Marsh Country, located in the southeast of Chenping Continent.
At that time, led by Mirage Palace and Star Heaven Sect, dozens of surrounding sects joined together to launch an encirclement and kill operation against it.
And this was only a Sixth-Order Great Demon.
Yet that Black Flood Dragon personally suppressed back then by Qingchan Peak's Patriarch Caijun had peak strength of a Ninth-Order, Dao Union Realm Great Demon.
Even after its remnant soul was suppressed for so many years, its divine intelligence worn away, it still possessed strength above a Seventh-Order Demonic Beast.
However, precisely because it lacked divine intelligence, it only caused tens of thousands of casualties among the outer sect disciples within the span of seven breaths.
If that Black Flood Dragon remnant soul still had divine intelligence and wanted revenge against Kongshan Sect, I'm afraid in just three breaths, the entire outer sect of Kongshan Sect would cease to exist.
Chen Yan remembered the final fate of that Black Flood Dragon remnant soul: it was annihilated by a clear light that came from the direction of Qingchan Peak.
None of Qingchan Peak's four Peak Elders could have managed that feat; it must have been the work of a Grand Elder from Qingchan Peak.
"What else could it be?"
Mirage Palace, Mirror Ruins Tower's Elder Yang Fan said:
"Everything as usual. What I never expected was that for this Dao Inquiry Assembly, the Moon Void Sect Leader of Star Heaven Sect would personally lead the team to participate."
"Who told the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry participant dispatched by the sect this time to be my disciple?"
Hu Tianyuan said with a laugh.
The disciple he referred to was precisely Qin Qingyu in the light green gauze dress standing in the position behind him.
She was almost universally acknowledged as the strongest among this generation of disciples on Chenping Continent.
Eighteen years old this year, the same age as Chen Yan, yet her cultivation was at the peak of the Martial Spring Realm.
Rumors said Qin Qingyu's cultivation was not limited to this. Since last year, she could have broken through to the Qi Sea Realm, but she had been suppressing her realm all along, not allowing herself to break through.
This was because both her own personal wish and the opinion of Star Heaven Sect's higher-ups hoped she could obtain the title of Heavenly Summit Champion.
To truly solidify her position as the number one among the younger generation of disciples of this era on Chenping Continent.