Chapter 858: Four Great Young Masters
The Luo clan's royal capital covered an extremely extensive area. To the north of the royal city, there was a snow-covered mountain that was a hundred thousand feet tall. The mountain's peak was shrouded by clouds, and bluish snow capped it. There were vast swaths of snow that filled the area, making it look like an immortal's paradise.
And in this vast sea of snow stood numerous jade-carved palaces. Every palace was augmented by array formations, so even though the exterior environment was covered in snow, the palace's internal environment was maintained at a comfortable temperature all year round, with luxuriant grass and trees in blooming flowers. It was extremely beautiful.
In the middle of the mountain peak, there was a hot spring that did not freeze regardless of the season. The hot spring had the name ‘Luo Lucid Springs’ and its temperature was pleasant. Luo Lucid Springs was perennially covered in dense water vapor, and the spring water was like ambrosia from the heavens. It was filled with spiritual energy, so just drinking a mouthful would allow a mortal to become one year younger. A kettle of it allowed one to become ten years younger. The marvelous effects for mortals was no surprise, but even for warriors with relatively high cultivation levels, Luo Lucid Springs was still able to provide them with many rare benefits.
Even in the Luo clan royal compound that was filled with spiritual grounds, the Luo Lucid Springs was still one of the more famous ones.
The entire Luo Lucid Springs was surrounded by a palace with the name ‘Luo Lucid Palace’. And it was the venue where Empress Luo was hosting her banquet today.
The people invited to the banquet were important figures of the Luo clan.
There was Empress Xuan, Princess Purple Spirit, old subjects of the Luo clan's royal court, outstanding figures in the royal capital as well as those young elites who performed well at the collective training and who were expected to stand out at the Luo Divine Hall trials!
The standards for choosing these young elites were extremely high. There were certain states which did not have a single person chosen. For example, Yi Yun was the only person picked from the Fire Cloud State.
The young elites who were chosen were extremely excited. The banquet could be one of the most important opportunities in their lives. If they were lucky, they might gain the recognition of the upper echelons of the Luo clan, and enjoy a meteoric rise.
It was still two hours before the banquet began. With the invitation in hand, Yi Yun came to Luo Lucid Palace and he happened to meet Luo Tian, who also had an invitation.
Luo Tian from the Phoenix Firmiana State had been chosen to attend the banquet, but his seat was located at one of the big tables situated outside Luo Lucid Palace. He was just there to make up the numbers.
Sitting there gave him zero chance of being appreciated. He would not even get to see Empress Luo, while all the truly important people were seated inside.
After Luo Tian saw Yi Yun, he gave him an awkward smile. Ever since Yi Yun broke through to the Heaven Ascension realm and obtained a ninety-nine deca-feet Dao Tree, Luo Tian no longer had the mind to compete with Yi Yun. He acknowledged his own inferiority against Yi Yun.
Yi Yun gave him a gentle nod before walking into the palace. Upon seeing this scene, Luo Tian felt extremely envious. He also desired to enter the inner palace, but he was ineligible to do so.
The inner palace was filled with top figures. It was even rumored that Princess Purple Spirit would come today. If one entered the inner palace, one could catch a sight of Princess Purple Spirit's beauty.
Princess Purple Spirit was considered the most dazzling pearl in all of the Luo clan's royal capital. No heiress from the large families or the female elites from the various states could compete with Princess Purple Spirit. She was on a completely different level.
Ignoring her looks and family background, just her talent alone that was derived from the richness of her Ancient Fey bloodline was shocking. It was rumored that Princess Purple Spirit had inherited an Ancient Fey's bloodline as though she was a reincarnation of one. At the age of ten, she had awakened her Ancient Fey bloodline, and she had even greatly surpassed Prince Crimson Firmament!
It was also because of Princess Purple Spirit that Emperor Luo deliberated over the heir to the throne. If not, with the Luo clan's tradition of preference towards age, the forces that Prince Crimson Firmament controlled and the support he received that far exceeded Princess Purple Spirit’s would have easily ensured that he would ascend to the throne.
Despite Luo Tian knowing that his talent and status made it impossible for his life to have any intersection with Princess Purple Spirit, he would have been extremely satisfied just meeting her once.
Unfortunately… the statuses they enjoyed were realms apart. They were people from two different worlds.
Obviously, Yi Yun did not know what Luo Tian was thinking. In fact, even if Luo Tian had said it out loud, Yi Yun would find it difficult to imagine that the problematic girl that he met at the Tai Ah Divine City had an identity that was so far beyond one's reach.
The moment he stepped into the inner hall of the Luo Lucid Palace, the atmosphere changed suddenly. Taking a few steps forward, Yi Yun noticed the Luo Lucid Springs situated in the middle of the inner hall.
The Luo Lucid Springs was billowing with spring water, and above the pool, a pavilion carved in jade had been constructed. And on this pavilion, there were girls dressed in white who were dancing.
These girls were specially handpicked from the best in the world. They had Heaven Fey bloodlines, and their looks and figures were impeccable.
To be able to dance at the Luo Lucid Springs was also not a chance that any ordinary girl would receive.
At this moment, there were already quite a few people gathered by the sides of the Luo Lucid Springs. At a glance, there was no lack of young elites, but few elderly important figures had come.
Yi Yun did not know anyone, so he found a random seat, sat down and slowly began drinking tea.
Although Yi Yun looked aloof, everything that happened around him was within his perception.
He realized that not far from the Luo Lucid Springs, there was a small teleportation array. It was surprising that it was built right inside Luo Lucid Palace.
And at this moment, the teleportation array suddenly lit up!
Immediately, everyone in the grand hall looked at the teleportation array. It had to be said that the Luo Lucid Palace was situated on the hundred-thousand-feet tall Luo Lucid Mountain. The journey from the foot of the mountain to its peak spanned a distance of dozens of miles. Other than members of the royal family, no one was permitted to fly in Luo Lucid Mountain. They could only walk up, so although warriors could traverse distances quickly, under the limitations of brisk walking, the journey up the mountain still took a considerable amount of time.
Although there was a teleportation array built in the Luo Lucid Palace, only people of certain stature could use it to enter the palace directly.
"Someone impressive is coming. I wonder who it is… "
People began discussing as the teleportation array flashed, and soon, two people appeared side by side in the teleportation array.
The person on the left was simply dressed in azure-color clothes. He looked like a mortal scholar, and no energy fluctuations could be felt from his body.
And the other person stood in stark contrast from the scholar. He was covered in silk clothes and jade. The fabric in his clothes was woven from priceless Rainbow Silk produced by Rainbow Celestial Silkworms. The pair of boots he wore were made of leather from top-grade Fey beasts. And just the cost of his clothes and boots added up was impossible to be bought without a few thousand World Stones. Many of the elites present may have been invited to the Luo Lucid Palace's banquet, but they were not necessarily as rich. Just the man’s garb alone was worth more than the entire fortunes of a number of people.
The appearance of the duo immediately attracted the attention of all the elites present.
The duo, be it the silk-clothed youth or the azure-clothed scholar, exuded a natural air of nobleness. The heritage of ancient family clans in the Luo clan was manifested from their bearing.
"Donglin Yu! Ran Xueyi! Two of the four great young masters of the Luo clan royal capital!" Someone in the crowd identified them.
In the entire Luo clan royal capital, the people worthy enough to be given the title of one of the four great young masters were definitely the most outstanding figures amongst outstanding figures!
Donglin Yu came from the Donglin family clan, while Ran Xueyi came from the Xushui Ran clan. They were large family clans that ranked in the top ten family clans of the Luo clan.
The fiefs of these two family clans alone were about ten times the size of the Fire Cloud State!
The two family clans’ ancestors had previously fought alongside the founding emperor of the Luo clan. They had achieved illustrious military merits, so after the Luo clan was established, they were each bestowed the titles of king and their lineage had persisted to present day. They were as ancient as the Luo clan's royal family.
Furthermore, be it the Donglin clan or the Xushui Ran clan, every generation would nurture large numbers of talents. Some would be given important positions in the royal capital, while others would be assigned to one of the 196 states to become an official of a state.
As for Donglin Yu and Ran Xueyi, they were considered to be two of the most outstanding juniors from the two family clans. For such large family clans, the juniors they paid the most attention to would be nurtured in their own family clans. If Ran Xueyi was compared to Ran Yu, the differences in their positions were like Heaven and Earth. There was no way to compare them.
"Brother Ran, please."
The scholarly-looking azure-clothed man stretched out his hand. He was Donglin Yu.
"Brother Donglin, please." The silk-clothed youth said in response.
Ran Xueyi's outfit was extravagant, but he did not give off an arrogant demeanor. Every action and word from him felt like a gentle spring breeze, he truly deserved his title as one of the four great young masters.
At this moment, a burly man with a livid face and large fangs walked up and led the silk-clothed youth to his seat.
Seeing the burly man, everyone shuddered in their hearts.
"Fey Demon!"
The Fey Demon race in the Ten Thousand Fey Empyrean Heaven was a mixed hybrid between Fey and Demon. They were few in number, but they had long lifespans. Their bodily strength was extremely terrifying and they were born warriors.
If a Fey Demon was trained into a loyal soldier, he would be the most valuable protective force of a family clan. This Fey Demon was one nurtured by the Xushui Ran clan, and he was a follower of Ran Xueyi.
It was also obvious what sort of status that Ran Xueyi had for him to be able to bring a follower to attend the banquet.
Ran Xueyi sat at one of the seats of honor, which was not located too far from Yi Yun. At this moment, the Fey Demon whispered into Ran Xueyi's ear. Ran Xueyi was chatting with Donglin Yu, but after hearing the Fey Demon's words, he stopped and he turned his head slightly as his gaze landed on Yi Yun.
The teacup in Yi Yun's hand faltered for a moment before he continued sipping his tea slowly.
Ran Xueyi…
Just from the name, Yi Yun knew the person's identity as well.
"Brother Ran, I heard something happened recently to your Xushui Ran clan. It appears as though one of your direct descendant’s bloodline had been crippled."
The Fey Demon's whispers were not hidden from Donglin Yu, so Donglin Yu knew that the person that Ran Xueyi was looking at was Yi Yun.
A young disciple from the Fire Cloud State, even if he had obtained first in the collective training, was not someone that Donglin Yu would care too much for. If this was any other time, he would not have even given a glance.
However, this Fire Cloud State disciple had smacked the Xushui Ran clan in the face. It was a taboo for the bloodline of someone from an Ancient Fey family clan like the Xushui Ran clan to be crippled. The news of this small incident had proliferated.
Therefore, Donglin Yu had paid a bit of attention to Yi Yun, who dared to provoke the almighty family clan.
Such a person was usually rash and petulant. He might not understand how terrifying an ancient family clan was, and he had engaged in his reckless behavior because of his bit of talent. He was doomed to suffer sooner or later.
"I have incurred ridicule on myself, Brother Donglin. It had indeed happened. The disciple that had been crippled was one of the disciples that my Xushui Ran clan had assigned outside the family. The four Elders of my Xushui Ran clan have instructed me to simply teach him a lesson within the rules." Ran Xueyi said in a nonchalant manner.
He did not deliberately do so with a voice transmission. It made many people around him hear it.
They were secretly horrified at how Ran Xueyi truly disparaged Yi Yun. He had said such those words so casually, and it was unknown how far the so-called ’lesson’ would go.