Upon Ning Beichen's arrival, he was directly assigned a seat in the first row. Those who knew or didn't know Ning Beichen, though unspoken, were all shocked, wondering why the Liangtian Palace valued him so highly.
Ning Beichen, however, paid no mind to where he was seated, finding the situation rather dull, akin to a grand assembly, entirely uninteresting.
Soon, all attendees arrived. Including Ning Beichen, there were over thirty people seated in the hall. Some represented themselves as individuals, while others represented sects.
While these individuals did not represent the entirety of the world's cultivation power, a significant portion was present, illustrating the current state of declining talent among cultivators.
Even renowned large sects struggled to recruit disciples, let alone smaller ones.
Moreover, with land being as precious as gold, maintaining the normal operation of a sect required substantial funding. Without industries, how many sects could afford to keep running?
What's more, this was a peaceful society where fighting and killing were forbidden. Learning martial arts was effectively useless; win and you go to jail, lose and you end up hospitalized.
Combined with the prevalent one-child policy, which parent would willingly let their precious child become a useless warrior?
Thus, not only were small sects facing a decline, but even the great sects were experiencing a shortage of successors, content if they could merely survive.
However, these were digressions. Ning Beichen, seated in the front row, was pondering what important matter the Liangtian Palace had summoned them to discuss.
"Thank you for waiting, everyone. I am Li Chengfeng, Daoist name Quanyang, and the Palace Master of Liangtian Palace. I have gathered you all here today to discuss a matter."
"Palace Master, you are too kind. Just command us, and we shall obey."
The crowd below offered a wave of flattery, acknowledging his position of authority.
Li Chengfeng waved his hand, signaling for quiet, and continued.
"Some time ago, our Wuliang Palace encountered two formidable enemies. None of us could match them. They claimed to be from the Mortal Ascension Realm, and their ambitions were vast: to control all cultivation forces in the Eastern Ancient Kingdom for their own use. I have summoned you all today to discuss this very matter..."
Ning Beichen, who had been on the verge of dozing off, immediately became alert upon hearing "Mortal Ascension Realm."
He was certain these two individuals were not the ones he controlled, as he had not instructed them to act. Therefore, it was highly likely that these two were entirely separate individuals.
"Good, I was just looking for people, and you show up on your own."
"Does the Palace Master mean for us to unite and confront them?"
Someone from below inquired.
"I believe everyone understands the principle of 'when the lips are gone, the teeth grow cold.' Their target is not just Wuliang Palace, but to control the entire Eastern Ancient Kingdom. The consequences of their control over the cultivation forces would be unimaginable."
"Therefore, I have gathered you here today, firstly, to discuss a method to deal with them, and secondly, to consider how to prevent such incidents from recurring. We also need to ascertain how many of them there are and what their ultimate objective is."
Li Chengfeng addressed the assembly.
"Palace Master, they claim to be from the Mortal Ascension Realm and possess immense martial prowess. To what extent do you understand this realm, and could it threaten the safety of this world?"
"Also, should we notify the official departments to intervene? After all, we might not be their match."
The people below murmured amongst themselves, posing their respective questions.
Only Ning Beichen remained silent, seated in his chair, uninterested in their discussions. No one understood the strength of those from the Mortal Ascension Realm better than he did.
Frankly, all the people present combined would not be a match for even a single individual from the Mortal Ascension Realm. What was there to discuss?
However, Ning Beichen did not utter a word to deflate their spirits, merely sitting quietly.
At this moment, Li Chengfeng turned his gaze to Ning Beichen and addressed him directly.
"Ning Beichen, what are your thoughts on this matter?"
Although Ning Beichen had publicly challenged many Daoists and possessed formidable strength, Li Chengfeng, as the Palace Master of Wuliang Palace, was confident in his own abilities and did not believe himself inferior to Ning Beichen.
After all, Ning Beichen was merely a rogue cultivator. How could his background compare to that of Wuliang Palace?
"I have no particular opinion. I'll just watch from the sidelines."
Ning Beichen replied nonchalantly.
Seeing that he could glean nothing from Ning Beichen, Li Chengfeng turned his attention back to the others and resumed the discussion.
However, matters of this nature could not be resolved quickly. Time wore on until evening, and neither Wuliang Palace nor the assembled guests had reached a consensus. Consequently, Li Chengfeng announced that the discussion would continue the following day.
The summoned guests were provided with comfortable accommodations by Wuliang Palace. Ning Beichen also chose to stay, arranged by the palace.
While he was not interested in the discussions and did not believe Wuliang Palace could succeed, he also did not wish to appear aloof or unconventional. Strength was one thing, but how one conducted oneself was another.
Having a personality was acceptable, but it did not equate to lacking sense.
During the deliberations, Ning Beichen could remain silent, but if he were to demand to leave at this juncture, it would be utterly foolish, demonstrating a lack of emotional intelligence rather than unique character.
It was only for one night anyway, and Ning Beichen had never visited Wuliang Palace before, so experiencing its scenery would be quite pleasant.
However, even though Ning Beichen chose to remain low-key and avoid trouble, sometimes trouble found you, regardless of your efforts.
Wuliang Palace had gone to great lengths to invite Ning Beichen, yet his seemingly indifferent attitude had irked some of the younger disciples of Wuliang Palace.
Qiao Zixuan was one such individual who resented Ning Beichen. He was the closed-door disciple of Li Chengfeng, the Palace Master, and was renowned as the most talented young prodigy in Wuliang Palace.
At a young age, Qiao Zixuan already possessed the cultivation of a Grandmaster, completely outclassing the other disciples of his generation within Wuliang Palace. With such ability and skill, he naturally received preferential treatment and doting from Wuliang Palace.
Such advantages and background inevitably fostered an arrogant and self-important personality in Qiao Zixuan, making his disdain for Ning Beichen quite understandable.
Once self-importance took root, he could not resist looking for an opportunity to challenge Ning Beichen.
The outside world buzzed with talk of young talents like Ning Beichen. Qiao Zixuan wished to use his strength to prove that he, Qiao Zixuan, was the true king among the younger generation.
Therefore, as Ning Beichen was preparing to return to his room, Qiao Zixuan intercepted him.
"Hold it right there, Ning Beichen. I've heard you're quite strong. I want to spar with you. Do you dare?"
Qiao Zixuan, accompanied by several disciples, blocked Ning Beichen's path and issued a challenge.