Chapter 467: Imperial Palace Night Banquet
After Lan Jiao left, Meng Qing looked at Lin Feng and said, "She didn't want to leave. Perhaps, if you had just asked her to stay..."
Lin Feng smiled bitterly and shook his head slightly.
"Jing Yun, do you want to return to Yangzhou City and visit Cloud Sea Sect?" Lin Feng asked Jing Yun.
"I'll go directly to Cloud Sea Sect and wait for Old Man Huo and the others to arrive before meeting up with them." Jing Yun smiled. She was also a part of Cloud Sea Sect. Although she had only been an outer disciple back then, Cloud Sea Sect held her most youthful and cherished memories. The sect's destruction had always been a knot in her heart. Now, being able to witness Cloud Sea Sect's revival with her own eyes was naturally something she was willing to do.
"That's fine. Yi Xue, you can come with me to Longing Forest."
Now, he no longer needed to stay at Heavenly One Academy, and their group had no reason to remain here either.
"What about Duan Feng?" Jing Yun asked.
"He can continue cultivating at Heavenly One Academy. I think Heavenly One Academy would be happy to welcome him." Lin Feng smiled slightly. Duan Feng also had countless connections with the Imperial Family, and with his powerful talent and simple nature, it was more suitable for him to cultivate quietly now. Lin Feng didn't even want Duan Feng to have too much contact with him, as it would distract Duan Feng. He didn't want to affect Duan Feng's future.
"That's good." Jing Yun nodded. She and Yi Xue packed up a bit, then followed Lin Feng out of the Ancient Castle.
Walking along the paths of Heavenly One Academy, Lin Feng naturally became the center of attention, which made him smile wryly.
But before Lin Feng could step out of Heavenly One Academy, he saw a familiar figure again — Nan Shan.
"Jing Yun, be careful on your way to Cloud Sea Sect. Meng Qing, take Yi Xue to Longing Forest." Lin Feng said. Seeing Nan Shan, Lin Feng knew that something else was about to come up.
"Lin Feng, Young Master."
Sure enough, Nan Shan walked up with a smile, clearly coming for Lin Feng.
"Just call me Lin Feng." Lin Feng laughed. Being called "Young Master" really didn't suit him.
"Lin Feng, Young Master... I'll just call you Lin Feng, Young Master." Nan Shan shook his head with a smile. "Lin Feng, Young Master, on the day of the genius gathering, everyone witnessed your strength — killing Dapeng Gongzi, slaying the Sect Master of Hao Yue Sect. Now, the people of Snow Moon have already included you in the mandatory list for the Eight Young Masters. If it weren't for the fact that the Eight Young Masters haven't truly clashed yet, you would already be one of them."
"The Eight Young Masters — just an empty title." Lin Feng shook his head. He didn't care about such empty fame. He also understood how many experts and geniuses there were in the vast continent. Being limited to the title of a certain young master would only narrow his vision.
"But this empty title, at the very least, is an affirmation of your strength, Young Master Lin."
Nan Shan smiled bitterly. How many people charged forward for this empty fame? In their eyes, the Eight Young Masters represented the highest honor in Snow Moon. But what Nan Shan read from Lin Feng's eyes was indifference. Lin Feng truly didn't care.
Perhaps what Lin Feng valued were only the strengths of those young masters, not their reputations.
"Let's not talk about this. Did the Second Prince send you to find me?" Lin Feng didn't want to say more and asked directly.
Every time Nan Shan appeared, it was related to Duan Wuya. This time should be no exception.
"En." Nan Shan nodded. "Young Master Lin, the Second Prince has been waiting for you for a long time."
"What do you mean?" Lin Feng asked.
"Young Master Lin, after the genius gathering on the Xiang River, there were only a few candidates qualified to participate in the Snow Domain Grand Competition. Dragon Mountain Empire also sent people, even bringing along some genius disciples from Tian Feng Kingdom. It seems they intend to use Tian Feng Kingdom's geniuses to test the strength of Snow Moon's geniuses. Under these circumstances, Snow Moon naturally had to prepare a banquet for the guests from Dragon Mountain Empire and Tian Feng Kingdom, inviting Snow Moon's genius disciples to meet each other first. But because you were away, Young Master Lin, this banquet has been postponed until now. Dragon Mountain Empire and Tian Feng Kingdom have already started to complain."
Nan Shan smiled bitterly repeatedly and said to Lin Feng, "I waited for you every day at Longing Forest, but you never showed up. Today, as soon as I heard you had arrived at Heavenly One Academy, I immediately came to inform you. The Second Prince has set the banquet for tonight. I hope you can understand that His Highness didn't seek your consent, and I also hope you can attend."
Since Dragon Mountain Empire had brought people from Tian Feng Kingdom, it was inevitable for Snow Moon Kingdom, as the host, to prepare a banquet for both sides to meet. And because of him, Lin Feng, Duan Wuya had actually postponed the banquet. This surprised Lin Feng quite a bit. As for Nan Shan's words and the politeness in his tone, they were undoubtedly telling Lin Feng that the Second Prince, Duan Wuya, placed great importance on him.
This was what Nan Shan wanted to convey, and Lin Feng naturally understood.
"Nan Shan, tell the Second Prince that I will attend on time."
Lin Feng replied with a smile. Nan Shan nodded. "Nan Shan thanks Young Master Lin. In that case, I'll take my leave."
"Alright." Lin Feng nodded. Nan Shan bowed slightly and then left. Watching Nan Shan's back, Lin Feng's eyes flickered with a hint of sharpness. Nan Shan's attitude toward him was clearly more respectful and polite than before. And since Nan Shan represented the Second Prince, Duan Wuya, his politeness meant that Duan Wuya valued him even more.
"So all of this is because of my background — my mother."
Lin Feng thought to himself. Many things that had been unclear before suddenly became clear. Duan Wuya was good to him because Duan Wuya had long known about his background. There was also that time at Longing Forest when Duan Wuya had him go there, causing him to meet Yu Tianxing and spark a conflict. Later, when he killed Yu Tianxing and Yu Chou came for revenge but was crippled by his mother's men, Duan Wuya's people then struck and killed him.
Everything seemed to have been arranged. Duan Wuya had long anticipated that the place where Lin Feng stood at that time was his mother Yue Menghe's territory. How could Yue Menghe allow the Yu Family to act recklessly and kill her son?
And then there was the matter of Tianluo Ancient City. At that time, everyone was fighting over the Nine Heavens Azure Dragon Cauldron, but only Duan Wuya made a shocking appearance at the last moment, sweeping everyone up and obtaining the cauldron for himself. This man, Duan Wuya, was too formidable. This formidable nature referred not only to his strength but also to his schemes and methods.
Fortunately, although Duan Wuya had schemed against Lin Feng, it was only to win him over, not to harm him.
"Back in Tianluo Ancient City, who was that person who snatched the Nine Heavens Azure Dragon Cauldron from Duan Wuya and returned it to me?" Lin Feng suddenly thought of that sword-wielding figure. It definitely wasn't his parents.
"I'll ask my mother another day. She should know."
Among the experts Lin Feng knew, only Yan Yu Ping Sheng could be that person. He definitely didn't know that person, yet the other party was willing to help him and even gave him such a precious item as the Nine Heavens Azure Dragon Cauldron instead of keeping it for himself. It must have been a close friend of his parents to do such a thing.
Raising his head, Lin Feng looked at the sky, then said to Meng Qing and the others, "You all go ahead. I'm going to the Imperial Palace."
"Be careful." Meng Qing reminded him. Lin Feng smiled and nodded at her. This Imperial Palace night banquet would include people from Dragon Mountain Empire, Snow Moon's suzerain state, and the people they brought from Tian Feng Kingdom were definitely not mediocre. It was sure to be a gathering of geniuses and experts.
Moreover, some friction was probably inevitable. Tian Feng Kingdom and Snow Moon Kingdom were both vassal states of Dragon Mountain Empire. When the geniuses of two countries met, how could they not compete with each other?
But as for safety, Lin Feng wasn't worried. The Imperial Family wouldn't let anything happen to anyone at the banquet. Dragon Mountain Empire also wouldn't want any accidents to befall the candidates for the Snow Domain Grand Competition. Friction and collisions were inevitable, but they would be limited to victory and defeat, not life-and-death conflicts.
The Snow Domain Grand Competition wasn't just for one empire like Dragon Mountain Empire. The other three empires of the Snow Domain would also bring their vassal states to participate. It was the grandest event in the Snow Domain. Which empire wouldn't want their side to shine the brightest?
The pinnacle competition of young geniuses was essentially a subtle contest between nations. These most talented young geniuses were the future of their countries. If they were strong, the country would be strong.
Meng Qing and the others nodded and went their separate ways. Meng Qing took Yi Xue to Longing Forest, while Jing Yun headed toward Cloud Sea Sect. Although Jing Yun's strength wasn't considered high now, outside the Imperial City, she was still considered an expert.
As for Lin Feng, his figure flickered, and he headed directly toward the Imperial Palace.
PS: Brothers, how are you all spending your holidays? I've been working overtime these past few days. We have three days off for May Day, but I have to make up two days. This kind of holiday is really unbearable.