Chapter 19: The Elder
The dragon path wound onward. Linley flew at extreme speed.
"Because of that life-and-death battle, I angered the Patriarch. I was nervous when I followed him away, thinking I might face some danger. But who would have thought there would be no punishment at all, and in the blink of an eye, I became an Elder of the clan!" Linley looked at the cyan armor with golden patterns on his body and couldn't help but smile.
"How things change in the world, truly strange," Linley sighed.
"Elder!" A large number of patrolling warriors on the dragon path saw Linley's figure flying toward them and bowed respectfully.
Linley glanced at these patrolling warriors and nodded slightly.
Amid the respectful bows of the patrolling warriors, Linley whooshed past.
Watching Linley's departing figure, a patrolling warrior frowned and said, "That Elder... seemed to be Linley, who participated in the life-and-death battle. Captain, you went to watch too. Was that Linley just now?"
"I didn't see clearly. It seemed like Linley," the patrol squad captain also said.
"It was Linley, I saw him clearly."
"What? The Linley who fought in the life-and-death battle became an Elder?" Many patrolling warriors who hadn't watched the battle were puzzled.
"Is it strange for him to become an Elder? If the Patriarch hadn't arrived in time, Elder Emanuel would have been killed. That Lord Linley definitely has the strength of a Seven-Star Demon!"
Since thousands of patrolling warriors had watched the battle, many recognized Linley as he flew along the dragon path. Soon, the news that Linley had become an Elder spread rapidly among the patrolling warriors.
"We're here." Linley looked at the great canyon ahead, his body arcing through the air as he dove into its interior.
Linley flew directly toward the Yulan branch's residence. Midair, he saw a crowd gathered at the entrance of his dwelling. Baruch, Tarosa, Olivia, and dozens of others were gathered there.
"I hope Linley is alright," Hazer sighed softly. "Our Yulan branch rarely produces such an expert. If he gets punished... sigh." Unconsciously, the Yulan branch clansmen had come to see Linley as their 'banner.'
A banner—how could it fall?
"I wonder how the Patriarch will punish Linley," Hisset also said worriedly.
"From what I saw in the Valley of Death, the Patriarch is very strict," Olivia frowned.
"Relax, at least the Patriarch won't kill Linley," Baruch said. He knew the Four Divine Beasts clan was in crisis, and the Patriarch wouldn't be willing to kill an expert now.
Delia furrowed her brow, waiting quietly.
"Boss is here," Bebe suddenly spoke up, looking upward.
"Linley's here?" The group immediately followed Bebe's gaze, looking up. Through the faint mist above, a swift figure descended directly from the sky. Baruch and the others could only vaguely see a blur of colored light.
The figure landed—it was Linley!
Baruch, Tarosa, and the others stared at Linley, dumbfounded.
Linley was clad in cyan armor with complex golden patterns, looking ancient and noble. Especially the cape draped over his shoulders, with its intricate, unfathomable magical runes, faint colored light flowing through it.
It was unmistakably an Elder's attire!
"Lin... Linley?" Baruch, Ryan, Dillin, and the others stared at Linley in shock.
"Patriarch," Linley said, smiling at them.
"Linley, you became an Elder?" Hazer's eyes bulged wide.
Within the Azure Dragon clan, an Elder was truly a high-ranking member of the family. Every Elder was a Seven-Star Demon, worthy of the worship and admiration of countless clansmen. They knew Linley was powerful, but who would have thought...
Linley had become an Elder!
"Don't stand outside. Let's talk inside," Linley said with a smile.
"Right, everyone into the hall," Baruch snapped out of his daze and said quickly. "Linley, after you left with the Patriarch and the Elders, what exactly happened? You'll have to explain clearly later. I'm completely confused right now."
"Patriarch..." Linley started to speak.
"Just call me Baruch," Baruch said, looking at Linley's Elder attire. "Linley, you're an Elder now. The only one you should call 'Patriarch' is that one person."
Linley understood Baruch's thoughts and smiled. "In this great canyon, I'll still call you Patriarch."
Seeing Linley's expression, Baruch knew he couldn't argue and had to accept.
The important members of the Yulan branch gathered together, listening to Linley's account. Of course, Linley only gave a brief summary, skipping over some secrets. As he spoke, everyone felt relieved for him and proud of him.
Linley—the thirty-sixth Elder of the Elder Council!
The Yulan branch had a very low status in the Azure Dragon clan, but now that they had an Elder among them, their position was completely different. After all, the entire clan only had so many Elders.
Having an Elder in one's branch gave the clansmen much more confidence in the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range.
The next morning, inside Linley's room.
"Delia, I originally planned to cultivate quietly until I reached the Highgod level. But... I'm sorry. Now that I'm an Elder, I'm afraid I won't have much peace," Linley said, holding Delia apologetically.
Delia smiled and looked up at him. "You don't need to apologize."
"Linley!" A voice rang out in Linley's mind.
Linley was startled and said apologetically to Delia, "I didn't expect it to be so soon. I only became an Elder yesterday, and now someone is looking for me."
"Go ahead," Delia said.
Linley nodded slightly, then turned into a blur as he flew out of the room and into the sky. Above the great canyon, a handsome man in Elder attire stood in midair—it was Elder Garvey.
"Linley," Garvey said with a smile.
"Garvey, is there something?" Linley asked.
"Yesterday you became an Elder. I imagine you know nothing about the rights and responsibilities of an Elder," Garvey said lightly. "The Patriarch ordered me to explain everything to you in detail."
Linley's eyes lit up. "Thank you."
"You're not going to make me talk here, are you?" Garvey laughed.
Linley looked around. He and Garvey were in midair above the canyon. It really wasn't appropriate to keep a guest here. He smiled and said, "Garvey, let's go to my place and talk properly." With that, the two Elders, Linley and Garvey, flew downward.
At that moment, a figure flew up from below the canyon—it was Asru, who had bullied the Yulan branch when Linley first arrived at the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range.
"This life is so boring. The eight great clans are always coveting our Four Divine Beasts clan. Even we patrolling warriors can't leave during our off-duty rotation. We can only stay within the mountain range."
"Fortunately, in half a month, it'll be the thousand-year rotation, and I'll be on patrol. Patrolling is better than staying in the canyon." Asru was in a good mood. But suddenly, he turned his head and looked into the distance. Two blurry figures flashed and disappeared.
"Huh? Elders?" Asru was shocked. "Two Elders. Why would they come to this remote place?"
This great canyon was a remote area within the Azure Dragon clan's territory. It was rare to see an Elder here!
"One of those two Elders had a familiar back," Asru frowned. Because of the thin mist in the canyon and the Elders' speed, Asru hadn't seen clearly. "That person... looked a bit like Linley!"
Asru then laughed. "How could that be? That Linley is from the Yulan branch. His strength is decent, but how could he compare to an Elder, let alone become one? His little bit of power is only enough to dominate in this canyon."
Asru smiled dismissively and flew out of the canyon.
In the living room, Linley and Garvey talked.
As they spoke, Linley became clearer about many matters within the clan and couldn't help but sigh inwardly: "The Elders really have a lot of power. The entire Azure Dragon clan is almost entirely managed by the Elders. Although the Patriarch is powerful, he usually doesn't bother with affairs."
"Garvey, from what you've said, the Elders in the clan are responsible for many things," Linley said with a smile. "I wonder which one I'll be in charge of?"
"Don't rush. Right now, everything in the clan has someone responsible, and there are no vacancies. So for now, you have nothing to do," Garvey said with a smile. "You can enjoy all the privileges of an Elder without having to do any work."
"Your residence and such have already been arranged," Garvey continued. "Also, you can now apply for a better place for your Yulan branch to live."
"No need. I'm fine living here," Linley frowned. "Garvey, from what you're saying, I'll just be idle now?" With the clan in crisis, would he really be so free?
"Of course there will be things to do, but not now. Wait until the Elder Assembly!" Garvey said. "The Elder Assembly is held once every thousand years. At each assembly, tasks are reassigned. Since you're a new Elder, you'll be assigned something then."
Linley understood.
"So for now, enjoy your leisurely life. After the assembly, you won't have the chance to be idle," Garvey chuckled. "Other Elders dream of this kind of free time but can't get it."
Linley smiled. "By the way, Garvey, how long until the next Elder Assembly?" A thousand-year assembly—maybe he still had a few hundred years of leisure.
"Fifteen days," Garvey said.
"Fifteen days?" Linley was stunned.
An assembly only once every thousand years, and he happened to be just fifteen days away?
"Yes, so I said you should cherish this time of leisure," Garvey said, standing up with a smile. "Alright, I have to go. When the Elder Assembly begins, someone will come to notify you to attend."
Linley also stood up and saw Garvey off.
In the great canyon.
"That Linley from the Yulan branch became an Elder? Impossible!"
"It's true. The Yulan branch people are all boasting about it. It doesn't seem fake. But honestly, those Yulan branch people are so smug, it's annoying to see."
"They're probably just bragging."
Such discussions spread through the canyon. The Yulan branch had several hundred clansmen, and after learning Linley was an Elder, many of them started showing off to people from other branches in the canyon.
Everyone cared about face.
And gods cared even more about dignity. Since Linley had become a clan Elder, the previously looked-down-upon Yulan branch clansmen naturally wanted to spread the news.
Asru was walking out of his dwelling, about to start his shift.
"Lord Asru, I heard Linley became an Elder. Is it true?" A few people came to ask Asru. Asru was a Highgod and considered a formidable figure in the canyon.
"Don't listen to the Yulan branch's boasting. Linley, an Elder? How could that be?" Asru sneered. "Besides, I saw Linley yesterday, and he was just wearing ordinary clothes." He didn't know that Linley simply didn't want to wear his Elder attire all the time in the canyon.
Suddenly, he paused. He recalled the two Elder figures he had seen earlier and a doubt arose in his mind.
"I told you it's impossible," the few people immediately said. "The Yulan branch, producing an Elder?"
"I'm going on duty soon. I'll ask other clan warriors and find out," Asru said. The great canyon was too remote, with too few experts, so news from the clan reached them slowly.
The few people immediately flattered him and saw him off.
Just then—
"Elder Linley!" A clear voice suddenly rang out across the entire great canyon. Everyone in the canyon—whether cultivating, gathered in groups, or flying—froze.
Asru was also stunned.
Immediately, a large number of figures flew toward the source of the sound. They looked closely—
Three black-robed men flew down respectfully, and Linley flew out at the same time.
"Is the Elder Assembly starting?" Linley asked.
"Yes, Elder," the three black-robed men bowed.
"Let's go." Linley flew up first, and the three black-robed men followed respectfully.
A large crowd in the great canyon watched this scene in shock. Especially since Linley was wearing his Elder attire today, the flowing, glowing cape stunning many.