This group numbered ten in total, and they made no effort to conceal their auras, so Chu Feng could sense that every single one of them was powerful.
The weakest among them wore the Purple Dragon Divine Robe, while the strongest wore the Immortal Dragon Divine Robe!!!
Although none of them were considered juniors, the eldest was barely approaching three hundred years old.
By the standards of martial cultivators who often lived for tens of thousands of years, they were all remarkably young.
The group headed straight toward Chu Feng, yet none of them stopped beside him—they simply passed by.
Most of them kept their eyes forward, not even glancing in Chu Feng's direction.
Even the few who did notice him merely cast a casual look, devoid of contempt but brimming with arrogance.
That lofty bearing made them seem like deities strolling through the mortal world.
In truth, they were indeed afforded extraordinary treatment.
Everywhere they passed, everyone hastily dropped to their knees in a grand bow.
Even the patrolling guards immediately stopped and cleared a path for them.
"So wherever there are people, there are hierarchies—and the Seven Realms Sacred Palace is no exception," Chu Feng mused inwardly before closing his palace doors.
He needed to settle his mind.
Right now there was nothing he could do, so cultivation it was.
He planned to continue practicing the Primordial Meditation Technique, as he had already begun to vaguely sense the opportunity for a breakthrough.
Although it would still require some time, if he kept cultivating, the breakthrough would come eventually.
But after half an hour of cultivation, someone suddenly knocked on Chu Feng's door. He looked outside and saw the very same ten silver-armored figures he had spotted earlier.
Chu Feng opened the door. The one at the front was a woman—not particularly beautiful, with somewhat dark skin, but carrying an air of distinction and an unmistakable confidence.
That kind of presence could sometimes surpass beauty itself.
She was also the strongest among them, wearing the Immortal Dragon Divine Robe.
"Chu Feng?" the woman asked.
"That's me," Chu Feng replied.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ling Xinian. I am a member of the Ling clan of the Seven Realms Sacred Palace and the vice-captain of the Ling clan's Skybreaker Army."
"Chu Feng, would it be alright if we came inside to talk?" Ling Xinian asked.
"Of course." Chu Feng invited them all into the palace where he was staying.
"Chu Feng, I'm Ling Yunhao. Also from the Ling clan, also part of the Skybreaker Army, but I'm neither the vice-captain nor the captain—just a regular member."
A young man with a simple, honest face and a brilliant smile introduced himself the moment he stepped inside.
Despite his guileless appearance, his cultivation was no joke—second only to Ling Xinian among those present, wearing the Imperial Dragon Divine Robe.
One by one, the rest of the group introduced themselves to Chu Feng as well, all of them unfailingly friendly.
Among them, a few had actually looked at Chu Feng when they passed by earlier, and their demeanor back then was entirely different from now.
"Is there something you all need from me?" Chu Feng asked.
"There is. We'd like to befriend you," Ling Xinian said bluntly.
"Why?" Chu Feng asked.
"You saw us passing by just now. To be honest, we were summoned by our Ling clan elder."
"Our Ling clan elder told us about you—the first-place finisher in the Entry Trial."
"The black mark obtained in the Nine Heavens Secret Realm."
"Chu Feng, you really are something else."
"With your talent, even within the Seven Realms Sacred Palace—a place that has produced no shortage of geniuses across the ages—I suspect you will carve out a place for yourself."
Ling Xinian laid out the whole story without any attempt at concealment, her tone brimming with sincerity.
Chu Feng could tell that although they were not juniors, by the standards of their cultivation, none of them were ordinary.
The fact that a Ling clan elder had taken the time to brief them personally showed that the Seven Realms Sacred Palace placed considerable importance on him.
Put plainly, this was an early effort to win him over.
That people this proud were willing to court Chu Feng spoke volumes about his worth.
"It is my honor to make the acquaintance of you all," Chu Feng said with a clasped-fist salute.
Regardless of whether their sincerity was genuine, one does not strike a smiling face—especially on another's territory.
"Chu Feng, you've just arrived at the Seven Realms Sacred Palace and don't know your way around yet. How about we give you a tour?" Ling Xinian offered.
"That would be wonderful," Chu Feng agreed.
And so Ling Xinian and her group led Chu Feng on a tour.
Along the way, they attracted quite a bit of attention.
Everyone looked at Chu Feng with surprise, and when they saw Ling Xinian and her companions actually smiling at him, the whispers and speculation only intensified.
Most of them had heard about the Entry Trial, but many were still unaware of the final outcome.
They did know who Ling Xinian and her group were, however. To see Chu Feng treated so favorably by them set tongues wagging about just who he might be.
Through Ling Xinian's explanations, Chu Feng gained a much clearer picture of the Seven Realms Sacred Palace's structure.
The Seven Realms Sacred Palace had originally been an organization established by Spirit World Masters from various regions.
In the beginning, there were no Jie or Ling surnames.
After the Seven Realms Sacred Palace decided to stop accepting outside recruits and instead have its existing members develop their own successors, the Palace Master at the time decreed that certain members would be granted new surnames.
Those who received this honor would no longer be permitted to use their previous family names.
Thus the Jie clan and the Ling clan came into being.
However, not just anyone could be granted a surname—only those with extraordinary military merit earned that privilege.
As such, the earliest members to receive new surnames were also the most powerful individuals in the Seven Realms Sacred Palace.
As time passed, hierarchies naturally emerged within the Seven Realms Sacred Palace.