Staring at the eight names written upon the Heavenly Rankings — names that did not need to pass any examination and could ascend directly to the Summit of the Nine Heavens — the forces and representatives from virtually every faction were stunned.
They had never heard of Feng Ling, but some influential figures were aware that the Bloodline Heavenly River possessed a formidable young prodigy.
So naturally, they linked Feng Ling with that talented junior from the Bloodline Heavenly River.
Because of that, even though they knew nothing about Feng Ling specifically, they found it somewhat reasonable.
But…
Who was Jie Tian?
Hadn't the Seven Worlds Holy Land invited Ling Xiao last time? Why was it Jie Tian now?
Jie Tian — why could he replace Ling Xiao?
This question left not only outsiders dumbfounded but even the members of the Seven Worlds Holy Land themselves in disbelief.
Ling Xiao was universally recognized as the strongest junior currently within the Seven Worlds Holy Land. Even though Ling Sheng'er also possessed exceptional talent, she had not yet fully matured.
As for this Jie Tian, even they had never heard of him.
…
However, compared to Jie Tian, Xianhai Yu'er generated far more controversy.
Even though it was already widely rumored that Xianhai Yu'er possessed outstanding talent…
Xianhai Shaoyu was simply too extraordinary. His countless accomplishments had long since spread throughout the vast Martial Cultivation World.
Many even believed that Xianhai Shaoyu was the strongest junior in the entire Martial Cultivation World today.
Even prodigies like Ling Xiao, Qin Xuan, and Long Chengyu of the Seven Worlds Holy Land — those who had long since made names for themselves — had to take a step back.
Some even felt that the gap between them and Xianhai Shaoyu was not small at all.
Xianhai Shaoyu was essentially the generation's Jie Ranqing.
Because his reputation had spread far and wide long ago, when it came to talent alone, many simply refused to believe that Xianhai Yu'er could truly surpass Xianhai Shaoyu.
What's more, Xianhai Yu'er was so young — could she really replace Xianhai Shaoyu?
But with Xianhai Shaoyu and Xianhai Yu'er, people merely had doubts.
The others on the list, however, left everyone completely baffled.
Who was Wang Qiang?
Wasn't the strongest junior from the Divine Body Heavenly Palace the palace master's grandson, Yuwen Yanri?
Though few in the world had ever laid eyes on this Yuwen Yanri — the current Divine Body Heavenly Palace master's grandson was quite mysterious — everyone within the Divine Body Heavenly Palace acknowledged him as their foremost genius.
So where had this Wang Qiang suddenly come from?
Nobody had ever even heard of the name.
And who was Xian Meowmeow?
Hadn't the Nine Soul Heavenly River already fallen into decline, just like the Ancestral Martial Heavenly River?
That kind of place was generously called a heavenly river, but honestly speaking, it was nothing more than a backwater.
The top powerhouses from the Western Region, Southern Region, or Northern Region could go there and reign as kings.
They simply considered the place too worthless to bother with.
So how had a certain Xian Meowmeow suddenly appeared and received a direct invitation from the Summit of the Nine Heavens?
Could it be that this round of invitations required each heavenly river to select one representative, and Xian Meowmeow was simply a filler?
Very quickly, people latched onto this explanation as entirely plausible.
After all, even Chu Feng — despite his explosive fame after causing that massive disturbance at the Seven Worlds Holy Land — in the end, had only relied on the Seven Worlds Holy Land's own formations. That only proved the Holy Land's strength.
As for Chu Feng himself, although he certainly possessed the ability of a genius, he still fell short of top-tier prodigies like Long Chengyu and Qin Xuan.
Let alone comparing him to Xianhai Shaoyu.
If even Chu Feng had a gap to close, then Xian Meowmeow's gap would naturally be even wider.
Even though none of them had ever met Xian Meowmeow, simply because the Nine Soul Heavenly River and the Ancestral Martial Heavenly River were places in decline, the various heavenly river factions all independently reached the same conclusion: Xian Meowmeow was just filling a spot.
…
Meanwhile, within the Seven Worlds Holy Land's sacred domain — deep inside a restricted area — a dense, highly pure power of barrier formations gathered.
This kind of barrier energy was precisely what Spirit World Masters dreamed of for their cultivation.
Yet at this moment, this precious cultivation resource was being enjoyed by a single young person alone.
That person was Jie Tian.
But Jie Tian was not cultivating. Instead, he was gazing upward.
The power of the Heavenly Rankings was so immense that even here, within the restricted area, he could see its contents.
Just then, a figure walked in — it was the Seven Worlds Master.
"Grandfather."
Upon seeing the Seven Worlds Master, Jie Tian hurriedly rose and stepped forward.
"Grandfather, I wasn't intentionally letting my mind wander — it's just that the commotion from the Heavenly Rankings is too great," Jie Tian explained.