With one glance, Han Li could tell that this sharp-eyed elder was almost certainly that Old Freak Jin. After all, among the three, he was the only one at mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivation, and he appeared to be approaching the peak of that realm.
The curly-haired elder entered the hall and, without standing on ceremony, swept his gaze over Senior Brother Cheng and the others before settling on Han Li. His expression shifted subtly.
"This must be Fellow Daoist Han! This old man has long admired your reputation. But weren't you an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator? Could it be that Fellow Daoist Han's cultivation has advanced so rapidly?" The curly-haired elder spoke slowly, a peculiar look on his face.
"Senior Brother Jin, I presume. You flatter me. I only recently advanced to the mid-stage." Han Li rose to his feet and cupped his fists, his expression unchanged.
At these words, the elder's heart sank.
"As soon as I emerged from seclusion, I heard all manner of tales about your extraordinary abilities. It seems that while the rumors may be somewhat exaggerated, they aren't far from the truth." The curly-haired elder fell silent for a moment before putting on a bitter smile.
The corner of Han Li's mouth twitched into a faint smile, but before he could say anything, Senior Brother Cheng rose to his feet with a hearty laugh.
"Fellow Daoist Jin, why do you fixate on Junior Brother Han the moment you arrive? Come, let us all sit down together and have a proper chat, you old fellows." The Cheng elder was remarkably warm in his greeting.
"Don't take offense, Senior Brother Cheng. I have no intention of overlooking you. It's simply that before I came here, all I heard were tales of this Junior Brother Han of yours. Naturally, my curiosity got the better of me." Old Freak Jin chuckled, his smile not quite reaching his eyes.
"Oh? Now that you've met Junior Brother Han, I trust you aren't disappointed?" the Cheng elder asked with a grin.
"Heh heh! Disappointed? Not at all — quite the opposite, in fact. With Fellow Daoist Han, the Falling Cloud Sect is sure to soar to new heights. However, I've heard that Brother Han wasn't originally a direct disciple of your sect, but rather came from Yellow Maple Valley!" Old Freak Jin shot a glance at the Cheng elder and let out a cold laugh.
"What does it matter that Junior Brother Han once had ties to Yellow Maple Valley? As long as he is now our Junior Brother and an Elder of the Falling Cloud Sect, that is all that matters." The Cheng elder remained composed.
Old Freak Jin rolled his eyes and was about to retort when Elder Feng suddenly interjected:
"Fellow Daoists, save your words for a moment. Our Hundred Creations Institute has recently acquired a rather delicious spirit fruit — why not sample some first?"
With that, he clapped his hands lightly.
A team of young female disciples who had been waiting outside for some time entered carrying platters of crimson, oval-shaped spirit fruit.
Seeing this, Old Freak Jin and the Cheng elder had no wish to offend their host, and they all took their seats.
"This is the 'Fire Pomegranate Fruit' — a spirit fruit discovered by one of our disciples on an unnamed barren mountain. The flesh is sweet and juicy, and for ordinary mortals, it has remarkable eye-brightening properties." As soon as the female disciples finished arranging the fruit, Elder Feng began his introduction.
Han Li and the others had indeed never seen such fruit before, and they all tried some out of curiosity.
Sure enough, it was exceptionally sweet and contained a considerable amount of spiritual energy. Even Han Li found it pleasant, eating three in quick succession before stopping.
"By the way, how come we don't see Fellow Daoist Fire Dragon at this gathering? And this must be Fellow Daoist Mingxin of your sect? I've heard that Fellow Daoist Mingxin possesses a most rare magical treasure, refined from ten-thousand-year Yellow Wood, and cultivates the top-grade wood-attribute technique, the 'Hundred Yang Spring Art.'" Elder Ding glanced at the young woman from the Ancient Sword Sect and asked with a smile.
"That's right — I am Mingxin. Senior Brother Fire Dragon heard that someone at the market in Tanyun Mountain is selling Fire Ying Beast eggs, and he grew quite interested. He left the sect months ago. As for me, although I advanced to the Nascent Soul stage some fifty or sixty years ago, I've rarely met with anyone. I'm grateful for this opportunity to meet you fellow Daoists, and I hope you'll share your wisdom generously." Although this young woman was no transcendent beauty, every one of her movements was graceful and refined. A faint natural fragrance emanated from her presence, and her gestures put people at ease almost without their noticing.
Han Li clearly sensed that after finishing her words, her bright eyes had lingered on him for a moment, as though she found him quite interesting.
His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, but his expression quickly returned to normal.
After the fruit tasting, the elders who held power in the three sects began their discussions in earnest.
Han Li let the silver-haired elder, Lu Luo, and the others engage in their subtle verbal sparring, content to sit quietly and rarely speak. On the rare occasions the conversation touched on him, he merely smiled and said nothing.
Even so, out of reverence for Han Li's reputation, the old monsters from the Hundred Creations Institute and the Ancient Sword Sect kept close watch on his every movement, as though trying to gauge his true depths.
Just as the group in the hall was deep in conversation, a flash of red light appeared at the entrance. As the glow faded, a middle-aged cultivator in a purple robe materialized there.
The man had thick brows and large eyes, with a commanding aura — clearly someone accustomed to wielding great power.
The moment this person appeared at the hall entrance, Elder Feng and Elder Ding rose immediately to greet him.
"Senior Brother Liehuo. The fellow Daoists from the Falling Cloud Sect and the Ancient Sword Sect have both arrived. The preparations for the ceremony observation — everything is in order, I trust?"