Chapter 367

Chapter 367: Gathering of Disciples (Part One)

As night fell, Lian Tai.

Named after the lotus, Lian Tai was the most famous tavern in Lian City.

Standing seven stories tall, it rose majestically in the lotus pond next to the South Domain Palace, with its top floor shaped like a lotus flower, resembling a proud white lotus on a vast green wave from a distance.

When the sky darkened, colorful lanterns hanging from the eaves of Lian Tai lit up one by one.

From afar, the sight was breathtaking!

Aside from its unique design, Lian Tai was renowned in the South Domain for its divine culinary delights, which had even received praise from a Nascent Soul true immortal.

However, dining inside Lian Tai was not inexpensive, and one could not reserve a private room if they had spirit stones but lacked a powerful background; they might not even qualify to have a seat in the main hall.

Although Wang Chen had not been in Lian City for long, he had heard of Lian Tai’s fame.

Tonight, he came to attend the gathering of newly recruited disciples from the West Sea Sect in the South Domain.

After showing his invitation letter to the guardian at the entrance, Wang Chen was led by a beautiful maid into the dazzlingly decorated hall of the tavern, and then he took the heavenly ladder straight to the fifth floor.

The heavenly ladder functioned like a magical elevator, operating through formations to move up and down.

The maid brought Wang Chen to a luxurious private room on the fifth floor, where he saw four dining tables already occupied by forty to fifty cultivators, enjoying a performance of song and dance by beautiful maidens.

With celestial music floating in the air and fragrant mist swirling around, it was a splendid scene unlike any other.

Wang Chen scanned the area with his divine sense and was astonished to find that almost all the cultivators present were Purple Palace masters!

Moreover, they were mostly very young.

He even spotted a youthful girl with twin buns, at the second layer of the Purple Palace cultivation level!

A prodigy!

While Wang Chen had advanced quickly in his own cultivation, achieving breaking through to open a house in his early twenties thanks to his Cultivation Panel, he felt insignificant compared to these outstanding talents!

"Wang Chen has arrived."

As he entered the private room, the guiding maid announced to everyone.

Countless scrutinizing gazes instantly focused on Wang Chen, making him feel as though he were being pricked by needles.

Wang Chen calmly bowed and said, “I am the new disciple Wang Chen, greeting all my senior brothers and sisters!”

The gathering of newly recruited disciples from the West Sea Sect was, as the name clearly stated, a social event for new Entry Disciples, and seeing so many cultivators at the second and third levels of the Purple Palace, he aimed to appear modest and humble.

“Hahaha!”

At that moment, a young man in a cloud-patterned robe approached with a smile, saying, “Brother Wang, there’s no need for such formalities; we are all fellow disciples.”

This young man had an extraordinary appearance and carried himself with grace, being at the third level of the Purple Palace.

He introduced himself: “I’m Yang Kaifeng from Lian City. May I ask where you are from, brother?”

Wang Chen found it a bit strange that this person could send him a flying sword message but didn’t know his background.

He replied openly, “I am from Wancheng.”

"Wancheng?"

Yang Kaifeng was momentarily taken aback. "Where is Wancheng?"

Wang Chen remained calm. "North of Yulong Mountain."

"Uh…"

Yang Kaifeng’s smile faded slightly. "That’s quite far away."

Before he could finish his sentence, someone snickered.

Saying it was far was just Yang Kaifeng’s polite way of putting it—what he really meant was that it was a remote and impoverished place.

The cultivators present were all astute; they immediately understood that Wang Chen lacked background and likely stumbled upon good fortune to become an inner sect disciple of the West Sea Sect.

Yang Kaifeng, with a deep mind, maintained his smile. "Junior brother, please have a seat over here."

Wang Chen felt that his smile appeared a bit insincere, realizing he might be out of place tonight.

But since he was already here, turning back now would offend many, which he deemed unnecessary.

"Thank you, senior brother."

Wang Chen sat down at the dining table designated by Yang Kaifeng.

This was the table with the fewest people—only seven, including him—and everyone kept a certain distance from one another.

The atmosphere at this table was far from as lively as the other three.

Wang Chen politely nodded to the fellow cultivators at the table and slowly sipped the spiritual tea poured by the maid.

He quickly realized that in this private room, each dining table formed its own circle.

The core circle was the table where Yang Kaifeng sat, surrounded by ten young cultivators, all distinguished and graceful, clearly from prestigious families, with a hint of pride in their demeanor.

Their topics of discussion were quite lofty, using terms that Wang Chen couldn’t even comprehend!

The other two tables were more populated, nearly full, and were of a slightly lower status than Yang Kaifeng’s group.

Many people occasionally cast glances toward Yang Kaifeng and his companions.

As for Wang Chen’s table…

Everyone looked like lonely souls!

It was entirely normal for such situations to arise—like attracts like, and people form groups based on similarities.

Wang Chen estimated that those at his table were in similar situations; perhaps slightly stronger than him, but not by much, making them subtly excluded by the circle centered on Yang Kaifeng.

These cultivators seemed somewhat proud and solitary; none liked to speak, and there was little interaction among them.

In contrast, Yang Kaifeng, as the host of this gathering, stood out brilliantly.

He spoke and laughed freely, effortlessly weaving clever remarks, never neglecting any of his tablemates; he truly was skilled in socializing.

He was a top-tier socialite cultivator!

After Wang Chen’s arrival, five or six more cultivators came in one after another.

Though the time had not yet come, everyone had arrived.

Yang Kaifeng raised his goblet and said, "Fellow disciples, meeting is a blessing; let us drink to this!"

"Cheers!"

Everyone raised their glasses, and the atmosphere in the private room reached its peak.

Yang Kaifeng downed his drink and clapped his hands, declaring, "Let’s begin the feast!"

Accompanied by enchanting celestial music, beautiful maids entered in succession, presenting exquisite divine cuisine that was visually appealing, aromatic, and delicious, making everyone’s mouths water.

Not wanting to miss out, Wang Chen picked up his ivory chopsticks and grabbed a slice of fish sashimi laid on ice.

The jade-colored fish slices were as thin as a cicada’s wings, melting deliciously in his mouth, a wave of icy pure spiritual energy flooding into his stomach.

Indeed, Lian Tai’s divine cuisine lived up to its reputation!

Wang Chen couldn’t help but indulge, savoring each dish with gusto.

He had no interest in awkwardly trying to squeeze into Yang Kaifeng’s circle but was genuinely fascinated by the celestial dishes and wanted to taste each one carefully.

His stomach was satisfied; his effort tonight was not in vain.

However, what Wang Chen did not expect was that while he was enjoying himself in the corner, someone had set their sights on him.

"Are you Wang Chen?"

A haughty young cultivator stepped in front of Wang Chen, sneering, "You’re the one who was displaying great power at The Spring Pavilion a while ago, right?"

His voice rang out clearly, echoing in everyone’s ears, halting the lively atmosphere instantly.

Dozens of cultivators’ eyes focused back on Wang Chen!

Surprise, curiosity, disdain, ridicule, and pity…

All mixed together!