Chapter 390: The Grand Assembly (2)

“You must understand that life and death are small matters. Filth is the real travesty!

“This is simply outrageous! It’s disgustingly filthy!”

Everyone exchanged glances, struggling to stifle their laughter. They set about their tasks—sweeping, tidying up, and some added water to the large cauldron to keep it from boiling dry.

Once everything was settled, they vanished from sight.

Just waiting for the next batch of poor saps to arrive.

By now, more and more people were slowly trickling in.

Some of these people quietly found a place to sit and waited for the gathering to begin.

Others wanted to stir up trouble, but before they could even make a move, they were intercepted by members of the Hundred Treasures Association.

They were dealt with according to the severity of the offense.

Those who went too far—like the fellow who tried to urinate in the cauldron—had their martial arts crippled and were thrown off Sunset Plateau.

For more minor infractions, a simple lesson to ensure they wouldn’t dare act recklessly again was usually sufficient.

Interestingly, there were also sworn enemies among the crowd.

One man arrived first, caused a bit of trouble, and was disciplined by the Hundred Treasures Association. When his enemy finally showed up, he goaded the man into causing a scene. Only after the Association’s members came out and gave his rival a beating did the first man clap his hands and roar with laughter.

All in all, as the sun rose in the east, the small Sunset Plateau began to buzz with activity.

At first, there were empty seats everywhere.

Gradually, the seating started to become scarce.

Latecomers had to make do: some stood where they were, some sat on the ground, and some leaped onto the cliff edges for a bird’s-eye view. There were even those who perched in trees, all waiting for Jiang Ran to appear.

But the seats themselves became a source of fierce contention.

A latecomer with superior martial arts might see some nameless nobody sitting primly up front like a guest of honor.

Naturally, they wouldn’t stand for it. ‘My skills are greater than yours, my reputation in the martial world is greater than yours. What right do you have to sit there while I’m forced to stand?’

Most of the conflicts that followed arose from just such situations.

When renowned martial arts experts and members of major sects arrived, however, people gave up their seats without a word needing to be said.

Some did it to curry favor, while others were simply compelled by the circumstances.

The sun climbed higher, and Sunset Plateau gradually became packed to the brim.

Yet, even now, there was still no sign of Jiang Ran.

“Why isn’t Jiang Ran here yet?”

“I know, right? Look at the time! He should have crawled here by now.”

“You don’t think he was ambushed on the road, do you? That someone snatched Jiaowei before he even reached the mountain?”

“Oh, damn it! Does that mean we’ve missed our chance with one of the Twelve Celestial Artificers?”

“Bullshit! Jiang Ran has carried that Jiaowei across the entire martial world, all the way from Sanshui County to his stay at Qifeng Manor in Evergreen Mansion. The Jiaowei has been perfectly safe on his back this whole time.

“Why would it get stolen now, of all times?

“Besides, he has the protection of the Blood Saber Hall. You think Xuanyuan One Slash is a pushover? And Qifeng Manor is no slouch either. With them around, who would dare try to steal the Jiaowei by force?”

“That’s the truly bizarre part. The Blood Saber Hall has always been notoriously domineering. No one knows why they’ve gotten involved with this Jiang Ran.

“They act like one big family. If you dare insult Jiang Ran in front of a Blood Saber Hall disciple, they react as if you’ve insulted their own parents.

“They’ll fight you to the death over it!”

“I’ve heard about that too. In fact, I heard an even wilder rumor from the martial world.

“They say the Hall Master of the Blood Saber Hall, the great Xuanyuan One Slash, has taken Jiang Ran as his master!

“I have no idea how that rumor got started. It’s just unbelievable!”

“I’ve heard whispers of that, too. And the story is surprisingly detailed.

“It all supposedly started at a place called Qiuci Posthouse. The great Xuanyuan One Slash challenged Jiang Ran to a duel but was defeated by a single slash of his saber. Ever since, he’s willingly become his disciple, serving at his side!”

“Bullshit, absolute bullshit! Do you know who Xuanyuan One Slash is?

“In the entire world, who does the Blood Saber Hall actually respect?

“Even if Jiang Ran mastered the Nine Shocking God Sabers that once shook the martial world, he still wouldn’t be a match for Hall Master Xuanyuan, let alone become his master!”

“Don’t be so sure… I heard the Grandmaster himself confirmed that the saber style Jiang Ran uses is, in fact, the Nine Shocking God Sabers.”

“Impossible. After Wenren Tianzong died, the technique was lost. How could there be a successor?”

“Just because you haven’t seen something in the martial world doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Who do you think you are? The Martial Arts Alliance Hierarch?”

“I’m not the Martial Arts Alliance Hierarch, but I know that seeing is believing!”

“You’re full of shit!”

“You’re asking to die!”

“I’ll kill you!”

“Bring it on!”

With a crowd comes chatter, and with chatter comes disagreement.

When people of the martial world disagree, they let their fists and feet do the talking. Brawls would erupt with a cacophony of CLANGS and BANGS, only quieting down after everyone had bruised noses and swollen faces.

Standing on a high cliff with his hands clasped behind his back, Jiang Ran blended into the crowd. He looked down at the chaotic “tea and music appreciation” gathering and shook his head slightly.

‘Whether it’s appreciating tea or listening to the guqin, they don’t actually care about any of it.’

‘All they care about is how to get their hands on Jiaowei.’

Tang Huayi, standing beside him, let out a yawn and shot Jiang Ran a sidelong glance.

“Did you do anything… strange last night?”

“Strange things?”

Jiang Ran gave her a puzzled look. “What are you talking about?”

“You know exactly what I mean!”

Tang Huayi had been bold before, daring to run into Jiang Ran’s room to sleep with him back at Qiuci Posthouse.

But in reality, that was only because the atmosphere at the posthouse had been so incredibly eerie.

She was far more afraid of sleeping alone in that environment than she was of sharing a room with him.