As time flowed by, the morning light grew brighter, and in the blink of an eye, it was already noon.
The sun hung high in the clear, cloudless sky. It was a perfect, auspicious day for the investiture ceremony.
The ten-thousand-meter grand martial arts arena in front of the main hall of the Qinglan Sword Sect was the sacred ground reserved for the sect's grandest ceremonies.
The terrain was vast and open, with stone platforms rising tier by tier, carrying the solemn weight of a thousand-year-old heritage.
Today, this normally solemn arena was packed to the brim with a sea of people, and a grand, majestic atmosphere enveloped the entire area.
The Peak Masters of each peak sat upon the main seats of the high platform, while dedicated seats were arranged behind them for the nine True Disciples.
Three of them were away on important missions and could not return in time, but the remaining six were all present, standing tall and straight.
Leng Xuerou, Zhou Ming, Wang Jingyuan, Zhou Ruoyao, and Su Wanqing were only ordinary personal disciples of their respective peaks, so they could only stand on the sides of the arena to watch the ceremony.
The five of them directed their gazes toward the entrance of the high platform. Completely won over in their hearts, they quietly waited for Ye Ling to make her appearance.
On both sides of the center of the high platform stood the elders and core deacons.
Below the high platform, the entire arena was filled with the sect's disciples, who had all returned upon receiving the summons.
The outer sect, inner sect, and personal disciples of each peak stood in orderly, tiered ranks.
In the VIP guest area below the platform sat the great, influential clans under the sect's jurisdiction.
Only clans that possessed a Xiantian Realm martial artist were granted seats to watch the ceremony.
Among the clans belonging to the Qinglan Sword Sect, there were dozens of families that boasted Tongxuan Realm powerhouses. Each possessed formidable influence and occupied the front rows of the VIP seats.
The remaining thousands of Xiantian Realm clans were arranged in rows behind them. Ordinary families without any Xiantian Realm cultivators did not even have the right to step into the arena.
The Ye family group was seated in the prime seats at the very center of the VIP area, instantly drawing the sideways glances of countless surrounding clans.
Quite a few heads of the Tongxuan Realm clans frowned slightly. The Ye family's foundation was weak, and they did not have a single Tongxuan Realm powerhouse in their entire clan. According to the rules, they should have been seated near the back, so how could they sit so firmly in the center?
However, the moment someone revealed that the Ye family was the clan of the newly appointed Tenth True Disciple, Ye Ling, the attitude of the entire venue shifted instantly.
The clan heads, who had been distant just moments ago, stood up of their own accord and flocked toward the Ye family's seats, approaching with beaming smiles to make conversation and build good relations.
Even the leaders of clans that boasted Tongxuan Realm ancestors lowered their stature, proactively exchanging pleasantries and chatting with the Ye family head and ancestor.
In everyone's eyes, Ye Ling's future was limitless. Being able to form a good relationship with the Ye family early on meant securing a backer with a boundless future.
This investiture ceremony concerned a grand shift unseen in a thousand years. Although the sect had locked down the news in advance, the other three of the four major sects had long since planted eyes and ears within the Qinglan Sword Sect.
The news had quickly spread to the other three major sects, and each had dispatched a Tongxuan Realm elder as a representative to attend and observe the ceremony in person.
The royal family of the Qingyun Kingdom had also specifically dispatched the Seventh Princess, who traveled a long distance to arrive with generous congratulatory gifts.
The ancient and solemn ceremonial music suddenly resounded through heaven and earth. Bells and chimes rang out, and the long, deep notes of flutes echoed in waves across the entire Sect Master Peak.
Everyone present held their breath, their eyes locked onto the exit of the main hall.
Everyone knew that the true protagonist of today's grand investiture ceremony, which had caused a stir throughout the entire sect, was finally about to make her entrance.
For the past several hundred years, the investiture ceremonies of the previous nine True Disciples had always been extremely simple and quiet affairs. They were never publicized on a large scale, nor were the subordinate clans widely invited, let alone other sects disturbed.
Yet Ye Ling's investiture ceremony today was the grandest and most solemn one since the founding of the Qinglan Sword Sect, truly unprecedented.
As the music swelled and the atmosphere reached its peak, a slender and upright figure slowly stepped out from the depths of the majestic main hall.
The young girl had her ink-black hair tied back into a neat, high ponytail that fell like a waterfall. Without a single piece of jewelry or ornament, she looked clean, spirited, and exceptionally heroic.
Her posture was perfectly straight and her movements were sharp, exuding a poised and resilient air forged from years of practicing the sword.
She wore the mountain frost-blue gilded True Disciple ceremonial robe. With the frost-blue as its core and the gilded gold representing honor, the fabric appeared translucent and lustrous.
A three-foot green steel sword hung at her waist, its plain white tassel dangling and swaying slightly with her steps.
While an ordinary girl in luxurious robes would only appear delicate and gorgeous, Ye Ling's unique blue-gold robe perfectly blended four extreme qualities: coldness, exquisite beauty, nobility, and majesty.
She possessed both an otherworldly grace untouched by the mortal realm and the august majesty of a True Disciple who stood above thousands of other disciples.
Her posture was dignified and steady, and her steps were calm and unhurried. With every step she took, she naturally exuded the profound aura of the sect's top genius.
Upon witnessing this scene, everyone in the audience felt their hearts shake violently.
Many elders and senior disciples who had personally witnessed previous True Disciple investitures stared in blank, dazed astonishment.
They had seen the ceremonial robes of the nine True Disciples with their own eyes. They were uniform in style, simple and standard, and completely identical—dignified enough, but lacking in luxury.
Yet the ceremonial robe Ye Ling wore completely shattered the thousand-year-old tradition of the Qinglan Sword Sect.
Its unique design, rule-breaking specifications, and unparalleled aura made it exquisite and noble to the absolute extreme. It was a unique, customized honor that the sect had spent several months tailoring specifically for her.
Soft gasps of admiration rose from the crowd, and everyone understood clearly.
At this moment, they saw with absolute clarity that this peerless genius, who had emerged at the age of fifteen, defeated a Xiantian Realm opponent, and climbed nine thousand steps of the spiritual stairs, held a weight in the heart of the Qinglan Sword Sect that far surpassed all past True Disciples. She was the future pillar that the sect was willing to break all rules and pour all its resources into cultivating.
Within the ranks of disciples in the arena, Su Qinghan and Su Qinghe stood side by side. Their eyes were locked onto the blue-gold figure, their gazes filled with warmth and genuine joy.
Since they first met, they had watched her journey as she climbed nine thousand steps of the Heavenly Spirit Stairs during the sect selection, became the target of a fierce bidding war among the four major sects, and was ultimately snatched up by the Sect Master of the Qinglan Sword Sect. Then, she had achieved legendary status in a single battle during the new disciple tournament, crushing all geniuses of her generation to finally rise to such a supreme position today. Seeing their close friend wearing the unique blue-gold ceremonial robe, bearing the highest honor of the entire sect, and naturally exuding majesty between her cold brows, the two of them felt nothing but pure happiness and heartfelt pride, without a single shred of envy or distance.
On the side of the high platform, the three Tongxuan Realm elders from the other three top sects had slightly grave expressions, their hearts churning like a stormy sea.
They quietly watched the young girl walking slowly below, their eyes trembling with unbelievable envy and reluctance.
“Is that Ye Ling?”
“Fifteen years old, at the Houtian Twelfth Layer, having mastered half-step Sword Force and climbed nine thousand steps of the spiritual stairs.”
“Her talent is actually even more terrifying and stunning than Su Qingyue, who astounded the entire kingdom three hundred years ago!”
The same thought crossed the minds of all three elders simultaneously, filling them with frustration and annoyance.
Damn it, the Qinglan Sword Sect played too dirty! Such an incredibly rare, once-in-an-eternity genius should have been fought over by the other three sects.
Yet Leng Zhiwei had beaten them to the punch, snatching her into her sect and firmly binding a future giant to Qinglan.
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