Chapter 1081: The Bell of Grand Clarity Chimes Nine Times
Jian Chen and Huang Luan stood together a thousand meters in the air as they observed their surroundings. Changyang Zu Yunxiao, Changyang Zu Yeyun, and Changyang Zu Yunking stood beside them. They varied in expression; the couple were extremely excited while Changyang Zu Yunkong was extremely dejected. He felt heavy-hearted.
“Jian Chen, this is the main entrance to the Changyang protector clan. It’s located on the eastern part of the continent, and Mercenary City is over five million kilometers away. The protector clans possess the lengthiest histories on the continent, having surpassed a million years in age. They are much more ancient than Mercenary City. We had already become the ten greatest clans before Mercenary City had even been built on the continent,” Changyang Zu Yunxiao explained to Jian Chen.
Although this was not Jian Chen’s first time hearing about the protector clans’ lengthy histories, he still felt astounded by how long they had existed.
“Jian Chen, the ten protector clans of the continent all exist in other independent spaces. This space is described as a world by us, so it is a smaller world, no different than the Tian Yuan Continent, except for the fact that the energy of the world is much more abundant than the Tian Yuan Continent.” As he said that, Changyang Zu Yunxiao gently raised his right arm. A vast amount of energy shot out, before silently disappearing a hundred meters away.
The space there immediately began to ripple and a hundred-meter-tall gate suddenly appeared. A whole different landscape appeared on the other side of the gate. There were beautiful mountains and rivers, as well as various birds soaring through the sky and small beasts scurrying on the ground. It was a world virtually the same as the Tian Yuan Continent.
“Jian Chen, this is the largest gateway into our Changyang clan. It is called the World Gate, and it is rarely ever opened. However, whenever it is opened, it is because of a large-scale mobilization of the experts in the clan or because someone of great status has come.” Changyang Zu Yunxiao stared deeply at Jian Chen, wanting Jian Chen to understand just how the Changyang clan felt in regards to him.
Jian Chen examined the World Gate, but he failed to find anything special about it after looking around. He also lost interest as a result. He said, “Great-grandfather, great-grandmother, let’s go in.”
“Go in with my father and mother, Jian Chen. I’ll be waiting outside,” Changyang Zu Yunkong said with a dark expression.
“Why can’t you come in with us, great-grandfather?” Jian Chen looked at Changyang Zu Yunkong in confusion. His main reason for visiting the clan this time around was to help Changyang Zu Yunkong remove the seal in his head.
Changyang Zu Yunkong gently sighed and said nothing. He was in a horrible mood.
“Jian Chen, it’s true that Yunkong can’t go in. As soon as he enters the clan, the Emperor Armament will lose control and lead to an utter disaster,” sighed Changyang Zu Yunxiao.
Jian Chen stopped talking after hearing that. Holding Huang Luan’s hand, he entered the clan with the old couple. The giant World Gate also vanished once they passed through it.
“The independent space of the Changyang clan is divided into the outer clan and inner clan. Jian Chen, I originally planned to take you directly to the inner clan, but since it’s your first time coming to the protector clan, I’ll take you through the outer clan and help you understand the exact layout of the protector clan.
“We’re currently in the outer clan. This is where all the ordinary clansmen live. They are at the bottom of the hierarchy, and there are many of them—at least several million. They all live in this city built by this mountain.”
“In the clan’s space, there are many mountain ranges and thus countless magical beasts. Many clasmen will move in groups, and once they step out of the city, they can be slain by these magical beasts at any time. A portion of the people who live in the outer clan have been weeded out from the inner clan due to their poor talent, while the other group were born there. They will all grow and cultivate in the outer clan. People of the outer clan are only able to enter the inner clan if they become a Heaven Saint Master or exhibit great talent, where the cultivation environment is much better. As a result, there are very few Heaven Saint Masters present in the outer clan since they have all been gathered by the inner clan.”
“The members of the outer clan are no different than mercenaries on the continent. They hunt magical beasts for their monster cores so that they can cultivate and feed off their flesh. They will struggle all year round on the road to Heaven Saint Master, so quite a few outer clan members fall to the mouths of magical beasts every year.”
Jian Chen listened to Changyang Zu Yunxiao’s explanation as he flew toward the depths of the clan. As he passed over various mountain ranges, he would find a few members of the outer clan in intense battles with magical beasts. He could not help but think back when he was no different, trying to increase his strength. He killed magical beasts for their monster cores and ate them for food, paving a path out of magical beast corpses. He would live in forests filled with danger. Only those who had experienced this themselves could truly understand the difficulties.
Jian Chen also saw the city mentioned by Changyang Zu Yunxiao as he traveled. It was not an extraordinarily big city. It was covered in the marks of time, having stood for countless years. However, it continued to stand strong, and it was encased by a powerful barrier to protect the people living in it.
Jian Chen passed through the outer clan very soon and arrived at the inner clan. The abundance of the energy of the world in the outer clan could only be compared to some blessed lands on the Tian Yuan Continent, while it was several times more abundant m in the inner clan.
“The rate of cultivation in the inner clan is equivalent to using monster cores. The energy of the world here is extremely abundant, making it several times easier to cultivate,” Jian Chen sighed inside when he sensed the abundance of energy in the inner clan. A vast disparity existed between the inner and outer clan.
At this moment, Jian Chen suddenly narrowed his eyes. Some disbelief filled his face. He saw a piece of land floating in the sky. The land was huge, several dozen kilometers across. It was as large as a king city.
People could be seen moving about everywhere among the structures constructed on the piece of land. Jian Chen could even feel a few vast presences radiating carelessly from some closed buildings, and the number was astounding.
The most eye-catching part was the very center of the piece of land. A palace, several hundred meters tall, stood there quietly like a slumbering primordial beast, radiating with an invisible pressure that would shock anyone. It seemed like the ruler of the piece of land.
“This floating piece of land is the center of our Changyang clan. It is where all our experts gather, and the divine hall in the center is where all the great elders cultivate. Other clansmen with superb talent are also allowed in,” Changyang Zu Yunxiao explained from beside Jian Chen.
Dong!
Suddenly, a great chime rang out. The sound spread everywhere and so did its echo, ringing magnificently through the entire space in which the clan inhabited.
The moment the chime rang out, everyone on the floating piece of land stopped. They all stared at the sky in surprise.
Dong! Dong!
The chimes rang out three times consecutively, and when the third one rang out, many doors of the closed buildings suddenly opened. Various cultivators who lived in them emerged.
“This is the chime of the Bell of Grand Clarity. It was made to welcome valued guests, and it hasn’t rung for a hundred years. I wonder which valued guest has come to visit our clan. It must be a great elder of some other protector clan…”
“The bell has chimed three times. The person must be someone who can raise storms…”
Quite a few discussions broke out among the people who emerged.
The chiming did not stop. More, humongous sound waves swept through the space, reaching every corner of the clan. Very soon, it had chimed six times in total.
A portion of the other buildings suddenly opened after the sixth chime. Saint Rulers emerged as vast amounts of energy coiled around them. They stared at the sky in surprise, and one of them softly murmured, “It’s been a whole century since the Bell of Grand Clarity has rung. I remember last time, it was due to a visit from a great elder of the Tyrant’s Blade School, and it only rang three times, yet the bell has rung six whole times now. Is the guest the grand elder of Mercenary City?”
“Probably only the grand elder of Mercenary City could make the bell ring six times nowadays. Has he really come to visit our clan?” A sagely old man said in surprise and suspicion as his beard gently floated.
Dong!
This time, the bell chimed once more, summing to a total of seven chimes.
The entire clan fell into an uproar immediately after the seventh chime. At that moment, everyone who lived on the floating piece of land emerged from their residences. Even the people who had entered life-or-death seclusion forcefully came out, staring at the sky in shock.
Dong!
The giant divine hall that silently stood at the center of the land originally only had two small doors open on its sides, yet with the eighth chime, its main entrance slowly opened up with a great rumble and a simple but desolate presence began to radiate from the door. It seemed like it had not opened for a very long time.
Afterward, six people of various ages stepped through the door. They all stared into the distance with a smile, before moving together. They took to the sky, going up to personally receive the guest.
The six of them were all great elders of the clan.
Dong!
With the ninth chime, a large number of people had appeared on the floating piece of earth. All of them were in shock. The ninth chime of the Bell of Great Clarity was only present in the records of the clan. It had not appeared for several tens of thousand years already, because it usually would only ring nine times to welcome Saint Emperors.