Emperor’s Domination

Two peaks towered in this region, one to the east and one to the west. The entire city was built around these two, making them stand out even more.

The eastern one belonged to Seer Watch, thus its name became Seer Peak. The westward one had a different owner back then until the Biandu took over and it became theirs.

Normally, Seer Peak was open to the public. Thus, some came to offer their respect, light an incense, or just sightsee. Of course, this number was limited.

This wasn't the case today since the peak was packed from top to bottom. The stone steps were facing immense pressure. This normally only happened during an official ceremony.

Today was even worse because the Grand Seer himself was in charge. Regardless of their own schedule, people still came to see him. Both the sky and the ground were packed with cultivators, chariots, and mounts…

Due to the density of the crowd, the weaker cultivators were dripping with sweat. Once Li Qiye's group got there, there was almost nowhere to go.

However, the old servant took charge and led the way. The crowd was somehow pushed away and made a path for the group. They themselves had no idea what happened.

Thus, the group had a great position on top of the peak. Of course, his action wasn't that imperious.

A few famous clans directly pushed people out of the way. Once they got to the top, they forced the early-comers to give up the good spots.

Alas, due to their power, the slighted victims didn't dare to do anything.

Ahead, a young lord led a group forward. He had scorching flames around his body, making it uncomfortable for those near him.

The experts from his clan in front also did the same, resulting in sizzling noises in the air. They even melted the rocks and stones beneath, intimidating the crowd in the process. Just like that, this group easily got a great position.

"The Tuhuo…." Others knew who they were right away. [1]

They were considered a powerful clan in Black Wood Cliff. Some believed that they were at the next tier below the Biandu.

"Does that young lord want to be the heavenly genius too?" One expert murmured.

"It's not his turn." Another snorted: "In our region, it has to be Three Slashes." [2]

"Can't argue with that." His friends nodded.

The reason why the young lord of the Biandu had the title of Three Slashes was due to a rumor - no one could withstand more than three moves of his.

"Don't forget about the Wild Child of the East. That's also a top genius who had fought Three Slashes before." Someone who has been to the eight kingdoms said.

Another from Righteous Sect interjected: "There's also the supreme Righteous Scion too. He beat the sect master at such a young age, he has to be the heavenly genius."

"Our holy ground has plenty of geniuses too. Let's not bring up the mysterious Sacred Mountain, Duality Academy alone has numerous, especially their First Sister, Dugu Lan." A youth from Buddha Emperor Plateau couldn't help butting in.

After all, being chosen by the Grand Seer was a great honor. Everyone wanted a member of their sect to be appointed.

"Well, there's a new talent recently named Li Qiye. He defeated Li Xiangquan and others from the academy, his potential is immense." Another expert brought this up.

All in all, people had a great time talking about this topic.

"Dang, they have no idea what's going on." Li Qiye didn't care about these conversations but Yang Ling listened to all of them.

She thought that their information was limited to the period when Li Qiye defeated Li Xiangquan and Zhang Yunzhi.

"This place is too far from Buddha Emperor Plateau and even farther than Righteous Sect. It takes a long time for people to come here, hence the lack of on-time intelligence." The old servant replied.

He personally drove the carriage so the group traveled at an unbelievable speed, unlike other cultivators.

"Aren't there dao portals here?" Yang Ling asked.

Traveling across territories required an immense amount of time. Dao portals served as a shortcut.

"Yes, Black Wood Cliff has two dao portals." The old man nodded: "One at the Biandu and the other at the military camp. The latter is reserved for Vajra's officials and soldiers. As for the Biandu, that portal is rarely activated."

"Why is that?" Yang Ling asked: "A lot of cultivators from all over the south want to visit Black Wood in order to see Black Tides, the same with merchants. Opening the portal all the time should be a good source of income for the Biandu."

Sects in possession of portals would usually charge exorbitant fees for usage. For example, the Biandu could absolutely take advantage of this due to their monopoly. That's why most didn't understand why they refused to take advantage of this.

The old man smiled and didn't answer.

"Separation from the king is an advantage." Li Qiye casually responded instead.

"Ah, they want to keep their dominion over Black Wood." Yang Ling was smart enough to understand right away.

The Biandu purposely kept a distance from the core of the holy ground. Other great powers at the plateau wouldn't be able to effectively travel here.

"The young lord of the Biandu is coming!" People at the base shouted.

Everyone looked down below after hearing this.

"Seems like he's out of his cultivation session. His grand dao is probably finished." One spectator said.

"Is he picking the path of the dao lord?" An expert became curious and stretched his neck to look down.

The base was filled with people now but they still made way. The Biandu was too influential here, perhaps to the point of having absolute authority.

The locals might not know about Vajra Dynasty or even Sacred Mountain. However, they knew of the Biandu.

Back at the holy ground, some powers here didn't give a damn about Vajra. They only served as the representative.

Here in Black Wood Cliff, everyone needed to give the Biandu face. To oppose them meant risking a sect massacre.

"The future ruler of Black Wood Cliff." One fan said with admiration while looking down.

1. Tuhuo means fire spitter.

2. Three Slashes used to be Biandu Sandao. There's new context so I'll translate this title