The firm reply of the three caused He Caiyi to be slightly stunned. She had tried to create some cracks between them and declare her presence, but their reply caused her to feel somewhat uncomfortable. However, she did not harp on the issue. With a smile, she showed them to their seats.
The moment Xiang Shaoyun stepped into the room, he sensed several hostile gazes directed his way. He looked at the owners of those gazes, and his face turned gloomy.
Those gazes were naturally from his enemies. In fact, the grudge between him and them was rather big. One of them was his mortal enemy, Di Lin, who had surprisingly become a peak Great Saint. From his aura, he was clearly preparing to enter the pseudo-God Realm. It had only been a few years, yet he had grown to such a level, causing Xiang Shaoyun to be in disbelief.
Additionally, Zi Xinghe from the Guardians Guild was also present. He had also grown considerably, and he was emanating a thick aura as he openly glared at Xiang Shaoyun. It was as though the only thing he wanted was to have Xiang Shaoyun dead. The third hostile gaze came from someone Xiang Shaoyun had never seen before. That person had an unassuming appearance, but his viper-like eyes swept through Xiang Shaoyun's body as though he was a predator studying his prey.
Apart from the three, the rest of the people in the room were also Great Saints at the minimum. Every one of them had a young face. These were the heavenly geniuses who had risen in fame within the last 100 years.
Among them, several emanated vague auras that gave even Xiang Shaoyun a sense of pressure. Xiang Shaoyun held his temper in. He Changrui led him to the seat at the very front of the room.
Just as Xiang Shaoyun was about to take the seat, Zi Xinghe said, "First prince, what is the meaning of this? Do you think he's worthy of the first seat of the first row?"
Zi Xinghe had an extraordinary background. He even had a big shot from the Guardians Guild as his backer, which gave him the qualification to converse with He Changrui as equals.
"Why do you say so, Brother Zi?" asked He Changrui as he narrowed his eyes.
"Although the seating arrangements are not ranked, I disagree with him taking the first seat," said Zi Xinghe.
His words successfully provoked the pride of the other arrogant geniuses present. Di Lin said, "That's right. He's not the proper person to take the first seat."
Some other people also voiced their opinions. Some were people who didn't know Xiang Shaoyun well while some had never liked Xiang Shaoyun and were gladly taking this chance to show him his place.
Just as He Changrui was about to explain his choice, Xiang Shaoyun sat down and indifferently said, "Anyone who is unhappy is free to challenge me."
He sounded calm, but his voice was sonorous and strong, causing the hearts of all who heard it tremble. That calmed many of them considerably. After all, they knew how strong he was. If they truly offended him too much, he might go on a rampage against them.
"Xiang Shaoyun, don't get too arrogant!" berated Zi Xinghe with a frown.
"Where did this dog come from? Do you want me to snap your neck right here?" said Liu Qingchen.
Among the younger generation, Liu Qingchen was rather well-known. Thus, his act of defending Xiang Shaoyun raised many eyebrows.
"Enough. Everyone, please settle down for this prince's sake. I invited everyone here today to talk about an alliance. There is no need to ruin the big picture just for some personal grievances," said He Changrui, traces of anger in his voice.
As the first prince of the Immortal Dynasty, he had an extremely high level of draconic aura. After the Heaven Battling Ranking Competition, he would probably ascend the throne because the Immortal Emperor had entered seclusion to attempt a breakthrough into the Rebirth Realm. Regardless of the result, a new emperor was required. And He Changrui was the number one heir to the throne.
He was a late-stage Great Saint, but not even a peak pseudo-God would be his match. Thus, everyone present needed to show him some respect. Seeing that He Changrui was angered, even Zi Xinghe shut his mouth. Inwardly, however, he was still hatching a scheme.
After dealing with the hostility in the room, He Changrui had spirit fruits and spring water served to the guests. Additionally, beautiful courtesans entered and performed by singing and dancing to the group, easing the atmosphere in the room.
When the show was over, He Changrui finally started the discussion, "I invited everyone here today in the hope of forming an alliance in the ancient battlefield. Our goal is to first deal with the aliens. It won't be late for us to compete among ourselves after killing all the aliens. If we act separately, I'm afraid few of us will be a match for those aliens."
"There are aliens in the ancient battlefield? What's going on?" asked someone in confusion.
"I thought all the aliens had long been killed?" asked someone else.
"Listen to me," He Changrui placated them and proceeded to tell them what he knew.
It turned out that there were aliens in the ancient battlefield. Those were the aliens the ancient humans had imprisoned in the battlefield after their victory in the ancient war. The aliens were allowed to preserve some of their strength so that they could be used to temper the future generation of humans and remind them of the looming threat of the aliens.
Thus, one of the missions for all the participants of the competition was to kill the aliens in the battlefield. Of course, apart from the aliens, there were also some other non-human races in the battlefield. The ancient battlefield hid a lot of ancient treasures, including the inheritances of Gods. Those treasures and inheritances were things any cultivator would yearn for.
One ought to know that very few cultivators could reach the Great Saint and the pseudo-God Realms. Entering the Rebirth Realm was even harder. To complete that final step, one needed to first experience death before one could forge a true god body. Only about three out of ten pseudo-Gods would succeed, with the other seven perishing during their attempt. Thus, the treasures and inheritances in the ancient battlefield were invaluable.
He Changrui planned to form an alliance to deal with the aliens and non-human races, placing them in the best position before competing among themselves. Many of them found the proposal agreeable and nodded to express their willingness to join. Only a few remained silent.
"Young Master Xiang, what do you think?" asked He Changrui. He obviously placed more importance on Xiang Shaoyun.
Before Xiang Shaoyun could say anything, Zi Xinghe said, "First prince, since you want him to join you, I'm out."
"I withdraw as well," said Di Lin.
A few other people also announced that they were withdrawing. Clearly, they were forcing He Changrui to make a stand. This was their way of protesting Xiang Shaoyun's presence.