Sovereign of the Three Realms

The Farmer God Market resumed its hustle and bustle in the early morning of the next day. Countless busybodies knew Taiyuan Lodge’ was having their reopening ceremony that day. Everyone was curious as to what would happen this time. Would there be a dramatic wager like last time? They all felt it was over for Taiyuan Tower. Even the Wei father and son had been captured and their superior, the Coiling Dragon Clan, was at their wit’s end. Whether the whole of the Veluriyam Capital approved or not, they had to acknowledge that House Wei and Taiyuan Tower were done for. Therefore, they also felt that it was highly unlikely that Taiyuan Lodge’s opening day would involve any interesting drama this time. Yet, it was especially crowded at Farmer God Market. Everybody wanted to witness how grandiose the triumphant Majestic Clan would act in their moment of victory.

In truth, at least three quarters of Veluriyam Capital’s population felt indignant at the Majestic Clan’s unjust behaviour. The clan’s actions had, after all, crossed Veluriyam Capital’s bottom line. It was the Majestic Clan who’d initially provoked and made a great fuss about Taiyuan Tower. They had only themselves to blame for their eventual loss. But they were not resigned to their loss and had come back with a full-court press. Who didn’t know that the Moon Monarch, the orchestrator of this incident, was the Majestic clan lord’s sworn brother? Such a nefarious collusion couldn’t escape the eyes of the conscientious, who subsequently revealed their plot to the whole of Veluriyam Capital. This kind of behaviour was rather taboo.

But unfortunately, most of the discontent souls held no significant sway in such matters and could only feel upset at heart. The world of the martial dao had always been a place where the strong made the rules. Sympathy from the weak did little to change anything. Taiyuan Lodge’s new location was even more famous. It was almost nudged the most central area of Farmer God Market. Bright lanterns and banners adorned the splendidly decorated store. The valuable property extended thousands of meters to reach the door of the closed Taiyuan Tower. The newly crafted signboard above the main door appeared even more lavish and imposing than before, lending the storefront the majesty and spirit of a conqueror. This attitude was as if they’d already considered themselves to be the number one pill shop in Veluriyam Capital.

No one below eighth rank aristocratic families had been qualified to be invited to the ceremony and could only observe from the street. The only ones invited were the most influential people of Veluriyam Capital. Many of these people felt a degree of honor in receiving the invitation because the Taiyuan Lodge’s grandeur this time seened unprecedented. Not only would the Majestic Clan Lord be present, but its allied clan lords would also be appearing in person. It was to be a grand ceremony attended by several clan lords, something that hadn’t happened during its previous opening. And thus, all the invited parties valued this opportunity.

“Screw this tripe! I don’t give a rat’s arse about an opening!” Despite the hullaboo, a certain pill king threw his invitation on the ground and spat on it before stomping on it a few more times. Only after venting his anger in this manner did he smile oddly and disappear into the crowd. Pill King Lu Feng had had no choice but walk about in disguise. He’d been entirely infuriated lately. As Jiang Chen’s disciple, he couldn’t help but feel enraged at the thought of Taiyuan Tower’s recent fate. But his foundation in Veluriyam Capital was mediocre at best. It wasn’t quite possible for him to do anything for Taiyuan Tower.

He also knew that this was a confrontation between great emperors. He might have some repute in Farmer God Market, but he was not even worthy of being cannon fodder in conflicts of such a level. Therefore, he could only trash the invitation to vent his frustration and satisfy himself a bit. Although he knew his actions wouldn’t hurt Taiyuan Lodge in the slightest, it still felt satisfying to vent some of his ill will. He would rather observe the ceremony from the crowd than put on airs to participate in such a charade.

Pill King Lu Feng was a man who valued tradition and moral integrity, despite his eccentric and somewhat comical behaviour. He’d firmly decided not to step one foot into the enemy’s doors now that he’d inherited the Deviant Pill Faction’s teachings. The invitation that Pill King Lu Feng had discarded into the street was stepped upon by many a foot. Coincidentally, it stuck to the shoe of one of the patrons who walked along. This passerby, it turned out, was headed for Taiyuan Lodge, and soon walked through its doors.

“Heh heh, congratulations, Clan Lord! Taiyuan Lodge’s opening is truly fulfilling the hopes of the masses and destined to be one of the grandest occasions in Veluriyam Capital. It’ll also serve to bolster the spirit of the entire alchemy world! This is truly worth of celebration!” An obvious bootlicker, a waterfall of words couldn’t disguise the oozing flattery.

Those standing outside without an invitation hissed and booed at the sight. They could no longer stand to listen to such goosebump-inducing, shameless toadiness. It was public knowledge that the speaker used to be from an eighth rank aristocratic family under the Coiling Dragon Clan. It was only in the recent times that they’d switched allegiances and entered the Majestic Clan’s protection.

The head of this eight rank aristocratic family wasn’t actually invited to the ceremony, but that had done little to hamper his urge to offer congratulations. Furthermore, he had brought valuable gifts. “Clan Lord, this is an earth rank spirit herb which our humble house obtained recently. Much like making an offering to Buddha with borrowed flowers, I hope to present it to Taiyuan Lodge instead of keeping it for personal use, hopefully contributing what little I can to its grandeur!”

The Majestic Clan Lord was busy receiving the numerous guests that had arrived. He wasn’t too keen on entertaining this uninvited guest that hadn’t been part of his camp to begin with. However, his expression softened somewhat after seeing the earth rank spirit herb. He gestured for his subordinates to receive the gift.

The head of this eighth rank aristocratic family stepped forward delightfully after seeing that his gift had been accepted. But, he was stopped at the door, “Where’s your invitation?”

The head of that eighth rank aristocratic family was startled, but replied with a smile, “This humble one came to congratulate the clan lord with great sincerity.” He even shot a glance at the earth rank spirit herb as he explained, implying that he shouldn’t need an invitation card since the gift had already been accepted.

“Please stand to one side if you don’t have an invitation. Don’t bump into the honored guests!” The guard discourteously pushed the speaker out. The Majestic Clan Lord flashed a cold smile, but did nothing to intervene. Now you want to express your allegiance? Too late!

“Clan Lord, noble Clan Lord, please speak a few words for me!” The head of the eighth rank aristocratic family called out.

The Majestic Clan Lord turned a deaf ear and continued to chat merrily with the other clan lords. At that moment, a guard exclaimed, “What’s that under your foot?”

“Eh? It looks like an invitation.”

“Bastard, you dare step on our invitation?!”

“Eh, there are so many footprints and even phlegm! You dog-spawn, are you trying to humiliate our Majestic Clan?!”

“This bastard must’ve been sent by a rival faction! Beat him to an inch of his life!” The guards crowded around him and pulled the man into the corner before giving him a wild beating.

Thus, a completely unexpected catastrophe descended onto the head of the eighth rank aristocratic house lord. He didn’t even know what had happened before countless blows had already started to rain down on him. He could only beg for mercy as he was beaten to the point of vomiting bile. These guards were likely even be weaker than him, but he daren’t retaliate, lest he lose his life within minutes.

“Tsk tsk, you reap what you sow!”

“Exactly, a fate worthy of a traitor! You’re so easily swayed, you’re no different from grass growing on the fence. Keep on beating! It’s best that we beat such a despicable person to death!”

“The Majestic Clan is simply too narrow-minded! Other potential defectors will definitely think twice if they beat all their defectors like this.”

“Tsk, what do you know? Those with true intentions to defect will negotiate in private. Why would they only come at such a time? This fencesitter has been hesitant all along and now it’s too late for him to defect!” The nearby audience wasn’t sympathetic towards this clan lord. All of them felt that he deserved the beating.

Taiyuan Tower was becoming increasingly lively with the arrival of even more guests. The Majestic Clan was indeed formidable. With the clan lord personally overseeing the reception, all of the invited dignitaries were obligated to attend, and were forced to attend in person. Most of the arrivals were the representatives of various powers. No one was willing to offend the Majestic Clan at such an occasion and leave a bad impression on the clan lord. It seemed that the clan’s grandeur within Veluriyam Capital had reached an unprecedented level.

“Sigh, could it be that the position of foremost clan of the Veluriyam Capital is about to change?”

“It appears that the Coiling Dragon Clan no longer has the power to retaliate. How sad!”

“What are you sighing about? The next wave will always push the one ahead of it. So it’s no surprise that the new will replace the old eventually. It wouldn’t be surprising for the Coiling Dragon Clan to be eliminated if they can’t keep up with the circumstances.”

“What do you mean by ‘can’t keep up with the circumstances’? The Coiling Dragon Clan is the model clan of our Veluriyam Capital. Do you see them bullying people? Do you see them monopolizing markets?”

“That’s true. I feel that only the Coiling Dragon Clan is worthy of being the foremost clan. I won’t be satisfied if the position changes hands.”

“I feel the same, but what can we do? Now that the Majestic Clan’s influence has been established, it’s only a matter of time before it replaces the Coiling Dragon Clan.”

“Sigh, I was hoping for a pleasant surprise with the appearance of Taiyuan Tower. But it proved quite short-lived in the end. How unfortunate.” Ever increasing discussions and debates were taking place as the crowd in the vicinity grew larger. But none of these affected Taiyuan Lodge in the least. With their imposing signboard, the splendid storefront along with the powerful clan at its back, this was definitely one of Veluriyam Capital’s most extravagant events in recent years!