Loyal Heart Roaming the Skies

Everyone turned their heads to the sound and saw a tall young man with a fierce look in his eyes. It was clear that he was not someone to be trifled with. He was glaring at a timid young boy.

With just one glance, everyone understood why the tall young man was provoking. It was because he only had the cultivation level of the eighth realm, the Circulating Realm!

Everyone present had at least the cultivation level of the Transcendent Realm. They either came from prestigious families or had fought fiercely to earn their spot in the Heavenly Palace City. This young boy not only had low cultivation, but also lacked any influential background. Moreover, he appeared timid and lacked any sense of presence, which made people dislike him.

"The person asking the question is Gao Jinghai, a member of the Gao Clan," explained Zhong Xuan Sheng to Jiang Wang. "As for the person with the surname Zhang, I have no idea."

Jiang Wang looked at the young man named Gao Jinghai and could tell that he must have some remarkable strength to be remembered by Zhong Xuan Sheng.

Beside Gao Jinghai was a silent young man, indicating that the Gao Clan had two spots for exploration in the Heavenly Palace Secret Realm. This showed that the Gao Clan was on par with the Zhong Xuan Clan.

As one of the top prestigious families in the Qi Kingdom, the Zhong Xuan Clan had three spots for exploration. As one of the core members of the clan's next generation, Zhong Xuan Sheng's opinion was crucial in forming the exploration team. That's why they were able to allocate a spot for Jiang Wang.

The other person besides Jiang Wang was a nameless warrior who had been by his side since childhood. He was known as the Fourteenth Warrior.

The warrior was fully armored, with his face hidden behind a helmet. He stood silently behind Zhong Xuan Sheng, not uttering a word. However, the fact that he could stand behind Zhong Xuan Sheng showed the trust Zhong Xuan Sheng had in him.

Noble descendants would not want to be associated with nameless individuals, and those who had worked hard to earn their spot would be resentful of someone who had obtained it easily.

The young boy lowered his head and stammered, "I am, I am... Zhang from the Fengxian Zhang Clan."

"What? Who are you? Which Zhang Clan?" Gao Jinghai deliberately insulted, "You can't even speak clearly, and yet you think you have the qualifications to enter the Heavenly Palace Secret Realm? Did you buy your spot with money?"

"No!" The young boy named Zhang panicked and raised his head, revealing a young and inexperienced face. "I am Zhang Yong."

"...This spot was passed down by my ancestors."

Even in his anger, he did not dare to confront Gao Jinghai head-on.

At that moment, a voice resounded from outside.

"Bound by life and death, rich and noble, a nameless general who sacrifices himself for the country!"

"The world praises the Li Clan of Shimen, who else knows about the Fengxian Zhang Clan?"

Everyone was speechless.

Gao Jinghai's expression changed drastically!

Because everyone knew that the rise of the Gao Clan was due to the favoritism of the beautiful and charming Jing Consort.

Both were "dead," one "bound by life and death" on the bed, the other died on the battlefield.

But the result was that the former enjoyed wealth and longevity, while the latter's fame gradually faded.

This blatant irony clearly insulted the Gao Clan's reputation.

Not only Gao Jinghai himself, but also the Gao Clan elders who accompanied him were furious. They were about to see who dared to speak so arrogantly, and bloodshed seemed inevitable.

With the voice, three people walked into the high walls.

There were only three people, but they exuded a grand and imposing aura.

The one on the far left was a scholar dressed in Confucian robes. As he walked, he said, "When the Jiang Clan lost their country, the imperial descendants went into exile. Then the Li Clan and the Zhang Clan joined forces to support Jiang Wujiu in reclaiming the country. First, the Zhang Clan ancestor fought nine battles and returned nine times, dying from exhaustion. Then the Li Clan ancestor shot ten arrows, destroying the rebel city and defeating the rebels. Only then was Jiang Wujiu able to restore the country!

Now, the heroes have turned to dust, and the prestigious families have declined. Everyone praises the Li Clan of Shimen for producing outstanding heroes, but who remembers the Fengxian Zhang Clan that protected Jiang Wujiu?"

This person was Xu Xiangqian, whom Jiang Wang had met in the You Kingdom. It was unexpected to meet him again here.

Everyone fell silent.

The decline of prestigious families and the past glories of heroes had been blown away by the wind and rain.

With the reputation of the Fengxian Zhang Clan back then, they should have occupied more than just one spot in the Heavenly Palace Secret Realm. After years of inheritance, they were left with only one spot.

Moreover, the young boy who came alone with only the cultivation level of the Circulating Realm and without any elder by his side showed the decline of the Zhang Clan.

But could the descendants of heroes be insulted without reason?

The scene fell silent, and only Zhang Yong's tears flowed down his face.

Gao Jinghai turned his attention to Xu Xiangqian and gritted his teeth, "Did you write this poem?"

At this moment, Zhong Xuan Sheng whispered to Jiang Wang, "This person should be an outsider invited by the Li Clan of Shimen. The person beside him is Li Longchuan, our second biggest competitor! Li Longchuan's uncle, Li Zhengshu, is also here. He is a renowned scholar from the Qingya Academy."

The Li Clan of Shimen truly deserved to be a prestigious family.

The Qingya Academy was one of the four recognized academies in the world.

With the left hand controlling the Qi Clan and the right hand controlling the academies, it was no wonder that the arrogant Gao Clan treated a stranger like Xu Xiangqian with caution.Unexpectedly, Xu Xiangqian became angry, "I, Xu Xiangqian, am proud of my poetic talent and would never plagiarize! This poem was inspired by my mentor. It was just too fitting for the occasion, I couldn't help but recite it."

"Who is your mentor?" Gao Jing's elder asked, his anger flaring, implying a demand for an explanation.

Li Zhengshu was a tall and handsome middle-aged man. Although his hair was slightly frosted, he was extremely charming.

Hearing this question, he chuckled softly, "Xiangqian is the disciple of my close friend, Mo Ya, who came to the Secret Realm of the Heavenly Mansion and asked me to take care of him. I hope Brother Gao can be lenient."

He said he was asking for leniency, but he was clearly standing up for Xu Xiangqian by mentioning his close friendship and his role as a guardian.

And Mo Ya, the Great Scholar of Qingya Academy, was famous for his straightforwardness in dealing with grudges. It was not unusual for him to write poems to mock or even insult others. It would be strange if he didn't insult someone.

Gao Jing's elder's face turned from green to white, and in the end, he could only huff and say, "Since he is a junior, Brother Li should discipline him a bit!"

The poem that Xu Xiangqian recited was like a slap in the face to Jinghai Gao.

But they couldn't afford to offend the Li family of Shimen, let alone Qingya Academy. They had no choice but to swallow their anger.

However, just as the Jinghai Gao family decided to let it go, Xu Xiangqian had no intention of stopping.

"Speaking of being proud of my poetic talent, I also have some inspiration!" Xu Xiangqian cleared his throat, apparently about to compose a poem on the spot.

"What are you thinking about? What inspiration do you have?" Li Zhengshu patted Xu Xiangqian's shoulder with a smile.

Suppressing the poetic talent that Xu Xiangqian was about to unleash.

Although the Li family of Shimen was not afraid of Jinghai Gao, there was no need to offend them to death.

"Alright, alright, I don't have any." Xu Xiangqian, who was fearless, was most afraid of these pedantic scholars.

He was already a grown man, but they would still punish him by slapping his palms at the slightest disagreement. Where could he go to reason?

He couldn't win an argument anyway.

He hung his head in dejection, his eyes darting around, when suddenly his face lit up, "Hey! Brother Jiang!"

……

……

ps:

Reflections on History (Part Three)

— Mo Ya after drinking

Devoted to the death, the nameless general who sacrificed himself for the country!

Everyone praises Li of Shimen, but who knows of Zhang of Phoenix Fairy?

……

Note 1: From now on, all complete poems attributed to characters in the book are written by the author under a pseudonym.