“I’m sure everyone here has heard about the hero of the west.”

“You mean Long Dong, the brother of the Azure Emperor? What does he have to do with any of this… It couldn’t be?”

“Yes, that’s right, may I present to you, Long Dong, the Golden Dragon of the west.”

‘Huh, I think my title is becoming longer…’

Zhang Dong didn’t flinch as he was being examined by everyone in this open-air meeting place. There was a gentle wind passing by that made the flowy robes that everyone else was wearing quite enchanting. He on the other hand remained in battle-ready robes that wouldn’t constrict his movements in any way.

“You are the honorable Golden Dragon?”

“Yes, that is true.”

“You must excuse us for such a welcome. If everyone knew about your arrival, then we would surely prepare a banquet…”

“Oh no that’s fine, things like that don’t really matter.”

Tao Guan the Heavenly Crane Sect Patriarch was giving him a bright smile that made him look like a gentle grandfather. In his mind however, there was probably chaos brewing and this Zhang Dong knew. This was quite the strange occurrence where a sect leader from a new up-and-coming powerhouse appeared before them without any preparation.

They were caught with their pants down and no one really knew how to react to all of this. Most of the elders were looking with spire and Sun Shen and Sun Shi that brought him over. Normally such a move would be discussed between all of the elders and the Moon Lily faction knew it. It was as if they were going behind everyone's backs and trying to force a decision to be made.

“With all due respect to the Golden Dragon but I don’t think he or even the Azure Emperor should be looking into our problems, Sun Shen what is the meaning of this?”

Leader Zhong from the Sun Lily faction burst out with anger while pointing his finger at the other old man. However, he didn’t take the bait and remained calm even when accused and scoffed at by some of the other faction leaders.

“I have only brought the Golden Dragon because he wished to present us with an offer that would be beneficial to us all.”

“You mean to your Moon Lily faction! Do you wish to become the next Patriarch!”

“ Leader Zhong, those are baseless accusations! Also, you don’t think that we don’t know of your own desire for that position!”

“That’s right, you think we don’t know what you are doing Zhong?”

“How dare you speak to the leader in such a way!”

This time Sun Shi was the one to start the shouting match. He was joined by the allies from other Lily factions while the opposition did the same. In a matter of seconds, the peaceful conversation turned into a shouting match between old men and women. Zhang Dong could only raise his brow at how badly this place was being run, the Patriarch truly didn’t seem to have much pull in this place. No one from his sect would dare to start something like this in his presence out of fear.

‘Having a good backing and personal power does really help but even when he is letting them speak those two seem angered…’

What he was more interested in was the two guardians that were behind the Patriarch. Sun Shen had informed him about the duo of experts; apparently, they had a peculiar story. First of all, they were twins just like the two others that came before them. They had a long-lasting history with the whole sect and were in a sense a weapon that only the Patriarch could use.

He didn’t get the full story but he could put it together by himself. Twins were always chosen for this position from the ten great factions. They would have to abandon their family and swear allegiance to the Patriarch instead. Those two would then be taught a peculiar martial art that could only be used by people of similar features.

With this technique, they could boost their power above a regular nascent soul master but on the flip side, they would be a bit weaker if they ever fought by themselves. It was some kind of dual cultivation method that blended the twins into a singular fighter. Zhang Dong could feel that their souls were quite attuned to each other, it wasn’t just their bodies. It was as if they had become one with each other, one being that could use two bodies.

‘If they can’t make a decision, then should I really go through with it or just wait…’

While the Lily factions continued to fight with each other he listened in and continued to feel them out. While he wanted to use this sect to help him take on the Phoenix Emerald Empire it wasn’t something that he couldn’t live without. Now that he made the trip here and set a teleportation spot it wouldn’t be hard to return. Just like with the demonic island he could just set up a teleportation gate for his people and move in without asking anyone. Bringing a forward force over with this replica medallion was also an option.

There was a lot of chaotic energy among these people. Each group was looking out for themselves and unwilling to give up on any of their current power. A large part of they still considered waiting for a good strategy but he knew that they would not be able to push back against the enemy. The only thing they would be able to do was to buy some time for Zhang Dong to get stronger.

Perhaps if he was a less compassionate person then this would have been a good plan. While he farmed the northern water empire the east side of the empire would probably last out for a few years. Even though the Emerald Phoenix Empire was strong they would probably lose a percentage of their forces and use up some treasures to get through the defensive array that was in this area.

He could even lay a trap and wait for his enemies to celebrate. When they were at their highest point and convinced of their power he could bring them down a peg. Within all those years he would have probably been able to bring forth more nascent soul masters and perhaps even defeat the other emperor. Then equipped with a new Dao he would have a better chance at victory than before.

‘That could be the best option but a lot of these people will die and lose their homes in the process, at this point they can still be saved…’

“Silence!”

Finally, after a long tiresome back and forth the two guardians stepped forward. Their aura burst through the entire area and smacked everyone in the face. Even the faction leaders had to turn their heads away for a moment as it was too much for them. Only two people were able not to look away, which were the sect Patriarch and Zhang Dong.

This was noticed by the people gathered here and put them in a bad position. First of all, it showed that the name Golden Dragon wasn’t boisterous. Second, they all knew that only masters of a certain level could just shrug off the twin's suppressive Qi. Thirdly, this put them in a bind as now they were rude in front of a powerful master that could very well be on the level of the Azure Emperor but without confirming this claim further they wouldn’t be convinced yet.

“Please forgive my people, they are under a lot of stress lately, you are probably aware of the situation at our borders.”

“Yes I am but I don’t think that you are taking it as seriously as you should.”

He could see Zhong gritting his teeth after looking up. There were probably various reasons that he would be against this type of meeting. One of the larger ones was probably because it made his sect look weak. Inviting an outsider like this without properly discussing everything was also something that went against sect rules. It was as if his faction wasn’t taken seriously in this decision that Sun Shen had made.

The others that were against engaging with the other empire were probably of the same mind. If it weren’t for Zhang Dong’s high cultivation level he would have probably been removed from this meeting place already. Only thanks to the way that he presented himself and his current fame could he stand tall and on the same level as the other Patriarch.

There was a limit to what he could do however if he was rude and pushed too much even these people here would attack him. They still didn’t know his full capabilities and only if he showed them what he was made of would they actually listen. Otherwise, he would need to return later with an army which they could not deny before forcing an agreement.

“I wish to not be rude to the Emperor's Brother but these are our sect's problems. The Azure Emperor has already refused his aid or did the honorable Golden Dragon arrive at the behest of the Emperor to offer aid?”

“No, my brother has nothing to do with it.”

Why the Patriarch didn’t use any rude words he did imply the standing of the Azure Emperor to be above Zhang Dong’s. It somewhat carried an implication that they wouldn’t move for someone like him that had not yet been tested by them. Rumors could only carry him this far without any proper information; they couldn’t take him as seriously as the Azure Dragon.

“But my brother isn’t all-knowing, he does not know the gravity of this situation and it seems that neither do you, the Emerald Phoenix Emperor is an expert not below me or my brother and you won’t be able to stop their forces, at least not by yourself…”

“Honorable Golden Dragon with all due respect, our sect has survived for thousands of years…”

“Will that mean anything when the Emerald Phoenix Empire arrives at your doorstep and crushes your people? Do you really think that these feeble defenses that you have will last you more than a few years? What after that, will you run with tails between your legs to my brother or me to save you?”

“Y…you…”

The Patriarch was stunned by the way Zhang Dong was speaking but he needed to get a point across. This was that the longer they kept to themselves and didn’t do anything the faster they would come to ruin. The only way out would be sending the bulk of their forces out to the warning zones because as it was now, their numbers and experts would be slowly diminished until the enemy arrived at their main sect grounds. Before that could happen and before more people died for nothing he needed to make this group of old farts move.