Actually, Si Yan arrived quite late. By the time he reached the gates, a large crowd had already gathered.
The City Lord’s estate covered a vast area in the heart of Yongle City, enclosed by walls over ten meters high. Inside, the number of pavilions and structures was beyond counting. It seemed the City Lord had used his various industries to expand his influence significantly over the years.
Si Yan had heard some rumors that the City Lord of Yongle, who controlled several city-states in the Phantom Sea, was attempting to contact the high-ranking officials of the Kingdom of Tiansheng. He apparently wanted to pledge allegiance to the kingdom and use its power to establish an independent nation in the Phantom Sea, crowning himself king.
Because of this, most of the people attending this Treasure Appraisal Convention were from outside sects. After all, most sects had received word of the Meteoric Iron phenomenon three months ago. They all came with the hope of finding treasures to forge weapons.
However, the cultivators attending today were mostly from small to medium-sized sects or were merely hall masters from larger ones. The truly great sect leaders were figures of immense status; many had been lords of their own domains long before the Kingdom of Tiansheng was even founded, protecting millions of commoners. They would never lower themselves to attend a so-called Treasure Appraisal Convention at the invitation of a mere City Lord of Yongle.
After Si Yan asked the guards to announce his arrival, a soldier soon arrived before City Lord Lu.
Hearing that Si Yan of the Destiny Pavilion had come to visit, City Lord Lu couldn’t help but sneer. “I didn’t invite him, yet he showed up on his own. Who does he think he is?”
Back when his father was alive, he highly respected the master of the Destiny Pavilion because Si Yan had saved his life. Every year, his father would send a large amount of wealth and resources to Si Yan as gifts. However, City Lord Lu felt that since so many years had passed and his old man had visited and paid tribute every year until the day he died, the debt of gratitude should have been repaid.
Furthermore, after City Lord Lu began his own cultivation and achieved some success, he looked down on Si Yan even more. He felt that the Destiny Pavilion, with only two or three disciples, had the audacity to call itself a sect—it was laughable. Among the experts he currently knew, which one didn’t have hundreds or thousands of disciples?
Now that Si Yan knew about the Meteoric Iron, he had actually come knocking. Did he really think he could get his hands on the treasures from the Treasure Appraisal Convention?
Despite his internal disdain, City Lord Lu said, “Since he’s here, invite him in. He is, after all, an old friend of my father. Let him in and lead him to the head table to find me.”
The soldier took the order and immediately went to find Si Yan.
Meanwhile, City Lord Lu walked out of his residence and arrived at the high platform of the Treasure Appraisal Convention. Many people were already seated at the banquet, waiting for their host.
At the head table, besides the sect representatives, there were several young men and women. These individuals were none other than Nan Tianxing, Li Yuxia, and their group.
Even so, both City Lord Lu and the other sect members were incredibly polite to them. This was not only because an outer-sect representative of the Tianjian Sect was present, but also because Nan Tianxing and his companions held statuses in the Kingdom of Tiansheng that no one dared to ignore.
At the head of the group was Nan Tianxing, whose father was the current Grand Marshal, a man of extremely high standing. Consequently, everyone crowded around him, constantly offering toasts. Even City Lord Lu showered him with praise after arriving, calling him a talented young man.
Naturally, although Su Tao’er was sitting among them, no one revealed her identity. If people knew the daughter of the current Grand Preceptor—the Emperor’s close friend and fellow cultivator—was here, it would likely cause massive trouble. Nan Tianxing and the others were certainly not that reckless.
When the crowd came to toast Nan Tianxing, he acted with great bravado and drained every cup. His gaze remained fixed on Su Tao’er, desperately hoping to see the spark of affection he craved in the young girl’s eyes. However, for a long time, Su Tao’er just sat there, looking preoccupied.
Cheng Yilin patted the back of her head and lectured, “Stop thinking about it. There’s no way he’d dare show up…”
Before she could finish her sentence, a familiar figure walked through the banquet.
“City Lord, Pavilion Master Si has arrived,” the attendant announced.
Seeing him arrive, Su Tao’er suddenly beamed with joy. She stood up, wanting to run over, but Si Yan made a “shh” gesture, signaling for her not to be noisy. Only then did she sit back down with a pout.
Cheng Yilin’s teeth itched with irritation. She gripped her longsword, struggling to suppress the urge to strike. ‘That scoundrel actually dares to show his face…’
When City Lord Lu saw Si Yan, his voice was muffled and cold. He barely looked at him directly, speaking with the tone of a superior. “Although I didn’t invite you, since you are here, Pavilion Master Si, please take a seat. You may join my Treasure Appraisal Convention today.”
“Fine. I’m just here to take a look at the treasure. If it’s any good, I hope City Lord Lu will name a price. I’ll take it back to forge a sword for my beloved disciple.”
Si Yan took his seat on his own, seemingly ignoring everyone else present. He sat upright with an air of nonchalance. Although he looked young, he acted like a seasoned veteran, appearing quite arrogant.
It was a habit of his; after all, he was used to being lazy and had once been a being who looked down upon an entire realm. How could he possibly care about the people present? When he sat down, he was blunt, making it clear he wanted the Meteoric Iron. This caused not only City Lord Lu but also all the sect leaders present to look at him with unfriendly expressions.
At that moment, Nan Tianxing stood up and smiled. “Oh, if it isn’t Pavilion Master Si. You actually came to this Treasure Appraisal Convention as well.”
City Lord Lu paused and asked, “Young Master Nan, you know Pavilion Master Si?”
City Lord Lu was clearly surprised. He had actually invited Si Yan inside because he wanted him to feel the atmosphere and see the external experts present, teaching him not to be so conceited and to realize his own insignificance. He had intended to embarrass Si Yan publicly from the start, but not only did Si Yan not care, even Nan Tianxing knew him. This made City Lord Lu feel startled, even wondering if he should re-evaluate Si Yan.
However, Nan Tianxing was incredibly clever. He naturally heard the mockery in City Lord Lu’s previous words, so he laughed loudly and said, “I wouldn’t say I ‘know’ this Pavilion Master Si. We just had a bit of a misunderstanding yesterday and exchanged a few words. But since he is your friend, City Lord Lu, I suppose we can consider it settled today.”
After hearing this, City Lord Lu’s heart eased. Once the crowd realized he had no real connection to Nan Tianxing, a representative of a sect under the Kingdom of Tiansheng’s jurisdiction immediately chimed in with a look of disdain.
“Heh, to dare argue with the son of our kingdom’s Grand Marshal… he must be tired of living.”