Wang Bugui and company toured the mountain and took their time to enjoy the scenery as they walked slowly to the peak of Mount Tai. Due to the unique viewing angles and terrain, they really felt as if the mountain dwarfed other peaks. They could see the lands around the mountain clearly, and they instinctively stopped to feel its immense majestic aura.

“After walking for a while, I really feel that this mountain has an overwhelming aura. It’s no wonder that kings and emperors from the past would choose to pay their respects to the Heavens at this place. One could really feel on top of the world and all powerful here,” Wang Bugui could not help but marvel at the exquisite beauty of this place. If Mount Kunlun was a vast land of snow and boundless, then Mount Tai was majestic and overpowering.

Yu Wude and the other two nodded. After climbing up the highest peak of Mount Tai, all of them could feel lofty aspirations stirring within themselves, and they could even begin to sense another Realm. They had a sudden telepathic understanding and they either began to meditate, go through their moves or try to make sense of a new technique. All the other practitioners who passed by looked at them, and they had mixed feelings about Wang Bugui and his sworn brothers. Some of them thought that these four would be tough opponents, while others tried to guess their identities.

The fat youth who sat cross legged kept inscribing obscure and mysterious talismanic words, and one could sense an ancient and powerful aura emanating from him even from afar. Two of his companions at his side were practicing their moves. One of them made broad and sweeping strokes that were overwhelming and powerful, while the other moved lithely. His defensive and offensive moves were connected, varied and flowing.

The last person of the group was inscrutable. He sat opposite a puppet, and Nature’s aura congregated around and surrounded them. Aside from that, no one could see anything moving around them, and no one knew what kind of skill he was trying to master; there was nothing unique or any strange phenomenon that appeared. The practitioners viewed of him as the weakest of the group. He did not move even when rehearsing his moves, and he remained calm and still when trying to comprehend a new technique. Even the aura surrounding him did not enter his body.

They stopped to look at the four youths only for a little while before leaving. After all, the Gathering of Practitioners was still more important. There was a suspended piece of Pure Land above the peak of Mount Tai, and it was the gathering point for all practitioners attending the meet. Wang Bugui and company left their meditative state two hours later and grinned at each other before heading to the Pure Land which was encircled by a sea of clouds.

They flew together to the Pure Land and saw an unique, dream-like realm appear before them. Nine verdant divine peaks were suspended in the air, and eight of them surrounded the largest peak. Strange looking flora bloomed everywhere, and multi-colored aura mists circled in the air. The trees were ancient and extremely strong. There were even mysterious looking plants that looked as if they had been chiseled out from precious jade of different colors.

Many spiritual beasts prowled in the woods, and many divine birds circled in the air, occasionally giving out loud cries. Divine lights of many colors cut through the skies, and many practitioners kept appearing in their sight as they flew toward the main peak with artifacts in hand. Their long robes flowed in the wind and they enlarged their divine artifacts as they hurried over to the holy mountain.

This amazing scene made one feel as if one had been transported back to ancient historical times when various immortals gathered at a divine place, and many techniques were as eye-catching as the next. Wang Bugui and company followed the others. Wang himself stepped onto air and bounded up to the main peak.

Lyu Hao and Zhao Changge, on the other hand, stood on their weapons and traversed the skies alongside each other. Yu Wude lay in a semi-prone position on a mysterious looking map of a formation, as if he was a sleeping arhat. Moments later, they arrived at the chief peak. There was a flight of limestone steps, and a huge palace stood at each side of it. The steps itself led to a huge parade square.

“Haha, welcome to the Gathering of Practitioners, my fellow practitioners!”

A handsome man in white robes cupped his fists and came forward to welcome them just as they landed. There was a line of similarly dressed people behind him, and they greeted the practitioners as well. The man in white robes, who seemed to be in charge, spoke again. “I’m Lu Qianchen from the Sect of the Nine Heavens. May I know what sect you come from, my fellow practitioners? Forgive me for asking, but I have to report to my superiors about the attendance from the various sects.”

The four sworn brothers had a good first impression of Lu Qianchen. “I’m a recreational practitioner,” Wang Bugui spoke up first.

“Zhao Changge of the Dragon Spear Sect,” Zhao Changge replied as he returned the man’s greeting.

“I’m also a recreational practitioner, but I’m from the line of the Overpowering Halberd. My name is Lyu Hao,” Lyu Hao said, as he greeted the man in a similar fashion.

“I’m from the lineage of Gui Guzi, and I’m Yu Wude from the School of Diplomacy,” Yu Wude added, also returning the man’s greeting.

Lu Qianchen nodded and smiled as he heard them. “Not only do you possess great strength, Brother Wang, you’re also keeping a very low profile. Brother Zhao, since you’re from the Dragon Spear Sect, I believe your master must be Sage Huo Heng. Brother Lyu, the lineage of the Overpowering Halberd is extraordinary. It was created by Xiang Yu, the Warlord of Chu, and the demonic God of War, Lyu Bu, also originated from this line. As for you, Brother Yu, I didn’t expect you to be from the line of Gui Guzi. The art of diplomacy and negotiation of your family is really profound.”

The four of them smiled in return, and Wang Bugui started to pay extra attention to Lu Qianchen. He was no ordinary practitioner; he knew how much power Wang Bugui was concealing. The youth guessed that Lu must be a prodigy of the Sect of the Nine Heavens. The small group was then directed to head upward, and Wang Bugui and Lu Qianchen glanced at each other when the former passed by, as if trying to find out what skills the other had.

Both of them concealed their strengths well, however, and neither of them managed to discover anything much. They bid each other farewell, and his fellow male disciples crowded around him as they noticed that he was still gazing after Wang Bugui and company. “Senior, what’s the matter? Are these people very strong?” One of them asked.

Lu Qianchen frowned slightly as he replied, “They’re more than strong. I could sense that all of them are prodigies!”

“What?!” All of Lu Qianchen’s fellow disciples were shocked. “Are they really prodigies?” They thought. Prodigies were the strongest disciples of each sect, and aside from their great strength, they were normally aloof and haughty. As such, they would never travel in groups, except with their own sect members. How could those four people be prodigies? It was hard to believe that four of them would travel alongside each other.

“Impossible! Were you mistaken, senior?” Someone asked, still in disbelief.

Lu Qianchen shook his head and gave his analysis, “I believe you’ve heard of Sage Huo Heng from the Dragon Spear Sect as well. He never accepts more than three disciples at one time, but all of them are exceptional talents! As for the recreational practitioner, Lyu Heng, he’s from the line of the Overpowering Halberd, which only Xiang Yu and Lyu Bu managed to inherit in the past. I think I don’t have to elaborate about the reputation of the Warlord of Chu and the demonic God of War to you.”

“Moving on to that Yu Wude, who comes from the School of Diplomacy. It used to accept only two disciples at one time, and one of them would learn the art of ‘weaving’ while the other the art of ‘wefting’, and they would compete with each other. Eventually, the masters realized that combining both techniques would lead their disciples to become more powerful, and they ended up accepting only one student at a time since then. Any disciple from that school, however, will definitely end up as an exceptional talent.”

“Lastly, I have a feeling that Wang Bugui, who claims that he’s a recreational practitioner, is the most scary of them all. Perhaps you guys haven’t noticed that the other three defer to him. He leads them in whatever they do, be it dismounting or speaking, and the others take great notice of his actions. Don’t you think that someone who could cause three prodigies to treat him with such deference is really terrifying?”

Lu Qianchen’s analysis was mind blowing for the disciples of the Sect of the Nine Heavens. They had never expected that the person who they had paid the least attention to was also the one that their senior was most wary of; he had concealed his power far too well. “In that case, senior, did you manage to discover which sect he comes from? Also, who would win in a fight between him and yourself?” Someone asked.

“I couldn’t find out anything about his sect. Perhaps, only our Headmaster can. I only know that he was very good control of his qi, and he didn’t allow any of his unique aura to appear. It’s hard to say if I could beat him in a fight. After all, we fear the unknown the most. However, I believe that Junior Leng can defeat him; even the Headmaster says her talent is greater than his.”

Lu Qianchen said as he cupped his chin and thought. His analysis further elevated their evaluation of Wang Bugui. Their senior was one of the two prodigies of the Sect of the Nine Heavens, and even he was unsure about whether he could beat Wang in battle, and that only their top-ranking disciple could handle him. They shivered as they thought about the power of the exceptional woman.

Wang Bugui and his sworn brothers encountered many cultivation sects on their way up. They formed their own groups, and there were a few prodigies among them. There was a swordsman from Shushan that was carrying a holy sword, and the aura that he projected caused the breathing of disciples from other sects to become labored.

A handsome man holding a white foldable fan stood in the group to the left of the swordsman. He looked extremely carefree and distinguished, and he dispersed the aura projected by the swordsman with a gentle wave of his fan. It released the pressure on his sect and he continued to chat casually with his fellow disciples.

There was another sect whose members used only sabers. The youth that led them was even bigger in size than Lyu Hao, and he carried a huge bloody saber on his back. The aura it gave off caused many cracks to appear in the ground surrounding him.

There were another two sects whose members stood facing and smiling at each other. One of them was an order that focused on external skills, while the other a Taoist sect. The prodigies from both sects shook hands and tried to test each other’s skill secretly. The external skill expert directed his qi into the Taoist’s body, but it was defused by the latter’s pure Yang energy. Their fellow disciples retreated instinctively as they competed.

There were a few other prodigies who did not wish to reveal themselves and chose to hone their power for the actual competition. This was a Golden Age of prodigies, and there were talents in each sect that came once in every few centuries and millennia.

There were many talents and prodigies in this era. They would unleash their skills during the Gathering, and compete to obtain the Mother of All Things!