On the mountainside of this flattened, colossal peak sits the heart of the Xin Xia Federation’s power: the Xin Xia Royal Court.

On the mountain below the Royal Court are carved the miniatures of thirty Heroic Cities, including Kyoto.

Though called miniatures, each Heroic City is carved into the nearly five-thousand-meter-high mountainside, vividly showcasing the city’s unique character.

Within each Heroic City’s carving are inlaid exactly twenty-nine springheads of the Celestial Waterfall Spirit Spring.

These springheads flow down from the miniatures of the Heroic Cities, converging as they near the base of the peak.

This symbolizes that when any single Heroic City faces a crisis, the other twenty-nine will extend their aid to overcome the hardship together.

As the twenty-nine springheads from each Heroic City ultimately merge into a single river, the thirty rivers then converge at the mountain’s base to form a great river that encircles it.

The river’s waters surged, and within, Dragon Beasts coiled and flew.

The mountain peak and riverbanks were planted with many plant-type Guardian Beasts, each auspicious enough to be considered a symbol of good fortune.

Only a powerful federation could have forged such a magnificent and breathtakingly beautiful spectacle.

The core area of the Xin Xia Royal Court is the Xin Xia Assembly Hall.

However, Xin Xia Assembly Hall is what other federations generally call this building.

Here among the native Guardian Beast Masters of the Xin Xia Federation, it is more often called the Celestial Destiny Sanctuary than the Xin Xia Assembly Hall.

The outskirts of the Xin Xia Assembly Hall are a memorial park, where thousands of statues stand.

Each of these statues was, in life, a Celestial Destiny Seeker or a Guardian Beast Master who had made significant contributions to the Xin Xia Alliance.

Behind every statue grows a Xie Jue Pine, and on its trunk are carved the lifetime achievements of the person the statue commemorates.

Every day, designated staff come to this memorial park to clean and pay their respects, wiping the dust from the statues.

An ever-burning lamp is also placed beneath each statue, its light illuminating and commemorating the history of the Xin Xia Federation’s growth to this day.

At this moment, within the magnificent and solemn Xin Xia Assembly Hall, a figure was seated at the head of a long, antique oval table.

On the fifteen seats lining each side of the long table, people sat in a formal, upright posture.

The person at the head of the table wore a simple, pale yellow long robe, adorned with seven or eight Rising Sun Pearls—a type that only a Sun-devouring Mother Clam could produce.

The luster of these Rising Sun Pearls carried a unique iridescence, like the faint light of dawn filtering through curtains onto a bed.

The man had a tall build and refined features, yet he didn’t look the least bit imposing.

Instead, he gave off the impression of someone approachable and good-natured.

"Everyone’s here. Let’s officially begin this meeting."

"There are a few new faces today, so I’ll introduce myself first."

"I am the Sleep Emperor!"

"The Star Emperor and the Dragon Emperor are both absent this time, so I will be presiding over this Xin Xia Assembly."

"I am from Ruifeng City. Although I am presiding over this meeting, I will not be speaking on behalf of Ruifeng City."

"Ruifeng City’s representative is Gu Yu."

"Alright, let’s begin with the first topic: whether to allow the Bizarre controlled by Deceit Holders to join the six-person teams of Celestial Destiny Seekers."

The Sleep Emperor’s words caused the expressions of many present to change.

This topic—whether to allow the Bizarre controlled by Deceit Holders to join Celestial Destiny Seeker teams—had first been raised ten years ago.

It was brought up for discussion at the Xin Xia Assembly practically every year.

However, every year it was treated as a secondary item before the meeting’s end. This was the first time it had been presented as the main topic right at the start.

The Sleep Emperor was clearly trying to settle the matter during this Xin Xia Assembly.

In recent years, more and more Bizarre controlled by Deceit Holders had joined the six-person teams formed by Guardian Beast Masters.

Some Guardian Beast Masters feared and discriminated against the Bizarre.

But others, recognizing the power of the Bizarre and seeing that they were under control, were very willing to accept them as teammates.

This was a matter of ideological differences.

Among the Celestial Destiny Seekers attending the Xin Xia Assembly, for instance, there were some who disliked the Bizarre.

Jin Cai’s fingers traced patterns on the tabletop. Although Jin Cai was an office-seeker, he was also pragmatic and didn’t speak up rashly on this matter.

The practice of Deceit Holders using the Moon Eyes Bellflower to form a Contract and control the Bizarre was something the Sleep Emperor himself had championed years ago.

The Sleep Emperor had always shown great goodwill toward the Bizarre, and by bringing this up, he clearly hoped they could join the teams of Celestial Destiny Seekers.

He wanted these controlled Bizarre to better integrate into the Guardian Beast Master community and gain more social acceptance than they currently had.

Just as Jin Cai was pondering this, a woman’s voice rang out.

"I support allowing the Bizarre to join the teams of Celestial Destiny Seekers."

"With the proliferation of Deceit Holders, a batch of exceptional Bizarre has been cultivated in every city."

"The Bizarre controlled by Deceit Holders have basically stopped harming Guardian Beast Masters or devouring their Lifebound Guardian Beasts."

"I believe it is necessary to push this matter forward as soon as possible."

"Allowing these controlled Bizarre to gain a greater sense of acceptance will better promote the integration of both groups."

The woman had barely finished speaking when a rash, irritable voice interrupted her.

"Flower Venerable, you yourself said the Bizarre controlled by Deceit Holders *basically* don’t harm Guardian Beast Masters who have Lifebound Guardian Beasts."

"But that’s not an absolute guarantee!"

"There have been cases of Bizarre controlled by Deceit Holders harming people. I can’t stand those things, hiding here and there in the Lower City District like rats in a gutter."

The man who spoke wore a maroon monk’s robe, over which was draped a kasaya inlaid with treasures like coral, mammoth ivory, amber, and tridacna shells.

This coral, mammoth ivory, and tridacna were clearly all Mythical Tier materials, making the garment extraordinarily lavish.

Yet even dressed in a monk’s robe and kasaya, the man couldn’t hide the irritable, thuggish air about him.

The woman who had just spoken glanced at the kasaya-clad man, her almond-shaped eyes filled with displeasure.

She swept her palm lightly across the table, and a shower of flower petals cascaded from her fingertips.

Seeing this, the man in Red Half-Body Armor sitting beside the woman couldn’t help but curl his lip, his eyes filled with schadenfreude.

’If I remember correctly, the guy who dares to challenge the Flower Venerable is from Forging Furnace City, with the title of Angry Monk.’

’This Angry Monk could have provoked anyone, but he just had to pick a fight with the Flower Venerable.’

"Fighting and killing are commonplace among Guardian Beast Masters themselves. On what grounds do you demand that the Bizarre can never fight with them?"

"Conflicts between Bizarre and Guardian Beast Masters should be judged fairly. We can’t just blindly place all the blame on the Bizarre."

"In all the cases of controlled Bizarre fighting with Guardian Beast Masters, there hasn’t been a single instance of a Bizarre devouring a Lifebound Guardian Beast after killing its master."

"Angry Monk, you are here at this Xin Xia Assembly representing the city you came from. Your words and actions should all be for the sake of the city behind you, not colored by your personal biases."

"I, for one, can’t stand bald heads. My power is greater than yours, and I am one of the Four Venerables."

"But I haven’t told you to get the hell out just because of my personal preference, have I?"

The Sun Monarch, who was watching the drama from the sidelines, silently gave the Flower Venerable a thumbs-up in his mind.

’That’s the Flower Venerable I know. She may look gentle and delicate, but her words spare no one.’

After being on the receiving end of her verbal attacks dozens of times, the Sun Monarch had come to realize one thing.

When you can’t beat the Flower Venerable in a fight, it’s best not to argue with her.

Otherwise, after the Xin Xia Assembly was over, if she caught you at the gates of the Royal Court, you were in for a beating.

Upon hearing this, veins bulged on the kasaya-clad Angry Monk’s bald head, and his eyes looked like they were about to shoot fire.

The Angry Monk was representing Forging Furnace City at the Xin Xia Assembly, so he wasn’t a complete fool.

Among the Four Venerables, the Flower Venerable was consistently ranked in the top two.

’This was not someone I can afford to provoke!’

The Angry Monk raised his eyes to the Sleep Emperor at the head of the table. The Flower Venerable had used her power to suppress him and even insulted him by saying she hated bald heads.

’Surely the Sleep Emperor would stand up for me.’

But when the Angry Monk’s gaze fell upon the Sleep Emperor, he discovered that the man had, at some point, fallen asleep.

His head was tilted to the side, and he was sleeping soundly in his chair.

The moment he saw the Sleep Emperor, the infuriated Angry Monk surprisingly felt a wave of drowsiness himself.

If he hadn’t looked away in time, he probably would have started yawning uncontrollably.