Shen Lang was slightly surprised to see the group of people who had arrived.

The two men and one woman leading the group stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Su Wenxuan. All of them possessed a profound and imposing aura, an extraordinary bearing befitting sect leaders.

Behind each of these three, two disciples followed.

One of the two people behind Su Wenxuan was Cai Chaoqun, the very person who had once sold him the Beast Hide from the North Netherworld Extreme Heaven Sect.

For some reason, however, Cai Chaoqun now wore a stony, expressionless face, as if he didn’t know Shen Lang at all.

The two young men standing behind the man to Su Wenxuan’s right were Zhang Cheng and Mu Feng, both of whom had been defeated by Shen Lang at Qingfeng Stronghold.

Behind the palace-garbed woman were two young women. One was fragrant and alluring, her face a picture of beauty, while the other was the very woman Shen Lang had encountered in the hot spring!

Just as Shen Lang was sizing them up, the woman he had met in the hot spring let out a cold snort!

An overwhelmingly powerful cold aura emanated from her, causing the nearby crowd to retreat in horror, not daring to get too close!

"Yiyi, don’t be reckless," the other woman standing behind the palace-garbed woman said slowly.

Then, she took a single, graceful step forward.

An invisible force emanated from beneath her feet, spreading out in all directions with her at the center.

The cold aura released by the woman called Yiyi instantly dissipated into nothing, making everyone wonder if it had just been an illusion.

A strange look appeared on the palace-garbed woman’s face. She turned slightly toward Su Wenxuan and said with a faint smile, "Sect Leader Su, the person you brought us to see... is it him, or him?"

As she spoke, she pointed at Shen Lang, then at Chu Qingcheng.

Under the probe of her Divine Thought, they were the only two people present whose depths she could not fathom.

Su Wenxuan gave a slight nod to the palace-garbed woman. "Sect Leader Mei, your eyes are as sharp as a torch. I am truly impressed. Let’s go inside and talk."

He then waved his hand at the onlookers and said, "I have some business with Shen Lang. Everyone, please disperse for now."

The moment his voice fell, Shen Lang gave a slight gesture to Shen Jianfeng. "Cousin Jianfeng, Brother Hua Zheng, I’ll have to trouble you two to handle this. Look at how badly Brother Tianci has beaten our people from Songdu Peak... especially Brother Tian Hao. His old injuries hadn’t even healed, and now he’s been injured again. How pitiful."

Hearing this, Tian Hao, who was lying on the ground, disregarded the Sect Leader’s presence and immediately started screaming his lungs out, "AHH, IT HURTS SO MUCH! Several of my ribs are broken! They were too ruthless!"

Seeing this, the rest of the group on the ground immediately joined in, groaning and whimpering.

Cries of agony rose and fell in waves.

The color drained from the faces of Chen Tianci and the now-conscious Liu Hai once again.

’To do this right in front of the Sect Leader... these bastards must have something to fall back on!’

’That bastard Shen Lang has only been at the Profound Dao Sect for a couple of days, and he’s still in the Outer Sect on Songdu Peak. How can he be so arrogant and aggressive?’

’If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve never come up to Songdu Peak, not even if it killed me!’

While Su Wenxuan and the others wore strange expressions, Shen Jianfeng and Hua Zheng scurried over to Chen Tianci, and the crowd finally dispersed.

Only then did Shen Lang walk out of the lake, bowing respectfully to Su Wenxuan. "Shen Lang greets the Sect Leader and all the Elders. My humble abode is simple. I hope the Sect Leader and Elders will not take offense."

With that, he extended his hand in a gesture of invitation.

Su Wenxuan nodded, quite pleased that Shen Lang had given him face in front of so many other sect leaders.

Su Wenxuan turned and called out to Chu Qingcheng, who was about to leave. "Qingcheng, you and Mo Ge, don’t go. I have something to discuss with you in a moment."

Rolling his eyes, Chu Qingcheng turned around. "I thought if I kept quiet, no one would see me. It’s useless. A man like me is like a firefly in the night, no matter where I go—so bright, so outstanding... The sky, the azure sky holds a few white clouds, which are chased by the wind like a pack of wild dogs fighting over scraps... I’ve lived for twenty years and have done nothing for my Sect or my peers. Every time I think of it, I’m heartbroken. To think that I finally have my chance..."

This fellow either said nothing at all or, once he started, immediately revealed his habit of running his mouth. Listening to him made Su Wenxuan roll his eyes so hard he almost wanted to flee in disgrace.

Nearby, Yan Qi scrambled up from the ground and said, "Impossible! How could you only be twenty years old? You..."

Before he could finish, Chu Qingcheng’s hand shot out, grabbing his collar in a flash. With a casual toss, he threw Yan Qi into the lake as if he were a sack of potatoes.

The young people who had come with Su Wenxuan and the others immediately narrowed their eyes...

’No matter how pathetic Yan Qi was, he was still a Martial Artist at the Spirit Martial Realm Second Heaven. To be thrown into the lake with a SPLASH without even time to react... No wonder the Sect Leader called him out by name. This Chu Qingcheng is no ordinary person!’

Before anyone could react, Chu Qingcheng started talking again. "I wonder what business the Sect Leader has with me? I know I shouldn’t ask, but I feel terrible if I don’t. If I don’t ask and you don’t tell, that’s distance. If I ask and you don’t tell, that’s a barrier. If I ask and you tell, that’s trust. If you don’t tell and I don’t ask, that’s a tacit understanding. If I don’t ask and you tell, that’s dependence... Hey, Sect Leader, don’t go!"

Even a man of Su Wenxuan’s mental fortitude was scared of Chu Qingcheng. He couldn’t wait to stride into Shen Lang’s courtyard, almost as if he were fleeing.

The others all followed behind him.

Meanwhile, Mo Ge turned and left without a word.

The woman who had broken Yiyi’s cold aura watched Mo Ge’s retreating back, her red lips slightly parted as if she had a thousand words to say. In the end, she just sighed softly and followed Shen Lang inside as well.

As soon as the group was seated, Su Wenxuan said impatiently, "Shen Lang, come, let me introduce you to these Elders."

"On my left is Elder Ye Xiangmo, Sect Leader of the White Rainbow Sect."

"On my right is Elder Mei Yingxue, Sect Leader of the Xiu Hua Sect."

"And to Sect Leader Mei’s right is Elder Shi Yanbin, Sect Leader of the Mahayana Sect. The ones who came with them are all elite disciples from their respective sects. You should all get to know each other later."

After Shen Lang stepped forward to bow to each of them in turn, Su Wenxuan spoke again. "Fellow Sect Leaders, you must be blaming me. It’s not easy for everyone to gather at the Profound Dao Sect, and it’s even rarer that Sect Leader Mei is willing to join forces with us, yet I’ve treated you all so poorly, haven’t I?"

Mei Yingxue smiled faintly. "We came to the Profound Dao Sect to discuss the trial in the Yumu Cave Blessed Land. Sect Leader Su said he wanted to show us someone, who I presume is Shen Lang. However, I do not understand what Shen Lang has to do with the Yumu Cave Blessed Land trial."

Sect Leaders Ye Xiangmo and Shi Yanbin both nodded slightly.

Although they weren’t particularly fond of Mei Yingxue, her question was the same one on their minds.

Su Wenxuan enjoyed the looks on their faces. He chuckled and said, "I did indeed bring you all here to see Shen Lang. Because for this trial in the Yumu Cave Blessed Land, I want him to be the commander of all the disciples from our sects."

All eyes immediately gathered on Shen Lang, whose own gaze was level and his face expressionless.

The three sect leaders, Mei Yingxue included, were all startled. They exchanged a glance, their expressions turning a little strange.

"Sect Leader Su has always been one to plan before acting, and there’s always a convincing reason behind his every move. I trust him on that point. However... although the Xiu Hua Sect has had some misunderstandings with your sects in the past, we came to the Profound Dao Sect today with the utmost sincerity..."

"Therefore, I am quite perplexed by this decision of yours, Sect Leader Su."

Mei Yingxue continued, speaking with confidence, "The importance of the commander is beyond question. They must not only possess powerful cultivation and be able to suppress all rivals, but they must also meet the extremely high demands of overall coordination and management."

"Pardon my bluntness, but Shen Lang is probably only sixteen or seventeen, right? How high can his cultivation be at that age? Even your favored disciple, Mo Ge, has a cultivation level far from comparable to my two disciples."

"To put it even more bluntly, among all four of our sects, is there anyone who can defeat my head disciple, Jun Qiluo?"

Su Wenxuan and the others couldn’t help but glance at Jun Qiluo, who stood behind Mei Yingxue.

Jun Qiluo of the Xiu Hua Sect was already famous; as of last year, her cultivation had reached the Spirit Martial Realm Eighth Heaven.

Jun Qiluo’s beauty was enough to topple nations, and her allure was natural. Not only was her cultivation formidable, but she also practiced Bewitching and Illusion Techniques.

Often, a single smile from her was enough to kill.

It was true that among the current generation of disciples from the Profound Dao Sect and the other two sects, there was no one who could contend with her.

In past conflicts, the number of people injured by her hand was countless.

But that was in the past. Now, hearing Mei Yingxue’s words, Su Wenxuan didn’t look displeased like Ye Xiangmo and Shi Yanbin. Instead, he revealed a Mona Lisa-like smile.

At this, Mei Yingxue added, "Of course, I am only speaking in terms of cultivation. To show the Xiu Hua Sect’s sincerity, as long as you all accept our sect as a member of the alliance, not only will we not compete for the position of commander, but on the contrary, once your Three Sects have chosen a commander, the disciples of the Xiu Hua Sect will certainly obey their orders and will not dare to defy them."

Ye Xiangmo pondered for a moment before speaking. "While cultivation isn’t the only metric, Wenxuan, for you to truly want Shen Lang to be the commander seems a bit too hasty. For the benefit of our sects, on this point, I disagree."

Shi Yanbin hesitated for a moment, glanced at Shen Lang, and then said, "Knowing Wenxuan’s character, he must have a reason for doing this."

"But I still don’t understand... Between the four sects, the number of disciples who can enter the Yumu Cave Blessed Land adds up to a hundred and fifty or sixty. Among them are many who are proud and difficult to tame. To command so many elite disciples from different sects, one must have overwhelming strength. Don’t tell me, Wenxuan, that you think Shen Lang’s cultivation is strong enough to suppress all the elite disciples of these four sects?"

Ye Xiangmo shot a glance at the silent Shen Lang, a mocking smile playing on his lips. "It’s not that I look down on Shen Lang, but from my observation, while his bearing is extraordinary, his cultivation is not high. With his current cultivation, it would be impossible for him to even defeat the two disciples behind me, wouldn’t it?"

"To become the commander of these sects’ disciples... it’s not that easy."