At the portal entrance, the five Jian ancestors maintained their positions as they witnessed the appearance of countless groups of cultivators emerging from the distance. One of these groups was the Star Commerce Alliance; the entourage of horned unicorns majestically flew in the air as they approached from a distance, with over a hundred thousand cultivators in purple armor flying behind them. The group approached at fast speeds; not long after, they were hovering not far from the Jian ancestors and the portal gate.
"Isn't that the Star Commerce Alliance?! Even they couldn't resist the rumor of Athos having unlimited pure energy! They even brought their sacred beasts, the lightning-horned unicorns!"
"How could they not come? Athos provided massive amounts of Time Spirit stones just for an invitation. I don't think even the Star Commerce Alliance can compete with such monstrous wealth. It's only natural they come and see who took their position as the wealthiest powerhouse."
Some surrounding cultivators murmured as they watched the hundreds of thousands of Star Commerce Alliance warriors fill the sky with their numbers; although not as powerful as the previous groups, the pressures released by the warriors were still suppressing. Suddenly, the majestic carriage opened as the burly Head Manager stepped out; he wore a luxurious black cultivation robe with a golden star emblem attached to his right chest.
The Head Manager exuded a Saint King realm pressure as his presence instantly caused the surrounding cultivators to be cautious. He stood mid-air as he marveled at the gigantic portal gate, which was the entrance to Athos; with a gulp of saliva, the Head Manager murmured while staring up at the massive energy portal gate.
"Little sister, this Athos Realm ruler, the One Above, might be more powerful and wealthier than we thought; how does one even possess such powerful space-bending abilities?"
"Don't be too surprised; as someone who annihilated seven ancient families, possessing such capabilities or wealth should be normal; or else how would he have defeated the Gong ancient ancestor, who is said to have the Time Dao itself."
From behind the burly Head Manager, his sister, also clad in luxurious black feminine attire, stepped from the carriage as she saw the massive portal gate, which was millions of miles long and wide; they were like dots compared to the massiveness of the gate portal. The woman then shifted her attention as she saw the ten thousand Athosian warriors standing with calm and serious attitudes, without a hint of fear, panic, or amazement on their faces, even after seeing sacred magical beasts like the Lighting-horned unicorns.
'Brother, is it just me, or are those the Saint Ancestors of the Jian family standing as welcoming escorts?'
'I also noticed, yes, those are indeed the Saint Ancestors of the Jian family; just how powerful is the One Above where he's assigning five literal Saint Ancestors as a welcoming party? This is simply bizarre.'
The brother and sister duo exchanged thoughts as they watched the five Saint Ancestors from a distance; the Head Manager couldn't help but assume a serious face after realizing that their welcoming party included Saint Ancestor-realm cultivators. He even led his group as they approached the five Jian ancestors; the Head Manager then saluted as he respectfully spoke.
"Greetings, seniors, this junior is the Head Manager of the Star Commerce Alliance, and we are here as a guest of the One Above; I hope we aren't too much trouble asking for your guidance."
The Head Manager and entourage saluted the five Saint Ancestors as they gave them the utmost respect. Seeing this, one of the five Jian ancestors smiled amusingly as he spoke.
"Not bad, there's one with manners this time; you aren't half bad. You may enter; the One Above welcomes you all. And a word of advice; disregard your ranks and titles and see yourself as mere mortals invited to a party."
"This junior is grateful for the senior's advice. We will be taking our entry then."
The Head Manager saluted respectfully as he assumed a grateful smile. He understood well what the Saint Ancestor meant; he was warned that they are nothing more than mortals in Athos, be it their ranks, status, cultivation prowess, or influence. So, showing any form of arrogance would be equivalent to suicide. Then, the Head Manager and his entourage disappeared into the portal gate.
This same scenario continued for hours as countless cultivators, be they wandering individuals or powerhouses, emerged from different directions of the Central continent as they arrived at the portal gate. Hours changed into days, and days went from three to six; it was now only a day left to the inauguration ceremony, and the continuous appearance of cultivators from all directions slowly reduced as only a few could be seen coming from different directions.
Suddenly, the space quivered as three Saint Ancestor realm beings flashed from the void; they were the three Overlords of the East, South, and Northern continents. Each Overlord exuded domineering pressures and authority as their presence caused the surrounding space to tremble constantly. Looking up at the massive portal, the fat Overlord spoke.
"How ginormous, it's even bigger than the space crack to the Desolate Realm. How expansive must the Athos realm be if a mere gate is this huge?"
"Forget the gate; look who our welcoming party is."
The masked Overlord spoke with his heavy dark voice as he and the other two Overlords noticed the five Jian Saint Ancestors from afar. Even the North Overlord, always with an emotionless face, twitched his brows with doubt after seeing the five Saint Ancestors hovering at the gate; but even worse, the five Jian Saint Ancestors also wore the same suit the West Overlord wore to defeat them. This realization left the three Overlords in caution as they approached the gate.
"Welcome, Overlords. ... It's been quite a while since the battle at the Desolate Realm opening. And it seems you all have been busy seeing the destabilization of your cultivation bases. Nevertheless, Athos will be pleased with your presence."
"...."
Hearing one of the Jian ancestors speak, the fat Overlord frowned suspiciously as he stared at the man with shock; the other two Overlords weren't any different, as even they assumed doubtful faces. The fact that the Jian ancestor could tell they had been injured was quite unusual; as Saint Ancestors, it was hard to see through another Saint Ancestor unless the former was of higher cultivation stabilization than the latter. This means the five Jian ancestors had higher cultivation stabilization than the three Overlords. Such a thought was beyond reality-shattering.
"Athos must be filled with miracles, seeing that you five have easily surpassed us in cultivation stabilization. I finally understand why Fengian Xu submitted to your ruler, the One Above."
The fat Overlord spoke confidently, expressing his thoughts. But then, another Jian ancestor intervened.
"Then, I guess it's time you three find out if Athos is as miraculous as it appears."
The fat Overlord grinned upon hearing the Jian ancestor; although he showed calmness, internally, he was eager and impatient to see if Athos was as wonderous as the rumors. A realm with infinite pure Qi and countless unknown items such as the suits, which can even injure Saint Ancestors; no one would remain calm after hearing of such a utopia.
Then, with each exchanging gazes, the three Overlords drifted closer and past the Jian ancestors and the ten thousand Athosian warriors as they disappeared into the portal gate.
The sun had gone down, and it was nighttime; the scene was quiet as only the five Jian ancestors and the ten thousand Athosian warriors hovered outside the massive portal gate. But then, as if receiving a message, the five Jian ancestors nodded respectfully as they suddenly began vanishing from the scene, with the ten thousand Athosian warriors following suit.
With the Jian ancestors and Athosian warriors exiting from the scene, the massive portal gate sealed as it began shrinking; the gate shrunk from millions of miles long and wide to hundreds of miles long and wide in an instant. The portal gate continued shrinking until it was as little as a sparkle, but before it could vanish, another tinkle of light flashed from the void as it entered the closing portal. The glint of light was so fast its speed was incalculable.
This content is taken from (f)reewe(b)novel.𝗰𝗼𝐦