The four present separated into two facing columns, black and white, righteous and evil, clearly distinct. The Yin Sha Sect, from which Lei Dong hailed, was one of the eight supreme sects in the world, a giant of the Demonic Path. If he were to sit with those of the Righteous Path, he would surely be ridiculed upon reporting back to his sect. His own Master would likely skin him alive. Moreover, even if he wanted to move closer, it was debatable whether those two from Dao Yao Dao and Lang Ya Mountain would even allow him a seat.

On the side of the Demonic and Evil Paths, upon meeting the gaze of the young man from the Mo Yu Sect, they immediately disliked each other, making it unsuitable to sit beside him either.

When the woman from the Yin Yang He Huan Sect extended an invitation, although Lei Dong held no great affection for her, neither did he harbor strong aversion. He seized the opportunity, smoothly following the invitation, put on a smile, cupped his hands slightly, and said, "Then I thank Junior Sister." As he spoke, he strode confidently and sat beside her, catching a faint, delicate fragrance in his nostrils, which was not unpleasant and caused no significant repulsion in his heart.

The nature of the Yin Yang He Huan Sect was such that joining it was not entirely up to the individual woman. To have cultivated to the third level of the Foundation Establishment stage at her age was quite an accomplishment. Relying on mere talent alone, without perseverance and frantic effort, would absolutely not have achieved this.

Regardless of their alignment, seeing Lei Dong act in such a manner, everyone present felt a degree of disdain, looking down on him even more. Especially the young man in white from Lang Ya Mountain, who showed undisguised contempt for Lei Dong. Someone so easily swayed by the charms of the beautiful could possibly conceal his true nature and sit alongside the brightest talents of the younger generation from their respective sects?

Lei Dong cared little for what they thought; in fact, he hoped they would look down on and underestimate him more, wishing they wouldn't pay him much attention. Instead, he began to chat casually with the woman from the Yin Yang He Huan Sect. In no time, he learned her name was Qi Feifei, aged twenty-nine. It wasn't that Lei Dong was particularly interested in her; rather, although he didn't know much, he could roughly guess that the so-called Heart Demon Hall, if entered individually, would be manageable.

However, if so many people entered together, it was inevitable that those who disliked him would cause trouble. Getting close to her might secure an ally—one more ally meant one more layer of security.

Seeing Lei Dong's demeanor, the others' scorn deepened. Even the refined young master from Dao Yao Dao could not help but frown slightly. "Brother Li, I heard the Yin Sha Sect produced a pair of women, called the Yin Sha Twins? Both renowned as geniuses rarely seen in a century for the Yin Sha Sect. Why are they not here this time?" The implication was why the Yin Sha Sect didn't send formidable members, yet sent someone like Lei Dong.

"Wang Hui, stop trying to be chummy," the red-haired, fiery-eyed man from the Mo Yu Sect sharply rebuked. "There's someone from the Yin Sha Sect here; go ask him yourself."

That young master named Wang Hui, perhaps refined by the teachings of Dao Yao Dao, possessed excellent composure. He shrugged nonchalantly. "It's better to inquire through others; when one's own people speak of it, it's bound to be biased."

"In my opinion, those Yin Sha Twins are just boastings of the Yin Sha Sect themselves," the young master from Lang Ya Mountain, Bai Yong, snorted dismissively. "How formidable can two mere women be?"

"Dong Lai, that might not be the case. Don't forget Tantai from the Tian Yin Palace..." Wang Hui said with a smile, fanning himself lightly.

Mentioning Tantai from the Tian Yin Palace, the face of the young man in white immediately turned ugly, a mixture of shame and defiance. Lei Dong observed coldly and instantly knew this youngster must have suffered a loss at the hands of that woman named Tantai from the Tian Yin Palace. Instead of looking down on the young man, he grew cautious of that woman named Tantai. The Tian Yin Palace and the Yin Sha Sect not only differed in their righteous/evil alignment but also harbored significant animosity. The white-robed youth called Dong Lai was likely no simple character either; someone who could cause him such a silent loss must be formidable.

Then again, among the eight supreme sects in the world, even within the same faction, occasional friction and grudges existed; they were never a single, unbreakable entity. The divide between the two major camps had never been one of cordial relations. As it was now, with no major conflict but only minor friction, it could already be considered great peace. Just as the Yin Sha Sect held enmity towards every one of the other four supreme Righteous sects. Otherwise, Yue Xinglou from Lang Ya Mountain wouldn't have rushed to his death during the Heavenly Demon Celebration when revenge was hopeless, wasting a fine Golden Core in such a fit of despair.

Seeing that Lei Dong seemed unfamiliar with the people present, not even knowing their names, Qi Feifei kindly sent him a private voice transmission, introducing them one by one. The dignified young master from Dao Yao Dao was named Wang Hui; his background was extraordinary, being the direct descendant left behind by a Nascent Soul Ancestor of Dao Yao Dao in his youth. Because his potential was measured as outstanding early on, he was cherished and cultivated by that Nascent Soul Ancestor, with the unspoken goal of having him inherit the mantle.

Such origins naturally sparked a touch of envy in someone like Lei Dong, whose talent was average and who had built his position step by arduous step from scratch.

As for the young man in white, his name was Mei Donglai. His background was unremarkable, far less illustrious than Wang Hui’s. He was merely the son of a cultivator from a family under the jurisdiction of Lang Ya Mountain. Due to his exceptional aptitude, his cultivation family feared delaying his future and sent him to Lang Ya Mountain at a young age to apprentice under a late-stage Golden Core Elder. Through diligent practice until now, he stood as the most elite disciple of his generation in Lang Ya Mountain.

The man with withered red hair from the Mo Yu Sect was named Li Huntian. His temperament was extremely peculiar. It was said he originally came from the sphere of influence of the Tian Yin Palace. However, the Tian Yin Palace only ever accepted female disciples. For male cultivators with spiritual roots from their affiliated forces, they often exchanged them with the Jin Gang Temple, which only accepted male disciples.

Yet, this young man was unwilling to become a monk at the Jin Gang Temple. At such a young age, he actually ran away under the cover of night—an unheard-of occurrence. But once he fled, his chances of joining any established immortal cultivation sect for the rest of his life seemed slim. Unexpectedly, this young man seemed naturally aligned with the Mo Yu Sect. Through a fortunate encounter, he met a Golden Core Elder of the Mo Yu Sect, who brought him into the sect. Within two years, he began to distinguish himself among his peers. The Mo Yu Sect, fearing he might be a spy for the Tian Yin Palace, ended up taking his entire family into the sect as well.

However, in Lei Dong’s view, the possibility of this man being a spy was extremely low; the Mo Yu Sect likely thought the same. After all, such an exceptionally gifted individual whose talent was dazzling was rare; using him as a spy would be a profound waste of potential. Thus, the Jin Gang Temple lost a superb talent, while the Mo Yu Sect gained a highly promising, excellent disciple for nothing. What frustrated and vexed the Jin Gang Temple the most was that the woman named Tantai Bingyun originated from the Jin Gang Temple's sphere of influence…

Women seemed particularly fond of gossip, or perhaps she paid special attention to intelligence gathering. She had researched the origins of everyone quite thoroughly, limited to the peak experts on her own level. Regarding Lei Dong, she had only vaguely heard the name; she had no specific impression. Humans are like this; they rarely pay attention to things trampled underfoot, fixing their gaze either ahead or upward.

Over there, Li Yijian seemed to have finished communicating with the Alliance Leader via voice transmission. Both glanced toward Lei Dong. With his divine sense greatly enhanced, Lei Dong unexpectedly registered their attention and turned his head to nod lightly toward them. This action caused Li Yijian and the Alliance Leader to exchange glances, thinking to themselves how sharp this fellow’s divine sense was. The Alliance Leader, who was initially somewhat reluctant to let Lei Dong get involved, suddenly softened his stance considerably. After a moment of contemplation, he nodded slightly.

The others didn't wait long before another person arrived, escorted by a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Including Lei Dong, everyone's gaze subtly drifted toward the doorway. They saw a tall, robust, and youthful monk step inside.

"It is indeed this little monk," Lei Dong’s eyes narrowed slightly, and a cold sneer crossed his heart.

Upon arriving here, the monk dared not disgrace the Jin Gang Temple. Following the etiquette of a junior, he respectfully bowed to the Tian Dao Alliance Leader, Cang Lanzi. In fact, setting aside Cang Lanzi's status, his current cultivation, at least mid-stage Golden Core, was enough to command awe from anyone present. Having a good background was one thing; one's attitude toward the strong was another matter entirely. Any cultivator who reached the Great Dao of the Golden Core stage could not rely solely on innate talent; it was completely unreliable. Without extraordinary willpower and painstaking, unseen effort, reaching that level was impossible.

After completing the formalities, the monk sat down in the row of the Righteous Path, his gaze falling upon Lei Dong, and he sneered coldly, "Little devil from the Yin Sha Sect, your strength is not bad."

"Little bald donkey from the Jin Gang Temple, your strength is not bad either," Lei Dong certainly wouldn't allow the prestige of his sect to be diminished at a moment like this, retorting without courtesy.

The monk snorted angrily again but dared not flare up here. Wang Hui, however, glanced curiously at Lei Dong with a slight movement of his lips, clearly asking the monk about something.

Qi Feifei's voice drifted into Lei Dong's ear again: "That monk is named Jie Xiu. Senior Brother Lei, do you have a conflict with him?"

"We just exchanged a couple of blows casually; it's nothing serious," Lei Dong replied dismissively, then coldly sneered, "Jie Xiu, truly, should practice restraining his wrath more."

Qi Feifei glanced at Jie Xiu with some vigilance and transmitted earnestly, "Senior Brother Lei should be careful. That Jie Xiu wasn't originally named Jie Xiu. He was renamed because he was extremely combative from childhood and repeatedly failed to correct his ways. If he gets entangled with you, it will be troublesome."

Lei Dong's brow twitched, just as he was about to speak, another person arrived at the doorway, this time two people at once.

This time, a Golden Core Elder personally escorted them. The old man reached the doorway and immediately announced, "Reporting to the Alliance Leader, Tantai Bingyun of the Tian Yin Palace and Wu Peng of Xiu Bai Tian have arrived."

Everyone’s gaze once again converged on the doorway. Lei Dong's curiosity was also piqued…