"From where do you hail?"
"Xia State."
"Xia State? Xia State is extrely far from our Wu Domain, how did you get here? Could it be that you have co to attend the Zhong Zhou convention and just happened to pass through our imperial city?"
"Precisely."
"Honored Taoists, please follow , our sovereign has decreed that if powerful cultivators from other states pass through our Great Martial imperial city, we have a special mansion to accommodate them."
The cultivator from the Great Martial Dynasty guarding the city gates led Lu Changsheng and his companions to the residence specially set up to entertain strong sect mbers within the city.
"The Empress of the Great Martial truly lives up to her reputation as the supre sovereign, proficient in winning people's hearts by setting up a place to welco powerful sects. Now, we owe her a small favor."
Grandmaster Chen unceremoniously occupied the mansion in the Great Martial imperial city.
Since this arrangent was made by the Empress of Great Martial, everyone felt no need for excessive politeness.
She was a formidable cultivator with Great Accomplishnt in the Unity Realm, being overly courteous might contradict her intentions.
"Esteed daoist friends, our sovereign will also attend the Zhong Zhou convention, and before that, she would like to et the Unity Realm experts from Xia State, if you would do us the honor?"
Just after Lu Changsheng and his party had settled in, a palace attendant ca to invite them.
The several Unity Realm experts exchanged glances, and sure enough, the Empress of Great Martial had so tactics; she invited the Unity Realm experts from Xia State to the palace soon after arranging their accommodation.
For the Empress of Great Martial, who had achieved Great Accomplishnt in the Unity Realm, only experts of the sa level were truly worth winning over.
She also wanted to see which powerful figures from Xia State had co to attend the Zhong Zhou convention.
"Since the Empress has extended such a gracious invitation, let us not decline."
Situ Kong, who had traveled far and wide for a long ti and had spent so ti in the Wu Domain, had inquired about the Empress of Great Martial and knew she was not a heretic cultivator, so there was no need to worry that she might harm them.
Lu Changsheng, Situ Kong, Yu Xuanji, Xia Ningxue, Grandmaster Chen, and Master Wuxiang, six Unity Realm experts, followed the attendant into the imperial palace.
In the imperial palace's Imperial Guards, even the most ordinary soldiers possessed the cultivation of the Qi Transformation Realm, the slightly more elite soldiers had the cultivation of the Golden Core Realm, and among the higher-ranking officers, there were no lack of Nascent Soul Realm and Dao Palace Realm, even Void Refinent Realm experts.
Inside the Great Martial imperial palace, civil and military officials stood to the left and right, each with a powerful aura. Within the palace alone, there were several Unity Realm experts!
The foundation of the Great Martial Dynasty was indeed comparable to a powerful sect.
Lu Changsheng was inwardly surprised.
Sitting atop the dragon throne was a dignified and graceful figure, her eyebrows like verdant feathers, her skin like mutton fat jade, her cheeks frad by peach blossoms, her hair coiled with golden phoenix threads, yet within her bones, there was a domineering pride that scread 'I alone am supre,' her cultivation unfathomable.
The Empress of Great Martial imperiously used her Divine Sense to scan the realms of Lu Changsheng and the other five, wanting to understand their potentials and limitations.
"Three at the first level of the Unity Realm, one at the second level, one at the fourth level, and one whose realm is not clear... Strange, with my realm, I can't see through his cultivation. Could it be that he practices a special cultivation technique that conceals his cultivation level or possesses a unique treasure?"
The Empress of Great Martial could discern the cultivation levels of the others, a hint of disappointnt crossing her eyes.
To her, the cultivation levels of the others were diocre.
Only the realm of Lu Changsheng was completely unclear to her.
The Empress of Great Martial's gaze towards Lu Changsheng revealed her curiosity.
"..."
Xia Ningxue's heart skipped a beat.
Lu Changsheng seed to be popular wherever he went.
The Empress of Great Martial's realm was extrely high, and Xia Ningxue did not have the confidence to defeat her at the fourth level of the Unity Realm.
If the Empress of Great Martial decided to take Lu Changsheng by force, even he might be unable to resist.
While the Empress of Great Martial was assessing the cultivation levels of Lu Changsheng and company, Lu Changsheng was also probing the realm of the Empress of Great Martial.
The Empress of Great Martial was like an enormous black hole, her realm imperceptible, presumably shielded by a treasure.
Situ Kong had said that the Empress of Great Martial had achieved Great Accomplishnt in the Unity Realm, which ant she could possibly be at the eighth or even the ninth level of the Unity Realm.
No wonder the Empress of Great Martial was as stable as Mount Tai in the Wu Domain, ruling over billions as a female sovereign.
She was the favored daughter of the heavens in the Wu Domain.
Only Xia Ningxue from Xia State could match her.
The Empress of Great Martial spoke, her voice delightful to the ear yet thunderous, "May I ask the origin of this Taoist priest?"
"I am Lu Changsheng, the Sect Leader of Mount Shu from Xia State."
"So, you are the Sect Leader of Mount Shu."
"Although this young man's aura is not weak, it still falls far short of our Empress."
"The strongest Sect Leader of Xia State from Mount Shu, his aura isn't that impressive, and perhaps not even as strong as mine."
"Their Majesty is being too polite to them. Even if the major sects of Xia State joined forces, they may not be a match for our Great Martial Dynasty."
The civil and military officials inside the palace exchanged scornful secret ssages.
Although the exact level of Lu Changsheng's cultivation could not be determined, he did not completely hide his aura, revealing fluctuating levels between the second and fourth layers of the Unity Realm, which made it difficult for the others to assess accurately.
The Great General of the Great Martial Dynasty was a sixth-layer Unity Realm practitioner specialized in Body Tempering, and the State Preceptor of the Great Martial Dynasty was even more formidable, a seventh-layer Unity Realm Sword Cultivator.
One in civil office and one in military, their status in the Wu Domain was second only to the Empress of Great Martial.
As the major sects of Xia State were going through a generational gap, the power they showcased was even less than that of these two individuals, let alone compared to the Empress, hence their disdain for the people of Xia State.
Not only the Great General and the State Preceptor, but also other Unity Realm practitioners, and even those in the Void Refinent Realm, appeared sowhat arrogant.
Only the Empress of Great Martial continually regarded Lu Changsheng with great importance, as he was a person whose cultivation level she could not see clearly.
Among the cultivators who ca to participate in the grand assembly in Zhong Zhou, even those with lower realms did not necessarily lack talent; it was simply that they had not encountered the grand assembly during their peak period.
But this was also a test of a sect's foundation.
A truly powerful sect could cultivate a peerless genius to dominate an era in any age, generally avoiding a situation of generational decline.
Take Star Pavilion, for instance—each era witnessed the rise of a Unity Realm peak practitioner to lead the sect, which is why no one dared to provoke Star Pavilion.
Mount Shu was sowhat inferior, only occasionally producing Unity Realm peak practitioners. Once such an expert ascended or fell, it might take thousands of years before another erged, potentially leading to the embarrassing situation of having no Unity Realm practitioners at all.
The sixth sense of the Empress of Great Martial told her that Lu Changsheng's talent was not lacking.
Not only Lu Changsheng but also Xia Ningxue had extrely high potential.
Yu Xuanji possessed the Body of the Literary Sage, and as for Grandmaster Chen, Master Wuxiang, Situ Kong, and others who had entered the Unity Realm, their potential limits could not be easily estimated.
"This grand assembly in Zhong Zhou is filled with powerful individuals. I intend to vie for first place, which is why I wished to gauge the strength of the powerhouses from various major sects passing through our imperial city in advance. It seems that you all haven't been cultivating for long, which is rather unfortunate."
The Empress of Great Martial discerned that the group from Xia State had not yet reached their limits.
Her gaze settled on Lu Changsheng, "You might achieve a mid-ranking result, which would be quite good."
Compete for first place?!
Yu Xuanji, Grandmaster Chen, Master Wuxiang, Situ Kong, and others were taken aback by this revelation.
The Empress of Great Martial actually planned to compete for the first place in the grand assembly of Zhong Zhou?
In that case, her realm might have reached the peak of the Unity Realm!
"Your Majesty is an unrivaled genius rarely seen in a million years in the Wu Domain; you will surely accomplish this feat effortlessly."
"Your Majesty possesses both civil and martial virtues. As you unify the Wu Domain, we can do nothing but look up in admiration."
The civil and military officials of the Great Martial Dynasty praised her profusely, displaying fervent adoration for the Empress.
The Empress of Great Martial suppressed all mighty opponents in the Wu Domain; no formidable cultivator failed to serve as a stepping stone for her rise.
The Empress muttered to herself, "It's a pity that after the grand assembly in Zhong Zhou concludes, I plan to try crossing the Ninefold Heavenly Tribulation and ascend to the Immortal Realm. Otherwise, given ti, I would have intended to fully conquer the other states. It seems my long-cherished wish will have to wait until I reach the Immortal Realm to see if it can be realized."
This was the epito of a strong woman.
Lu Changsheng wiped away a bead of sweat. The Empress apparently had ambitions to conquer the neighboring states as well; truly, she was worthy of being an Empress.
After a brief conversation, the Empress let Lu Changsheng and the others go to rest.
After Lu Changsheng and the others had left, the Great General comnted, "Aside from the sect-riddled Zhong Zhou, it seems that the strengths of the sects from the other states in this Zhong Zhou grand assembly are not very impressive. It seems the Empress only needs to be wary of a few powerful sects from Zhong Zhou.
As for the people from Xia State, I alone could defeat them all, not a concern at all."
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