Chapter 929: Old Acquaintance
On Qi Xuansu’s side, there was no shortage of scions from prestigious families.
However, the title of “young master” did not necessarily mean they were young. Most were over thirty and were only at the fourth rank, still far below Qi Xuansu and Li Changge.
In truth, Qi Xuansu’s rise had been so rapid that many had lost the chance to even feel envious. Before the emotion even arose, the gap between them had already grown too wide. On paper, Qi Xuansu seemed only one rank above them, but when his age was factored in, it was effectively two ranks. That was because by the time Qi Xuansu reached their age, he would almost certainly be a second-rank Taiyi Daoist master, a true leader within the Daoist Order.
Most of these young masters clustered around Li Changge. In a sense, Li Changge was the greatest aristocratic scion of them all, being from the Li family.
Whether Qi Xuansu was truly the illegitimate child or the adopted child of some great figure, he still could not truly be considered part of a prestigious family. After all, he still carried traces of his wild Jianghu roots, or, as some might say, he reeked of the commoner’s stench.
This was Qi Xuansu’s awkward predicament. He could not be considered a young master because he had been rolling about in the muck of the lower rungs. To those of noble birth, Qi Xuansu was just a lucky peasant who had stumbled into fortune. But he was not exactly a commoner either because he had the backing of Madam Qi. True commoners would think that he was a nobleman.
Naturally, Qi Xuansu could not blend into their circle. Zhang Yuelu, however, belonged to this circle of scions. After all, she was born of the thousand-year-old Zhang family. Even if she was from a minor branch of the Zhang family, outsiders had no right to criticize her. But Zhang Yuelu rarely associated with these people, nor did she think much of them, which was why she was often condemned as arrogant and difficult to deal with.
Aside from these young masters, there were also those who came from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.
Coming from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace could not simply be equated with being of lowly origin. Figures like Yue Liuli and Wan Xiuwu never considered themselves the lower rung of the Daoist Order. Instead, they always looked down upon their peers.
Those who had made it to Fenglin and gained entry to this banquet were certainly not ordinary. They were all standouts of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace. In terms of age, they were all older than Qi Xuansu, as they were several cohorts above him.
Those from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace were not especially numerous. Out of 100 Daoists, it would be good if even one stood out. Most of those who managed to achieve something had already shown promise during their years in the Lower Palace. A few had been fortunate by meeting good masters or receiving aid from benefactors. Thus, they were considered capable. Within their own cohorts, each would be a figure of note, but here, they were reduced to little more than supporting roles.
These people, having endured their own rise and fall, were the most pragmatic of all. They did not care about Qi Xuansu’s origins like the aristocratic scions who fussed over lineage and pedigree. What they wanted was simply to use the shared bond of being fellow alumni of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace to establish a connection with him.