Chapter 179: Wedding
The Ghost King Sect, one of the Six Great Sects.
Although the Ghost King Sect's strength was not the greatest among the Six Great Sects, Ghost King Ao Tian commanded immense prestige.
Combined with the Golden Sun Sect, the wedding of Ao Xue and Zhang Zhihang could be called the most sensational event in the Celestial State. Not only were the Sect Leaders of the Four Great Sects personally attending, but even the Emperors of the Flame Empire and the Thunder Empire had come in person.
Ghost King Peak.
The massive plaza was a sea of people. As far as the eye could see, there were only bobbing heads.
On the high platform, the Sect Leaders of the Six Great Sects took their respective seats. Before these six, even the Emperors of the Flame Empire and the Thunder Empire were not qualified to sit, as the Two Great Empires were merely branches of the Flame Sect and the Thunder Sect.
"Brother Ao, congratulations, congratulations."
"Brother Zhang, congratulations to you as well."
No matter how displeased or unwilling Ao Tian felt, matters had already reached this point. He could only accept reality. Thus, on the surface, Ao Tian wore a smile, appearing quite happy.
Zhang Mo, Sect Leader of the Golden Sun Sect, and Ao Tian, Sect Leader of the Ghost King Sect—their combined status was enough to look down upon the entire Celestial State.
The Sect Leaders of the Blood Sea Sect, Wind and Thunder Sect, Flame Sect, and Thunder Sect all offered their congratulations simultaneously. On the surface, the Six Great Sects appeared harmonious, but in reality, they were locked in both open and secret struggles, each wanting to eliminate the others and dominate the Celestial State.
After everyone had arrived and the congratulations were concluded, Ghost King Ao Tian suddenly stood up and cleared his throat with a pair of soft coughs.
Instantly, the nearly ten thousand people in the plaza fell deathly silent.
Everyone looked at Ao Tian on the platform, especially the disciples of the Ghost Sect, their faces filled with pride. After all, it was just a wedding, yet it had drawn the personal attendance of four other Great Sect Leaders. Who else could command such respect?
Seemingly very satisfied with this effect, Ghost King Ao Tian said, "Thank you all for attending my humble daughter's wedding today. Without further ado, let the wedding officially begin."
The wedding officially began.
The moment Ao Tian finished speaking, the entire plaza erupted. Everyone was shouting ceaselessly, but the noise was such a chaotic mess that nothing could be understood clearly.
At that moment, the doors to the distant Ghost King Sect's main hall slowly opened, and a new couple emerged. They were none other than the two stars of today's wedding: Ao Xue of the Ghost King Sect and Zhang Zhihang of the Golden Sun Sect.
Zhang Zhihang, the number one genius of the Golden Sun Sect, had already reached third place on the Hundred Battles Ranking at a young age, and his Cultivation had broken through to the Peak Earth Emperor Realm.
It could be said that Zhang Zhihang was the pride of the Golden Sun Sect.
Looking at his son, Zhang Mo's face was filled with pride. He could fully predict that in another ten-odd years, once his son had fully matured and inherited the position of Golden Sun Sect's Sect Leader, the Sect would be able to reach even greater heights.
While Zhang Mo was proud, the others were utterly displeased, especially the Sect Leaders of the other Four Great Sects.
Zhang Zhihang and Ao Xue slowly walked toward the platform. At this moment, Zhang Zhihang wore an indescribable expression. After all, Ao Xue was hailed as the number one beauty in the Celestial State, and he had dreamt of the day he would have her.
Zhang Mo and Ao Tian glanced at each other and nodded, not saying a word. Everything was understood without speaking.
Xia Army and Huo Teng, two brilliant talents from the Flame Sect and the Thunder Sect, watched the wedding with cold eyes. Both were eagerly anticipating whether or not Long Ao would actually show up today.
From the Blood Sea Sect, Guan Feng.
"Elder Du, what did you find out?"
Du Yunxuan whispered, "Sect Leader, I've made inquiries. There was indeed something between Long Ao and Ao Xue. However, due to pressure from the Golden Sun Sect, the Ghost King had no choice but to marry his daughter to Zhang Zhihang. Therefore, I can assert that Ao Xue is not marrying of her own free will today."
"What I want to know is, will Long Ao come today?"
Guan Feng didn't actually care about Long Ao himself. He only cared about one thing: the messier today's wedding, the better. As long as the Golden Sun Sect and the Ghost King Sect became enemies, his Blood Sea Sect could swoop in and reap the rewards.
Guan Feng was already aware of Long Ao's recent activities.
"Sect Leader, I'm afraid Long Ao will not be coming today. First, Long Ao is a smart man. He certainly knows the gap in power between himself and the Golden Sun Sect, not to mention the Ghost King Sect. He won't come just to throw his life away. Second, the Ghost King Sect has already sent experts to block the entrance, so even if Long Ao did come, he likely wouldn't be able to get up here."
"Oh?"
"Sect Leader, it seems both the Ghost King and Zhang Mo want this wedding to conclude without a hitch."
"Without a hitch?"
A sinister smile crept across Guan Feng's face. The two spoke no more, because the wedding ceremony had officially begun.
"Brother Ao, will you preside?"
Waving his hand, Ao Tian smiled and said, "Brother Zhang, you're too kind. It should be you."
Watching the two old foxes defer to one another, the people around them felt an acute sense of exasperation. The two were clearly nursing their own ulterior motives, yet on the surface, they acted like the dearest of friends.
"In that case, Brother Ao, I won't refuse."
Zhang Mo stood up and walked over to Ao Xue and Zhang Zhihang. He gave his son a deep look, his meaning perfectly clear.
"Ao Xue, are you happy today?"
THUD. Hearing his son's words, Zhang Mo nearly face-planted on the ground. 'What in the world is wrong with my son today?'
Others might not know, but how could his own son not know?
Ao Xue's heart wasn't with him at all. Asking such a question was as absurd as a sane person asking an idiot, "Are you sane?"
Shooting his son a vicious glare, terrified he might say something else stupid, Zhang Mo forced a smile and said, "My son and Ao Xue are getting married today, and I couldn't be happier. Therefore, I will now personally preside over the wedding."
"Brother Zhang, hold the wedding for a moment. I have a few words to say."
Zhang Mo, who was just about to preside over the wedding, heard Guan Feng's words and his expression instantly darkened. Even Ghost King Ao Tian's face looked grim. The wedding was about to begin, and for Guan Feng, the Sect Leader of the Blood Sea Sect, to interrupt like this was a clear attempt to stir up trouble.
If it were just the Ghost King Sect or the Golden Sun Sect alone, it wouldn't be a huge deal for the Blood Sea Sect to cause some trouble. After all, strictly speaking, the strengths of the Six Great Sects were all quite similar. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been rivals for so many years without a clear victor emerging.
Under normal circumstances, if Guan Feng had dared to act this way, Zhang Mo and Ao Tian would have exploded in anger long ago. But they couldn't now. The wedding hadn't officially started, and both of them knew very well that Guan Feng had calculated this exact point, which was why he was so bold.
Precisely because of this, Zhang Mo suppressed the fury in his heart and asked coldly, "I wonder what Brother Guan has to say? If it's nothing important, perhaps you could wait until after the wedding is over. How about it?"
Waving his hand dismissively, Guan Feng, who had clearly come to find fault, wasn't about to wait until the wedding was over. He said, "I think now is the perfect time. Brother Zhang, I'd like to ask you: that Venerable Golden Core we acquired together not long ago, what are your plans for it?"