Chapter 15: The clan’s gathering.

Chapter 15: Chapter 15: The clan’s gathering.

The following morning soon arrived, as the first rays of sunlight emerged over the distant horizon. A faint golden glow spread across the sky, slowly illuminating the silent Chen Family residence that was situated at the foot of the mountain.

The darkness of the night gradually receded away, replaced by the warmth of the rising sun. It was still early, yet the usual silence was broken by the hurried footsteps of the clan members.

Over the peaceful courtyard in front of the main hall, it was already beginning to grow lively. One after another, members of the Chen Family emerged from their residences and made their way toward the gathering area.

"Do you know why the Patriarch suddenly summoned everyone?"

Several young clan members hurried along the stone path, their expressions filled with curiosity as they discussed the matter along the way.

"I don’t know. I only heard that it seemed to be related to the Third Elder."

"The Third Elder?"

The others immediately exchanged glances, "Could it be related to what happened yesterday?"

"Perhaps, but I can’t say for sure."

One of them lowered his voice slightly, "But if it were something important, wouldn’t the Patriarch have told us already?"

"Then what could it be?"

The group fell silent and none of them had an answer for this question. The summons had come suddenly early this morning, and no explanation had been given. All they knew was that every member of the family had been ordered to gather before the main hall.

Their curiosity grew as they continued along the stone path.

"We’re almost there."

The clan member at the front pointed ahead as the faint outline of a huge building appeared in the distance.

The main hall had already come into view. The group quickly hurried their pace, and before long, they arrived at the vast gathering area in front of the hall.

Their footsteps gradually slowed as they looked ahead.

The spacious courtyard stretched before them under the slowly rising morning sun, its entire ground paved with smooth white stone.

And over the scene, numerous clan members had already gathered across the open space, with some standing in small groups while quietly discussing among themselves.

More figures continued to arrive from the surrounding residences. Men and women of varied ages could be seen throughout the courtyard, including several younger members who rarely participated in gatherings of this scale.

Looking at the vast number of people already present at the scene, one of the young clan members couldn’t help but mutter, "So many people."

"It seems almost everyone is here."

The others nodded, and they soon found a place among the gathering and settled down, their eyes occasionally drifting toward the entrance of the main hall.

None of them knew what was about to happen.

As more members of the family arrived, the courtyard gradually became noisier. Their conversations overlapped with one another, though most remained centered around the same question.

Some of the older members of the clan stood together in small groups, speaking quietly among themselves, while the younger members were noticeably less restrained.

Every now and then, someone’s gaze would drift toward the entrance of the main hall.

Still, no one came out. After waiting some time, a young man close to the edge of the courtyard glanced around the gathering.

His eyes moved across the crowd before he frowned slightly, "Has anyone seen Yichen?"

The person beside him looked over, "Yichen? No."

"He’s usually one of the first to arrive for gatherings like this."

That attracted the attention of a few nearby members, "Perhaps he’s still cultivating."

"At this hour despite the order?"

Someone gave a quiet laugh, "Knowing him, that wouldn’t surprise me."

Their conversation soon shifted naturally to the other two names, "What about Yuexin and Minghao? I haven’t seen either of them either."

"They haven’t arrived either."

The young man who had spoken first looked towards the entrance, "That’s strange."

The three were among the most talented members of the younger generation of the clan, and because of that, their names were familiar to almost everyone in the family.

They were not necessarily the strongest, but they had consistently stood above the others in terms of cultivation talent among their peers.

Among them, Chen Yichen was perhaps the most well known, "Yichen should be here soon," another young man said.

"I heard he’s already reached the fifth layer of Qi Condensation realm."

"The fifth layer?"

"Didn’t you know?"

The young man shook his head.

"He broke through recently."

A few people exchanged glances.

That speed was impressive. Most of the younger members of the family were still struggling around the first few layers of Qi Condensation. Reaching the fifth layer at such a young age meant that Chen Yichen was well ahead of them by a large margin.

"His cultivation isn’t even the most impressive part."

The young man who had spoken earlier shook his head.

"Last month, there was a friendly match between the major cultivation families in the city. Yichen participated."

"Oh, I remember that."

Someone nearby immediately joined the conversation.

"Wasn’t that the one where he fought against someone from the Li Family?"

"That’s the one."

A faint smile appeared on the young man’s face.

"He practically dominated the entire match. The Li Family sent one of their better young members, but Yichen still defeated him without much difficulty."

"Wasn’t that person one layer above him?"

"Yes. He was already at the sixth layer of Qi Condensation."

Several of the surrounding clan members looked at one another.

Although the difference of a single layer might not seem significant to the older cultivators, among the younger members of the family, it was enough to create a noticeable gap in strength.

"Sixth layer..."

One of the younger members muttered quietly, "And Yichen was only at the fifth layer at that time. That’s insane."

The Chen and Li Families had never been particularly close, and whenever their younger members competed against one another, there was always some degree of rivalry involved. Because of that, Yichen’s victory had naturally become a topic of discussion within the family.

"Don’t forget about Yuexin and Minghao."

"That’s true. Yuexin’s cultivation isn’t any slower than his."

"And Minghao isn’t someone you can underestimate either."

The three had their own strengths, and although Yichen’s reputation was perhaps the most prominent at the moment, none of them had fallen far behind the others.

All three had reached the fifth layer of Qi Condensation realm already.

Among the young generation of the Chen Family, that alone was enough to place them well above most of their peers. While the clan members continued discussing them, another figure finally appeared at the entrance of the courtyard.

The young man walking toward them wore a calm expression, his long black hair tied neatly behind his head. He wore a dark blue robe that covered his tall, lean frame, and a sword hung naturally over his waist.

Several people recognized him almost immediately.

"Look, Yichen is here."

The surrounding conversation quieted as their attention shifted toward him. Chen Yichen seemed to notice their gazes that were directed at him, but he did not appear to be bothered by them.

His expression remained composed as he walked through the courtyard, occasionally nodding in acknowledgement to those he knew.

Not long after, another figure appeared along the same path. This time, it was a young woman.

Her long black hair rested gently behind her back, and she wore a pale-blue robe that gave her an elegant appearance. Her delicate features and calm demeanor immediately attracted the attention of several younger members.

"Yuexin has arrived too."

Chen Yuexin walked into the courtyard without paying much attention to the surrounding gazes. Her cultivation was also at the fifth layer of the Qi Condensation realm, and like Yichen, she was considered to be one of the most talented members of the clan’s younger generation.

A few people exchanged glances with each other.

"Then Minghao shouldn’t be far behind."

And as if responding to their words, a young man soon appeared further down the stone path. Unlike Yichen’s composed demeanor and Yuexin’s quiet elegance, Chen Minghao carried a cold, frosty expression over his face.

He walked with his hands behind his back, looking around the courtyard carefully for a second before taking a random direction into the crowd.

"There he is, the cold prince."

"All three are finally here."

With the arrival of the three prodigies, the attention of the younger members gradually returned toward the main hall. The three stood among the crowd, each carrying a different temperament, yet all sharing one thing in common.

Pride, arrogance, and talent.

Although the three had different personalities, these qualities had set them apart from the others. However, none of them seemed particularly concerned about the opinions of the people around them.

Their arrival also seemed to signal that most of the clan had already been gathered here.

The conversations throughout the courtyard gradually became quieter. Then, movement came from the direction of the main hall.

Several figures stepped out from the entrance.

The change was subtle at first. A few clan members noticed them and stopped speaking among themselves.

Those standing nearby soon followed their gazes, and the quietness gradually spread through the courtyard as more people turned toward the main hall.

The elders had appeared, and at the front stood the Patriarch, Chen Haoran.

Behind him were the various elders of the Chen Family, all of whom had come out together. They walked toward the large platform situated directly in front of the main hall.

Unlike the courtyard below, the platform was elevated above the surrounding ground. There were no chairs nor decorations upon it, leaving the entire space open.

Almost immediately after the elders arrived, another round of discussion began to stir among the crowd, "All the elders are here."

"Even the Patriarch."

It was rare for almost every elder of the Chen Family to appear together before the entire clan unless something extremely big happened similar to what had happened the previous day.

And this realization caused several older-generation clan members to turn solemn.

The murmuring continued for several breaths before gradually fading into the air. The elders had already taken their positions upon the platform with Chen Haoran in the center.

Beside him was Qingxue.

Her sudden appearance naturally attracted a number of gazes from the clan members. Although most of them had heard about her, relatively few had actually spoken with her directly.

She was the current Patriarch’s main wife—and his only wife. Beyond that, there was not much the ordinary members of the family knew about her.

They only knew that she came from the capital. Because of her position beside Chen Haoran, she had naturally become someone of considerable importance within the family, even though she rarely appeared during ordinary clan affairs.

Several younger members quietly exchanged glances.

"That’s Madam Qingxue, right?"

"I think so."

"She’s really beautiful."

"Keep your voice down."

The whispers soon disappeared when Chen Haoran stepped forward.

He looked across the courtyard.

Thousands of eyes were now focused on him.

The usually noisy gathering became completely silent.

Chen Haoran waited until everyone’s attention had settled before finally speaking.

"Everyone."

His voice was not particularly loud, yet with spiritual energy subtly supporting it, it carried clearly across the entire courtyard.

"I believe most of you are wondering why you all have been summoned here this morning."

Several people nodded quietly.

Chen Haoran paused briefly before continuing.

"There are several matters that need to be announced today."

His gaze swept across the courtyard.

"First, regarding the position of the Third Elder."

The moment those words were spoken, the attention of several older clan members sharpened.

"The position of the Third Elder is now officially vacant."

A low murmur spread through the courtyard.

Although many had already expected this, hearing it formally announced still caused some discussion among the clan members.

After all, Chen Yuan had held the position for many years.

Now that he had been elevated to the position of Ancestor, the seat he had once occupied naturally had to be left behind.

Chen Haoran waited until the murmuring gradually subsided before continuing.

"From today onward, Chen Yuan will no longer serve as the Third Elder of the Chen Family."

His voice remained calm.

"Instead, he will officially assume the position of Ancestor."

The courtyard became quiet once again.

There was no great reaction from the clan members.

To most of them, the announcement merely gave an official title to something they had already accepted in their hearts.

Chen Yuan had always been treated with the respect reserved for an Ancestor, especially after everything that had happened recently. The change in title therefore felt natural rather than surprising.

Only a few of the older clan members remained focused on the matter.

Their attention was already turning toward the vacant position of Third Elder.

Who would take it?

Would the Patriarch choose one of the existing elders?

Or would another member of the family be promoted?

Those questions quietly passed through their minds, but none dared to ask them at this moment.

Chen Haoran continued before the discussion could develop further.

"However, that is not the main reason I have gathered everyone here today."

His words immediately drew the attention of the entire courtyard once more.

Even the three prodigies, who had shown little reaction to the previous announcement, raised their eyes toward the platform.

Chen Haoran looked across the countless faces before him.

"There is something else that the Ancestor wishes to announce."

He turned slightly toward the entrance of the main hall.

"The Ancestor has something to say."

The moment those words fell, the entire courtyard fell silent.

Countless gazes immediately shifted toward the entrance.

Even the older members who had been quietly wondering about the vacant position of Third Elder temporarily put those thoughts aside.

The three prodigies also looked toward the same direction.