Chapter 607 - 588: Banquet

The three of them looked at each other in confusion. Luo Shan suddenly asked, "What’s his name?"

"Wang Meng."

Su Xueyou remembered that name clearly. It was certainly an easy one to remember.

Wang Meng?

’Since when did the dynasty produce such a young Spirit Control Genius?’

Wang Meng returned to the Jiang Mansion, leisurely had a meal, and then began to try Borrowing Spirit.

A stream of his Primordial Spirit poured into the Spirit Containing Artifact. The Array, formed by thirty-six Magic Pattern channels, began to activate.

Wang Meng felt a pure stream of Fire Element True Essence being drawn from the wristguard and merging into his body. His attributeless Life Wheel immediately began to spin, and the Spirit Waves generated by the Wang Family’s ultimate technique, the Merak Fire Cloud Technique, were turbulent and powerful.

The power of having an attribute versus not having one was indeed different. Wang Meng wasn’t particularly concerned about the increase in True Essence from Borrowing Spirit, but the attribute it provided was very useful.

The extent of Borrowing Spirit depended on both the Spirit Containing Artifact and the strength of one’s own Heart Spirit. Wang Meng’s Heart Spirit was naturally domineering and unmatched. If his body were to recover and his Primordial Spirit were nourished back to its peak state, he would be heaven-defying as always. For now, handling something like Borrowing Spirit was merely child’s play.

After absorbing a certain amount, Wang Meng cut off the supply of Fire Spiritual Power from the wristguard and began trying to generate Fire Attribute True Essence within his own body...

At first, it went smoothly. The Life Wheel’s inertia produced some Fire Element True Essence. However... very quickly, the attributeless True Essence began to encroach, and before long, the Five Elements Flame was forcibly devoured by his body.

Failure...

Wang Meng stopped his Cultivation Technique and stroked his chin. ’This really is a heaven-defying problem. It seems I’ve underestimated the Dao Laws. If I could break them so easily, it would be a bit too simple.’

’It seems Borrowing Spirit allows me to use Five Elements Power, but it can’t remain in my body.’

’But then again... this still solves the safety issue. For me, all I need are True Essence Beasts that can match my strength, and I can recover my power.’

’It seems this is the primary law of this plane. While it doesn’t perfectly solve the problem of my missing Five Elements, it’s at least a viable method.’

’Worst case scenario, even if I can’t complete the Five Elements, I’ll just find five of the strongest True Essence Beasts. As long as they can support the power of my Primordial Spirit, I can still challenge the laws.’

All in all, Master Wang was still very confident in himself.

A single Fourth-Grade Fire Rabbit contained a considerable amount of Fire Attribute, but it was still a bit lacking for Wang Meng’s immense needs. Plus, it required time to recover. Generally, Borrowing Spirit was used to borrow True Essence; it was rare for someone like Wang Meng to need the Five Elements themselves.

With nothing else to do, Wang Meng diligently focused on his cultivation. Borrowing Spirit had provided a preliminary solution to his problem; now, the important thing was to raise his cultivation level.

A man is made of iron, and his food is steel. Without True Essence, everything was pointless.

Although his progress was slow, it was actually much faster than when he was in the mortal realm.

It had to be said that, deep down, Wang Meng was the type of person who liked to stir up trouble for himself.

This, however, made life difficult for Pang Hong of the Divine Artifact Pavilion... He had turned all of Wang City upside down but still hadn’t found anyone named Wang Meng. Although his own master told him to stop looking, he... he had accepted a fee from a Master! It was blatant robbery. If he wanted to continue in his profession, he had to quickly make up for this grave error... this blunder!

The Spirit Control Association was also looking for him. Based on their information, this strange young man didn’t seem to be a disciple of the Association. If they could find him, then with him and Muhe Xiaoyu, it was entirely possible for the Wang City Spirit Control Association to break into the top five of the Great Zhou!

But everyone came up empty-handed. In truth, Pang Hong had even gone to the Jiang Family to search. Among the Guests affiliated with the Jiang Family, there were quite a few with the surname Wang, as it was a common name. However, Pang Hong never bothered to check on "Wang Rencai." Everyone knew that Wang Rencai from Haojing was a natural-born piece of trash. How could a busy, great Artifact Refiner like Pang Hong have time to see him? The "Master" who called himself "Wang Meng"... Since Chairman Yang Qi regarded him as a Master, there was no way he could be Wang Rencai.

If the Wang Family had such a disciple, his name would have long since shaken the Capital City. They would have to be insane to send him to a place like this.

Poor Pang Hong...

「Two days later.」

Early in the morning, the Jiang Mansion began to celebrate with great fanfare, hanging lanterns and colorful decorations. Today was the birthday of the Jiang Family’s eldest young lady, Jiang Biyao.

The Jiang Mansion had started preparing for this day a full week ago—though of course, the planning had begun a month prior. All affairs were carried out in an orderly fashion. By noon, the entire Jiang Mansion was a sea of jubilation, filled to the brim with distinguished guests. In the main courtyard, an endless banquet was being served, table after table. Not only did the wealthy and influential merchants of Wang City have seats, but even strangers could come, offer their congratulations, wish Miss Jiang a happy birthday, and enjoy a full meal. Before leaving, they were even given a small gift...

This was, in fact, a way to display the Jiang Family’s prestige. How else could they show that they were the most prominent family in Wang City?

But the daytime festivities were just for the common folk to enjoy. Not a single person of true status had appeared.

The sun sank in the west, and a crescent moon, like a wide grin, rose in the sky.

The public banquet in the Jiang Mansion’s courtyard was cleared away. The stewards announced that the feast would continue tomorrow as they politely escorted the common guests out of the mansion. Maidservants cleaned with the utmost care, and the Guests who knew Magic all pitched in, tidying the estate under the night sky until it was spotless. Colorful lanterns linked the eaves, and a thin mist drifted through the courtyard. Squinting, one might think they were gazing upon a place as ethereal as the fabled Immortal Realm.

In a moment, a completely different kind of banquet, one unlike the daytime feast, was set up in the courtyard, which was lit as bright as day by the colorful lanterns.

As the moon rose above the treetops, the honored guests began to arrive.

Jiang Shiqing, leading his daughter Jiang Biyao, personally stood at the entrance to greet them. "Haha, Brother Zhe, welcome, welcome! Please, come inside and take a seat!"

"Hehe, Niece Jiang is getting more and more beautiful. Younger Brother Jiang, you truly are a lucky man!" The Zhe Family Patriarch, Zhe Tiange, was very courteous. Standing behind him, Zhe Wulei watched Jiang Biyao with a smile.

In truth, the birthday banquet was just a pretext. With the recent turmoil brewing in Wang City, it was also an opportunity for the families to probe one another.

"Not at all, Brother Zhe, you’re the lucky one... Your worthy nephew is so handsome and talented. None of my sons can compare to him..." Jiang Shiqing said with a laugh. The Zhe Family’s attitude was very important.

"I hear the young master from the Haojing Royal Family is also here. Why not introduce us?" Zhe Tiange chuckled. It would be a lie to say he didn’t have his own designs. However, given the current situation of their two families, cooperation was necessary regardless of whether the younger generation’s affair worked out. This was just a way to gain a bit of an upper hand.

"You must be joking, my brother. I’m just looking after him as a favor to a friend. The rumors aren’t credible, not at all."

Jiang Shiqing said. This was something he could never admit openly.

"Hehe, I knew it. How could your wise and beautiful niece... Haha, let’s not talk about it, let’s not talk about it."

"Please, come inside."

They were all perceptive people; a hint was all that was needed.

Guests arrived one after another. The older generation simply made an appearance before heading to the inner hall to discuss important matters, while the younger generation remained outside, laughing and chatting. This was their stage.

Master Wang had, of course, arrived. To be precise, he was among the first to get there. It was just that no one paid him any mind, nor did anyone want to get to know him. At most, they would point at him from a distance. And Master Wang was happy to be left alone, hiding in a corner and feasting. After several days of closed-door cultivation, he was actually a bit hungry.

His current body was that of a mere mortal and needed nourishment. Not to mention, after the last few days of tempering, the "Little White Face" had started to develop some sharper features.

Of course, the most special thing about him was his eyes. Wang Meng’s gaze had now mostly recovered its former intensity, and the frivolous look that used to belong to Wang Rencai was gone.

However, only Wan’Er seemed to notice those charming, electric eyes, which made the little maid blush from time to time. When others looked at Wang Meng, all they saw was Wang Rencai’s legendary "weirdo" aura.

"Alchemist Wu of the Pill Immortal Alliance has arrived~~~!"

Just then, the usher at the gate let out a high-pitched, imposing cry. This was both to give face to the arriving guest and to proclaim the prestige of the host family.

"Wu Yuan of the Pill Immortal Alliance is here!"

"It really is him! I heard that when Wu Yuan changed his plans and decided to stay with the Wang City Pill Immortal Alliance, the Chairman in Yanjing City nearly fainted from anger. They say he even came to blows with our Chairman on the spot."

"Is he really that impressive?"

"They say his talent as a Pill Cultivator is easily in the top ten of the younger generation. His future is limitless."

"Even a hero finds it hard to resist a beauty. Wu Yuan stayed behind for Jiang Biyao, hehe..."

"’A fair lady is a good match for a gentleman,’ as they say. Nothing more than that. But beauties can also bring disaster, hehe. Jiang Shiqing was waiting for the highest bidder, but he got schemed against by the Kun Family and ended up marrying his daughter off to a useless, abandoned son of the Haojing Royal Family."

"Tch, that move by the Kun Family was truly a masterstroke, meant to drive a wedge between the Jiang and Zhe Families. But I don’t think it’s going to work anymore. That toad can stop dreaming about eating swan meat."

"Shh, keep your voice down!"

When a member of the older generation arrived, Jiang Shiqing would certainly come out to greet them. As for someone like Wu Yuan, despite his special status, he was only received by the Jiang Family’s younger generation, his peers.

Jiang Shiqing certainly welcomed Wu Yuan. His presence would force the Zhe Family to concede some ground. It was clear that Zhe Wulei genuinely liked his daughter.

Young people are always willing to sacrifice for love. All in all, Jiang Shiqing still held the upper hand.

Zhe Wulei was a formidable character in his own right. When he learned that Wu Yuan had arrived, he didn’t shrink back. Instead, he joined the Jiang brothers to greet his love rival.

Zhe Wulei was an interesting person. Like his father, the members of the Zhe Family all had a certain poetic flair about them. Although they were rivals in love, Wu Yuan was a rival whom Zhe Wulei acknowledged.

This was completely different from a bastard like Kun Yaoyang. On this point, Wu Yuan felt the same.

The two of them might be competing, but they would do so based on their own merits. They wouldn’t—and disdained to—resort to shameless tricks.

When Wu Yuan first came to Wang City, he frankly didn’t think much of its people. But as he came to understand the city better over this period, he gradually changed his opinion. At the very least, Zhe Wulei and Kun Yaoyang were quite capable. And even across the entire Great Zhou, you couldn’t ignore Mulholland Drive and Muhe Xiaoyu of the Muhe Family.

And of course, that went without saying for Jiang Biyao. He had fallen for her at first sight and was convinced that she was the one for him.

"Brother Zhe, you’ve arrived quite early," Wu Yuan said.

"Hehe, our two families have been friends for generations."

Jiang Jiehuan sized up his two potential future brothers-in-law. He preferred Wu Yuan’s personality; he was free-spirited and less formal.

"I hear a big shot from Haojing has arrived. I haven’t seen him yet. I wonder if he’s here today?"