Chapter 40: The Weaker Five Sects

“Is that Walter Yates?" Titus looked at the drunkard lying on the ground in surprise. He had planned to help Raelyn find her father after emerging from the Broken Blade Cave Mansion, but unexpectedly encountered him here at the South Figaro Martial Hall. "Do you know him, Xenos?" Russell asked. "I've heard of him." Titus casually replied and then asked Russell, "Has he been staying in the South Figaro Martial Hall this whole time?" "He has been here in the South Figaro Martial Hall for sixteen years; you can always find him here," Russell answered. Titus nodded slightly and then continued walking with Russell and the others. As for Walter, he would bring Raelyn to meet him after coming out of the Broken Blade Cave Mansion. At a cliff, several people had already gathered. Titus recognized the leader as Nico Yost, a personal disciple of the Northern Mysterious Sect. He was extremely famous among the younger generation of the five major Sects in the east and was known as the number one among the younger generation. Aside from Nico, Titus also saw the top disciples of the Icy Heart Sect, Skynet Sect, and Raging Wave Valley among them. In the past, these individuals were all figures Titus looked up to, as they stood at the peak of the five major Sects in the east. When they saw Titus, the people from Skynet Sect seemed a bit uneasy, some even silently lowering their heads, not daring to look directly at him. “Xenos," Nico greeted with a smile and a bow. “Xenos." The others also bowed in respect, especially those top disciples from the Icy Heart Sect and others, who all greeted Titus with a bow. After all, the prowess Titus had previously demonstrated had surpassed that of top disciples, warranting their respect. "Get out of the way!" "Move aside, don't block the path." A series of angry shouts came from behind, as a group of young men and women dressed in South Figaro Martial Hall robes strode forward. The leader was a young woman in golden scale armor, beautiful in appearance with a well-proportioned figure, but her eyebrows were filled with arrogance. Nico and the others noticed the silver order insignia on the collar of the golden scale armor. Aside from her, two others also had the same silver order insignia. Silver order members... The disciples of the five Sects instinctively stepped aside. "A bunch of Sect trash, also dreaming of entering the Blade King Cave Mansion for opportunities? I advise you to stay far away, and don't let me see you inside," said the bald man with a silver order insignia on the left, coldly. "What's there to be arrogant about? In a few years, when we grow stronger, we won't be inferior to you," a tall and thin disciple from the Northern Mysterious Sect muttered. Suddenly, the bald man stopped, his cold gaze sweeping over Nico and the others. "Who just spoke? Stand out now!" the bald man demanded sternly. "It was me," the tall and thin disciple from the Northern Mysterious Sect said, standing up bravely. "I'll give you a chance to live, cripple one of your arms," the bald man said coldly, looking at the tall and thin disciple. "My junior brother is ignorant, I hope senior won't hold it against him," Nico stepped forward and said. "Don't waste time on these worthless people," the golden scale armor girl turned her head and said to the bald man. The bald man nodded and then looked at Nico and the others with a somber expression, "You're from the Northern Mysterious Sect, right? I'll remember this. Don't let me see you inside." Thud! The bald man stomped on the ground, and a loud noise followed. The solid ground cracked under his foot, spreading out like a spider web. Nico and the others looked serious. The ground was compressed granite, which they could also break, but they would have to use their full strength to do so. The bald man did it with a casual stomp, reaching such an effect. Nico's expression tightened, and the tall and thin disciple turned pale, obviously not expecting the bald man's strength to be so terrifying. After the group left, the disciples of the five Sects finally breathed a sigh of relief. Some were even soaked in cold sweat, clearly not expecting the silver order members to be so powerful. "Don't be discouraged. They are locals from Xanth City, selected from the top young Martial Cultivators since childhood. As long as we work hard, we will catch up with them eventually," Russell said. Hearing this, the faces of the disciples from the five Sects recovered a bit, some secretly swearing that they might not be comparable now, but as long as they worked hard, they would catch up in the future. Nico and Russell saw the expressions of these disciples and felt a sense of helplessness in their eyes. Perhaps they, as top disciples, might catch up in the future, but for the other disciples, it might be impossible in their lifetimes. "Don't the five major Sects send disciples to the South Figaro Martial Hall every two years? Don't you have seniors or Senior Sisters to lead you?" Titus asked Nico. Nico and Russell exchanged glances and couldn't help but smile bitterly. “Xenos, the seniors and Senior Sisters from our five Sects who can stay in the South Figaro Martial Hall are basically at the bottom. To be honest, their strength might not even be stronger than ours. As for those top seniors and Senior Sisters, they have been squeezed out long ago, and many have already returned to the Sect," Russell sighed. "In the eyes of the Xanth City forces, our eastern five Sects are just remote Sects and are not recognized by Xanth City. Moreover, every two years, the five Sects send a batch of disciples to the South Figaro Martial Hall. To put it bluntly, we are seen as outsiders, so they try their best to squeeze us out," Nico added. "We didn't have much hope when we entered the South Figaro Martial Hall. We just need to complete three months of cultivation. If we can stay, we stay; if not, we return to the Sect," Nico said with a smile, but his smile was full of bitterness. In the five Sects, Nico was the top figure among the younger generation, even more famous than the original Chloe. But in the South Figaro Martial Hall, he became an inconspicuous character. It's not that Nico didn't want to rise to prominence; he simply couldn't. The South Figaro Martial Hall had too many top Martial Cultivators, and even a random silver order Martial Cultivator was not much weaker than him. And that was just the silver order, not to mention the gold order, and the even more elusive purple-gold order members. “Xenos, we really envy you, daring to confront a gold order member head-on, never showing weakness even in defeat. If I could be like you, that would be great. But alas, I bear the responsibility of the Sect..." Nico said. This was heartfelt. He indeed envied Titus for being able to act freely and spontaneously, not like them, living so restrained and having to consider so many consequences. Titus didn't respond, but what Nico said was somewhat true. Titus didn't have many entanglements or restrictions from the Sect. Titus secretly felt fortunate. Thankfully, the Skynet Sect hadn't kept him; otherwise, he might have ended up like Nico, considering the interests of the Sect. "Let's not talk about this anymore, let's go in," Russell said. "Yes," Nico nodded.