“T-This… this is!” Bruno’s eyes went wide. The smile on his face locked up on the spot, and what replaced it was pure disbelief. The whole crowd around them erupted at once.
“Seven-colored light! That’s a Sovereign Bloodline!” “No way, right? A Sovereign Bloodline only shows up once in a hundred years. How could it appear in a young cultivator at High Immortal Realm Level Three?”
“My God, I’ve been cultivating for all these years, and this is the first time I’ve ever seen a Sovereign Bloodline!”
Jared pulled his hand back and looked at the Bloodrite Stone, a trace of surprise flashing through his eyes. His bloodline was the Golden Dragon Bloodline—the blood of a ruler among the Draconians. With that showing up as seven-colored light on the Bloodrite Stone, there really wasn’t anything strange about it. What caught him off guard was that the Hallowmere Order’s Bloodrite Stone could actually detect the traits of a Draconian Bloodline.
Bruno stood there blankly for a moment, then snapped back to himself. He hurried forward and bowed deeply to Jared. His tone turned respectful to the extreme. “This fellow adept… no, this Young Lord! I was blind and failed to see the mountain before me. I had no idea you carried a Sovereign Bloodline. I’ve been rude to you. Young Lord, please be generous and forgive it!”
Jared looked at him and said nothing.
Bruno quickly went on, “Young Lord, your Sovereign Bloodline is one in ten thousand. If you enter our Hallowmere Order, your future will be limitless. I’ll report this to the Vice Preceptor right now and ask him to receive you in person!”
Something shifted in Jared’s eyes. The Vice Preceptor is going to receive me personally? That was an opportunity. If he could get news about the Celestial Basilica from the Hallowmere Order’s Vice Preceptor, it would save him from searching all over the place himself.
“Fine,” he said lightly. Seeing this, Bruno lit up at once. He immediately ordered the person beside him, “Go report to the Vice Preceptor. Tell him a genius with a Sovereign Bloodline has arrived at our order, and ask him to come at once!”
A disciple accepted the order and hurried away. Bruno turned back to Jared. “Young Lord, this way please. Come rest inside the order for a bit. The Vice Preceptor will be here shortly.”
Jared nodded and followed Bruno out of town. The people watching stared after Jared’s departing back and kept talking among themselves. Some were full of envy, some couldn’t hide their jealousy, and some were already guessing where Jared had come from.
Outside Silverbrook, a towering mountain rose straight from the earth. Cloud and mist wrapped around its middle, and through it, buildings and the palace could be seen faintly. That was the mountain gate of the Hallowmere Order.
Jared followed Bruno all the way up the mountain, passed through layer after layer of wards, and arrived in front of an imposing great hall. A plaque hung above the doors, and three large characters were written across it: “Hallowmere Hall.”
Inside the hall, a middle-aged man sat upright in the seat of honor. He wore a white robe with golden lotus patterns embroidered at the hem. His face looked refined, and a mild smile rested at the corners of his mouth. A faint pressure spread from him, marking him clearly as a Top Level High Immortal Realm Level Nine cultivator.
When he saw Jared come in, he rose at once and walked down quickly to greet him. Smiling warmly, he said with open courtesy, “You must be the young friend with the Sovereign Bloodline, right?”
“Jared,” Jared said evenly.
“Jared… good name!” Vice Preceptor Vale nodded again and again. He lifted a hand in invitation. “Jared, please, sit. Someone bring tea!”
Jared took a seat on the guest side and let his gaze sweep across the hall. The hall was arranged with quiet elegance. Several landscape paintings hung on the walls. An incense burner sat on a table, and thin blue smoke curled up from it, carrying a faint fragrance through the room.
Vice Preceptor Vale returned to the seat of honor. His eyes settled on Jared, and the smile on his face never faded. “Jared, where did you study? Where do you come from? Your aura is steady and your spiritual power is pure. You must come from no ordinary background, right?”
Jared answered in the same calm tone. “I’m a wandering cultivator. No sect… no school.”
“A wandering cultivator?” A flicker of surprise passed through Vice Preceptor Vale’s eyes, and then his smile deepened. “A wandering cultivator with a bloodline like yours only makes it rarer… Jared, since you’ve come to our Hallowmere Order, that means fate brought you here.”
Jared looked at him and did not answer right away. Instead, he asked, “I’ve only just arrived in the Luminous Sanctuary, so I’m still unfamiliar with it. Vice Preceptor, what kind of order is the Hallowmere Order?”
Vice Preceptor Vale laughed. “Good question, Jared. Our Hallowmere Order is one of the orthodox sects of the Luminous Sanctuary. We’ve stood for a thousand years. We honor bloodlines above all, and we prove the Dao through the sacred communion…”
“The disciples in our order are all matched by bloodline and joined as cultivation partners so they can cultivate together and get twice the result with half the effort. With a Sovereign Bloodline like yours, you’ll definitely find a cultivation partner later whose bloodline is just as outstanding. The two of you can advance together through dual cultivation, and the Great Dao will be within reach!”
