The arrival of Sage Cangtu was unceremonious. He came alone, treading on air from the far reaches of the sky.
However, the dense aura of Law Power surrounding Sage Cangtu, which triggered celestial phenomena, was the grandest display of all.
For a ninth-tier being to personally visit, the Burning Flame Merchant Guild—or rather, the Kindling Organization—had to have an entity of equal standing to receive him.
Liu Feng, representing Kindling, personally welcomed Sage Cangtu.
Sage Cangtu's visit was an official one.
He had not founded any factions, being a solitary sage, but as a ninth-tier existence, his personal weight surpassed that of ordinary overlord factions.
As for why Sage Cangtu chose to visit Kindling at the Burning Flame Oasis instead of the Kindling Academy or Starfire City, it involved the core and gateway of powerful forces, and their relationship.
The core of Starfall City was its Royal City, far grander than Star Brilliance Fortress, but Starfall Royal City was not open to outsiders. Only citizens of Starfall City could enter.
The situations in the Ancient Moon Dynasty, the Crimson Lotus Empire, and the Seven Nations of Cloud Radiance were largely similar.
Their capitals had been upgraded to ninth-level oases, but for receiving guests, holding meetings, and conducting commercial collaborations, these were often held in gateway cities.
This was related to security.
The core capitals of super oasis forces were typically not accessible to outsiders, and often their locations were hidden deep within ritual diagrams.
The last time Sages Baiyao and two others briefly visited Starfire City, it was a chance encounter.
Should Sage Baiyao visit Kindling in the future, he would also choose Burning Flame City, not Starfire City.
Countless such external super forces had formed delegations to visit Burning Flame City, but they were not visiting the Burning Flame Merchant Guild, but the Kindling Academy.
The name Burning Flame Merchant Guild was not widely known. It was heard of in several tens of surrounding great domains, but not enough to attract guests from all directions.
However, if behind the Burning Flame Merchant Guild stood the Kindling Organization, which had recently gained fame and saved countless oases, then the situation was entirely different.
The Kindling Organization possessed great strength and great righteousness!
A large portion of the forces heading to Burning Flame City had benefited from the Kindling Organization and were specially here to express their gratitude. Naturally, establishing closer ties with Kindling would be even more auspicious.
The remaining portion were those with keen information, seeking to gain opportunities.
Yet, even these well-informed powerhouses, who knew that the Kindling Academy was far more than just a newly emergent overlord, were now somewhat dumbfounded.
"Is that Sage Cangtu?"
"This great existence has actually personally visited Burning Flame City? Is this faction, Kindling, more mysterious than we realize?"
"Is there a possibility that Sage Cangtu is simply a warm-hearted person who likes to mentor younger generations?"
Sage Cangtu was indeed a great human elder with a strong sense of justice and a very kind disposition.
During the Cataclysmic Tide, Sage Cangtu's early warning had significantly reduced losses for human forces.
However…
"While Sage Cangtu is warm-hearted, his movements are notoriously difficult to track. Many overlord factions have failed to invite him to visit their oases."
"It was only due to the disaster's impact that the Seven Nations of Cloud Radiance were able to invite Sage Cangtu to preside recently."
"However, as soon as the disaster ended, Sage Cangtu left the Water Overflow Nation. I never expected to see this great existence here today."
A myth exclaimed.
Many forces wanted to win him over, but none succeeded.
Yet today, Sage Cangtu had come to Burning Flame City.
This was big news!
Merchant guilds focused on information dissemination smelled a major story and were already preparing to write extensively about it.
Some myths, while surprised, also keenly spotted a crucial detail.
"Do you recognize the阁下 (ge xia - honored sir) who just welcomed Sage Cangtu? I somehow feel that Sage Cangtu and that阁下 were conversing very congenially..."
"Congenially? What's wrong with that?"
"No, it's not about congeniality, it's that... that very strange attitude, yes, the attitude. Sage Cangtu and that阁下 seemed to be communicating as equals!"
"I know that閣下; he is the Dean of Kindling Academy, a top-tier demigod, who once injured an evil god's attendant with a single sword strike. He's incredibly powerful."
But there was still a chasm between a demigod and a high-tier ninth-level being.
As long as one's innate talent was high enough and resources were invested without regard for cost, most geniuses had a chance to advance to demigod. However, high-tier was higher than the heavens, ethereal and elusive. Many demigods toiled for thousands of years without finding even a sliver of a path to high-tier.
No matter how powerful a demigod was, until they reached high-tier, it was difficult to be on equal footing with a high-tier being.
This was a difference in life's posture.
It was a difference in stature.
Could it be that...
"Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
"I have insider information that Elder Xiguang of the Ancient Moon Dynasty has obtained the inheritance of the Heavenly Pillar and has touched the threshold of high-tier, yet this閣下 has still not completed the path to high-tier. High-tier is not easily entered."
"But if that's not the case, why would Sage Cangtu personally visit Burning Flame City?"
Sage Cangtu, who was the subject of everyone's discussion, was currently engaged in a profound discussion of the Great Dao with Liu Feng and Fang You.
He was astounded by their talent.
He had initially thought that Wan Dao Jian Shen Liu Feng's exceptional combat power stemmed from his unparalleled innate talent and incredibly profound foundation. But he had not expected that Liu Feng's mastery of Laws would also be so astonishingly deep.
How long had it been since Liu Feng advanced to high-tier? Two years? One year? Half a year?
In reality, it was less than half a year.
However, after advancing, Liu Feng had entered the 'Secret Realm of Time and Years' for nine years of arduous cultivation.
He had cultivated for nine years in the form of comprehending the Sword Law Stele.
His mastery of Laws had already advanced by leaps and bounds.
If his comprehension of the Law of Severing was a small pipe the thickness of a thumb before advancing to high-tier, then now it was at least a gently flowing stream of a meter in length.
He had also mastered multiple Laws, such as the Law of Sharpness, the Law of Flowing Light, and the Law of Convergence.
He could be considered an established ninth-tier being.
And mastery of Laws was merely one indicator affecting the combat power of a ninth-tier being. Foundation, skills... Liu Feng was still superior to Sage Cangtu in these aspects.
Sage Cangtu could only sigh at the rising tide pushing the waves.
Perhaps, it was only during special times, like the brink of the apocalypse, that such incredible prodigious talents would emerge.
When the apocalypse descends, heroes walk forth.
Fang Tutor, the founder of Kindling, naturally possessed even more profound mastery of Laws. Not only was his mastery profound, but he also grasped an incredibly broad range of Laws.
Sword, Lightning, Fire, Wood...
During their discussion, Fang Tutor touched upon dozens of Laws, encompassing multiple major systems, and his mastery in each was quite impressive.
This was utterly preposterous.
It was clear that these were not the primary cultivation systems of this Fang Tutor.
Only peak individuals with a high-level perspective would have the leisure to cultivate their non-primary systems of Laws to such a profound level.
Could this truly be something humans could achieve?
However, Sage Cangtu thought again. If Liu Feng, a newly advanced high-tier being, possessed such considerable mastery of Laws, then it was normal for Fang Tutor, a founder of Kindling and a senior who had immersed himself in the ninth-tier for who knows how many years, to have such mastery of Laws.
It was simply awesome.
Little did he know that Fang Tutor had been in the ninth-tier for a much shorter time than Liu Feng.
However, his comprehension of Laws surpassed that of Liu Feng and Chi Yan.
This was not due to his exceptionally high comprehension.
Fang You considered his own comprehension to be at the level of a top-tier genius, not extraordinary.
His advantage lay in his skills.
When abilities and skills are cultivated to a profound level, they assist in touching upon the Laws.
A high-tier being skilled in using fire-element abilities would most easily comprehend Laws related to flame.
These abilities were like bridges, allowing one to communicate with Laws and shorten the distance to them.
The more profound the ability cultivation and the higher the quality of the ability, the higher this bridge could extend, like a ladder reaching directly to the heavens.
And now, many of the skills Fang Tutor had learned were of 'Legendary Lv3' quality.
They could be considered divine abilities.
Even if he didn't understand the Laws, just by using his skills, he could subtly cause ripples in the Laws. Practicing and comprehending Laws using these skills as bridges, how could his progress not be rapid?
Sage Cangtu did not need to question life; it was simply because he had cheated.
...
The personal visit of Sage Cangtu was like a storm, rapidly spreading outwards from Burning Flame City to the surrounding great domains.
More and more forces learned about Burning Flame City, located in the outer edge great domains, and the relationship between the Burning Flame Merchant Guild and the Kindling Academy.
"Edge great domain?"
"An edge great domain can operate a ninth-level oasis? That's too absurd!"
"Sage Cangtu personally visited the Starfall Great Domain, is there any doubt about it! Remember, it was a personal visit, not a divine descent avatar."
"Let's form a group and head to the Starfall Great Domain."
"Group trip +1!"
The storm spread.
But just as people thought this was the peak of the storm, another great sage arrived at the Burning Flame Oasis.
Sage Baiyao! Sage Guanyue! Sage Jinhui!
Three sages arrived together!
Sage Beifeng of the Winterless Empire also arrived in the form of a Beifeng avatar, delivering the Winterless Empress's blessings.
The celestial phenomena of Laws shrouded the sky above Burning Flame City, casting myriad sights.
Inside the city, whether ordinary people or mythical beings, all looked up at the sky, their faces etched with shock that lingered long.
The sights witnessed in Burning Flame City these past few days were truly astounding!
They had come to the right place!
"So this is a ninth-tier sage!"
"So this is the power of Kindling, Ancient Moon, Crimson Lotus, and other overlords!"
"We humans are not weak!"
The evil god's disaster scene was terrifying, but the celestial phenomena caused by the sages were no less impressive.
The vast majority of mythical beings were also seeing sages descend for the first time. Their blood boiled, and their hearts were fervent.
This was, in fact, the goal of Sages Baiyao and the others.
Personally visiting Kindling not only showed their respect but also allowed them to display their power, instilling confidence in human forces across all domains.
After all, sages rarely appeared in the past and maintained extreme low profiles.
However, in the past, sages kept a low profile to avoid attracting the attention of evil god attendants.
Their high profile now was due to the unavoidable circumstances; they were taking the opportunity to boost the morale and faith of the human faction.
"We at Kindling have similar thoughts. We plan to publicly promote Burning Flame Oasis after some time."
"Promote it to a ninth-level oasis."
Fang Tutor added.
Burning Flame Oasis had reached its accumulation limit and could initiate the promotion tribulation at any time.
He had not promoted it earlier for fear of it coinciding with the Cataclysmic Tide. Once the Cataclysmic Tide descended, with malevolent spirits rampant, the promotion of Burning Flame Oasis might encounter a surge of malevolent spirits and high-tier malevolent beings several times greater than in normal times, and it might also attract the attention of evil god attendants.
At that time, Burning Flame City might be attacked by a dozen or even dozens of high-tier entities. Fang Tutor, no matter how confident, would not have dared to court such death.
Now, the Cataclysmic Tide had ended, making it a suitable time for promotion.
"Public promotion? Won't that be too dangerous?" Sage Baiyao couldn't help but ask.
"We are well-prepared."
Fang You understood the concerns of Sage Baiyao.
When an oasis faces the tribulation of promotion, it requires the unity of all its people and the strength of the entire oasis to overcome it. However, if there are too many people inside and outside the oasis, it might affect the defense deployment and troop allocation of the oasis.
If internal chaos were to occur during the promotion, it could lead to the collapse of the entire defense line.
A thousand-mile dam could be breached by an ant's nest.
When overlord factions promoted to ninth-level oases, they only sought a very small number of mythical and demigod external helpers, and generally did not hire ordinary mercenaries, fearing that it would affect military discipline.
No overlord faction had ever publicly broadcast the process of promoting to a ninth-level oasis for outsiders to observe.
Overlord factions dared not do so.
Even the Winterless Empire only compiled and sold some textual and graphical information.
Fang Tutor had his own considerations for Burning Flame City to publicly promote its advancement.
Burning Flame City was, in itself, a completely open commercial metropolis. The number of true Kindling members and Blue Star citizens within Burning Flame Oasis was actually quite small. The vast majority were awakened beings who had settled there from outside, and some ordinary people who had been rescued and migrated from smaller oases.
This nature determined that Burning Flame City would attract countless gazes during its promotion.
Unless, he temporarily dispersed the non-permanent residents within the oasis.
This was impossible and unnecessary.
Since that was the case, why not be open and generous? During the promotion, they could set up some high-altitude platforms for guests from all sides to observe and learn.
The Burning Flame Merchant Guild had extensive experience in this regard.
Previous resistances against the rampant tide of malevolent spirits had occurred when there were many residents and outsiders within and outside the oasis.
Moreover, public promotion could bring some additional benefits to Kindling...
"If necessary, we can provide assistance."
Sage Baiyao stated.
Fang Tutor nodded slightly.
But hiring external help was out of the question; hiring a ninth-tier external helper was extremely expensive, and they didn't need it.
Sage Baiyao stroked his beard, feeling a little regretful.
He had wanted to earn some extra income.
However, with the strength of the Kindling Organization, it was indeed sufficient to overcome the promotion tribulation on its own.
If Kindling could not do it, then no overlord faction could.
At that time, their Seven Star Alliance could also observe and learn from some of Kindling's methods... it was rumored that the Kindling Organization possessed advanced crystal cannon technology.
The group discussed the Great Dao of Laws and, on behalf of their respective factions, signed an alliance with the Kindling Organization.
One point brought joy to many mythical beings from overlord factions.
—A branch of the Kindling Academy would be established within Burning Flame City.
Many mythical beings immediately had the thought of sending their excellent juniors to the academy. The cultivation capabilities of the Kindling Organization were already evident.
This was an exciting development.
Another matter of great concern was the promotion tribulation of Burning Flame City.
It was scheduled for half a month later.
Time flew by, and half a month passed in a flash.
The atmosphere within Burning Flame City gradually became solemn.