Although the Innermost City of the Shang Clan was known for being highly practical, clearly no expense had been spared in the arrangement of this banquet. Food from all over the Southern Border was piled atop the elegant tables, putting any other restaurant within the city to shame. The soft fragrance of the meal permeated throughout the vast courtyard, its mouth-watering scent beckoning every single taste bud and tickling every single nose in the vicinity.
It was not odd for Shang Yan Fei to host such dinners for major events. However, there was no such thing scheduled, which puzzled all the guests gathered there, including all ten of the current Young Masters of the Shang Clan. The evaluation was not due for several months, and all of them were scrambling to try not to be the last in line and lose their position.
The two most prominent guests there were Bai Ning Bing and Fang Yuan. Bai Ning Bing first for her appearance and secondly for her Rank 4 Gu Master cultivation; Fang Yuan for his Rank Five cultivation. Also, they were not known figures of influence within the Shang Clan like Wei Yang. Many of the young masters wondered why these two were here. Not only were these two given seats at the table, their seats were closer to their father's than their own!
For Fang Yuan, it could be inferred that their father was inviting him to be an external elder of the clan. The same might be true for Bai Ning Bing. However, Shang Yan Fei would not have invited an ordinary Rank Four external elder to a banquet like this, so there was definitely something more going on.
Another explanation was that they had the clues to some kind of inheritance. A Rank Five inheritance was somewhat profitable to an ordinary Rank Five Gu Master but would be unlikely to sway the mind of the Shang Clan Head unless it was truly spectacular. Not that such a thing was impossible, but if it was an inheritance, it more than not had to be at least Rank Six to draw his attention.
The third, and least likely, possibility some of them felt was that these two were illegitimate children of their father, in which case several of the young masters could definitely say goodbye to their own positions. How could they compete with a Rank Five and a Rank Four Gu Master? But they all thought this scenario was unlikely.
Bai Ning Bing, despite trying to appear confident, was inwardly worried. Why exactly had the Shang Clan leader summoned them here? She still had not been able to figure it out, despite all the time she had spent traveling around the city with their guide. Fang Yuan seemed relaxed as always, but as far as she knew, this was just a mask he was wearing.
Soon enough, the main host, Shang Yan Fei himself walked in. His Rank Five Middle Stage cultivation was apparent, putting Fang Yuan's Rank Five Initial Stage cultivation which would be legendary elsewhere into perspective. Not that Shang Yan Fei did anything to suggest Fang Yuan was any inferior to him. On the contrary, he greeted Fang Yuan first, even before turning to his own family and then Bai Ning Bing.
He ordered a toast to these two guests and no one at the table dared refuse.
"Thank you for being here, Gu Yue Fang Yuan," Shang Yan Fei said. "I'm sorry about the events of the past few days, but you have to understand. I was interested in meeting with you, and when you're in my position, time is a luxury that is worth far more than any number of primeval stones depending on the circumstances."
"Of course, of course. I understand completely," Fang Yuan replied, nodding.
This dialogue shocked a few of the guests, yet none of them let it show as they silently wondered what was going on. The meal continued for a while before Shang Yan Fei said, "Now, I'm sure all of you have wondered why I've gathered you here. The thing is that there's someone I would like to introduce to all of you." He pointed to a conspicuously absent seat right next to him as someone walked into the courtyard.
He waved his hand and Shang Xin Ci entered, followed closely by her maid, who dogged alongside her. She was dressed up in the manner of a Shang Clan Young Master, a '1' evident on the plate wrapped around her waist.
Bai Ning Bing immediately glanced between her and Fang Yuan, wondering what on earth was going on. However, even Fang Yuan seemed surprised and taken aback by her appearance.
"To see you again, Shang Xin Ci, heaven is truly kind," Fang Yuan said. "However, I didn't think that we would meet each other like this."
"Neither did I," Shang Xin Ci said, lightly flushing. She also had not expected to be reunited with Fang Yuan in this manner. Before, she had thought that her only real hope of reaching out to Fang Yuan was if she built a massive business empire worthy of his notice. That was mostly a pipe dream, given that with her aptitude, she could not advance much further than Rank Two. But it was still something that she could hope for in the depths of her heart. Now, though, after having been acknowledged as the daughter of the Shang Clan Head, the two of them could speak- perhaps not on equal terms, but they could speak nonetheless.
"Actually, there's something that she has to tell all of you," Shang Yan Fei announced. "This girl- well, she is not an ordinary girl. In truth, she is my daughter, Shang Xin Ci."
Fang Yuan's eyes widened, and his mouth nearly fell open. "Oh, this is so unexpected! Shang Xin Ci, you're actually the Shang Clan Head's daughter? I never could have imagined!"
Bai Ning Bing, however, was not fooled by this act. She immediately knew that something was afoot. How had Fang Yuan figured this connection out? He must have known. That was why he had been so kind and generous towards her.
Bai Ning Bing was not fooled by Fang Yuan's reputation as a righteous Gu Master, and she knew just how much of a scoundrel he was. Anything good that he did was simply to line his own pockets or to maintain his reputation so that he could do something wicked in the future. It would make perfect sense for him to help this girl if he knew that she was the Shang Clan Head's daughter.
'Could he have used a Blood Path Gu worm?' Bai Ning Bing wondered. Although she didn't know the full extent of it, Fang Yuan, as well as the first-generation Gu Yue ancestor, had access to some Blood Path methods. There could be a way that he had sensed this connection, but for that, he would have needed the blood of the Shang Clan Head or one of his other children. Where would he have gotten something like that? Or had he figured it out through the same way he'd gotten wind of the Bei Gu Mountain Inheritance? Were those two things linked, or not?
Or did he have some kind of predictive gu worm on him? There were such gu worms that could let one anticipate future events with some certainty, though as far as she knew there was always a margin for error there.
She felt a massive headache coming on, trying to piece all of these things together. Fang Yuan's lofty image, already firmly established from his superior cultivation, suddenly became all the more dangerous in her eyes!