“Song Lin doesn’t belong to any of our eight factions. He’s directly under the Heavenly God Palace. After the great war ended, he didn’t establish any faction of his own,” Emperor Huoyun said.
“Eight factions? Master, what does that mean?” Lin Yun asked, puzzled.
“I was just getting to that. The Heavenly God Palace is divided into eight factions: the four great empires—Huoyun Empire, Tianqian Empire, Xingwu Empire, and Kunhua Empire, which you’re familiar with—plus Shadow Hall, Moonlit Pavilion, Ziyuan Tavern, and Taigu Gate,” Emperor Huoyun explained.
Lin Yun hadn’t had much contact with Shadow Hall or Taigu Gate.
As for Moonlit Pavilion and Ziyuan Tavern, Lin Yun had long known of them, as their branches were scattered across every city in the four great empires.
Lin Yun had always found it odd that Moonlit Pavilion and Ziyuan Tavern could spread so widely and be tacitly accepted by the four empires.
He’d always sensed an air of mystery around them.
Now, he finally understood.
The master of Moonlit Pavilion ranked seventh on the Heavenly God List, and the master of Ziyuan Tavern was ninth, which spoke volumes.
“As for the eight factions I mentioned, take you, for example. You’re under my Huoyun Empire. As an immortal, you naturally belong to the Huoyun Empire faction within the Heavenly God Palace. If an immortal was nurtured by Moonlit Pavilion, they’d belong to that faction,” Emperor Huoyun clarified for Lin Yun.
Lin Yun nodded, now grasping the faction divisions within the Heavenly God Palace.
“Master, don’t all immortals belong to a faction?” Lin Yun asked.
“Of course not. Take Song Lin, fourth on the Heavenly God List. After the war with the demon race, he could’ve easily created his own faction, but he prefers to work alone and has no interest in forming one,” Emperor Huoyun said.
He continued, “There’s also Litian, twelfth on the Heavenly God List, and a small number of others who aren’t part of the eight factions. They’re directly under the Heavenly God Palace. But these are the minority. Most immortals in the Heavenly God Palace come from the major factions.”
Lin Yun nodded in understanding.
If a newly ascended immortal joined both the Heavenly God Palace and a faction, they could access resources from both, which was advantageous.
The Heavenly God Palace was relatively lax, having been founded to unite immortals against the demon race.
Thus, the palace didn’t mind these factions; in fact, they were encouraged, as they nurtured talent. Most immortals were cultivated by these factions.
“Master, how many immortals are in our Huoyun Empire lineage?” Lin Yun asked.
This was a closely guarded secret of the Huoyun Empire, unknown to Lin Yun before. Now, as an immortal, he had the right to know.
“Excluding me, the Huoyun Empire lineage has thirteen immortals. Seven are fully loyal to the empire, with the Dongguo family claiming two. The other six come from immortal families or forces within the Huoyun Empire, like the Kang clan, which has one immortal. You may not have interacted with them much. While they’re part of our lineage, they aren’t my direct subordinates,” Emperor Huoyun explained.
He looked at Lin Yun with a smile, “And now, we’ve added you as another immortal.”
Lin Yun felt more informed after his master’s explanation.
“Shadow Hall.”
Lin Yun glanced up at the Shadow Hall master, ranked fourth, and murmured the name.
The mention of Shadow Hall brought someone to mind.
Senior Sister Mo Qing!
Back in the Xingwu Empire, Mo Qing had been taken as a disciple by an immortal from Shadow Hall.
Lin Yun had never forgotten her, but he’d had no way of learning about her whereabouts. Over the years, Mo Qing seemed to have vanished.
Seeing Shadow Hall’s name again stirred Lin Yun’s emotions.
He was also shocked to learn that Shadow Hall’s master ranked so highly!
By that logic, Senior Sister Mo Qing must have fared well these years, right?
“I wonder where Mo Qing is now and how she’s doing,” Lin Yun sighed inwardly.
“You may not have dealt much with Shadow Hall, but it’s not to be underestimated,” Emperor Huoyun said.
“I understand,” Lin Yun replied.
Then, Lin Yun turned to Emperor Huoyun, “Master, if immortals have grudges and kill each other, what happens? Does the Heavenly God Palace intervene?”
“Grudges among immortals are common, but life-or-death conflicts are rare. Most immortals have factions behind them, and fighting can easily implicate those factions,” Emperor Huoyun explained.
He continued, “As for the Heavenly God Palace, in theory, it doesn’t interfere, as these are private matters. But if such conflicts arise, the palace usually mediates to prevent internal strife or factional wars.”
“I see,” Lin Yun replied.
At the same time, Lin Yun scanned the Heavenly God List again, searching for the name of Old Ancestor Xuyun’s enemy.
His gaze settled on the one hundred seventeenth rank.
One hundred seventeenth: Si Hongyi.
This was Old Ancestor Xuyun’s enemy.
Lin Yun knew that helping Xuyun take revenge would be troublesome.
“Disciple, any other questions?” Emperor Huoyun asked.
“Master, I’m currently last on the Heavenly God List. If I want to climb higher, do I challenge those ranked above me and move up if I win?” Lin Yun asked curiously.
Such rankings weren’t new to Lin Yun. Back in the Holy Temple and Heavenly Sword Sect, similar lists existed to motivate disciples to cultivate.
But the Heavenly God Palace ranked all immortals, unlike the disciple-only lists at the Holy Temple or Heavenly Sword Sect.
With a list like this, Lin Yun was eager to climb higher. He had no desire to stay at the bottom.
Emperor Huoyun nodded, “Correct. To move up, you can challenge those above you. But you’ve only just become an immortal, so there’s no rush. The immortals ahead of you have cultivated for far longer.”
“Especially the top hundred on the Heavenly God List. They’ve cultivated thousands or tens of thousands of years more than you. That time has naturally boosted their strength, making them tough opponents. Though you’re exceptional, your cultivation time before ascension was short, and you’ve only just become an immortal. You need to grow stronger.”
“Even the one just ahead of you, ranked one hundred twenty-sixth, has been an immortal for over seven hundred years. Before you joined, he was at the bottom of the Heavenly God List for all that time.”
