Blood oath

The elder's eyes all seemed to bore into him. They were probing at him again and it was an uncomfortable feeling. Most were the elders who were not present in the city and had only heard second-hand information about the going on at the auction house.

Lingshi wanted to enquire but didn't. Cultivation was a private affair and he had already provided her with ample information. Even though she had done what he had said she didn't spend all her wealth as she still had some doubts but now she realised she should have gone all in on the gamble.

The few words from that elder had sent the people talking. Some were awed others didn't understand the significance of it and just went along with the crowd but the majority of the experts were curious about that style of fighting that could overwhelm an opponent a few realms higher than you were.

matriarch Ling also wanted to ask since there was no such technique from the ones that had been provided by Elder Sun. It would be a life-saving technique for those of the younger generation when they went out into the world and encountered strong foes. If she knew that Lingyun had figured it out on his own she would have been more shocked than she already was.

A few more people stepped up but none stirred up the crowd as much as the duel between Lingyun and Ling Qifan and as such most of the remaining showcases were reduced to music and arts and solitary displays of the various weapon techniques.

At a nod from the Matriarch, Lingfeng stood up and clapped his hands drawing everyone's attention. The last performer left the stage the people became quiet and waited for their questions to be finally answered.

"As most of you already know, there was an auction hosted by the Zhang clan and the most valuable pieces were the entry token to a Secret Realm. This Realm is called Star Martial God Realm. The speculations are correct the Zhang Clan ancestor was able to make his breakthrough in this Realm thereby making his return."

A wave of nods went through the crowds as this confirmed their suspicions but it also raised more questions. Why was the entire clan called back? Surely we didn't get that many tokens? Did we give up many core clan secret treasures and techniques? ... There were doubts and Matriarch Ling raised her hand and everyone was quiet once more.

"The entry tokens are not what is important to the Ling clan, In fact, we didn't get many through auction," she said. "The few that we have should serve as motivation for you to cultivate harder over the next few months before the secret Realm opens.

"If the clan didn't get many entry tokens, why were we all called back..."

"I had just discovered a treasure land that can aid my cultivation by ten times, I should have stayed to cultivate there instead of the clan..."

"I can't even compete for a token at my realm..."

The doubts grew stronger as more people talked. People were so busy speculating and cursing at themselves or the clan that the Matriarch risked losing control of the crowd. Lingyun sitting by the front was getting bored.

With Xiaoya's help, he release the same aura he had as Elder Sun and enveloped the entire area. The Elders and clan disciples who were strong enough simply stood and drew out their weapons. Many of the weaker disciples simply passed out while the Matriarch who was familiar with this aura was simply shocked she looked around and then realised it.

While Elder Sun had "left" he had simply followed them to monitor his disciples as well as his allies and was probably getting impatient. She couldn't feel his presence at all. She glanced at Lingyun and Linghua who bore fearful looks on their faces. They would be in trouble after calling Elder Sun names.

"Is it an attack?" some people asked.

"Who would dare attack the Ling Clan?" another asked.

"But it's so oppressive I can barely breath" complained another.

The aura faded and slowly the clan members began to settle. Some of the junior elders were now floating in the air wary of an enemy but the senior elders who were in the know were sitting where they had been before.

How could the strongest members of the clan be so calm when someone was about to attack? Matriarch Ling raised her hand to quiet them down once more.

"People often forget that the Ling Clan is not so simple," she began, "While the Zhang Clan may have gotten stronger because their ancestor returned, My Ling clan also has cards we can play."

She waved her hand and a small pavilion appeared on the stage. It was a spaced-based magical treasure and it expanded to become a building. The doors opened and an enchanting aura filled the area. It had the feeling of making one want to start cultivating and some of the weaker members even succumbed and began to.

There was not a word from the crowd as they began to realise that this was the reason why they had been called back.

"Inside are all manner of cultivation techniques, weapon techniques, divination techniques, refining, poison arts. Our clan as a member of the Golden Tree Alliance has been bequeathed with an opportunity."

In her words, certain realizations dawned on a few clan members and junior elders. There had been word that there had been an expert at the auction who had used just a few techniques in trade what other clans had to give up ten or twenty treasures worth. A minute detail was that his clothes and techniques all had a white tree emblem on them.

"That is right," Matriarch Ling said, "each and every one of you has an opportunity to cultivate these godly techniques and that is why you were called back. We are members of the Golden Tree Alliance but we shall consider them our benefactor as such a blood oath has been taken to keep this fact silent."

A blood oath meant that anyone who share the same blood was bound by that oath. There were increasing levels of complexity. For the example above a certain realm, you could enslave an entire family if you got hold of an expert from that family. The vow of silence was done by the Matriarch herself as such outside the Ling Clan no one would be able to think of speaking of these facts.

A small murmur went through the crowd at this but it died down soon after. Everyone understood the reason for the oath. A great treasure could be an opportunity but also a calamity Many were trying to send their senses into the magical pavilion to get a glimpse of these cultivation techniques.

Having said that Matriach Ling went and sat down leaving the other matters to the elders. Lingfeng stood up once more and addressed them.

"The Clan will remain closed for the foreseeable future as you all focus on your cultivation." He announced,

"Furthermore," another elder said, "The clan will take charge of all cultivation-based treasures and distribute them to those who need them." He continued to explain that the members who gave up resources would be compensated equally. There was almost a protest but when he explained that this would be a trade more than a seizure people calmed down.

For example, if one cultivator had a treasure that was valuable that he didn't need he could ask for something in return for it and it would be given to him. The clan would also spend a lot of money to find the resources that were needed to ensure that they weren't distracted during cultivation.

Lingshi looked at the two young men next to her and narrowed her eyes, "You knew all this, didn't you?" Lingyun and Linghua shrugged and continued to drink their tea.