Warrior's Promise

Su Mo sat on the throne, his eyes scanning the crowd until settling on Cai Yun.

"Cai Yun, I name you Palace Master of the Darknight Palace. I hope you will lead the Darknight Palace to prosperity and remain loyal to the Firmament Palace!" Su Mo announced clearly.

Cai Yun was about to speak after a deep breath when a voice suddenly interrupted.

"One minute."

Dark One, a protector puppet of the Darknight Palace, wearing dark clothes all over, rose.

"Master, she is from the Horned-demon tribe. Rules of the Firmament Palace forbid servants and slaves like her to inherit the dominion of the nine palaces." Dark One reminded with his hands folded in front of his face.

Su Mo shook his head and asked, "Elder Dark One, who set this rule?"

"The second Palace Master!" Replied Dark One.

"Firmament Palace was powerful and prosperous during that reign with countless talents readily available. However, it has declined at present. Things are no longer the same."

Su Mo heaved a sigh and added, "Firmament Palace needs talents from all backgrounds to rise again. Rules like this can be abolished from now on!"

Dark One fell silent.

Indeed, the Firmament Palace was no longer the same. Circumstances had changed.

Dark One sat down, nodding.

"Cai Yun, take a seat. After today's meeting, you will follow Dark One to inherit the Darknight Palace's legacy!" Said Su Mo.

"Thank you, master!"

Cai Yun expressed her gratitude with a very rare smile on her aloof face.

Cai Yun stepped forth and sat down next to Sigong Yan.

Sikong Yan, Wenren Tiandu, and nine puppets glanced at Cai Yun, wondering about her talent.

Sikong Yan and Wenren Tiandu, in particular, had heard of all the talents of the Firmament World but the name Cai Yun was new.

Her talent must be on par with theirs to earn Su Mo's favor.

Su Mo glanced across the members of the Firmament Sect, the Horned-demon tribe, and the Horned-demon Sect and then announced loudly, "The Horned-demon tribe merges into the Darknight Palace, the Firmament Sect into the Illuminious Palace, and the Horned-demon Sect into the Firescorching Palace!"

"All the craftsmen are now members of the Firescorching Palace!"

"From now on, the posts of chieftains, elders, and Hall Chiefs are removed and you all become disciples!"

"Those whose cultivation has reached the Martial Royal Realm will be promoted to Palace Elders!"

Su Mo talked slowly yet firmly, giving arrangement.

Strengthened by these over 100,000 new members, the Firmament Palace was finally of the size of a regular sect.

"Yes!" The crowd in the hall answered in unison.

Su Mo nodded slightly and turned to face the nine puppets. "Seniors, please tell me everything about the Firmament Palace and the Trial Testers!"

The nine puppets exchanged a glance and then Gold One spoke on their behalf.

"Master, the master of the Earth Palace should report these to you in person but he's already gone between heaven and earth. We'll complete his duty!" Gold One's voice was heavy.

"What? Master of the Earth Palace has dissipated?" Su Mo was shocked by the death of the kind palace master.

Su Mo was aware of the fall of the Earth Palace master and he understood his remaining thought would vanish eventually but he didn't expect it to be this fast.

"Emm!"

Gold One nodded and continued, "The Earth Palace Master had very high expectation in you. He wanted you to lead the Firmament Palace forward through the shackles of fate."

"The shackles of fate?"

Puzzled, Su Mo asked with a heavy voice, "Lord Gold One, please tell me everything!"

"Sure!" Gold One nodded and continued with details after a moment of silence.

Gold One began without hesitation. Although the Firmament Hall was very crowded, everyone inside was part of the Firmament Palace.

"The Firmament World is a small world located in the vast universe. In other words, it is a plane!"

Gold One's voice was soft and gentle but his words shocked Su Mo.

A small world?

A plane?

Su Mo looked stunned. The Firmament World was only a small world, just like the Horned-demon Territory and the Qinghua Rift.

How was it possible?

What would it be like in the outside world?

Su Mo's curiosity was ignited.

Gold One continued, "The Firmament World used to be connected with the outside world in ancient times and martial artists could come and go freely. Back then, the Firmament World had countless Martial Emperor experts."

"Towards the end of the era, the Sorcerer tribe from the vast universe attacked the Firmament World."

"The Firmament Palace joined forces with other sects on this continent against the Sorcerer tribe. However, the sorcerers were too powerful to be stopped."

"During that battle, the Firmament Palace's last master Five Elements Supreme Emperor died in action alongside the nine palace masters. Numerous exceptional martial artists fell and the Firmament World suffered extensively."

Gold One sank into the old memories, his voice low and deep.

The crowd listened in silence. The sound of a fallen needle could be easily heard in the hall.

This ancient secret was not known by Su Mo or anyone else.

Even members of the Horned-demon tribe were unaware of what happened in ancient times.

Gold One continued, "Before long, the Firmament World fell completely. The sorcerer tribe looted the Firmament World and blocked the passage to the outside world before their departure."

"From that moment on, the Firmament World became the sorcerers' trial site. Once in a thousand years, the sorcerer tribe sends its disciples to the Firmament World. We call these disciples the Trial Testers."

"The Trial Testers come to the Firmament World for two reasons. One is to gather cultivating resources and the other to extract our mighty warriors' Martial Souls and Fighting Souls!"

"They came again and again to the Firmament World and the Firmament World became weaker and weaker. To this day, we don't even have a Martial Emperor expert!"

The crowd fell into silence. Even air seemed frozen in the Firmament Palace hall.

Su Mo also looked stupefied and heavy.

Sad!

Very sad!

The Firmament World's fate was so much similar to the Horned-demon tribe.

The Horned-demon tribe was trapped in the Horned-demon Territory, which was used as the Celestialspirit Sect's trial site. Their members were hunted and killed by disciples of the Celestialspirit Sect.

The Firmament World was on the same path! Its fate was held in others' hand.

"For tens of thousands of years, top experts of the Firmament World have been longing for leaving the Firmament World!"

"They have to leave the Firmament World to gain control of their own life and reach a higher martial arts level. However, only a handful of them had actually made it out."

"In about only ten years, Trial Testers will come back."

Gold One's voice got heavier and heavier. It ended with a deep sigh.