Chapter 976: Chapter 976 Gathering

    Qin Hao and his group walked in, and a young, beautiful waitress immediately approached: “Welcome to Zuixiao Building.”

    Fan Zhenzhe, having been there once, was familiar with the place and said, “Can we have a large private room? Are there any left on the third floor?”

    The waitress smiled and replied, “Sorry, sir, there are no private rooms left on the third floor, but there are still some on the second floor.”

    With the big competition of the dynasty’s young talents about to start, many people had gathered in the royal city. Some were there to participate in the competition, while others were just there to watch the excitement. Such a grand gathering of young talents was very rare.

    Fan Zhenzhe turned to Qin Hao and the others and said, “Shall we go to a private room on the second floor?”

    “The second-floor private room is fine too, it’s just for dining anyway,” the group replied.

    “Then let’s go to a private room on the second floor.”

    The waitress said, “Gentlemen and ladies, please follow me.”

    Led by the waitress, they arrived at a private room on the second floor. It comfortably seated more than ten people. After ordering their drinks and dishes, the waitress left.

    “Since we’re all from Yuxing County and this is our first time gathering together, many of us may not know each other. Let’s sit down and introduce ourselves first.”

    Around the table, aside from the three ladies, Dong Mengqi, Xian Yin, and Gao Linglong, the rest were men. Of course, little Ling’er didn’t count.

    Everyone took turns introducing themselves, getting to know each other briefly.

    The efficiency at Zuixiao Building was high; just as Qin Hao and the others finished their introductions, the drinks and dishes started coming in.

    Liao Chengcai said with a smile, “Let’s fill our glasses, meeting like this is a matter of fate. Let’s toast to it with the first glass.”

    Dong Mengqi smiled gently and said, “Yuxing County is so vast, to meet and know each other is indeed a matter of fate. We are all the elites of Yuxing County, the big competition in the capital is just days away, and here I wish everyone a bright future and dreams come true.”

    Under the enthusiastic atmosphere created by Liao Chengcai and Dong Mengqi, the group continued drinking after finishing the first glass.

    Fortunately, the wine wasn’t too strong, otherwise, everyone would have been drunk.

    The group took turns making toasts; Qin Hao, Gao Linglong, and Xian Yin drank quite a bit, leaving the two women’s cheeks slightly flushed and tipsy, deciding not to drink any further.

    This lunch lasted for almost an hour and still wasn’t finished. At this moment, the communication jade in Qin Hao’s storage space rang, so he got up and left the room.

    “Is this Mr. Qin? I’m from the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion,” a middle-aged man’s voice came through the sound transmitting jade.

    Qin Hao asked, “This is Qin Hao.”

    The middle-aged man said, “After our careful investigation, across the entire Hidden Dragon Continent, including throughout the regions of the five major continents, there is no sect named Butian Sect, not even in any past records. This sect simply does not exist.”

    Hearing this, Qin Hao frowned slightly, “It doesn’t exist?”

    “That’s right, Mr. Qin isn’t intentionally mentioning a non-existent sect, is he?” the man asked suspiciously.

    They had put in a lot of effort, spending considerable manpower and resources, to investigate this Butian Sect.

    Qin Hao picked up on the dissatisfaction in his tone and replied unhappily, “Do you think I have that much free time?”

    The man sensed the change in Qin Hao’s tone and said, “Mr. Qin, we’re truly at a loss regarding this Butian Sect.”

    “Then let’s drop it,” Qin Hao said, hanging up the communication jade.

    At this moment, Xian Yin, Gao Linglong, and Dong Mengqi came out of the room, noticing Qin Hao’s unpleasant expression. Dong Mengqi curiously asked, “What happened, Mr. Qin?”

    “It’s nothing,” Qin Hao said with a faint smile, his face returning to its usual demeanor.

    The private room where Qin Hao and his group were situated was adjacent to the stairs. At this moment, a group of people came down from the third floor, each dressed in luxurious attire, with jade belts around their waists.

    They all looked decent and respectable, yet exuded an air of arrogance.

    These individuals descended the stairs, chatting and laughing. When they saw Qin Hao’s group by the stairway, their eyes lit up—these three young women had quite the aura.

    “Hey, beautiful, what’s your name?” one of them asked Xian Yin.

    Xian Yin snorted coldly, turning her head without responding to him.

    The others teased Dong Mengqi and Gao Linglong, “Hey beautiful, your figure’s quite nice, how about keeping us company?”

    “Scram,” Gao Linglong said coldly, her pretty face icy.

    “Oh, quite the fiery personality, eh? This young master likes beauties like you. It’d be even more fun on the bed,” one of the arrogant young men laughed brazenly.

    Inside the room, Liao Chengcai, Fan Zhenzhe, and the others heard the commotion outside and came out.

    All of a sudden, more than a dozen people emerged, intimidating the five young noblemen a bit.

    One of them spoke up, “What, trying to scare me with numbers? My father is the Duke Protector of the Skyfire Dynasty. Come, dare to lay one finger on me.”

    “My father is Duke Rong,” another one said nonchalantly.

    “My father is Duke of Defense.”

    ...

    The group consisted of sons of four dukes and one Marquis of Martial Prowess, a truly formidable background.

    Although the Marquis of Martial Prowess was just a marquis, not as high-ranking as the duke’s sons, his title was renowned throughout most of the Skyfire Dynasty, often regarded as the first expert within the dynasty.

    After revealing their backgrounds, the aura of Liao Youcai, Fan Zhenzhe, and the others dissipated. The sons of the king and the Marquis of Martial Prowess—such powerful families were beyond their capacity to confront.

    The son of the Duke Protector, Zhai Tengfei, seeing their diminished vigor, sneered, “Which county are you from? Coming to the capital for the competition, better keep a low profile. This isn’t a place where you can be arrogant.”

    The son of the Marquis of Martial Prowess, Wu Yang, looked at Xian Yin with a lewd smile, “Hey beautiful, got time? Let me show you the natural scenery of the capital. In the evening, we can also have some in-depth exchanges and discussions about martial arts.”

    “Hahaha,” the others laughed boisterously.

    These guys were only in the early stage of the Innate realm, while Xian Yin and the others were in the Grandmaster Realm.

    “Slap,” “Slap”

    The sound of slaps reverberated, leaving two blood-red handprints on Wu Yang’s face, his cheeks quickly swelling up.

    Qin Hao said coldly, “With your pathetic skills, where did you find the courage to bark in front of me?”

    Everyone around was stunned, eyes wide open at Qin Hao, including Dong Mengqi, Gao Linglong, and the others.

    This was the son of the Marquis of Martial Prowess, and Qin Hao dared to strike him in the capital?

    Wu Yang glared at Qin Hao, infuriated, “You damn well dare hit me? You’re finished, I’ll ruin you.”

    “Slap, slap, slap, slap”

    Light flickered, and four more slaps sounded, leaving Wu Yang seeing stars, his head buzzing.

    The others were terrified; usually, when they revealed their identities, people would be too scared to speak. Getting physically hit was a first: “You... you’ve got some nerve.”