1554 Pavilion of Knowledge

"How did that young man do that? Divine sense shouldn't work in the Purple Sea…" The fishermen were shocked by what Yuan had done.

The Purple Sea had a special property that blocked all divine sense from peeking underneath the water's surface, hence why nobody there could repeat what Yuan did despite being cultivators themselves.

Meanwhile, Yuan and Xi Meili continued flying north for several days until they could see a tall silhouette on the horizon.

"We're almost there." Xi Meili's voice was brimming with excitement, as this would mark her first encounter with another dragon clan outside the Ancient Dragon City.

After a few more hours of flying, they finally arrived at the Pavilion of Knowledge, situated in the center of a large island.

The Pavilion of Knowledge was an imposing, tower-like structure with a spiraling design that ascended towards the heavens, its peak lost amidst the clouds. The island looked like any tropical island, but magical beasts wandered freely. Most of them were around Spirit Emperor level, with a few at Spirit Sovereign level.

However, before they could even reach the island, Yuan and Xi Meili stopped when they noticed a figure approaching them from the island.

This individual was a middle-aged man with blue hair and azure-colored eyes who boasted the cultivation of Spirit Enlightenment.

"Welcome to the Pavilion of Knowledge. I am Xuan Wei, one of the Seven Scroll Elders here. How can we assist you today?"

When Xuan Wei spoke, his gaze was mainly on Xi Meili, almost as if he was aware of her dragon bloodline.

"I'm here to learn more about the Immortal Monarch," Yuan said.

Xuan Wei turned to look at him with a frown and replied, "You want information on the Immortal Monarch? Not only are you not worthy, but you won't even be able to afford it."

Xi Meili frowned and said, "Who are you to decide whether he's worthy or not?"

"Any information on the Immortal Monarch is sacred and priceless, and our Pavilion of Knowledge does not accept money or treasures for payment. The only payment we accept is information of equal value, and there's no way in hell a nobody from the Fourth Heaven would have information as valuable as information on the Immortal Monarch." Xuan Wei sneered.

"You're making a lot of assumptions…for a nobody." Xi Meili sneered back.

Xuan Wei frowned and said, "I showed you respect by personally coming out to greet you because I could tell you're of dragon bloodline, and this is how you treat me? You can leave now. The Pavilion of Knowledge will not serve you."

"If you want to show respect, you should've sent the head of this place to greet me. What is a mere servant's greeting worth?" Xi Meili shook her head, seemingly genuinely disappointed.

Xuan Wei's face darkened after being mocked as a servant by Xi Meili.

"If you think I won't harm you because we have dragon blood flowing through our veins, you're sorely mistaken, Junior!" Xuan Wei roared.

"Oh, yeah? I'd love to see you try!" Xi Meili retrieved Furious Dragon and went into a combative position.

Seeing this, Xuan Wei merely released his cultivation base.

"How brazen of you, Junior! This Senior shall teach you a lesson your parents never taught you today!"

Yuan shook his head at their situation before looking at the Pavilion of Knowledge and speaking, "To the Senior watching this, are you sure you want to let them continue? Her surname is Xi, and her father's name is Xi Shengmo."

"?!?!"

After hearing this information, the individual who had been watching them from the peak of the Pavilion of Knowledge experienced a great shock, causing him to fall back on his chair.

"Stop it, Xuan Wei!"

A loud voice boomed the next moment, instantly halting Xuan Wei's movements. He turned to look at the Pavilion of Knowledge with a puzzled expression on his face, and a silhouette approached them from the tower before he could even utter a word.

This silhouette belonged to an elderly man with long white hair, a short blue beard, and azure-colored eyes shimmering with profound knowledge. He donned a black outfit adorned with a blue scroll-shaped symbol.

"Grandfather, what are you doing out here? And why did you stop me from punishing these rude Juniors?"

However, the old man completely ignored him and respectfully bowed to Xi Meili.

"I apologize for my grandson's lack of manners, Young Lady. May I have your name?"

"Xi Meili. Who are you, old man?"

"Y-you! How dare you address the master of the Pavilion of Knowledge as 'old man'?!"

"Just shut up for a moment!" The old man snapped at him before returning to smile at Xi Meili.

"As he said, I am the master of the Pavilion of Knowledge and the previous Patriarch of the Xuan Family who operates the Pavilion of Knowledge within the Fourth Heaven. My name is Xuan Kun."

"Is it true that your father's name is Xi Shengmo?" he then asked.

"That's right. You know my father?"

Xuan Kun nodded and said, "I didn't just know him. I—our Xuan Family used to serve the Xi Family and his father—long before they entered the Ancient Dragon City."

"What?! But they haven't left the Ancient Dragon City for millions of years! Why would they come out now?!" Xuan Wei cried out loud after hearing this.

"Since you're out here, does that mean your father is also…?" Xuan Kun asked, his eyes flickered with a hint of anticipation.

"Nope. I left the Ancient Dragon City by myself to travel with Yuan." Xi Meili shook her head.

"Oh… is that so…" Xuan Kun immediately became dejected. "I was hoping to speak with him again after so long."

"Anyway, let's go somewhere more comfortable and continue our conversation there, shall we?"

Xi Meili nodded.

Yuan and Xi Meili proceeded to follow Xuan Kun to the Pavilion of Knowledge.

"Grandfather, are you sure we can trust them? What if they're impersonating the Xi Family?" Xuan Wei asked him through divine sense.

"Shut up, you idiot. You've never seen someone from the Xi Family, so you wouldn't know, but I can tell that the Young Lady is definitely from the Xi Family. I am confident enough to put my life on the line. I also expect you to give her a proper apology."

"Why are you treating her like you still serve the Xi Family? We haven't worked for them since they went into hiding within the Ancient Dragon City!" Xuan Wei couldn't comprehend why they had to lower their heads to someone they used to work for.

"I bet our current standing isn't lower than the Xi Family!"

"You better watch your mouth, Xuan Wei. If you think I won't hit you because you're my grandson, you can test me! Our Xuan Family has served the Xi Family for generations since ancient times. Even if we no longer work for them, we will always put them above us!"

"..." Xuan Wei could not understand Xuan Kun's point of view and decided to remain silent.

Once they arrived at the Pavilion of Knowledge, Xuan Kun led Yuan and Xi Meili to one of the guest rooms for esteemed guests.

"Xuan Wei, go bring them some tea. You can use my tea leaves."

"What? We have servants for that." Xuan Wei wore a look of disbelief on his face.

How could he, one of the Seven Scroll Elders, stoop as low as serving tea to guests? His position was only below that of his father and Xuan Kun.

"Don't make me repeat myself." Xuan Kun narrowed his eyes with a cold glint in them.

Xuan Wei could only swallow his frustration and listen to Xuan Kun's command.

"I guess I wasn't wrong to call you a servant." Xi Meili chuckled, rubbing salt on his wounds.

Xuan Wei's body trembled in anger, and he stopped walking for a second, but he didn't say anything and quickly left.

"Don't tease him too much, Young Lady. He has a short temper." Xuan Kun smiled.

"That's what he gets for looking down on Yuan," she sneered.

"Yuan… you must be her friend." Xuan Kun turned to look at Yuan, who appeared unremarkable at a glance, but once he tried to peek deeper, Xuan Kun was surprised that even he couldn't inspect Yuan's body, who was only a Spirit King.

"Thank you for calling out to me earlier. I would no longer be able to face my ancestors in the future if someone from our Xuan Family had harmed a member of the Xi Family."

"He's more than just a friend to me, Senior Xuan. He's essentially a member of our family—with my parents' approval, of course."

"What? His Majesty accepted a human into the Xi Family? That's unthinkable…" Xuan Kun stared at her with wide eyes.

He could still vividly recall Xi Shengmo's hatred for humans, which forced his family to escape into the Ancient Dragon City.

"You don't have to believe me. Yuan, show him your robe and ring." Xi Meili winked at him.

Yuan nodded and retrieved the Golden Dragon Robe and the Dragon Spatial Ring, showing it to Xuan Kun, who stood up from shock.

"The Dragon Spatial Ring?! And even the Golden Dragon Robe?! Heavens! I never thought I would see these precious items in a human's possession!" he exclaimed.

"You have no idea how much he helped my Xi Family. If it weren't for him, the Azure Dragon Family would've ended our family's lineage." Xi Meili sighed.

"The Azure Dragon Family? Those ambitious bastards tried to do something like that? Though, I can't say I'm surprised. They have always been hungry for power and authority—even before they moved to the Ancient Dragon City." Xuan Kun shook his head at this information.