Chapter 2588: A New Leader

The remaining half of the elders were clearly surprised when they saw so many people support Gongsun Zhi. Their original beliefs began to waver. In the end, another portion of people arrived behind Gongsun Zhi.

Now, sixty percent of the elders supported Gongsun Zhi.

“Sigh. Gongsun Zhi is the descendant of the Grand Exalt after all.” Suddenly, a vice-leader let out a soft sigh and slowly stood up as well, arriving beside Gongsun Zhi.

“With Gongsun Zhi’s identity and status, I don’t oppose him if he wants to control our Radiant Saint Hall,” said another vice-leader. Although he did not stand with Gongsun Zhi, his words had already expressed his support of Gongsun Zhi.

“Gongsun Zhi wields the most powerful protector sword. I believe as he grows in strength, he’ll be able to unleash more and more of the power from the protector sword. I believe the Radiant Saint Hall will become more and more powerful under Gongsun Zhi’s lead,” said a third vice-leader, standing with Gongsun Zhi.

Immediately, the discussion hall fell silent again. The atmosphere was rather strange.

More than sixty percent of the elders and three vice-leaders chose to support Gongsun Zhi. This outcome caught many people off-guard. They found it rather difficult to accept.

Even Xuan Zhan was silenced.

He had never thought that Gongsun Zhi would have gained such a great influence over the Radiant Saint Hall unknowingly.

“Leader Yu Chen, I, Gongsun Zhi, hereby challenge you formally. If you defeat me, I will never mention this matter ever again in the future,” Gongsun Zhi called out. His face had become flushed from his emotions. He clearly seemed extremely excited.

Even though Yu Chen was the only Grand Prime of the Radiant Saint Hall, Gongsun Zhi possessed a protector sword. He did not fear Yu Chen at all.

The sacred hall was thrown into an uproar. Someone had actually challenged the leader of the Radiant Saint Hall publicly. This was definitely unprecedented in the history of the organisation.

This was because the leader was the most powerful person in charge of the Radiant Saint Hall. They could mobilise everything that the Radiant Saint Hall had. They were the person who possessed the greatest authority.

Challenging the leader was opposing the leader. There would never be a good outcome for doing so. The consequences would be extremely severe.

However, at this moment, everyone discovered in their misery that there was no longer anyone who could keep Gongsun Zhi at bay within the Radiant Saint Hall.

Apart from his identity as the Grand Exalt’s descendant, just being a wielder of a protector sword made him undefeatable.

“Gongsun Zhi, if you want to challenge the leader, you need to get through us first…”

“Gongsun Zhi, why don’t you try not using the protector sword’s power…”

Bai Yu and Donglin Yanxue stood forward together. Their protector swords flickered brightly as a holy light wrapped around them. They stood up to Gongsun Zhi.

“Gongsun Zhi, you better give up. Many of us won’t yield to you even if you become the leader, as you lack the prestige that can convince everyone,” Han Xin said as well, trying to persuade Gongsun Zhi.

“You want to stop me?” Gongsun Zhi’s eyes shone with cold light. Killing intent appeared. He did not try to hide any of it.

Bai Yu and Donglin Yanxue did not shy away at all. They seemed like they were ready to stop Gongsun Zhi even if at the cost of their lives.

The protectors of the Radiant Saint Hall were about to clash. They were ready to start fighting at any time. Even though they could do nothing to one another, they did not lose out in comparative might.

“Stop!”

Just when the protectors were about to start fighting, the leader of the Radiant Saint Hall, Yu Chen, called out, stopping the protectors just in time. He said sternly, “The protector swords are the greatest power of our Radiant Saint Hall. The only reason our Radiant Saint Hall possesses such a great status on the Desolate Plane right now is because of the protector swords. As wielders of the protector swords, you should be united. Do not fight among yourselves, or it will be the greatest loss for our Radiant Saint Hall,” Yu Chen said powerfully. He radiated with righteousness, shining with light. At that moment, he seemed like such a great man, so selfless.

“Gongsun Zhi!” Yu Chen looked at Gongsun Zhi. His eyes shone brightly as he said in a rather liberated fashion, “Since you want the position of leader, I’ll step down from now onwards. I won’t be the leader of the Radiant Saint Hall anymore.”

Yu Chen’s words were shocking. His decision immediately threw the sacred hall into an uproar. Everyone experienced emotional turmoil.

Although a group of people supported Gongsun Zhi in becoming the leader, these elders were still heavily impacted when Yu Chen truly stepped down. Some of them even began to question their own decision.

“Leader, you must not…” Xuan Zhan and the other vice-leaders called out and did their best to persuade Yu Chen.

Yu Chen raised his hand to stop them. He said in a righteous manner, “I’ve already made my decision. There’s no need to say anything more. As long as the Radiant Saint Hall can become more and more prosperous, anyone can become the leader.”

“Gongsun Zhi, I hope the Radiant Saint Hall will become more and more prosperous under your lead.” Throwing that out there, Yu Chen drifted away. He left in an extremely straightforward manner. He felt no reluctance towards letting go of the position as leader. Instead, it felt like he had been freed.

“Brother Yu Chen…” Xuan Zhan immediately chased after him.

“Leader…”

“Leader…”

…

From behind, the furious and unhappy voices of the elders rang out. Many of the elders followed him closely.

Gongsun Zhi smiled victoriously inside the majestic sacred hall. He looked at the throne that represented supreme authority as his eyes lit up with desire and uncontainable excitement.

Bai Yu, Han Xin, Donglin Yanxue, and Xuan Ming remained silent. They were powerless to change anything now that this had already happened.

“I never thought that Gongsun Zhi would have already roped in so many members of the upper echelon. It was the decision from these elders and the three vice-leaders that forced the leader to leave, as the leader did not wish to see the Radiant Saint Hall collapse from within. He could only give up the position as a result,” Xuan Ming said to Donglin Yanxue, Han Xin, and Bai Yu secretly. His voice was filled with helplessness.

Tens of thousand of kilometres beyond the Radiant Saint Hall, the white-robed Yu Chen and Xuan Zhan stood atop a mountain shrouded by clouds. Yu Chen, who had just stepped down, was composed and unrestrained. However, Xuan Zhan, who stood before him, had a heavy heart.

“Brother Yu Chen, why must you do this?” Xuan Zhan looked at Yu Chen deeply and sighed.

Yu Chen stood with his arms behind his back. He looked in the direction of the Radiant Saint Hall. Warmth filled his eyes; it was just like a child looking as his mother. It was filled with a gentle and indescribable feeling. “The Radiant Saint Hall is my home. As long as my home is here, as long as it still exists, it isn’t important who makes the decisions.”

“Gongsun Zhi refused to continue with his ordinary life after receiving the protector sword. He became brimming with ambition. I could tell that my position caught his eye long ago, so everything that happened today was within my expectations. If I did not step down, the Radiant Saint Hall would not be able to avoid internal conflict. If it grew severe, the entire Radiant Saint Hall would even be ripped apart, divided into pieces. That is not what I wish to see.”

Yu Chen looked at Xuan Ming calmly. He did not feel anything from losing the position as leader, as if these names of renown and positions of power were nothing in his eyes. “The Radiant Saint Hall now faces a rare age of prosperity, which requires you all to be united even more. Only with unity can you be powerful. Nothing can be allowed to happen to us internally at a time like this, let alone internal conflict. Xuan Zhan, I hope that you understand this.”

“Brother Yu Chen.” Xuan Zhan was embittered. He had no idea what to say. Just how many people in the Radiant Saint Hall would be able to behave as selflessly as Yu Chen, devoting themselves wholeheartedly so that the Radiant Saint Hall would grow in power? He even gave up his position as leader to avoid internal strife.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible for Gongsun Zhi to obtain the position, as five of the six protectors stood with Yu Chen.

“Xuan Zhan, you should return. With Gongsun Zhi’s prestige, he will struggle to make everyone accept him. I hope that you can assist him for the sake of the Radiant Saint Hall. You can’t let anything happen to the Radiant Saint Hall internally no matter what. I’ll leave Donglin Yanxue, Han Xin, and Bai Yu for you to persuade,” Yu Chen requested seriously.

“Brother Yu Chen, you’re leaving?” Xuan Zhan stared at Yu Chen blankly. If their identities on the surface were discarded, he and Yu Chen were actually the best of brothers. They had gone through thick and thin together.

Otherwise, when Jian Chen was exposed in the past and emerged from the Tower of Radiance afterwards, the leader of the Radiant Saint Hall would have never let Jian Chen leave simply over something Xuan Zhan said.

Yu Chen nodded. He was surprisingly stern as he said, “So far, only you and me know the secret of the Martial Soul lineage being the imperial clan. I plan on leaving and investigating the history between our Radiant Saint Hall and the Martial Soul lineage.”

“It’s said that the world of the Spiritsages was the doomsday battlefield for the last aeon. Even though the entire world was ruined, many ancient traces remain. I plan on visiting that world and seeing if I can find anything.”

“And the Spiritsages. They’re the descendants from that world. They’ve existed for an extremely lengthy period of time. I plan on visiting them and seeing if I can find anything from them.”