The Song Clan was one of the three great Clans of the Southern Domain, and was somewhat isolated in its position. It had a history stretching back tens of thousands of years, and was deeply rooted in the society of the Southern Domain. It existed on the edge of a wide plain which contained some rolling hills, but few mountains.

In the southeast of the plain, however, was a mountain range called Neck of Heaven, under which flowed a river. Look down on it from the sky, and it had the appearance of a woman resting her head on her arm. It was quite pretty and charming.

The Song Clan was situated atop the chain of mountains. It was different from other Clans. Its main gate was actually an ancient castle, connected to which was an enormous wall that snaked throughout the various surrounding mountains, creating a very spectacular sight.

As for the castle of the capital city, it was pitch black and had the appearance of an enormous wild beast, filled with indescribable ferocity. Anyone who saw it for the first time would be left with the impression that the Song Clan was not to be provoked.

The capital city was surrounded by eighty-one smaller cities, which were constructed according to the rise and fall of the mountains. Each city was densely populated by Clan members.

In the sky above the Song Clan was an enormous rotating Sun and Moon. When it was pitch black in the outside world, the sun blazed in the Song Clan. When it was bright and sunny outside, the moon shone in the Song Clan.

This Sun and Moon was a precious treasure of the Song Clan.

Every great Sect and Clan possessed some valuable treasure. Only in this way could their continued status and glory be maintained.

For example, the Black Sieve Sect had their incense burner, and the Solitary Sword Sect its enormous sword. They were all precious treasures. As for the Song Clan, the sun and moon which hung in their sky enveloped the entire Clan, transforming it into a different world than what existed outside.

It was likely because of this treasure that for so many years, the Song Clan had not experienced any friction with outside Sects and Clans, and held such a lofty position. They did not provoke others, and others did not dare to provoke them.

The Song Clan was not as powerful as the Solitary Sword Sect, nor as mysterious of the Blood Demon Sect. It was not as extravagant as the Violet Fate Sect, nor did they have a vast array of magics like the Golden Frost Sect. They were not as erudite as the Black Sieve Sect, either.

Amongst the three great Clans, the Song Clan maintained the lowest profile. Their Dao Children did not perform sensational acts, nor did the Clan struggle for glory. They were relatively quiet. What they did have, though, was information, collected over many, many years.

They did not provoke others, and others did not dare to provoke them!

The mountains they occupied left others with a profound impression. If incredible change rocked the Southern Domain in the future, other Sects and Clans might very well collapse. The one organization that was most likely to remain was the Song Clan.

The degree of their inconspicuousness was such that people knew almost nothing about them. This in turn created a sense of fear and terror.

In the past few hundred years, the only person to venture out of the Song Clan was Eccentric Song [1. Eccentric Song was the guy with the treasure mountain which Meng Hao looted to death. If you want a refresher on that, check out Chapter 48: Eccentric Song and Wu Dingqiu and subsequent chapters], who everyone in the Southern Domain knew about. He had an odd personality, and enjoyed the collection of wild beasts. His occasional excursions gave him plenty of opportunities to interact with other Sects and Clans.

At this moment within the Song Clan capital city, dazzling lights flickered and people bustled about preparing for an ancient tradition of the Song Clan.

Women of the Song Clan were not permitted to marry outsiders. Instead, a husband would be sought from the outside, who would then marry into the family. Upon marriage, the new son-in-law would then become a Conclave Cultivator of the Song Clan.

Throughout the years, many Sects had desired to infiltrate the Song Clan. However, because of their strange and ancient marriage custom, those Sects had long since vanished. The Song Clan, however… still remained.

Of course, there were problems with the arrangement….

Song Jia [2. Song Jia was one of the other compet.i.tors in the Blood Immortal Legacy tournament. Her last appearance was in Chapter 130: The Perfect Foundation!!] stood quietly at the window, looking out. The outside world was awash with sunlight, but inside the Song Clan, the sky was dark. Wind blew against her face, lifting up her hair and revealing her spectacular beauty. Right now, she wore a sad look and seemed to be apprehensive.

Her apprehension was because of her fate as a woman of the Song Clan. She felt melancholy for the same reason. There was nothing she could do to resist; it was useless to struggle. The Song Clan’s rules had been laid down by the ancestors, and could not be changed.

The soft voice of a woman could be heard from behind her. “We’re different from the other Sects and Clans. As a girl of the Song Clan, it’s impossible to maintain your purity forever. You can’t change that, nor can I.” The voice belonged to a middle-aged woman who gazed affectionately at Song Jia.

Song Jia didn’t reply.

After a while, though, she nodded. In her mind, images appeared from the Blood Immortal Legacy tournament. She remembered looking on helplessly as her Blood Phoenix died. She could only watch through tear-filled eyes as it faded away.

“Perhaps it’s just my fate.” Her face filled with exhaustion. The exhaustion did not mar her good looks; in fact, it seemed to give birth to a tender beauty.

The woman behind her could sense what Song Jia was feeling. She stepped forward and stroked Song Jia’s long, beautiful hair. “It is fate,” she said. “But it’s not destiny, it’s a mission. A mission from the Song Clan of the Southern Domain. [3. This part contains a play on words of sorts in Chinese. The characters for fate, destiny, and mission are 命, 命運, and 使命 respectively. As you can see, they all share the same component, the character 命, which can have different meanings depending on the context or the other characters it’s paired with.]”

“The destruction of the Southern Domain. Gather a hundred Clans. Fuse their bloodlines. Evade the palace of the Heavens….” Song Jia murmured the words which she had heard people recite ever since she was young. “But father said that no power within the entire Southern Domain could bring about its complete destruction. Nothing in the Eastern Lands could do so either.” She looked back at the middle-aged woman.

“That’s a legend which has existed since ancient times. Mother doesn’t know what it means either.”

Mother and daughter were silent for a while after that.

Meanwhile, outside of the Song Clan, the sun blazed brightly in the sky. On the plains below the Song Clan, a glittering light s.h.i.+ned out, which grew in intensity over the s.p.a.ce of about ten breaths. Then, it gradually disappeared, revealing a dozen or more people.

Meng Hao sucked in a deep breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose. It seemed his body wasn’t really suited for teleportation. He looked around and immediately noticed that up ahead existed a world of darkness.There was a huge mountain range, hanging over which was… a moon.

He gaped at the bizarre sight.

Next to him, Chen Fan sighed with emotion. “We’re in Song Clan territory now. It’s my first time here, but I’ve heard people talk of how astonis.h.i.+ng the Song Clan is.”

The old man lifted his gourd of alcohol and took a drink. Then he let out a loud burp and laughed heartily. His laughter filled the air, after which several beams of light shot out from the darkness of the Song Clan.

“Brandy Nose!” said a voice from within the approaching beams of light. It didn’t sound pleased. “How come the Solitary Sword Sect sent you? I can smell the stench of alcohol coming off of you from here!”

“Eccentric Song! How could I not come? This old Daoist is going to drink his fill before he leaves!” The old man suddenly shot up into the air.

Meng Hao took a deep breath. The words ‘Eccentric Song’ filled him with fear. He looked up into the sky and could just make out the image of Song Clan members within the beams of light. One of them was an old man who, although Meng Hao had never seen before, he immediately knew was the same Eccentric Song from that time in the State of Zhao.

“I just arrived and already ran into him,” thought Meng Hao. “I can’t stay here long… if Eccentric Song finds out I’m here, the consequences will be terrible….” Meng Hao was just about to try to sneak off when Chen Fan grabbed him.

“Little Junior Brother, did you see? I’m not sure of the name of that member of the elder generation, but I heard everyone calls him Eccentric Song. They say he has a very bizarre personality, and that he owns tons of wild beasts. He also likes to make bets with other Sects all the time….”

Meng Hao interrupted him with a forced smile, “Elder Brother, I really can’t proceed any further, I have to….” Before Meng Hao could finish speaking, the old man from the Solitary Sword Sect and Eccentric Song suddenly started yelling at each other.

“Your Song Clan is entirely too stingy! Ten Thousand Trees Mountain only has a single pearl as the reward? What good is a c.r.a.ppy pearl!? That’s the prize that my Solitary Sword Sect kids are supposed to fight for? No way!”

“It’s a Cubic Pearl that can dispel even the strangest poisons in the world,” replied Eccentric Song. “It’s a treasure refined by the Sun and Moon of the Song Clan. It can only be given as a gift to a son-in-law of the Song Clan. Even if you wanted it, you couldn’t have it. Besides, what treasures could possibly compare to a girl of the Song Clan? Your granny! Are you Solitary Sword Sect people here because of the search for a son-in-law, or just to grab treasures?!”

Hearing this exchange, Meng Hao’s eyes flickered. Next to him, Chen Fan frowned.

“Little Junior Brother, you should really think things through,” he said earnestly. “You’ll be able to make a lot of friends here. Li Fugui will be here too, and you haven’t seen him for years. However, if you truly must leave, then Elder Brother won’t stop you.”

Meng Hao lowered his head thoughtfully for a moment, then looked up and smiled.

“Fine, since I’m here, I might as well check things out.”

Chen Fan smiled in return. He clapped Meng Hao on the shoulder and was just about to continue speaking when another blinding light appeared. It spread out, attracting the attention of everyone, including Eccentric Song and the old man from the Solitary Sword Sect.

The glowing light spread out, and within, the figures of dozens of people gradually grew distinct. Meng Hao’s eyes glittered, and Chen Fan frowned.

These were people from the w.a.n.g Clan.

The group was comprised of both men and women. They looked around after they appeared, and their eyes were especially drawn to the mountain chain in the distance, upon which the Song Clan was situated.

At the front of this group of people was an old man whose face was covered with a tranquil expression. He strode forward, looking up at Eccentric Song and the old man from the Solitary Sword Sect.

“Fellow Daoist Fan,” he said, “you arrived quickly. Could it be that you caught a whiff of the Song Clan’s alcohol, causing you to arrive faster than everyone else?”

Elder Fan laughed and took a swig of alcohol. “I’m not that fast. At least, I’m not as fast as Fellow Daoist w.a.n.g was that time back at the Rebirth Cave. The speed and beauty of your retreat were incredible.”

The old man from the w.a.n.g Clan smiled. He didn’t respond, but clasped his hands and gave a slight bow to Eccentric Song.

Behind him were various members of the w.a.n.g Clan, including w.a.n.g Tengfei [4. If you want a quick refresher on some key events regarding w.a.n.g Tengfei, you can check out Chapter 24: Who was it?!, Chapter 32: This Finger Brought me Humiliation, Today, I Cripple it!, Chapter 33: Is This Sword Yours Too?] He wore a white robe, along with a cold expression and a slight, grim frown. It seemed as if he were thinking about something important. His features were handsome, his disposition perfect. Everything melded together to give him an air of flawlessness.

Standing next to him was w.a.n.g Xifan [5. w.a.n.g Xifan is w.a.n.g Tengfei’s Dao Protector, who almost killed Meng Hao. He was introduced in Chapter 35: I’m Not Willing! and also appeared in Chapter 119: The Legacy Shocks the Southern Domain]. His expression was proud and aloof as he gazed at the Song Clan mountains. Then his gaze s.h.i.+fted to the group from the Solitary Sword Sect. He frowned when he caught sight of Meng Hao.

“He looks a bit familiar…” His gaze pa.s.sed by before he could recall who Meng Hao was. However, it was at this moment that w.a.n.g Tengfei’s surprised eyes fell onto Meng Hao. A look of disbelief appeared.

Meng Hao looked back at him. They were in different groups of people, hundreds of meters away from each other, and yet their gazes locked.

Just like they had years ago in the Reliance Sect!