153 The Seven Sects (1/2)
After a night of much-needed rest, Ed awoke early in the morning to the sound of someone banging on his door. He yawned as he stood and stretched his body. After getting dressed, he opened the door and saw the butler that had greeted him just yesterday.
”Good morning.” The butler respectfully bowed. ”Sect Leader Long is waiting for you in the dining room with breakfast.”
”Thanks.” Ed nodded and walked past him.
Tao sat alone at the long table in the dining room. ”Ed.” He waved as he bit into a slice of bacon. ”We'll be leaving soon, so eat now if you're hungry.”
”Mm.” He nodded and sat down. A plate of eggs, bacon, and toast was in front of him. ”Where are we headed and how long will it take to get there?” He asked.
”Normally all multi-sect meetings are held at the Purple Origin Sect, though we obviously can't do that now.” He replied. ”To my understanding, we're meeting at the Water Snake Sect today. Someone should come to pick us up soon.”
”The Water Snake Sect?” Ed rose an eyebrow. ”Where's that?”
Tai gulped down a cup of coffee. ”Mount Everest.”
Ed's eyes widened in surprise. ”We're going to climb the tallest mountain in the world?”
”Thankfully not.” Tai shook his head. ”We're catching a ride.”
Just as he finished speaking, a portal appeared in the room. It seemed similar to World Walker's portals, but also different. Nobody stepped through the portal to their side.
”That's our cue.” Tai said as he stood up and walked towards the portal. Ed hurriedly followed behind him.
As the two stepped through the portal, it felt like they were simply passing through a sheet of water. It was a completely different feeling compared to World Walker's portals, which tended to pull your body with extreme gravitational force.
They appeared in a small meeting room with no windows and minimal lighting. It seemed to be a place for secretive meetings. Fortunately, the hardwood floors were warm, making the room feel extremely comfortable despite being atop a freezing mountain. The only furniture seemed to be a round table and some chairs.
Ed couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed, as he had expected to see the mountain itself and not just the insides of a room built atop it. Looking around the room, he spotted a Chinese woman with long black hair sitting at the round table with another woman standing behind her. They both wore blue robes with black trim. It seemed she was the leader of the Water Snake Sect. Other than them, there were ten other people that had just entered in groups of two through various portals similar to their own. 'Was Tai only allowed to bring one person with him?' He wondered to himself.
”Ahem.” The Water Snake Sect Leader coughed to gather their attention. ”Please have a seat everyone.” Everyone walked to the table and took their respective seats. ”Now then.” She continued while gesturing her hand towards Tai. ”As you all know, we have a new member amongst us, which not all of you will be familiar with. So, let us do introductions. As I'm sure everyone already knows, I'm the founder of the Water Snake Sect, Ying Yue.”
A bald man wearing green robes smiled politely. ”Thank you, Sect Leader Ying.” He turned towards Tai. ”I am the founder of the Wind Hawk Sect, and you can just call me Dongfeng.” He looked to his left. ”Why don't you go next, brother Di.”
A dark-skinned man wearing loose yellow robes leaned lazily in his chair, almost seeming to slide off it. He had long brown curly hair. He lazily glanced at Dongfeng. ”Hard to introduce myself when you do it for me.” He snorted, seemingly having nothing else to say.
”Haha.” Dongfeng laughed bashfully. ”Well, brother Di is the 2nd head of the Earth Armadillo Sect.”
Sect Leader Di glared at Dongfeng. ”How many times do I have to tell you? I changed the sect name to the Earth Dust Sect. I don't like playing your stupid animal names game.”
Dongfeng chuckled, saying nothing in reply.
”Guess I'm next.” A burly man with long silver hair, a short beard, and sharp eyebrows said. He wore silver robes that matched his hair perfectly. ”I am Sect Leader Xia of the Lightning Eel Sect. It's nice to meet everyone.” After giving a slight bow, he sat back down.
The last two sects were both led by young women that surprisingly looked like twins, except that one wore black robes and the other wore white. It was made even more interesting when considering each had long straight hair that contrasted to the color of their robes. They both stood at the same time and glared at each other.
”I am Sect Leader Li of the Dark Phoenix Sect.” The black-robed woman with white hair said.
”I am Sect Leader Wan of the Light Tiger Sect.” The white-robed woman with black hair spoke at the same time.
Both woman glared at each other before sitting back down.
Tai stood up while waving his fan towards his face. ”Hello seniors.” He politely bowed. ”I am Sect Leader Long, the 2nd head of the Fire Dragon Sect. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
It was only now that Ed realized Tai had switched from his usual robes to the official Fire Dragon Sect robes that were mostly red and orange in color. In fact, the additional guests in the room all wore robes matching their respective sect leaders. There were even a couple of foreigners amongst them. However, he was the only odd one out, still wearing his usual black robes, and it seemed the others took notice of this as they stared at him.
Tai noticed the awkward situation and gestured towards Ed. ”This is my personal friend from America. You've probably heard of him at some point. He goes by the name Forge and leads an organization known as Harmony.”
”Ha!” Di, the Earth Dust Sect Leader, snorted. ”I've heard of the crazy bastard!” His eyes almost seemed to show respect when looking at Ed, whereas he only held contempt for everyone else in the room.
”A foolish man from what I know.” Sect Leader Ying of the Water Snake Sect sighed while shaking her head.
”We should welcome any additional forces that are available to us.” Sect Leader Dongfeng of the Wind Hawk Sect politely smiled and nodded towards him.
The others seemed indifferent, not caring to speak on the matter.
”Ahem.” Sect Leader Ying coughed into her hand. ”Moving on. The war will start in four days. We're here to discuss preparations. As you all know, my sect and the Fire Dragon Sect hold the most members. Therefore, I think it is most appropriate that we lead the charge in the coming battles. Your thoughts?”