"John, is such a thing even possible?" Barden couldn't help but ask his son. "We know you're important to your sect, but even then, allocating land in the Holy Lands won't be an easy thing for them."
"It won't be a problem," a voice suddenly sounded out from one of the shadowed corners of the large room. Everyone turned to the source of the voice with great surprise, as they had not noticed this person at all. Only John remained calm, as he had expected such a thing to happen.
Everyone spotted Lilian standing there in the corner of the room, partially shrouded in shadows. Her aura was completely retracted, making her seem to blend into the world itself. With her cultivation shrouded by her Dao Transformation cultivation, it was almost as if she was invisible unless she wanted to be seen.
"You're...John's Master," the Patriarch said to Lilian as he shakily stood up, still weak from his grave injury.
He had been injured and healing during the celebrations, and had yet to meet Lilian.
"No need to stand up," Lilian replied calmly as she watched Grayson Fenix approach her. Cade Fenix was supporting him, making sure he didn't strain himself too much.
"Nonsense," the Patriarch replied. "Were it not for your timely assistance, our Fenix Clan would no longer be a part of this world. Standing up is the least I could do to show respect," he continued as he stubbornly walked over to her. Blood began to spew out of his freshly opened wound, but the Patriarch ignored it.
Lilian stared at the Patriarch for a moment before she nodded her head in approval. "Not a bad attitude you have. I can see where John gets his stubbornness from."
"What are you talking about? You're far more stubborn than me," John blurted out as he rolled his eyes. He quickly realized he had said something he shouldn't have, and warily looked at his master.
Surprisingly, she remained in place, and only glared at him. John breathed a sigh of relief as he admonished himself, and his inability to keep his mouth shut when talking about his master.
Lilian gazed at John for a moment, before looking back at the Patriarch who stood before her. The Patriarch bowed his head slightly in respect and thanks, to which Lilian stopped.
"Your thanks are enough. I do not need additional praise," Lilian replied.
The Patriarch nodded his head, quickly getting a gauge of Lilian's personality. She seemed to be a person who did what she did because she wanted to, and not because she expected praise from others. Such a person was someone worth befriending, or in John's case, following.
He turned to John and smiled. "You have a good master. Be sure to follow her closely."
John rolled his eyes at the comment but said nothing and only nodded his head. The Patriarch turned back to Lilian to inquire about what she had said earlier.
"You said establishing a Fenix Clan branch in the Holy Lands won't be a problem. Is such a thing the truth?"
"It won't be a problem," Lilian replied. "Our Heavenly Lightning Sect owns the largest portion of land out of any powers on this continent. We can carve out a small unused section for your Clan branch."
Everyone's eyes in the room lit up at the confirmation of such a thing. Never in their wildest dreams had they expected such a thing to be possible, but the fate of the Clan seemed to be changing for the better, all because of their Young Master's actions.
"Then I will thank you right now for aiding our Clan yet again," the Patriarch replied.
He turned around to face the rest of the room, and addressed them. "However, there is still one thing to be decided. Who will lead this branch? I have lived my entire life here, and will die here. My son is the Leader of this main branch here, and so we will need someone else to lead the other branch."
The hopeful eyes of many Elder's lit up at the thought of leading a Holy Land branch for the clan, but their hopes were quickly dimmed as they realized there truly was only one perfect fit for the job. Their eyes all turned to look at one person in the room.
Barden quickly noticed the gazes of everyone in the room.
"Me?" he asked.
"There can be no one else more suited for the role," Cade replied. "You are not only a direct lineage of the current clan leadership, but are also the second strongest in the entire clan. Even I am no longer a match for you. And lastly, you are young, and full of vigor. The perfect qualities needed to undertake a task as grueling as establishing a new branch."
Barden remained silent for a moment as he gauged the reactions of everyone in the room. While there were some indifferent faces, the overwhelming sentiment was approval for this plan.
"I accept," Barden replied decisively.
"Good. Good," the Patriarch replied with a happy smile as he walked to his grandson and patted him on the back. "Under your leadership, I'm sure the branch there will soar to heights we cannot yet fathom."
He turned to address the group of Elder's once more. "Then with my authority as Patriarch of this Clan, I announce that Barden Fenix will become the Branch Leader for our very first Fenix Clan Branch."
An uproar of congratulations filled the room as the Elder's one by one walked up to Barden and personally congratulated him. John walked over to his master and stood there watching the events unfold. The smile on his fathers face revealed to him that he was truly happy to be entrusted with such a thing.
"Thank you," John said to Lilian.
"Oh? You're actually thanking me for once. Today truly is a day of rare events," Lilian replied somewhat sarcastically.
John only rolled his eyes at her response. After appointing Barden as Branch Leader, the assembly of Elder's conversed about many things regarding the clans future, such as the rebuilding process, the fate of Orenn, and much more.
John watched the discussions take place for some time, before he silently turned to leave the room.
"Where are you going?" Lilian couldn't help but ask.
"I have some unfinished business I have to take care of. I'll be back before long."
Upon saying this, John strode out of the building and immediately took to the skies. He had not yet forgotten his vow of vengeance for his fallen friend.
