With the word of the dragons to reassure her, Fei Bai Mu didn't linger in the Yun Zou Sect for much longer. She only went to see Hua Min for a moment, making him promise to take part in the trial as well and then left.
As soon as she reached the grounds of the Jian Yi Sect together with Elder Tang and the disciples they had brought over, she issued the task to invite all other sects to appear with a few representatives at the Jian Yi Sect's grounds in three weeks' time.
She mentioned the reason for the invitation to those who already knew and gave a slightly longer explanation to those who weren't in the know yet. Then, she sent the disciples out to bring these letters to the other unranked sects so they could sign the letters as well, indicating that all of them were on the same page in regard to this.
Soon enough, the invitations were sent out and the demon-hunting sects were also issued a summons. While Fei Bai Mu stayed vague in what she told them, she did make clear that this was a matter that concerned all of them, and not attending would mean to stand against the other sects on the righteous side from now on.
Some of the demon-hunting sects that hadn't been informed by the Chun Feng Sect about their doubts in regards to the Yun Zou Sect were completely caught unawares and couldn't understand what was going on. In a panic, they hurriedly sent out a group consisting of whoever was highest in ranking after their Sect Master, as well as another few Elders and disciples. The Sect Master's were anxious though, wishing that they themselves would be able to go there. Unfortunately, most sects weren't able to organize that in a short time.
The demon-hunting sects that did know what had happened with the Chun Feng Sect before this were slightly calmer. Most of them hadn't engaged in the same tactics so they felt that they shouldn't be in trouble when going there and would only be there to bear witness. While they could understand the behavior of the Chun Feng Sect, and might not even be completely against going about things this way, they didn't mind agreeing to never do so in the future. After all, nothing would be lost for them if there were a few more restrictions.
It was only those sects that had done similar things in the past that couldn't help but worry as well. They could only hope that with the scale in which the Chun Feng Sect had gone about this, they would get away with a light slap on their wrists.
After the announcement, it didn't take long for the first sects to arrive. The ones who were from close by or had organized themselves in a rush reached the Jian Yi Sect's sect grounds after just a few days. Their nervousness could be seen directly and the disciples at the gate couldn't help but wonder if maybe they had done something they needed to feel guilty for. But, well, this had nothing to do with them. Thus, they merely greeted them, invited them inside, and then made sure that they got to the right dwellings. Naturally, Fei Bai Mu was also informed about the arrival of the sects.
Seeing that things were being put in motion, she nodded to herself and started to sight the materials again, making sure that there wouldn't be any hiccups while the trial was ongoing.
After a few more days, the next sects' envoys arrived and even a group of the Liu He Alliance made their way over. Hua Min was the one heading the group since he had already been in contact with Fei Bai Mu before.
Upon their arrival, they were immediately brought over to Fei Bai Mu's palace. Contrary to the small sects that had arrived before, the standing of the Liu He Alliance in the cultivation world was a completely different thing altogether.
While the Jian Yi Sect was probably the sect at the very top, there wasn't much of a difference between their status and that of the Liu He Alliance. In fact, there wasn't much of a difference between any of the sects outside of the ranking. Each of them was a behemoth in their own right. With long-standing traditions, secret arts that were not shared outside of the sects, and an influx of especially talented disciples to boot that had a natural knack for cultivation, it wasn't a wonder that this was the case. As such, the respect they were shown by others and also the respect that they were showing to each other was never lacking.
Although, it did need to be said that the unranked sects did make it a point that their disciples treated the disciples of other sects with the same respect they expected to get from them. If a disciple was found to violate that rule, then the consequences normally wouldn't be pretty. And that was the same for the direct disciples of the Sect Master and the Elders, as well as for the smaller disciples that couldn't boast of the same status.
It could be said that the unranked sects were much better than the first-tier sects in that regard as well. The Elders took this matter very seriously. They didn't allow for any transgressions. This had, over time, made it so that the reputation of the sects were all especially good. Naturally, even if it wasn't, the other sects likely wouldn't have dared to say anything for fear of angering them.
Anyways, when the people of two of these major sects met, they first exchanged quite a few pleasantries. Fei Bai Mu introduced her disciple to her guests while Hua Ming inquired about the situation and how things had been going for her since she had this additional burden of needing to prepare for the trial. It was only after almost an hour that they got to the actual point of the visit.