Before Ye Futian arrived in Emperor Xia's Realm, a group of cultivators had arrived before him. However, they had not alerted Emperor Xia's Palace.
This was because they had found useful information among the memories of commoners in Emperor Xia's City. They naturally did not need to disturb Emperor Xia anymore and draw attention to themselves.
After Ye Futian and his army descended upon the Shen clan, the Heavenly Mandate Academy became known throughout the Nine Realms, and they began to accept disciples.
However, the Shen clan had come up with another plan. They decided to investigate Ye Futian's background and origins. Although, currently, they could not do anything to Ye Futian, they might accidentally stumble upon something by doing so. In the future, when they truly went to war against Ye Futian, they might have some trump cards up their sleeve.
