Chapter 666

And in the course of continuous expansion, more and more nobles would be born.

After all, the best way to reward meritorious ministers is to grant them titles!

Of course, after the Eternal Night Empire ceased its expansion, the growth rate of noble numbers would certainly slow.

The current Eternal Night Empire has not yet reached saturation in noble numbers.

But the number of counts has already exceeded a thousand, something unimaginable in a kingdom—formerly, the Hiling Kingdom had barely twenty counts.

Of course, the most numerous are still viscounts and barons.

Among the nobles, there is also a pyramid structure.

In fact, even within the Commoner Class, a pyramid structure exists.

The pyramid seems to be everywhere—from a single kingdom to an entire empire, from the Commoner Class to the Noble Class.

Even in the Heavenly Realm and the Abyss, it remains a pyramid structure.

A simple pyramid encompasses the entire world's underlying pattern!

Thus, even the Divine Core takes the shape of a pyramid!

As the sun rose, a count with exceptional prestige arrived.

"Count Milen has arrived—come, let's go pay our respects."

Some counts, seeing Count Milen arrive, hurried over to greet him.

This scene was the norm at noble gatherings on the Continent of Gods.

The higher one's status and prestige, the stronger one's power, the more attention one received from other nobles at such gatherings.

Those attending this Yiciyan Society were not only nobles but also some officials.

Some officials held titles and were themselves nobles.

Some officials came from humble origins but held high positions and still earned respect from certain nobles.

Titles cannot be granted lightly; once granted, they cannot be arbitrarily revoked. After an empire is established, the granting of titles becomes exceedingly cautious.

Thus, even some officials of very high status might lack any title.

"The Finance Minister has arrived—come, let's go pay our respects."

"The War Minister has arrived too…"

The arrival of officials made the scene even livelier.

Gradually, some major merchants also arrived.

Some major merchants were as wealthy as nations; once wealth reached a certain level, it could exert tremendous influence, since many nobles conducted business with them.

Thus, these major merchants were invited to attend the Millennium Birthday Celebration.

Besides major merchants, there were also other influential figures in society.

Such as famous bards, legendary local figures, and even some grand opera performers.

"That's the Dragon Hunter Fuben."

"That's the legendary mercenary Edvin."

"…"

Some nobles gathered around, curiously greeting these people.

These individuals might not hold higher status than the nobles present, but many had become widely renowned due to one or two notable events.

This Millennium Birthday Celebration was truly a millennium-scale grand event.

It gathered the finest elites from every walk of life in the Eternal Night Empire!

The time had not yet passed 8:00, but more than half of the guests had already arrived.

Yet, no heavyweight figures had arrived yet.

Finally, the time reached 8:00.

"Look, Count Hansa has arrived."

For this Millennium Birthday Celebration, before 8:00 was the time for counts, officials, and major merchants.

After 8:00, it became the time for marquises and above.

Marquises arrived one after another.

Each marquis's arrival drew a large crowd to pay their respects.

The Eternal Night Empire had few marquises—only a hundred or so—and they occupied the time from 8:00 to 9:00.

Then, even more prestigious dukes began arriving in succession.

"Hou Jue Victor has arrived—come, let's hurry and pay our respects."

The first duke to arrive was Hou Jue Victor; as soon as he appeared, he was immediately surrounded by a crowd of nobles.

"These fellows all want to arrive late to appear important, unaware that being first doesn't make you any less significant than arriving late."

Hou Jue Victor, while politely exchanging pleasantries with the surrounding nobles, thought to himself.

The order of arrival also carried significance.

Thus, many dukes waited for others to enter first.

But the banquet would officially begin at 10:30, leaving dukes only one hour.

So, after weighing their actual status, several dukes began to move.

Each duke's appearance became the center of attention for a group.

Within the Eternal Night Empire, there were only a couple dozen dukes, but beyond its borders, there were another dozen or so dukes from vassal states.

The arrival of the dukes completely energized the atmosphere.

"Lord Laurence has arrived—look, isn't the girl beside him Anne, the Pearl of the Six Eastern Provinces?"

At this moment, Lord Laurence arrived, drawing a flood of gazes.

The nobles naturally did not come alone; they could bring several attendants, and each noble would bring one or two descendants to gain experience and expand their connections…

Anni's arrival instantly stirred the noble descendants into restless motion.

If one could marry Young Lady Anni, it would mean becoming the son-in-law of a great duke!

More importantly, it would mean winning the heart of such a beauty.

Unfortunately, these noble sons were destined to be disappointed, for Anni completely ignored them.

After 10 o'clock, the dukes finally all arrived.

People from other empires began arriving in droves.

Among those who came to attend the birthday celebration were several small empires and one great empire.

The small empires were each led personally by their emperors, and the representative of the great empire also arrived in person—the emperor himself.

Since they were unfamiliar, neither the small empire envoys nor the great empire's emperor drew excessive crowds gathering to stare.

These envoys from other empires showed no intention of paying formal respects to the Eternal Night Empire's nobles; instead, they all took their seats in the front rows.

"Look quick—the legendary mage Lord Rein from the Holy Magic Academy…"

At this moment, some people spotted a mage flying across the sky.

"That's Hou Jue Oni's nephew, the legendary mage Kran…"

Soon after, more legendary figures appeared one after another.

These legendary figures had no intention of chatting with the nobles; each flew to the front and took their seats alone.

For this millennium birthday celebration, every person's seat was assigned in advance upon formal entry—generally, the higher one's status, the closer to the front one sat.

One after another, legendary figures continued to arrive.

Some of these legendary figures were known to the nobles, others were not—but each appearance of a legendary figure stirred commotion.

This was also an opportunity to meet legendary figures.

Finally, nearly twenty legendary figures had all arrived.

Immediately after, an old man with a faint aura of authority flew across the sky.

"Look! That's the headmaster of the Holy Magic Academy…"

All eyes turned to Haywood.

The old man was none other than the headmaster of the Holy Magic Academy—the mighty Saint Realm!

Whether noble or commoner, many present had never seen a Saint Realm before!

In an instant, the entire venue fell silent; everyone, including the envoys from other empires, regarded Haywood with solemn respect.

Haywood flew directly to the front row and sat down.

The seating here was not packed tightly like in a cinema; each seat was spaced far apart.

Especially the first row.