White-Robed Chief

Zhuge Feng coughed lightly and looked at the six other elders. “What do the elders think?”

They hesitated and were equally indecisive.

Hu Huarong and his men used the Surpassing State to rebel against the sect. They secretly wanted to split the sect and achieve independence. In reality, crippling his martial arts was not overdoing things at all, rather, the actions of the young master greatly pleased them. Unfortunately, Hu Huarong was not the only one to use the Surpassing State, they still had to deal with Elder Jin Ye.

Furthermore, Jin Ye would be the hardest to deal with.

If they were to let Hu Huarong remain like this, they would undoubtedly struggle when it is time to deal with Jin Ye.

Jin Ye’s cultivation level was stronger than Hu Huarong’s. Although the young master managed to cripple Hu Huarong, Jin Ye would be a completely different case.

In addition to this, one of the two strongest elders in the sect was currently crippled. If the other were to also become crippled, there would be a power vacuum, and other people might take advantage of the situation.

There were a lot of factors to consider, so they became hesitant.

Chu Li scoffed. “What other ideas can you think of when dealing with these kinds of people. It’s good enough that we let them remain in the sect – if we let them return, we would be too soft!”

“Hmmm…” Murong Chun shook his head and sighed. “Elder Hu, everyone misses you. You have rich experience in martial arts, so it would be beneficial for everyone if you decided to teach the juniors. Asking you to stay in the Suppressing State would be a waste of potential.

“I can teach my juniors whilst in the Suppressing State,” sneered Hu Huarong. “You people are quite brave!”

Murong Chun replied, “Guidance is crucial at the start of cultivation, and Elder Hu would be the most suitable person to do this. Hill Master, I think I will discuss the matter with Elder Jin at his place. We’ll see if we can let Elder Hu stay here.”

“Please stay here,” said Xia Liyan in a deep voice.

“Sigh… If that is the case, I will send a letter to Elder Jin to request that Elder Hu and Lu Tianji stay in the sect so that they may recover their martial arts!” Zhuge Feng nodded his head. “I apologize for troubling Elder Hu!”

Hu Huarong kept his mouth shut and remained silent before slowly closing his eyes.

“Elder Hu must be exhausted now, let’s not bother him anymore. Let’s go!” Said Zhuge Feng.

Everyone exited the courtyard.

Then they all looked at Chu Li

Zhuge Feng scoffed. “Go to the basilica!”

Chu Li replied, “There is nothing much to say, both the Master and disciple are not good people. They schemed against me, so I gave them what they deserved!”

“Nonsense!” Scoffed Zhuge Feng, “To cripple an Elder just like that without knowing the complexity of the situation… Do you know how much trouble you’ve caused?”

Chu Li replied, “Well, they should not have provoked me in the first place. Farewell!”

He stalked off after saying this. Qiao San hurriedly waved his hand towards the elders, then quickly followed after him.

Zhuge Feng shook his head and sighed as he looked at Chu Li’s back disappear off into the distance.

“Hill Master, the young master’s temper is supported by his martial arts. Maybe he could help expand the spiritual energy of the Crouching Bull Mountain,” Murong Chun piped, “No one will dare offend us in the future!”

“He is too much of a troublemaker, and he acts outrageously!” Zhuge Feng shook his head. “If he were to face top-notch masters, I’m afraid he will suffer great losses. At some point, even the strongest steel bends!”

“If it bends, then it is because it is not firm enough,” quipped Murong Chun, “Our Crouching Bull Mountain has endured enough, it’s about time we toughen up!”

“All of you…” Zhuge Feng shook his head.

He felt that the reason his son was able to gain their support was mostly because of his martial arts. The same went for his temper. They were all fed up and could not wait to vent their emotions. This was not a good thing, as it could easily lead to ruin or even death.

——

In the evening, Zhou Hange and Chu Dazhi arrived at a restaurant in the ravine.

As they entered the restaurant, they saw Duan Wuya sitting at the table near a window alongside Huang Tao and Li Weiran. They were having enthusiastic discussions with the surrounding disciples.

When they noticed the two people enter, everyone slowly stopped talking and took turns to greet the pair.

A normal disciple could not afford to offend Zhou Hange and Duan Wuya. Even if they harbored ill will toward the pair, they still had to act courteously.

Zhou Hange and Chu Dazhi casually sat at an empty table, ordered a few dishes, and observed their surroundings.

Before long, Li Weiran approached their table, sat down, and scoffed. “Brother Zhou, Junior Brother Chu, have you heard of what happened with the young master?”

“What happened?” Asked Chu Dazhi.

They genuinely had not heard anything.

Previously, when Murong Liang had forced them to meet the young master together, they had almost offended the young master, so he kept his distance from Murong Liang out of anger and stayed in his house to cultivate his martial arts.

Li Weiran said, “The young master crippled the martial arts of Hu Huarong from the Surpassing State!”

“Elder Hu Huarong?” Chu Dazhi was shocked. “How can that be!”

“It’s true!” Scoffed Li Weiran. “The elder with the highest seniority in our sect, second only to Elder Jin, is Elder Hu. Even so, the highly respected Elder Hu was unexpectedly crippled of his martial arts by the young master. It’s just unbelievable!”

Zhou Hange slowly asked, “Why?”

“I think it was because Elder Hu’s disciple Lu Tianji wanted to compete to become the next Hill Master, which opposed the wishes of the young master, so the young master crippled Lu Tianji’s martial arts first, and then crippled Elder Hu’s martial arts after this… Those who comply with his demands would thrive, but those who resist would perish. That is just too cruel!” Li Weiran shook his head and lamented, “If this goes on, his word will be absolute in our sect. Others will not dare speak up in fear that their martial arts will be crippled!”

“That will not happen,” Zhou Hange shook his head. “The young master is not that extreme; it is no doubt Elder Hu and Lu Tianji who provoked him!”

“It’s all done in competition for the position of Hill Master,” scoffed Li Weiran. “Everyone wants to rely on their own capabilities, and we would like to believe that Hill Master will not pick sides. But why go so far as to cripple the martial arts of a person from the same sect, even more so the martial arts of an Elder?”

Zhou Hange sighed. “Does anyone know the reason why the young master crippled their martial arts?”

Li Weiran shook his head. “No clue. Regardless of the reason though, he shouldn’t have crippled Lu Tianji’s martial arts. He even crippled the martial arts of an elder. Do we really dare to have a Hill Master like this?”

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

Although the young master had exceptional martial arts and defeated a master who was a generation older than him, his temperament was truly eccentric, and his actions were cruel. They were worried that if he were to become Hill Master, his rule would be too strict, and everyone would lead less than ideal lives.

Zhou Hange sighed deeply. “You people do not understand the young master at all. He is an extremely wise person and is constantly involved with the struggles of the upper class. His inner emotions are complex, to the point where we will not understand them at all. We will not be able to see things clearly, so we cannot just blindly repeat what other people say.

“We do not like the young master anyways, so why would we want the young master to become the next Hill Master?” Li Weiran pursed his lips and replied, “We cannot just give him the position just because he is the Hill Master’s son, right? That would be being too shallow!”

Zhou Hange glanced at Duan Wuya and Huang Tao before asking coldly, “Who is spreading this information?”

“I do not know,” Li Weiran replied, “You think that it was us? Please don’t look down on us like that!”

“Duan Wuya can’t become the next Hill Master,” said Zhou Hange.

“Why not?” Asked Li Weiran, “Brother Duan has powerful martial arts, his character is good too. We will feel assured if he were to become Hill Master.”

Zhou Hange shook his head. “If you do not want to cause trouble for Brother Duan, then be more well behaved and don’t encourage him, or he will end up like Lu Tianji!”

“Hmph, I doubt that!” Smirked Li Weiran.

Zhou Hange laughed and said nothing more.

The young master even dared to cripple an elder’s martial arts, what more the martial arts of a mere disciple. Did they actually think that the young master was someone who cared about the opinions of others?

He quietly shook his head. They were just a group of youths who have never been faced with death, nor been baptized with blood. Yet, they think that they are remarkable people – it is just ridiculous!