White-Robed Chief

The morning air was particularly crisp and refreshing in the forest, where a thin layer of fog lingered and the melodious sound of birds chirping could clearly be heard.

Zhao Tianxing’s mood was not as upbeat, however, as he sat dejectedly by the stone table in a gazebo and sighed before saying to Xiao Yueling, “Master’s Junior, I have accomplished nothing. It seems like there’s no more hope for me now.”

Zhao Tianxing was wearing a green tunic and had a tall stature and a handsome face. He looked very charming.

Xiao Yueling’s face was covered with a white veil, and only her bright eyes could be seen. Her slanted brows gave off an imposing aura as she threw a sideway glance at Zhao Tianxing. “If you’ve found nothing, so be it.”

“But my task was to capture an Asura and bring it back to the mountain,” Zhao Tianxing protested. “Master’s Junior, if I can’t capture an Asura, how am I supposed to go back and face Master!”

“Capturing an Asura requires not only skill, but also luck,” Xiao Yueling said while shaking her head. “Your master should understand that. He won’t blame you.”

“Master often said that luck is a type of skill as well. Without luck, it would be useless to have just skill,” Zhao Tianxing said with a pout, feeling helpless. “Master said I’m not very lucky. With Fa Yuan and Chu Li around, my appearance will be cast aside.”

Xiao Yueling scoffed. “Your master’s thinking is too strange. Don’t listen to him!”

Zhao Tianxing laughed. “I think Master’s words make some sense though. Luck is very important indeed. I can’t compare with Chu Li.”

“Luck…” Xiao Yueling shook her head. “Luck is like the waves of the ocean. At times, the tide will be low, and at other times, it will be high. If you keep counting on luck, you won’t accomplish anything. Without strong determination, what can you achieve?”

Zhao Tianxing nodded.

Xiao Yueling continued, “Your master has a weak personality. That’s why he’s such a good-for-nothing. Otherwise, with his aptitude, he could have achieved so much more by now!”

“But Master is already very impressive as it stands,” Zhao Tianxing replied.

“Impressive?” Xiao Yueling scoffed in a harsh manner. “Think about Chu Li. He started as a servant and slowly climbed rung by rung up the social ladder. Now, he has become a Rank-One Chief. How many steps has he climbed? What about your master?”

“Master thinks that struggling too much is useless, so he’s pretty contented with his situation.” Zhao Tianxing chuckled. “That’s why he’s been looking into some divination martial arts studies. Master said that the Tempest Temple has been so kindly suppressing the Asuras, not because they’re kind-hearted, but because they’re hoping to create a more powerful form of martial arts through studying the beings. Master is planning to do the same.”

“If Asuras were that easy to study, then the Tempest Temple would have already succeeded.” Xiao Yueling shook her head. “Asuras have a very long history of their own, hailing from the Outland. That makes it different from our martial arts.”

“But the sect elders are giving Master their full support.” Zhao Tianxing sighed. “That’s why I have to bring an Asura back this time. Master is waiting for me. In fact, Master has also made it clear that if I don’t manage to capture an Asura, I might as well return to the mountain and never come out again.”

“Ridiculous!” Xiao Yueling huffed.

Zhao Tianxing quickly nodded.

Xiao Yueling exhaled sharply. “But since they’ve given the order, I have no choice either. Let’s just take our time and carry on searching then.”

Zhao Tianxing’s expression immediately turned glum.

“I wonder if Brother Chu can come up with any ideas,” Zhao Tianxing muttered.

Xiao Yueling said, “Are you still thinking of getting him to ask the Tempest Temple to give us one of theirs?”

Zhao Tianxing grinned sheepishly.

Xiao Yueling frowned as she stared at him.

Zhao Tianxing reasoned, “Master’s Junior, I know this seems very unambitious of me, but I really have no choice. If I were to rely on myself, it would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. How will I ever manage to track one down? In any case, Master and the others won’t care about the methods I use. As long as I bring them an Asura, it’ll be fine.”

Xiao Yueling shook her head again as she sighed. “You… Find one yourself!”

As she was still speaking, Chu Li came gliding over with an Asura in his hand. He entered the gazebo before tossing the Asura onto the ground. Then, he greeted them with a fist salute while smiling. “Aunt Yue Ling, Brother Zhao.”

“Brother Chu!” Zhao Tianxing became overjoyed when he saw the Asura on the ground. “Are you giving him to us?”

Chu Li nodded. “You seemed like you really wanted one. Coincidentally, I encountered another one of them, so I captured him for you. You won’t have to fight with the Tempest Temple over it anymore.”

“How did you encounter this one?” Xiao Yueling frowned. “You didn’t ask the Tempest Temple to give you theirs, did you?”

Chu Li dismissed the idea with a wave of his hand. “How can I bring myself to do that? I really happened to come across this one by coincidence. Aunt Yue Ling, it must also be because of you and Brother Zhao’s luck.”

“Haha, we’re lucky indeed!” Zhao Tianxing beamed. “Brother Chu, you’ve truly been a great help to me. No words can express my gratitude toward you. If you ever need my assistance in the future, just let me know!”

Chu Li smiled and nodded at him.

Zhao Tianxing’s words carried no weight. He did not intend to give Chu Li any help and was just paying lip service to him. Deep down, he still felt hostile toward Chu Li.

Xiao Yueling asked, “So you’ve encountered an Asura again?”

Chu Li replied, “At the moment, there seems to Asuras all over the place. I have no choice but to fight them.”

“You have to be careful. Some of the Asuras are unusually strong. You may not be able to defeat them.” Xiao Yueling knitted her brows together. “If the situation gets unfavorable, you have to escape. You mustn’t push yourself too far!”

Chu Li used to be directly under the command of the High Duke’s Public House and was a martial arts master that had been carefully trained by the Public House. Unlike the other Grandmasters of the High Duke’s Public House, he was truly one of their own people who could be trusted, especially since he shared a special relationship with Xiao Qi as well.

“Understood.” Chu Li nodded and gave them a fist salute. “I’ll be off first, then.”

“Go on.” Xiao Yueling nodded.

Chu Li swiftly glided away.

Zhao Tianxing marvelled. “Master’s Junior, Brother Chu is indeed a true friend!”

Xiao Yueling glanced at him sideways and replied, “You believe he’s a true friend?”

“Of course.” Zhao Tianxing laughed happily. “He knew that we wanted an Asura, so he went ahead and caught one for us.”

Xiao Yueling had given up on him at this point. “Well then, you should go back now. Don’t create any more problems. I’m also planning to make a trip back to the sect anyway.”

Zhao Tianxing was ecstatic. “Thank you, Master’s Junior!”

He knew that Xiao Yueling’s actual intention was to protect him by accompanying him as he returned to the mountain, in case he encountered any powerful enemies on his way back.

He felt extremely grateful for her concern.

…

After gifting the Asura to them, Chu Li finally felt at ease with his conscience.

He tried activating the All-Knowing Scripture again, but did not detect anything significant.

The All-Knowing Scripture had a limited range since his cultivation level was still too weak. Therefore, he could not pick up the scent of an Asura that was too far away from him. He might be able to detect their scent within a radius of over ten miles, but if it were any farther than that, he would not be able to detect anything. Thus, he still needed to continue cultivating more diligently.

Since it was going to be a dangerous trip, Xiao Shi should not go along with him this time around. He put on the Fog Beast mask and transformed himself into Chu Lingfeng before appearing at a restaurant in the Ji River Valley.

As usual, the Ji River Valley was bustling.

It was morning and was precisely breakfast time. Thus, the restaurant was filled with a lively atmosphere.

Chu Li went up to the third floor and found himself a seat. The people around him were carefree and at ease as they ate and chatted among themselves.

“Have you heard?” A man said with a raised voice after swallowing a mouthful of soup. “Another village has been massacred!”

“Ah…” The others shook their heads.

“Elder Jiang, you should stop. We’re eating. Don’t talk about such matters and spoil our appetites!”

“This time, it seems like the High Duke will be personally attending to the situation!”

If the High Duke still didn’t intervene, I’m afraid no one else would be able to deal with these people!”

“The second young master is really pitiful. I heard he has lost one of his arms!”

“He’s very lucky to have been able to come out alive!”