Chapter 377 - 219: Li Xingtuo’s Shock (Part 2)

Chapter 377: Chapter 219: Li Xingtuo’s Shock (Part 2)

But at least for now...

"Master Xie is so incredible!"

In Xie Yuan’s small courtyard, Lin Cheng sang his praises at length. He took a large gulp of tea and concluded,

"That’s Master Xie for you... That Wu River County Magistrate must have been a corrupt bastard, just like Yu Chunsheng. Master Xie killed him, so he must have done something wrong."

Lin Zhen’s voice was gentle, but her tone was fierce.

"This Xie Yuan is truly incredible. He’s improved even more since we last saw him in the West Desert. To kill a Celestial Tier Assassin... Damn! I really want to get to know the guy!"

Pei Yu, who rarely visited, had also come to Xie Yuan’s courtyard. Even Huang Zifeng was present.

The latter nodded gravely and let out a soft sigh.

"The gap between us has only gotten wider..."

The companions from the West Desert adventure had arranged to meet, gathering to drink tea and discuss the way of the sword.

After all, the four of them had risen from the Outer Sect together. With Huang Zifeng having led them through trials and into ancient ruins, they had practically faced life and death as one, forging a deep bond of friendship.

It was just that their cultivation kept them busy, and with Lin Zhen having moved to Yao Yue Peak, they had few opportunities to meet.

Xie Yuan listened in silence as they praised him to his own face. He cleared his throat and changed the subject.

"Senior Brothers, Senior Sister, what brings you all to my courtyard today?"

"My place and Junior Sister Lin’s aren’t convenient to visit. And Junior Brother Pei’s and Junior Brother Lin’s courtyards don’t have a view as magnificent as this. Looking out from here broadens the mind, making you feel like you could hold the world in your arms."

Huang Zifeng pointed outside. Through the open courtyard gate, they could see the vista beyond the cliff’s edge. A thousand mountains stretched out below, with clouds drifting beneath their feet. Only the opposing main peak rose up, pointing toward the gates of heaven, as if indicating the path that lay ahead.

"It’s certainly impressive,"

Lin Cheng chimed in.

Lin Zhen, however, turned to look at Xie Yuan, her limpid eyes sizing him up and down.

Xie Yuan wisely felt it was time to change the subject again, but just then, Lin Zhen spoke.

"Junior Brother Zhang, you’ve seen the Hidden Dragon List, haven’t you? How come you seem so uninterested in Master Xie’s ranking?"

"Huh? No, not at all. I admire him a great deal... I was just listening to all of you."

Xie Yuan gave an awkward yet polite smile.

He had chimed in on such occasions before to avoid seeming too quiet. But the topic of the Hidden Dragon List was just too popular, and it came up too often. After adding a few words of agreement, Xie Yuan really couldn’t bring himself to continue singing his own praises.

Xie Yuan didn’t consider himself a thin-skinned person, but having people shower him with praise to his face left him a bit tongue-tied.

’Besides, I can’t stay as Zhang Shan forever. Sooner or later, I’ll have to reveal my true identity. When that time comes, these sect-mates will remember how I, while wearing another man’s face, went on and on acting as my own number one fan. If word of that gets out, my reputation will be ruined... Social death is so much easier to achieve these days.’

Lin Zhen’s discerning eyes scanned him a few more times, but she said no more.

Seeing his chance, Xie Yuan quickly steered the conversation to another topic: the discussion of the sword. The moment Sword Dao was mentioned, everyone’s enthusiasm surged, and they launched into a lively back-and-forth debate.

Among their group, two were Direct Disciples of elders, while the other three were Inner Sect Disciples. Of those three, one had even perfected the Cloud Mountain Sword Form and was practicing the Cloud Dragon Nine Forms, leaving only two who were what you’d call typical Inner Sect Disciples. As they conversed, despite being mere disciples, they offered frequent, profound insights and a continuous stream of clever remarks, each reflecting the true understanding of the Sword Dao passed down from their respective Grandmaster elders.

As Xie Yuan absorbed their different methods, he gained his own insights. While pondering these new ideas, he observed his friends’ expressions and began to understand the true purpose of the day’s gathering.

This reunion had been organized by Huang Zifeng. Seeing the way his eyes kept drifting toward Lin Zhen, Xie Yuan knew his true intentions.

In the past, when Lin Zhen was still in the Inner Sect, Huang Zifeng would often use the excuse of visiting his "junior brothers and sisters" to come around. Of course, they all knew that visiting the junior brothers was just a pretext.

But now that Lin Zhen had gone to Yao Yue Peak, she was training diligently and rarely made an appearance. Huang Zifeng couldn’t very well visit Yao Yue Peak, which only accepted female disciples, so he had to resort to this plan.

’It looks like Miss Lin isn’t interested in Huang Zifeng, though... Her attitude isn’t nearly as close as it used to be; she’s dropped the constant fawning over ’Senior Brother Huang’.’

Xie Yuan gossiped silently to himself.

Although he often internally criticized the Sword Sect disciples for not focusing on their training, everyone from the service disciples to the Inner Sect loved to gossip.

He just didn’t like being the subject of gossip. He was perfectly happy to hear it about others.

He vividly remembered when the Lin siblings first arrived on the mountain and were still in the Outer Sect. Huang Zifeng had often looked after Lin Zhen, making his interest clear. Lin Zhen, for her part, was always gentle and never seemed to resist his advances. Every time she called him ’Senior Brother,’ Huang Zifeng looked like he was about to float away.

Later, after their shared adventure, their bond had deepened. Huang Zifeng probably thought he and Lin Zhen had grown closer. Yet, after returning, entering the Inner Sect, and then moving to Yao Yue Peak, Lin Zhen gradually began to distance herself from him.

Now, on the rare occasions they met, Lin Zhen was perfectly polite to Huang Zifeng. They were still ’Senior Brother’ and ’Junior Sister,’ but seeing the mix of joy and wistful disappointment on Huang Zifeng’s face whenever he looked at her, it was obvious nothing was going to happen between them.

’This Miss Lin probably never had any feelings for Huang Zifeng to begin with. She only went along with it because of his status as a Direct Disciple and an Inner Sect senior. She didn’t—and wouldn’t have dared to—reject him.’

’But now that she’s a Direct Disciple of a Grandmaster herself, her status is no less than Huang Zifeng’s. Her true feelings are finally showing.’

Xie Yuan mused slyly.

’He’d noticed before that Lin Zhen was a rather shrewd young woman. After all, her family had suffered such a terrible disaster. Even the most naive heiress would learn to be a bit calculating after something like that.’

’While she never took the initiative to curry favor with Huang Zifeng, she never harshly rejected him either, and she more or less took advantage of the conveniences he offered.’

’Of course, when she first joined the sect, their statuses were vastly different; it would have been impossible for her to refuse him. Using the situation to her advantage was a typically shrewd move for a woman trying to seize an opportunity.’

’Xie Yuan didn’t really judge her for it. After all, one, she hadn’t been insincere or tried to actively deceive him for personal gain. And two, as soon as she was in a position of equal standing, she made her attitude perfectly clear. She didn’t string Huang Zifeng along or give him false hope, which was a pretty clean way to handle things. If she were more calculating, with fewer scruples, she could have kept him on the hook indefinitely. She could have used resources from Bamboo Sword Peak to support her own cultivation, effectively monopolizing the benefits of two Direct Disciples. Her progress would have advanced by leaps and bounds. Wouldn’t that have been something? In many circles, that kind of behavior was perfectly normal.’