Chapter 3003 — The Anxious Hidden Tang Family (Fourth Update! Begging for Monthly Votes! Another Four-Update Outburst Today!)

Wei Zhao's life became simple once more. Although news that his strength had broken through to the early Heaven rank had already spread, and his enemies had all gone quiet, Wei Zhao, worried about Chen Xi, still did not leave the villa.

In truth, Wei Zhao's most pressing business was to make a trip back to West Star Mountain Village, open the third stone gate, and claim the benefits that lay behind it.

But without any word about Chen Xi, Wei Zhao's heart could find no peace.

So over these days, Wei Zhao continued to practice his martial techniques in the villa each day, condense the forging flame, and wait for Han Jingyi to come out of seclusion so that her strength could be raised to the late Earth rank, after which he would see whether he could refine third-grade pills.

The one thing that gratified Wei Zhao was that he had made great strides in condensing the forging flame. Perhaps it was because his strength had risen, or perhaps because he trained so diligently; in any case, Wei Zhao could now freely add and remove attributes from the forging flame, though he still could not change its temperature and intensity. Those two aspects would require further practice.

Still, however one looked at it, Wei Zhao had improved a great deal over before, and this change made him very happy.

At noon, Wei Zhao finished his training and was preparing to raise the strength of his several spirit beasts as well. But before he could reach the back courtyard, the phone rang. He picked it up and saw it was Ge Xian calling, and quickly pressed the answer button: "Ge Xian? Well? Any news?"

"Boss, there's news! I was just about to tell you about this very thing!" Ge Xian had only just received the information and immediately called Wei Zhao: "Zhao Guangyin and Chen Xi went to the Xuandan Sect, and right now Chen Xi has been given by Zhao Guangyin to the Xuandan Sect's young sect master, Tian Canbian, as a fine cauldron. And Zhao Guangyin, for his meritorious offering, has become a disciple following the Xuandan Sect's Eighth Elder, Kang Jingming."

"Oh? Chen Xi was offered up as a cauldron?" Wei Zhao was jolted with alarm. Though he did not know how cauldrons were used, it could only be bad for Chen Xi, and he quickly asked: "Then is she in danger?"

"Danger? For the moment, no. According to the information, Chen Xi had never systematically cultivated a fine cauldron heart method before, so the Xuandan Sect decided to have her cultivate the cauldron heart method anew and use her two years from now. So for now, it seems there's no danger to anyone," Ge Xian said. "But two years from now is another matter. According to the reports, Tian Canbian's previous maidservant was his cauldron, named Tian Die'er, and she was cultivated to death."

"One has already died?" Wei Zhao frowned at once, though he felt some doubt. That Tian Canbian he had seen that day did not seem like some practitioner of crooked ways. Could the earlier rumors all be true, that the Xuandan Sect's young sect master Tian Canbian was a lecherous, philandering sort?

"Yes, even the Xuandan Sect itself admits one has died, though they say it was an accident. But the rumor is that Tian Canbian used her as a cauldron and drained too much true qi, sucking her dry!" Ge Xian said. "Boss, you know as well as I do that it's hard to say about such things, but rumors don't come from nowhere either."

What Ge Xian did not know was that the story of Tian Die'er being drained to death as a cauldron had been spread by none other than Tian Canbian himself, first to conceal her identity as a woman, and second to conceal the fact that Tian Die'er had been secretly hidden away by her.

"Still, it's fortunate there are two years. Ge Xian, keep an eye on the Xuandan Sect and Chen Xi for me, and if anything changes, tell me at once!" Wei Zhao thought for a moment, then said.

At least Chen Xi was safe for the time being, which let Wei Zhao breathe a sigh of relief. Zhu Lingtou and Zhu Lao'er had already been sent back by Wei Zhao to protect Ying Ziyu, because he now had enough underlings around him, and the two of them could not accomplish much here.

What was more, news that Wei Zhao was now an expert of the early Heaven rank had already spread, and on the hidden level he had no rivals left.

As for the ancient level, at least the ancient level had its rules, and they would not casually come and go in the secular world.

After hanging up, Wei Zhao called Ying Ziyu to set her mind at ease that Chen Xi was not in danger for the time being, and also told Zhu Lingtou to go and explain Chen Xi's situation to Chen Xi's mother. But with Chen Xi's mother, there was no choice but to speak the truth: Chen Xi had been sold off by Zhao Guangyin, and though she was not in danger for now, she should give up all hope in Zhao Guangyin and be on her guard, lest she be deceived again in the future.

……………………

In the Hidden Tang family, the old master Tang Taizhong had also heard that Wei Zhao had broken through to the Heaven rank and wiped out the Hidden Zhao family, and he was so frightened he could not sit still!

Before this, Tang Taizhong had never imagined that Wei Zhao, a lone cultivator, could grow to such a level. It was truly inconceivable! Even at the summit of the hidden world's great families, Tang Taizhong had never seen that Wei Zhao could actually destroy the Hidden Zhao family!

Back then, he had naively believed that Wei Zhao had stirred up conflict between the Hidden Yu family and the Hidden Zhao family merely in order to escape, and that at heart he still feared the Hidden Zhao and the Hidden Yu. Wei Zhao's excellence was, at most, the excellence of a junior, and compared with old masters like themselves, the difference was like heaven and earth!

But now his illusions had been savagely shattered by Wei Zhao's deeds. In his eyes, Wei Zhao, a junior lone cultivator he had never taken seriously, had suddenly become a great crocodile that could swallow the Hidden Tang family at any moment, and Tang Taizhong was truly afraid!

Tang Lingtou, Tang Yuyi, and You Xiaoxin were all summoned to the Hidden Tang family's conference room, and Tang Taizhong, like an ant on a hot pan, paced back and forth without pause: "All of you, tell me, what do we do? What on earth are we to do? Back then our Hidden Tang family offended Wei Zhao and his father-in-law's family terribly. What are we to do now? The Hidden Zhao family has already been wiped out by Wei Zhao, and next it will be our Hidden Tang family's turn, won't it?"

When Tang Zhi had been taken as a disciple by Snow Valley, Tang Taizhong had not been too worried upon hearing the news, merely somewhat secretly regretting that he had driven Tang Zhi out of the family. After all, an ancient sect could not move against a hidden family over such a small grudge; that would not be in accord with the rules!

But Wei Zhao was a lone cultivator who simply ignored every rule and never played by the book, destroying whomever he pleased, and that was what the old master Tang feared most!

Tang Lingtou's expression was also very ugly. Back then he had cut all ties with Tang Zhi at the birthday banquet, in front of many people, and later, when Tang Zhi went to Snow Valley, he had felt his face could not be kept. Had they not fallen out, the Hidden Tang family would now have a direct backer at the ancient level!