Chapter 3529 — Xue Li Switches Rooms

"All right, then. I'll be off—see you when I see you!" Having settled Zhong Yongliang, Kang Jingming still had others to win over. Apart from the inheritors, quite a few experts had advanced to grand completion during this trial, and those were precisely the people Kang Jingming meant to court.

Watching Kang Jingming climb out of Zhong Yongliang's vehicle, Wei Zhao's eyes flickered with a trace of indifference. To hand Zhong Yongliang a few energy stones and expect him to defect was unrealistic; after all, the two of them stood in complete opposition, and Wei Zhao was not so naive as to imagine Zhong Yongliang would stretch that favor without limit.

What had been agreed was a trade, and a trade it remained. If Wei Zhao could restore Zhang Naipao, then once Cloud Terrace Island opened, he could just as easily be the end of him. It all came down to what they chose for themselves.

Xiao Che departed as well; plainly he still had matters to attend to. Before leaving, he cupped his fist toward Wei Zhao and said, "Young Hero Lin, thank you for your help earlier. I must be on my way too—take care of yourself!"

"Very well." Wei Zhao nodded and said, "You are on your own, so keep your guard up. Don't let Zhong Yongliang and Kang Jingming make trouble for you."

"They won't. My home is in Songning City—we're not headed the same way." Xiao Che shook his head.

Wei Zhao nodded and said no more, watching Xiao Che go.

Song Lingwei and Tuoer Riyue likewise took their leave without greeting Wei Zhao; Kang Jingming had cornered each of them in turn, and who knew what he was saying. Here Wei Zhao dared not casually extend the spiritual sense of a heaven-tier grand-completion expert to probe, for they were all peers of the same rank—if he truly did so, the others would notice at once.

Whatever it was, it could hardly be anything good. Yet Wei Zhao did not much care. Kang Jingming could not bear to go a single day without doing something; from first to last he was a man who could never keep still. Though he manufactured endless trouble for Wei Zhao, every attempt ended in failure and retreat.

Where he found such courage and endurance, Wei Zhao could not guess. Anyone else would have collapsed long ago.

One by one, the familiar faces departed. The people who had come with the inheritors' sects left as well, returning to deal with sect affairs. Worth noting was that Bingtang and Xue Li intended to go with Wei Zhao to the Iron Garment Sect.

Bingtang needed no explanation—she was now Wei Zhao's little-little-little-little-little wife, so of course she would follow. Xue Li, too, had agreed to it beforehand and would come along.

Once all was ready, Wei Zhao set out with the inheritors and the rest in grand procession! A dozen or so heaven-tier grand-completion experts traveling together to one sect to demand an accounting—this was unprecedented and, one might say, never to be repeated. Whether it would never be repeated was hard to say, but at least it had never happened before.

The Iron Garment Sect stood near the Green Peak Plateau. An ordinary person traveling there would suffer altitude sickness, but Wei Zhao's party was different; every one of them was a heaven-tier grand-completion expert, long since immune to ordinary conditions.

And yet the information on the Iron Garment Sect was pitifully scarce. What kind of sect it was, how many cultivators it had, what rank those cultivators held—Wei Zhao knew almost nothing at all!

Even Tianchan, young sect master of the Profound Elixir Sect, the leading sect among the ancient sects, knew very little about it.

Previously Wei Zhao had assumed the Iron Garment Sect was an external-school sect—a judgment based on its name, and on the Golden Bell Sect as well. The Iron Garment Sect ought to be an external school, yet Tianchan said it seemed to have internal-school experts too!

"Internal-school experts? Then why don't they come to the heaven-tier trials?" Wei Zhao was somewhat puzzled.

"In truth, some ancient sects and lone cultivators don't necessarily attend the heaven-tier trials. Each has their own ambitions, their own pursuits," Tianchan said. "Take the Iron Garment Sect—it has essentially never taken part in any trial activities, always keeping to its own affairs, so other sects know little of them, and each keeps to its own side of the fence. The Blood Garment Yellow Springs Sect is the same. They are an order of assassins, devoted to killing for payment; matters like the heavenly dao they do not much care for. If opportunity comes, they break through; if not, they do not force it. As for Cloud Terrace Island, they will not go. After all, of those who went to Cloud Terrace Island, who ever returned to the mortal world? Their business remains here in the mortal world, so they too have never joined any trial activities..."

"So that's how it is." Wei Zhao nodded after hearing this. True enough—already among the highest existences in the mortal world, there was no need to pursue that elusive heavenly dao!

Legend held that the heavenly dao was true cultivation, that it could set one on the path of immortals—a realm apart from today's martial arts! But legend was only legend. What Cloud Terrace Island was like, no one knew; whether going there brought fortune or disaster, no one knew either!

It all sounded beautiful, but on closer thought, heaven-tier grand completion was likely the lowest existence on Cloud Terrace Island. If experts were as numerous as clouds up there and one was killed the moment one arrived, better not to go at all!

Wei Zhao had reasons he could not avoid going—otherwise he truly would have been too lazy to bother!

For the pangolin, for Yu Xiaoke, for the glory of the Five Luminaries Sect under White Leader's banner, Wei Zhao went bearing goals and duties.

"True enough. Still, taking a group like ours to the Iron Garment Sect..." Tianchan looked over everyone present and was somewhat speechless. This was plainly going to bully them!

But then, hadn't the Iron Garment Sect bullied Feng Tianlong and Qiu Lingshan in just the same way back then?

The Five Luminaries Sect and the Iron Garment Sect were not close by; a day's driving would not get them there. Toward evening, Wei Zhao parked the car in a small town and found a hotel to stay the night.

The hotel was not large, and it was not the tourist season, so there were no guests at all—which suited them better. Wei Zhao simply booked the entire hotel, and the proprietor, overjoyed, promptly hung up the No Vacancy sign.

Having traveled all day and needing an early start the next morning, everyone retired to their rooms to rest once dinner was finished!

Though the hotel was not especially large, there was more than enough room for one room per person.

Everyone went into their rooms, Tang Zhi included. She planned to take a bath and turn in early, but then came a knock at the door. Tang Zhi opened it and found, to her surprise, Xue Li.

"Sister Xue, why is it you? Is something the matter?" Tang Zhi was rather puzzled. When they had parted just now, Xue Li had had no business with her, yet in the blink of an eye she had come back.

"It's like this—I thought it over and I'm still not easy about it. This place is different from the Five Luminaries Sect's inn before. Back then the two of us slept in one room, so Wei Zhao didn't dare come looking for you. Now you have a room to yourself—what if Wei Zhao comes for you?" Xue Li said. "So, you sleep in my room, and I'll stay here to deal with Wei Zhao!"