Chapter 4038 — The Mysterious Junior Brother Pao

The last time Xu Lingchong appeared in public was when he hosted the birthday banquet, and the very last person to meet with him turned out to be none other than Shangguan Lan'er.

One was the foremost young master of Chongtian Pavilion, the other its foremost young lady. The weight of these two names was not something ordinary folk could bear, and in the end only the Hall Master, Gongyang Jun, could personally step forward to question them.

Shangguan Tianxia had no intention of interfering in the matter at all; he simply let Shangguan Lan'er take the little curly-furred bear and go trotting off to the Law Enforcement Hall, one girl and one pet.

Yet after Shangguan Lan'er arrived at the Law Enforcement Hall, she spoke a single sentence that left everyone present dumbstruck: "At that birthday banquet, Xu Lingchong, emboldened by drink, tried to force himself on me. Luckily my little Bai had also been drinking that day, and after going berserk from the wine, he saved me."

Such explosive inside information left several senior members of the Law Enforcement Hall listening in so astonished that their jaws hung slack, mouths agape, unable to react for the longest time. Only Gongyang Jun showed no sign of surprise; he said flatly, "So then, Xu Lingchong must have attempted the assault, failed, and fled in fear of punishment."

"It would seem... that is the case..." The others in the Law Enforcement Hall needed a long while to recover from the shock, and one by one they echoed him with strange expressions on their faces.

"Issue a wanted notice. Apprehend Xu Lingchong!" Gongyang Jun decided on the spot, his face expressionless.

Once the wanted notice went out, not only the Tri-Layer Pavilion but the whole of the North Island was in an uproar. People speculated all manner of things about Xu Lingchong's disappearance, yet not a single one had guessed in this direction.

The top young master of Chongtian Pavilion forcing himself upon the pavilion's foremost young lady—good heavens, this was the kind of explosive news one might not hear in centuries!

When Xu Yuanzheng heard the news, he nearly burst with rage. This was before he even knew that his own grandson had already been snipped below by the little curly-furred bear; otherwise he likely would have fainted dead away on the spot.

Xu Lingchong, his legitimate grandson, was the core figure he had groomed as the Xu family's successor! Now, with this mess, even if the boy returned safe and sound one day, his name would stink to high heaven!

"Hall Master Gongyang, what Shangguan Lan'er said does not hold up to logic at all. Never mind that my Chong'er would never do such a foolish thing—even if he truly had drunk too much and let his head go hot for a moment, could a mere little curly-furred bear have stopped him? You issued the wanted notice without a second word. Isn't that overly arbitrary?" Xu Yuanzheng said, his old face ashen.

Gongyang Jun raised his eyes and looked at him. Facing this elder of the Council of Elders, a man of towering power, he showed not the slightest reverence. Calmly, he said, "How my Law Enforcement Hall conducts its business—since when is that for Elder Xu to question?"

That one sentence choked Xu Yuanzheng so badly he could not speak for a long while. He knew Gongyang Jun had never answered to anyone; such was the authority the North Island's Island Master had vested in him. But never had he imagined the man would refuse him face so utterly!

"If nothing were wrong, why would he run? Once Xu Lingchong is caught and brought to justice, the truth will come out of its own accord. Elder Xu would do better to think carefully about how he is going to explain this to Pavilion Master Shangguan when the time comes." Gongyang Jun curled his lip in disdain, then flung his sleeve and left, leaving Xu Yuanzheng alone to stand there dazed.

Never mind how the outside world was in an uproar; these past days Xu Lingchong had remained in a secret chamber whose location he did not even know, devoting himself body and soul to cultivating the Chrysanthemum Treasure Manual left to him by the mysterious man.

Smack! Just as Xu Lingchong was deep in cultivation, a document was suddenly flung down before him. One glance was enough to turn his face ashen with fright—it was none other than the wanted notice issued by the Law Enforcement Hall.

"H-how... how could this be?" Xu Lingchong felt the world spin and darken around him. Being snipped into a eunuch by the little curly-furred bear had already been a heavy enough blow; now with this, not only could he no longer be a man—he could not even be the young master of Chongtian Pavilion anymore!

Power and strength—these had been the last things sustaining him, the very reasons he kept living. If he could not even achieve this bit of ambition, what was the point of living at all?

Seeing Xu Lingchong's look of utter despair, the mysterious man suddenly spoke: "Strength is what matters most. Everything else is a passing cloud. If you possessed strength like mine, then you could say you were guilty and you would be guilty; you could say you were innocent and you would be innocent. Not a soul on the North Island would dare point a finger at you."

Xu Lingchong jerked his head up and looked at the mysterious man still shrouded in his black robe. He knew that the man had brought the wanted notice here on purpose precisely to threaten him—to cut off any thought of escape, so that from now on he could only follow him with single-minded devotion.

With the wanted notice out, he now had nothing left at all. Even if the mysterious man were willing to let him out, he would not dare return to the Tri-Layer Pavilion; even the Xu family could not shelter him. After all, what the notice said was all true.

In the end, Xu Lingchong drew a deep breath and vowed, "Rest assured, Senior. I will cultivate the Chrysanthemum Treasure Manual diligently and strive to raise my strength!"

This reaction was entirely as the mysterious man had expected. He nodded and said, "Good, that is the spirit! Once you have grown strong enough, I can find a way to have this arrest warrant canceled, so that you may return openly and honorably to the Tri-Layer Pavilion on the North Island!"

Hearing this pledge, Xu Lingchong's eyes lit up at once. He nodded again and again in thanks, while secretly speculating on the mysterious man's identity.

From the man's tone, it did not sound as though he were merely humoring him. And across the whole North Island, those with the influence to cancel a wanted notice were in fact very few. Could this man be a senior figure of the Tri-Layer Pavilion? Or perhaps the North Island's Island Master himself?

Just as Xu Lingchong was privately speculating, another figure suddenly appeared in the shadows of the secret chamber, cloaked like the mysterious man in a loose black robe.

"Normally, every cultivator may alter his heart-method incantation once during the Heavenly Dao stage, but you have already laid your foundation, so it is a bit late. To help you adapt as quickly as possible, I have gone out of my way this time to invite a ruthless one to give you some guidance. He is a fine hand whom even my superiors regard with great favor, so mind your manners." Having said this, the mysterious man turned to the figure beside him: "Junior Brother Pao, I thank you in advance for taking time out of your busy schedule to come here and give guidance."

The black-robed man called Junior Brother Pao gave a faint snort through his nose and said, "Mm, it is nothing. We all serve the organization."

The mysterious man gave an ambiguous nod. Though this Junior Brother Pao was far weaker than himself, there was no help for it—the man was highly regarded by the superiors and was a figure of potential whom the organization cultivated with priority. Even with all his domineering force, he did not dare treat him lightly. R1152