Chapter 4082 — Huang Xiaotao's Sorrowful Past

Compared with the flying spirit beasts commonly used by the Triad Pavilion and the merchant guilds, this spirit bird was by no means small. Even after all four of them climbed aboard, it did not feel crowded in the least, and once it took flight it was exceedingly steady—steady enough, in fact, that one could sit in meditation and cultivate upon its back.

Once the spirit bird was airborne, the four of them had little to do, so they chatted idly to pass the time and, in passing, to learn a little more about one another. Wei Zhao was, after all, a newcomer who had joined at the last moment; the better they knew and understood each other, the more smoothly they would work together on the mission.

After a few exchanges, Wei Zhao suddenly said, "Captain Xiaotao, there is something I am rather puzzled about, and I do not know whether I ought to ask. Of course, if it is inconvenient, that is quite all right—I am purely curious, nothing more."

"Oh? Since we are all in the same squad, we ought to be open with one another. Whatever questions Brother Lingyi has, just ask me directly, and I will certainly tell you everything I know," Huang Xiaotao said warmly.

"Very well, then forgive my impertinence. Captain Xiaotao, you said just now that the three of you are all disciples of the Qingyun Pavilion, but from what I know, the Triad Pavilion does not take female disciples, does it? Are not female cultivators all sent to the Western Isle? And another thing—why does Captain Xiaotao wear a veil?" Wei Zhao asked curiously.

In all his half year at the Welcome Pavilion, apart from Murong Zhen, that special case, he had never once heard that the Qingyun Pavilion had female disciples as well.

As for why she covered her face, he had his own conjectures. Either the woman was beautiful beyond compare, like a fairy descended from heaven, or she was so hideous that no one could bear to look at her. Either way, it was the sort of thing that readily invited trouble; otherwise, if her looks were merely ordinary, there would be no need at all to deliberately veil herself—doing so only stirred the imagination and drew attention.

"That..." Huang Xiaotao was slightly taken aback. She had no particular wish to conceal anything, but for a moment she simply did not know how to put it into words.

At this, Cong Zhima at her side at once spoke up helpfully on her behalf: "Brother Lingyi, there is something you do not know. Captain Xiaotao was once an outstanding disciple of the Chongtian Pavilion, and she came from the same cultivator tribe as that famous Su Zhaohe of today. Because her strength and talent were exceptional, the higher-ups of the Chongtian Pavilion thought highly of her; and with Su Zhaohe, that genius disciple who comes once in a thousand years, also putting in a good word for her, Captain Xiaotao was kept on as an exception and not sent to the Western Isle."

"A disciple of the Chongtian Pavilion? Did Captain Xiaotao not say just now that all of you were disciples of the Qingyun Pavilion?" Wei Zhao said in surprise.

Huang Xiaotao's eyes dimmed and she said nothing, leaving Cong Zhima to continue on her behalf: "If that business had never happened, Captain Xiaotao would still be a disciple of the Chongtian Pavilion with boundless prospects, rather than being driven out to our Qingyun Pavilion. It is true that we came to know Captain Xiaotao because of it, but every time I think of that affair, I feel indignant on her behalf!"

"That affair?" Wei Zhao frowned slightly. Driven out of the Chongtian Pavilion and into the Qingyun Pavilion—why did that story sound rather like Murong Zhen's?

"Hmph, hmph. Brother Lingyi, you must often hear people say what a genius Su Zhaohe is. The truth is, that fellow looks the very picture of virtue, but he is nothing but a beast in human clothing, a hypocrite through and through!" Cong Zhima gnashed his teeth in righteous fury. "Not long after he entered the Chongtian Pavilion, he tried to coerce Captain Xiaotao into becoming his cultivation partner. In itself, that is nothing remarkable—everyone loves beauty, after all. But the scoundrel stopped at nothing to get his way, and in the end he forced Captain Xiaotao to smash her own face against a Wolfthorn, disfiguring herself on purpose. Only then did the shameless bastard relent. And after that, Captain Xiaotao was driven out of the Chongtian Pavilion and came to our Qingyun Pavilion. Looking back now, we thought at the time that he was being kind, speaking up for her so that she could enter the Chongtian Pavilion—but it was a wolf's ambition from the start, with another design in mind!"

"So that Su Zhaohe really is a beast in human clothing, a piece of human filth." Only now did Wei Zhao finally understand why Huang Xiaotao deliberately veiled herself, and he grieved for her in silence.

Thinking back, even a top-tier young master of the Chongtian Pavilion like Xu Lingchong could commit such a bestial act as violating Shangguan Lan'er. He and this Su Zhaohe were clearly birds of a feather. To the eyes of the world the Chongtian Pavilion looked splendid and glorious, but within, it was practically a den of scum—when the beam above is crooked, the rafters below lean askew!

Still, the strong preying on the weak was the very essence of the cultivation world. Take Wei Zhao's own experience: had he not possessed sufficient strength, he would long since have been trampled to death by Meng Jueming and his lot—how would he still be alive today?

"Did the Law Enforcement Hall not intervene in this matter? Did Pavilion Master Shangguan of the Chongtian Pavilion not look into it?" Wei Zhao asked next.

Wei Zhao could not vouch for anyone else, but after several dealings with him, he had come to trust Shangguan Tianxia's character fairly well. However peerless a genius Su Zhaohe might be, he believed Shangguan Tianxia would never shield and indulge such a vile deed merely out of fondness for talent.

"Eh? Brother Lingyi, you are an outside rogue cultivator, yet you seem to know a good deal about the affairs of our Triad Pavilion?" Cong Zhima and the other two glanced at Wei Zhao in surprise, though they did not take it to heart. There were plenty of rogue cultivators who wished to join the Triad Pavilion, and it was only natural that they paid close attention to its affairs.

Cong Zhima sighed and said, "The Law Enforcement Hall did in fact intervene in that matter. But that bastard Su Zhaohe went around the Law Enforcement Hall once and was released soon after. The conclusion the Law Enforcement Hall reached was that the evidence was insufficient. What was most infuriating was that the bastard actually turned around and accused Captain Xiaotao of framing him—outrageous! As for Pavilion Master Shangguan, a great man of such lofty station is busy every day; how would he have the time to look into such a trifling matter? I hear that in those years the case was passed on to the Law Enforcement Hall through the hands of Xu Lingchong, the second senior brother and steward of the Chongtian Pavilion. Pavilion Master Shangguan most likely never even heard of it."

Xu Lingchong again! Even Wei Zhao, an outsider to all this, could not help but feel righteous indignation on hearing it. That creature Xu Lingchong was rotten at heart; he himself was forever committing such squalid deeds. If Su Zhaohe could swagger about so brazenly, perhaps the two of them were in league together.

"And after that? Did Captain Xiaotao never think of overturning the verdict? Was this grievance simply swallowed?" Wei Zhao said in protest. Were such a thing to happen to him, he would long since have contrived to do Su Zhaohe to death—how could he have let that piece of filth enjoy himself unpunished to this very day?