Chapter 4216 — Dr. Luan

"Ku Zhongle?" Yu Zhenyang frowned and thought for a moment before the name finally came back to him. In truth, had he not gone over Wei Zhao's record earlier, he would never have known who Ku Zhongle was—after all, the gap in rank and standing between them was far too great, and under normal circumstances their paths would never have crossed.

"That's right. He is the current senior brother in charge of the newcomers, long established in the Welcome Pavilion, and he has always looked after me. I hope you will consider him, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said, pleading on behalf of Senior Brother Bitterhard.

Everything before was mere groundwork; the last sentence was the point. The implication was plain: this was a favor owed.

"Ku Zhongle is indeed capable, but his strength seems to fall a little short, does it not?" Yu Zhenyang said with some hesitation. As master of the Azure Cloud Pavilion he could decide such matters on his own authority, but if Ku Zhongle did not even meet the minimum requirement, it would invite criticism.

"He will soon reach the great perfection of Foundation Establishment—he is on the verge of breaking through even now, any day. This I know for certain," Wei Zhao said with conviction.

In truth, Senior Brother Bitterhard's present strength was nothing more than the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, and his aptitude could only be called middling. Under normal circumstances, waiting for him to break through to the great perfection of Foundation Establishment would take at least ten years, perhaps several decades.

Still, there was nothing wrong with what Wei Zhao said. He could raise a man's strength anyway; if it truly came to it, it was merely a matter of a few hours.

"Then there is no problem." Yu Zhenyang nodded at once. "However, I must first sound out Pavilion Master Shangguan on this. After all, the appointment has to go through the Council of Elders—it is not something I alone can decide."

"Very well. My thanks to you, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said with a smile. He had also guessed that this was Shangguan Tianxia's intent, and he trusted that when Shangguan Tianxia heard the proposal had come from him, he would certainly not stand in the way.

"Yes. But in that case, you will have to pick someone to fill Ku Zhongle's former post as senior brother in charge of the newcomers," Yu Zhenyang went on. Normally he would never pay attention to so minor a position; by saying this now, his meaning was to hand the decision directly to Wei Zhao—he might as well do a good turn thoroughly.

"I think Xiao Che would do well. Let it be him," Wei Zhao said, seizing the opening. He had not mentioned Qiao Hongcai or Li Zhengming because Qiao Hongcai was impetuous by nature and unsuited to such a post, while Li Zhengming, on account of his enemies, was set on keeping a low profile and was even less suitable.

"Fine, then Xiao Che it is. Settled." Yu Zhenyang nodded. He had no idea who Xiao Che was; so long as the man belonged to Wei Zhao, that was enough.

"My thanks for your kindness, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said gratefully.

"Is there anything else?" Yu Zhenyang asked again.

"..." Wei Zhao was momentarily at a loss for words, thinking to himself that this Pavilion Master was indeed most attentive to him. Then Lu Bianren came to mind, and he said, "Pavilion Master, do you know where Senior Brother Lu Bianren has gone? He was also very kind to me before, but I have not seen him for a long while now."

"Lu Bianren?" Yu Zhenyang was briefly taken aback. He did recall a disciple of that rank, though he was not quite certain. "Him? He has most likely gone out on a mission. I have not paid him much attention. I will ask about it later and have someone inform you."

"Very well. I am deeply grateful for your trouble, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said with a nod.

"Is there anything else?" Yu Zhenyang asked on.

"No..." This time Wei Zhao was thoroughly abashed. The man was, after all, a top figure of the Triple Stack Pavilion, yet he was so attentive to a mere inner-sect newcomer—it was truly beyond expectation.

"Good. If anything comes up in the future, come straight to me. I have some business today, so I will not linger here." Only then did Yu Zhenyang turn and leave.

"I see you off, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said, performing the proper salute. He had to admit that this time he had truly tasted what it meant to feel superior. The other party was the master of the Azure Cloud Pavilion—an ordinary inner-sect core disciple would count himself lucky to exchange a single word with such a man, let alone have every request granted!

Wei Zhao had never imagined that a single casual sentence from Shangguan Tianxia could carry such weight.

But on second thought, back then Shangguan Tianxia had never publicly said a word about that fellow Su Zhaohe—it was only rumor in the streets—and yet Su Zhaohe had been so formidable, feared and looked up to by all, so puffed up that he could even quietly put in a word with the Law Enforcement Hall. How much more so for Wei Zhao now.

If Shangguan Tianxia had spoken those words not now but earlier, Wei Zhao was sure he would have had no trouble at all in the Welcome Pavilion—no one, Xu Lingchong included, would have dared provoke him.

Of course, this was only idle musing. Wei Zhao would never regret such a thing, still less complain of it, for the present environment, where none dared provoke him, was not suited to the man he had been then.

Had he been placed from the very beginning in a hothouse cradle, sheltered from all contention, he likely would never have achieved what he had.

And now, having witnessed that scene in the inner-sect contest where Xu Lingchong was struck down in an instant, these clownish meddlers could hardly pose any threat to Wei Zhao anymore. Shangguan Tianxia had probably also seen that once Wei Zhao and Huang Xiaotao joined forces, they had few rivals left at the Golden Core stage, and so there was no need to let those clowns leap out again to make trouble.

What Wei Zhao needed now was harsher trials. There was little point in remaining on the North Island; next he must find a chance to leave it and take on missions. The preferential treatment given him now was only to ensure no fire broke out in his own backyard—to keep those clownish meddlers from dragging him down.

……………………

Somewhere on the North Island, in an underground secret chamber, the dying Xu Lingchong lay in bed while Meng Zhou kept anxious watch at his side. The mysterious man in black was present as well, and besides them there was one other in the room—none other than Master Pao, the very man who had given Xu Lingchong the Chrysanthemum Classic last time.

"Master Pao... I have failed... your cultivation of me..." Xu Lingchong, with Meng Zhou's help, propped himself up and apologized to Master Pao with great effort.

Though he was at death's door, his complexion had instead turned ruddy, and Meng Zhou inwardly cried out in alarm—these were the signs of a final rally before death.

Hearing this, Master Pao came over and examined him from head to foot, then concluded, "The injuries are grave, but not entirely beyond treatment. That Wei Zhao beat you to this state—and in truth, you have no one but yourself to blame."

"Ah? Master Pao... you mean... I can still be saved?" Xu Lingchong's spirits lifted at once.

"Indeed..." Master Pao nodded, then said, "Wait a while. We will speak again once Dr. Luan arrives."