Chapter 175: Soaring Reputation
"Zhang Chi, you were attacked by a Fake Core Demon Cultivator, and you used an array and your trump cards to kill him in return?"
After carefully managing the scene and the evidence of how the cultivators died, Zhang Chi gave it some thought and decided to report the matter to the Sect after all.
When Azure Dragon Master learned of this, he was utterly astonished and immediately came to the scene in person.
At the same time, Chen Bufan, Chen Ling’er, and Zhong Yu had also been notified by Zhang Chi and had long since arrived.
This way, with everyone watching, even if Azure Dragon Master had any ideas—like wanting to divide the spoils of war—it would be impossible.
After all, Chen Ling’er and the others would definitely protect Zhang Chi’s interests.
Of course, Azure Dragon Master probably wasn’t so short-sighted, but Zhang Chi had to be on his guard.
In truth, Zhang Chi could have chosen to keep it a secret, but if the deaths of the Original Peak Master and the others were discovered, it would surely be troublesome. The commotion from the Grand Array fully activating to unleash its killing blow had been too great to hide anyway.
But by making it public, he was the one who had been forced to retaliate, while the other party had colluded with Demonic Cultivators. He certainly wouldn’t be punished; he might even be praised. This way, the matter would no longer be a major hidden danger.
Furthermore, it would arouse less suspicion when his cultivation progressed faster in the future.
After all, he had obtained the legacy of a Fake Core Demon Cultivator, so it was perfectly reasonable for his cultivation to speed up.
Also, over the past six months, many people had been coveting his position as Peak Master. Publicizing this achievement would be just the thing to silence the gossips.
Of course, there was one problem with doing this: those Demon Cultivators and the friends and family of the Original Peak Master would find out and seek revenge.
But he didn’t care.
Unless those cultivators had very high cultivation, he had no fear at all.
And if the other party had such powerful friends and family, they wouldn’t have ended up in their current predicament in the first place.
Of course, Zhang Chi chose not to disclose the existence of that passageway. He only said that the enemy had snuck in from the outside.
"It must have been those bastards. Unwilling to accept you taking over as the Divine Needle Peak Master, they colluded with the Demon Dao and did this!"
"Fortunately, you remained calm in the face of danger and successfully killed them in return. It seems my decision to have you guard this place was indeed the right one. You truly have the capability!"
"Furthermore, you need not worry about retaliation. I will report this to the Sect truthfully, and the Sect will protect you from now on. Besides, while your enemies may have had some connections, they’re nothing compared to your current status."
After investigating the area, Azure Dragon Master indeed came to an immediate conclusion: the Original Peak Master had harbored ill intentions and brought this upon himself.
Afterwards, he came to appreciate and trust Zhang Chi even more.
He was also envious of Zhang Chi’s good fortune, but he didn’t probe too deeply into the specifics of how Zhang Chi had managed to pull off the counter-kill.
Because in his view, Zhang Chi certainly had his own secrets, and more importantly, powerful trump cards given to him by Master Jian.
"Thank you, Martial Uncle!"
Zhang Chi hurriedly thanked him.
Even though he had anticipated this outcome, he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.
"It’s a small matter!"
Azure Dragon Master waved his hand dismissively, chatted a little more with Zhang Chi and the others, and even gave Zhang Chi some pointers on controlling the array here. Only then did he depart, his mind heavy with concerns.
Clearly, this sudden incident gave him a sense of crisis, like the calm before a storm.
In the past, there hadn’t been so many powerful Demon Cultivators in Azure Dragon Ridge. Even if there were, they would never have dared to cause trouble like this.
"Junior Brother Zhang, if you run into trouble in the future, remember to message us immediately. Don’t try to handle it all by yourself like this time. After all, you can’t possibly be this lucky every time."
"Exactly. Even though you successfully killed them this time, it was ultimately far too risky."
At this point, Zhong Yu and the others all began to advise Zhang Chi.
They had been startled when they received the news. Afterward, they were both envious of Zhang Chi’s good fortune and frightened for him in hindsight.
At the same time, they were also very impressed with Zhang Chi.
Because if it had been them, they really might not have been able to remain calm and pull off a successful counter-attack.
However, fearing that Zhang Chi might become arrogant, they didn’t praise him too much to his face.
"Alright, I’ll be sure to do that next time!"
Zhang Chi was readily accepting of their good advice, nodding repeatedly.
Although he didn’t need to be so cautious, he understood that they were all acting out of goodwill.
"Oh, right. If you have any good stuff you don’t need and want to sell, remember to come to us. We can take it off your hands first. If we don’t need it, then you can sell it to outsiders."
"That’s right. And don’t worry, we’ll never lowball you just because we’re friends. If anything, we’ll give you more."
"Of course. Don’t worry, I’ll take stock of my haul first. If I have anything to sell later, I’ll definitely consider you three first."
After that, they all chatted for a while longer before Zhong Yu and the others finally returned to Demon Suppression Peak.
"What? The Divine Needle Peak Master, Zhang Chi, used the Mountain Protection Array to kill a Fake Core Demon Cultivator?"
"What a guy, that Zhang Chi!"
"I thought he only got the Peak Master position through connections, but it seems he’s actually very powerful himself!"
"Exactly! We can’t just go around gossiping about him behind his back anymore!"
And so, as Azure Dragon Master and the others returned, word of the event quickly spread.
Not only did the Sect not come looking for trouble with Zhang Chi, but his reputation in Azure Dragon Ridge soared because of it.
Many people who had previously been jealous and looked down on Zhang Chi now changed their tune.
Even the public pressure Azure Dragon Master had been under was greatly reduced because of this.
After all, although he had made the arrangement, he had still been questioned by many people in private.
The Sect acted with high efficiency this time. That very afternoon, Azure Dragon Master came again, not only bringing the Sect’s reward for Zhang Chi’s act of Exorcism and Defense of the Dao, but also a large group of unfamiliar cultivators.
These unfamiliar cultivators were the friends and family of the Original Peak Master and his subordinates. They were all here to apologize and offer compensation to Zhang Chi.
Clearly, they understood that they could not afford to provoke Zhang Chi, and that the Sect would not allow them to act against him.
Therefore, no matter how aggrieved they felt, their only choice was to bow their heads.
They were also terrified that Zhang Chi would retaliate against them.
Fortunately, seeing as the compensation was generous, Zhang Chi didn’t hold the matter against them.
Of course, Zhang Chi showed no goodwill or remorse either; he just gave them a perfunctory response.
Because he knew that this kind of hatred could never truly be resolved.
If he were to ever fall from grace, they would surely jump at the chance to get their revenge.
In fact, even if he hadn’t made this matter public, they would have eventually taken their anger out on him anyway.
But as long as he continued to grow stronger, there would be no problem. The only ones who would feel fear would be them.
Furthermore, Azure Dragon Master also asked Zhang Chi if he wanted him to arrange for some Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining cultivators to come and assist him.
But Zhang Chi directly refused, using his preference for peace and quiet as an excuse.
Considering Zhang Chi’s astonishing previous battle record, Azure Dragon Master didn’t press the issue.
After these cultivators left, Zhang Chi finally activated the array, gathered the Sect’s reward and the compensation he had received, and placed them together with his previous spoils of war to carefully take inventory.
’These cultivators are such good people. Did they know I needed a large amount of Spirit Stones? Also, this smuggling business seems really profitable. Should I get into it?’
With a grand wave of his hand, a large amount of Cultivation Materials appeared on the empty ground before him. The entire cave residence began to shimmer with a treasured glow, filled with all sorts of spiritual power fluctuations.
The haul included not only a large quantity of Spirit Stones, but also various Magical Artifacts, Ores, Spirit Medicines, and Demon Beast Materials...
The Fake Core Demon Cultivator, in particular, had an astonishingly large fortune, far surpassing the likes of Song Youdao.