Chapter 72 - 71: Each with Their Own Schemes
"Sir, we still haven’t confirmed this Chen Tian’s identity. Isn’t it a bit rash to place him in the Zhenwu Hall just like that?"
After Liu Feiyan and Chen Yuan left, Uncle Zhong couldn’t help but speak up.
Liu Suifeng coughed and said faintly, "According to you, your decision to go to the Tiger Bone Forest was a spur-of-the-moment idea, and no one was following you on the road. That means your encounter with the Poison Wolf Thieves was pure coincidence, as was being saved by Chen Tian.
Just based on the fact that he saved Feiyan, no arrangement could be considered rash.
Old Zhong, you should know what Feiyan means to me."
Uncle Zhong’s eyes dimmed, and he immediately knelt. "I deserve death! I failed to protect the young miss!"
Liu Suifeng extended a stream of Formless True Qi and helped Uncle Zhong up.
"It’s not your fault. Feiyan is reckless. Next time, don’t just go along with everything she wants. Use force if you have to."
Liu Suifeng sighed again. "I’m not placing this Chen Tian in the Zhenwu Hall just to repay him for saving Feiyan. It’s also because we have so few people left in the younger generation.
From what you said, this Chen Tian can slay a Reincarnation Sea expert while at the Qi Casting Realm. His strength is astonishing. Where else can we find such an outstanding young man under our command?"
Beside them, Li Fan’s face flushed red.
He was one of the more outstanding young men under Liu Suifeng’s command.
Barely in his early thirties, he had already reached the late-stage Qi Refining Realm, but he was undoubtedly far inferior to Chen Yuan.
"Don’t overthink it. Martial Dao Talent can’t be forced. You’ve already done well enough."
After consoling Li Fan, Liu Suifeng dismissed them to rest.
He himself remained standing, looking up slightly at the sky, lost in thought.
Chen Yuan stayed at the Zhenwu Hall for one night. Early the next morning, he was led by Liu Feiyan to follow Liu Suifeng to the Council Hall for a meeting.
Inside the solemn and magnificent Council Hall, a powerfully built, tall middle-aged man with a stern face, a bushy beard, and long whiskers sat upon a black Coiling Dragon Chair at the head of the room. He was dressed in a Dark Gold Brocade Robe.
The man’s hands hung past his knees, and his knuckles were unusually large. His aura was restrained and profound, like a vast, deep abyss.
This was the former Alliance Leader of the Celestial Martial Alliance and the current Grand Commandant of the Zhenwu Hall, the ’Chaotic Martial Celestial King’ Chao Hongtu.
Back in the days of the Celestial Martial Alliance, Chao Hongtu had already reached the Martial Dao Ninth Realm Celestial Profound. He also wielded the Attacking Divine Soldier, ’Divine King’s Array-Breaking Technique’.
However, this Divine Soldier had a unique Attribute. Even as its Commander-in-Chief, Chao Hongtu couldn’t create a Divine Artifact Incarnation. In this regard, the Zhenwu Hall was at a disadvantage compared to other powers that possessed Divine Artifact Demon Soldiers.
Seated in a chair beside Chao Hongtu was a woman in a white palace-style dress. This was Chao Hongtu’s wife, the ’Cloud Goddess’ Yun Zhaolan.
Yun Zhaolan was breathtakingly beautiful. Her features were exquisite and elegant. Though her face bore some traces of time, they only added to her mature charm rather than making her look old.
However, her temperament was somewhat cold and aloof, creating a sense of distance. She truly seemed like a celestial goddess who did not partake in the mortal world.
Chen Yuan gave her an interested glance.
’Chao Hongtu and his wife... their relationship seems a bit delicate.’
’The black Coiling Dragon Chair is very wide, clearly big enough for two people, yet they chose to sit apart.’
’Furthermore, Yun Zhaolan was subconsciously leaning to one side, obviously not wanting to be too close to Chao Hongtu.’
’The two of them hadn’t even made eye contact once.’
Below Chao Hongtu was Liu Suifeng’s seat. Chen Yuan, Liu Feiyan, and Uncle Zhong stood behind him.
Opposite Liu Suifeng was another chair, but it was empty.
It once belonged to the ’Breaking Army Divine General’ Xie Wenyan.
Since Xie Wenyan’s death, no one had been able to take his place, so it remained vacant.
Further back were four people, the Hall Masters of the Four Martial Halls of Zhenwu. All of them were Martial Arts Grandmasters who had reached the Martial Dao Seventh Realm: Primordial Pill Realm.
These four were: the Cyan Dragon Hall Master, ’Mountain-Crushing Saber’ Cui Wenzhong; the White Tiger Hall Master, ’Blood Killing Seven Swords’ Feng Wushang; the Vermilion Bird Hall Master, ’Fairy Chixia’ Ling Baiyan; and the Black Tortoise Hall Master, ’Mountain Guardian Warrior’ Wei Yuanlong.
Besides these four halls, the core power of the Zhenwu Hall also included the Three Guards.
The Three Guards were the Celestial Martial Guard, under Chao Hongtu’s direct command; the Po Jun Guard, which originally belonged to Xie Wenyan and was now under Yun Zhaolan’s command; and the Shadow Guard, which belonged to Liu Suifeng and was responsible for intelligence gathering and assassination.
Because the Three Guards were all under the direct command of Chao Hongtu, Yun Zhaolan, and Liu Suifeng, they usually did not participate in the council meetings.
Chen Yuan kept his head down, his gaze casually sweeping over the Hall Masters of the Four Martial Halls of Zhenwu. He sighed internally. ’It would be hard to find a power in this world with more complicated internal politics than the Zhenwu Hall.’
’These four are the pillars of the Zhenwu Hall, but in reality, they all have their own agendas. Not a single one of them is truly loyal to the Zhenwu Hall.’
’Cui Wenzhong, the Cyan Dragon Hall Master, has long been colluding with the Shangguan Family of Unrivaled City in Qing Province, one of the Eight Great Noble Families. He’s secretly their man.’
’Ling Baiyan, the Vermilion Bird Hall Master, is secretly in love with a disciple from the Forgotten Heaven Pavilion, a Major Sect in Qing Province and one of the Nine Martial Sects. She’s been funneling plenty of the Vermilion Bird Hall’s resources to them.’
’Wei Yuanlong, the Black Tortoise Hall Master, is even more ruthless. He himself defected to the Court long ago, becoming their mole inside the Zhenwu Hall.’
’Although the Zhenwu Hall accepted amnesty, they are constantly on guard against the Court, and the Court has never truly trusted the Zhenwu Hall either.’
’And yet, one of the Hall Masters of the Four Martial Halls is actually a spy for the Court. One can only imagine how severe the internal problems of the Zhenwu Hall have become.’
’Among the entire Four Martial Halls of Zhenwu, the only one not colluding with an outside power is the White Tiger Hall Master, Feng Wushang.’
’It’s not that Feng Wushang doesn’t want to collude with outside powers; it’s that they look down on him.’
’Feng Wushang suffered a serious injury in his early years. While not as severe as Liu Suifeng’s, it has prevented him from ever returning to his peak.’
’Moreover, he has an insatiably greedy personality, focused only on amassing wealth in the territory under the White Tiger Hall’s jurisdiction so he can live comfortably in his old age.’
’With a personality like that, even some of the external powers looking to stir up trouble wouldn’t bother with him, fearing he’d just mess things up.’
’Still, even though the Zhenwu Hall is a mess internally, the more chaotic it is, the better it is for me to fish in troubled waters. This is also why I chose to come to the Zhenwu Hall.’
Once everyone had arrived, Chao Hongtu looked at Liu Suifeng first. "I heard Feiyan was attacked by bandits. Is she alright?"
Liu Suifeng coughed and said, "Thank you for your concern, Grand Commandant. She was frightened, but she’s unharmed."
Chao Hongtu frowned. "Suifeng, we’re brothers. How many times have I told you? Just call me ’Big Brother.’ Why ’Grand Commandant’?"
"Propriety must be observed."
Liu Suifeng shook his head. "You were the Alliance Leader before, and now you are the Grand Commandant of the Zhenwu Hall. In private, it’s fine, but we can’t break the rules now."
Chao Hongtu shook his head helplessly, looking as if there was nothing he could do about Liu Suifeng.
"By the way, Grand Commandant, my daughter was saved this time entirely thanks to this Young Friend Chen’s rescue.
Young Friend Chen slew a Reincarnation Sea expert while at the Qi Casting realm, killing the Poison Wolf Thieves’ leader, Sikong Tu. He is a rare young talent.
Therefore, I would like to have Young Friend Chen join our Zhenwu Hall to add some new blood to our younger generation."
Liu Suifeng pushed Chen Yuan forward.
Chen Yuan immediately bowed. "Chen Tian pays his respects to the Grand Commandant and the Hall Masters."
Chao Hongtu and the others all turned their gazes to Chen Yuan, their eyes filled with a mixture of appraisal and amazement.
Slaying a Reincarnation Sea expert while at the Qi Casting realm wasn’t actually that unheard of; some geniuses from Major Sects and Noble Families could also accomplish it.
However, for a Loose Cultivator to achieve such a feat was very difficult.
Chao Hongtu nodded. "Not bad. A talent with potential."
With that, Chao Hongtu looked at the Hall Masters of the Four Martial Halls below, pondered for a moment, and said, "Feng Wushang, your White Tiger Hall has the fewest members. Chen Tian will be assigned to your White Tiger Hall."
Feng Wushang nodded. "Thank you, Grand Commandant."
To Feng Wushang, having one more Martial Artist at the Qi Casting Realm under his command was of no consequence.
Chen Yuan also immediately cupped his fist in a salute to his future superior. "This subordinate pays his respects to the Hall Master."
After speaking, Chen Yuan walked over to stand behind Feng Wushang on his own accord.
Seeing Chen Yuan act so sensibly, Feng Wushang nodded in satisfaction.
After this matter was settled, Chao Hongtu briefly discussed miscellaneous affairs with the others, such as suppressing bandits. In just a few words, the meeting quickly concluded, something everyone was used to.
For years, Chao Hongtu had lived in seclusion, spending most of his time in closed-door cultivation, seeking to break through to the Peak of the Nine Realms.
He usually just gave a few orders regarding the matters below, letting the Hall Masters of the Four Martial Halls handle them on their own.
As for Liu Suifeng, he was constantly ill and rarely expressed any opinions, sometimes not even attending the meetings at all.
This had led to a lapse in discipline within the Zhenwu Hall, with the four Hall Masters all harboring their own schemes.
After the meeting ended, Chen Yuan directly followed Feng Wushang out of Taining Prefecture.
Feng Wushang was the oldest of the four Hall Masters, already in his seventies.
However, his Cultivation was profound, so he appeared to be only in his early fifties, with a full head of black hair. His face was thin and gaunt, giving him a somewhat harsh look. Coupled with the nature of his Cultivation Technique, he exuded an extremely cold and sinister aura.
On the way, Feng Wushang said to Chen Yuan, "My White Tiger Hall governs the Eight Prefectures and Forty-Two Cities of Western Ning Province. Each prefecture has an Inspector, and each city has a Guardian Envoy.
Below the Guardian Envoys are the Captains. The rest are ordinary White Tiger Guards, ranked from third to first class, with promotions based on age and merit.
You were recommended to the Zhenwu Hall by Lord Liu Suifeng, so your starting position won’t be low.
Have you thought about which of these positions you’d like?"
Chen Yuan said respectfully, "Now that this subordinate has entered the White Tiger Hall, I am one of your men, Hall Master.
Whichever position you grant me, I will take.
Even if you ask me to start as a basic White Tiger Guard, I would see it as an opportunity for training."
Feng Wushang looked at Chen Yuan with approval and laughed. "As expected of someone seasoned in the Jianghu. You’re different from those clueless young brats.
Rest assured. You have the strength, and you have the backing. Since you’ve joined my White Tiger Hall, I will not treat you poorly."
Feng Wushang’s words were a test for Chen Yuan.
If Chen Yuan had acted arrogantly, unaware of his place, just because he was recommended by Liu Suifeng, Feng Wushang would have first given him a high-ranking but powerless figurehead position and then dealt with him slowly.
But now that Chen Yuan was acting so sensibly, knowing when to advance and when to retreat, Feng Wushang didn’t mind giving Liu Suifeng some face and offering him a good position.