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Ye Tian's wait finally bore fruit after an hour; Zhang Bin returned, bringing along a helper.
"This person is named Hong Zhi, and like you, he is also a direct disciple of the Lord," Chen Wen whispered to Ye Tian.
Upon hearing this, Ye Tian nodded and scrutinized the direct disciple named Hong Zhi. The man had an unpleasant appearance, with a gaze that exuded weakness and treachery. A large red mole adorned his cheek, from which several long white hairs sprouted.
There is an ancient saying that one's appearance reflects their heart. While this is not an absolute truth, it does hold some merit. Moreover, eyes do not lie; Hong Zhi's expression already revealed his character. Ye Tian was merely curious as to why such a person would become a direct disciple of the Lord.
"You can go back now. If you need help in the future, feel free to find me," Ye Tian said, retracting his gaze from Hong Zhi and lightly patting Chen Wen's shoulder.
Upon hearing Ye Tian's words, Chen Wen was initially taken aback. After a moment, joy spread across his face as he secretly tucked away the Gold Ingots into his sleeve and warmly bid farewell to Ye Tian before leaving.
Zhang Bin watched Chen Wen's jubilant demeanor and felt as if his chest might explode with anger. His original intention was to flaunt his connections in front of Chen Wen, but unexpectedly, he ended up making a fool of himself for Chen Wen. Furthermore, Ye Tian had left him with a clear message: with Ye Tian protecting Chen Wen, no one should dare to touch him.
"Too much bullying..." Zhang Bin gritted his teeth and muttered under his breath.
Although Ye Tian heard him, he ignored Zhang Bin and shifted his focus back to Hong Zhi.
In truth, Ye Tian was not so domineering; his earlier words were merely for Zhang Bin's benefit. He could see that Zhang Bin was a petty and vengeful person. If he did not apply some pressure on him now, Zhang Bin would surely seek trouble with Chen Wen in the future.
"You really love to show off, don't you?" Hong Zhi finally spoke. While Ye Tian assessed him, Hong Zhi was also sizing up Ye Tian—not in terms of appearance but rather considering how likely he would be to win if they were to fight.
"Brother Hong Zhi," Ye Tian did not respond to Hong Zhi's provocation; instead, he bowed slightly and clasped his hands in greeting, showing full respect.
This was Ye Tian's habit; he would never directly confront someone with whom he had no deep-seated enmity. After showing courtesy, if the other party still failed to recognize the situation, then it would be their own fault. Moreover, both were direct disciples; if they truly came to blows, it would only put their Master Xuanyuan Changfeng in a difficult position.
However, Hong Zhi did not think so. Ye Tian was new here and still unaware of the situation at Cloudscroll Pavilion. There were ten direct disciples in total, among which only Elder Brother Li Xun and the junior disciple Wine Kid held absolute advantages. The others were at odds with each other, each operating independently, engaging in open and covert struggles with all their might.
Everyone wanted to become the third direct disciple favored by Xuanyuan Changfeng after Li Xun and Wine Kid. In other words, although they were also direct disciples, they were merely nominal. In Cloudscroll Pavilion, there were only two true direct disciples: one was Li Xun, and the other was Wine Kid.
Of course, Ye Tian's arrival made them feel a sense of crisis and jealousy. They had been fighting among themselves for years, yet Ye Tian effortlessly surpassed them. This situation even led to feelings of hatred among them, causing their previously fragmented group to coalesce into a covert alliance against Ye Tian.
Moreover, the sense of crisis and jealousy extended beyond just them; the person who truly facilitated this "alliance" was none other than the Chief Disciple of Cloudscroll Pavilion—Li Xun.
Thus, they acted without restraint and did not regard Ye Tian as a threat. In response to Ye Tian's courtesy, Hong Zhi merely scoffed disdainfully without returning the gesture. In his view, Ye Tian's adherence to etiquette was simply a sign of fear.
"Brother, is there anyone who bullies people like this? This is outright bullying!" Zhang Bin chimed in as if he were serious.
"Ye Tian, don’t think that just because you’ve become a direct disciple you can act recklessly. I tell you, Hong Zhi will not agree to this!" Hong Zhi spoke in a domineering tone, looking righteous.
Ye Tian couldn't help but smile at this scene; the two were putting on quite a performance. However, there wasn't even an audience present—was it really necessary to go to such lengths?
In situations like this, isn’t it always the case that the victor is king while the loser is a bandit? Since Hong Zhi was on the side of those standing up for others, he should have said nothing and gone straight to confront Ye Tian.
"Hong Zhi, this person has ulterior motives; do not be misled by him." Although this statement implied a desire for peace, Ye Tian's tone was mocking, suggesting 'you fool, you’re being used without realizing it.'
Upon hearing this, Hong Zhi's expression darkened slightly. Although he was nominally a direct disciple, he still practiced under Elder Dou. So how could he not know what kind of person Zhang Bin was? Yet he chose to stand up for him—why? The reason was simple; he wanted this opportunity—a chance to deal with Ye Tian.
He would rather be used by a petty person than reconcile with Ye Tian, which showed just how deep their jealousy ran.
"Zhang Bin, if you apologize and admit your mistake, I won’t hold today’s incident against you," Ye Tian said dismissively to Hong Zhi before addressing Zhang Bin directly.
Zhang Binwen looked towards Hong Zhi, intending to seek his decision. In fact, Ye Tian's request had stirred his interest; he initially thought that Ye Tian would at least beat him up, which was why he sought help. However, if it was just an apology, such a simple solution would certainly be far better than offending Ye Tian.
"Get lost!" Hong Zhi's intention was never to support Zhang Bin, so upon seeing the latter's eager face seeking reconciliation, he couldn't help but feel furious and pushed him away. Moreover, Ye Tian ignoring him and directly talking to Zhang Bin also displeased Hong Zhi, as it made him feel somewhat disdained by Ye Tian.
Zhang Bin was clearly taken aback by Hong Zhi's reprimand, but soon felt secretly pleased because he realized that the situation had quietly shifted; at this moment, the dispute had gradually evolved into a conversation between Hong Zhi and Ye Tian, two direct disciples.
"Take your time chatting; I have something to attend to and will leave first." As Zhang Bin walked backward toward the door, his expression suddenly revealed a look of joy as if he had received a great pardon. He then ran off quickly and soon disappeared from sight.
Neither Ye Tian nor Hong Zhi stopped him. In fact, the current situation was indeed as Zhang Bin had thought; although Ye Tian did not want to have any conflict with Hong Zhi, Hong Zhi thought quite differently. His intention was to embarrass Ye Tian today and to create a rift between them!
"Ye Tian, you take advantage of your status to bully ordinary disciples. I must discipline you for the sake of our sect today!" Hong Zhi declared with righteous indignation, making it clear that no matter what happened today, they could not resolve this peacefully.
Hong Zhi had his reasons for being arrogant; although he was only a nominal direct disciple, he had the backing of the chief disciple of Cloudscroll Pavilion.
From the moment Xuanyuan Changfeng inscribed Ye Tian as the direct disciple of Cloud Pattern, those including Li Xun understood the future direction of Cloudscroll Pavilion. In the near future, Li Xun would no longer dominate alone, while Ye Tian and Wine Kid would rise strongly. Therefore, he had to prepare in advance; if he couldn't suppress them now, it would be even harder to do so in the future.
However, in this power struggle, all direct disciples chose to stand with Li Xun.
"Hong Zhi, do you really have to do this?" Ye Tian was already showing impatience. He could endure pressure from others once or twice, but it would never happen repeatedly.
"Stop talking nonsense!" Hong Zhi's reaction was even more impatient than Ye Tian's because Ye Tian's constant retreat had given him a false impression that Ye Tian was afraid.
"Heh..." Ye Tian sneered because he was no longer willing to endure. In his view, once they started fighting, there would be no mercy.
Ye Tian sneered while Hong Zhi returned the sneer and disdainfully glared at Ye Tian before turning to leave the room. Naturally, Ye Tian fearlessly followed him; he understood that Hong Zhi wanted to find a place where there were no people around.
The two exited the Dilapidated Hut, with Hong Zhi leading the way as they headed west, their destination likely the dense forest several miles ahead.
There was no conversation along the way; neither of them attempted to show off their skills. They were not fools; although their sparring would not lead to life-and-death situations, losing would certainly cast a shadow over one’s heart. Therefore, they would not reveal any of their abilities for the other to gauge until it was truly time to engage.
Strangely, there were very few disciples out today. Along the way, they encountered hardly anyone, aside from a few Newly Accepted Disciples still familiarizing themselves with the surroundings. The other familiar faces seemed to have disappeared.
However, this situation changed when they were about three or four miles away from the forest, as they encountered an elderly man with white whiskers. This elder was a member of the council and, coincidentally, he was responsible for teaching Zhang Binhongzhi and others—Elder Dou.
“Hong Zhi? What are you doing here?” Elder Dou asked in confusion.
Hong Zhi seemed somewhat disdainful and didn’t even look at him, impatiently replying, “Nothing, just taking a walk.”
“What do you mean taking a walk? Have you forgotten that Lord is holding an Apprenticeship Ceremony for Wine Kid this afternoon?” Elder Dou reminded him while shifting his gaze to Ye Tian.
“I haven’t forgotten. Stop nagging me; I’m busy,” Hong Zhi replied disrespectfully to Elder Dou, as his status was not lower than that of the elder in name.
Seeing this, a surge of anger welled up in Ye Tian. Although Hong Zhi was a direct disciple, he had learned under this elder. No matter what, he should not speak to his actual master in such a manner. Ye Tian felt that someone so ungrateful deserved to be dealt with harshly.
With anger rising, Ye Tian glared at Hong Zhi and scolded, “Once a teacher, always a father. Hong Zhi, are you being a bit ungrateful?!”
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