“What's going on with Ye Guichen? Why is he covered in wounds?”
“I heard he was targeted by a gang on the outside.”
Someone in the crowd of onlookers whispered.
“Hmph, serves him right. Who told him to be so arrogant on normal days? He probably offended some big shot he couldn't afford to provoke because of that,” a disciple who had once been challenged by Ye Guichen said with gloating satisfaction.
“He's just a lucky piece of trash. If not for his good luck and some great opportunity he stumbled upon, with his Low-grade Skeletal Structure, who among us wouldn't be stronger than him?”
“Exactly, exactly! If I had that opportunity, I'd definitely be way stronger than him!”
“So what kind of opportunity did he actually get?”
Zhuang Xun listened to their conversation in silence. He wondered if Guichen was really that disliked. Not a single person had anything good to say about him; he had truly isolated himself from the entire Outer Court by his own efforts.
But thinking about it from another angle, it made sense. If someone beat you up out of nowhere under the guise of a challenge and stepped on your head to make a name for themselves, you would definitely hate them to death too.
There was probably also the factor of him not deserving his status, which naturally bred jealousy.
The conversation of the disciples behind him shifted entirely to Guichen's opportunity. Uninterested, Zhuang Xun left for the dining hall to eat.
After all, what kind of opportunity could that even be? It wasn't even as fast as his normal cultivation progress.
He had only gained three stones of strength in a month.
His main account, Bai Yujing, had gained two stones of strength in just over a week without using any resources at all.
Furthermore, it was an increase from Nine Stones of strength to Eleven Stones of strength, which was far more impressive than Guichen's progress from Five Stones of strength to Eight Stones of strength.
Even with Yan Pingsheng, if Zhuang Xun wanted to, he could make him soar to the Sixth Rank realm overnight.
It was just too conspicuous.
Guichen was a prime example of what happened when one didn't know how to keep a low profile. He had been directly targeted by someone inside the martial academy—the very "lord" Lord Wolf had mentioned.
As for who that person was, Zhuang Xun had already figured it out.
That afternoon, while Lord Wolf was off to capture Guichen, he had used his Debt-Lending Bladesman clone to slip into the Wild Wolf Gang's headquarters. In Lord Wolf's room, he found letters exchanged with the so-called lord, allowing him to trace the clues and uncover the other party's identity—
A disciple of some influence in the Posuo Courtyard.
However, Zhuang Xun was too lazy to bother. It was too much trouble, as long as they didn't try to scheme against him.
Moreover, Zhuang Xun didn't believe an Inner Court disciple had the power to influence the Law Enforcement Hall.
There had to be someone above them. By leaving them alone and observing them occasionally, he might be able to mark everyone in their faction. If they ever clashed in the future, he could wipe them all out in one fell swoop.
He wouldn't strike unless necessary, but once he did, he would pull up the weeds by their roots and leave no loose ends!
Of course, Zhuang Xun had other schemes in mind.
Perhaps these people were colluding with other factions on Mount Dazhou. If so, couldn't he use this connection to sneak his clones into other organizations?
Hehe, I seem to be acting a bit like a traitor to my own side, Zhuang Xun thought to himself.
...
Inside Yan Pingsheng's dorm room, Zhuang Xun lay on the bed reading a novel after taking a bath.
Suddenly, hurried footsteps echoed outside, and the door was kicked open with a bang. A crowd of familiar faces stood at the threshold, their expressions filled with either curiosity or disbelief.
“Wait, Pingsheng, you and Senior Brother Bai are from the same hometown?!”
Running at the very front, Zhang Tie yelled, his voice thick with disbelief.
“Huh? How did you know?” Zhuang Xun feigned surprise.
In truth, he had anticipated this scene since the afternoon. Since the members of the Wild Wolf Gang knew this news, there would definitely be loose-lipped individuals who loved to spread rumors.
Zhuang Xun knew he couldn't stop them, so he hadn't forbidden them from speaking about it.
Besides, exposing this relationship at this stage brought him quite a few benefits.
“It's actually true?!” Zhang Tie exclaimed. “It's spreading like wildfire outside right now. Only someone like you, who stays in the dorm all day, wouldn't know.”
“Wow... You and Senior Brother Bai are really from the same hometown.” His face contorted with jealousy.
The others also filed in, bombarding him with questions all at once.
“Brother Yan, you and Senior Brother Bai are from the same hometown, so how come we've never heard you mention it?” Chang Heyou asked, his face also green with envy.
At the thought of how he had advised Yan Pingsheng to perform well in front of Bai Yujing over half a month ago, he felt like an absolute clown.
The two were from the same hometown. Yan Pingsheng didn't need to perform at all; Senior Brother Bai would naturally give him a hand.
Cui Youlin clenched his fists, his face faintly flushed with excitement. “Brother Yan, has Senior Brother Bai ever mentioned me in front of you?”
“Brother Yan, does this mean you can travel back home together with Senior Brother Bai in the future?” Li Xiangzhi asked curiously.
“Pingsheng, once you rise to greatness in the future, don't forget about us,” An Dafu said with a silly grin.
“Um... Pingsheng.” Li Zigeng's eyes darted around, looking a bit embarrassed. “Senior Sister Chen asked me to ask you about Senior Brother Bai...”
“Brother Yan...” “Brother Pingsheng...” “My friend...” “Senior Brother...” Others with whom he had close, average, or passing relationships—and even some strangers—came to ask, trying to cozy up to him.
Throughout it all, Zhuang Xun maintained his honest and simple persona, pretending not to understand their attempts to pry for information and giving irrelevant answers.
It wasn't until curfew drew near that he finally sent everyone away.
As they were sleeping that night, Zhang Tie was still chattering away.
“Pingsheng, you have this kind of connection yet you stay so low-key on normal days. If I were you, I'd beat up anyone who made me unhappy.”
Right now, you're making me a little unhappy... Zhuang Xun smiled in silence.
“How could you do that?” An Dafu voiced his own opinion. “If you ask me, Pingsheng's approach is the right one. You have to stay low-key. Avoid using Senior Brother Bai's name unless necessary, and try not to waste your goodwill with him on trivial matters. Save that connection for the big things.”
Having said that, he turned back and added, “But Pingsheng is indeed amazing. To have this connection and still stay so low-key all this time... If it were me, I definitely couldn't do it.”
“So there's a trick to it.”
Zhang Tie rolled over and asked curiously, “Pingsheng, have you ever met Senior Brother Bai's parents? Does Senior Brother Bai have any sisters? Are they also incredibly good-looking like him?”
I have. His father is me, and I'm just as handsome.
Zhuang Xun indulged in a bit of self-satisfaction in his heart before giving a vague reply, “We used to live in the same alleyway, so I bumped into them occasionally.”
Propping himself up halfway, Zhang Tie grinned. “Hey, Pingsheng, when you go back, shouldn't you put in some effort? If you win over Senior Brother Bai's sister, you'll be his brother-in-law in the future!”
Zhuang Xun ignored this idiot and simply muttered that he was sleepy before leaving Yan Pingsheng's body on idle.
“Pingsheng? Pingsheng?” Zhang Tie clicked his tongue in wonder. “He really falls asleep just like that.”
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