Chapter 4731: Hidden Dragon Disciple

“Yes, I’m indeed acquainted with Yu Ting. I know that she has made some mistakes, so I’m worried about her. Chief elder, do you know where Elder Li Fengxian is holding her captive?” Chu Feng asked.

“You’re actually acquainted with her… Lord Li Fengxian has imprisoned her in his own residence, though I’m not too sure where exactly she is. It’s not my place to ask about it. However, the fact that Lord Li Fengxian didn’t have her over to the Law Enforcement Hall to be dealt with is a blessing in itself. I don’t think you need to be too worried about her. She would have to be punished for her deeds, but she shouldn’t face any threat to her life,” the chief elder replied.

The words ‘shouldn’t face any threat to her life’ made Chu Feng’s heart clench. It suggested that Yu Ting’s situation wasn’t very optimistic, but again, Chu Feng couldn’t do anything to help her either.

Besides, it was likely that Yu Ting’s punishment had already been chosen.

“Chief elder, do you know how Zi Ling is faring now then?” Chu Feng asked once more.

She was the reason why Chu Feng entered the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect in the first place.

“Zi Ling? You heard of her affairs too?” 

The chief elder looked at Chu Feng with a deep gaze.

“Yes,” Chu Feng replied with a nod.

“Zi Ling is indeed a highly talented woman. Despite having joined our Hidden Dragon Martial Sect for only a short period of time, she managed to make great advancements in her cultivation. However, if you bear any thoughts about Zi Ling, I should give you some words of advice. There are no men in the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect who aren't interested in Zi Ling. Some of the Hidden Dragon Disciples are even actively courting her. 

“So, at least for the time being, you shouldn’t show any interest toward her and bury your feelings in the bottom of your heart first. It isn’t too late for you to make a move once you have the ability to. Otherwise… you might just bring calamity upon yourself,” the chief elder said.

Chu Feng understood the meaning behind the chief elder’s words.

Zi Ling was the only closed-door disciple of the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect’s sectmaster, and it was likely that she would be groomed as the successor to the sect. Her talent had already bloomed, and her looks were top-notch too.

It was only natural for men to court a woman like her.

“But even if you do possess the ability, it’s unlikely that you’d be able to succeed. Ever since Zi Ling was taken in as a closed-door disciple by the sectmaster, there have been many men who tried approaching her. However, she claims that she already has a husband.

“She treats female disciples still fine, but toward male disciples, she always puts on a cold attitude, not bothering to even look them in the eye before.”

The chief elder chuckled softly once more as he recalled the cold attitude Zi Ling put on before the others.

“Oh? Who is Zi Ling’s husband?” Chu Feng asked with a chuckle.

“Well, she has never mentioned that before. For that reason, many speculate that she’s just using it as an excuse to turn down others, and that she doesn’t have a husband at all.”

Oblivious to what Chu Feng was thinking, the chief elder continued explaining the matter earnestly.

“That’s hard to say. Miss Zi Ling doesn’t seem like the type of person to lie,” Chu Feng said confidently.

Needless to say, the husband Zi Ling spoke of referred to him.

“What makes you so certain? Are you acquainted with Zi Ling?”

The chief elder’s words were spoken with a jesting tone. He didn’t really believe that Chu Feng would be acquainted with Zi Ling. 

As for Chu Feng, he also simply smiled in response.

He wasn’t familiar with the chief elder, so he couldn’t really trust the latter yet. It was one thing to gather some information from the chief elder, but there was no reason for him to reveal too much personal information to the other party.

“Chu Feng, I view you as one of my own and won’t harm you. You do possess great talent, but it’s for that very reason that others will see you as a thorn in their eyes.

“You can be certain that our North Tortoise Hall will do everything we can to protect you, but it’ll be best for you to keep a low profile from now onward. It’s embarrassing for me to say this aloud, but our North Tortoise Hall is indeed lacking in strength…”

A bitter smile emerged on the chief elder’s face as he said those words.

“Chief elder, you may put your mind at ease. I’m not the type of person to provoke others or court trouble, but I’ll retaliate if someone tries to oppress me. I hope that you won’t blame me for doing so,” Chu Feng replied. 

“It looks like you’re quite a hot-blooded person.”

The chief elder shook his head with a helpless smile. With those words, he knew that it was almost impossible for Chu Feng to keep a low profile.

“Chief elder, I heard that Zi Ling insisted on leaving the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect and ended up being imprisoned in the Land of Abandonment by the sectmaster. Is she still there at the moment?” Chu Feng asked.

“She’s still there. However, Zi Ling is a person favored by the sectmaster. I trust that the sectmaster wouldn’t make things difficult for her,” the chief elder replied.

Chu Feng’s worry was assuaged by those words. No matter what, the chief elder had been in the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect for quite a long time, so he should have a good grasp of how the sectmaster was like. He should have his own reasons for coming to such a conclusion.

“Chief elder, it hasn’t been long since I joined the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect, and there are still a lot of things that I’m not familiar with. May I ask you to clear some of the doubts I have in mind?” Chu Feng asked.

“What do you want to know? Feel free to ask,” the chief elder replied.

“Who are the current Ten Hidden Dragon Disciples?”

Chu Feng felt some of the existing Hidden Dragon Disciples would potentially become his enemy in the future. He would have to surpass them in the future, so it would be best to get some information on them in advance.

This was information known by most disciples, so there was no reason for the chief elder to lie to Chu Feng on this. So, he began introducing the Ten Hidden Dragon Disciples to him one by one.

Soon, Chu Feng got a rough grasp of who his rivals were.

In the tenth place was Li Muzhi, a disciple of the East Dragon Hall. His grandfather was a Hidden Dragon Elder, Li Fengxian. He was currently in closed-door training, and it was speculated that he would be able to make a breakthrough to rank nine Utmost Exalted level soon. His spirit power was fairly decent too, being at rank three Dragon Transformation Sensation, but he was still the weakest one of all of the Hidden Dragon Disciples. 

Chu Feng had met Li Muzhi before. He and his grandfather were the ones who took Yu Ting away that day at the Dragon Clan.

The ninth place was Duanmu Yang from the West Tiger Hall. His cultivation was at rank nine Utmost Exalted level.

In the eighth place was Duanmu Xiang from the West Tiger Hall too. His cultivation was also at rank nine Utmost Exalted level.

Duanmu Yang and Duanmu Xiang were actually twin brothers, but they were almost equally matched with one another.

In the seventh place was Ming Tianjiao from the East Dragon Hall. Unlike those before, his cultivation was at rank one Martial Exalted level, making him quite a formidable opponent. 

In the sixth place was Zi Ling. She was from the East Dragon Hall too.

Based on what the chief elder said, Zi Ling had barely managed to make a breakthrough to rank one Martial Exalted level and successfully defeated Ming Tianjiao prior to being imprisoned, which was why she was ranked in the sixth place.

When he started speaking about Zi Ling, the chief elder couldn’t help but emphasize once more, “In truth, the current juniors of the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect are the most outstanding ones we have ever since the sectmaster and Lord Dugu Lingtian’s generation. Zi Ling was originally the most outstanding one amongst this group of juniors, but with your emergence, her position might be threatened.

“Of course, that doesn’t change the fact that it’s amazing how she managed to reach the sixth place amongst the Hidden Dragon Disciples within such a short period of time. If not for the fact that she has been imprisoned, she might have been able to reach even greater heights.

“So, Chu Feng, you really have to work hard. You might have talent, but none of your peers in the Hidden Dragon Martial Sect are pushovers either. They’re all true prodigies,” the core elder said.

“I’ll do my best,” Chu Feng replied.

He naturally had to do his best, or else he wouldn’t be able to free Zi Ling.

“The fifth place of the Hidden Dragon Disciples is Song Qian, a disciple of the East Dragon Hall. Her cultivation is at rank two Martial Exalted level, and she’s the strongest disciple of the East Dragon Hall at the moment.

“In the fourth place is Xia Yan from the West Vermilion Hall. She’s a force to be reckoned with. Not only is her cultivation at rank two Martial Exalted level, but her spirit power is fairly formidable too. She’s the strongest world spiritist in the current generation of juniors, having reached rank four Dragon Transformation Sensation. 

“Her grandfather is Lord Xia Zhicheng of the Hidden Dragon Elders, and her maternal grandfather is the head of the Law Enforcement Hall whereas her father is the vice head. Most importantly of all, she has a godbrother, and he’s no other than Xia Ran from the South Vermilion Hall. While they aren’t blood-related, Xia Yan does dote on Xia Ran a lot. 

“So, the one whom you have to be the wariest of amongst the Ten Hidden Dragon Disciples is no other than Xia Yan. She’s in closed-door training at the moment, but she would be returning very soon. Given how much she dotes on Xia Ran, it’s likely that she’ll come for you once she’s out,” the chief elder reminded.