Chapter 2689 — Elder Yu's Attitude

"Yes, I'll go spread the word right away..." Elder Mian nodded and said.

By this time, Wei Zhao had already brought Yuning to the foot of the mountain where the Hidden Yu family resided! And by now, there was no chance of Wei Zhao slipping up unnoticed—the moment he arrived at the foot of the mountain, he was stopped by several Earth-rank experts!

Ordinarily, these Earth-rank disciples did not appear unless something serious was afoot; they spent their days in arduous cultivation. But today, with Yuning missing, they too had been dispatched to search the foot of the mountain and stand ready for any contingency—which was how they came to see Wei Zhao.

"Who goes there? Dismount from that... that spirit beast at once and submit to inspection!" barked Yu Ba, the disciple leading them. Wei Zhao had come neither by car nor on horseback, and Yu Ba could not even find the words for it.

Wei Zhao, quite obediently, had Little Feng come to a halt. In truth, with Wei Zhao's skill, these few were no match for him at all; even if he forced his way through, at the Wind-Thunder Violet Lightning Beast's speed, they could never have stopped him.

But since he had come to the Hidden Yu family, Wei Zhao would, out of respect for the master if not the man, give Yuning at least some face—otherwise he would only put her in an awkward position.

"Miss Yuning?" Only now did Yu Ba see clearly who was behind Wei Zhao atop the spirit beast—and that person was none other than the Yuning they had been searching for! Yu Ba paled in alarm and hastily pressed the call device in his hand: "This is Yu Ba. Miss Yuning has been found—she's appeared at the foot of the mountain with a stranger, riding a spirit beast. Emergency call, requesting backup!"

"Yu Ba, there's no need to call anyone. Let us up," Yuning said.

"This..." Yu Ba hesitated a moment. Had Yuning been alone, he would have let her up without a second thought. But she had come with someone else—and with a spirit beast whose strength was at the peak of the late Mystic rank, no less. He had no idea just how capable this beast was, and so he dared not act rashly.

Yet even as Yu Ba wavered, the Yu family's Old Ancestor had already come racing down to the foot of the mountain with Yu Xiaochen. One at the peak of the early Heaven rank, the other at the peak of the late Earth rank—their speed was tremendous, and on their own family's territory besides, so naturally they arrived at the foot of the mountain in no time.

"Wei Zhao?!" When the Yu family's Old Ancestor saw Yuning, he was overcome with emotion—but the sight of Wei Zhao left him deeply shaken! Was Wei Zhao not in Eastsea City? He had already phoned Shen Yushu and You Panhu to confirm it; there was no doubt Wei Zhao had not abducted Yuning. So how had Wei Zhao come back together with her?

To have rushed here from Eastsea City... The Yu family's Old Ancestor suddenly caught sight of the Wind-Thunder Violet Lightning Beast beneath Wei Zhao and was shaken even more! He was hardly unfamiliar with the beast—he had seen it at the Hidden World Summit. But at that time it had only been a spirit beast at the peak of the late Yellow rank. How was it that after so few days, it had become a spirit beast at the peak of the late Mystic rank?

Recalling how swift the Wind-Thunder Violet Lightning Beast had already been before, it must surely be even faster now after its upgrade. That Wei Zhao could have arrived in such a short span of time was, then, quite understandable!

"Old Master Yu, keeping well, I trust." Wei Zhao glanced at the Yu family's Old Ancestor and spoke mildly. His manner was hardly respectful, nor did he dismount from the spirit beast—nothing at all like a junior meeting his elder.

At Wei Zhao's lukewarm inquiry, the Yu family's Old Ancestor abruptly came to his senses: the Wei Zhao of this moment was no longer what he had been—he was not the Wei Zhao of old! Quite apart from the fact that his mount was a spirit beast at the peak of the late Mystic rank, his own strength alone was enough that the Yu family's Old Ancestor dared not underestimate him.

To annihilate a Heaven-rank expert in an instant while only at the peak of the mid Earth rank—the Yu family's Old Ancestor could not help but be moved! Especially since he had also heard that even the vice chairman of the Cultivators' Guild and the Heaven-rank experts of the Hidden You family addressed him as "Senior." What standing, then, did the Yu family's Old Ancestor have left to put on airs?

Only, in front of Yuning, he could hardly call Wei Zhao "Senior"; he merely said politely, "So it is young hero Lin who graces us with his presence. The Hidden Yu family is truly honored—such a rare guest, such a rare guest!"

"Heh, Old Master Yu is too kind." Wei Zhao smiled.

Yuning stared at her grandfather in astonishment, then at Wei Zhao. Wei Zhao had not lied after all—coming here, it seemed her grandfather not only dared not detain him, but was also indescribably courteous. Could Wei Zhao really have grown this powerful?

"Young hero Lin, might I ask how it is that my granddaughter comes back with you?" Old Master Yu narrowed his eyes and glanced behind Wei Zhao at Yuning, who was clinging to him. He looked about to say something, but in the end said nothing.

"Oh, Zhao Qibing carried little Ning off, and I happened to be on hand to rescue her." Wei Zhao put it very simply, but the Yu family's Old Ancestor knew it could not possibly be so simple!

To say nothing of how Wei Zhao had learned that Yuning had been abducted—the very fact that he had found her so precisely was extraordinary. Yet the Yu family's Old Ancestor dared not press him too hard. After all, if Wei Zhao did not wish to speak, no one could make him.

"So that is how it was. My thanks to young hero Lin for lending a hand, and for going out of your way to deliver her to our door. This old man is deeply honored—among the Hidden World families, there are truly few for whom young hero Lin would take the initiative to help!" the Yu family's Old Ancestor said courteously.

"What, Old Master Yu, won't you invite me up to sit a while?" Wei Zhao asked.

"Haha, look at me—all talk, and I clean forgot!" The Yu family's Old Ancestor laughed heartily. "In truth, if young hero Lin wishes to go up and sit a while, no one could stop him. This way, young hero Lin!"

"Little Feng, let's go," Wei Zhao said to the Wind-Thunder Violet Lightning Beast beneath him.

The Wind-Thunder Violet Lightning Beast began to make its way slowly up the mountain, and Yuning, seated behind Wei Zhao, had meant to get down—but the beast had already moved on, so she could only blush and keep sitting behind Wei Zhao, holding on to him.

The Yu family's Old Ancestor's expression shifted slightly, but still he said nothing. He did not wish to provoke Wei Zhao over this. The lad was unpredictable—it was quite possible that a single wrong word would set him to killing. The Yu family's Old Ancestor might reckon that at the peak of the early Heaven rank he would not necessarily be killed by Wei Zhao, but the others could not say the same—Yu Xiaochen and the like could not even withstand a single blow, and Bi Lao of the Hidden Zhao family was no match for Wei Zhao at all.

Arriving with Wei Zhao at the Hidden Yu family's reception hall, Wei Zhao at last dismounted from the Wind-Thunder Violet Lightning Beast, and Yuning got down after him. Then they heard the Yu family's Old Ancestor say, "This way, young hero Lin. Yu Xiaochen, little Ning must have been frightened—take her to rest for a while, and ask her about Zhao Qibing. That Zhao Qibing has certainly grown bold, to dare do such a thing!"

In truth, the Yu family's Old Ancestor had said all that simply to send Yuning away first, so that he and Wei Zhao might speak alone.