Chapter 2960 — Let Bygones Be Bygones?

Besides, Tianchan had hidden herself away for the entire day and sent Tiandie to handle the matter in her stead. That was hardly an attempt to keep anything secret; it was more like letting the Xuandan Sect know that Tianchan had gone out to deal with it herself. So why, exactly, had Tianchan chosen to do this? Tiandie could not make sense of it.

"When you return, tell me everything about Wei Zhao." Tianchan waved a hand, signaling that Tiandie could leave. She was not particularly worried about Wei Zhao's injuries; after all, she had witnessed his astonishing rate of recovery with her own eyes.

Tiandie withdrew. A flush crossed Tianchan's face, and she let out a faint sigh before murmuring, "If only life could remain as it was when we first met. Now, seeing one another is worse than merely cherishing the memory..."

……………………

The black-clad elder had left, but Wei Zhao could not settle his mind. After hesitating for a moment, he took out his phone. He had intended to call Tianchan, but the instant the call went through, he hurriedly ended it.

Perhaps his relationship with Tianchan would come to an end once the Xuandan Sect's trial was over. In the end, the two of them stood on opposing sides, and Wei Zhao could not afford to contact her too often. Ancestor Xuanchen was plainly no good-natured man. If he discovered that Wei Zhao was in touch with Tianchan, he might well drag her into trouble.

And so, in the end, Wei Zhao called Ge Xian, the walking encyclopedia of gossip.

"Commander Wei!" Ge Xian sounded delighted when he answered. "Commander Wei, you and Qitan returned safely, didn't you? I've actually been missing you both. Once things quiet down a little, I'll come visit you!"

"Ge Xian, forget that for now. Tell me, how strong is the Dark Night Palace?" Wei Zhao cut him off and got straight to the point.

"The Dark Night Palace? Commander, why are you suddenly asking about them?" Ge Xian was startled, but answered honestly. "Among the ancient sects, the Dark Night Palace is, like the ancient Feng family where Feng Shihpian comes from, one of the lesser ancient forces. Even so, a lesser force still possesses a formidable foundation, and they have experts at the peak of the late Heaven rank!"

"I see..." Wei Zhao nodded. An expert at the peak of the late Heaven rank would be beyond his ability to contend with, even if he were uninjured, let alone in his current condition. It seemed the ancient level truly was far more powerful than the hidden level. "Then can those at the ancient level run wild in the secular world as they please?"

"Certainly not." Ge Xian rejected the idea at once. "However, if it concerns a private matter involving their own interests, they may leave seclusion and handle it discreetly, provided they do not kill anyone. There is no rigid rule about it. What happened between you and the Dark Night Palace, Commander?"

"There was a bit of unpleasantness." Wei Zhao did not mention his injuries. He merely told Ge Xian about the Dark Night Palace coming to demand the Great Return Pill.

"The Dark Night Palace has no shame at all! They can actually do something like that?" Ge Xian was astonished. "That is rather taboo. The result of the Xuandan Sect's trial was decided by the Xuandan Sect itself. For the Dark Night Palace to twist right and wrong and alter it like this... If the Xuandan Sect found out, it certainly would not stand by and do nothing!"

"The key is, would the Xuandan Sect even notice such a minor matter?" Wei Zhao gave a bitter laugh. "Besides, they are both ancient-level sects. Surely they still have some regard for one another's face. They would not fall out completely over an unaffiliated cultivator like me, would they?"

"That is true, but the relationship between the Dark Night Palace and the Xuandan Sect is actually rather poor," Ge Xian said. "Still, if they are threatening you by hurting people, then there really may be nothing we can do. If it comes to that, I can give you my Great Return Pill, Commander. The few of us were the ones who benefited from this affair. If not for us, the Dark Night Palace would never have come looking for trouble with you!"

"No need. I have one in my possession. If it really comes to that, I will give it to them and say it was yours. I will think of a way to repay you later," Wei Zhao said.

"All right." Ge Xian did not give it much thought. He did not know that Wei Zhao was injured and assumed that Wei Zhao was yielding simply because he did not want to provoke an ancient sect. After all, this was different from the trial. During the trial, one did not need to concern oneself with status or background, but once they returned to reality, that was no longer possible. Though the Dark Night Palace was a lesser ancient force, it still had experts at the peak of the late Heaven rank.

After ending the call, Wei Zhao went to bed early. Without cultivation to occupy him, the night was unexpectedly tranquil. As for Old Master Wei, Wei Zhao did not call him. He still had no idea what poison he had been afflicted with or what it contained, and calling the old man would only give him needless worry.

"Wei Zhao, you junior, get out here at once!" the black-clad elder bellowed.

Wei Zhao frowned. As expected, they were impossible to shake off. They had left the previous day and returned first thing this morning. Apparently, the excuse he had given them had not been taken seriously at all.

Wu Chengtian and the others were roused as well. At Wu Chengtian's urging, Wei Zhao went outside the villa, only to be stunned by the people waiting there. Standing beside the black-clad elder was someone Wei Zhao knew all too well. Unexpectedly, it was Zhao Qibing!

"Zhao Qibing? What are you doing here?" Wu Chengtian also spotted Zhao Qibing and demanded the answer.

"Heh heh, you never saw this coming, did you? The black-clad elder of the Dark Night Palace has already taken me as his disciple. I am now a disciple of the Dark Night Palace! Wei Zhao, you have been wanting to kill me, haven't you? Dreaming of wiping out our Hidden Zhao family once your injuries healed, weren't you?" Zhao Qibing gazed at Wei Zhao smugly. "Ha ha! You cannot do that now, can you? I have become a disciple of an ancient sect, under the protection of the Dark Night Palace. Let's see if you still dare lay a hand on me!"

Wei Zhao gave a cold laugh but said nothing. The Dark Night Palace might appear stronger than he was now, but once he recovered and reached the point where he could kill an expert at the peak of the late Heaven rank in an instant, the Dark Night Palace would be nothing in his eyes.

So there was no point in saying anything now. If Zhao Qibing wanted to gloat, let him gloat for the moment. One day, Wei Zhao would settle this account with him, piece by piece.

"Oh? So you came all this way just to tell me that?" Wei Zhao asked blandly.

"Hmph, Wei Zhao, I came here to make you hand over the ill-gotten gains from the trial. As long as you surrender the Great Return Pill, my master and I will let bygones be bygones!" Zhao Qibing pointed straight at Wei Zhao as he spoke.