"Where is that fifth-level disciple who wanted to kill you that day?" Meng Hao asked.
"Him? I used your jade pendant to find an outer sect elder to arrange for him to go to the desolate mountains to catch spirit beasts. If he doesn't catch a hundred, he's not allowed to return," the fatty said, as if to say, "How could someone who offended me get off easy?"
"Don't take things too far," Meng Hao said softly, his eyes flashing.
"I understand. I'll find an opportunity to figure out a way to kill him. Everything has been arranged. Zhou Kai and Yin Tianlong will make their move," the fatty also whispered.
The two looked at each other, both smiling, and did not discuss the matter further.
They strolled around the outer sect. Along the way, many disciples, upon seeing Meng Hao, hurried over to greet him.
When they reached the Pill Cultivation Hall, Meng Hao stopped, looked at the hall, smiled, and walked in.
The middle-aged man in the Pill Cultivation Hall immediately stood up when he saw Meng Hao.
"Greetings, Senior Brother Meng!"
Meng Hao smiled and nodded, his eyes sweeping over the elixirs all around.
"Senior Brother Meng, please rest assured. With Junior Brother Li Fugui taking care of the Pill Cultivation Hall, business is not bad. We absolutely will not let other disciples have a chance to buy elixirs," the middle-aged man immediately said, patting his chest.
The fatty's face beamed. Taking advantage of no one paying attention, he handed a storage bag to the middle-aged cultivator.
The man received it very skillfully. Both he and the fatty's eyes lit up.
After all, the elixirs here belonged to the sect, not to individuals. Being able to earn a little extra, this cultivator was naturally delighted.
Under the fatty's anticipation and persistence, even though it was already noon, Meng Hao still fulfilled the fatty's wish and completed a full tour of the outer sect, allowing everyone to see him.
Then, under the fatty's pleading eyes, they went to the Treasure Pavilion.
The shrewd man at the Treasure Pavilion had long been waiting outside. Seeing Meng Hao arrive, he quickly bowed, his voice extremely loud.
"Disciple Sun Tiandi of the Treasure Pavilion greets Senior Brother Meng! Senior Brother Meng is a dragon among men, with a magnificent aura and extraordinary prestige!"
This shrewd man was originally uncultured, and the words he spoke now didn't quite fit, but his expression was excited. Only he knew the anxiety in his heart.
After all, he thought he had tricked Meng Hao that year and was afraid Meng Hao would bring it up. When he stood up, he blinked at the fatty.
"Cough, cough. This fellow is going in to get more magical artifacts. If he violates sect rules, it's his fault," the fatty said, somewhat embarrassed.
Meng Hao said nothing. Finally, after inspecting the Treasure Pavilion, he quickly returned to Dong Feng amidst the fatty's endless reluctance.
When he returned, the sun had already set. Meng Hao sat on the rock outside his cave dwelling, recalling the day's events.
His identity as an inner sect disciple had given him a deeper understanding of a few things.
At dusk, Meng Hao looked at the distant red horizon, as if realizing something, and turned his head.
He saw, not far away, a fairy-like woman approaching.
She wore a silver robe, her long black hair flowing down, her beautiful face without any makeup, appearing somewhat pale.
But in Meng Hao's eyes, that pale face already held a captivating charm hidden beneath its icy coldness.
"Senior Sister Xu," Meng Hao said, cupping his hands and bowing his head.
"Congratulations on becoming an inner sect disciple." This woman was Xu Qing, as cool and clear as her name.
That was her personality, but it didn't mean she treated everyone that way.
Like now, as soon as she emerged from seclusion, hearing a disciple mention Meng Hao, she immediately came here.
Meng Hao smiled and stood beside Xu Qing.
The mountain wind swept through, making their clothes flutter.
"During the day, I went to the Pill Cultivation Hall and exchanged for another Beauty Pill."
Meng Hao raised his right hand, holding a medicinal pill.
Xu Qing remained silent, glancing at the pill in Meng Hao's hand. After a moment of hesitation, she took it without a word, simply standing there, gazing at the red horizon in the distance.
Her face was exquisitely beautiful, flawless, like jade reflecting the red clouds on the horizon, making her look strangely beautiful at this moment.
Time seemed to stop at this instant.
The two stood in the twilight, as if eternally on the peak of Dong Feng, having become the water and ink under the evening sky of this year.
It wasn't until the faint light disappeared beyond the horizon and the moonlight shone that Xu Qing turned and walked away.
But after only five steps, she suddenly stopped.
"I once went to the Pill Cultivation Hall. The first Beauty Pill you gave me wasn't exchanged by you."
After speaking, she walked away without looking back.
Meng Hao was stunned. It took him a long time to regain his composure. He scratched his head, but his eyes gradually brightened. What he had previously thought impossible was slowly becoming possible as time passed.
Time flew by; two months passed in the blink of an eye. Meng Hao had been an inner disciple for almost a quarter.
He didn't go to the outer sect. Only the fatty in the outer sect was like a fish in water, very much at ease.
As for Meng Hao, these past few days, he had mainly been in the Dharma Pavilion!
One day, Meng Hao sat cross-legged in the Dharma Pavilion, calmly looking at a bamboo slip. His right hand was raised, forming hand seals, and bursts of magical light swirled around his hand, illuminating his face, making it alternately bright and dark.
Just then, a water sphere that Meng Hao had just condensed suddenly shattered, turning into dust and dissipating in all directions.
He frowned, put down the bamboo slip, and took out a glowing jade slip from his chest.
This item was jade white, somewhat indistinct, as if surrounded by a faint mist, but if one looked carefully, it appeared even clearer.
"Chen Fan, Xu Qing, Meng Hao, the three of you come to the main hall of Dong Feng!"
A majestic voice emanated from the jade slip.
The words were firm and resolute; it was the voice of Sect Master He Luohua.
Meng Hao put away the jade slip, stood up, and took a step forward. The door of the Dharma Pavilion automatically opened, silently.
He quickly ascended to the mountain peak.
Almost at the same time as Meng Hao, two other figures ascended the mountain peak.
It was the handsome and gentle Chen Fan, exuding righteousness, and the cold and beautiful Senior Sister Xu Qing.
Xu Qing also saw Meng Hao. After their encounter in the faint moonlight, this was the first time the two had met.
The three followed each other up the mountain peak and soon arrived at the main hall of the Kaoshan Sect.
This main hall had an ancient color, with carved railings and jade steps, yet it also carried a sense of vicissitude.
This place was a vital area of the Kaoshan Sect; only inner disciples could enter.
Inside the main hall stood nine statues. The foremost statue was an old man, whose expression was not angry but awe-inspiring. His eyes, in particular, seemed to glow; though dim, they were still vivid.
He placed his right hand behind his back and raised his left hand, pointing forward as if looking down upon all living beings, filled with immense grandeur.
The other eight statues stood in two rows, each possessing an immortal and Daoist demeanor.
During the first seven days after Meng Hao entered the sect, he had once bowed to these statues and knew that the old man, not angry but awe-inspiring, was the Kaoshan Old Ancestor, and the rest were the ancestors of the Kaoshan Sect from various generations.
In front of the statue of Old Ancestor Kaoshan, Sect Master He Luohua stood with his back to the three of them, gazing in astonishment at the statue of Old Ancestor Kaoshan, lost in thought.
Beside him, Grand Elder Ouyang wore a solemn expression, nodding slightly at Meng Hao and the other two.