“The Fire Crow Young Master knows where the current location of Mount Yujing is?” Lin Feng’s eyes lit up in surprise.
Unfortunately, the Fire Crow would not reveal the location of its young master despite his persistent interrogation. It seemed to truly not know. It could only provide a few locations at which flocks of Fire Crows were known to appear for Lin Feng to try his luck. As the fire crow was merely a pawn in the bigger hierarchy, the locations which Lin Feng searched accordingly were either empty or filled with burnt debris. There was still a burnt smell in the air, as he landed before a pile of charred ruins.
“Hmm?” he suddenly felt a presence behind him and turned around, only to see a person walking out from the forest.
He wore white and looked young, with a delicate face. His mana was commanding and surrounded him entirely, which illustrated the fact that he had definitely reached the highest stage of Qi Disciple Level 12.
The young man was shocked to see Lin Feng and glanced at him cautiously. “Who are you sir? Did you come to exterminate these fire crows as well?” he asked. His gaze landed upon the charred ruins and an angry expression crossed his face, “These beasts have destroyed yet another village.”
After observing him for a moment, Lin Feng grinned and replied, “Indeed, I am here for the fire crows.”
“This herd of fire crows have only brought destruction after suddenly appearing in this area, taking away many lives. We are the young generation of disciples that come from the neighbouring sects and have came to wipe them out. Would you like to come along as well?” the young man offered generously.
“That would…” Lin Feng was just about to reject the offer, when the young man continued, “Senior Gao has a treasure that can approximate the position of these fire crows, and we are currently tracking those demons.” Lin Feng was tempted, the rejection on his lips was immediately retracted and he said instead “… that would be perfect.” He paused, and then continued, “But do you trust me that much? This is only our first meeting.” The young man smiled. “At least we are all humans. Even if you have indulged in evil and cruelty, aren’t these demons that kill humans still our common enemy?” “Furthermore, from what I can see, you sir seem to have high morals and the appearance of a fine man. You do not look like a diabolic character.” Lin Feng could not refute that and laughed, “Well if that’s the case, let us make haste.” The young man nodded and took the lead, taking Lin Feng to his companions.
As they conversed on the way, Lin Feng learned that the young man’s name was Yang Qing and was the disciple of a small sect by the name of Cloud Water Cave. The sect was situated in the mountainous region of North East Kunlun, and he was only sixteen years old. Lin Feng was secretly impressed. A boy of this caliber was of course unable to compete with his rascals, but in any major sect he would be revered as an elite genius. This was very much similar to Murong Yan Ran, who had appeared to call off the engagement with Xiao Yan was only fourteen years old when she caught the eye of the Sword of Radiance Sect’s elder, who had also completed all ten levels of training her Qi then.
Although he was of such high caliber, Yang Qing was stashed away in such a small and unknown sect. He was indeed a hidden gem. Yang Qing however, was not particularly proud and was instead rather embarrassed. “I am only good at leveling up my magic, but in reality I am weak at fighting.” “I’m not very good at both spells and martial arts. My seniors learn fast but I seem to be unable to master anything. Hence I can only work hard in practicing my magic and enhancing myself.”
Lin Feng raised an eyebrow and eyed Yang Qing, who seemed troubled and self-piteous. This was a young man who was gentle, without much life experience and who seemed to easily trust him. If it was someone else who was more well versed in the ways of dealing with people, would they be so willing to tell a person they just met about their circumstances in detail?
Lin Feng shook his head in secret, compared to his lacking abilities in training his magic, the lack of social intelligence displayed by this young man seemed more threatening to his life. The two continued on the path and made their ascent up a mountain. They heard laughter before they even reached the peak, “Is Junior Yang back? Did you track down the fire crows?”
Lin Feng immediately furrowed his brows before Yang Qing gave his reply. The laughter heard from the peak could be typically described as light and friendly, giving off the impression of a spring breeze. From within, one could even sense an overpowering sense of calmness and elegance. He sounded kindly, as though listening to him speak was an enjoyment. But why did Lin Feng hear a sense of arrogance in the seemingly amiable words of this person?
The two of them finally reached the peak and was met with a handsome young man wearing white robes; he looked upon them with a smile. Yang Qing immediately bowed in respect, “Senior Gao, you need not have waited for us here.” At the same time he introduced to Lin Feng, “This is Gao Fan of the Aeolus Sect. The movement to exterminate the fire crows in tandem was suggested by him.”
“Aeolus Sect? Why would a disciple of the Aeolus Sect, located in the South of Kunlun, appear in the Northern Mountains?” Lin Feng thought. Before Lin Feng could reply, laughter was heard from a distance. “Yang Qing, you are way too slow, are you really not aware that you are not worth Senior Gao’s wait?” A group of young men and women approached, their clothes were all apart from each other in design, showing that they hailed from different sects.
Two female disciples kept their gazes on Gao Fan. One of them sneaked glances and then immediately looked away, a cold mask of indifference before taking another glance in secret after a few moments. The other however, stared at Gao Fan without reserve, not bothering to hide her admiration for him. Gao Fan smiled, “Junior Yang took the trouble to go out and investigate, and it is only right for me to welcome him. If there was danger, I would also be able to give aid.”
His voice was kindly, calm and exuded elegance. For anyone listening to him, it was hard to deny that he was impressive and charismatic. Although Yang Qing was also wearing white robes, the two of them standing together was a huge contrast. Gao Fan was like an arrogant and aloof wolf, while Yang Qing seemed like a domesticated dog with its tail between its legs. Gao Fan was like a magnet, people flocked to him. Other than the earlier group which had approached, dozens of other young men and women had also arrived. It seemed like everyone had come to welcome Yang Qing, but even he himself knew that they were only seeking to stay on the good side of Gao Fan.
Lin Feng surveyed the crowd and saw that Gao Fan was already at the mid-tier stage of the Foundation Establishment Stage. As for the others, another three were at the beginning of the Foundation Establishment stage. The rest of them were only at the Qi Cultivation Stage, with the majority barely scraping Yang Qing’s level who had completed his Qi Cultivation Stage.
But from the attitude that the earlier group showed, many of them did not take Yang Qing seriously, it seemed to be common knowledge that Yang Qing was not adept at fighting. Lin Feng could only shake his head and hope that Yang Qing would learn his lesson in the future and refrain from exposing his flaws to others.
“Aeolus Sect? I have in fact been acquainted with a disciple from that sect, his name was Gao Long, ” Lin Feng glanced at Gao Fan and drawled. “Would you by any chance be related to him sir?” Gao Long was small and stout, with little similarity to Gao Fan who was tall and striking. However upon close observation, one would realize that the two had some resemblance around their eyes. Gao Fan smiled serenely and said, “Gao Long is my cousin, and also my junior. He has a terrible temper and is abrupt in his ways, regularly causing trouble outside. If he had offended you by accident, I apologize on his behalf, please do not take it to heart.”
Everyone was impressed by the generosity of Gao Fan despite this being the regular style of their Senior Gao. Lin Feng smiled as well, shaking his head, “Of course not, we are like old friends and are very amicable. However, it has been one or two years since we parted and we have not been able to reunite since. It is a pity.” “In spite of that, I was able to meet his cousin today, such is our fate.”
Gao Fan nodded, smiling, “and how may we address you?” “You can just call me Taoist Lin.” Gao Fan was silent for a moment before asking, “Is Taoist Lin here to wipe out the fire crows?”
“Such demons that only do harm would be punished by anyone, ” Lin Feng replied with a slight grin. “Well said!” Gao Fan praised. Lin Feng paused, “I heard from Yang Qing that you sir, have a way of locating the fire crows?” he asked.