Zhao Hailiang called out to those disciples from the Yitian Sect, naturally not intending for them to stay behind and seize another chance to ogle Mi Xue, Qu Meilan, and the others.
Upon seeing Yan Yefei, his eyes grew increasingly bright, and his entire demeanor became one of burgeoning smugness.
The first thing Yan Yefei and Li Juan did after exiting the tent was to greet Mi Xue, who was taking a stroll outside, with utmost deference. This very scene happened to fall squarely within Zhao Hailiang’s line of sight.
What did this scene indicate? It indicated that Yan Yefei and Li Juan, even after leaving the Yitian Sect, were still faring quite miserably!
Even after joining this sect, this so-called Wuzong, they still had to be so courteous to a young woman significantly younger than them; clearly, their status remained quite low.
Zhao Hailiang, too, could not resist Mi Xue’s beauty. Seeing Yan Yefei and Li Juan suddenly sparked an idea in him—a way to capture Mi Xue’s attention. This was why he called back the younger disciples of the Yitian Sect who had been preparing to leave after hearing his initial words.
“Martial Uncle, do you perhaps know them?”
“Yes, Martial Uncle, do you know anyone in that sect?”
These disciples did not recognize Yan Yefei and Li Juan, but judging by Zhao Hailiang’s expression, he seemed to be acquainted with them.
“Of course, I know them. See those two there, the middle-aged couple?”
Pointing at Yan Yefei and Li Juan, Zhao Hailiang asked with triumphant glee, then lifted his chin arrogantly and answered his own question: “Those two? They were once disciples in our Yitian Sect for a time, but they left because their aptitude was simply too poor to remain with us.”
As he spoke, venom filled Zhao Hailiang’s eyes. He knew the situation of Yan Yefei and Li Juan relatively well. The Yitian Sect had only agreed to take them as disciples initially because they possessed two of the five legendary special constitutions most suited for cultivation: the Du'e Physique and the Yingmei Physique.
In the beginning, the Yitian Sect took good care of Yan Yefei and Li Juan, making Zhao Hailiang, who was then also a fringe disciple of the sect, intensely envious. However, later on, because Yan Yefei and Li Juan were too old, they had missed the prime time for cultivation. Even with the Du'e and Yingmei Physiques, they could not condense inner energy and thus could not cultivate, leading the Yitian Sect to completely abandon them.
Now, Zhao Hailiang was a figure of some standing within the Yitian Sect, and naturally, he felt a tremendous sense of vindication.
“I wondered who this was—isn’t this Brother Yan Yefei!”
Zhao Hailiang’s lips curled up into a triumphant smirk. In front of so many surrounding disciples, he strode over to greet Yan Yefei and Li Juan.
“Hmm?”
When Yan Yefei saw Zhao Hailiang approaching, he paused for a moment, then immediately recalled who the man was.
“It’s you, Zhao Hailiang.”
Seeing Zhao Hailiang, Yan Yefei felt a brief surge of happiness at running into an old acquaintance from the Yitian Sect. Back then, they were all low-ranking disciples, disregarded by the Yitian Sect’s higher-ups—sharing a common plight, their general relationship had been quite amicable.
“Oh? You know each other?”
Mi Xue glanced at the approaching young man and asked softly beside Li Juan with a slight smile.
Li Juan nodded. She recognized Zhao Hailiang too, but her face held a trace of a wry smile. She was thinking more deeply than Yan Yefei. She had witnessed the exchange Zhao Hailiang had with those disciples earlier, and now that he was approaching to greet them, his intentions were clearly suspect.
“Haha, it seems Brother Yan and his wife are doing quite well these days?”
Zhao Hailiang noticed Mi Xue’s glance toward him and immediately felt energized, suddenly perceiving himself as much taller and grander. Consequently, his tone toward Yan Yefei grew noticeably more arrogant.
“Not bad, I suppose. But it seems Brother Zhao, you’re also doing quite well in the Yitian Sect now.”
Yan Yefei frowned. He finally sensed something amiss in Zhao Hailiang’s tone and replied casually.
“Not bad at all. I am now a direct disciple of the Yitian Sect Master, Zhao Zhicheng, making me the Martial Uncle to all these later-joining disciples.”
Although Zhao Hailiang spoke modestly about his situation being merely ‘alright,’ his demeanor and tone were nothing short of blatant showing off. He looked at Yan Yefei, his eyes shining brightly, and pressed on: “May I ask, Brother Yan, what sect you’ve joined now? This… what was it again?”
By the time he finished asking, even Mi Xue frowned; this man seemed overly aggressive.
“Hahaha…”
Even the cluster of junior disciples gathered around burst into loud laughter.
“I joined the Medical Saint Wuzong!”
Yan Yefei finally understood: this Zhao Hailiang was merely here to flaunt his success now that he was established. All the initial joy of meeting an old acquaintance had evaporated.
“The Medical Saint Wuzong?”
Zhao Hailiang was first taken aback, then glanced around deliberately before announcing loudly, “I’ve heard of the Medical Saint; that’s a very prominent major family in our cultivation world recently, especially powerful now. But this… Medical Saint Wuzong? I’ve never heard of it. Have you all heard of it?”
“No!”
The surrounding disciples, having joined their respective sects late, likely hadn't even heard of the Medical Saint Wuzong unless their own sect masters had mentioned it. Upon hearing Zhao Hailiang’s query, they responded in unison.
“Hahaha…”
Hearing the replies, Zhao Hailiang couldn't help but let out a peal of triumphant laughter.
This made Yan Yefei and Li Juan look at him with mounting disgust; any lingering sense of old fellowship had completely vanished. In their eyes now, Zhao Hailiang was nothing more than a petty man drunk on minor success.
“Is this person very impressive now?”
Mi Xue found Zhao Hailiang quite irritating too and quietly asked Yan Yefei.
Yan Yefei offered a wry smile and secretly replied, “Don’t pay him any mind. He’s just a jumping clown from the Yitian Sect, thinking he’s something special because he hasn’t heard of our Medical Saint Wuzong. He’s just being self-important here.”
Mi Xue murmured an acknowledgment, understanding.
Both Yan Yefei and Li Juan were too indifferent to bother with Zhao Hailiang. Having just grasped the Way of Nature, they were already immune to people as self-satisfied as him. Nothing he said could stir even a ripple of emotion in either of them.
Seeing that Yan Yefei and Li Juan were ignoring him, Zhao Hailiang seemed momentarily nonplussed. He immediately pressed Yan Yefei again: “Oh yes, Brother Yan, I wonder what stage your inner energy cultivation has reached? We used to practice together, after all.”
Yan Yefei glanced at him, shook his head slightly, and spoke with open candor, hiding nothing: “My wife and I recently joined the Medical Saint Wuzong. We haven't been here long; you could say we’ve just started cultivating. Currently, we are both only at the initial stage of the first layer of inner energy.”
Upon hearing this, Zhao Hailiang burst into loud laughter, so excited that he actually trembled slightly. The initial veneer of consideration when looking at Yan Yefei and Li Juan completely dropped, replaced by naked derision.
Only the initial stage of the first layer? Zhao Hailiang had already reached the late stage of the first layer himself. Moreover, the Yitian Sect Master, Zhao Zhicheng, had mentioned that he had a chance to break through a layer during the upcoming trip to Kunlun Mountain, making him a master of the second layer of inner energy. At twenty-eight years old, breaking through to the second layer was considered a mark of exceptional talent in a small sect like theirs—no wonder Zhao Zhicheng had spotted him among the fringe disciples and taken him in.
Looking at Yan Yefei and Li Juan with supreme smugness, Zhao Hailiang couldn't help but shake his head and sigh repeatedly. He then proceeded to offer what seemed like consolation but was, in fact, another bout of showing off: “You two… you shouldn’t have left the Yitian Sect back then. Look at me—I’m already at the late stage of the first layer of inner energy and hold a lofty position in the sect, but you two…”
Yan Yefei and Li Juan’s brows were now tightly furrowed. They didn't care how Zhao Hailiang viewed them, but his aggressive manner and constant condescending remarks toward the Medical Saint Wuzong were beginning to genuinely irritate them.
“What’s wrong?”
At this moment, Qu Meilan noticed the tension and walked over, looking at Yan Yefei and Li Juan with a frown.
“Senior Sister, it’s nothing, just someone we knew from when we were seeking discipleship before.”
Seeing Qu Meilan arrive, Yan Yefei immediately replied. As for Zhao Hailiang, in this retelling, he wasn't even considered a friend; Yan Yefei dismissed him with a single phrase.
“Senior Sister?”
Zhao Hailiang’s eyes lit up again upon seeing Qu Meilan. Although Qu Meilan wasn't as stunning as Mi Xue, she was still a young and beautiful woman, and by the looks of it, she was the Senior Sister of the Medical Saint Wuzong.
Now that several beautiful young women from that sect had gathered, the surrounding junior disciples were staring wide-eyed, unable to tear their gaze away.
At this juncture, Zhao Hailiang couldn't help but feel another wave of envy directed at Yan Yefei and Li Juan.
Back when he, Yan Yefei, and Li Juan all joined the Yitian Sect together, Yan Yefei and Li Juan had received more attention from the high-ranking figures due to their unique cultivation physiques. Even then, he had looked down on them. However, at the time, they were all fellow disciples bound by the sect’s elders, and since Yan Yefei and Li Juan were quickly determined unsuitable for cultivation and then abandoned to their own devices, they left shortly thereafter; Zhao Hailiang hadn't said much.
Meeting them now, to find that the Medical Saint Wuzong that Yan Yefei and Li Juan belonged to housed beautiful women like Mi Xue and Qu Meilan—coupled with the fact that Yan Yefei’s wife, Li Juan, was herself a very alluring woman—filled Zhao Hailiang with intense jealousy toward Yan Yefei.