In the evening, after finishing his phone call with Zhào Fāngxù, Zhāng Zhiwei was resting in his room. Recalling his conversation with Lín Fēng that day, he got a headache.
Zhāng Zhiwei rubbed his head, grumbling internally, "First there was the Twenty-Four Solar Terms from True Lord Ziyang, Zhāng Bódūan, and now Ancestor Lü's Tuì Bèi Tú. These predecessors are leaving behind increasingly outrageous things. It's getting harder for us juniors!"
The conversation with Lín Fēng during the day felt like a splinter, plunging Zhāng Zhiwei into a "predecessor's legacy pressure syndrome."
He believed about eighty percent of Lín Fēng's prophecy. It was flawless in its flow, but there was one BUG: it left out Lín Fēng himself.
With his status as Ancestor Lü's successor and his connection to the Twelve Yuan Chen, Lín Fēng was no ordinary person with formidable abilities. It was impossible for him to have left no trace amidst so many events.
He sighed and rubbed his temples, "Alas, the tides of the era are rolling in. This old Taoist can only take it one step at a time."
A few days later—Mount Longhu bathed in bright sunlight. Zhāng Chǔlán walked slowly down a mountain path with Féng Bǎobao, Xú Sān, and Xú Sì, a look of dejection on his face.
"Sigh! I wonder where Brother Feng ran off to!" Zhāng Chǔlán mumbled. "I was hoping to travel with him and maybe have him help me with some small troubles!"
"He can turn into a bird, you know," Xú Sì said enviously. "He can go wherever he wants, whenever he wants, and have a spontaneous trip. Unlike us, stuck squeezing onto airplanes."
Féng Bǎobao nodded vigorously. "Right, right, right! And Lín Fēng has that 'Four-dimensional ass,' he can store anything in it. I wish I had that, then I wouldn't always have to ask Old Fourth to bail me out."
Zhāng Chǔlán rolled his eyes. "Sister Bao'er, how many times have I told you? Brother Feng's isn't a 'Four-dimensional ass.' Be careful he doesn't hear you, or he'll get mad at you again."
Féng Bǎobao retorted with a look of "genius": "Then what is it? How do you think he stores things? I'm telling you, the more he says it isn't something, the more it really is!"
"Heh," Zhāng Chǔlán chuckled speechlessly. He of course knew it was Lín Fēng's ring that had the storage function, but he couldn't say it directly.
If he did, knowing Féng Bǎobao, she would definitely be after the ring. Whether she succeeded or not, Zhāng Chǔlán would be the one to suffer.
Just then, a hand suddenly landed on his shoulder. Zhāng Chǔlán jumped in surprise, and when he turned around, he saw the familiar ring and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Ah, Brother Feng!" Zhāng Chǔlán immediately switched to his sycophantic mode, rubbing his hands and smiling. "It's great to see you again, sir. How have you been lately? Your little brother has missed you terribly!"
Seeing Zhāng Chǔlán's fawning expression, Lín Fēng rolled his eyes. "Cut the act, Chǔlán. We're old friends, you don't need to pretend."
Zhāng Chǔlán immediately became righteous. "How can you call it pretending! Brother Feng, my admiration for you is one thousand percent genuine!"
For Zhāng Chǔlán, a little bit of dignity was nothing. Having grown up as an orphan, he had never cared about such things. If losing face could help him achieve some goal, he didn't care about losing face.
Lín Fēng, naturally, knew this and, not wanting to waste time, waved his hand. "Let's go. Old Heavenly Master is just ahead. Didn't you want to meet him?"
Zhāng Chǔlán froze for a moment, then immediately caught up. "Ah! We get to see the Old Heavenly Master so soon? Brother Feng, you have considerable influence. Your connections are really top-notch!"
Lín Fēng glanced at him, saying speechlessly, "Connections, my foot. What do you think the Old Heavenly Master is, some kind of high official? It's the 21st century, not 'superior beings' anymore."
Zhāng Chǔlán scratched his head. "But isn't he one of the Ten Elders and a supreme figure in the world of aliens/special ability users? I thought he was busy and didn't easily meet outsiders!"
"You think too much," Lín Fēng said, pointing casually. "See that old man up ahead, the one posing for a photo with a leader and making a gesture? That's the Old Heavenly Master, Zhāng Zhiwei."
Zhāng Chǔlán was dumbfounded. Staring at the old man ahead, he never imagined meeting the Old Heavenly Master would be easier than meeting a principal.
Zhāng Zhiwei also noticed them. After finishing his photo with the leader, he walked over with a smile and cupped his hands at Lín Fēng, saying, "Fellow Taoist."
Zhāng Chǔlán was completely stunned, staring at Lín Fēng being greeted with a bow, his mind full of question marks.
Lín Fēng nodded and casually pointed to Zhāng Chǔlán. "This is your grand-disciple, Zhāng Chǔlán."
Seeing Zhāng Chǔlán frozen in place, Lín Fēng slapped him on the head. "Stop being silly and speak! Didn't you want to see the Old Heavenly Master?"
Zhāng Chǔlán snapped back to attention, pointed at Zhāng Zhiwei, and said in disbelief, "Fellow... Fellow Taoist? Brother Feng, the Old Heavenly Master called you 'Fellow Taoist'?"
Zhāng Zhiwei's face darkened. He raised his hand and smacked Zhāng Chǔlán again. "What nonsense are you spouting! I call him 'Fellow Taoist,' and you call him 'Brother'? Are you trying to be my elder or something?"
Zhāng Chǔlán was dazed by the slap, just reflexively rubbing his head and thinking silently: Brother Feng is awesome! This background, this network, it's simply top-tier!
However, he quickly reacted and opened his mouth to speak, "Grand-master, I—"
"Stop babbling!" Zhāng Zhiwei waved his hand, saying seriously, "Chǔlán, whatever you want to ask, I can't tell you right now. The only thing I can say is: only when you become the Heavenly Master will you know everything."
Zhāng Chǔlán fell silent for a moment upon hearing this and then nodded. Although he appeared calm on the surface, he was internally speechless: Well, this is the legendary 'unlock the plot only after completing the quest.' Can I refuse to do it?
Zhāng Zhiwei then turned to Wáng Yě behind them, his tone laced with teasing. "You must be the legendary Wudang Wang—Little Yě, right? The Wudang sect only sent you. It seems they have great confidence in you! So, want to spar with me a bit?"
Wáng Yě almost fell to the ground when he heard this. He quickly waved his hands, shooing him away like an annoying fly.
"Old Heavenly Master, please don't joke with me! What Wudang Wang? I wouldn't dare! My name is Wáng Yě. My master sent me here just to go through the motions, purely a superficial effort."
Zhāng Zhiwei smiled slightly, but his eyes held a look of "I know everything." He had learned about the future from Lín Fēng and knew that this lazy young Wáng Yě would become an extraordinary figure.
"Is that so?" Zhāng Zhiwei nodded with a smile, his eyes seeming to pierce through Wáng Yě. "But I'm still very eager to witness your abilities!"
Wáng Yě: "..."
Abilities? Old Heavenly Master, you want to witness my ability to run away, don't you!
Without waiting for Wáng Yě's reply, Zhāng Zhiwei suddenly bowed to Lín Fēng again. "Fellow Taoist, I still have some matters to attend to. I won't chat any longer. We'll talk again later."
Lín Fēng nodded gently and watched Zhāng Zhiwei leave. Then he turned to Zhāng Chǔlán and the others. "Let's go, to the back mountain."
Before Zhāng Chǔlán could take a step, Xú Sì came running up, hooked his arm around Lín Fēng's shoulder, and said with a grin.
"Not bad, Lín Fēng, not bad! You have such a strong connection on Mount Longhu, and we didn't even know!"
Lín Fēng tilted his head, glanced at him, and sneered. "There's a lot you don't know. I say, Old Fourth Xú, you still dare to act so bold in front of me?"
"Hey, why wouldn't I dare!" Xú Sì forced a smile, rubbing his hands. "Aren't we good brothers! Right, Chǔlán?"
"Right, right, right!" Zhāng Chǔlán nodded vigorously, afraid of being implicated by Lín Fēng, and immediately jumped out to agree. "Third Brother and Fourth Brother are our brothers! Brother Feng, you wouldn't forget what we said when we were drinking and eating skewers, would you?"
Lín Fēng sneered. "Fine. Just don't regret it."
Xú Sì's heart immediately sank. Regret? What does that mean? Did I slip up... Uncle Zhao, you set me up!
However, he forced a smile on his face. "Heh, what kind of storms haven't I, Xú Sì, been through? What could I regret!"
Lín Fēng didn't reply but just looked at Xú Sì's expression, the curve of his sneer becoming more pronounced.
Xú Sì's heart began to pound. This is bad, he wouldn't possibly know that I reported him, would he? It's over, I'm really done for...
He glanced sideways at Zhāng Chǔlán, silently deciding: No, at the critical moment, I have to drag Chǔlán down with me!