"It's Senior Brother Wang!" Xia Liuhui said when he got a clear look at who the newcomer was.
Xiang Shaoyun saw who the newcomer was as well. The newcomer was none other than Wang Zhenchuan whom he had once helped become Zi Changhe's disciple.
"Junior Brother Xia, are you fine?" Wang Zhenchuan asked when he arrived. All his attention was on Xia Liuhui, so he did not even notice Xiang Shaoyun. In any case, Xiang Shaoyun had changed a lot over the past year, and his temperament was entirely different now. Thus, it was understandable that Wang Zhenchuan couldn't recognize Xiang Shaoyun right away.
"Look at how swollen my face is. Do I look fine?" said Xia Liuhui while pointing at his fully wrapped face.
"Damn it! This must be the work of Ye Lingyun and his lackeys, right? I'll take revenge for you later. He thinks he can bully everyone just because his cousin is an inner disciple?" Wang Zhenchuan said furiously.
Wang Zhenchuan was already a peak ninth-stage Astral Realm cultivator. Transformation Realm was not far away. He had an ordinary aptitude, but he made it up by being insanely hard-working. Breaking through several stages in a row in a year and half was a pretty decent accomplishment. Of course, part of that was also due to the care Zi Changhe had given him.
"Senior Brother Wang, did you not hear that Ye Lingyun was nearly crippled when you were on your way here?" Xia Liuhui asked. He then pointed at the person beside him and said, "Look who's here."
Finally, Wang Zhenchuan's gaze landed on Xiang Shaoyun. His face was immediately filled with emotion as he quickly greeted deferentially, "Greetings, Martial Uncle Xiang."
"Haha, my martial nephew, it has been a while. Looks like you have been doing well," said Xiang Shaoyun with a hearty laugh. Back then, he assumed the identity of Zi Changhe's junior apprentice brother. With Wang Zhenchuan being accepted as Zi Changhe's disciple, he naturally became Xiang Shaoyun's martial nephew.
"Everyone thought you were...never mind that. Master will be very happy to know this, the same goes to Elder Zhen Peng as well!" said Wang Zhenchuan happily. He was a person of few words, but he was too excited to see Xiang Shaoyun and couldn't stop talking.
He still remembered the help Xiang Shaoyun had given him in the past. Xiang Shaoyun had recommended him to become Zi Changhe's disciple and had even given him a portion of the Earth Star Spring liquid. Those two favors were enough to make him stay grateful to Xiang Shaoyun.
"Alright, let's find a place we can chat over a drink," said Xiang Shaoyun, who was also in a fabulous mood.
"Sure, let's go to the restaurant," said Xia Liuhui.
Thus, the three headed to a restaurant in the outer pavilion.
...
Within a certain courtyard in the inner pavilion, a good-looking woman had just received news that caused her to be furious. She said, "Audacious! That person dares to hit him even after knowing he is the cousin of me, Wang Jiaohua? That person is completely looking down on me!"
Beside the woman was a young man. He had his arm gently wrapped around the woman's waist as he asked, "Jiaohua, what happened to make you so angry?"
"A blind fool has injured my cousin. I need payback for it," answered the woman.
"Some outer disciples? I'll come as well and help cripple all of them for you," said the young man.
"Sure, come with me then. We will show them how insignificant non inner disciples are," declared the woman dauntlessly. And thus, the pair rushed out of the inner pavilion.
At this time, Xiang Shaoyun, Xia Liuhui, and Wang Zhenchuan were happily drinking and chatting in the restaurant. Xiang Shaoyun had given them a simplified explanation as to what he had experienced over the past year. Of course, he still withheld information that shouldn't be released.
Even so, both Xia Liuhui and Wang Zhenchuan still sighed endlessly as they listened to the story. But they were still confused as to how Xiang Shaoyun had managed to enter the Cloud Margin Pavilion.
"Oh, about that, I got to know a high-level elder through coincidence. He was dead set on making me his disciple, but I refused so he forced me to come here instead," said Xiang Shaoyun jokingly.
But Xia Liuhui and Wang Zhenchuan did not find it funny at all. Xiang Shaoyun was someone who was already capable of battling Transformation Realm cultivators when he was an Astral Realm cultivator. This ability to punch above his weight was something rare even in the Cloud Margin Pavilion. It was completely unsurprising that a King was trying to take Xiang Shaoyun as a disciple.
"Looks like my boss is already a Transformation Realm expert. Why don't you agree to that elder's request? You can become an inner disciple here and can take care of us in the future. In fact, we will be able to do as we like from then on," said Xia Liuhui with excitement.
"That's right. You should join the Cloud Margin Pavilion. I trust you will be able to shine brightly here," said Wang Zhenchuan. The persuasions caused Xiang Shaoyun to actually start considering joining.
He had been thinking about his next steps, thinking about what to do to grow quickly. The Cloud Margin Pavilion would most likely be a decent place for him to cultivate and grow for a bit. Moreover, his enemies wouldn't be able to find him immediately anyway. Staying here would be a good choice.
"I'll think about it," Xiang Shaoyun hesitated. He did not agree right away as he did not want to tie himself up. He would make his decision after he discussed it with Long Hui.
"Boss, what do you need to think about? Do you have a better cultivation spot? Or you don't want to stay at Cloud Margin City anymore?" Xia Liuhui asked.
"It's not a good thing to know too much," Xiang Shaoyun grumbled before shifting the topic and asking about Lu Xiaoqing.
Lu Xiaoqing was doing well and was much more hardworking in cultivating nowadays. She was currently trying to break through into the Transformation Realm to meet the requirements of becoming an inner disciple.
And now that they were speaking about Lu Xiaoqing, Xia Liuhui started lamenting her loyalty to Xiang Shaoyun.
"My sister-in-law has been missing you all the while. Each time we're together, she would be asking about you. She has been repeating that you are definitely alive and will appear before us again. Looks like her intuition was right all along!" said Xia Liuhui.
Xia Liuhui admired Lu Xiaoqing's loyalty to Xiang Shaoyun. In his heart, she was already his sister-in-law. That was also why he had been willingly guarding her from other men.
"Don't simply call her what she is not. I don't want to ruin her life," said Xiang Shaoyun with a sigh. He had never considered furthering his relationship with Lu Xiaoqing. It was not that he didn't find her pretty enough, but for now, he had no time for romance.
"In any case, I already consider her my sister-in-law. If you are going to find me other sister-in-laws, you first have to acknowledge my current sister-in-law!" Xia Liuhui persevered.
"Sure, sure, as long as you're happy," said Xiang Shaoyun, who couldn't be bothered to continue the argument. He would just let nature take its course.
At this time, Xiang Shaoyun suddenly sensed fast footsteps outside the restaurant. A vision appeared in his Nether Soul Domain, and he sneered, "Looks like our little gathering is going to be interrupted soon."
Right after he said that, a young man and a woman entered the restaurant. A small crowd was following behind them as well.