White-Robed Chief
Chapter 30: The Provocation

"Pa!" The chopsticks in Zhuo Feiyang hands snapped.

Bai Zhijie was startled. He asked in a low voice, "Sir?"

Zhuo Feiyang had an ugly gloomy look on as he nodded in response. "Let's go, back home!"

"Have you finished eating, Sir?" Bai Zhijie asked. The whole table of dishes was untouched. What a waste, these servings certainly did not come cheap!

Zhuo Feiyang stood up and moved towards Su Ru. He covered his fist and bowed as a means of saying goodbye. Su Ru gently waved him away, signalling that they could leave.

Zhuo Feiyang gave Chu Li a mean stare. Then, he turned away and left.

Su Ru was all smiles as she watched Zhuo Feiyang and his companion leave.

Chu Li sighed, "Chief, you just have to cause more problems eh?"

A smirk flashed across Su Ru's face as she replied, "Now that makes it more interesting, don't you think? Chu Li, if you still can't beat Zhuo Feiyang, I'm afraid I have to call you a fool!"

"Chief, relationships between opposite genders aren't always easy, it's complicated."

"It's you who is always overthinking ... Alright, cut the crap, you just go and bring Zhao Ying back!"

"That I can assure you. Zhuo Feiyang is not a good guy. I won't let Zhao Ying jump into a fire pit!"

"Zhuo Feiyang is a selfish man, he cares about nothing but himself and is only good for his good looks. Whoever that has him as a companion is bound to suffer! Tomorrow I will buy off these two shop lots, and then we shall proceed with our plans."

'Thank you, Chief."

"You shall settle this matter promptly. And quickly prepare for the blessed farmland. Now that, is a big thing!"

"Yes."

...

7 days passed by in a flash.

It was noon. The sun shone brightly above. In contrast, the town was rather empty. The scorching heat of the sun made people avoid going outdoors, as they preferred staying in the shade.

Chu Li invited Zhao Ying to visit the two shop lots with him. The two of them had their inner energies protecting their bodies, hence they were not afraid of the heat.

The two shop lots were now connected as the walls separating them had been broken down. The interior had also been renovated into a single restaurant. The two stepped in and looked around the place. Zhao Ying seemed very delighted with how the space was wide and adequate.

After a round of surveying, the two retraced their steps and exited. They chatted as they strolled along the street, both appearing at ease.

As they took a turn into a narrow valley, they saw a slender green clothed man faced away from them standing in the middle of the bluestone path.

At first glance, Chu Li could already make out that he was Zhuo Feiyang. Zhao Ying had a similar thought too, as her eyebrows creased.

Zhuo Feiyang had been looking everywhere for Zhao Ying in the past few days. She had intentionally avoided going out completely just to escape his sights. However, who would have thought that Zhuo Feiyang would follow her here. What a nuisance!

Chu Li did not stop in his steps. Zhao Ying could do nothing but follow.

When they were close enough, Zhuo Feiyang had his cold sights set on Zhao Ying as he slowly turned around.

"What're you doing out here, Zhuo Feiyang? Were you waiting for me?"

"I wasn't waiting for you!" Zhuo Feiyang shifted his cold stare onto Chu Li instead. "I was waiting for you, Chu!"

Chu Li replied, "What is the matter, Zhuo Feiyang?"

"You sly fox named Chu!" Zhuo Feiyang blasted as he pointed a finger at Chu Li. "You used Chief Su to your own advantage by influencing her to arrange Zhao Ying as your Protector. You selfish bastard!"

Chu Li looked irritated. "What nonsense! Do you know that by saying that out loud you have broken the rules?"

Details of missions were supposed to be confidential, meaning that the person executing the task had to be completely silent about it. They were not allowed to reveal anything to anyone else, not even fellow Protectors and Scribes.

Zhuo Feiyang's action was an outright violation of the rules. Should Chu Li decide to turn him over, his punishments would be severe.

"You scum named Chu, just because you've gained Chief Su's favor, it doesn't make you someone important!"

"Enough is enough, Zhuo Feiyang. Have you finished talking? Just spit it out, what do you want now?"

"Hmph!" Zhuo Feiyang lowered his finger and pursed his lips. "I will deal with you one day! … Junior Sister Zhao Ying, let's go back together, shall we?"

"Senior Brother Zhuo, what exactly do you mean?"

Chu Li creased his eyebrows and said, "Zhuo Feiyang, Zhao Ying and I have important matters to deal with, will you stop interrupting us?!"

"Important matters? More like a front to get closer to Zhao Ying!" Zhuo Feiyang laughed coldly. "You really think that I don't know what are your intentions?"

Chu Li sighed. "Fine then, I do admit that Zhao Ying is kind and polite. Which man wouldn't want to go after her? I am no different. Why? Are you the only one permitted to pursue her while folks like myself aren't?"

"You piece of trash! You're not worthy of her!"

"Don't you forget that you haven't even defeated this 'trash', which makes you less worthy than me!"

"One day I will defeat you!"

"The future can be hard to tell. Do you really think that just by having a great talent, you can be the best? How silly can you be? So many people have the talent, but how many of them actually go on to become a master? Zhuo Feiyang... A dumb and arrogant fool like you will meet your own end sooner or later. Why don't you do Zhao Ying a favor and stay away from her, will you?"

Zhuo Feiyang looked like his eyes were about to spur flames, his teeth gritted as he smirked. "If Zhao Ying gets together with trash like you, she will only suffer!"

"I am rank 6, capable of earning enough for her living, capable of giving her a stable and peaceful life, can you? You as a Protector, all day and all night, you put all your thoughts on that belt of yours. You live one day at a time. Can you really count on tomorrow? Your every next mission may very well be your last one. Do you want Zhao Ying to constantly live with the fear of losing you?"

"You..." Zhuo Feiyang was furious but remorseful at the same time. He should not have argued with Chu Li. What he just did was basically exposing his weaknesses to his enemy's strengths. It was merely an act of self-humiliation. As he finally thought it through, he said, "Very soon I will achieve Innate Mastery, when that happens…"

Chu Li waved him off with a shrug. "Then let's wait until that day comes, then we will speak. Talk is cheap, if only achieving Innate Mastery was that easy. Farewell!"

Just as he had finished speaking, he pulled Zhao Ying's sleeves and signaled her to resume their journey. Zhao Ying looked at Zhuo Feiyang and then at Chu Li seemingly in a state of daze. She did not want to be so heartless.

She stomped on her feet lightly and escaped Chu Li's grasp. "I'm leaving first!"

She twisted her slim figure and darted away.

Chu Li stood on his ground and shook his head. She really was an angel, at this point she still could not bare hurting Zhuo Feiyang. Poor girl!

Zhuo Feiyang watched as her graceful figure slowly disappeared from his sight. He let out a sigh of relief, and his face turned dull before speaking, "Chu, you better keep your distance from her!"

Chu Li sneered back at him. "It is you who must keep a distance from her! Oh right, did you even realize, that Zhao Ying is stronger than you now?"

"How funny!" Zhuo Feiyang gave him a cold smirk.

Chu Li shook his head and said, "I see that you're still dreaming, eh? You still think that you are the strongest of us all. What a pity. Zhuo Feiyang, why don't you go spar with Zhao Ying? By then you will finally realize how foolish you actually are!"

"Oh, I will!" Zhuo Feiyang calmly replied.

Chu Li stepped forward and closed the distance between the both of them. "If you can't beat Zhao Ying, then you should probably go kill yourself. The shame would probably be too much to live with!"

"It's none of your business!" Zhuo Feiyang responded.

"Oh, what a pity!" Chu Li continued shaking his head as he walked past Zhuo Feiyang.

Zhuo Feiyang's veins were like earthworms that were close to rupturing under his skin. However, he persevered and stopped himself from doing anything drastic. "We shall wait until that very day, where I will finally defeat you! No matter how long it takes, vengeance must be served!"

Chu Li's footsteps were light and relaxed as he walked along the bluestone path and emerged out of the small alley all smiles.

He could already predict Zhuo Feiyang's next move. He would proceed to spar with Zhao Ying, only to realize that his skills were indeed not of her match. Then, he would isolate himself in anger of failure and start an intense training regime. He would then vanish from the public for a long while. This might just give Chu Li some peace and quiet for once.

Zhuo Feiyang had a big ego and he looked down on everyone else. If he could not even beat his own junior, Zhao Ying, he would surely stop pursuing her affection. Knowing him, he would only continue his ambitions by the day he could defeat her. By that time, Zhao Ying's heart would have already been won over by him, yes him, the great Chu Li!