Chapter 1992: Marriage Arrangement

“Currently, the Four Venerables are Venerable Guiyin, Chifu Zi; Venerable Yin-Yang, Fang Zhonghe; Venerable Xiaoyao, Hua Feihua; and Venerable Heaven-Earth, Shen Taogong. They are the respective leaders of the Guiyin Path, Yin-Yang Path, Xiaoyao Path, and Heaven-Earth Sect. Comparatively, these factions are somewhat stronger within the Holy Gate,” Fatty Hu explained.

Zu’an asked, puzzled, “Isn’t the Heaven-Earth Sect severely weakened? And aren’t the Guiyin Path and Xiaoyao Path uninvolved in worldly affairs? How can they still be so powerful?”

Logically, the information Yan Xuehen gave shouldn’t be wrong.

Fatty Hu was startled and couldn’t help but glance at him again. “You seem to know quite a bit about our Holy Cult,” he remarked.

“Wanting to join the Holy Cult, I naturally inquired a lot, but it was all patched together, and I probably gathered a lot of inaccurate information,” Zu’an quickly said.

Fatty Hu then relaxed. “Actually, it’s not entirely wrong. After the great turmoil a hundred years ago, the Heaven-Earth Sect was indeed severely weakened. Its current strength is far from its peak. But it is still one of the Three Sects, and its original strength within the Holy Cult was extraordinary. Even a dying camel is larger than a horse.”

“As for the Guiyin Path and Xiaoyao Path, their strength has indeed never been particularly strong, but they didn’t participate in that chaos, so their foundation remains intact. The reason the Holy Cult can evade the court’s searches now is entirely thanks to the great concealment array established by Chifu Zi of the Guiyin Path.”

“Also, now that you’re one of us, I’ll tell you a secret,” Fatty Hu leaned in and whispered, “This small town is a miniature world created by Hua Feihua of the Xiaoyao Path. With this extra layer of isolation, outsiders can’t find our Holy Cult’s headquarters.”

“Amazing!” Zu’an nodded inwardly. In fact, he had discovered the peculiarity of this world not long ago, which was also why he dared not act rashly.

Hua Feihua’s method was somewhat similar to Yu Yanluo’s painted world back then. The entire town must be a painting, and her cultivation was considerably higher than Yu Yanluo’s at that time.

This town was clearly meant to serve as a firewall. Should anything unusual occur, there would be ample time to react. At worst, they could simply destroy this miniature world; creating a new town wouldn’t be difficult.

Fatty Hu glanced at Zu’an. He had been waiting for the newcomer’s voice of astonishment. Who knew that although the other person expressed praise, it felt so perfunctory?

He could only continue, “Although the Guiyin Path and Xiaoyao Path are not considered immensely powerful, with these two grand figures present, they naturally hold a place among the Venerables.”

Zu’an followed up with a question, “What about the Demonic Cult? Why don’t they have a Venerable?”

“The Demonic Cult already has Cult Master Yun, so naturally, they wouldn’t contend for a Venerable position. Furthermore, while Cult Master Yun has several martial siblings whose cultivation isn’t low, their strength still pales in comparison to the Venerables,” Fatty Hu replied.

Hearing him still refer to Yun Jianyue as Cult Master, Zu’an secretly breathed a sigh of relief. “I heard Cult Master Yun has a disciple, named Qiu Honglei, who is your cult’s Saintess?”

Fatty Hu slapped him on the shoulder. “I knew why you were so eager to join the Holy Cult; turns out you’re after the Saintess.”

Zu’an feigned a bit of embarrassment. “In the past, I chanced upon a fleeting glimpse of the Saintess, and I simply couldn’t forget her.”

“Who isn’t?” Fatty Hu chuckled. “How many men in this Holy Cult don’t like the Saintess?”

“I advise you to give up on that idea. There are too many powerful rivals in the cult whom you can’t beat; instead, you might easily invite disaster.” As he spoke, he subtly pointed towards another stall. “Look, Li Feiqing of the Xiaoyao Path. When he first saw the Saintess, he swore he would marry no one but her.”

Zu’an’s expression became a little strange. The person he was pointing to was the same guy from the Xiaoyao Path’s stall who had just rejected him.

“Don’t let Li Feiqing’s lazy appearance deceive you. He is a direct disciple of Venerable Xiaoyao and a top talent among the Holy Cult’s younger generation.”

“After he saw the Saintess back then, he became completely infatuated. He even had the Saintess’s image drawn on his clothes, claiming that way they could be together day and night.”

“Pervert!” Zu’an felt a bit annoyed. Even though it was just a drawing, having that guy wear it felt strange.

“Indeed, I also think he’s quite the obsessed fanboy. During that period, he was practically insane with infatuation, pursuing the Saintess relentlessly. It’s a pity the Saintess seemed uninterested in him; although she greeted him with smiles and pleasant words, she actually kept him at arm’s length. And he, a playboy, surprisingly didn’t realize it himself,” Fatty Hu said with a hint of schadenfreude.

Zu’an secretly chuckled, recalling the time he first met Honglei. Her Demonic Charm Art was perfected, and her mastery of stringing people along was also formidable. That kid surnamed Li probably became her obedient lapdog without even realizing it.

“But then he met Immortal Chu from White Jade City, and after returning, he changed completely,” Fatty Hu chuckled. “He would sit on the mountaintop all day, muttering inexplicable things like, ‘Fish is what I desire, bear’s paw is what I desire, which one to choose?’”

“He’s dreaming of peaches!”

“Peaches?”

“Dream on!”

“Haha, indeed,” Fatty Hu patted his shoulder. “Brother Lu, the more we talk, the more we click. I’ve long disliked that Li fellow; all day he acts like he’s handsome and elegant, looking down on others. Does he really think Saintess Qiu and Immortal Chu would take a liking to him?”

“For a while, he had images of both the Saintess and Immortal Chu drawn on the front and back of his clothes. It became a major spectacle in the Holy Cult, with many people rushing to the Xiaoyao Path to see the fun. Eventually, Venerable Xiaoyao couldn’t stand it anymore and forced him to change his clothes; only then did the matter blow over.”

“However, that guy seems to have been somewhat dejected ever since, looking spiritless all day.”

“He brings trouble upon himself,” Zu’an commented coldly.

“Indeed,” Fatty Hu agreed deeply. “Oh, by the way, besides Li Feiqing, Fang Long of the Yin-Yang Path has also coveted the Saintess for a long time. There are even rumors that Venerable Yin-Yang and Cult Master Yun once arranged a marriage for the two of them.”

“A marriage contract?” Zu’an’s eyebrows shot up. “Who is that Fang Long?”

“He is the eldest direct disciple of Venerable Yin-Yang, and the senior brother of that Fang Biao who was here just now. Huh, Fang Biao was just over there, why is he gone?” Fatty Hu stretched his neck, looking around the Yin-Yang Path’s stall.

Zu’an, of course, knew that Fang Biao seemed to have gone after Zhang Zitong. “Why do disciples from other sects usually have different surnames from their masters, but here in the Yin-Yang Path, they all share one?”

Fatty Hu said with a smile, “What is the Yin-Yang Path about? Isn’t it just about studying ‘bedchamber arts’? Venerable Yin-Yang has had countless women, naturally leaving behind many offspring. His three direct disciples, Fang Long, Fang Hu, and Fang Biao, are all his acknowledged sons. And who knows how many illegitimate children he has throughout the Yin-Yang Path that haven’t been publicly acknowledged?”

Zu’an was speechless. He used to think he was a bit of a scoundrel and a playboy, but compared to many people in this world, he was as pure as a white flower.

“However, I think this is just speculation made by many people given the close relationship between the Yin-Yang Path and the Demonic Cult,” Fatty Hu said grudgingly. “It’s truly hard to imagine someone like the Saintess taking a liking to Fang Long. To be honest, the Saintess wouldn’t even consider Fang Long, a guy who casually toys with women using drugs, even if she liked that Li Feiqing kid.”

“She wouldn’t take a liking to either of them,” Zu’an said lightly.

Fatty Hu nodded. “There are rumors that when the Saintess traveled in the jianghu, she seemed to have fallen for a man outside the cult. I don’t know if it’s true or false, or what kind of man could win the Saintess’s heart.”

Hearing this, Zu’an sat up straight. “I think the Saintess might like my type,” he said.

Fatty Hu rolled his eyes at him, almost bursting into laughter. “Buddy, you’re quite a joker.”

However, he didn’t take it seriously.

Zu’an seized the opportunity to ask, “When might I have a chance to meet the Saintess?”

“That might be a bit difficult,” Fatty Hu shook his head. “Since the Saintess returned last time, she seems to have been in secluded cultivation. I haven’t seen her for a long time.”

“Secluded cultivation?” Zu’an frowned. “What about Cult Master Yun? When was the last time you saw her?”

Fatty Hu was startled. “Now that you mention it, it has indeed been a long time since I last saw her.”