Battle Frenzy

The two team captains looked like they were about to fight, and Wang Zhong seemed like an extra in this situation. The hostel staff quickly mediated. “Team captains, both of you are esteemed figures. There’s no need to get into a conflict with each other just because of an idiot.”

“This trash is a magnet for trouble. There’s trouble wherever he goes.” Someone shook his head.

It was noisy in the hall of the hostel. If a fight broke out between the two teams, both teams would suffer substantial losses. In fact, the two team captains did not want to fight, just that their ego didn’t allow them to be the first to back down. Now that someone came to break up their ‘fight,’ they glared at Wang Zhong. “Scram to one side, you trash. Do you still think you’re the MVP? This is the Holy Land. No one cares about you. If they do, it’s because they can’t wait to replace you as a second-class apprentice. Beat it!”

“The Federation newcomers are getting from bad to worse. What are the 10 Great Families even doing? I bet I can do a better job.”

Someone snorted behind them. “Victor, watch what you say. It’s not your place to be concerned with the Federation.”

The person who spoke resembled Gui Hao, just that he looked much older. He was Gui Xin, the vice-captain of the New Holy War Team and a direct descendant of the Gui Family. There were around 50 people in the New Holy War Team, which was considered an exploration team that guided newcomers from the 10 Great Families. After all, Gui Hao was one of the rare few who had a low EQ.

Gui Xin looked at Wang Zhong coldly. “Do you know how dumb you are? Having inferior power isn’t a problem, but you didn’t even try to resist in the least, embarrassing others along with you. If I were you, I would have killed myself in shame!”

Wang Zhong touched his chin, at a loss for words. He merely asked a question. How did he get on so many people’s nerves? Honestly, he had been through so much; and he usually interacted with people like Aiolos and Mu Zi who were of high caliber, so he didn’t care about such childish bickering. Other than getting angry at them, he was more embarrassed.

There were a few familiar faces behind Gui Xin, such as Napier Mo, Mo Ling, Gui Xinying, and others. As the more outstanding newcomers in this new batch, they were being nurtured to become the main backbone of the New Holy War Team. Gui Xin brought them here especially to accept missions and improve their understanding of the Fifth Dimension. For newcomers, it was crucial for them to exercise good judgment in choosing their cultivation paths. The worst thing that could happen was making wrong decisions during their foundation stage.

Gui Xinying was no longer wearing a veil since it was considered impolite in the Holy City. She seemed to want to say something, while Napier and others frowned too. They were stopped by a young man beside them. “Xinying, Napier, don’t meddle in this. This has nothing to do with you. That kind of man would be better off dead.”

Gui Xin continued, “You are putting the Earth and the Federation to shame with your actions since you are the No. 1 expert in the CHF! The Federation has always been the main contact that the Holy Land turns to, but recently the Holy Land is helping the Empire to expand its resources. Do you know why? Because of you, the higher-ups in the Holy Land look down on the quality of CHF!”

The 10 Great Families were the ones who were directly affected by this since they were in charge of the CHF and had the key to enter the Holy Land directly; this was much more reliable than other methods of entering. So if there was a revolution, the 10 Great Families would be the first to suffer.

Everyone looked at Wang Zhong with a contemptuous smile. At this point in time, Wang Zhong felt like he should respond. He hesitated; this wasn’t a fair comment. If you think about it, even if this was true, that was the Holy Land’s higher-ups’ business; he wasn’t significant enough to affect their decisions. Quality-wise, Scarlet was a strong candidate anyway.

Before Wang Zhong even opened his mouth, Napier Mo couldn’t resist and stood up. He said with a smile, “Senior Brother Gui Xin, Wang Zhong is the strongest one out of our batch and also the most talented. I trust that his current situation is just temporary, and no matter what, he’s one of us. We should help him whenever we can.”

Gui Xin’s face darkened immediately. No one expected that Napier, the guy who wasn’t serious at all, would be the one who stood up for Wang Zhong.

The noisy hall quieted down instantly. They wanted to see Wang Zhong make a joke out of himself, but they didn’t expect to see a junior oppose a senior. This was getting more and more interesting.

“Did I say you could speak?” Gui Xin looked at Napier Mo coldly.

“You didn’t say I couldn’t.”

“Then shut your mouth now!”

Napier Mo still had a smile on his face, his expression calm. “Senior Brother, I can’t talk if I shut my mouth, but the reason why humans have mouths is to talk. Other than Senior Brother Mo Wen, I respect Wang Zhong the most. Everyone has their ups and downs. Humiliating him doesn’t make you any nobler.”

Wang Zhong was rather surprised. He didn’t expect Napier Mo to be the first to stand up for him. Napier was joking around all the time. Who knew he could spout such wise words?

It was extremely quiet in the hall now. If a normal newcomer had said that, he would become idiot number two, but this was Napier Mo, the second-class apprentice appointed by a Great Teacher. Honestly, newcomers were all greenhorns in the Holy Disciples’ opinion. However, if a Great Teacher was included in the equation, that person’s status would be elevated instantly, even if the Great Teacher just nodded at a newcomer.

The New Holy War Team scouted most of the outstanding newcomers in this batch, and they were led by Napier Mo. Not to mention, the team leader valued Napier the most.

Gui Xin might have just laughed this off if Napier said this in a private setting; however, this was in front of everyone, he couldn’t disregard his image. “Stay out of this! I won’t repeat this again.” His voice was ice cold.

Napier stayed where he was, refusing to budge. Those who seemingly joked around all the time were extremely serious when they got serious. Wang Zhong and Mo Wen were Napier’s idols, and Napier felt that it was his responsibility to act so. No matter how others saw Wang Zhong, he wouldn’t condemn Wang Zhong completely. Even if Wang Zhong’s Heroic Soul was less powerful, with his resilience and talent, he wouldn’t necessarily lose.

Napier didn’t believe that Wang Zhong was weak. He couldn’t understand why so many people targeted Wang Zhong. Was it really his fault that his Heroic Soul wasn’t powerful?

If he didn’t do anything today, this would weigh on his conscience forever. Defending his beliefs was a form of confidence too.

“Are there any teams who are willing to accept Wang Zhong? I can vouch for him!” Napier said. This was a very serious matter in the Holy Land. Upon saying this, Napier would have to take full responsibility for any trouble that Wang Zhong caused. Although it was true that Napier wielded more influence than Wang Zhong, that was not something he should be involved in.

“Are you an idiot? Don’t think that you’re a big shot just because we accepted you. As long as I am here, you have to obey me!” Gui Xin was extremely angry now, a surge of Soul Power swirling around him like a hurricane. He absolutely wouldn’t allow a newcomer to challenge his pride.

Just after he spoke, two people appeared by Napier’s side.

It was Mo Ling and Gui Xinying. “Vice-captain Gui Xin, we came here to complete the newcomers’ training arranged by our families. We are only temporarily joining the New Holy War team. You are just the vice-captain and not the captain, and you can’t decide Napier’s future,” Mo Ling said meticulously. That was his personality: even though he didn’t have any plans of helping Wang Zhong, he would definitely back Napier up.

“Since Napier is willing to vouch for him, let’s just call it a day,” Gui Xinying said. The men in the Gui Family seemed to be pretty violent. It was probably because of Gui Hao that Gui Xin was picking on Wang Zhong. Although Gui Hao wasn’t well-liked in the Gui Family, the Gui Family hated Wang Zhong more, as he caused Gui Hao to make a fool of himself and become the laughing stock of the Holy Disciples.

“Fine, good, very good!” Gui Xin was awfully pissed off. He looked at Wang Zhong, who was behind the three. “I’ll remember this, don’t ever fall prey to me!”

Gui Xin was so exasperated that he left without accepting any missions. The young man that stopped the trio earlier sighed quietly and followed Gui Xin.

The dispute came to an end, but the spectators were already satisfied. Wang Zhong getting bullied wasn’t anything new, but an internal dispute among the 10 Great Families who have always been united? Although this was just a minor matter, this was way more interesting than Wang Zhong getting punched.

Heated debates broke out among the crowd in the hall. Other than a few newcomers lowering their volume, the other Holy Disciples didn’t care that Mo Ling, Gui Xinying, and Napier were right beside them and started gossiping. They were astonished that the trio would oppose their team’s vice-captain for an infamous trash in the Holy City.

Wang Zhong was very surprised too; he didn’t think that the trio would stand up for him. In the CHF, Grai wasn’t exactly nice to Mo Ling, and he had defeated both Mo Wen and Gui Xinying too. Although they weren’t enemies, they weren’t friends either.

The trio smiled at him. “I don’t have anything to repay your kindness though.” Wang Zhong grinned, feeling touched.

“This doesn’t change anything. The life of an apprentice is hard anyway.” Napier Mo was his joking self again, giving Wang Zhong a thumbs up. “Senior Brother Mo Wen said before that your Heroic Soul wasn’t to be underestimated, he will be waiting for you!”

Wang Zhong froze slightly, a bright smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. Neither Scarlet, Grai, or Laura could tell, so he didn’t expect Mo Wen to be the one who knew him the best.

“Help me tell Mo Wen. I hope he won’t be too weak the next time we meet, or I will be very disappointed.” Wang Zhong sounded domineering.

Napier and the others didn’t expect Wang Zhong to say that, but the three of them weren’t petty people. Napier Mo nodded. Offending the vice-captain was not such a minor matter after all. The trio clearly had a bit of psychological baggage and had no intention of talking anymore. They left in a hurry after exchanging a few words with Wang Zhong, but Wang Zhong didn’t leave. He was still thinking about whether he should push his luck. The episode with Gui Xin didn’t affect him at all; he was still promoting himself to the team leaders.

However, the outcome clearly wasn’t too satisfactory.

“Money? This isn’t about money.” A kind team leader explained. “Don’t think that tagging along is just about vacancies. Your presence will be noted on the team, and others will think that we are a low-ranking team. What would become of our reputation?”