Chapter 1176 - 1174: Digging for the Truth

Chapter 1174: Digging for Answers

After Wang Zhan and a few others exchanged a few simple words, he began to walk towards the door.

Since Wang Zhan did not hide his presence, many people were already aware of his return. Everyone gathered in the Great Hall, and all eyes were on Wang Zhan.

The moment Wang Zhan stepped out, everyone present began to cheer enthusiastically.

"I can’t believe it’s really Mr. Wang!"

"It seems Miss Sword Spirit wasn’t lying to us. Mr. Wang really was delayed due to some matters."

"But now none of that matters anymore. As long as Mr. Wang is safe and sound, that’s all that matters."

"Yes, Miss Sword Spirit, please don’t mind us. We had no intentions whatsoever; we were just worried about Wang Zhan. After all, we’ve always been by his side, and if something really happened to him, it would hurt us a lot too."

"..."

Upon hearing everyone’s words, Sword Spirit sneered but did not pay further attention to the crowd.

If it weren’t for Wang Zhan’s presence here, how could he possibly have any contact with these people?

They’re just a bunch of useless trash, with very low abilities. Even if they’re left in the Sky Pavilion, they wouldn’t provide any help. Plus, their actions today somewhat annoyed Sword Spirit.

After all, these guys pose a certain threat to him, and they even gathered en masse to his place. Isn’t that a sign of forcing a takeover?

Although everyone noticed Sword Spirit’s attitude, no one dared to say much.

Meanwhile, Wang Zhan stepped forward to the crowd. Even though Sword Spirit wasn’t planning to argue with everyone, the Sky Pavilion needed its own set of rules. If these people were indeed at fault, the matter couldn’t just be brushed off, nor could it be left unresolved.

With this in mind, Wang Zhan fixed his gaze on everyone present, then spoke again, "I’m sure you all know about my relationship with Sword Spirit."

"The reason I let Sword Spirit stay here in the Sky Pavilion is to protect all of you. If it wasn’t for me, Sword Spirit would be by my side at all times, never leaving me."

"Originally, it was to give you an extra layer of protection. But to my great surprise, you even banded together to pressure Sword Spirit?"

"Do you really think Sword Spirit could harm me?"

Everyone glanced at each other and lowered their heads.

Quite a few people got involved in this incident. Even though Wang Zhan remained hidden, he had a certain understanding of those who attended.

Seeing no one speaking, Wang Zhan once again said, "I know many of you are old companions of mine, but don’t forget, this is also the Sky Pavilion, not just under my sole control. I hope such incidents don’t happen again; otherwise, don’t blame me for being rude."

"I’m sure you don’t want to see everyone in the Sky Pavilion scatter like loose sand, do you?"

Everyone nodded in agreement, and many wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads.

Not all of the old companions had good relationships with Wang Zhan. They only stayed by his side for a long time without providing any help, especially not in martial prowess.

So, essentially, they were just a bunch of good-for-nothings.

The only reason Wang Zhan kept them around was due to sentimentality.

Wang Zhan’s words didn’t contain any hint of a problem, so they naturally needed to follow his intentions unconditionally to develop steadily and stay in the Sky Pavilion.

Seeing the group’s reasonable attitude, Wang Zhan smiled satisfactorily and calmly said, "Everyone."

"I hope you all can be self-reliant and strong. In the coming time, quickly enhance your abilities. I believe you’re aware of the threats around us, and I can’t always be by your side to protect you, so the coming time will be up to you."

Everyone nodded in unison.

Wang Zhan didn’t plan to say much more. As long as everyone knew he was back, that was enough to change their mindset and stop them from worrying about him.

In a blink, they gradually began to leave.

Wang Zhan and others returned to the Great Hall.

When Xuan Yu and others received the news, they arrived late. As they stepped into the Great Hall, Li Du immediately approached Wang Zhan, hugging him with a smile, "Mr. Wang!"

"Do you know how I’ve been during your absence? It was like a living hell. If you decide to leave again, you must take me with you. I’ve also heard you’ve significantly advanced in strength, becoming more formidable. Although I can’t help you much, I can still act as your shield, isn’t that a kind of skill too?"

Seeing through his exaggerated demeanor, Wang Zhan almost wanted to kick him away, but he noticed that Li Du had clearly been working extremely hard, which was why his abilities had multiplied.

When Wang Zhan and Li Du first met, their strengths were not much different. Wang Zhan knew Li Du’s potential, and even if he used all of his trump cards, Li Du wouldn’t be a match for him.

But now, Wang Zhan had long surpassed him. No matter how capable Li Du was, he couldn’t bridge the chasm between them, as it was far too deep!

Wang Zhan’s rate of improvement even took Fire Qilin and Sword Spirit by surprise. Let alone little Li Du.

"Alright, I’m not too worried about you. You have plenty of your own matters to attend to every day. My bigger concern is Zhao Feiyu. While I was gone, Zhao Feiyu didn’t cause any trouble, right?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Feiyu stepped out from the crowd. He stood in the background, so Wang Zhan hadn’t noticed him. Now, being back in the Sky Pavilion, there was no need for constant probing.

Such probing would only break the hearts of those around him.

Seeing Zhao Feiyu step out, Wang Zhan shook his head with a smile. "I thought you weren’t even in the Sky Pavilion, didn’t even feel your presence. Since you’ve stepped up, I won’t need to hear from others about your actions during my absence. You tell me yourself, you didn’t cause any trouble, did you?"

Zhao Feiyu’s personality was much like Xiang Tian’s. He’d stand unconditionally in front of Wang Zhan, even if it meant risking death, one reason why Wang Zhan considered him a friend.

After the affair with Xiang Tian, Wang Zhan and Zhao Feiyu’s bond grew closer, even if Zhao Feiyu knew Wang Zhan saw him as a psychological solace or a substitute for Xiang Tian.

After all, their similarities were simply uncanny.

After Wang Zhan’s inquiry, Zhao Feiyu quickly snapped back and chuckled. Then, he spoke slowly, "The environment within the Sky Pavilion is excellent now. Nobody’s thinking about useless things, always finding ways to enhance our skills, so you don’t need to worry. I won’t cause any trouble, as I lack the strength to sustain trouble!"

Wang Zhan chuckled without retort.

Zhao Feiyu had a point. To cause trouble, one had to grow stronger, lest they wind up losing their life, rendering it not just worthless but overwhelmingly humiliating.

"By the way, how did they know about my severe injury so suddenly?"

Wang Zhan’s gaze suddenly landed on Sword Spirit.

Upon his return, he noticed that everyone in the Sky Pavilion seemed aware of what had happened in the Thunder Domain. Although the matter had reached its conclusion, the mastermind had yet to be unmasked.

Such individuals were destructive to the group, and their true intentions were unknown. The area was rife with anxiety, and had Wang Zhan not returned in time, things could have gone south quickly.

It might even allow others to profit from the strife!

So, Wang Zhan was determined to extinguish threats in their infancy, preventing the situation from spiraling out of control.

Momentarily locking eyes with everyone, they focused on Sword Spirit. Despite everyone staying in the Sky Pavilion, they were unaware of ongoing events and clueless about what had just occurred.

Sword Spirit paused momentarily, then after a while, said, "It might be a disciple overheard a conversation between me and Luo Xue, which led to sharing the information, but I believe there was no malicious intent."

"Besides, this isn’t the first time such a thing happened, but as long as they don’t go overboard, it’s alright."

Sword Spirit had taken it rather well.

While Wang Zhan frowned slightly and spoke slowly, "Weren’t the protectors behind this?"