Chapter 3926: A Favor

In the next moment, Long Qing Chong said, somewhat sheepishly, “I meant it when I said you don’t owe the sect a favor. However, I have a small personal favor to ask from you…”

“A favor?” Duan Ling Tian was stunned upon hearing Long Qing Chong’s words. When he regained his senses, he smiled and said, “Sect leader, please speak. I’ll do what I can to help.”

Although Duan Ling Tian did not meet Long Qing Chong often, Long Qing Chong had helped him a lot. Hence, he was more than willing to help Long Qing Chong.

“Before I can explain the matter to you, I need you to follow me to a place,” Long Qing Chong said with a smile, “Of course, you can refuse if you’re unwilling. I won’t force you to do something you’re not willing to do.”

Long Qing Chong had always been courteous and friendly to Duan Ling Tian, but today, he was even more courteous than before.

“Alright.” Duan Ling Tian nodded and followed Long Qing Chong after he informed the two elders from Pure Yang Sect that he would meet them later.

Long Qing Chong brought Duan Ling Tian to his cultivation ground where they first met. A middle-aged man was already waiting for them there.

The middle-aged man seemed calm, but a hint of anxiety could be seen in his eyes.

“Sect leader, this is?” Duan Ling Tian asked curiously.

“Xue Ming Zhi,” Long Qing Chong said.

Upon hearing this name, Duan Ling Tian’s expression changed immediately; his eyes widened immediately.

When Kuang Tian Zheng, an inner elder of the Flying Dragon Sect and a member of the 10,000 Devils faction in the sect, tried to kill Duan Ling Tian in the past, Duan Ling Tian had suspected that the mastermind behind the attack was Xue Ming Zhi. He also suspected that Xue Ming Zhi was the one who had hired the death warriors to kill him.

“So, it’s Vice Sect Leader Xue,” Duan Ling Tian said. He naturally knew that Long Qing Chong was trying to resolve the conflict between him and Xue Ming Zhi.

Xue Ming Zhi shuddered inwardly. He could hear the mockery in Duan Ling Tian’s voice. He smiled awkwardly and called out, “Young Master Duan.”

Long Qing Chong looked at Xue Ming Zhi and said coldly, “Tell the truth.”

Xue Ming Zhi took a deep breath before he looked at Duan Ling Tian and said, “Young Master Duan, the conflict between us arose because of my son-in-law.”

After saying that, Xue Ming Zhi waved his hand.

A decapitated head that belonged to a handsome young man appeared in Xue Ming Zhi’s hand after that. Based on the bloodstain on the neck, it was obvious that the young man was beheaded not long ago.

“This was my son-in-law, Zhong Can…”

Duan Ling Tian’s expression changed again upon hearing these words. He knew that Xue Ming Zhi only had one daughter, and he loved his daughter greatly. That was why he had taken great care of his son-in-law, who was from the 10,000 Devils faction.

“My daughter is unaware that I’d killed him. I killed him because I discovered he was involved with the death warriors,” Xue Ming Zhi said calmly, “He wasn’t wealthy enough to hire the death warriors, but the 10,000 Devils Sect could do so. I suspect that due to the conflict between you and the 10,000 Devils Sect, he was roped into the matter. After finding out about this matter, the sect leader ordered me to go to the 10,000 Devils Sect to kill all of their high-ranking officials who were involved in this matter. I also killed Zong Can. I hope this is enough to redeem myself, Young Master Duan.”

Then, Xue Ming Zhi fell to his knees and kowtowed thrice to Duan Ling Tian. He hit his head so hard that his forehead began to bleed.

“Redeem yourself?” Duan Ling Tian stared at Xue Ming Zhi intently as he asked, “Vice Sect Leader Xue, may I ask what you did that made you feel the need to go to such lengths to redeem yourself?”

Xue Ming Zhi inhaled deeply and said, “In a way, Kuang Tian Zheng’s bold actions of trying to assassinate you in the sect had something to do with me…”

Duan Ling Tian was not surprised. After all, he had already suspected this. Kuang Tian Zheng would not have come up with such a bold idea on his own. Moreover, the two White Dragon Elders from the 10,000 Devils faction were not influential enough to force Kuang Tian Zheng to do such a thing due to Kuang Tian Zheng’s connection to Xue Ming Zhi. In the end, he said with a smile, “It seems like Vice Sect Leader Xue really wanted me to die.”

“Young Master Duan, I was afraid you seek revenge from me when you’ve grown strong enough. After all, Kuang Tian Zheng’s direct disciple was my son-in-law.” Xue Ming Zhi hurriedly said, “I apologize for being irrational. To show my remorse, I killed Zhong Can to prove that I no longer have ties with the 10,000 Devils faction. I hope this is enough to resolve the conflict between us, Young Master Duan. Naturally, if you’re unwilling, I have no objections. I just hope that you’ll spare my daughter. She’s only muddle-headed because of Zhong Can.”

Xue Ming Zhi’s gaze softened greatly when he mentioned his daughter.

After a brief pause, Xue Ming Zhi continued to say, “If Young Master Duan wants my life, the sect leader will announce to the sect that Zhong Can and I hired the death warriors. After I’m executed, my daughter will be expelled from the sect.”

Duan Ling Tian frowned slightly as he turned to Long Qing Chong and asked, “Sect leader, the favor you mentioned earlier… You want me to spare his life?”

Long Qing Chong nodded. He said, “Xue Ming Zhi’s master was my junior uncle, and I owed my junior uncle a life-saving grace. If it’s possible, I hope to preserve his life to repay the favor. However, I naturally have nothing to say if you want his life. If that’s what you want, I only hope that you’ll spare his daughter. I can guarantee that his daughter will not seek revenge nor trouble you in the future. Whatever happens to her after that, it’s all her fault. If you’re willing to spare Xue Ming Zhi, I also promise that he won’t cause trouble for you again. Otherwise, I’ll kill him with my own hands.”

Duan Ling Tian’s eyes flashed slightly.

Xue Ming Zhi said again, “Young Master Duan, there’s another matter. I was the one who sent you the Voice Transmissions during the Latent Dragon Grand Contest.”

“It’s you?” Duan Ling Tian was slightly surprised. He still remembered the incident, but he dismissed it as an empty threat since nothing happened to Linghu Ren Jie.

Xue Ming Zhi smiled bitterly. “Yes, it was me. My daughter was tricked by Zhong Can. At that time, he had said that if you obtain the Lord Breakthrough Divine Pill and become a Lord of Gods, it’ll bring disaster to us.”

Duan Ling Tian’s expression eased slightly. “Since nothing happened, I’ll let this matter slide.”

In Duan Ling Tian’s opinion, it would have been easy for Xue Ming Zhi to kill Linghu Ren Jie if he really wanted to do so.

Xue Ming Zhi shook his head. “No. In fact, I did make good on my threats.”

“What?” Duan Ling Tian’s gaze sharpened immediately. He might have been able to forgive Xue Ming Zhi if Xue Ming Zhi had only targeted him. However, he was furious when he learned that Xue Ming Zhi had involved the innocent people around him.

Long Qing Chong sighed. In fact, he had told Xue Ming Zhi not to reveal this matter to Duan Ling Tian since he knew it would anger Duan Ling Tian.

“What happened in the end?” Duan Ling Tian asked in a deep voice, barely able to conceal his anger.

“An Emperor of Gods intervened,” Xue Ming Zhi said.

“An Emperor of Gods?”

Duan Ling Tian was surprised. Then, he recalled the Emperor of Gods that appeared in the Flying Dragon Sect shortly after he joined the sect. That Emperor of Gods was not ordinary since she was able to make the Flying Dragon Sect yield at that time. Even a Nirvanic Elder of the Pure Yang Sect would not be able to do what without an extraordinary background.

Xue Ming Zhi nodded and recounted what happened. “Yes. In the past, I agreed to reward a Black Dragon Elder if he managed to kill Linghu Ren Jie. Unexpectedly, he was killed by the Emperor of Gods when he tried to Linghu Ren Jie in the Linghu clan’s estate. The Emperor of Gods came to the sect to teach me a lesson. However, at that time, she said that she didn’t care if I made a move against you as long as I left Linghu Ren Jie and the Linghu clan alone. That was one of the reasons I vented my anger on you.”

Duan Ling Tian’s eyes glinted as he asked, “Is that Emperor of Gods Linghu Ren Feng?”