Before long, Yue Ling finished the portrait.
It was unmistakably Chu Feng.
"How could this be?"
Chu Feng was somewhat bewildered. He had confidence in his own formation techniques.
At the very least, dealing with Yue Ling and the others should have been completely foolproof.
So why was this happening now?
Could it be that some extraordinarily powerful existence here had discovered the traces of Chu Feng tampering with the memories of Yue Ling and the others?
And had then restored their true memories for them?
With this suspicion, Chu Feng grew cautious.
"Is this our benefactor? He's so young?"
"Could it be that he disguised his appearance?"
The elder studied the portrait and began to analyze it aloud.
Hearing his analysis, the beaten disciples endured the searing pain across their backs and raised their heads to look at the painting.
"Junior Sister, there's really no need for this, is there?"
After seeing the portrait, the handsome male disciple spoke through gritted teeth despite his pain.
"What do you mean?" Yue Ling asked him.
"If you didn't want to tell Master what your benefactor looks like, you could have simply said so. Why did you have to deceive even Master himself?" the handsome male disciple said.
"When did I deceive Master?" Yue Ling asked, confused.
"You absolutely did. Your portrait is false. This is what the person who saved you actually looks like."
As the handsome male disciple spoke, he employed the art of barrier formation and condensed a projected image of his own.
Yue Ling had drawn the portrait by hand out of respect for Chu Feng.
But this handsome male disciple harbored no such respect toward Chu Feng. The instant the projected image materialized, a figure had already appeared at its center.
And that figure was the version of Chu Feng that Chu Feng himself had altered their memories to see.
"No, you're the one deceiving Master."
"Our benefactor doesn't look like that," Yue Ling said angrily.
"Fellow senior and junior brothers, tell us — who is really deceiving Master?" the handsome male disciple challenged stubbornly.
"Sigh, Junior Sister, there's really no need to lie to Master," the other disciples chimed in one after another.
Hearing their words, Chu Feng confirmed one thing: his formation technique had worked. It simply hadn't worked on Yue Ling.
"Master, I truly have not deceived you."
Yue Ling looked at the elder with a aggrieved expression.
"All of you, shut your mouths! You're still causing trouble at a time like this — was the whipping not enough?"
The elder raised his whip and laid into the disciples once more as he spoke.
The men wailed in agony and, for the moment, didn't dare to argue back against Yue Ling.
In truth, regarding this matter alone, they too felt wronged. After all, they hadn't lied — the Chu Feng in their memories truly did look this way, different from what Yue Ling had drawn.
The elder, meanwhile, continued to study the portrait of Chu Feng.
"Master, you don't recognize him?" Yue Ling stepped forward and asked. She could already tell from the elder's expression that he did not know who Chu Feng was.
"I may not recognize him, but I can ask around through friends. Ling'er, don't worry," the elder said.
"Master, you may inquire, but please, whatever you do, don't mention that my benefactor killed people from the Situ Spirit Gate."
"We must keep his identity confidential," Yue Ling said.
"Ling'er, rest assured. He saved your life — naturally I would never do anything to his disadvantage. However, on that day, the ones who witnessed him attack the Situ Spirit Gate were not only you all, so this matter is bound to spread regardless," the elder said.
"Let others spread it — that's their business. But we must not spread it."
As Yue Ling spoke, she turned her gaze toward the beaten male disciples.
The elder understood her meaning at once and immediately issued orders: under no circumstances were they to spread word of Chu Feng, or they would face severe punishment.
The disciples naturally agreed in a hurry.
Because she trusted the elder, and because she hoped to learn more about Chu Feng from him, Yue Ling agreed to stay a while longer rather than leaving immediately, returning to her quarters to rest instead.
As for Chu Feng, he began exploring this nameless sect.
After some investigation, he locked onto the location of a forbidden zone based on the guidance of his Heavenly Eyes.
However, that forbidden zone was sealed behind a barrier gate, and Chu Feng would need to break through it to enter.
But a barrier gate of this caliber naturally posed no challenge for Chu Feng. He descended before the gate and set about breaking the formation.
But after several attempts, his expression changed abruptly.
"What formidable barrier techniques."