"Sigh. Truth be told, Old Bastard Qian Tong isn't the type who likes to butt heads with people—it's just that the Red Candle Fruit flesh is too important. If it could truly help him advance to the Void King Realm, our Shadow Moon Hall would become the foremost power on the Dark Star. Even Star Emperor Mountain wouldn't be able to compare. The hope is slim, but it's still a hope. If Old Bastard Qian thinks that way, then naturally Feng Zhen does too. And that's how the conflict blew up. Right now inside the Shadow Moon Hall, it's the calm before the storm—a complete mess." Fei Zhitu said, visibly pained. "If this isn't handled right, the Shadow Moon Hall will at worst suffer crippling damage, and at worst… being wiped out entirely isn't impossible either!"
"That serious?" Yang Kai's expression darkened slightly.
"The elders and stewards from Qian Tong's and Feng Zhen's factions have been harboring grudges for ages. All this time, the Hall Master kept them in line, which is why nothing major went wrong. But this time, even the Hall Master is powerless to intervene. In truth, if the Hall Master weren't so advanced in age, the Red Candle Fruit flesh would be best suited for him—but he couldn't bear to waste its medicinal potency, so he never used it. If our Shadow Moon Hall truly descends into civil war, heh heh, kid—do you understand what it means when the nest falls, no egg is left whole?"
The corner of Yang Kai's eye twitched. How could he not understand what Fei Zhitu was getting at? If the Shadow Moon Hall truly fell apart, Dragon Cave Mountain would take the hardest hit—they were still within the Shadow Moon Hall's sphere of influence. What would happen then, no one could say for certain.
But soon enough, Yang Kai's expression turned indifferent. He fixed Fei Zhitu with his gaze and said, "There's no need to paint such a grim picture, Senior. All I want to know right now is—which faction do you belong to?"
"Me?" Fei Zhitu raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but laugh. He said slowly, "It's precisely because I grew sick and tired of scheming against people that I asked the Hall Master to post me out here as city lord of Tianyun City. So tell me—what faction do you think I belong to?"
Yang Kai nodded slightly, a half-smile playing on his lips. "From the way you speak, Senior, I hear quite a lot of concern and worry for Elder Qian. I was starting to think you and Elder Qian were on the same side."
"Bullshit! That old bastard Qian Tong—" Fei Zhitu snorted coldly. He seemed about to say more, but stopped halfway and waved his hand. "Forget it. Bottom line is, I once owed Qian Tong a considerable favor, and I intend to pay it back this time."
"What does that have to do with me?" Yang Kai couldn't help but frown. "Why exactly did you summon me here in the middle of the night, Senior?"
Fei Zhitu locked eyes with Yang Kai, his expression grave. "Qian Tong is in trouble!"
Yang Kai's eyes narrowed.
"You don't seem like the ungrateful sort. Your Dragon Cave Mountain has been able to develop peacefully these past few years—Qian Tong deserves no small credit for that. Don't think he wasn't watching over you. If he hadn't been stationed in Tianyun City, you'd have been devoured to the bone long ago. A handful of young people who don't know the first thing about the world, setting themselves up as mountain lords—hmpf, what utter nonsense."
"Let's set Dragon Cave Mountain aside for now, City Lord Fei. Tell me about Elder Qian. If there's something I can actually help with, I won't refuse," Yang Kai said coolly. Some things needed no reminding—he knew perfectly well that Dragon Cave Mountain's peace these past years was largely thanks to Qian Tong's protection. But hearing Fei Zhitu put it so bluntly still rubbed him the wrong way, and his tone cooled immediately.
Fei Zhitu didn't seem to mind. He began, "What I'm about to tell you—very few people know about it. This matter is of the utmost importance. You must not let it leak."
After impressing this upon Yang Kai, he launched into his explanation at length.
Only after hearing Fei Zhitu out did Yang Kai learn that Qian Tong had been missing for nearly half a year. By his reckoning, it was around the time he and Yang Yan had departed for the Liuli Gate that Qian Tong had disappeared.
As for where he'd actually gone, there were all manner of theories. Some said he'd gone into secluded life-or-death cultivation to comprehend a secret technique. Others claimed he'd gone out seeking opportunities and met with misfortune. Still others believed he'd gone into hiding because he couldn't bear to watch the Shadow Moon Hall tear itself apart.
But no matter which version, none could be verified.
Still, with the Shadow Moon Hall teetering on the brink and internal strife reaching a boiling point, his disappearance was deeply unsettling. It was precisely because he'd vanished at such a critical moment that Feng Zhen's faction had grown bolder and more brazen by the day. Within the Shadow Moon Hall, while there were still a few elders who could band together to oppose Feng Zhen, without a key figure like Qian Tong, they had already been pushed to the disadvantage.
If Qian Tong didn't return soon, the consequences would be catastrophic.
And this time, Ma Xinyuan and the others joining forces with the Xie Family against Dragon Cave Mountain had been Feng Zhen's faction's final probe—a test to see if Qian Tong was truly in hiding, using Dragon Cave Mountain as leverage to force him out. The probe had cost the Xie Family a Return to Void Realm expert, but the result should have satisfied Feng Zhen's faction.
Qian Tong hadn't appeared from beginning to end, which proved beyond doubt that something had happened to him, leaving him unable to respond.
Once this result made its way back, Feng Zhen's faction would undoubtedly make another major move.
"So where is Elder Qian now?" Yang Kai asked with a frown.