Su Ru sighed and shook her head. “He had injured quite a number of people, but the main reason for his punishment was the first person he had wounded, because he had acted out of rage. The rest stepped out to challenge him voluntarily, hence the punishments for those were not heavy.”

　　“What do you mean, not heavy? Chu Li raised an eyebrow, and smiled. “Has the penalty been decided?”

　　He believed that this had something to do with Zhuo Feiyang’s wide network and connections. If not, they would not differentiate the cases separately, but punish him conclusively.

　　“Yes, Lady Xiao has decided.” Su Ru looked at him. “It will be reported to Master Xiao, and see if he agrees with it. Since it relates to a highly talented person, it shouldn’t be taken lightly.”

　　Chu Li smiled. “Don’t worry about it, Chief. I still have a bit of mercy left in me. Zhuo Feiyang is the one who gave me my fortune, if he leaves, I would be quite reluctant!”

　　“You…” Su Ru stared at him.

　　She was satisfied with his ingenuity. She chose to tell the story to him personally because she did not want him to feel that she sided with Zhuo Feiyang.

　　Su Ru continued, “Lady Xiao’s punishment was for him to serve in the Ascending Cloud Town for three years.”

　　“Lady Xiao had executed it perfectly.”

　　Ascending Cloud Town and Chong Ming Town were four thousand kilometres apart. And the town’s hustle and bustle were only second to Chong Ming Town. Sending him out of the Yi Public House looked like a harsh penalty, but the place that he was sent to, made a significant difference. Some places were rundown, while others were well-developed.

　　Ascending Cloud Town was far away from Chong Ming Town. A normal person would have thought that the place was a ramshackle, but in truth it was not bad at all. When Lady Xiao Qi made this decision, it served to warn the others, while leaving some room for mercy for Zhuo Feiyang at the same time.

　　Su Ru smiled. “You won’t think that Lady Xiao was unfair, right?”

　　“Chief.” Chu Li lost his smile and shook his head. “I would do the same if I were in her shoes. He’s very talented after all.”

　　“Hmph, I know you’re a bit bitter.” Su Ru smiled.

　　She dropped her worries. If he had objected earlier, it would mean that he refuted the decision even more.

　　Chu Li said, “Zhuo Feiyang would still cause me problems eventually.”

　　“Of course, he won’t stop,” Su Ru said. “This could be a warning call for you too, asking you to not be overly contented with yourself, and lose motivation. You have to understand Lady Xiao’s good intentions!”

　　“I get it, I get it. Many thanks, my Lady!” Chu Li gave a fist salute helplessly.

　　Su Ru grinned. “Alright, I have another good news to tell you.”

　　“Getting rid of Zhuo Feiyang was already nice enough, from now on I could have a peaceful life.” Chu Li replied casually.

　　Su Ru gave him a look, and said, “From today onwards, you’ll be promoted to Rank 5!”

　　“Rank 5?” Chu Li was stunned, he was utterly taken aback by this.

　　Promotion of ranks would normally reflected one’s years of service. 3 years for Rank 9, 10 years for Rank 8, 20 years for Rank 7, 40 years for Rank 6, and 70 years for Rank 5. And Rank 5 was already the highest peak for any Imperial Guard. If one never gained any outstanding achievements, rank 5 could be the highest one could ever achieve in their entire lifetime!

　　Promotion required hard work, and the more as the higher one went. The achievements that he got when he was serving at the lower ranks were not considered as anything huge for his status of Rank 6. As a Rank 6 Scribe, it would require incredible grit and success to be able to get promoted to Rank 5.

　　Su Ru smiled at him. “Last time you killed ten Innate Masters of the Ren Public House, so it was enough for you to be promoted to Rank 5. Lady Xiao waited for the right time for this decision, so no one could dispute it.”

　　Chu Li was now the youth champion. Ever since Zhuo Feiyang had gone into a state of frenzy, everyone knew that it was not due to Zhuo Feiyang’s inabilities, but because Chu Li was too strong. Nobody in the training ground could suffer beyond one hit from Zhuo Feiyang, but Zhuo Feiyang succumbed to a defeat under a single strike from Chu Li.

　　“Thank you, my Lady!” Chu Li gave a fist salute.

　　Su Ru said, “You should be more careful from today onwards, since many will have their sights set on you.”

　　“Understood.” Chu Li nodded.

　　At dawn, the Sun let out a million rays of bright light, and it reached every corner of Chong Ming town.

　　Outside the south fort door of Chong Ming Town, Zhuo Feiyang was dressed in a sapphire-blue clothing, and his face composed. It was a stark contrast compared to his previous fierce and almost lunatic face. Bai Zhijie brought along two horses right behind him.

　　The two turned back to take a final look at Chong Ming Town, their emotions mixed.

　　“Master, let’s go, we have to go there sooner or later.” Bai Zhijie advised him.

　　“Alright.” Zhuo Feiyang’s mind wandered elsewhere as he answered, his sights still set on the exit from the town.

　　Bai Zhijie sighed, deep down, he knew who he was waiting for. After all the events that led to today, they both looked soundly defeated. They had offended almost everyone in the Yi Public House. If he had hoped for Sister Zhao to come and bid farewell, it would be too unrealistic.

　　“Master…” Bai Zhijie called out to him.

　　Zhuo Feiyang waved him off and looked gloomy as he turned around.

　　Bai Zhijie hurriedly handed him the whip.

　　Zhuo Feiyang turned back around and took another glance, then leaped onto the horse.

　　He sat on the horse, and stole another glance back towards the town. In the end, he had given up, and he sighed in despair. His back looked as if it had shortened by a few inches, his stature becoming like that of a dwarf’s.

　　“Go!” He struck the whip on the horse and called out weakly.

　　“Senior Zhuo!” A soft sound was heard behind him.

　　Zhuo Feiyang turned his back abruptly and forcefully pulled back the whip rope. In a split second, both the horse and the saddler were stood up in the air, the horse shrieking.

　　Zhuo Feiyang looked extremely excited, his eyes staring widely. He looked at Zhao Ying who was approaching them from afar.

　　Zhao Ying was dressed in an azure green dress, he gracefully leaped in front of them, and called, “Brother Zhuo!”

　　Zhuo Feiyang could not hold back his smile, and exclaimed, “Sister Zhao, you’re finally here!”

　　Zhao Ying let out a breath, and said, “Are you really leaving, Senior Zhuo?”

　　Zhuo replied helplessly, “I am forced to leave today. Sister Zhao, follow me there!”

　　Zhao Ying was stunned, and she looked at him with surprise.

　　Zhuo Feiyang said, “Sister Zhao, all that I have left is you. Everyone else in the Yi Public House hates me and teases me. Only you bothered to come and see me. Sister Zhao please accompany me to Ascending Cloud Town, I don’t want to be all alone when I leave this place!”

　　He knew that Zhao Ying was kind, and had a soft spot for him. Once he had obtained her sympathy, it was very likely that she would be touched.

　　Zhao Ying hurriedly shook her head and said, “Senior Zhuo, you’ve misunderstood me!”

　　“Don’t tell me you can’t?” Zhuo Feiyang looked at her disappointingly. “You won’t leave with me?”

　　“Senior Zhuo, I had to listen to the Martial Arts Hall’ orders, how can I leave with you?” Zhao Ying continued, “Stop overthinking stuff, the Public House has not given up on you!”

　　Zhuo Feiyang gave her a bitter smile. “Exiled for three years, what’s this if it’s not giving up on me!”

　　“Do you know how big of a trouble have you caused?” Zhao Ying cut him off. “How many people have you wounded. If you weren’t punished, all the other Scribes would object and disobey orders. Plus, I heard that the Ascending Cloud Town is thriving, you won’t face any problems when you stay there!”

　　“How did you know that?” Zhuo Feiyang’s face turned gloomy, he smirked. “It must be that Chu Li, must be him who told you that, right?!”

　　Zhao Ying hesitated for a bit and slowly nodded.

　　Zhuo Feiyang smiled coldly. “I know, Sister Zhao you favor Chu Li more than me, and it was so from the very beginning!”

　　“Senior Zhuo! Zhao Ying stopped him.

　　Zhuo Feiyang scoffed, “Don’t think that I’m stupid, sister Zhao, the way you looked at him, it was different than how you looked at me!”

　　Zhao Ying said, “Senior Zhuo, it’s starting to get late, you better get going… Once you’ve arrived, focus on cultivating your martial arts, don’t give up!”

　　“Hmph, vengeance shall be mine!” Zhuo Feiyang smiled slyly. “Sister Zhao, go and help Chu Li clean his throat, prepare it for me to slash it!”

　　“Brother Zhuo!” Zhao Ying stared at him unhappily.

　　Zhuo Feiyang let out another scoff, then leapt onto the horse. He ignored Zhao Ying entirely, and rode on with his horse. Bai Zhijie gave her a fist salute, then hurriedly rushed his horse towards Zhuo Feiyang. The two soon disappeared from her view.

　　Zhao Ying shook her head and sighed, this senior Zhuo!