In such an urgent moment, how could the clan master know who was speaking the truth? He faintly felt that Fang Xing’s words were more credible, however; a Foundation Stage challenging a Golden Core and actively suggesting whoever lost would be unable to see his daughter alone, this was something only an idiot would do—the lie his daughter came up with this time was a bit over the top. Furthermore, he knew all too well what kind of temperament his daughter held towards that venerated youth, and it wasn’t impossible to imagine her begging him to threaten Fang Xing into not seeing her anymore….

　　After thinking about it, he turned and scolded Hentian Qing, “Nonsense! Did I not send you into confinement? Go back inside!” He then waved his sleeve and a large force was sent out. Hentian Qing struggled, but she was completely helpless under the might of a Golden Core and was forcibly sent back to her room with the door tightly shut behind her.

　　After locking up his daughter, the clan master turned and urged Fang Xing, “Exalt Xing, don’t overdo it. You should have the red dragon stop as well!” He’d noticed the venerated youth was already in a dire position after being chased by the red dragon; he looked quite battered and exhausted, and his light might even be in danger if this were to drag on. The clan master couldn’t go and help out himself, however, because the red dragon’s battle prowess was such that let alone himself, even the five elders with the highest cultivation level in the clan wouldn’t be able to stop it in a short period of time—Fang Xing was the only option.

　　“Okay!” Fang Xing immediately agreed when he heard this, but he stood still without moving for a very long time.

　　The clan master waited for a while before he hurriedly asked, “Why are you still not calling it back?”

　　“I have already started to call it back,” Fang Xing replied while looking towards the battle, “It takes a while….”

　　“Takes a while….” The clan master was speechless at this. He looked at Fang Xing with a tilted head, and the original impression he’d had of Fang Xing being honest and genuine changed a little. This guy actually used such an unconvincing excuse to refuse recalling the red dragon—he certainly wasn’t truly honest.

　　Of course, no matter how much the clan master wondered, he would never know this was already the most honest and docile Fang Xing had tried to act before.

　　Although the venerated youth was a Golden Core, he was still in the early stage. Compared to the maddened dragon even full-mastery Golden Cores were afraid of, the difference in battle prowess was quite extreme and it could be said he looked quite pitiful while being chased and bitten. Even then, the venerated youth would have become the red dragon’s food long ago if Fang Xing hadn’t been concerned things would get out of hand and made sure the dragon wouldn’t kill him.

　　Fang Xing also knew that immediately after the red dragon started chasing after the venerated youth, four or five powerful forces within the Hentian clan had locked on to the dragon. If the dragon truly had the intent to kill the venerated youth, it was likely they would have intervened by now.

　　When Fang Xing saw the venerated youth might actually die if the dragon continued and how those secretly watching were likely at their limits, he quickly sent over a message via spirit sense to call the dragon back, “Alright, it’s about enough. Come back now….”

　　After nearly dying at the hands of Hentian Qing, he’d discovered how important it was to have control over the red dragon, so he’d spent a lot of time on this over the past two months and had gained quite a bit of insight. Although it might look to others as though he was simply directly giving the dragon an order, what they didn’t know was his method revolved around concentrating on a very specific thought. There actually wasn’t a need to send a literal message, and his spirit sense was currently only strong enough to send a message a hundred or so feet away regardless; all he needed to do was form a thought in his mind and concentrate on it repeatedly, which the dragon would naturally sense and come to him.

　　When Fang Xing started calling it back, the red dragon looked down at the venerated youth that resembled a drowned mutt. Its eyes were filled with some disappointment, but the madness in its pupils slowly disappeared and it let out a sneeze before shaking its head and flying over to Fang Xing. It landed next to Fang Xing’s feet and gently placed its large head on the ground, its eyes gazing directly at him as though asking for a reward.

　　“Hey, it’s bad to try to kill people, yet you’re still doing it?” Fang Xing scolded before casually pulling a pellet from his storage sack. He took a quick look to make sure it wasn’t poisonous before he tossed it into the red dragon’s mouth, who smacked its lips and swallowed it whole. The feeding was so casual and the dragon itself wasn’t picky, which caused the clan master some confusion; had it been a normal medicinal pellet, or was there some secret to it?

　　“Clan Master, this black-clothed guy tried to bully me because of my lower cultivation level. You have to deliver justice on my behalf…” Fang Xing said with a somber tone.

　　The clan master had a bit of a headache. He knew his daughter and her behavior all too well, so he believed Fang Xing’s words. She’d already attempted to kill Fang Xing while he was in a cage back then, so doing something like asking the venerated youth to suppress Fang Xing and warn him to stop harassing her was also within the norm—she was certainly capable of such a thing. However, no matter how he looked at it, that dragon had nearly torn the venerated youth into pieces; just how was he going to “deliver justice”?

　　Fang Xing didn’t dwell on it either, and he simply sat on the dragon’s head before flying off towards his own courtyard. When he flew past the skies not far from the venerated youth, however, he messaged over a warning: “You little pretty-boy, listen up. Although the red dragon acted on my behalf, we didn’t bully you two against one, so you have lost. If you dare come and see her again, I’ll make sure to have my dragon bite you for every time I see you!”

　　The venerated youth had just escaped death, and he landed on top of the mountain with great effort. Just as he landed, his legs softened and he fell to the ground on one knee. He clenched his teeth, swallowed a medicinal pellet with a twisted expression, and then growled out low, “Bastard, how dare you cheat me….” He looked to be in extreme pain, and his black robe was tattered and full with bloody claw-shaped gashes. The worst of all was the internal damage; when he attacked, the dragon had swallowed up his spell and spat it back out against him.

　　As a talented elite who’d always been clever and careful with his choices, it could be imagined how much annoyance and hatred he felt after suffering such a loss.

　　The Head Exalt quietly flew over and watched as Fang Xing flew back to his courtyard while sitting atop the dragon’s head and giving off a great presence. “Of the two, one is at Golden Core Stage and the other has a red dragon at his side. Both are not ordinary people…” he sighed. “The talent and battle prowess these two possess is perhaps unmatched by the younger generations of the Hentian clan. If they are truly willing to work for our clan, it would certainly be great news….”

　　The clan master gave a bitter smile. “The last time you said this, Head Exalt, I also felt this venerated youth was a little arrogant and intended for him and this Xing boy to have a duel, but who would have thought there would be such a scene for their first meeting? Now that things have come to this, I’m not intending to let the two of them fight it out, but the enmity between them certainly isn’t shallow. If things cannot be resolved, how can we make a decision in the future?”

　　“Both are young and both like Qing’er; for them to fight each other was only a matter of time. This was nothing unexpected!” the Head Exalt replied.

　　The clan master hesitated. “I’ve been thinking. The venerated youth and Xing Fang, how did they both take a fancy to Qing’er? Both are cultivators, and both of them having a fondness for Qing’er’s appearance is quite unlikely. These two are definitely very ambitious. Perhaps they’d already set their eyes on my position of clan master from the moment they entered the clan? Or… perhaps the two of them want to have a look inside the secret pavilion?”

　　“Regardless of their purpose, what their identities were outside the Guixu Ruins, or why they entered the Guixu Ruins in the first place, it is all irrelevant to us,” the Head Exalt replied after a long pause. “As long as they are not connected with any other clans, the rest is all understandable. Didn’t I also spend over a hundred years trying to find the secrets of the Guixu Ruins when I first arrived? If they did not have even this much ambition, they wouldn’t be cultivators. Let us observe for now. If all goes as expected, your position as clan master might really be given to one of these two a hundred or so years from now!”

　　After the discussion, these two had nothing left to say and left as well. They were both leaning towards Fang Xing’s story and the clan master had quickly settled it without bothering to ask who was right or wrong. As for the venerated youth, he was a proud person and accepted the loss without complaint; he didn’t even open his mouth in self-defense and simply remained silent.

　　It was Hentian Qing who cried nonstop in the hopes of clearing the venerated youth’s name, all while saying Fang Xing was concealing his malice and had secretly threatened her. No one believed her words, however; the Hentian clan’s main elders could casually sweep their spirit sense over the entire area, and they were certain Fang Xing—with his Foundation Stage cultivation level—wouldn’t be able to sense their scanning. Since Fang Xing could be under surveillance at any given time without him knowing, how would he even dare to threaten her? Hentian Qing’s words actually led the clan master to believe she was purposefully trying to frame Fang Xing, so he was even harsher with his punishment.

　　Fang Xing felt no one was currently watching over him in his own courtyard, so he patted the red dragon’s head and praised, “You bit well. How about you go guard that courtyard instead in the future? If that bastard dares to come near, you go bite him hard. I don’t believe he’s not afraid of death….” The dragon happily moved to give him a lick, and Fang Xing didn’t evade it and was covered in drool.

　　After scolding the dragon a few times, Fang Xing wiped his face and muttered to himself, “You think I can’t tell? That bastard everyone calls ‘venerated youth’, although he’s already formed the golden core and appears to be young, I can tell he’s at least forty or fifty years old and actually still has a pure Yang body! He can’t be a lewd person, so why would he suddenly be so intimate with the daughter of the clan master after only being in the clan for around a year?”

　　As he thought on it, his gaze grew cold. “It has to be said, though, perhaps the purpose is the same as mine—for the secret pavilion. If even he is moved to such an extent, there has to be some good stuff inside. I’ve heard from the others, too; this Hentian clan is one of the oldest clans within the Guixu Ruins, so the stuff inside that pavilion left behind by Old Ancestor Hentian must be quite extraordinary!” He was swayed more and more, and his eyes began to gleam with interest

　　“Is Exalt Xing there?”

　　A girl walked inside the courtyard, and it was none other than the second daughter of the clan master, Hentian Ning. When she saw Fang Xing, she didn’t even wait for an answer before walking over with a faint smile that appeared extremely warm and lovable. What Fang Xing couldn’t see from his angle, however, was that behind her back she was clutching the cow-horn dagger that was never very far from her.