Chapter 129: I Want to Join a Faction

　　Qi Ying chatted with Li Lin until noon before Tian Shou returned to the dorm. Tian Shou was very surprised to see Qi Ying, and also very flattered that he would come to find him. After making some small talk with the two of them, Qi Ying got up to leave.

　　“Goodbye, Tian Shou, and thanks for your help, Li Lin!”

　　Qi Ying waved before departing from the dorm room.

　　Inside, Li Lin turned to Tian Shou with an envious expression. “How did you get to know the young master of the Qi family?”

　　“Huh? Young master of the Qi?” Tian Shou was clearly taken aback.

　　Li Lin’s brows furrowed with confusion. “Isn’t that Qi Ying a young master of the Qi family?”

　　“No… We came from the same place, and participated in the same county youth tournament. His aptitude is far superior to mine, so he got selected into the Green Class…”

　　“Then… why did he ask me so many questions?”

　　“Did he?”

　　“He sure did…”

　　Li Lin was quite angry; he felt as if he had been swindled!

　　However, thinking back… Qi Ying never told him that he was a young master of the Qi family… He seemed to have thought up that concept on his own.

　　‘So why was he asking all of those questions?’

　　Li Lin was confused.

　　Tian Shou’s eyes narrowed as he thought to himself, ‘Something must have happened!’

　　…

　　“Heh, I was right!”

　　Qi Ying murmured to himself as he departed from the Jade Class.

　　He was initially intending to get some information from Tian Shou, but who would have thought that his roommate would be such a wealth of knowledge? He had received answers to everything he wanted to know.

　　Qi Ying could finally confirm that it was indeed the Chu family that had tried to kill him!

　　He had heard a lot of information about Huo Da from Li Lin.

　　According to him, Li Lin was quite a renowned figure of the Jade Class, and he had pledged his allegiance to the Chu family. He would often pick on other disciples with his companions, and they took over all of the best cultivation venues in the Jade Class. The likes of Li Rulong and Tian Qi were also disciples under the Chu family faction… Among them, Jiang Lin was Jiang Yuanping’s grandnephew!

　　‘There’s surely going to be more trouble to come!’

　　News of the disappearance of the fifteen Jade Class disciples in the Beast Valley hadn’t spread yet, but it was only a matter of time before an investigation was launched. However, that wasn’t the important point. Part of the group had perished on grasslands frequented by Dark Tier beasts, while the rest of them had died in the lethal Ice Fire Ants’ nest, so there weren’t any abnormal circumstances that would arouse suspicion from the higher-ups in the academy.

　　However, the Chu family would surely be unwilling to give up.

　　There were sure to be more assassination attempts to come!

　　In particular, that Jiang Yuanping was going to be a constant thorn in his side.

　　‘If the Chu family is behind all this, then it must have something to do with Chu Bixue… I wonder if there are people like Li Lin in the Green Class, who I can gather some information from… I have to find a faction to join so I won’t be in constant danger…’

　　…

　　After returning to the Qing Xiao Peak, Qi Ying sought out Lin Yin.

　　She was the Green Class disciple that he was the most familiar with.

　　Lin Yin tucked a few stray strands of hair behind her ear as she pursed her lips in deep thought. “I do know of someone in the Green Class who’s really knowledgeable… But it’ll be difficult for you to approach him.”

　　“Who is it?”

　　“Han Qianlong. He’s a disciple that entered the Green Class four years ago, and he’s a know-it-all like Li Lin. However, he’s from a side branch of the Han family and already a Sixth Spirit Martial Stage disciple; normal people won’t be able to approach him!”

　　“Han Qianlong of the Han family… Got it! Thanks! Then, do you know of anyone like him among us new disciples?”

　　“That would be Han Shenglong! He’s Han Qianlong’s little brother.”

　　“Thank you!”

　　Qi Ying hurriedly left. Lin Yin yelled after him, “Hey, let’s hunt some beasts together next time…”

　　“Alright.”

　　Qi Ying responded.

　　…

　　Qi Ying soon found out which dorm room Han Shenglong was in, and he went to find him.

　　When he got there, he discovered that Han Shenglong was a short and chubby little fatso, just like Li Lin.

　　‘Do all of these know-it-alls look the same?’

　　Qi Ying brought out the present he had prepared in advance, and offered it to Han Shenglong. “This is a small gift for you, I hope you’ll accept it.”

　　Han Shenglong grabbed the vial of pills offered up by Qi Ying nonchalantly, before putting it into his spatial ring without so much as a second glance. He then turned to Qi Ying with an indifferent expression and said in a slow voice, “Qi Ying! A citizen of the Celestial River County, with combat prowess far above other warriors of the same rank. Green learning ability, black energy manipulation, white basal properties, white affinity with heaven and earth, grey bloodline; currently on probation in the Green Class!”

　　“That’s right.”

　　Qi Ying nodded.

　　He had only been in the Green Class for a few days, so there was no way that Han Shenglong could have gathered all that information, unless he specifically went looking for it.

　　Come to think of it, it was quite possible that he had already gotten data on all of the disciples in the Green Class.

　　“So, what do you want to know? I’m obligated to answer your questions, but the pills you gave me aren’t all that valuable, so I can’t tell you any important or obscure information.”

　　Han Shenlong suddenly transformed into a shrewd businessman.

　　Qi Ying was slightly taken aback by his sudden change in demeanor.

　　‘So he’s selling information in exchange for cultivation resources?’

　　However, that didn’t really affect Qi Ying. Seeing as their interaction was nothing more than a transaction, that actually made it more simple for him.

　　“Bother Han, may I ask which factions are currently recruiting members? I want to join one so I can have a more secure future…” Qi Ying feigned a cowardly expression as he asked.

　　“Hehe, there are seven major factions belonging to each of the seven major families, and under those major factions, there are countless smaller factions! The ones that are most popular in the Green Class include Chu Bixue’s Bixue Sword Alliance, the Qi family’s Heavenly Qi Sect, the Yan family’s North Pass Sect, the Qin family’s Feather Dragon Alliance… On top of that, there are many disciples from common families who have banded together to create small groups. However, you’re most likely going to have a hard time trying to join any of those factions. You’re not of noble descent, you’re a probationary disciple with indeterminate potential, and your Sixth Energy Martial Stage cultivation base is very low. With those conditions, almost no factions will want you.”

　　“But there are still some factions that I can join, right?”

　　“Well… That may be true… However…”

　　Han Shenglong turned to Qi Ying with a meaningful expression.

　　Qi Ying immediately understood his intentions, and handed over another vial of pills that was worth two hundred Yun Xiao Points. After that, he was completely broke aside from some pills that would support his daily cultivation needs.

　　However, he was not concerned.

　　There were many more opportunities to earn Yun Xiao points in the future, and the information he was requesting was more valuable to him than the price he was paying.

　　“I like dealing with smart people, so I’ll direct you onto the right path,” Han Shenglong continued, “I suggest you join the new rising faction in the academy, the Blood God Alliance!”