Chapter 54: Abuse of Authority
One had to admit that Li Hong'er was a spicy one. Not many people were as bold as her.
"Hehe, so the daughter of thirteenth elder is allowed to do as she wishes in the Martial Hall Palace?" Xiang Shaoyun sneered.
Many disciples found themselves in agreement with Xiang Shaoyun when they heard those words. They were all disciples who had passed an exam to join the palace. They did not have any sort of backer, and if something similar happened to them, would they have to bend over and take it?
Xia Liuhui chimed in, "Looks like us new disciples have no human rights! Our life and death is only a matter of a single word for some people."
Without fail, these words ignited the resentment in all the outer court disciples.
"Looks like the so-called rules of the Martial Hall Palace are only there for show. There is no guarantee that regular disciples like us will be safe."
"That's right. If I somehow find myself on the receiving end of her anger, can I do anything other than accepting my fate?"
"If the Enforcement Hall does not give us an explanation today, we are better off withdrawing from the palace!"
"I have never known that the Martial Hall Palace is such a corrupted place. It's filled with people who abuse their authority to bully others! Hah, today, my eyes have been opened!"
...
"Who do you think you are? If you want to leave the Martial Hall Palace, get going then. Stop babbling on and on!" said Li Hong'er, triggered by their words.
"Oh? You really think the Martial Hall Palace belongs to your family?" Xiang Shaoyun did not miss the chance to fan the flames.
With this, even more outer court disciples criticized Li Hong'er.
"Who are you, then? You have merely been relying on your father, who is an elder!"
"Your father is only an elder, not the palace master!"
"Yeah! We have all joined after passing the exam. Do you expect us to leave just because you say so?"
...
So many people were scolding Li Hong'er she nearly cried.
Zi Changhe did not wish to see a further escalation, so he said, "Alright, you may all leave. I will report this to the Council of Elders. We will handle this appropriately. Nobody can disregard the rules of the Martial Hall Palace!"
"Yes, nobody can disregard the rules of Martial Hall Palace, and the same applies to you, Zi Changhe," a forceful voice rang out from not far away.
Three figures were quickly heading their way, and the one leading was the thirteenth elder, Li Xuemeng.
"Father!" Li Tianba and Li Hong'er called out in excitement.
Li Xuemeng glanced at his children and found that a palm mark was on his son's face and that his daughter's eyes were all red. He immediately glared at Zi Changhe. "Zi Changhe, do you not know shame? You actually bullied the children?"
"You are not one to decide if I know shame. Your children were the ones being too arrogant, trying to kill my junior brother in front of so many people. Do you take me for nothing?" Zi Changhe replied as he looked straight into Li Xuemeng's eyes.
"Father, he is the one who bullied me first! He even pushed me into the lake!" Li Hong'er accused.
"Hear that? Even if he is your junior brother, he still can't bully my daughter! Today, you must give me an explanation!" Li Xuemeng said.
"Sure, sure, let's call for a meeting of the Council of Elders and let them both explain themselves before the council. The council will decide who's the one at fault." Zi Changhe refused to yield.
"Do you think everyone is so free that you can call for the council anytime you want?" Li Xuemeng said. He then continued, "Zi Changhe, out of respect for your position as an elder, I am willing to let this rest so long as that kid apologizes to my daughter. Otherwise, don't even dream of ending this!"
"So be it! Do you think I'm afraid of you?" Zi Changhe stood his ground.
"Good. Very good," Li Xuemeng said with a sinister look in his eyes before looking at his children. "Come with me. Stop embarrassing yourselves here."
Li Tianba and Li Hong'er had never expected that their father would leave just like that. They had no choice but to leave despite their unwillingness. Naturally, Wu Mingliang and Wu Mingguang left as well. With Zi Changhe here, they would never be able to do anything to Xiang Shaoyun. They would have to keep waiting for a different opportunity.
When all those people left, Zi Changhe berated Xiang Shaoyun, "I thought I told you to practice the Lightning Spear Technique until you reached 70 percent mastery within two days? What are you doing running around creating troubles?"
"I'm not the one looking for trouble. They are the ones who provoked me. I was merely defending myself." Xiang Shaoyun shrugged.
"Hmph. I don't care. Get your ass back there and resume your cultivation. Only when you are strong enough will others be unable to bully you!" Zi Changhe barked coldly.
"Yes, senior brother is right. But I still need my leisure time, right? I don't believe they will dare to openly do anything to me here in the Martial Hall Palace," Xiang Shaoyun said.
"Many avenues are available for an elder wanting to make life difficult for an Astral Realm disciple like you," Zi Changhe said. He continued, "Just reach the fifth stage as soon as possible. I can then bring you to see my master in Cloud Margin City. That is the kind of place you should be staying at."
After saying that, he turned and left.
Cloud Margin City? I can’t stay there if it’s a large city, Xiang Shaoyun sighed inwardly.
"Boss, we're screwed! After offending the thirteenth elder, we will have a hard time in the Martial Hall Palace," Xia Liuhui said anxiously.
"What are you afraid of? My senior brother is here!" Xiang Shaoyun said.
"B-but he's only protecting you," Xia Liuhui spoke after a slight hesitation.
"He is protecting me while I am protecting you. See, it's almost the same!" Xiang Shaoyun said. Then, he handed Xia Liuhui a bottle and said, "Here, take the Earth Star Spring water and raise your strength first. When you become an inner court disciple, you can't be bullied so easily anymore."
Xia Liuhui trembled when he saw the bottle and said, "T-this...is this really the Earth Star Spring water? Boss, are you really giving it to me?"
Before Xiang Shaoyun left for the Hundred Beast Mountain Range, he once promised to share the Earth Star Spring if he managed to get some. The Earth Star Spring was sufficient to drive any disciple crazy. This was a spiritual liquid that couldn't be bought even if one had the money. Thus, Xia Liuhui found it hard to believe that Xiang Shaoyun was sharing the spring water with him just like that.
"Why are you hesitating so much? It's not like this is some valuable treasure," Xiang Shaoyun said as he stuffed the bottle into Xia Liuhui's hand.
Holding the bottle, Xia Liuhui was so touched he started tearing. "Boss, you will forever be my boss! I will stay by your side forever, and even in death, I won't abandon you!"
"You are being too serious," Xiang Shaoyun said indifferently before asking, "Have you seen Lu Xiaoqing?"
Before Xia Liuhui could reply, a different voice rang out, "Shaoyun, I know where she is."
When Xiang Shaoyun looked to the side, he saw Mei Lianhua gazing at him tenderly. He ignored her and repeated his question to Xia Liuhui, "Do you know where she is?"
"Y-yes. She has been accepted as a personal disciple by the eleventh elder," Xia Liuhui replied after a short daze.
"I see," Xiang Shaoyun muttered. He then said, "Let's go. I'll treat you to a feast!"
Mei Lianhua quickly stepped forth and said, "Shaoyun, can we talk?"