Back in the Yun Zou Sect, Yuchi Bing Xia had a hard time understanding the current situation. The Liu He Alliance had come to visit their Yun Zou Sect? Why? Was there something he didn't know about?
Well, even though he didn't understand it, he was still happy about it. Hadn't he just needed something to divert everyone's attention from what Liu Cheng was probably trying to say? Well, here it was! And with the Liu He Alliance's status, them paying a visit might also have some unexpected benefits. Even if it just made the other sects think that they had a very good relationship with the Liu He Alliance and were under their protection, that would enable them to get around a lot of trouble.
Yuchi Bing Xia got to his feet, wanting to go over and greet the guests. Before he could take the first step, he stopped though. Well … Even though the people in question were from the Liu He Alliance, it still wouldn't do for the Sect Master to go and greet them if they were only ordinary disciples, would it? He cleared his throat and turned to the disciple that had announced the guests. "The Liu He Alliance? Who is the one leading them?"
The disciple's gaze darted around as if he wasn't sure if he should really say it out loud.
Yuchi Bing Xia's brows knitted together. "There's no need not to say it." Anyway, they still were from the Liu He Alliance. The higher the position of the disciple they had sent, the better but that didn't mean that it wouldn't be an honor to receive an ordinary disciple either. In the end, this was still somebody from an unranked sect!
The disciple nodded, reassured by Yuchi Bing Xia's words. He had never had to deal with anything like this so he hadn't been too sure if it was alright to announce this. Normally, wouldn't they just go to the Sect Master's palace and tell him who had arrived? But now, there were so many people around …
Yuchi Bing Xia raised his brows when the disciple just absentmindedly looked around and couldn't help but clear his throat again to prompt him. "So?"
The disciple flinched and then cupped his fists, bowing once more as if he had just arrived. "It's Alliance Head Hua."
Yuchi Bing Xia staggered and almost fell back down if not for Zhangsun Xun Yi who had gotten to his feet and held him upright.
The Grandmaster smiled lightly. "So it was Alliance Head Hua. In that case, we should go and greet him together." He didn't wait for Yuchi Bing Xia to say anything else and just clasped his hands behind his back, walking to the gate of the Yun Zou Sect. Anyway, he didn't like this sort of gathering where everybody would try to get benefits while simultaneously pushing everybody else down. It was much better to go and greet this old friend of his.
Yuchi Bing Xia shook himself out of his daze and nodded. "Yes, if it is Alliance Head Hua, then we truly can't let him wait …" He already wanted to follow when he remembered that he still had other guests. He turned to the Elders and gave a wry smile. "I hope that the Elders won't mind that we go and greet Alliance Head Hua for a moment. I'm sure we'll be able to continue on afterward."
The Elders started to murmur among themselves, wondering if it would be too much if they followed the Grandmaster and Sect Master over to get a look at Alliance Head Hua themselves. This was an excellent opportunity to form a relationship with the Liu He Alliance! When would they ever get such an opportunity again? Unfortunately, it would be rather rude to just invite themselves, wouldn't it?
While the Elders were still discussing among themselves, Yuchi Bing Xia hurried after the Grandmaster. He didn't forget to grab the disciple that had just announced the new guests and pulled him closer. "You, go and tell the Grandmaster's disciple and his fiance to return to their dwelling for the time being. Make sure that you do it as inconspicuously as you can."
The disciple froze and nodded belatedly when the Sect Master had already left. He had no idea what happened on the training grounds and couldn't understand why he should bring such a message to the two of them. Still, if the Sect Master wanted him to do so, then he certainly wouldn't defy the order.
The disciple stepped to the side, trying to merge with the crowd and looked around to find the Grandmaster's disciple and his fiance among the crowd of people. Actually, he wasn't too sure who the fiance was but he remembered Qiu Ling very well. After all, he had also been guarding the sect gates on the day when Qiu Ling arrived. After being treated like that, there was no way he'd forget that kind of face. And it wasn't like Qiu Ling's face had changed with the years. With his talent, he had already stopped aging so it shouldn't be too hard to find the person.
The disciple looked around and finally spotted the two of them in the middle of the training grounds. His lips twitched. Even if he wanted to be inconspicuous, that would hardly be possible with them standing in the middle of the clearing. Wasn't the Sect Master expecting too much of him?
He pursed his lips and wondered if there was anything else he could do. Going over would draw attention to them. If he went over to a few other people of the Yun Zou Sect, it might draw attention to him but not as much to them. Maybe that would be an idea? Otherwise, he could still try and ask if he could borrow a paper crane from somebody and then have the Sect Master make up for it. It shouldn't be asking too much considering that the Sect Master had given him such a difficult task, should it?
The disciple looked around and finally spotted Nian Hong Fang standing to the side. His face lit up and he hurried over. Nian Hong Fang had a much gentler temperament than a lot of their senior martial brothers. It was better to ask him than anyone else.
Unfortunately for the disciple, as well as Yuchi Bing Xia, Liu Cheng was still paying attention to everything happening around him and he also noticed that the disciple that should be guarding the gate wasn't following after the Grandmaster and Sect Master to get back to his post. His eyes narrowed and he continued to observe.