White-Robed Chief
chapter-953

As he turned to Xiao Qi and Xiao Shi, giving them each a fist salute, the two women waved a hand at him. 

Then, he led Qi Meng to his own courtyard.

After having participated in the Hunting Ceremony earlier today, Leng Qiu and Leng Qing had gone back to get some rest. So, the courtyard was very quiet as no one else was there.

"You can tell me now." Chu Li turned to look at Qi Meng.

"Commander Xu has left Fairy's Capital." Qi Meng looked around and lowered his voice as he went on, "Before he left, he told me to come and inform you about this. He has also instructed me to take orders from you from now on."

Chu Li frowned. "He has left Fairy's Capital?"

"Yes, he has been sent away to guard the Imperial Mausoleum." Qi Meng nodded.

Chu Li's expression turned grim. "Did Commander Xu say anything else?"

Qi Meng shook his head. "He gave me no other instructions. He only told me to come and inform you about this. He said that you'll understand."

"Okay, you'll be joining Mei Er Courtyard from now on." Chu Li nodded. "What about the commander?"

"The commander seems to have gone away to attend to some matters. He hasn't been back in a while… Commander Xu didn't inform anyone else and has left secretly. He only sent me to give you a heads-up," Qi Meng replied.

Chu Li regained his usual calm composure. "Okay, I see!"

Qi Meng said, "Commander Xu has also warned me not to tell anyone else that I've delivered that letter to you."

Chu Li shook his head and sighed. "There's no need for that anymore."

Since the Emperor was so careful, he would not care whether or not Commander Xu had written a letter to Chu Li. As long as they were in contact with each other, the Emperor would conclude that Chu Li knew about this too. Nonetheless, the Emperor might not do anything to him just yet. What happened to Commander Xu would suffice as a warning to Chu Li.

Qi Meng said, "Don't worry, Centurion. I'll never tell anyone else about this!"

"Be careful then. If you tell anyone else about this, unlike Commander Xu who has been sent away to guard the Imperial Mausoleum, you might lose your life!" Chu Li replied. "You may leave now."

"Understood." Qi Meng's expression changed slightly. Then, he gave a fist salute before he left.

When Chu Li slowly walked back into Tianshu Courtyard, Xiao Shi looked at him with concern. While Xiao Qi's gaze was void of emotions, her eyes were fixated on him too.

"What happened?" Xiao Shi asked.

Chu Li told them what he had just learned, and their expressions became grave.

Xiao Shi frowned and suggested, "How about you pretend to be sick? You can say that you've succumbed to internal demons while cultivating, so you need to go back into isolated cultivation and recuperate."

"It won't work," Xiao Qi said. "He should act normal and maintain his composure. If not, it'll seem like he's afraid of being found out."

"I'm just worried about Commander Xu," Chu Li muttered while he shook his head.

"You think the Emperor will try to silence him?" Xiao Shi frowned.

Chu Li replied, "Who knows? I really don't understand the temperament of this Emperor."

"He probably won't," Xiao Qi said. "Otherwise, it would be too disappointing. After all, Commander Xu isn't an ordinary secret guardian."

"I certainly hope so…" Chu Li sighed.

… 

The Tree of Life and Death appeared before his eyes again, and he hung the Heavenly Demonic Orb upon a branch. Then, the orb slowly disappeared along with the Tree of Life and Death.

All of his inner energy vanished and dispersed out of his body. After that, inner energy from the Divine Light Technique began to well up inside him. He had restored around half of his cultivation.

A moment later, he appeared outside Gale City.

As the sun was setting in the west, he entered through the eastern gate and casually walked along the busy avenue until he arrived at Radiance Clan.

The two huge stone lions in front of Radiance Clan looked lifelike as it emitted an intimidating and fearsome aura. 

Meanwhile, there were two strong protectors with piercing eyes that stood next to the stone lions. Their hands were on the hilts of their swords.

As Chu Li came to the bottom of the flight of stairs, the two protectors stepped forward and stared at him intently. "Back away. Unauthorized personnel is not allowed on the premises!"

Chu Li took out an iron tag from his inner pocket and showed it to them. 

Both protectors were immediately seized with terror as they hurriedly held up a fist salute. "Distinguished guest, please wait a moment. We shall go in and inform our superior of your arrival right away."

When Chu Li first re-established Radiance Clan, he had made this iron tag which had the word Radiance written on one side and his surname Zhao written on the other side. Anyone who carried this tag should be treated as a distinguished guest of Radiance Clan and was not to be slighted.

When Kou Qiong rushed out, he gave a fist salute in pleasant surprise and said, "Young Master, you've finally returned!" 

Chu Li waved a hand at him as a gesture for him to be at ease before he went in through the main entrance. Kou Qiong bent over in humility as he trailed after Chu Li. The two protectors were stunned to see this.

Kou Qiong knew that Chu Li disliked being extravagant and that he preferred to keep a low profile. So, he led Chu Li straight to the main hall and personally served him tea. "Young Master, if you don't return any sooner, we'll be forced to ask you to come and help us. This group of people has gone way overboard now!" 

Chu Li frowned. "From Flaming Sun Sect?"

"Exactly, I'm talking about that bunch of bastards," Kou Qiong muttered resentfully. "They've been snatching away our people. Whoever we try to recruit, they would immediately steal those people away!" 

"Have you found no way to resolve this situation?"

"We can't just confront them and start a fight with them, right? Our foundation is still weak. We won't be able to defeat them," Kou Qiong said. 

Chu Li asked, "What about the other two sects?"

"White Tiger Sect has been behaving quite well. Tian Luo Sect has also been very nice to us. It's only this Flaming Sun Sect. They're really disgusting!" Kou Qiong replied bitterly. "They refused to openly show any sign of hostility. That Lu Xiaofeng has even paid a special visit to us to explain their situation. He said that they're lacking members too. It's a fair competition for all of us!"

Chu Li gradually nodded. "Never mind then. If you can't recruit anyone, so be it."

Kou Qiong looked surprised. "Young Master, are you just dropping in for a visit or do you intend to stay here this time?"

"I'll be staying here," Chu Li replied with a huff. "The Saint has banished me to this place, so I'll be staying here for some time. I'm going to enter into isolated cultivation. Don't disturb me unless something happens!" 

"This is good news!" Kou Qiong clapped his hands excitedly.

Chu Li glared at him coldly.

Kou Qiong laughed sheepishly and said, "This time, we finally have a tower of strength. With Young Master watching over us, there's nothing to fear now! Before this, we weren't capable of defeating Flaming Sun Sect, so we had to hold in our anger. This time, if they dare to stir up trouble again, we'll teach them a good lesson!"

"From today onwards, Radiance Clan will be called Gale Branch," Chu Li said. "Don't recruit anyone below the level of a perfected innate master. It's the quality rather than the quantity that counts!" 

"Understood!" Kou Qiong nodded excitedly.

Chu Li waved a hand and said, "Hurry up and find me a place where I can go into isolated cultivation. Then, bring me some good food!"

"Will do." Kou Qiong was in high spirits as he called a young fellow over and relayed Chu Li's instructions accordingly. 

The two of them then came to a quiet and tasteful courtyard that was only three residences away from Radiance Clan. This way, they could travel back and forth in an instant.

"This is the residence we initially had," Kou Qiong said with a grin. "Is Young Master satisfied with this place?"

"Not bad." Chu Li nodded. "I'll stay here then. Don't come and disturb me if there's nothing going on. If you don't find me here, then I've probably gone out to relieve my boredom. Don't make a big fuss over it!"

"Understood." Kou Qiong nodded eagerly.

Finally realizing that the Young Master had indeed been banished to this place, Kou Qiong knew it was now his intention to live a carefree and happy life since there would be no one controlling him here. 

Very soon, a table full of dishes was served. With one glance, Chu Li could tell that these dishes had been prepared by the chef of the Nine Star Tower. He nodded in satisfaction. Kou Qiong was an expert at handling such matters.

While he was having his meal, he suddenly lifted his face and saw Li Ruolan gliding over the wall of his courtyard with her green tunic fluttering in the wind. As the white veil that covered her face moved slightly, he caught a glimpse of the corner of her lips and the pale smooth skin of her lower cheek. 

Chu Li looked at her in surprise. "Senior Sister has decided to drop by so soon?

"I came to deliver something to you," Li Ruolan replied with a huff.

She pulled out a jade flute from her sleeve and gently blew it. The three whistling notes instantly echoed from the flute.

As he heard the howl of a sudden strong wind, a pigeon-like bird flew down from the sky. Its entire body was spotless white while its eyes twinkled with alertness. It stood on Li Ruolan's shoulder and stared at Chu Li with curiosity.

"This is an Air Patrol Pigeon. Use it to communicate with the Holy Church of Light," Li Ruolan explained. "If the Saint has any instructions for you, she'll have it deliver a letter directly to you here."

"Air Patrol Pigeon…" Chu Li studied this bird and smiled. "What does it taste like?"

"If you dare to harm it, be prepared to be driven out of the Great Light Peak!" Li Ruolan exhaled sharply.

Chu Li nodded. "Okay, I'll take care of it like a treasure."

Li Ruolan passed the jade flute to him.