Chapter 33: Becoming the Captain

On the Cloud Goose Fairy's words, Wei Yuning is a hundred percent in agreement; the imagined object's eyes cannot deceive, and the black‑mist wolf head certainly does not come from any righteous technique.

He couldn't help but echo from the side: "Uncle Cloud Goose Fairy says it well; this person absolutely doesn't look like a righteous cultivator—be careful of him!"

Hong Zhi, irritated by Wei Yuning's remark, gave a wry smile, then set his face stern and rebuked: "Absurd. The Dao has three thousand paths; there is no true distinction between right and wrong." He paused, then continued, "Of course, if the opponent practices evil methods—such as using living beings as medicine, turning cultivators into pills, or forging life from destruction—such a person should indeed be slain by cultivators everywhere."

"What if the opponent hides deeply, showing no outward sign of being an evil cultivator?" Wei Yuning asked further.

Wei Yuning and Hong Zhi have been sparring wits and strength for a while, and they have long understood each other's temperaments. Hong Zhi is upright and has a gentlemanly bearing; as long as the great principles aren't violated, he won't blame Wei Yuning for speaking bluntly, and Wei Yuning need not fear Hong Zhi's retaliation.

"Hmph, wait until you have proof that they are an evil cultivator before speaking! Cultivators should devote their energy to practice, not waste it on idle thoughts. Once you are strong enough, regardless of whether the other is evil, why should you fear?" Hong Zhi concluded, turning his gaze toward Qing Ge and the other disciples. "Remember this: cultivators should focus on cultivation and keep idle thoughts to a minimum!"

"Yes, thank you for your teaching, Uncle!" the group of disciples, including the four female cultivators of the Azure Luan Sect, replied in unison.

Wei Yuning thought to himself: "Studying dead books, reading dead books; reading good books, reading good texts—though all are reading, the outcomes differ greatly. Uncle Hong Zhi, you, a native of the spirit‑beast world, probably won't grasp this principle!" He could not argue openly with Hong Zhi, so he resorted to a mental victory.

Compared with Hong Zhi, the Cloud Goose Fairy was in high spirits, and Wei Yuning's support for her was evident.

After Hong Zhi finished his reprimand, she immediately smiled brightly at Wei Yuning: "Yuning, you are now my Azure Luan Sect's esteemed brother‑in‑law; I, as an elder, have yet to give you a gift. Here, this is the Azure Luan Sect's Green‑Wood Invisibility Ring, which can transform the wearer into a plant; for a wood‑type spirit‑root disciple, its effect is doubled!"

The Cloud Goose Fairy spread her hand, and a wooden‑grain ring—its main body a vintage vine color with green leaf‑shaped decorations—appeared in her pristine palm, strikingly conspicuous. Wei Yuning fell in love with the ring's rustic design at first glance and snatched it up eagerly.

The Azure Luan Sect's illusion arts are renowned; the invisibility ring is a prized refined artifact of the sect. Since the sect has only a handful of artificers, production is extremely limited and they rarely sell them. The Cloud Goose Fairy's Green‑Wood Ring is therefore a great gift.

"Thank you, Uncle Cloud Goose Fairy!" Wei Yuning didn't know the gift's value, but the envious glances of the Azure Luan Sect's female cultivators told him.

It would be impolite not to reciprocate; as the wealthy among the laborers, he naturally could not be stingy.

"A bug?" the Cloud Goose Fairy frowned at the plump white insect in the transparent jade box, unable to hide her disgust. She never studied cuisine and knew little about the Moon‑spirit Bug, having only tasted dishes bearing its name and never seen the creature itself; moreover, Moon‑spirit Bugs are usually used only as seasoning, the diners typically encountering them as finely ground powder.

"Uncle, this is a Moon‑spirit Bug, a fine thing—take it quickly!" Feng Wu, standing nearby, surprisingly recognized the insect.

"This is a Moon‑spirit Bug? Oh my!" the Cloud Goose Fairy exclaimed, unsure whether she was marveling at the bug's ugliness or its delicious flavor.

Among them, Hong Zhi and the onlookers silently swallowed their saliva; food seasoned with Moon‑spirit Bug is considered celestial cuisine—who doesn't know its fame?

Steward Hong Zhi and the Cloud Goose Fairy went for a walk by the lake to chat, leaving Wei Yuning and thirteen other disciples to handle lodging and meals. Of course, they didn't completely shirk responsibility; they let the disciples voluntarily split into three groups, each leading willing cultivators and addressing each group's lodging and safety concerns.

After the two senior sect elders departed, the highest rank among those remaining naturally belonged to the direct‑line disciple Qing Cong. Though some harbored private dissent, no one openly questioned his status.

He first chose companions: the first, of course, was Miss Feng Wu; the second he hesitated over for a long time, finally selecting Qing Chou from the artificer workshop. Qing Chou was startled briefly but still joined Qing Cong's team.

According to the principle of equal distribution, each group should have four people, but after selecting Qing Chou, Qing Cong said outright, "Three is enough!"

Then Qing Cong sought out a few wandering cultivators nearby and asked them to inform everyone to return.

The news spread quickly; the cultivators who had scattered returned at once. Those who learned the information from Qing Cong and others immediately engaged in heated discussion.

Most cultivators have wilderness survival experience and are not unfamiliar with sleeping outdoors, but that experience comes from small groups and cannot be copied verbatim.

This situation is entirely different: the two factions together total 503 cultivators, and including laborers, 657 people; on average, each team would have over two hundred members.

Another factor is the length of stay. Starting today, everyone must reside for three days and three nights, only returning to the Cloud‑Hidden Sect on the fourth day; therefore, the camp cannot be carelessly managed—food, drink, waste, and all other matters must be arranged properly.

Of course, these are matters for later consideration. Because Steward Hong Zhi and the Cloud Goose Fairy have words first, everyone must first choose a team to join; thereafter, members must obey their team leader's directives.

Qing Cong, Feng Wu, and Qing Chou democratically elected Qing Cong as captain, with Feng Wu and Qing Chou as vice‑captains; the leadership of the first squad was thus officially established.

With an arrogantly cute expression, Qing Cong proved more charismatic than Wei Yuning had imagined. Naturally, even if one disregards the daily payment of two spirit stones he offers, over seventy Cloud‑Hidden Sect foundation‑establishment disciples and nearly half the laborers joined his team. Feng Wu is also popular within the Azure Luan Sect, bringing forty‑nine female cultivators into the first squad, and together with the ten‑plus friends recruited by Qing Chou, Qing Cong's team reached 223 members—over one‑third of the total force.

Qing Cong's team was now complete, and the remaining captains finally divided the rest into groups. Qing Ge, Qing Sha, and Qing Wu of the Heavenly Sword Hall, together with the two female cultivators Feng Ming and Feng Qi, formed a five‑person team. The rest required no further selection: the three hulks of the Overbearing Hall, plus Wei Yuning and Qiu Hu, became another team.

Qing Ge, being the popular choice, was elected captain, with the others as vice‑captains.

As for the team that Wei Yuning belonged to, the surprising turn was that no one wanted the captain's role; the three swordsmen had no interest in management, Qiu Hu, being a female cultivator of the Azure Luan Sect, was also inconvenient to lead, and ultimately Wei Yuning was democratically elected captain.