Chapter 207 - 128: Chief Disciple (Part 2)
On this day, the waters of the Fishery were calm, and Chen Qing was fishing by himself.
The sound of hurried footsteps approached from the distance.
Zhao Stone ran up, panting, a look of nervous excitement on his face. "Junior Brother Chen! Hurry! Master Li has urgent business and is summoning all Embracing Pill Force disciples back to the institute!"
Oh?
’Summoning all Embracing Pill Force disciples?’
Chen Qing knew Li Baichuan must have important business. He gave a few brief instructions before following Zhao Stone away from the Fishery.
On the way, Zhao Stone couldn’t help but whisper, "Junior Brother, I’m pretty sure they’re going to choose the Chief Disciple this time."
Chen Qing suspected the same.
With the great Sect celebration approaching, the other four institutes all had a Chief Disciple in place. How could the Cyan Wood Institute be an exception?
The atmosphere on the Cyan Wood Institute’s Transmission Square was tense.
Luo Xinyi stood with her arms crossed, her posture as straight and unyielding as a pine tree.
Xu Qi stood a short distance away, his usual smile on his face, his eyes occasionally glancing at the closed institute gates and the other disciples arriving one by one.
Li Danyan, Hong Liangcai, Ji Yilan, and the others had also arrived, each wearing a solemn expression.
When Chen Qing’s figure appeared at the institute entrance, several gazes instantly fell upon him.
After some polite greetings, Chen Qing walked to his usual spot and stood firm.
In his view, this selection was merely a formality. He presumed Luo Xinyi and Xu Qi had long been vying for the position in secret, and that Master Li had already made up his mind.
Before long, the heavy institute gate was pushed open with a CREAK.
Li Baichuan slowly strolled out, dressed in the same deep cyan robes as always.
His gaze swept slowly across the faces of everyone on the square, as if to confirm they were all present.
"The Sect’s grand celebration is imminent. Each institute requires a Chief Disciple to preside, fulfilling the necessary formalities and demonstrating our prestige."
He paused before continuing, "The Cyan Wood Institute, too, requires a Chief Disciple."
As he spoke, you could hear a pin drop on the square.
Luo Xinyi subconsciously clenched her fists.
’If I can just secure that position, the amount of resources the Sect allocates to me will increase dramatically.’
’I’ll get a steady stream of the precious resources needed to break through to the Late-stage Embracing Pill Force. And even... even the seemingly unattainable Astral Force might not be out of reach with the Sect’s full backing!’
Her heart pounded with excitement at the thought, and she could barely contain herself.
The smile on Xu Qi’s face was strained, and he held his breath.
He, too, was waiting for the moment that would decide his fate.
’This isn’t just about personal glory.’
’The Chief Disciple of the Wutai Sect’s Cyan Wood Institute... once I have that title, it means a guaranteed place within the Sect’s inner circle.’
’The Xu Family has invested enormous resources to support me.’
’If I succeed, the Xu Family will receive unimaginable returns, perhaps even enough to join the ranks of the great families in the Prefecture City.’
Both of them had gone to great lengths for this position.
Li Baichuan’s gaze finally landed on Chen Qing.
"Chen Qing."
He instructed in a flat tone, "From this day forward, you are the Chief Disciple of the Cyan Wood Institute. Go to the Internal Affairs Hall later and register with Sang Yanping."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Li Baichuan turned and walked straight back to the rear courtyard.
It was as if some incredibly urgent matter required his attention.
Dead silence.
A strange, dead silence fell over the Transmission Square.
Every disciple was frozen in place, their expressions seemingly carved from stone.
Luo Xinyi snapped her head up to look at Chen Qing, her face a mask of shock and disbelief.
’Could it be? Did he bribe him with more money than I did!?’
The smile on Xu Qi’s face vanished completely, replaced by bewilderment and shock.
Li Danyan, Zhao Stone, and the others were simply dumbfounded, as if they had just heard the most unbelievable fairytale.
’Chief Disciple?’
’Not Senior Sister Luo, with her deep roots and widespread support?’
’Nor Brother Xu, the smooth operator who has been building his connections for years?’
’But... the low-profile Chen Qing, who joined the Sect relatively late and never made a show of his abilities?!’
Chen Qing himself was stunned. He had never expected this outcome.
Master Li’s choice had completely defied everyone’s expectations.
Amid his shock, a thought flashed through his mind like lightning.
’Could it be... because I know how to play the game?’
’Master Li usually lives a reclusive life and seems to be above worldly affairs, but in reality, he’s a master of balancing power and accumulating wealth.’
’He needs a disciple who understands the unwritten rules, who knows when to press and when to yield, and who can provide a continuous and stable stream of tributes to serve as his public face.’
’Or was it because every time I returned to the Cyan Wood Institute, I made sure he saw the effect of my ’sincerity’?’
WHOOSH—!
The brief, dead silence was broken.
The disciples, snapping back to their senses, instantly erupted into a commotion.
Shock, disbelief, bewilderment, jealousy... a tangled mess of emotions filled the air.
After a moment of chaos, the quicker-witted disciples rapidly suppressed their inner turmoil. Forcing smiles, both real and fake, onto their faces, they began to crowd around Chen Qing.
"Congratulations, Brother Chen, on becoming Chief Disciple!"
"Congratulations, Chief Chen! It’s a well-deserved honor!"
"Congratulations, Brother Chen! We’ll be counting on your guidance in the future!"
Cries of congratulations rose and fell, placing Chen Qing at the center of the crowd.
Chen Qing suppressed the turmoil in his heart and, with a calm expression, returned their salutes one by one with clasped hands.
Xu Qi took a deep breath and forced a smile. "Congratulations, Junior Brother Chen! No, I should be calling you Chief Chen now!"
"Brother Xu, you’re too kind. I’ll still be relying on your help in the future."
Chen Qing replied calmly.
Luo Xinyi stood frozen, her face ashen.
She looked at Chen Qing, surrounded and congratulated by everyone, then glanced at Xu Qi’s sycophantic display. A wave of intense humiliation washed over her.
Biting her lip hard, she gave Chen Qing a perfunctory, half-hearted salute and squeezed out a single, dry word: "Congratulations."
With that, she spun around and strode away without a backward glance.
Chen Qing wasn’t angered by this. He knew Luo Xinyi’s personality well; if she had been able to offer a beaming congratulation at that moment, that would have been truly suspicious.
After the round of pleasantries, the crowd finally dispersed.
Chen Qing left the Cyan Wood Institute and headed straight for the Internal Affairs Hall.