Zhang Wan remembered that his cheap masters, Wang Yue and Li Guannian, had said he could come find them around the middle of every month and meet the senior brothers and sisters from the same sect, getting to know one another.
Now that he had become their disciple, it was necessary to meet these fellow disciples.
That way, if they ran into each other later, he would not be embarrassed by failing to recognize one of his own people.
Besides, disciples under the same master were naturally closer than other fellow disciples. By spending more time getting to know them, it would be easier to call on them for help when he needed it in the future.
On the day of the month's midpoint, Zhang Wan went early to his cheap master Wang Yue's cave dwelling.
Compared with his own independent residence, Wang Yue's cave dwelling was more than ten times larger.
It occupied a vast area, and the cave dwellings of the other fellow disciples could only be seen far in the distance.
Clearly, the treatment afforded to a late-stage Postnatal martial artist within the sect was far beyond what mid- and early-stage Postnatal martial artists like them could compare with.
Zhang Wan was not envious. He was quite comfortable in his own little nest.
But the arrangements inside his cheap master Wang Yue's cave dwelling were rather novel, and they made Zhang Wan take several extra glances.
As soon as he entered the cave dwelling, someone came over, called him "Martial Uncle," and led him to where Wang Yue was.
Zhang Wan did not know this person, but from his introduction, he seemed to be the disciple of another of Wang Yue's disciples.
This made Zhang Wan look at him askance.
He had not expected that simply taking a master would result in him gaining not only a large group of senior brothers and sisters, but also a huge number of martial nephews.
Tsk, tsk, what a huge faction!
Although he knew it certainly could not compare with those factions centered around the sect's Postnatal martial artists, among the outer sect disciples, it absolutely counted as a powerful faction!
Taking this cheap master had not been a loss.
When he arrived, a feast had already been laid out inside. Wang Yue sat at the seat of honor, while his other cheap master, Li Guannian, sat beside Wang Yue. The two occupied opposite sides, facing each other.
Zhang Wan was not surprised by this scene.
Earlier, his two cheap masters had already told him that the main purpose this time was to introduce him to their fellow disciples.
Holding separate banquets would have been too troublesome, so they had combined them into one.
Normally, the disciples would merely come over to pay their respects and exchange a few words. They would not specially hold a banquet.
However, although that was what his two cheap masters had said, Zhang Wan still saw another meaning behind their actions.
The two of them were the leaders of two separate factions.
By rights, even if they found it troublesome, they should have held two banquets and introduced him separately to the senior brothers and sisters of each faction.
Yet they had directly combined them into a single banquet.
Adding to that the fact that both of them had taken him as a disciple at the same time—
This could no longer be explained simply by saying that Wang Yue and Li Guannian had a good relationship.
It faintly implied an intention to merge the two factions!
Indeed, if both sides are raising me as their successor, merging is the best choice.
That way, once I cultivate to the Ninth Level Postnatal, I can take over and unify them.
Besides, if I ultimately fail to cultivate to the Ninth Level Postnatal, the merger of the two factions will make it more likely that they can survive the sect's internal strife after Wang Yue and Li Guannian pass away.
This hidden meaning was not only understood by Zhang Wan. Quite a few of the disciples from Wang Yue's and Li Guannian's factions, as well as the blood descendants of the two men who were attending, understood it too.
Some looked forward to it, some did not care, and some were resentful.
Of these people, those in the first two groups had either exhausted their own potential and wanted to find a powerful backer to guarantee their future, or were not particularly keen on fighting for power and profit.
Both types were fine. Zhang Wan was happy to build good relationships with these senior brothers and sisters.
The remaining group was different.
They felt that Zhang Wan's arrival had seized benefits that should have belonged to them, and they were deeply dissatisfied with him.
Zhang Wan could not be bothered with these senior brothers and sisters.
If his cheap masters, Wang Yue and Li Guannian, believed that someone among them had the potential to inherit their legacy and protect their faction, would they still have taken him as a disciple together?
If they had not run out of choices, would Wang Yue and Li Guannian have done this?
At a time like this, they could not even see that they lacked the ability to inherit the faction or protect its interests, and that in the future, they might not even be able to keep the benefits already in their own hands.
Or perhaps they could see it clearly, but still could not accept someone who had arrived later surpassing them.
Senior brothers and sisters like that truly did not need much attention.
As long as they did not jump around in front of him, he could not be bothered to concern himself with them.
But if they insisted on seeking attention in front of him and targeting him, he would not be polite either!
Thus, during the banquet, the people from Wang Yue's and Li Guannian's two factions saw Zhang Wan's expression constantly change.
When speaking with some people, he was as warm and refreshing as a spring breeze. Yet when speaking with others, he spared no contempt or foul language, completely disregarding how senior they were. As long as they provoked him first, he immediately gave them an unceremonious scolding!
His insults were exceptionally vicious.
The senior brothers and sisters who stirred up trouble were so furious that they wanted to fight Zhang Wan to the death.
But whenever it came to actually fighting, Zhang Wan would decisively refuse and admit defeat.
There was not the slightest trace of shame on his face at admitting defeat first.
Yet while admitting defeat, he continued cursing without pause.
He made a specialty of moving his mouth without moving his hands.
Unfortunately, this was within the mountain gate's territory, where sect disciples were forbidden from fighting privately without cause. With Wang Yue and Li Guannian watching from above, those senior brothers and sisters who had taken the initiative to cause trouble could only retreat with their tails between their legs.
Wang Yue and Li Guannian felt a trace of displeasure and helplessness at Zhang Wan's merciless scolding of the fellow disciples who disliked him, but they also admired him all the more.
Naturally, the two cheap masters were unhappy that he was so discourteous to their senior brothers and sisters.
Compared with Zhang Wan, they had deeper feelings for those senior brothers and sisters.
But Wang Yue and Li Guannian understood even more clearly that these people lacked the ability to take over the faction. They also knew how many difficulties Zhang Wan would face after taking over, and how many people would be dissatisfied.
At a time like this, if Zhang Wan appeared weak and easy to bully, then the faction's future would truly be bleak.
A forceful attitude was the attitude a faction's successor ought to have.
Moreover, Zhang Wan showed an entirely different, gentle face to those senior brothers and sisters who treated him kindly, which made Wang Yue and Li Guannian even more satisfied.
Especially when he refused to be provoked, declined to go to the martial arena for a fight, and decisively admitted defeat—shamelessly insisting on competing only over who was stronger with words. This made Wang Yue and Li Guannian look at him in surprise, and they both silently gave their chosen successor a thumbs-up!
Martial artists competed through strength and charged forward fearlessly, but when it was time to follow one's heart, one had to follow one's heart! If one refused to yield when necessary, one might already die halfway along the road before growing strong enough to contend with the world!
When facing provocation from someone with greater cultivation, yielding and retreating out of prudence was not shameful.
If one's martial heart truly shattered merely because one had acted prudently, then that heart of martial cultivation would be far too fragile.
As Wang Yue and Li Guannian grew increasingly satisfied with Zhang Wan, the people from both factions also began to feel secretly afraid of him.
He changed faces far too quickly, and he was far too shameless. Just thinking about someone like that was frightening!
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