"Eh? What is it? Could it be that this old man is not even allowed to criticize him?" Zhen Ye had never imagined Xiao Hua would talk back. He was so angry that he laughed instead.
"This disciple cannot agree with Ancestor's words!" Xiao Hua stiffened his neck and said, "For Myriad Thunder Valley to produce a disciple as supremely benevolent and filial as Eldest Senior Brother—even a disciple like me, who has only just joined Myriad Thunder Valley, feels honored. How did he become someone who disgraces the sect in Ancestor's eyes?"
"Supremely benevolent and filial?" Zhen Ye sneered. "If he were not benevolent and filial, he would likely be at the late Foundation Establishment stage by now. At the very least, he would be at the mid Foundation Establishment stage. How could he be like this? Merely at the early Foundation Establishment stage, mocked by others every day? If that is not a disgrace, what is?"
"If others mock him, it is because they have eyes yet cannot see!" Xiao Hua retorted sharply. "If not for Eldest Senior Brother, Myriad Thunder Valley would already have changed hands. This disciple might not even have been assigned to Master's tutelage, nor would I have been able to hear Master's teachings. Thinking of this, this disciple ought to thank Eldest Senior Brother! He cannot be allowed to suffer others' mockery so casually!"
"Eyes yet cannot see?" Zhen Ye slammed the table and rose, releasing a pressure several times more powerful than before. Xiao Hua felt as though he had been frozen within solid rock; he could not move a single inch. Yet the terror rising from the depths of his heart made his entire body tremble without stop... "Master..." Zhen Qing said softly from the side. "Xiao Hua is still a