The raging voice was like thunder, although no outsider could hear it, only the old man. As soon as the powerful sound echoed about in his head, his face fell.
Naturally, he knew exactly who it was who was speaking to him.
“All of this was by the order of the Patriarch!” raged Patriarch Reliance, sounding flustered. “Fudge! You completely ruined my big plan! I’ll skin you alive!” He seemed truly enraged.
Just when the goal he had worked so hard to reach was about to be accomplished, a bit of interference ruined everything. Of course, Patriarch Reliance was scared. He was scared that Meng Hao would figure out that something was going on. He was so furious that he wanted to slap this old man to death immediately.
When he sensed the Patriarch’s rage and killing intent, the Lord of the Third Valley instantly began to shake. Suddenly, he looked up at the Zhang Clan retreating toward the end of the line, and his mind became very clear.
“Wait!” he cried, immediately hurrying forward.
“Are you people from the Zhang Clan?” he then asked, his voice filled with excitement. Teardrops could be seen forming in the corners of his eyes. His voice caused the other Outer Sea Clan members in line to instantly gape in shock. They simply couldn’t wrap their minds about what was happening….
They weren’t the only astonished ones. The surrounding Footloose Sect disciples all had blank expressions on their faces. The events of the day were simply… too strange for them to understand.
As for the Zhang Clan members, they stopped in their tracks, then turned to look at the old man who was scurrying over.
Zhang Wenfang looked at him and hesitated for a moment before quietly responding, “Senior…. We… we are the Zhang Clan from the Outer Sea.”
“So it is the Zhang Clan after all!!” said the old man. He stamped his foot, causing the nearby mountain peaks to rumble, and the ground to quake.
“This is all my mistake,” he said. “Earlier I was inside, and when I sensed that something big was going on, I came out. However, I didn’t recognize you! Aiya! I have only myself to blame!” With that the old man laughed emotionally. From his expression, he seemed to be thinking about past times.
“I’ll never forget how your Zhang Clan Patriarch showed me such kindness that year. He even saved my life six times! If it weren’t for him, I would not be alive today. The descendant of an old friend is here. Ah, the descendant of an old friend is here.” He sighed again as his words echoed about. Everyone was instantly stunned.
That was most true of the Xu Clan, who watched on with wide eyes, breathing heavily, their minds trembling. They truly could never have imagined that the Zhang Clan would have such deep relationships, to the extent that one of the nine Valley Lords of the Footloose Sect owed them a great favor.
“Now that his descendant has come to the Footloose Sect, even if we have to bend the rules a bit, I will assume all the responsibility,” said the old man resolutely. “I will not allow a descendant of the Zhang Clan to suffer any shame here!” His gaze swept about, and all of the Outer Sea Clan members had no choice other than to bow their heads. Inwardly, they were completely shaken.
Meng Hao’s eyes narrowed, and a slight smile had appeared on his face. Although he could sense no familiar aura, considering his past experiences, how could he not see through the bizarreness of the goings on?
“Interesting,” he thought. “As far as I can recall, there’s only one old bastard who likes to handle things in such an unreliable fashion.”
Zhang Wenfang was currently trembling. The joy and surprise that had come her way was almost too much to handle. Currently, her blankness and confusion were almost at the pinnacle. She was just about to say something when suddenly, the Third Valley Lord took a few steps forward and then picked Nan’er up into his arms.
“They look alike!” he said. “They really look completely alike! A single glance at this child and I can’t help but think of the Zhang Clan Patriarch.
“Child, are you willing to accept me as your Master?”
At the moment, most nervous of all was Patriarch Reliance, who panted in his palace as he watched the scene down below. He was dying to hear Nan’er voicing his acceptance.
“Hurry up and agree, child!” he murmured. “Come on, hurry up! I beg you, just agree…. The Patriarch promises you, if you agree, then from now on, I will watch over you in the Reliance Sect, er, no, I mean the Footloose Sect!” However, he didn’t dare to do anything to obvious, lest Meng Hao sense something amiss.
Nan’er was extremely nervous, and even scared. His face was pale, and without even thinking about it, he turned to look back at his mother, and then for some reason, Meng Hao.