The young man seemed younger than thirty, but his level was very high!
It was rare to see a cultivator who was younger than thirty in the Golden Core Stage. Unfortunately, Jing Jining was able to know such an outstanding cultivator.
Because they were all cultivators, the person didn’t think that they could come from the mortals’ world. He believed that they were cultivators who just stayed outside all the time.
He also believed that Gu Ning and Leng Shaoting came to Sky City for the kung fu competition.
Anyway, it aroused his suspicion that Jing Jining was able to know such an outstanding cultivator.
He used to think that Jing Jining didn’t have the ability to kill Yin Shixun, but now he changed his mind. It was possible if Jing Jining knew a cultivator at a very high level.
He needed a further investigation to make sure of it, because he couldn’t jump to conclusions that the cultivator at a very high level would kill for Jing Jining just because Jing Jining knew him.
Anyway, because Shangguan Yang was at a higher level than him, he didn’t dare to go closer in case they noticed him. He didn’t even dare to focus on them. Instead, he only gave them a glance once in a while.
Gu Ning and the others had noticed the person who was spying on Jing Jining long ago, but they had no intention of hiding since they decided to come here publicly, so they did nothing and let the person follow them.
Jing Jining brought Gu Ning and the others to the best hotel in the Sky City. He had already booked rooms for them because there would be no vacant rooms if he only tried to book them today. There were too many visitors in Sky City right now.
The manager of the hotel recognized Jing Jining, so he welcomed him with great enthusiasm. “Hi, Mater Jing!”
“Is there a private room? We need to have a meal,” said Jing Jining.
“Of course, I’ll arrange a table for you,” said the manager and immediately made the arrangement for Jing Jining.
Right at this moment, three men, who were at the same age as Jing Jining, walked downstairs and saw Jing Jining.
“Oh, hi, Jing! Been a while. I heard you have some trouble these days. Is everything alright?” said one man. Although it sounded as if he cared about Jing Jining, he was actually gloating at his misfortune. Obviously, Jing Jining didn’t get along with them.
The man who was talking to Jing Jining had a grudge against him. He was also Jing Yunfei’s friend, and Jing Yunfei didn’t get along with Jing Jining, so he disliked Jing Jining very much.
His name was Hong Yifeng. He wasn’t a member of the four major families; he was a member of Tiandaozong.
In the old days, Jing Jining was a member of Tiandaozong as well, but he withdrew after what had happened to Jing Yunyao. He went to do a business in the mortal world and seldom came back to the cultivation world afterwards.
Hong Yifeng was at the same level as Jing Jining, but he was very outstanding when he was young. He simply made slow progress as he grew older. Therefore, he was only in the Golden Core Stage now.
Actually, in the cultivation world, there were only about a hundred cultivators who were in the Golden Core Stage.
When Hong Yifeng was talking to Jing Jining, he glanced at Gu Ning and the others.
The moment he saw Gu Ning, Hong Yifeng’s eyes lit up. He was amazed by Gu Ning’s beauty.
When his sight fell on Leng Shaoting and Shangguan Yang, Hong Yifeng frowned because he could see that both of them were at a high level, especially Shangguan Yang. He could barely see Shangguan Yang’s specific level.
Leng Shaoting should be at the same level as him, but Leng Shaoting was much younger than him, so his mind was in chaos, but didn’t show his real feelings on his face.
Who are they? How does Jing Jining know them?
“Oh, hi, Hong! Thank you for asking. I’m very well.” Although Jing Jining hated Hong Yifeng, he had to stay polite on the surface. If he got mad, he would be criticized by other people.
“Glad to know that,” said Hong Yifeng with a fake smile. “Jing, may I know who they are?”
Hong Yifeng turned to look at Shangguan Yang with respect because Shangguan Yang was stronger than him. Whether Shangguan Yang was an important figure or not, he enjoyed a high status because of his high level, so Hong Yifeng didn’t dare to be arrogant in front of Shangguan Yang.
“They’re my friends,” said Jing Jining. He had no intention of giving him more details.
Out of curiosity, Hong Yifeng asked, “You haven’t eaten yet, right? Why don’t we share a meal, my treat?”
“Thanks, Hong. Since they are my friends, I’ll treat them. I don’t want to be impolite.” Jing Jining knew what Hong Yifeng wanted to do, so he refused without hesitation.
“Right, but can I join you?” Hong Yifeng said. He was really thick-skinned!
“Sorry, we need to talk about something later without outsiders. Why don’t we have the meal another day?” said Jing Jining.
“Fine, I shouldn’t be bothering you any longer. See you.” Hong Yifeng felt embarrassed to insist. He knew there was a cultivator who was at a much higher level than him. If he annoyed them, he might be punished.
“See you,” said Jing Jining, then Hong Yifeng left with his companions.
Once Hong Yifeng was gone, they went to have a meal in the private room.
When Hong Yifeng and his companions walked out, Hong Yifeng said to his two good friends, “I need to go back to Tiandaozong right now to deal with something. I’m afraid I can’t go to the Wind Pavilion right now with you. We can gather together another day.”
Wind Pavilion was an entertainment place, a combination of an ancient brothel and a modern bar.
“Sure, see you, Hong.”
They knew the reason why Hong Yifeng needed to go back to Tiandaozong right now, so they didn’t stop him.
Hong Yifeng wanted to go back to Tiandaozong to report his meeting with Jing Jining, because he had the same idea as the cultivator who was following Jing Jining. He used to think that Jing Jining didn’t have the ability to kill Yin Shixun, but now he thought it was possible because there was a cultivator who was at a very high level by Jing Jining’s side.
Although the investigation of Yin Shixun’s death had nothing to do with him, he wanted to make things difficult for Jing Jining, so he couldn’t miss this great chance.
…
After Gu Ning and the others walked into the private room, they ordered some food.
When there were no longer outsiders, Jing Jining said, “That man is Hong Yifeng. An elite member of the Chasing-cloud Department. We had conflicts when we were young, and he had a good relationship with Jing Yunfei, so he never liked me. We normally argue with each other once we meet, but he pretended to be much kinder this time because of Senior Shangguan. In the cultivation world, no matter who you are, you can enjoy a high status as long as you’re at a high level. That’s the reason why Hong Yifeng had to behave himself even if he didn’t know Senior Shangguan.”
The members of Tiandaozong were divided into chief, elite, direct, accepted, and registered disciples.
