She was walking distracted.

Zhi Rui smiled and grabbed her in surprise hug.

A scorching feeling spread through her chest, she saw the eyes of the girl wide open in surprise. In a second she overwhelmed the girl's inner energy with her own. She jumped one more time to the side and released the girl.

Fan Ling looked at her with a new kind of surprise. "M-Master!" She said cutely.

Zhi Rui smiled. 'That reaction just now was entirely on instinct, anyone besides me with the third level would easily be cut in half.'

Zhi Rui caressed the girls cute round black hair.

"That legacy seems strong and suited you well," she commented

The girl widened her eyes as if remembering what just happened.

Frantically she patted Zhi Rui's robe it was cut with burnt edges. under the cut robe, a gash with the edges burnt had blood streaming down.

The girl started to cry "M-Master I'm sorry."

Zhi Rui smiled and patted her head "It's okay."

Right after a black shadow flew past fast.

Zhi Rui looked on with scorn

'That old geezer was trying to overtake me and go first, ha, does he think it matter who goes first?'

Fang Ling looked at Zhi Rui's distracted eyes and bit her lips worried she's angry.

Zhi Rui grabbed the smaller girl and threw her up like a child.

"There, you shouldn't cry so easily."

'So easily? I tore a gash right under your chest!' The girl thought.

"Did you learn a lot under elder Huang's tutelage?" Zhi Rui asked.

"Fang Ling nodded and started telling what she had done while Zhi Rui was away.

Zhi Rui's eyes glimmered.

----

----

----

"Where is she?" The bald Zhang Wai asked from the sect leader's seat The hall had the thrones and two stairway-like stands for people to sit.

Besides him, sat the Dao protectors of the geniuses to come.

Only the Tower Maidens sit remained empty.

Aurelio stepped forward. "Sir seems like Zhi Rui's trying to dodge responsibility. Every disciple that entered with me saw me confronting and calling her here, yet she still chooses to be late..." He said with a sigh.

A young man stepped forward and spoke trembling due to the pressure.

"What everybody saw, was Zhi Rui going ahead first, then us the disciples followed, only then elder Aurelio surpa.s.sed us and went ahead, she must've been delayed by something."

Aurelio looked at the disciple with a cold glare, memorizing his features. Making a chill crawl on the boy's spine.

The stern white-haired woman who came as dao protector; Xie Xun opened her mouth. "We're already here, it's better to wait for a little and see this to the end."

The disciples who saw everything and now despise Aurelio nodded repeatedly

Before he could say anything. The doors to the hall opened wide and Zhi Rui walked inside.

Zhi Rui smiled and stood right beside Aurelio who was in the middle of the hall in front of the sect leader.

Zhang Wei, almost threw the throne he was sitting in on Zhi Rui, he could never forget the humiliation he pa.s.sed due to her actions. But even if he's a Venerable he couldn't do anything to her as the dao protector of the sect would fight him.

He spoke as calmly as possible.

"Zhi Rui you were already told why you're here, so I won't bother explaining again. Let's just jump to it. What do you have to say about your actions?"

Zhi Rui smiled. "Hey, sect leader you've been good since our last meeting, you were all red back then; like a tomato. Good to know you're healthy."

Zhi Rui said with a smile.

The hall grew silent, they all looked with attention as Zhang Wei's bald head turned red with rage. but due to what Zhi Rui said before,

There was a couple of students trying to hold in their laughter.

He wanted to attack and crush her, his mind ran wild, then he remembered if he attacked fast enough and she died, the dao protector wouldn't attack him, no one would fight for a dead person. He just had to kill her in one fast move.

His eye shone with clarity. A sudden pressure took over the grand hall they were in.

Zhi Rui smiled "It's good to be back senior thank you."

Zhang Wei clenched his fist so tight, that his nails dug in the flesh and blood sipped out onto the throne.

'I can't attack openly...'

He couldn' imagine someone like her would dare to repeatedly offend a True venerable. But she did. and he couldn't do anything.

"You disrespect your elders and have no shame, girl I asked about your crimes, do you have anything to say about them? Why did you do them?"

Zhi Rui scoffed "I deny any offense. I saw accusations but no proof, if I didn't do any wrongs, why would I have to explain or justify my actions?"

Aurelio snorted at her with disdain, "A junior dare to quibble with the elder generation, you should be ashamed of yourself! First, you took in a disciple that had obvious intentions of war and gave her techniques and resources from the sect, thousands of both side died! And you dare say the accusations aren't solid!?"

The disciples ready to jump in Zhi Rui's defense froze. If things were as Aurelio said then Zhi Rui is really in the wrong.

"The act of settling the war is merely cleaning after yourself. Nothing heroic in it." Zhang Wei chimed in.

"Hmm~ But she just started as the leader of the disciplinary division, inexperience is part of the journey small mistakes like this might be taken as youth stumbles."

A black haired, gorgeous Dao protector on the far right of Zhang Wei suddenly spoke.

"Ye, exactly, not only could be forgiven, the fact that she owned up to it and settled the war, is a sign of strong character, to reward a youth like this is the right thing to do!" Another Dao protector, an old man with a long-beard laughed and said.

No one refuted or spoke after them.

The disciples were a little lost on why they were talking about forgiving a crime that infringed upon three to four serious rules of the sect and caused the death of thousands. But they were the authority, so the disciples kept their mouths shut.

But the elders and more experienced knew exactly what the words meant. The women offered to clear all this off as a simple 'oops' and move on, the old man offered a higher bid by not only clearing the mistake off but by also paying a reward. As for what they wanted in exchange of that; Zhi Rui is an influential figure with authority their young masters would get a head start with her support.

Aurelio's face turned black for an instant but immediately went neutral.