Chapter 59: The Vice Captain's Contest

“Run, what did you just say?” The moment Liu Run spoke, Liu Shenghua’s brows furrowed and his tone turned stern. “Normally, you never quibble, so what’s gotten into you today? Why are you contradicting everything I say?”

“Master Liu, I think Run is right,” Chu Feng interjected. “First, I really don’t wish to be vice-captain. Second, I’m not qualified for the role. Please, Master Liu, choose someone else.”

“Master Chu, there’s no need for modesty. The captaincy is already Lei Jianqin’s, and as for the vice-captain, it must be you,” Liu Shenghua replied with a nod.

“Father, why? Why must he be vice-captain and not me?” Liu Run seized the moment, voicing the question before Chu Feng could.

“You know nothing!” Liu Shenghua’s tone grew heated. “I’m appointing Master Chu as vice-captain because he’s the main force behind slaying the Thunderclasped Beast! In the stone cavern, when you all faced the beast, he was the core while the four of you supported him. In countless spontaneous moments—whether to attack or defend—it was up to Master Chu to decide based on his own strength! If not him, who else should be vice-captain? You?”

“Father, I…” Liu Run was left speechless, bowing his head. “I don’t look down on Master Chu—I just want to do more for the Hall of Wind and Thunder.”

“Then work harder and talk less. And don’t contradict Master Chu again!” Liu Shenghua’s face hardened. “Run, as deputy master of the Hall of Wind and Thunder, I warn you: your mission in the Wind and Thunder Cavern is to break the calamity of wind and thunder—a matter of life and death for our hall! If anything goes wrong because of you, don’t think I’ll spare you just because you’re my son!”

“Yes, Father, I understand.” Liu Run nodded, taking his father’s stern words to heart.

Hearing Liu Shenghua’s admonition, Chu Feng realized he truly could not refuse the position of vice-captain. There was no point in further protest.

Once everything was arranged, Han Mo distributed a compass-fish and a map of the Wind and Thunder Cavern’s pathways to each of the five, and they set out at once.

When they departed from Mad Thunder Mountain, the master Lei Yingfeng strode ahead without a word of courtesy to Chu Feng. It was the deputy master, Liu Shenghua, who accompanied Chu Feng along the way, continually expressing his gratitude.

Chu Feng had already sized up the two masters. Lei Yingfeng was a straightforward warrior, blunt and unpolished; Liu Shenghua, by contrast, was courteous and gracious—a true gentleman. Together, they were as firm and gentle as yin and yang.

The Wind and Thunder Cavern lay due east of Mad Thunder Mountain. From the mountain’s foot, they needed to cross a forest two hundred miles across, then traverse over four hundred miles of wind-and-thunder-strewn stone wastes, before finally reaching the cavern’s entrance.

As they made their way along the eastern woodland path, the four disciples of the Hall of Wind and Thunder joked and laughed, their spirits at ease. Only Chu Feng walked in silence, a heavy unease weighing on him.

He hadn’t expected that his companions for this mission—who would enter the cavern with him—were not only all experts of the fifth stage of body refinement, but also his peers in age.

To think, for a venture upon which the fate of the entire Hall of Wind and Thunder depended, they would send such a young group—it made Chu Feng deeply uneasy.

If all went as the hall anticipated, and nothing unexpected befell them in the cavern, then fine: the young disciples would simply gain some experience. But if disaster struck, Chu Feng doubted the four’s ability to adapt and respond to crisis.

Such a grave mission, yet such inexperienced members—Chu Feng could only hope these four would prove reliable and not cause trouble.

“Chu Feng, what are you thinking about?” Liu Run sidled over, noticing Chu Feng’s silence. “You look so grim—are you angry, or just worried? What’s on your mind? Are you afraid this mission will end in disaster, or do you regret coming to the Hall of Wind and Thunder?”

Hearing the sarcasm in his tone, Chu Feng retorted, “And what do you mean by that?”

“I mean, if you’re afraid of danger, you needn’t worry! The four of us, while not invincible, are highly regarded here—we’re not afraid, so why should you be?” Liu Run stared at Chu Feng. “If you regret helping our hall, then you’re even more in the wrong! You ate the gall and flesh of the Golden Battle Python, which belonged to our hall. Isn’t it only right that you repay us? Even if you were asked to risk your life, you shouldn’t refuse!”

“You’re going too far, Brother Liu,” Lei Jianqin interjected, shaking her head. “We’ve only just left Mad Thunder Mountain, and you’ve already forgotten Uncle Liu’s words? Master Chu is our honored guest. How can you make things difficult for him?”

“Sister Lei, I’m not making trouble!” Liu Run protested. “The four of us were laughing and chatting, but Chu Feng acts as if he’s owed something. I just wanted to remind him that the Hall of Wind and Thunder owes him nothing!”

“I don’t agree with your reasoning,” Chu Feng replied calmly. “The Golden Battle Python’s corpse was lying before me—I had no idea it belonged to your hall. I ate it, and when your hall asked for my help, I didn’t hesitate. But you keep needling me—why?”

Chu Feng was not one to domineer, but he would not indulge Liu Run’s provocations either. He was genuinely puzzled by Liu Run’s constant hostility and decided to address it directly.

“Fine, I’ll be honest with you! That Golden Battle Python you ate was raised by me!” Liu Run burst out. “I started feeding it when I was six, for nearly ten years. I was deeply attached to that century-old serpent!”

“I see,” Chu Feng nodded. “So, I chopped up and ate your python, and you feel heartbroken and furious?”

“Of course! Ordinary folk would curse someone for butchering their dog after ten years—how could I not be upset? How could I not be angry?” Liu Run demanded.

“Well, you certainly raised a fine python,” Chu Feng replied with a cold smile. “Fed it for a century, intending to use it against the Thunderclasped Beast, but in the end, it contributed nothing, wasted countless rare herbs and meats, and even devoured your own expert, Tang Dong. With a serpent like that, I’d have eaten it too. If you’d caught it, would you have spared it, or would you have killed it?”

“You—!” Liu Run was speechless with rage. “That python, even if it had to be killed and eaten, should have been by us! You took advantage and now you sneer at us. You’re not so capable, but your mouth is sharp enough!”

“Enough! What’s the point of arguing over this nonsense?” Van Qianjun, the burly youth, suddenly shouted. “Brother Liu, I know you’re upset about the python, but it’s already in Chu Feng’s stomach—long since turned to dung. Are you expecting him to spit it out for you? Besides, we’re lucky Chu Feng agreed to help. If you drive him away, Uncle Liu will forbid you from speaking for ten years—let’s see if you can stand that!”

“Brother Van is right!” Lei Jianqin nodded. “The python is gone; what matters now is dealing with the calamity. That serpent was meant to be sacrificed for this mission.”

Seeing that neither Van Qianjun nor Lei Jianqin sided with him, Liu Run, still unwilling, turned to Tang Jiao. “Sister Tang, don’t you think I’m right?”

Tang Jiao shook her head. “The Golden Battle Python was once mighty and beloved, but it went mad and devoured my father. For a monster like that, even dying ten thousand times wouldn’t be enough!”

“Sister Tang, I…” Liu Run flushed in embarrassment, wringing his hands in distress.

Chu Feng sneered inwardly. Clearly, Liu Run was infatuated with Tang Jiao, but his words had only made her angry. Now he must realize how foolish it was to mourn the python before her.

As for Van Qianjun and Lei Jianqin, at least they were fair-minded. Especially Van Qianjun—his words were blunt, but his logic sound. Chu Feng could see he was straightforward and honest.