Three days later.
On a desolate island three hundred li east of Jin Chang Island.
About twenty cultivators stood at the southwest corner of the desolate island.
These cultivators were dressed in uniform black robes with gold patterns, and a burning golden flame was embroidered on the right side of their chests.
Although their appearances varied, they all exuded an identical, deadly aura.
They were clearly all cultivators with extensive combat experience.
These cultivators stood in a line, looking at a young man standing before them with various expressions.
This young man stood tall and straight like a pine tree, with sharp sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, his gaze like lightning, exuding an extraordinary aura.
It was Ning Fa, the newly appointed Deputy Hall Master of the Blazing Wind Hall.
Several days prior, Ning Fa had used a special internal communication disc to summon his subordinates from the Blazing Wind Hall to this location.
Ning Fa swept his gaze across them.
He spotted two familiar faces among his subordinates.
One of them was Ning Yuwen, whom Ning Fa had painstakingly persuaded to come out of seclusion to help him.
He had shaved off his beard and tidied his hair.
He looked dashing, truly a handsome man.
The decadent demeanor he had previously displayed was nowhere to be seen.
He stood obediently in the ranks, not showing any special treatment due to his relationship with Ning Fa.
This made Ning Fa very pleased.
The other familiar face, however, surprised Ning Fa.
This person looked young, at most sixteen or seventeen.
But he possessed an air of heroism, and his face held a composure and calmness unbefitting someone his age.
This youth was Ning Daozhen, whom Ning Fa had met when he first visited Cui Ning Courtyard to see Xiao Yu.
He was a direct descendant of the Elder Grandmaster's lineage.
This child had left a deep impression on Ning Fa back then, but he hadn't seen him since.
He hadn't expected to meet this youth again, only for him to have joined the Blazing Wind Hall and become his subordinate.
Furthermore, Ning Daozhen had already reached the seventh level of Qi Refining.
He was even close to the peak of the seventh level of Qi Refining, on the verge of breaking through to the eighth level.
This truly left Ning Fa speechless.
Ning Daozhen looked at Ning Fa with some curiosity.
In his eyes, besides curiosity, there was also a trace of defiance.
He clearly couldn't understand why Ning Fa, who was only at the seventh level of Qi Refining, could serve as the Deputy Hall Master of the Blazing Wind Hall.
He wasn't the only one with this thought.
It was known that the lowest cultivation level among these Blazing Wind Hall members was the fifth level of Qi Refining.
There were nine cultivators in the late stage of Qi Refining.
There were also three members at the ninth level of Qi Refining.
Ning Fa's seventh level of Qi Refining was not particularly outstanding among the group.
Although Ning Fa had shown his prowess during the family's competition for succession, displaying considerable strength.
However, he had not directly defeated any well-known figures in the family, so his strength had not been truly recognized.
Moreover, not all powerful individuals in the Ning family participated in the competition for succession.
For instance, several of the cultivators at the ninth level of Qi Refining had not participated because they were not from branch families.
Although they had heard of Ning Fa's deeds in the competition for succession, they believed the rumors were somewhat exaggerated.
In their opinion, how powerful could an alchemist be, no matter how skilled?
After all, individuals like them, not being from branch families, had come directly to the Blazing Wind Hall after graduating from Cui Ning Courtyard, and had been in the Blazing Wind Hall for a long time.
In terms of seniority and strength, they were qualified to be Deputy Hall Masters.
Now, with Ning Fa, who had no seniority, suddenly being parachuted in, they were naturally not convinced.
Their gazes towards Ning Fa were subtly unfriendly.
Ning Yuwen's lips curved into a smile. Being an old hand, he naturally took in all this undercurrent.
He decided not to intervene for now, wanting to see how Ning Fa would handle the situation.
Ning Yuwen, being astute, naturally understood Ning Fa's intention to recruit him.
But if Ning Fa could only refine pills, it would be difficult to truly win him over, and he would advise Ning Fa not to get involved in the messy affairs of the Blazing Wind Hall.
Ning Fa seemed completely unaware. He scanned the crowd, his brow furrowing as he said, "Why is one person missing? Where is Ning Yunhui?"
The others looked at each other, but no one spoke.
On several faces, expressions of deep thought appeared.
Just then, a yellow streak of light flew towards them from a distance.
Soon, a person jumped down from a flying artifact shaped like a giant yellow leaf and stood before the crowd.
The man had faint eyebrows, a thick mustache, a lion's nose, and a wide mouth, giving him a fierce appearance.
His aura was already at the ninth level of Qi Condensation, and he was close to the peak of that stage.
He was the person with the highest cultivation among them.
The man casually cupped his hands towards Ning Fa and said bluffly, "You must be our new Deputy Hall Master. It's an honor."
After speaking, he didn't rejoin the group and just stood there.
He picked his nose and continued nonchalantly, "May I ask why Deputy Hall Master has summoned us brothers here?"
He deliberately emphasized the words "Deputy Hall Master."
Seeing this, many other members of the Blazing Wind Hall became excited.
Ning Daozhen's eyes widened, his previous composure vanishing, replaced by an expression eager to watch the show.
Ning Yuwen, however, frowned slightly.
He felt that Ning Fa was about to encounter trouble. This Ning Yunhui was definitely a difficult character.
He decided he could no longer proceed with any tests and needed to help Ning Fa.
Ning Fa, however, smiled. He gave Ning Yuwen a look, signaling him not to intervene.
He was already wondering how to discipline his subordinates and make them more respectful towards him.
He hadn't expected this monkey to deliver itself to his doorstep.
Ning Fa calmly said, "Ning Yunhui, you are half an hour late. According to the Blazing Wind Hall's regulations, you are to receive three lashes."
Ning Yunhui, however, picked at his ear and said sarcastically, "What great authority! But I don't accept it unless you have the token of the Hall Master. Only then will I comply."
At this moment, another member with a full beard, also at the ninth level of Qi Condensation, stepped forward to mediate.
He said loudly, "Deputy Hall Master, Yunhui has been working too hard with law enforcement recently, and he wasn't that late. Let's just let it go."
Ning Fa ignored him and smiled, "Then can I interpret that as you intend to disobey orders?"
Ning Yunhui still wanted to argue, but Ning Fa's figure had already vanished.
Ning Yunhui's expression changed drastically.
But his reaction was extremely fast. His left hand suddenly erupted with white light, transforming into a dense white energy shield.
The next moment, Ning Fa's figure appeared before the shield like a ghost.
Simultaneously, he unleashed a powerful punch.
"Bang—"
The shield shattered with a loud noise.
Ning Fa's assault didn't stop; he threw another heavy punch.
Within this brief interval, Ning Yunhui, his face a mask of shocked anger, had already thrown out a black shield shaped like a triangle.
"Bang! Bang! Bang—"
The sounds of fierce impacts echoed one after another.
Ning Yunhui's triangular shield was clearly extraordinary, barely blocking Ning Fa's dense barrage of attacks, which came like a storm.
However, Ning Yunhui was not faring well. He felt as if he were being continuously struck by a terrifying demonic beast.
The immense impact made his body feel like it was about to fall apart, making him nauseous enough to vomit blood.
This was the consequence of a magic cultivator being caught in close combat by a body cultivator; they would completely lose the initiative.