The people were stunned. A Patriarch from a new upstart sect was related to someone from a well established one. A previously powerful sect that was now losing power but was that really the truth?

Zhang Dong was to the side, his brows quivered a bit but he managed to keep his facial expression mostly hidden away. He knew those looks that the people were giving him, it were the looks of cultivators that were overthinking. What genius conspiracy theories they were coming up with was something that he would like to know.

He knew that people in this world didn’t think much of luck or coincidences. They thought that everyone that was at the very top of the cultivation ladder was some type of schemer. It was more believable for them that the Divine Fist Sect and the United Element Sect were planning something together.

Luckily for Zhang Dong he had developed a little technique with the help of his system. He could now eavesdrop on the conversations of other cultivators that used special sound moving techniques for it. He could hear what the Yggdrasil Sect leader and his sword-wielding partner in crime were saying. This made his bottom lip quiver as he tried not to smile.

“It was probably a scheme, those two must be in cahoots! That monster tide incident either never happened or it was exaggerated to make us drop our guard. Now they know that we are working together!”

The two continued to talk. The gist of it was that they were convinced that the beast attack was a hoax. Zhang Dong's true identity was now that of someone from the Divine Fist sect. In their eyes, he was probably an agent from this strong sect and the United Element Sect was just a front.

The two now feared that Zhang Dong and his people were placed close to the Limitless Sword Society. They were probably there for a pincer attack, while Zhan Jie’s forces were away their main sect ground would be attacked. They theorized that they had constructed teleportation gates at strategic locations and were now waiting to strike.

“Wait, this might have been a blunder on their part, now their secret is out!”

The two continued further, Zhang Dong’s overreaction was questioned. Probably the golden-haired junior was someone he deeply cared about so it even made him drop his act. He defended her but with this, he brought attention to his true identity. Which was a powerful nascent soul master from the Divine Fist Sect.

This all made sense to them. This was probably why his aura felt like it was in the middle stage but he was so strong. It explained why he was able to defeat the Silver Spear Patriarch so easily. In their eyes, he was some hidden monster either in the late stage or in the great circle. His young appearance was probably just to make others let their guard down around him.

Zhang Dong had to move his head to the side. The things they were coming up with were just silly. They kind of made sense if you looked at it with one mindset but the far-fetched theories fell apart if you really thought about it. They were even thinking that he was the old retired sect leader that had hidden himself away and built power-up in the lower lands.

He didn’t even need to do anything about this, the imagination these people had was truly immense. They just weren’t able to wrap their heads around it just being an act of kindness from his side.

While the two people there were blowing things out of proportion and while the Yinglong Pavilion Patriarch was rubbing his chin, Zhang Dong shifted his gaze towards the two people from the Divine Fist Sect.

He used the same technique to talk with the old man and sent his voice right next to his ear.

“Greetings, I think I might have caused a slight commotion here and for that, I’ll apologize.”

The old man’s eyes quivered slightly but he tried keeping his facial expressions neutral.

“Apologize? You saved my granddaughter, for this, I will eternally be grateful honorable Senior!”

The man replied while using the same hidden technique.

“But… May I ask why Senior decided to help us and how are you related to my granddaughter? I didn’t know that we had such honorable family members as you.”

The man was quite formal and respectful. It was clear from his tone and choice of words that he didn’t want to offend Zhang Dong.

“Ah, I have a strong bloodline technique, it allows me to feel people that I’m close with, It was more or less a coincidence. Who wouldn’t help their cute niece if she was in trouble?”

Zhang Dong replied while just coming up with a plausible excuse. He was actually related to the girl, or at least this body that he occupied was.

“Senior can track a lineage through a technique? Truly fascinating but even with that your actions...”

Zhang Dong knew where the old man was going with this. Even if he was related to this girl, he shouldn’t know her well enough to risk his life. However this was indeed the truth, he did only save her because it was the right thing to do in his opinion. He was the type of person that even in this sort of world didn’t like to see others getting killed. Though he was in the vast minority when it came to this reasoning.

“Well, I know it’s hard to imagine my reasons. How about you could just repay this favor in the future? Forming positive karmic bonds is something that I’m known for.”

It was far easier for Zhang Dong to just ask for a favor in return. Some people did live their life through karma here. If you helped someone they were expected to return the favor, otherwise, they would be sewing bad karma. Which in term would bring bad luck upon them, either in this or the next generation.

The greater Dao of Karma did exist in this world but Zhang Dong’s knowledge of it was shallow. It also tied into the Dao of fate but to affect people's future was something out of his reach, at least for now.

“Good karma? Ah yes, that does make sense…”

The old man replied while digesting the information. At this moment Zhang Dong decided to shift the conversation in a different direction. The two sect leaders that he had gone against him were still speculating with each other. He had to inform this man that he was now partially responsible for their plans.

“Elder Heng, It would seem that your enemies might have gotten the wrong idea about our relationship…”

Zhang Dong gave him a small rundown of the situation. About how the two thought that he was a hidden member of their sect. He explained how the two thought that he was some kind of backup plan. He was there to apparently perform a sneak attack with the main sect if the two other sects ever attacked them.

“This…”

Fang Heng didn’t know what to say. He certainly didn’t know anything about something like this, it did make a lot of sense as Zhang Dong was related to his granddaughter in some way.

“Yes, regrettably that’s not true. It was just a coincidence that one of my family members was related to your granddaughter. You’d know if you saw the rest of my family…”

He didn’t really feel like explaining how his grandfather operated, it wouldn’t bring anything substantial into the conversation so he decided to leave it out. It would also be kind of embarrassing to admit that he was related to someone promiscuous like that.

“This misunderstanding could be a godsend for you but you would have to trust me and explain your situation in detail. I’ve heard that a beast tide ran through your sect and many masters died, even your sect leader.”

Zhang Dong needed more information. If he went along with the misunderstanding he could actually give the Divine Fist Sect some time to recuperate their losses. The Limitless Sword Society would probably also leave his people alone if they thought that Fang Heng's side was still powerful.

“If those two think that their misunderstanding is true, your side will probably acquire much needed time. You could even recover if their spies get caught.”

He knew that if the other sects weren’t at least 80 or 90 percent sure of their victory they would probably wait it out. The same thing happened to him, the three sects left him alone out of fear of his Wei Hung persona. He was also lucky enough to have a system in place that protected him from spies. Without any new information reaching his enemies, they could do nothing but wait, attacking his sect was far too much of a risk.

Fang Heng had to think for a moment. He looked at this granddaughter that was there. She was now standing behind him along with some of the sect elders from his sect. He was a bit apprehensive about this situation.

The man before him did indeed save his family member but his motives were unknown. He could as well be working for those two sects and just trying to get information out of him in a more roundabout way.

This elder had a hard time believing that the other sects would go to such lengths. They already had basic information about the monster attack. They just didn’t have clear numbers of how many people perished. The first incident with his granddaughter was probably what his enemies had planned. This man probably belonged to a whole different faction but if he was telling the whole truth would remain to be seen.

“I…”

The man stuttered, he thought about his situation and if it could get any worse. Was there something he could do without getting outsiders involved? His plan was to quietly leave Fang Meili here and then return to his sect. There wasn’t really a thought about his own survival there, he even feared that he wouldn’t reach his sect grounds after he left this city.

There wasn’t really much he could lose anymore. If the other two sects decided to attack they would probably only be able to bunker up in their main city for a few months. The information this man could spread wouldn’t really add that much.

“Senior asks for much but if what you’re saying is true then maybe my sect can still be saved. I only wish for one thing in return, please protect my granddaughter, if you swear this I will trust you.”

Zhang Dong eyed the blond girl, she had been staring at him for quite some time now. He had probably left quite an impression on her at this point. If he agreed to the man’s terms he would need to take her to his sect. He would also probably need to look after her or dump her onto one of his elders as a pupil or something.

‘Maybe Liena could accept her as a disciple or something…’

He didn’t really need to do this though. He could just walk out of here and worry about Zhan Jie and his cronies later. Getting them to think that he was part of a stronger sect could get him out of a fight later on though. He still had them fearing his master persona too but if he came off too threatening they might try to attack him out of fear.

“You have my word, I can take her to my sect where she will be well protected.”

In the end, his good-hearted nature had come out on top. Now he needed to listen to what this old man had to say and then decide on how to spin this. Zhang Dong hoped that the Divine Sect’s situation wasn’t completely unsalvageable. They still were in a good spot and probably had a lot of cultivation resources. He could probably even add them to his own as future payment.

“That feels reassuring, senior. I will put my trust into you…”

The man finally decided to talk in detail. In a matter of moments, the full truth was revealed and Zhang Dong was already strategizing about how to salvage the situation.