Guided by the grating voice, Alex perceived the rhythmic advance of footsteps edging in his direction.
The voice, as discordant as it was, was familiar to him, a lingering echo from the memories he'd inherited from Li Wei.
It belonged to Zhong Jie, the relentless specter that haunted Li Wei's existence.
Zhong Jie, a warrior of the fourth stage, was not feared for his cultivation strength. No, what made Li Wei quiver was the man's elder brother, an influential disciple within the inner sect.
The prestige of his elder brother cast a long shadow, and Zhong Jie reveled in its coverage, using it to wreak havoc among the ranks of the outer sect disciples.
Intimidation and bullying were as natural as breathing to him.
Upon hearing Zhong Jie's taunts, Alex was initially inclined to dismiss them, to continue his path undisturbed.
However, after a moment's consideration, he elected to confront the situation.
As the current occupant of Li Wei's body, he concluded that sweeping changes were in order. And where better to start than with the issue of Zhong Jie himself?
With measured grace, Alex pivoted toward the source of the provocation.
His gaze fell upon Zhong Jie, who was striding forward with a posse of four.
A smirk curled the corners of his lips as he retorted, "Hiding? From whom? From you?" His chuckle was a ripple spreading through the stifling silence, "You must consider yourself quite the formidable figure. I was merely fulfilling a sect mission."
In the face of Alex's bold defiance, the crowd fell into a stunned silence. Even Zhong Jie's face registered surprise.
Traditionally, Li Wei would have avoided eye contact, his gaze demurely cast downward. But today, he not only met Zhong Jie's gaze head-on, but he also dared to retort with such audacity.
After recovering from the initial shock, Zhong Jie barked out a laugh, "It seems you've grown rather bold, even daring to defy Wu Lina."
Hearing this, Alex was taken aback. A flurry of questions stormed his mind, "Defied Wu Lina? How? When?"
Upon seeing the bewildered expression on Alex's face, Zhong Jie's smile broadened, "It seems you've lost your knack for speech. To think that a lowly creature like you would dare to defy her. You truly have a death wish."
Alex, his mind still grappling with the implications, responded with a genuine surprise, "What exactly are you referring to? I haven't defied anyone."
Zhong Jie's eyebrows knitted together, "Are you denying it? Weren't you the one who ogled her with lustful eyes?"
Alex was taken aback by the accusation. As he looked around, he noted the spectators' gazes, piercing and judgmental.
But now, he noticed something that had previously escaped him.
Those who glared at him with hostility were predominantly male.
The pieces of the puzzle were falling into place, and the picture they formed was starting to make sense.
Alex then realized that all the attention he had been receiving was due to a particular incident.
He recalled the moment he first encountered Wu Lina in the voidland, where he had unintentionally cast an indecent glance her way. However, he couldn't entirely be blamed for his actions.
In his previous world, he had limited interactions with women, so his primal instincts were triggered upon seeing the enchanting figure of Wu Lina before him.
Although he acknowledged that it was impolite to stare at a lady in such a manner, it had only been a fleeting moment, and she didn't seem overly concerned about it.
This led Alex to question why this minor incident had been blown out of proportion.
After all, there had only been Xiao Se and Shen Hong present at the time, so how had news of it spread throughout the sect, causing such a commotion?
It didn't take long for Alex to deduce the answers to his queries.
Xiao Se was the most likely culprit behind the dissemination of this information.
He was undoubtedly doing it to make Alex's life more difficult, for reasons unknown to Alex himself.
However, he didn't particularly care to delve into Xiao Se's motivations.
"Are you all not ashamed to be so agitated over such a trivial matter? And why are you fighting for someone who doesn't truly care about any of you?" Alex mused, clearly unprepared to deal with their childish behavior.
He had more important matters to attend to, leaving the resolution of Zhong Jie's issues for another day.
With a dismissive wave of his hand, Alex turned on his heel and began making his way back to his quarters.
However, his departure was interrupted by Li Wei's enraged voice from behind, exclaiming, "How dare you walk away from me!" In a fit of anger, Li Wei reached out and grabbed Alex's shoulder.
Reacting swiftly, Alex swiftly spun around, directing a powerful punch towards Zhong Jie's chest.
Caught off guard by the sudden attack, Zhong Jie was unable to defend himself in time.
However, just an inch away from striking Zhong Jie's chest, Alex's fist came to an abrupt halt.
It wasn't because he didn't want to harm Zhong Jie, but rather because they were still within the Cloud Moon Sect, where disciples were prohibited from engaging in fights outside of the designated battle area.
Any violation of this rule would result in severe punishment.
Additionally, fighting in front of the mission pavilion would be disrespectful to Elder Zhen, the pavilion's overseer.
Although Elder Zhen was a friendly old man, he still held the position of a clan elder, and Alex knew he wouldn't take such disrespect lightly.
Engaging in a physical altercation with Zhong Jie in this location would undoubtedly lead to severe consequences from the sect, which Alex deemed not worth the trouble.
With his fist still suspended just inches away from a bewildered Zhong Jie, Alex spoke with a chillingly cold voice, his icy gaze fixed directly on Zhong Jie's eyes.
"Never dare to lay your hands on me again in your life," he warned. His threat sent a shiver down Zhong Jie's spine, a feeling of fear inexplicably welling up within him.
Such threats were not surprising, as making them had become one of Alex's specialties, a skill honed during his years as a special forces captain.
With his warning delivered, Alex lowered his fist and turned away, resuming his journey toward his quarters.
It was only after he had begun walking away that Zhong Jie and the four individuals accompanying him managed to react.
Filled with anger and humiliation, Zhong Jie shouted furiously, teeth gritted, "How dare you! I will make you pay for this!"
Unperturbed by the threats, Alex continued on his way without stopping or even bothering to glance back. "If you truly wish to discover what I dare to do, meet me at the sect's duel stage in eight days. If you dare to accept the challenge," he declared, leaving everyone in a state of confusion and shock as he disappeared into the distance.
Within the mission pavilion, Elder Zhen observed the unfolding situation, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "This young man has truly transformed in the past few days. I wonder what kind of encounter he has had," he murmured, his gentle strokes on his beard reflecting his contemplation.