"We can't just all forget about this," Fang Lin said, glaring at Wu Ling from the boulder he'd perched on. "Were you seen? Was anyone left alive last night? Will they be able to track you and bring trouble to us? Maybe… Maybe we should stop now and return home before we get so far away we can't summon help."
"There's a wide difference between choosing not to attack the enemy where they are fortified and being so terrified of them that we abandon everything at the slightest hint we'd be pursued," Su Xaing said, frowning at the young lord. "If we attack their fortress, undoubtedly we could run into multiple second-stage cultivators, formations and all manner of other dangers. If they send someone to hunt us, however, our odds are significantly better."
"I refuse to run away," Xiong Dahuo said, scowling at Fang Lin. "Maybe you're the one who shouldn't have come along. We're only a few hours away from Blade's Edge. You have plenty of daylight if you want to walk back."
"I…" Fang Lin started to say as he looked at the other young cultivators, hoping to see some sign of agreement from at least one other person. When he looked at their faces, however, even Yu Jinqi seemed to regard him with cold eyes. Clearly he'd taken things a step too far by suggesting they give up before their adventure had even begun.
"Okay, fine, we can keep going. We should appoint someone as an actual leader though. I don't trust Wu Ling to keep us out of danger," he said, taking the risk of offending the person he was supposed to win over on this trip. He couldn't help it. As much as he wanted to gain favor with both Wu Ling and Su Xiang, he valued his life more!
"I suggest that Brother Zhang take the role of our leader on this trip," Fang Lin said, pushing Zhang Buyan forward as a stable and more experienced voice within the group. Fang Lin knew that no one would follow him at the moment, but given the choice of everyone else, he felt that Zhang Buyan was much better than Wu Ling or the hot blooded Xiong Dahuo.
"This was supposed to be his expedition in the first place anyway," Fang Lin concluded with a huff. "It's only right that he be the one to lead us."
For a moment, the entire group went silent. People looked from Wu Ling to Zhang Buyan and back at Fang Lin as well, though the looks directed at the one who suggested appointing a leader were much less kind.
"I have something to say," Jin Wuya said, standing up and dusting bits of grass and dirt off her golden robes. "I think that Brother Wu has demonstrated the most important qualities of a leader. His business last night was personal, so he left the group out of it," she began calmly.
"When he wanted our help, he hid nothing from us and he asked us for help," she continued. "When we objected, he listened to our words and yielded, even though it meant he wouldn't accomplish one of the missions his sect issued him. To me, Brother Wu is doing what a leader should."
"I agree with Junior Sister Jin," Zhang Buyan said, quickly getting up to stand next to her. "Brother Fang, I appreciate your vote of confidence but I only had the simplest of notions of heading into the wilderness and fighting whatever we found that could give us a challenge. Brother Wu has made sound plans after consulting with a strategist in his sect and we're all benefiting from that."
"Brother Wu, while we never said it out loud," Zhang Buyan said, putting to words something that it was clear had gone too long unspoken. "Ever since you came to Junior Sister Jin and I, we have considered you to be the one leading this journey and we wouldn't have it any other way."
"Um, Brother Fang," Yu Jinqi said. "Brother Wu and Sister Su have done this before. You and I haven't. We should follow those who know, so, as long as Brother Wu is willing to listen to us and consider our words, I think he's a good leader," he finished, sweat rolling between his shoulder blades as he spoke.
In the Jade Cauldron Sect, Yu Jinqi would debate his fellow Alchemy Initiates for hours as long as it was about herbs or concoctions but about anything else, he avoided conflict with his peers at all costs. This time, however, he felt he had to make a change, just like he was making a change to come on the expedition. He should at least voice an opinion!
"I think everyone knows what I would say," Su Xiang said, leaning over to give Wu Ling a brief hug from the side. "So, instead of belaboring it, why don't we accept things as they are? We follow Brother Ling's arrangements and we discuss things when we need to. Right now, I have a suggestion for Brother Ling, if you'll hear it brother?"
"You know I'll always listen," Wu Ling said with an awkward smile. He knew that Su Xiang was trying to build momentum for him by being more formal and polite but it felt odd coming from his usually direct elder sister.
"I think Brother Zhang was right, we need to learn what we can all do, so I suggest we look for a good campsite and when we find one, we stop, no matter how early," she said. "We can train like we did before our first expedition. One or two hours of practicing together every day. Does Brother agree with my idea?"
"Not entirely," Wu Ling said. "I want to be further away from Blade's Edge before we stop. I don't think the Mountain's Bones will be able to locate me or chase us, but I'd like a little more caution than stopping as soon as we find a place. Let's use today to gain distance, we'll look for camp when the sun is a handbreadth above the mountains, but we'll take the entire day tomorrow for training before we have to fight anything."
"We're still close enough to Blade's Edge that there are very few dangerous spirit beasts in the area," Wu Ling continued. "So we shouldn't suffer too much if we encounter anything and have to fight before we've trained our teamwork. Going deeper into the wilderness though, Brother Zhang, and Sister Xiang, I agree with you both, we should practice before we face danger. Are there any objections?" Wu Ling asked, casting a piercing look at Fang Lin when he did so.
Thankfully, even if Fang Lin wanted to object, he was wise enough to realize that this round had gone entirely to Wu Ling, and kicking up more trouble would only make him look worse in front of his peers. Instead, he might as well regain some face by shifting with the current.
"I agree with Leader Wu," Fang Lin said. "Thank you, Leader Wu, for listening to everyone. I'm sure we won't have any problems when we follow your plan."