At this moment, a number of disciples had gathered outside the Punishment Hall, whispering among themselves.
Chu Ge, with his current cultivation, was naturally sharp of ear and eye, catching their words quite clearly.
"tsk tsk, this Ye Chen really is a troublemaker. Only his second day after joining, and he's already in the Punishment Hall!"
"You don't even know yet—the one Ye Chen had a conflict with is a member of the Dantai clan. Though a collateral branch, they're not someone an ordinary person dares to provoke. Looks like Ye Chen is in for serious trouble this time."
"Rumor has it, Ye Chen once had a marriage contract with a prestigious legitimate daughter of the Dantai clan. Later, he was rejected, suffering all kinds of humiliation. Now, seeing someone from the Dantai clan here in the Sacred Land, it's natural that old grudges flare up."
Chu Ge's interest was piqued. He hadn't expected that the one entering the Punishment Hall today would be none other than the fated child, Ye Chen.
What surprised him even more was that, despite Ye Chen's king body aptitude, no powerful master was willing to take him as a disciple. He could only remain in the Inner Gate, unable to become a core disciple.
And the name Dantai reminded him of the peerless elder, Dantai.
"Senior Sister, the Dantai clan they mentioned… is it related to Elder Dantai?"
Chu Ge looked to Su Lingyuan beside him.
To his surprise, she was listening intently to the gossip of the Inner Gate disciples, clearly enjoying their chatter.
"Ah? The Dantai clan? Yes… it's indeed the clan where that troublesome… cough cough, Martial Aunt Dantai comes from."
As she spoke, she seemed to recall something and abruptly stopped, instinctively glancing around. Clearly, the last time she had been caught red-handed by Dantai Jinglian had left a lingering shadow.
[The fated child truly lives up to the name—trouble follows him. Only his second day here and he's already in a conflict, landing in the Punishment Hall.]
[This Dantai clan, having crossed paths with the fated child, will likely face misfortune in the future. And the Dantai legitimate daughter who rejected the fated child's marriage? Her fate probably won't be much better.]
[Let's think—according to the usual behavior of fated children, the best outcome for this Dantai legitimate daughter would be being taken into Ye Chen's harem, one among many beauties.]
[Next best: a lifetime of regret, remorse for having rejected the marriage, with her family declining from its peak due to provoking the fated child, and her personal status falling from the clouds to the dust.]
[Worst case: the entire clan could be wiped out!]
[Hmph, thinking like this… Elder Dantai's future is a bit precarious, probably not much better than that Dantai legitimate daughter.]
[I should check the system's record of Ye Chen's future trajectory.]
[After all, I am the direct disciple of the Sacred Lord; it's not impossible that one day I could hold authority over the entire Taihuang Sacred Land.]
[I also want to enjoy some of the privileges that come with that!]
[Elder Dantai is a pillar of the Sacred Land; when I ascend to the Sacred Lord's position, she should be my right-hand man. I can't let Ye Chen have his way! This is for the greater good, not personal gain!]
[I must intervene! I'm the villain—whatever the fated child tries to do, I won't let him succeed. That's my duty!]
[How can I allow this guy to rise smoothly? Besides, my villain points still need to be earned from him!]
Writing this, Chu Ge paused. He didn't really care about the Dantai clan itself, but Elder Dantai…
Such a peerlessly charming woman—though Chu Ge wasn't the type to be rendered speechless on sight, if he allowed someone he admired to be taken advantage of by a fated child, he simply couldn't stand by.
It wasn't as if Ye Chen had any special advantage he lacked—status, resources, connections, or natural talent and power, he could outmatch him in all aspects.
Not to mention, he could see Ye Chen's future trajectory, and with the system at his disposal, it was practically a "flying dragon spanks a fledgling" scenario. Even with his eyes closed, he could thoroughly crush this fledgling fated child, Ye Chen, with ease!