Chapter 40 Illusion
Looking back, I saw a pretty and lively girl in front of me. She was wearing a light green dress, with bright eyes and a bright smile.
"Excuse me, are you also going to the Qionglin Sect's disciple recruitment meeting? My name is Shidong. How about we go together?"
Facing the unknown Shidong, Ling Zheng glanced at her without emotion, was indifferent to the girl's enthusiasm, and took a detour.
"Hey, don't go. I know the assessment process for recruiting disciples in the Qionglin Sect. I see that you are from outsiders, so you should need some, right?" Shi Dong ignored Ling Zheng's indifference and caught up with him in two steps.
But they weren't going there to become disciples. Ling Zheng was about to refuse when Wen Ren Su seemed to be lost in thought. He touched Ling Zheng's shoulder, turned to Shi Dong and said, "Okay."
Seeing this, Shi Dong's brows raised with joy, and her pretty little face turned slightly red, like a peach blossom in bud about to bloom.
According to her, the Qionglin School holds a disciple-recruiting meeting every year. The examination content is divided into physical fitness and mental state tests. Those who pass can become disciples of the Qionglin School.
The Qionglin School is a second-rate school in the Central Plains. It recruits a large number of people each time and has a low threshold. Within a radius of ten miles, many people who want to learn martial arts will come to the Qionglin School to try their luck.
Shi Dong admitted that she could see that Wen Rensu and Ling Zheng were both martial artists, and they could take care of each other during the assessment.
Hearing this, Wen Rensu had an idea: "I won't participate, you go with Jiang Ling." He took the opportunity to bring Ling Zheng's pseudonym.
Ling Zheng: “???”
He suddenly turned to look at Wenren Su with a strange expression and lowered his voice, "Why should I go?"
Wen Rensu smiled mysteriously and whispered, "I'm here to find out the location of Changsheng Pavilion for you. Taking the test is also a rare opportunity for you to train."
"But..." Ling Zheng wanted to say something, but when he saw Shi Dong approaching curiously, he pursed his lips, interrupted himself, and looked resentful.
Walking along the main road, it was spacious enough for four horses to ride side by side. On either side, there were small stalls, probably from nearby villagers, selling snacks, vegetables, etc.
Shidong walked a little ahead and led them for a long time. The road became narrower, and gradually no stalls appeared. The weeds on the roadside grew more and more vigorously.
Now, there are some young men and women on the street, walking in the same direction, all of them are energetic and look longing.
After walking for another quarter of an hour, the outline of the Qionglin School gradually came into view: the outskirts were covered with green grass, and towering walls surrounded it for several miles.
The door was now wide open, and one could easily glimpse the building with its flying eaves and flowing tiles, which looked majestic and isolated from the world.
To the right of the gate stood a huge dark brown stone, inscribed with the powerful characters "Qionglin School." Tall and muscular guards stood guard on either side of the gate.
Wen Ren Su stopped Ling Zheng and Shi Dong, stepped forward first, and despite the guard's indifferent expression, he took out a black token and held it in front of him.
Ling Zheng stood where he was, and saw Wen Rensu's actions from afar. His heart suddenly jumped, and he kept an eye on the guard's reaction.
The moment the guard's eyes fell on the token, his expression brightened. Wen Rensu whispered a few words, and the guard nodded respectfully, then turned around and walked away to report.
Is this token Wen Rensu's second identity? The Qionglin Sect's attitude... Ling Zheng pondered secretly, a dark glint in his eyes.
Wen Rensu walked back leisurely and said to them with a smile, "You guys go take the test."
Ling Zheng: “…”
Waiting for winter: “…”
After watching them walk to the gathering place for the assessment, not long after, the elders of the Qionglin Sect came hurriedly. When they saw Wen Rensu, they were secretly surprised by his handsome appearance. Their eyes rolled around, and they quickly adjusted their mood and greeted Wen Rensu with a smile.
"Welcome to the Wanjun Sect for a visit and exchange. I am Zheng Licheng, an elder of the Qionglin Sect. May I ask your name?"
Wenren Su nodded, "I am Wenren Su, a disciple of the Wanjun Sect."
After some polite greetings, Elder Zheng invited Wen Rensu to come to Juxian Hall to meet with the headmaster.
After pushing the door open, I saw a thin man sitting at the head of the table. He was about forty years old, with jet-black hair and a kind smile. He didn't look like the head of the sect, but more like a middle-aged scholar.
Apart from that, there were only a few servants standing on both sides.
Wen Ren Su bowed slightly and said, "I am Wen Ren Su from the Wanjun Sect. I would like to visit your sect with my junior brother for two or three days to exchange martial arts. I wonder if the Sect Master would grant me permission."
The headmaster said without hesitation: "Of course, Elder Zheng, you can help Young Master Wenren and his junior brother..." He paused, a puzzled look on his face, "Young Master Wenren, where is your junior brother?"
Wen Ren complained, "I learned that your sect is recruiting new members today, so I ordered my junior brother to go and try his luck. Please don't blame me, Sect Master."
The headmaster laughed and waved his hand, "It's no problem. Do you want to go for a tour? You can ask Elder Zheng to lead the way."
Wen Rensu stopped him, "Thank you for your kindness, Master. It's not necessary. Please ask Elder Zheng to take me to where I can stay for the next few days."
…
Each physical fitness test was different; this year, it was a simple long-distance run. Ling Zheng always stayed in the back of the group of hundreds of people, his movements and swings almost identical with each step, and his breathing was slow and steady.
As for Shi Dong, he started to pant shortly after running, as if he would get a stitch in the side any second. He ran like this and managed to keep going for five miles, still following Ling Zheng closely.
Don’t say it’s easy. At this time, one-third of the people have left the team, and some of them are much stronger than Shi Dong.
Qian Feng, a local thug, felt his strength had reached its limit, his head spinning, and he couldn't hold on any longer. He glanced at Ling Zheng, who seemed to be in good condition, and immediately felt malicious intent.
He used up his last bit of strength to run a few quick steps, saw the right moment, and quickly stretched out his foot. Then, there was a sharp pain in his ankle, and he couldn't help but let out a pig-like scream.
Ling Zheng turned his head to the side, his dark pupils seemed to be staring at a dead object, cold and cruel.
He was extremely sensitive to other people's negative emotions, so how could he not sense Qian Feng's thoughts? He only regretted that he was too light, otherwise his leg bones would have been broken by him.
Qian Feng's heart tightened at Ling Zheng's betrayal, and then he flew into a rage. It was unforgivable that a man of his stature could be bullied by a child who had barely grown all his hair.
The people behind witnessed the whole thing and ran past them one after another, turning a blind eye.
Seeing Ling Zheng's frail body, Qian Feng raised his fist and attacked him in the face. Ling Zheng reached for his waist and touched the lid of the disguised Gu jar.
At this critical moment, a palm struck Qian Feng's lower left abdomen with a dull thud. Qian Feng's cloth shoes moved swiftly, stirring up yellow sand, and he fell into the grass by the roadside, sprawled out.
The owner of this palm stood in a bow stance, his pale green clothes swaying in the wind. Shi Dong retracted his foot, walked over, pressed a few acupoints that made him weak, clapped his hands, and said solemnly, "Jiang Ling, are you okay?"
Ling Zheng raised his eyes and lightly ran his fingertips across the lid of the Gu jar. It was immediately clear that Shi Dong was quite skilled in martial arts and didn't need to be a disciple of a second-rate sect like the Qionglin Sect... Oh, that was quite interesting.
Seeing Ling Zheng looking at him thoughtfully, Shi Dong knew he was exposed, so he decided to go all out and said frankly, "I have a purpose in sneaking into the Qionglin Sect. I can't tell the strength of the young hero Wenren who is traveling with you, but I can see that he is a good person, so I took the initiative to find you."
A good guy? So obvious? Ling Zheng sneered inwardly, his inky eyelashes fluttering for a moment before rising again. His expression became treacherous. "You can tell he's a good guy, but what about me?"
Shi Dong remained calm and analyzed the situation carefully, "I know you practice evil techniques, but I'm just an ordinary person. We're not enemies. On the contrary, you must have a purpose for coming to the Qionglin Sect. I want to cooperate with you and exchange information."
Ling Zheng smiled, "Why?"
Shi Dong: "Just now I helped you solve the problem."
Ling Zheng: "I can do it myself."
Shi Dong: "So I'm betting on whether you will accept my love or not."
Ling Zheng didn't comment and ran forward. Shi Dong didn't ask any further questions and followed closely behind.
Although the entry threshold of the Qionglin School was relatively low, the physical fitness test eliminated nearly half of the people. The remaining people rested for half an incense stick of time, and someone led them to a spacious training room. In front of the hall, there was a giant incense burner half a meter high and two people could hug it, with many cushions placed in it.
The others sat cross-legged, and Ling Zheng followed suit. After a while, he smelled a strange fragrance...
"Xiao Zheng, are you tired?" a gentle voice came. Ling Zheng looked up suddenly and saw his mother sitting across from him at the wooden table, looking at him with a smile in her eyes, her eyebrows soft and calm. A pile of wild vegetables was placed on the table.
He felt confused and raised his hands. His small fingers held the wild vegetables in one hand and broke the stems with the other.
"Go and play if you're tired. You don't need my help." Jiang Hui happily pinched Ling Zheng's face, tucked the fallen hair behind her ears, and concentrated on picking vegetables.
Ling Zheng blinked and looked at the young mother in front of him. He felt an inexplicable soreness in his nose. He jumped off the bench and happily put his arms around Jiang Hui's waist. The familiar breath made Ling Zheng relax.
Jiang Hui was surprised and patted Ling Zheng on the back with a smile: "Xiao Zheng will be twelve years old in a few days, and the older children are still acting like spoiled brats. Now, go play with Yu An, she likes you very much."
Yu An? Oh, the child of our neighbor Aunt Yu is much younger than me, so I don't like playing with her. But Aunt Yu will occasionally give her some snacks, so I reluctantly take care of the child for her.
Ling Zheng nodded, walked out of the house with ease, and turned left to his neighbor's house. Yu An was a seven-year-old girl, delicate and beautiful.
In the yard, Yu An, who was originally chatting with Aunt Yu, cried out excitedly when he saw Ling Zheng. He ran over to him, swaying left and right, holding Ling Zheng with his right hand. His sleeves fell down, revealing a peach blossom birthmark, "Brother Ling Zheng, let's go exploring, okay!"
"Where are you going?" Ling Zheng said seriously, but his mature appearance made him even more adorable.
"Just come with me." Yu An grabbed the corner of Ling Zheng's sleeve and ran out, completely ignoring Aunt Yu who was still in the yard.
Aunt Yu shook her head helplessly and could only yell, "You two, be careful and don't play too late."
Yu An brought Ling Zheng up the only small hill in the village. I don’t know where these two short legs got so much strength, but they didn’t feel tired even after walking for a long time. The gurgling sound of flowing water became clearer and clearer, and Ling Zheng knew Yu An’s destination.
After passing through a mountain road with lush trees, you will see a clear spring gushing out from between the rocks. In the afterglow of the setting sun, the spring water shimmers with golden light and flows in a stream covered with rocks.
Yu An pointed at the pouring spring water and said, "Look, it's sparkling!"
"Yeah." Ling Zheng said perfunctorily, looking up at the sky, which was dyed red. "Okay, the adventure is over, let's go back."
Yu An pouted, "No, I want to play in the water with Brother Ling Zheng." Then, like an arrow from a bow, she dashed towards the stream. Ling Zheng had no time to catch her; he only heard a scream. She had accidentally stepped on a mossy rock and slipped, falling into the water, struggling.
Oh no! Ling Zheng was not good at swimming at this time. He forced himself to calm down, looked around, and saw a vine not far away. He ran over and pulled the vine to the stream.
It wasn't long enough, still a little distance away. Ling Zheng's jaw tightened as he watched Yu An bobbing in the water, coughing and choking in pain. He decided to grab the vine and go into the water to pull her ashore.
After entering the water, his feet couldn't touch the bottom. Ling Zheng ignored his fear and stretched out his hand and shouted: "Yu An, come to me!"
The sound of splashing water occupied Yu An's hearing, and he could not hear Ling Zheng's call at all. In order to reach Yu An, Ling Zheng had to release a vine, hold the end tightly, find the right moment, and hold Yu An's belly with one hand.
Yu An was still in fear. She thought the restraint from Ling Zheng was water, and struggled desperately, accidentally kicking Ling Zheng in the abdomen.
Suddenly Ling Zheng's body felt numb and he was unable to loosen the vine in his hand.
Ling Zheng: “!!!”
Soon he was also led by Yu An into the stream. Everything in front of his eyes was green, and fine bubbles emerged from his nostrils.
Suddenly, he felt something clamped around his ankle, and the next moment, he was pulled out of the water. Ling Zheng's face flushed and he coughed up a few mouthfuls of spring water. He rubbed his sore eyes, and a figure in white came into his sight.
A boy, about fifteen or sixteen years old, pulled a child ashore with each hand. When Ling Zheng and Yu An were sitting on the rocks, the boy put his hands on the rocks and jumped up. He noticed Ling Zheng staring at him intently and felt a little amused. "Kid, are you okay?"
Ling Zheng shook his head, feeling that the person before him was somewhat familiar. After searching his memory without success, he hesitantly asked, "Who are you?"
The young man tilted his head and smiled, his warm smile carrying a refreshing youthful air: "My name is Wenren Su, and I should be your neighbor soon."
Ling Zheng felt a little uncomfortable, not knowing where it came from. He did not bother to investigate further and pulled Yu An, who had regained consciousness, to thank the young man. Wen Rensu waved his hand and said, "It's okay, it's just a small favor. But you two shorty-looking guys, don't go anywhere near here."
Although he was his savior, when Ling Zheng heard the name "Shorty Carrot Ding", he looked up at Wen Rensu, who was two heads taller than him, and felt unhappy, which was contrary to his usual good family education.
Wen Rensu had been secretly paying attention to Ling Zheng's reaction. Seeing Ling Zheng looking at him, he pretended to be puzzled and rubbed Ling Zheng's head lightly, which caused new dissatisfaction in the other party. He couldn't resist and could only look at him with a resentful expression.
Wen Rensu was delighted to be able to bully the young Ling Zheng. He knew that the Qionglin Sect's state of mind test was a test of illusion, so he allowed Ling Zheng to participate in the disciple-recruiting conference.
He used a little bit of his original energy to sneak in. In order to avoid Ling Zheng calling him uncle, Wen Rensu also made himself look smaller by a few years.
"Kid, what's your name?" Wen Rensu put his hands behind his back and teased the serious Ling Zheng.
Yu An held Ling Zheng's hand and was curious about this strange handsome brother. When she heard his question, she immediately rushed to answer: "My name is Yu An, and brother Ling Zheng's name is... Ling Zheng." She realized that her words were stupid, and quickly hid behind Ling Zheng and covered her face.
Wen Rensu chuckled and touched the back of Yu An's head, "Hello, sister Yu An." Then he lowered his head and glanced sideways with a curved eyebrow, "Hello, brother Ling Zheng."
Hearing the address "Brother Lingzheng", Lingzheng got goosebumps all over his body. "Wenren...Brother, just call me Lingzheng." He hesitated, but still added "brother" after Wenren to show respect.
"Then I'll call you Xiao Zheng?" Wen Rensu ignored Ling Zheng's self-recommendation and said softly.
“…Okay.” Although only his parents called him Xiao Zheng, considering that he was his savior, “Xiao Zheng” was obviously easier to accept than “Brother Ling Zheng”.
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The author has something to say: Rounding off is childhood sweetheart au
I know I am slower...
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