Chapter 20 I'm old, but I'm not deaf...
Chu Shu opened the door and, as expected, met Xiao Mingxin's gaze, or rather, his gaze never left her.
The teacup beside me had lost all its heat, but the tea hadn't diminished at all. I wondered what the person holding the tea was trying to hide.
"Senior Brother Xiao, don't try to play these tricks on me. No one can take away the person I, Chu Shu, want."
Xiao Mingxin remained calm and composed, like a block of ice. "I don't know what you mean by that, but I just hope that you won't be deceived by appearances."
He stared at Chu Shu's face and asked, "Have you told him what he really looks like, or did the sect leader allow your absurd behavior?"
Chu Shu's voice suddenly became sharp, "I don't need you to use the sect leader to intimidate me."
“I needn’t trouble you with my affairs, Senior Brother,” he sighed, glancing at the secluded spot hidden in the woods. “Everything here is fine, except it lacks a human touch. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a beautiful woman by my side? I do have quite a few lovely junior sisters on Chaolu Peak who admire you, Senior Brother…”
Chu Shu was interrupted before she could finish speaking, "The most important thing in cultivation is to avoid being distracted. Too much lust will ruin your health. If you want what's best for him, you should let him focus on cultivation."
His old-fashioned tone was exactly the same as his master, the Third Elder. Chu Shu was unrestrained and disdained being rigid and inflexible, but Xiao Mingxin's unyielding attitude reassured him a lot.
"I am certainly not as diligent as my senior brother, but I do have some insights into cultivation. If you have any questions, junior brother, you can come to me for answers."
He rested his chin on his hand and smiled at the person who had come over, his knuckles almost touching his lips.
The used finger awakened a sense that Xu Zangyu had deliberately ignored. A tingling sensation in his tailbone caused him to turn his head as if electrocuted. His expression did not escape Xiao Mingxin's notice, and his calm eyes instantly darkened.
"We disciples of Zhuyu Peak need not trouble you with our affairs. If others hear this, they will think that the Third Elder has failed in his teaching."
In order not to offend his master who was about to emerge from seclusion, Xu Zangyu could only agree, "I have no questions for now. I remember that my senior sister was injured a few days ago and should rest and recuperate. I will definitely visit her as soon as I break through in my cultivation."
After much persuasion, Xu Zangyu finally managed to get the large Buddha statue to leave.
He was afraid that Xiao Mingxin would ask about what had just happened, but to his surprise, Xiao Mingxin didn't mention a word and left alone, leaving only the shadow of the sword.
However, Xu Cangyu sensed that Xiao Mingxin seemed to be in a bad mood.
Looking at the honest and unassuming Jianying standing to the side, Xu Cangyu's first thing to do was to scold him, "Why did you suddenly disappear yesterday? I mistook my senior brother for you."
His tone was fierce. It was clearly not the sword's fault; it had been taken back by its master and was equally innocent. Yet, the sword lowered its head, inexplicably shrinking in front of him, and said, "I'm sorry."
"Never mind, never mind, just don't do it again next time."
Xu Zangyu wasn't really angry about the sword shadow; he was just used to being scolded by Xiao Mingxin and was secretly taking his anger out on the sword shadow that was exactly the same as his.
Besides, it was really good-tempered, and Xu Zangyu's guilt had long been washed away by the false satisfaction.
For two months, Xu Cangyu focused on cultivation. When Xiao Mingxin was not around, he would order Jianying to massage his back and waist, acting like a complete bully. Jianying was also trained to obey, and would sit down and stretch out his legs as a pillow whenever he lay down.
However, Xu Zangyu didn't sleep well this time. He always felt like someone was staring at him when he closed his eyes, and that gaze made him uneasy.
The sword's shadow smoothed his furrowed brows, and his gaze suddenly sharpened as he turned to the air.
Upon feeling offended, the Third Elder was about to take action, but upon seeing the face that looked exactly like his disciple's, he abruptly stopped.
Upon noticing the danger, Xiao Mingxin rushed over, asking, "Why didn't you inform your disciple in advance that Master has come out of seclusion?"
His master emerged from seclusion earlier than he had anticipated.
The Third Elder, usually stern, visibly softened upon seeing his eldest disciple, who was impeccably polite and composed. "No need for that. I just wanted to see how your cultivation is progressing."
The Third Elder looked him over and was quite satisfied. "Not bad, he's about to break through to the Nascent Soul stage."
Xiao Mingxin had nothing to worry about, but he couldn't pretend not to see the other disciple who was still fast asleep.
"That was your sword shadow; I almost misjudged it."
"It is a sword shadow, but I added a wisp of my consciousness to make it easier to control."
The Third Elder frowned upon hearing this, and was about to reprimand him for his foolishness when he heard Xiao Mingxin say, "Disciple is using this to study the art of clones. When encountering enemies, it can confuse their vision and allow us to win by surprise."
His sullen face broke into a smile again. "Your idea is novel, and it certainly has its merits."
Xiao Mingxin continued, following his words: "Junior brother has been practicing swordsmanship with Jianying for many days. In order to help his disciple test the feasibility of this method, he must have been exhausted. He didn't even notice that Master had come out of seclusion."
Xu Cangyu felt the gaze becoming less targeted, and then someone patted his shoulder a few times. "It's time to wake up."
He was a light sleeper, and when he woke up, the sunlight was so bright that he couldn't open his eyes for a long time. Jianying resisted the urge to shield his eyes from the light and reminded him, "Master has come out of seclusion."
These words were more sobering than a slap in the face. Even though he couldn't see clearly in the backlight, the imaginable sternness of that face was enough to chill him to the bone.
He jumped up from the ground, suppressing a tremor in his voice, "Master."
Are you tired?
Although he didn't hear anger in his voice, he didn't dare to take those words as a sign of concern.
"I'm not tired, it's just... I've been slacking off."
“Taking a break doesn’t count as slacking off,” Master’s tone was so kind that Xu Zangyu felt a little uneasy. Heaven knows how rare it was to hear such words from the mouth of a cultivation fanatic.
His dedication to cultivation made him equally demanding of his disciples. Every disciple on the entire peak had to pretend to be extremely diligent, only daring to relax for a while when their master went into seclusion.
"It's only been half a year, and you've already broken through to the Golden Core stage."
To be honest, this was even more surprising to him than seeing Xiao Mingxin about to break through to the Nascent Soul stage. Xu Zangyu wasn't a particularly talented disciple; reaching this level required even more effort.
The initial dissatisfaction gradually dissipated. He patted him on the shoulder, and after a long pause, finally found a suitable compliment: "Effort is also a kind of talent."
Xu Zangyu thought he was going to die, and his heart was in his throat for a long time before he calmed down.
Master seems possessed; his unusually kind demeanor is really abnormal.
It was clear that his master was in a good mood today. After praising him, he even tossed him a lot of magical treasures. Xu Zangyu looked at the various things in his arms with mixed feelings.
"I've been so focused on my own cultivation that I haven't had much time for you. I don't think I've given you a formal apprenticeship gift yet. You can take these and play with them."
The tone was so casual, as if it were just some kind of trash.
But any one of these pills, talismans, swords, or other trinkets could easily fetch a high price.
Seeing his stunned expression, the Third Elder asked, "Is it too little?"
"No--"
A large bag of silver was tossed over, "I still have some worldly possessions here."
Xu Zangyu was stunned by the blow. Just as he was about to exclaim in surprise, thinking that his master was so carefree that he regarded money as dirt, he saw his pained expression and said, "It's gone, it's gone, it's gone even if I look again."
Xu Zangyu clutched the large bag of money tightly, but still handed it back, saying, "I haven't been able to show my respect to my master yet, how can I let him spend money on me?"
The Third Elder raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile still playing on his lips. "What nonsense are you spouting? It's not like I'm short of money."
He's not particularly talented, but he's hardworking and knows how to be filial... well, he's not bad.
Someone else has arrived at Bamboo Grove Residence. You can hear them humming a little tune from afar, and they move with a light, swaying gait.
It was Chen Zhiguang, who had just returned from his trip. He had a bunch of things hanging from his waist and was holding a roast chicken and wine in his hand. When he saw Xu Cangyu, he greeted him, "Third Senior Brother."
With lingering excitement on his face, he said, "The osmanthus rice wine from Nanzhou tastes absolutely amazing, and this roast chicken is just as delicious. Where else can you find such delicacies on this desolate mountain? It's all thanks to Master's long seclusion this time, otherwise I would have turned into a wild man on this mountain."
As he spoke, he noticed that Xu Zangyu's gaze was a little strange, like... pity. "What's with that expression? Are you jealous of me?"
I pity you, young man!
"Stop talking."
"Why are you acting so strangely?"
To prevent him from going on and on, and to save his life, Xu Zangyu turned around so that he could see the person behind him.
Chen Zhiguang stumbled and almost knelt down, forcing a smile as he stepped forward, "I knew the magpies were chirping non-stop this morning, which meant a distinguished guest was coming. It turns out Master has emerged from seclusion."
He handed over the wine and roast chicken, saying, "This is a gift from your apprentice to welcome you back and cleanse your body of dust, a gift for your rebirth."
Seeing that he had reached the point of rambling incoherently, Xu Zangyu felt even more sorry for him. Chen Zhiguang then gave him a look that seemed to be a plea for help, and Xu Zangyu could only give him a helpless look.
It's not that I don't want to help you, junior brother, but Master's surprise inspection caught everyone off guard.
Besides, you're lying through your teeth, and you can't cover it up no matter what.
The Third Elder, who had initially been amiable, looked at his carefree disciple with disdain, and upon hearing that the disciple had openly betrayed his master, he nearly drew his sword and charged forward.
At this moment, his gaze was almost as if he were looking at a dead person. "I may be old, but I'm not deaf."
"If you have any complaints about your master, you can say them to his face."
"No, no, I was just drunk and talking nonsense." Chen Zhiguang smiled bitterly.
"Let your master see how well you've practiced your swordsmanship."
As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Zhiguang was slammed to the ground by a sword and couldn't get up.
The Third Elder complained even more, "Too slow. I think your mind is wandering and your hands are too slow."
After a lecture, the master finally let him go, or rather, went to check other people's homework.
Seeing him lying pitifully on the ground, Xu Zangyu thought of the other junior brothers and sisters who were unaware of the situation and said, "Master's sudden emergence from seclusion means that none of you are aware of it."
In the past, everyone would prepare to work hard before their master came out of seclusion, and now they are probably still having fun. Some of them may not have even returned from the mountain yet.
As soon as he finished speaking, his foot was suddenly grabbed, and he saw Chen Zhiguang's face, which was barely alive, suddenly reveal an evil smile.
"The others certainly didn't expect Master to conduct a spot check either. It's better for everyone to suffer than for one to suffer alone."
Everyone was startled; they shouldn't be the only ones who suffered.
Xu Zangyu also revealed a knowing smile.
The two realized there was a third person in the know, so they both looked at Xiao Mingxin. "Senior brother, you didn't leak the secret, did you?"
Two pairs of sincere yet cunning eyes were truly impossible to ignore, and Xiao Mingxin smiled helplessly, "I didn't see anything."
With his face bruised and swollen, Chen Zhiguang and Xu Cangyu followed behind. Hearing the painful cries of their fellow disciples, they all bared their teeth.
A note from the author:
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