Why do I have so many masters?

Chapter 77 Return to the Academy (1/2)

In Shaolin Temple.

Upon sensing the anomaly from the middle-aged man in North Martial City, Mr. Ying's mouth slightly curved upward. He lay on a bamboo chair, casually tossing a jade bead held between the fingers of his right hand.

Another jade bead had been flicked from Wang Anfeng's wrist Buddha Beads last night and had landed on a young girl. This, in turn, had brought Gongsun Jing into this world.

Ci Yuan's eyes were slightly closed beside him, quietly chanting sutras. After reciting, "All conditioned phenomena are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, or shadows; like dew or a flash of lightning; thus we should view them," he did not continue but opened his eyes to look at his rather languid friend.

Though his face remained as impassive as usual, the two had known each other for a long time and could tell that the latter was in quite a good mood. Furrowing his brow, he put down his hands and asked in a quite serious tone,

"What exactly do you want to do?"

The jade bead was tossed aside, pinched between two fingers, Scholar didn't look up, just casually said,

"You guess."

Ci Yuan slightly frowned, feeling rather annoyed by the Scholar's indifferent attitude. The two of them, one upright and gentle, the other arrogant and unrestrained, could only be described as fated friends. Even though they had become good friends, they often got irritated by each other's temperaments and would end up fighting if arguments ensued.

Noticing the tense atmosphere, Wu Changqing, who was nearby, laughingly interrupted,

"Haha, why should Master Ci Yuan be angry? I, an old man, can guess some of Mr. Ying's thoughts; surely, you can too?"

The voice paused slightly, seeing that he had drawn the attention of both men to himself, the elder let out a slight sigh of relief internally.

He hadn't expected that at his age, he would still need to play peacemaker.

These two really couldn't give an old man a moment's peace.

Sighing inwardly, if he were still a sixteen or seventeen-year-old young healer, he probably would have rolled his eyes by now, applied pressure to his own acupoint, and let them argue. But now, he couldn't do such things. With a gentle demeanor, he stroked his beard and smiled,

"Has Master Ci Yuan forgotten what Anfeng is seeking?"

Ci Yuan was taken aback, then he realized and listened as the old man continued,

"Such matters have never been achievable through the efforts of one person alone."

"That's one point, the second… After Anfeng, he should have several years to diligently practice martial arts at Fufeng Academy. Where would he find the time to collect these 'Lost Treasure' beads? Without these treasures, it's impossible to learn the unique skills of the Divine Thieves Sect."

"After a few years, when Anfeng's cultivation greatly improves, it would indeed be too late to study the top Qinggong skills in Jianghu."

"Thus, I guess Mr. Ying's actions are firstly to make things convenient for Anfeng's future actions, and secondly, to mobilize manpower as soon as possible to collect those Lost Treasure beads,"

Having spoken, Wu Changqing stroked his beard, looking at the Scholar with a smile,

"I wonder, is the old man correct?"

The Scholar sneered coldly without responding, his face full of mockery, but Ci Yuan and Wu Changqing had long understood his personality and knew that this at least meant he was largely correct. The look on Ci Yuan's face slightly cleared, but he still felt something was not quite right.

Wu Changqing, now reclining in his chair, suddenly laughed again,

"However, last night, that young man called Gongsun Jing, must have been quite frightened." Your next journey awaits at empire

"The rider of Longxiang, Old Master Yang, heh, even if we approached, I fear we would not be his match."

Ci Yuan nodded slightly.

The Scholar couldn't be bothered with them, flipping his right palm to put the round bead away. His eyes narrowed, gazing at this illusory world.

His right forefinger curled up, tapping lightly on the backrest of the bamboo chair.

Once, twice.

In his eyes, there was a strange gleam.

Great Qin.

The true Jianghu and world.

The true...

His finger finally tapped on the armrest of the bamboo chair, emitting a crisp sound that resonated afar.

He and Ci Yuan, and Wu Changqing, were different.

Completely different.

What Wu Changqing said was part of the reason, but it was not all of it.

Proud as he was.

How could he forever remain behind the scenes for others?

The corners of his mouth lifted in a mocking curve, yet as he remembered that youthful face, his expression briefly faltered, suddenly feeling somewhat uncertain.

Well... at most, occasionally, he might lend a hand if it suited him.

With his palm spread open, resting on the bamboo chair's armrest, the Scholar closed his eyes, ceased his restless thoughts, and murmured leisurely.

"Jianghu...

.......................

In North Martial City.

After drinking the sobering medicine, Fu Mo had sobered up quite a bit, and could now circulate his Inner Strength on his own. Although the aftereffects of the fine liquor were significant, one could not underestimate his Pure Yang Internal Strength. In less than half an hour, he had dispelled the effects of the alcohol and returned to clarity.

He had planned to leave today, but due to his own reasons, he ended up lingering in North Martial City for another day. Fu Mo felt quite ashamed, so he declined the invitation from the Pavilion Master of the Lost Treasure Pavilion completely and cleanly. The following morning, he set out early.

The distance from North Martial State City to Fufeng County City was more than seven hundred miles.

If one pushed the horses to gallop, it would take just two days, but Fu Mo needed to collect some materials along the way, detouring through many county cities. The elderly man, who was often bewildered about other matters, proved to be shrewd when it came to finding materials, often making successful finds.

Feeling apologetic, Fu Mo crafted a Mo Family mechanism for Wang Anfeng and the others along the way.

Limited by the materials and the cultivation levels of Wang Anfeng and the others, the mechanisms did not have any special functions, but they were nonetheless praiseworthy in their details, coming from the hands of a master of Middle Third Rank.

Five days later.

With Qingfeng Edge as the center, within a radius of more than seven hundred miles, the long-suppressed contradictions finally came to a head. In various county cities, appearances remained as usual, showing no signs of change, but behind the scenes, countless covert battles had already taken place.

Out of fear of the reputation of Qingfeng Edge, no outrageous measures had been employed, but there had already been casualties. Among the many gangs, the Giant Peng Gang stood out the most.

Its Gang Leader, Gongsun Jing, reportedly came from a military background and was always regarded with caution by surrounding gangs for his tactical ingenuity. Yet unexpectedly, he had also deeply concealed his true strength. He unveiled unprecedented valor and ruthless spirit in his Battle Formation Spear Technique during this conflict. Striking like thunder, he severely injured another gang's leader and then took advantage of the chaos to launch several follow-up attacks, swallowing up five to six tenths of the territory this time.

Even though he was within the sphere of influence of Qingfeng Edge and could be eliminated at any moment, his prominence was truly unmatched for the time being.

Half a month later, in Fufeng County City.

An elderly man leading three young men and one young woman had traversed the ninety-nine-meter-long passage and beheld the imposing, majestic twin towers. He almost felt tears well up, lifted his head, and breathed out a heavy sigh, saying,

"Finally... we're back."

"Fufeng County City!"

His heart filled with mixed emotions, indescribable, feeling everything before him so familiar and joy-inspiring. Thinking of the hardships endured during his recent travels, he was even more determined never to leave Fufeng County City again.

Never!

With this thought, a sense of resolve surged within him. He felt that the old, scruffy Master wasn't all that significant, and if he were to refuse, the Master probably couldn't do anything about it...

If he tries to manipulate me again, I... I will boycott the classes!

And unite with all my good friends to confront him properly...

As he was considering how to address the matter with the old, scruffy Master, suddenly a young voice rang in his ears.

"Hey, hey, old uncle, snap out of it!"

On the carriage, a black-clothed youth rolled his eyes in exasperation, cracked his whip, and pointed at the road, saying,

"You're blocking the way..."

"Ah... uh, sorry, sorry."

Fu Mo, who had just been imagining beating up the Master in his mind, shuddered and quickly led his horse to the side.

His expression was as amiable as ever.

PS: First release...

Thanks to Bai Guangyan for the generous reward. Yes, like I said before, there will be at least one additional release every week, I swear on the name of Salty Fish.