chapter 9
9. Free-Range Master and Disciple
“As long as you’re strong enough, you won’t need to worry about others’ harassment.”
—That certainly doesn’t sound like something a protector would say.
Lin Dongming silently criticized in his heart.
“So it would be fine if I taught Hong Xing a harsh lesson?” Lin Dongming probed.
“If you’re not afraid of offending Duyuan Peak, do as you wish.” Elder Tuoba continued tinkering with her spiritual tool. “You’re a smart person. No need to obsess over such matters.”
“…I understand.”
“Have you given the spiritual tool I entrusted to you during the day to Zhiqing yet?” Elder Tuoba seemed to sense the spiritual tool’s aura on Lin Dongming.
“No. I had planned to give it to her today, but was interrupted by the sudden attack.”
“Do it soon,” Elder Tuoba said. “Is there anything else?”
Lin Dongming hesitated before continuing, “The three people who attacked today had something strange about their spiritual energy, as if they had taken some unusual pill. There was also something off about their movement techniques.”
Lin Dongming’s hint was extremely obvious—the pills were likely purchased from the black market or acquired through other irregular channels. It was even possible that someone had deliberately placed them in their hands.
“…” Elder Tuoba’s hands paused briefly before quickly resuming. “Noted. You may go.”
“…Disciple obeys.”
Lin Dongming sighed helplessly, stepped out, and closed the door.
—Should I secretly teach those guys a lesson, or think of some other approach?
Lin Dongming temporarily dismissed the thought: Too much trouble for too little gain. He was just someone hired to do a job; it wasn’t worth taking risks for Bai Zhiqing. Besides, Elder Tuoba was the actual employer.
Lin Dongming walked down to the foot of the mountain, summoned his sword, and quickly flew back to Tianjing Peak.
Just as he arrived at the entrance of his cave dwelling, he noticed a command token floating nearby. Lin Dongming grabbed it and saw it was a summons from his master, Immortal Zhaoyue of the Sword. He couldn’t help but sigh as he mounted his sword and flew toward the upper reaches of Tianjing Peak.
Passing through layers of clouds, the Sword-Holding Hall was located beside a waterfall near the summit.
Immortal Zhaoyue was an Elder of the Sword at Tianjian Sword Sect and theoretically one of the people with the highest sword attainment in the entire sect. This theoretically excellent master had made Lin Dongming wonder more than once why she had taken him as a disciple.
In reality, after joining the sect, Lin Dongming’s skill level was the weakest among Immortal Zhaoyue’s disciples, and her hands-off attitude toward him often made Lin Dongming suspect that she had accepted him on a whim, without much intention to cultivate him seriously—this kind of thing happened frequently in the big companies of Lin Dongming’s previous life.
When funds were plentiful, a boss might reward an employee with tens of thousands for reciting “Preface to the Pavilion of King Teng” at an annual meeting. Department heads would often recruit a bunch of people with a grand wave of the hand, thinking that a populous department would help them climb higher. But after recruiting them, they hadn’t thought about what to use them for, so it became a matter of letting employees find work for themselves.
This was exactly Lin Dongming’s personal experience after becoming Immortal Zhaoyue’s disciple.
—What wind is blowing today to make Master look for me?
Lin Dongming landed his sword nearby, crossed the floating bridge, and knocked on the door of the lakeside pavilion near the Sword-Holding Hall. The Sword-Holding Hall was a place for dueling and teaching, and Lin Dongming had only been there a few times over the years.
“Master, your disciple has arrived,” Lin Dongming knocked on the door respectfully.
“Come in,” Zhaoyue’s voice came from inside.
“Yes.” Lin Dongming pushed open the door, walked in, and bowed slightly. Zhaoyue was sitting at the tea table, somewhat lazily propping her face with one hand while reading a novel.
Her silver-white hair covered one side of her eyes and skin, but the exposed parts still couldn’t hide their luster, pure as jade under the quiet moonlight. A small section of beautifully curved calf showed beneath the hem of her slender robe, like a goddess untouched by mortal dust.
Her ethereal aura often made people think she existed beyond the mortal realm.
Before she told him to sit, Lin Dongming stood silently in front of Zhaoyue, awaiting instructions.
“Do you know why I called you here?” Unlike most elders, Zhaoyue didn’t like to refer to herself as “this seat.” Except for very formal occasions, whenever Zhaoyue used that term, it was usually because she was furious.
—As expected of a centuries-old spirit; no matter how beautiful she looks, her tactics are quite cunning.
This kind of broad question was typically asked to find out if Lin Dongming had caused any trouble she didn’t know about. An honest person, upon hearing it, would easily confess without being pressed.
But Lin Dongming hadn’t spent all those years as a corporate slave for nothing: “This disciple does not know.”
“You don’t know?” Zhaoyue raised her eyes to look at Lin Dongming. “Another wild boy who doesn’t admit to his misdeeds, hm?”
Lin Dongming continued to look at Zhaoyue with a puzzled expression. She sighed somewhat unhappily: “Why are you so foolish? If you’re going to teach those Duyuan Peak boys a lesson, couldn’t you at least cover your face?”
Lin Dongming: “…This foolish disciple understands. Next time I beat someone up, I’ll definitely wear a mask. I won’t cause Master any trouble.”
Though he had anticipated this sort of reaction, every time he heard it, Lin Dongming found Zhaoyue’s thought process rather peculiar. As in previous reprimands, Zhaoyue’s admonishments about disciples causing trouble could typically be summed up in three simple points:
Either you have the ability to cause trouble without being discovered, so others can’t find fault with you.
Or you admit you don’t have the ability and avoid causing trouble.
If you do cause trouble and get caught, I will cover for you, but you can forget about escaping the physical suffering.
But the other side had reported him quickly. Lin Dongming had only caused trouble during the day, and by the time he returned to his cave dwelling in the evening, his master’s token was already waiting at the door.
“Any defense?” Zhaoyue asked after her criticisms and admonishments.
“No defense.” Lin Dongming cupped his hands and said, “The trouble was indeed caused by this disciple, and someone did indeed come to complain. Besides being more careful next time, this disciple has nothing else to say.”
“Very well. Then as usual, withstand three moves from your master, and if you can dodge them, that’s your skill. Use any weapon you like.”
Zhaoyue took out an ordinary-looking piece of bamboo from her storage ring. Lin Dongming drew his sword, and they walked to the open space outside the lakeside pavilion.
Zhaoyue stood with her hands behind her back, lightly gripping the bamboo. “Let your master see how much you’ve improved.”
She used the bamboo as a sword and launched three moves instantly. She was in front of Lin Dongming in the blink of an eye. This was after Zhaoyue had suppressed her cultivation to match Lin Dongming’s level.
—So fast!
Lin Dongming didn’t even have time to draw his sword. He could only dodge the first strike by moving sideways and barely block the second with his blade.
But as soon as the bamboo touched the sword, it deflected Lin Dongming’s weapon. The third strike slashed toward his chest.
—No way to dodge!
Lin Dongming released spiritual energy from all the acupoints in his body, instantly transforming it into a gale that attempted to disrupt the trajectory of the sword move. Their clothes fluttered loudly in the wind.
But the bamboo easily cut through the gale, leaving a distinct bloody mark on his chest.
Zhaoyue stopped there, withdrawing the bamboo without pressing her advantage.
“Passable. You’ve made some progress,” Zhaoyue nodded with satisfaction.