The Mysterious New Instructor (2)

Pfft—crack... bang—

Three different sounds rang out almost one after another, yet each was distinctly different. The first was naturally the sound of the Wooden Sword striking the wooden post, while the second was the sound of the Wooden Sword breaking. Yes, the Wooden Sword had actually been unable to withstand Long Haochen's chop and had snapped in the middle. Fortunately, it had not broken completely, so it did not spring away and injure him.

The final sound was the impact of the stone bead falling back down. Still holding his chopping stance, Long Haochen clearly saw that the highest point it had bounced to had reached the mark of twenty-five.

Was this real? It was. The broken Wooden Sword proved it. Balza had once told them that the Wooden Swords they used could withstand a maximum spiritual power of twenty.

Although Long Haochen did not yet have much of a concept of what it meant to become a knight, advancing from a first-level Attendant Knight to a second-level Attendant Knight overnight still filled him with a shockingly immense joy.

"Hm?" A soft snort jolted Long Haochen awake. He turned around instinctively and was startled to discover that, at some unknown point, a middle-aged man had appeared behind him.

Though Long Haochen had been startled, he was not afraid. He curiously examined the middle-aged man before him.

The man was tall and slender, with black hair and black eyes, and dignified features. Handsome was not the right word to describe him; imposing would have suited him better. He wore simple cloth garments, and his face was cold and stern. From him, Long Haochen could sense an invisible pressure, like towering mountain ranges whose peaks could not be seen.

After briefly revealing his surprise, the middle-aged man quickly returned to normal. His brows furrowed slightly as he looked at Long Haochen as well.

"Who are you?" Long Haochen asked curiously.

The middle-aged man said calmly, "You passed the Attendant Knight examination yesterday. Starting today, I am your new instructor. You may call me Teacher Xingyu."

Long Haochen hesitated. "But I've never met you."

Xingyu said calmly, "Your name is Long Haochen. You are nine years old this year, and your mother's name is Bai Yue. Am I right?"

Long Haochen nodded.

Xingyu's gaze suddenly grew several degrees more solemn. "We'll talk after Balza arrives." As he spoke, he said nothing more, merely facing one direction as his lips moved faintly a few times.

Only a moment later, hurried footsteps sounded. Long Haochen saw Balza rushing over, his face filled with intense shock and respect.

"Hello, Instructor." Upon seeing Balza, Long Haochen immediately gave him a knight's salute.

But strangely, Balza did not return the salute as usual. Instead, he hurried to Xingyu's side and said respectfully, "My lord."

Xingyu nodded. "Tell him that I am his new instructor."

"Yes." Balza hurriedly said to Long Haochen, "Lord Xingyu comes from the Bright Moon City Knight Sub-Hall. Starting today, he will be your knight instructor for the next three years. You must follow all of Lord Xingyu's guidance. Lord Xingyu is a true knight."

"Oh." Long Haochen obediently agreed. In truth, he had no idea what the difference was between a Quasi-Knight and a true knight. But since this was his new instructor, he only needed to cultivate under him.

"Teacher Xingyu." With that thought, he obediently greeted Xingyu. Compared to others his age, he truly was much more mature and steady.

"Mm, let's go." As Xingyu spoke, he naturally took Long Haochen's hand and led him outside. Before taking a step, however, his gaze swept covertly across Long Haochen's pretty little face, and a trace of melancholy flickered in his eyes.

Xingyu's hand was large, with long fingers and broad palms, almost completely enveloping Long Haochen's hand. Warmth and safety—those were all Long Haochen felt.

"Teacher Xingyu, aren't we cultivating here?" After leaving the Odin Sub-Temple, Long Haochen could not help asking.

Xingyu said, "This place is unsuitable."

Sensing the cold hardness in Xingyu's tone, Long Haochen wisely did not ask anything further.

Balza watched their departing backs and muttered to himself in astonishment, "Just who is this lord? Was that voice transmission just now? He would need to be at least an Earth Knight to possess such an ability, wouldn't he? No, perhaps a Radiant Knight? Heavens!"

Xingyu led Long Haochen out of Odin Town. The moment they left the town, Long Haochen suddenly felt a vast, warm, and dense energy flow from Long Xingyu's hand. The next instant, a strange scene unfolded, as though they were riding the clouds and mist.

Each time Xingyu lightly tapped the ground with the tip of his foot, he carried them at least a hundred feet forward. Within only a few breaths, Odin Town had been flung far behind them.

To Long Haochen, such speed was like racing wind and flashing lightning. All he could do was grip Xingyu's hand tightly, afraid that he might fall.

Before long, they passed through the forest where Long Haochen had gathered wild vegetables yesterday, then climbed a mountain behind it. Long Haochen knew this area well, after all, he had grown up nearby. The people of Odin Town called this mountain Odin Mountain. Yet because wild beasts often appeared in the mountain and the forest they had passed through, and magical beasts had even appeared before, few people came here. Half a year ago, driven by curiosity, he had once reached the foot of Odin Mountain. There, he saw an unnamed beast and fled in fright. Ever since then, Long Haochen had never ventured deep into the forest again, much less entered Odin Mountain.

"Teacher, there are wild beasts here. There might even be magical beasts," Long Haochen kindly warned him.

Yet Xingyu seemed not to hear him at all. Instead, he increased his speed severalfold and directly brought him up Odin Mountain. Even while climbing, his speed did not slow. The scenery flashed past on either side, and the fierce wind blew Long Haochen's hair into disarray.

Odin Mountain was not particularly tall, only a little over two hundred zhang high. In only a short while, they reached the summit.

Three small wooden huts appeared in Xingyu's sight. There was no courtyard, only three lonely wooden huts. Judging by how new the timber looked, they had clearly been built not long ago.

Xingyu did not stop until they reached the huts. He led Long Haochen into the largest one in the middle.

Pushing open the door, they were greeted by the faint scent of wood. It was not unpleasant; instead, it carried a subtle fragrance. The central hut was the largest, yet its furnishings were as simple as could be: a wooden bed without even bedding, a wooden table, and two wooden chairs. That was all. It was even plainer than Long Haochen's home.

"Sit." Xingyu pointed at a chair and pulled one out for himself as well.

Long Haochen sat down obediently. Though he was young and had not seen much of the world, he could still sense that his teacher was very powerful. Amid his nervousness, he also felt somewhat excited.

"First, tell me what you encountered yesterday. Why did your spiritual power double?" Xingyu asked calmly. There was no expression on his face, yet his words brought Long Haochen an invisible pressure.

"Yesterday, it happened like this..." Long Haochen did not feel there was anything he needed to hide, so he recounted everything that had happened yesterday.

As Xingyu listened, his brows only furrowed slightly once throughout the entire account. Other than that, he gave no reaction.