Lao De Nuo's Regret

At first, Ji Shu had not chosen to confront Yue Buqun directly because he had been brainwashed by too many TV dramas. He thought Yue Buqun was rather dangerous; one careless step, and he might fall into the man's deep pit. It was still more comfortable to spend time with kind people like Yue Lingshan and Ning Zhongze.

But after spending several days together.

Ji Shu discovered that Yue Buqun was still quite the gentleman. His conduct and temperament were genuinely good.

At the very least, from Ji Shu's observations, Yue Buqun was humble and refined, brimming with righteous spirit. Though he possessed schemes and ambition, that was only human nature. Ji Shu himself had ambitions and calculations of his own.

It seems Yue Buqun in this world is more like Yue Buqun from the early part of the novel.

The early-novel Yue Buqun had seemed like a positive character! It was only later, after suffering all manner of setbacks and hardships, after being forced, intimidated, and threatened, that he had gradually darkened.

No matter what Yue Buqun was like in the novels or TV dramas, the Yue Buqun of this world was a living, breathing person, with his own joys and sorrows, hardships and worries, ambitions and lofty sentiments.

Ji Shu saw all of it, little by little coming to acknowledge Yue Buqun. Of course, he was no fool either. He still maintained the vigilance he should have and would not truly entrust his entire fortune and life to Yue Buqun.

This day.

Ji Shu lay beneath the Old Sophora Tree, the Mount Hua Sword cradled in his arms, feeling the Jade Breaking Sword Art draw in, devour, and digest the qi flow.

By now.

Since that battle.

Seven or eight days had already passed.

The sword art inner qi of the Jade Breaking Sword Art had completely devoured the inner qi of the Huashan Heart Method.

The sword art inner qi within his Dantian surged and roiled, utterly different from the faint wisps of eight days ago.

Moreover, over these past days.

The Jade Breaking Sword Art had continually drawn qi flow into his body, causing its inner qi to grow without pause. By now, however, the Jade Breaking Sword Art's inner qi was almost unable to grow any further.

Just how strong have I become?

Ji Shu slightly opened his eyes and sensed the two powerful currents of qi within his Dantian.

One was the Righteous Qi Sword, forged from fifty-six methods!

The other was sword art inner qi fused with the Huashan Heart Method!

The two kinds of qi were evenly matched.

Each had its own strengths and weaknesses!

One on the left and one on the right, as distinct as the waters of the Jing and Wei, they lay within his Dantian and slowly revolved, resembling a taiji symbol.

It's a pity the Jade Breaking Sword Art isn't complete.

Having cultivated it to this point, Ji Shu sensed that the Jade Breaking Sword Art seemed to be missing something. Otherwise, he would surely have been able to charge ahead in one breath and break through to a higher realm. Yet it was just short by that one final shudder!

Feng Buping couldn't possibly have deliberately passed down an incomplete mental formula to me. There's only one possibility: Feng Buping himself doesn't know that this Jade Breaking Sword Art is incomplete.

That makes sense. Though Feng Buping's swordsmanship is exceedingly brilliant, his internal cultivation is still somewhat inferior to Yue Buqun's. It's normal that he failed to notice this.

Ji Shu rose to his full height and thought:

I wonder when Yue Buqun will teach me the Purple Cloud Divine Skill?

Just as he was thinking.

Someone ran into the courtyard and respectfully bowed to Ji Shu before saying:

"Vice Sect Leader, the Sect Leader requests your presence."

Ji Shu glanced sideways.

It was Lao De Nuo.

Ji Shu nodded. "Let's go."

Over these eight days, he had more or less adapted to his identity as Vice Sect Leader.

And during these days, he had constantly recalled the scene of killing people that day, forcing himself to adapt to such bloody sights!

After several days, the results had been remarkable. At the very least, he no longer needed to suppress it with internal energy to keep his stomach from churning.

His adaptability was somewhat stronger than that of ordinary people. Perhaps that was one reason he had been able to survive safely in the oppressive society of the Blue Star world and save a million to buy a ticket.

"Yes."

Lao De Nuo led the way.

Ji Shu followed behind.

Along the way, Lao De Nuo occasionally struck up a conversation with Ji Shu, his intent to curry favor obvious.

Ji Shu merely answered with a smile or two, showing no intention of speaking with him at length.

Lao De Nuo did not mind, and his enthusiasm remained unchanged.

Yet inwardly, he was secretly full of regret: Had he known Ji Shu was such a genius, he should have found an opportunity to finish Ji Shu off after he joined the sect! Alas, time could not be turned back. By the time he realized Ji Shu was an unparalleled genius, Ji Shu had already become so strong that he did not even dare provoke him!

Back then, he had even deliberately "followed" Ji Shu for some time. He had thought Ji Shu was utterly ordinary, which was why he had abandoned his plan to suppress him. Who could have known that he had completely misjudged him? Ji Shu had been hiding his true ability from the start! Or perhaps Ji Shu had not concealed anything at all—his growth had simply been too fast, so fast that Lao De Nuo could barely take it in. Before he had even come to his senses, Ji Shu had already reached the point where he could kill him with ease!

"We're here."

Lao De Nuo's feelings were complicated, but his outward respect remained unchanged. His disguise was flawless.

Now that two currents of inner qi revolved within Ji Shu's Dantian, his cultivation was so high that even he himself did not know how strong he was. Empowered by those two currents of inner qi, his senses and eyesight were extraordinary, and his insight was exceedingly sharp.

Knowing that Lao De Nuo was a spy, he could naturally sense through and see through Lao De Nuo's disguise and thoughts.

He did not expose him. Instead, he nodded impassively and strode straight into the main hall.

Inside the main hall.

Yue Buqun, Ning Zhongze, and Yue Lingshan sat at one table.

Lu Dayou, Liang Fa, and the others sat at another.

The dishes had all been served.

But no one had touched their chopsticks. They were all waiting for Ji Shu. The moment they saw him arrive, everyone's eyes brightened slightly. Yue Buqun even stood, beckoned Ji Shu over, and said with a smile:

"Ji Shu, you're here. Come eat quickly. We were waiting for you."

"Yes, Sect Leader."

Ji Shu went over and addressed Ning Zhongze and Yue Lingshan as "Martial Mother" and "Master Yue" before sitting down.

Ning Zhongze nodded with a smile.

Yue Lingshan's eyes curved into crescents from smiling, her face full of satisfaction.

These days, her happiest time every day was mealtime, when Ji Shu called her Master Yue in front of everyone!

That sense of accomplishment was off the charts!

"Ji Shu, have a chicken leg."

Yue Lingshan took the initiative to place a chicken leg in Ji Shu's bowl.

"Thank you, Master Yue."

"Why be so polite with your Master Yue? As long as your Master Yue has food to eat, could you possibly go without?"

Yue Lingshan's eyes and brows were filled with laughter.

Seeing this scene, Lu Dayou and the others also smiled. At this moment, they had no choice but to admit that their little junior sister was truly blessed! She had gone down the mountain to take in disciples and picked up an unparalleled genius! Why did they never encounter such good fortune?!

Just imagining Ji Shu calling them "Master Lu" or "Master Liang" in front of everyone made Lu Dayou, Liang Fa, and the others' hearts surge.

Unfortunately, they could only imagine it.

"Ji Shu."

During the meal.

Yue Buqun called out to Ji Shu.

"Yes."

Ji Shu looked toward Yue Buqun.

Yue Buqun instinctively stroked his beard and said:

"In two days, we will set out to attend the gathering of the Five Peaks Alliance. You will come with us as well."

"Alright."

"Mm. If you need anything, remember to tell me. We're all family now, so don't stand on ceremony with me."

"Don't worry. I will."