Great Bamboo Peak.
"Heh heh..."
Ye Xuan rubbed his chin, a smile spreading across his face.
With this Low-tier Alchemy Mastery,
his days ahead were about to get a lot more interesting.
"Knock, knock, knock!"
Just as Ye Xuan was imagining the future, a sudden knock sounded at the door.
"Seventh!"
A voice came from outside.
It was Sixth Brother Du Bishu.
He used to be called Du Dashu.
Because he loved gambling, Tian Buyi had forcibly changed his name to Du Bishu (a pun meaning "gambling was sure to lose").
"Sixth Brother, what's up?"
Ye Xuan hurried over and slowly opened the door.
Outside,
Du Bishu held a tray with a steaming bowl of noodles on it. The aroma was irresistible.
"You must've been so engrossed in cultivation that you forgot to eat!"
"You skipped lunch. Here, I saved this for you."
"Mistress made it herself."
"Normally, only Master and Ling'er get this kind of treatment. The rest of us can only look on."
"You know I'm in charge of the cooking here at Great Bamboo Peak, but my skills..."
"Heh heh, they're nowhere near Mistress's."
Du Bishu handed over the noodles and lowered his voice.
"Thanks, Sixth Brother!"
"And thank Mistress for me, too!"
Ye Xuan felt a warmth in his heart.
He took the noodles and, without ceremony, lifted the bowl and drank a big mouthful of broth.
"What are you thanking me for?"
"We're family!"
"By the way, Seventh!"
"Did Master scold you just now?"
"He looked so red in the face and worked up. Was he really angry?"
Du Bishu waved a hand.
He leaned in toward Ye Xuan and asked with a gossipy look.
Earlier,
several of the senior brothers had seen Tian Buyi rush into the back hall.
They'd all wondered whether the new junior disciple brother had made some terrible mistake to get Master so worked up.
"Scold me?"
"No. Master was pretty happy!"
Ye Xuan swallowed a mouthful of noodles and blinked in feigned confusion.
"Happy?"
Du Bishu looked unconvinced.
"When Master's happy, he always keeps a straight face!"
"Only when he's angry does he get red in the face..."
"Look at how red Senior Brother gets when he's being scolded. He looks just like a monkey's backside."
Ye Xuan nearly spat out his food.
What an analogy...
"Really!"
"Master even praised me!"
Ye Xuan drank the last of the broth and licked his lips, still savoring it.
"Praised you?"
"Seventh, are you running a fever?"
"Master praising someone? That'd happen only if the sun rose in the west!"
Du Bishu stared at him, eyes wide, as if he'd just heard the most unbelievable story imaginable.
In the eyes of Great Bamboo Peak's disciples, Tian Buyi was a strict master, almost to the point of being harsh.
Forget praise. If they got through a day with only a couple of scoldings, it felt like New Year's.
"You don't believe me?"
Ye Xuan set down his bowl and chopsticks, a mysterious smile tugging at his lips.
"No!"
Du Bishu shook his head decisively.
"Then how about a wager?"
A glint of cunning flashed in Ye Xuan's eyes.
"What are we betting on?"
The moment he heard the word "bet,"
Du Bishu's eyes lit up. It was an instinct etched into his very bones.
"Let's bet on..."
"Whether Master gives me an extra chicken leg at dinner."
Ye Xuan held up one finger.
"An extra chicken leg?"
"Seventh, you're dreaming!"
"Great Bamboo Peak gets a fixed number of chicken legs!"
"One per person, no more!"
"Even Mistress doesn't get an exception!"
"Besides, Master's so stingy..."
"Cough, I mean, so thrifty. Why would he give you an extra chicken leg?"
"He'd have to be crazy!"
Du Bishu nearly jumped to his feet.
"Sixth Brother,"
"Just tell me whether you're taking the bet."
Ye Xuan smiled at him, like a big bad wolf luring in a little white rabbit.
"I'm in!"
"Absolutely!"
"If you lose,"
"you'll do my laundry for a whole month!"
Du Bishu slapped his thigh.
The junior disciple brother was still too young.
As his senior brother, he'd show him firsthand how cruel the world could be.
"Deal."
"What if you lose?"
Ye Xuan agreed without hesitation.
"If I lose..."
"I'll make you special dishes in the kitchen from now on!"
"Whatever you want to eat, if I have the ingredients, I'll make it whenever you ask!"
Du Bishu's eyes darted to the side.
"Deal!"
Ye Xuan held out his palm.
"Slap!"
Their palms met in midair.
Du Bishu chuckled and left with the empty bowl.
As he walked away, he even hummed a little tune.
He could practically see Ye Xuan with a long face, doing his laundry.
Watching Du Bishu walk away,
Ye Xuan's smile grew even wider.
Oh, Sixth Brother.
You really are volunteering to get yourself crushed!
Dinner time...
This was going to be quite a show.
Ye Xuan closed the door but didn't rest right away.
He sat cross-legged on the bed and assumed the five-heart-upward posture.
He closed his eyes and focused his mind.
The mantra for the Tai Chi Xuan Qing Dao flowed through his mind once more.
This time, it felt clearer.
The spiritual energy of heaven and earth all around him seemed to have been summoned, surging toward the little room.
After an unknown amount of time,
the sky outside had already begun to darken.
Ye Xuan slowly opened his eyes.
Without the subsequent cultivation methods for Tai Chi Xuan Qing Dao,
Ye Xuan was still only at the first level of Tai Chi Xuan Qing Dao.
But the true essence within him had more than doubled in strength.
This Primordial Era Version of the Innate Dao Body really was overbearing!
Then,
Ye Xuan glanced at the sky outside.
It was time to go honor that wager.
He wondered whether Sixth Brother was ready.
Ye Xuan pushed open the door and strode outside.
The dining hall of Shou Jing Hall.
The people of Great Bamboo Peak had gradually gathered.
Song Daren was ladling porridge into everyone's bowls.
Wu Dayi was setting out the bowls and chopsticks.
Zheng Dali was sneaking a bite of pickled vegetables when He Dazhi smacked the back of his hand.
Lu Daxin sat there dozing, looking as if he hadn't quite woken up.
And Du Bishu...
He was sitting excitedly near the door.
Every so often, he glanced toward the entrance, looking like a gambler waiting for the lottery results.
"Sixth, what's gotten into you today?"
"Got a nail under your butt?"
He Dazhi couldn't help asking.
"Heh heh!"
"Fourth Brother, I'm waiting for Seventh!"
"I've got a feeling something good is going to happen today!"
Du Bishu smiled mysteriously.
"Something good?"
"What good could happen to you?"
"Are you about to lose everything again?"
Song Daren set a bowl of porridge in front of Tian Buyi's seat and asked curiously.
"How could I?"
Du Bishu was about to argue when a figure appeared in the doorway.
"Greetings, senior brothers!"
Ye Xuan walked in with a light step.
He greeted everyone with a beaming smile, looking to be in an especially good mood.
"Seventh!"
His senior fellow disciples all answered him.
Just then,
a series of footsteps came from the rear hall.
Tian Buyi and Su Ru walked out side by side.
All the disciples immediately stood and bowed.
"Master, Mistress!"
"Mm. Sit down and eat."
Su Ru smiled warmly and gestured for everyone to relax.
As for Tian Buyi...
Tian Buyi seemed a little different today.
His face, usually stern, had relaxed considerably.
He was still somewhat serious, but the joy at the corners of his eyes and the edges of his brows was impossible to hide.
He even gave a rare snort in response to his disciples' greetings.
This unusual sight made the disciples exchange bewildered looks.
Had Master... taken the wrong medicine?
Only Du Bishu felt his heart skip a beat, a sense of foreboding rising within him.
No way...
But the worst was yet to come.
Once everyone had taken their seats,
Tian Buyi suddenly reached out and picked up the chicken leg that had originally been meant for him.
Then,
under the horrified gazes of all the disciples,
he placed the chicken leg directly into Ye Xuan's bowl.
"You're still growing. Eat more meat!"
Tian Buyi said with a smile in his voice.
Boom!
At that moment,
Du Bishu felt as if he could hear his worldview collapsing.
He really... got an extra chicken leg?
And it was Master's own?
Before you continue