The Master's Knowledge is Like a High Mountain

In the Guigu, Verdant Green Maiden lay sprawled on a self-made lounge chair, rocking her body.

Hong Luan was still recounting the thrilling scene just now to Snake Girl—if it hadn't reacted so swiftly, the Apprenticeship Gift would have slipped right through their fingers!

Seeing it in a pose begging for praise, Verdant Green Maiden got up, swung a palm at it, and scolded, "Use that walnut-sized bird brain of yours to think properly—if you hadn't rushed out so eagerly, wouldn't they have come back bearing generous gifts?"

"Mm!"

Hong Luan dodged Verdant Green Maiden's hand, blinked, and said, "Seems like..."

Verdant Green Maiden helplessly pressed her forehead.

"The Immortal Entrance Ceremony I painstakingly prepared!"

"All ruined by that one line of yours!"

Hong Luan hurriedly tried to soothe Verdant Green Maiden, "Don't fret, don't fret—just knock them out and make them forget! Haven't you done that plenty of times before? At worst, we do it again..."

At these words, Verdant Green Maiden's expression shifted, and she quickly said, "Nonsense! How can you slander a snake's innocence out of thin air!"

"Huh?"

Hong Luan tilted its head, utterly bewildered.

She had that?

Pang Juan and Sun Boling prepared generous gifts, knelt outside the valley, and bowed repeatedly with utmost respect, seeking an audience with the immortal. Hong Luan snatched the gifts away first, drawing startled cries from the two youths—could such a small frame really carry something so heavy?

Truly an Immortal Bird!

Immortal Bird or not aside, Verdant Green Maiden wasn't too pleased with the youths' gifts.

"Why so little meat!"

Among the Six Gifts, Dried Meat only accounted for one item, and not much at that. Though Pang Juan and Sun Boling had considered the immortal's status and added extra Sacrificial Meat, in Verdant Green Maiden's eyes, this bit of meat was barely a bite or two!

She was a Snake Girl who couldn't live without meat!

Even eating fruit counted as cultivating self-restraint.

"Sigh... what were those two called?" Verdant Green Maiden sighed, lifting her head to ask Hong Luan.

Hong Luan shook its head, "I didn't ask."

Verdant Green Maiden: "..."

Hong Luan made another trip and brought back the two names. When Verdant Green Maiden heard them, how could this be allowed?

Quickly, invite them in!

Pang Juan and Sun Boling!

Watching the two youths kneeling before her, solemnly kowtowing in greeting, Verdant Green Maiden recalled their historical fate of turning blades on each other and couldn't help but sigh.

"Immortal?"

The two youths, hearing her sigh, felt anxious.

Verdant Green Maiden cleared her throat, her gaze falling on them, and said, "I am Gui Gu Zi. From this day forth, you two are my disciples! As fellow Guigu Disciples, you must support each other in the future! Understood?"

The two youths were overjoyed and bowed in unison.

"Greetings, Master!"

At this moment, the youths' smiles were radiant.

Pang Juan, being older, became the Senior Disciple. However, Verdant Green Maiden didn't start teaching them anything else at first—she began with the principles of being a good person. Her spiritual outlook, millennia ahead of its time, thoroughly stunned the two young men.

Verdant Green Maiden was a good master. The two lived in the Guigu, with all their Daily Necessities taken care of.

The two disciples neither visited home nor took breaks; they stayed in the Guigu all year round. Seeing them so active, Verdant Green Maiden assigned them the task of cleaning inside and outside the valley, making them serve as Human Weed Mowers.

After Winter Day arrived, Verdant Green Maiden holed up in her room to hibernate, while the two diligently shoveled snow for months.

One day, after clearing another layer of snow, Pang Juan pulled Sun Boling aside and whispered, "Junior Disciple, don't you think the Master is treating us like Laborers?"

"Why would you think that, Senior Disciple?"

Sun Boling didn't understand.

Pang Juan said worriedly, "In the year or two since we became disciples, the Master has taught us nothing but the principles of being a person! At this rate, when will we ever learn real skills? The Master lives long and endures, but we can't afford to wait."

Search Book Name couldn't find it—try searching by author instead; maybe it just changed its name!

Verdant Green Maiden was lazy and idle; aside from eating and drinking, everything in her day seemed pushable to three or five days later, or even Half a Month Later.

Perhaps as a Banished Immortal with boundless Lifespan, she cared little for the passage of time.

But they truly couldn't afford to wait!

Pang Juan wasn't complaining about Verdant Green Maiden, just lamenting that at this rate, he might not live long enough to see the day he completed his studies.

And then, how could he ever make a name for himself in the world?

Just as the two youths were considering betting on their longevity, the snake who loved sleeping in finally crawled out of bed. Hong Luan, seeing her tidy up her disheveled appearance, quipped, "Can't you just skip the sleep?"

At these words, Verdant Green Maiden's movements froze.

After a long while, she murmured softly.

"Because winter is hard to get through..."

Back when she was still the totem of the You Xiong Tribe, the tribe's Meat Food and grain were always set aside for her first.

But winter made food scarce, and her appetite was large. After much thought, she figured she might as well hibernate, to spare the tribe from going hungry and cold just to save rations for her. That one sleep became a habit spanning over two thousand years.

Hong Luan was silent for a long while, then said, "I've already prepared food for you."

Snake Girl's first famous saying: whether sick, injured, hungry, or dead, you still have to eat.

Full belly means hope!

Verdant Green Maiden summoned Pang Juan and Sun Boling. Under the clear gazes of the two youths, she announced, "From today onward, I will teach you two Military Strategy."

The two were overjoyed and bowed in thanks.

Privately, Hong Luan questioned Verdant Green Maiden, "You actually know Military Strategy?"

"What a novelty!"

Verdant Green Maiden scoffed, sneering, "We immortals who live forever—even if we started as pigs, after so many years alive, is there anything we couldn't learn?"

Shang Tang overthrew the Xia, King Wu conquered the Zhou—over a thousand years of war, and Verdant Green Maiden had lived through it all.

As the saying goes, long illness makes the patient a doctor; she'd learned just by watching!

Hong Luan, who still hadn't learned to become human: "..."

Winter passed, spring came, and several years went by.

The youths of before had now grown. Verdant Green Maiden stood before them, looking more like a younger sister. Yet the two never showed her any disrespect for her petite stature! After years of study, they were utterly convinced by her.

The Master's knowledge was like a high mountain, like a deep sea; the more they looked up, the higher it seemed, unfathomable.

But when would they be considered accomplished?

Temple Calculation!

Yet after over a dozen Temple Calculations, both Senior Disciples lost to Verdant Green Maiden, which only stoked their competitive spirit. Day after day, it continued.

Finally, both managed to tie with Verdant Green Maiden in Temple Calculation.

"Congratulations, you may now leave the mountain!"

Sun Boling heard this, bowed, and said, "Master flatters me. This Disciple still has a long road ahead."

Pang Juan, however, wore a proud expression and cupped his hands to Verdant Green Maiden, "Many thanks, Master!"

The next day, Pang Juan asked to take his leave.

The Great Contention Era was upon them, with Warring States constantly at odds—this was the time for Pang Juan to realize his ambitions and make a name for himself! After years of hidden study in Ghost Valley, he could wait no longer.

At the valley mouth, Pang Juan turned back to look at Sun Boling and asked, "Junior Disciple, truly won't you come with me?"

Sun Boling shook his head and declined, "No, Senior Brother!"

"Then wait for Senior Brother to carve out a world out there! Junior Disciple, remember to find me after you Leave the Mountain—Senior Brother will protect you!"

"Many thanks, Senior Brother!"

The two Senior Disciples bid farewell at the valley mouth.

Pang Juan turned and left.

When Sun Boling returned to the valley, Verdant Green Maiden was arguing with Hong Luan over whether to eat a fruit or plant it. Seeing him come back, she put the fruit away and asked, "Why haven't you left?"

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