A Small Matter

Qiusheng looked helplessly at Ren Wei, who was kneeling on the ground and clutching his thigh for dear life; he truly had no way to deal with him.

The fellow before him was just one step away from rolling around on the floor.

"Alright, alright, it's not impossible to take you on as a disciple. Here, you first master this, and then we'll talk."

Seeing that Ren Wei was pestering him so relentlessly, Qiusheng pulled a booklet from his robes and tossed it into Ren Wei's arms.

Ren Wei immediately picked up the booklet, and upon looking at it, five large characters appeared before his eyes.

"Golden Dragon Locking Jade Pillar!"

That's right, this was the Golden Dragon Locking Jade Pillar, which Wencai had returned to Qiusheng after finishing it.

Today, he was so annoyed by Ren Wei that he had no choice but to throw this item out.

Taking advantage of Ren Wei being captivated by the Golden Dragon Locking Jade Pillar, Qiusheng greased his heels and slipped away.

"My goodness, could this be a legendary manual for immortal cultivation?"

Ren Wei looked at the antique-style tome and muttered to himself.

But when he flipped to the title page, the excitement on his face vanished instantly. Looking at the annotations before him, he felt a sense of collapse.

"To practice this technique, one must live like a eunuch; until Great Perfection is reached, one must not lose their virginity."

Ren Wei stared blankly, clutching the Golden Dragon Locking Jade Pillar in his hands, lost in deep thought.

Meanwhile, Qiusheng had already returned to the Public Mortuary.

He went back to his bedroom and, seeing that Ren Tingting was still fast asleep on his bed, decided not to disturb her and went to squeeze into a room with Wencai for the night.

The next morning, at the crack of dawn, Tingting rushed out of Qiusheng's room with a blushing face.

Over the past few days, she had first lost her father and then been threatened by her own grandfather. Although she had appeared calm on the surface, her heart had been tightly wound.

It wasn't until last night, when all matters were resolved, that her mind finally relaxed. Coupled with the fact that her beloved was by her side, she had fallen into a deep sleep without realizing it.

It wasn't until this morning, when the sky was already bright, that she suddenly woke up on Qiusheng's bed. How could she not be bashful, realizing she had slept in Brother Sheng's room for the entire night?

Seeing that Ren Tingting was up, Qiusheng, who had just finished his morning exercise, had her wash up before introducing her to Uncle Nine, formally establishing her status as his girlfriend.

Afterward, Qiusheng took Tingting to Ren Family Town to visit his Auntie at the Rouge Shop and catch up.

Once they arrived at the Rouge Shop, Qiusheng immediately became an outsider. Watching these two women, one big and one small, holding hands and whispering, he couldn't stay any longer.

After greeting his Auntie, Qiusheng left the Rouge Shop and wandered aimlessly around Ren Family Town.

After wandering for a long time, Qiusheng suddenly raised an eyebrow and turned his gaze toward a large mansion.

This mansion was quite imposing, with a pair of majestic stone lions in front of the gate.

On the door plaque, there was even a small Bagua Mirror.

It was this Bagua Mirror that deeply caught Qiusheng's attention.

A layman might not notice it, but as a practitioner of the Dao, he could naturally see the details of this Bagua Mirror.

It was a magical artifact, and its grade was not low—at the very least, it was stronger than the average hundred-year-old Peach Wood Sword. One look was enough to tell that this mirror was no ordinary object.

Normally, it was quite common for wealthy families to have one or two magical artifacts to protect their homes; after all, rich people always managed to acquire treasures that ordinary people never had the chance to see.

However, what shocked Qiusheng was that even though this magical artifact was hanging on the lintel of the mansion, there were still wisps of Sha Qi rising from within, giving off a gloomy feeling.

Fortunately, this Sha Qi was not yet dense, so it would not cause any ill effects to the owner of the mansion in the short term.

However, as the Sha Qi accumulated over time, heaven knows what kind of terrifying evil entity it would attract once it truly erupted.

Qiusheng watched for a long while, hesitated, and then knocked on the gate of the mansion.

Following the sound of the knocking, the gate opened within a few breaths.

A servant walked out from behind the door. He looked Qiusheng up and down, and seeing his simple attire, a look of arrogance appeared on his face.

"Who are you? What are you doing at our mansion?"

Looking at the arrogant expression on the servant's face, the words of warning Qiusheng had intended to say were swallowed back down his throat.

However, after hesitating repeatedly, Qiusheng felt it was best to make an effort. Although the servant looked arrogant, perhaps he had misjudged him.

Thinking this, Qiusheng simply said, "Nothing much, I just wanted to pay a visit to your master. I wonder if you would be willing to pass on a message for me?"

"Hmph, where did this poor brat come from? Open your dog eyes and look—this is the residence of the number one wealthy merchant in Ren Family Town. A poor brat like you wants to visit our master? Go find a puddle and look at your own reflection!"

Hearing Qiusheng's words, the servant immediately began to curse.

Qiusheng, who had indeed been berated, shook his head and said nothing more.

I suppose it is the fate of this family to suffer this tribulation. I won't meddle in other people's business. Besides, I am leaving tonight, so even if there really is a problem here, I likely won't have the time to help them solve it.

Thinking this, Qiusheng curled his lips and said, "Hey, kid, I'll remember what you said today."

"One day, your master had better not end up begging my master, Uncle Nine, for help. Otherwise..."

Qiusheng stopped speaking at this point.

In his eyes, the servant before him was nothing more than an ant; if he truly wanted to deal with him, he could make the man drop dead in a matter of minutes.

However, he kept one thing firmly in mind: those skilled in the arts must not use them recklessly.

Unless someone pushed him too far or bullied him directly, he would never use his arts against an ordinary person.

Otherwise, if he were to lash out at commoners indiscriminately, how would he be any different from those evil cultivators?

If that were to happen, he feared even his master, Uncle Nine, would have to step in personally to purge him, a rebellious disciple.

Because of this thought, Qiusheng didn't wait for the servant to say anything else after finishing his sentence; he simply turned and walked away.

He didn't look back or say another word, even as the lad cursed and grumbled behind him.

"Xiao Liu, why are you cursing and swearing? If the Master hears you, watch out—you might lose this job you worked so hard to get."

"Oh, if it isn't Steward Li."

Seeing the middle-aged man who had suddenly appeared behind him, Xiao Liu bowed immediately, greeting him with a fawning expression before offering an explanation.

"Master Li, there was just some inexplicable, penniless scholar who knocked on the door wanting to pay a visit to our Master. I said a few words to him, and the brat actually had the nerve to threaten that our Master had better not end up begging for help from his master, Uncle Nine."

"It was only because I heard such words that I got angry and started spouting nonsense. Please, Steward Li, do not blame me."

Upon hearing Xiao Liu's words, Steward Li was slightly taken aback at first, but he didn't take it to heart; instead, he praised Xiao Liu a few times.

"Hmm, you did well. In the future, when you're guarding the gate, just turn away anyone you deem unnecessary. It will save the Master from being annoyed by inexplicable characters all day long."