Perhaps because of that outburst, Chen Mu's authority among the children had become unshakable. This also made his subsequent work teaching them the Body-Strengthening Exercise go very smoothly. Compared with how he had once been, these youngsters of the Wanqi Lineage were in far better physical condition. They picked up the exercise remarkably quickly, so quickly that even Chen Mu was astonished. Wei'a, on the other hand, remained completely unruffled.
Wei'a did indeed begin teaching the children his techniques, much to Chen Mu's delight. In his eyes, these primitive techniques were astonishingly powerful. Chen Mu had always felt that Wei'a's techniques were perfectly suited to the village youngsters. They were clever, physically gifted, and tenacious, unafraid of pain or hardship-practically ideal disciples. Yet Wei'a had never considered passing his techniques on to them, instead taking an immediate liking to Chen Mu, an outsider.
This was not the only way Wei'a stood apart from the village. Chen Mu had long noticed that, aside from softening his expression a little around the Clan Leader and Liduhong, Wei'a never showed anyone else in the village a pleasant face. The villagers, too, felt more fear than respect for Wei'a. Some even showed a trace of hostility in their eyes, which puzzled Chen Mu.
Wei'a still had not given a direct answer about this, and Chen Mu suspected he never would. What reassured Chen Mu somewhat, however, was that the adult villagers' feelings had not affected the children much. Having survived a trial of life and death, the children's worship of strength had reached its peak. As a prime example of overwhelming strength, Wei'a had more than enough credentials to become one of their new idols. The other, of course, was our comrade Chen Mu.
The beetle had brought Chen Mu quite a few pleasant