But for Pavilion Master Liu and his three companions, the meal was sheer torment.
Not only were the four of them huddled together, but a glance or a word from Ninth Uncle would occasionally send them trembling from head to toe.
They looked like lambs that had wandered into a pack of wolves.
"Little friend Taiping, thank you for your hospitality today. My friends and I were all very pleased with the meal."
Ninth Uncle picked his teeth as he reached out and patted Xu Taiping on the shoulder.
"Were you... really... really pleased?"
Xu Taiping glanced at Pavilion Master Liu and the other three, still huddled together on one side, and could not help asking.
"Very pleased!"
"We were all very pleased!"
"Little friend Taiping's cooking is truly exceptional!"
"Indeed! This roast lamb was a feast of color, aroma, and flavor-a rare delicacy!"
The four showered Xu Taiping's cooking with praise, their words so heartfelt and earnest that anyone would have been moved.
"Pleased... well, I'm glad you were pleased."
Xu Taiping gave an awkward smile and nodded.
At the courtyard gate.
"Taiping, we've imposed on you enough today. It's time we left."
White Rainbow smiled as he said goodbye to Xu Taiping.
"It was no imposition. Uncle Bai, come by whenever you have time."
Xu Taiping smiled.
"What about This Old Man?"
Still picking his teeth, Ninth Uncle suddenly leaned his head over.
"If you want to come, Ninth Uncle, once every two or three months would be best. After all, this is a place for cultivation, not a restaurant. Besides, you eat four or five times as much as an ordinary person, so I'll have to charge more for your meals..."
"Enough, enough! As if I cared about your cooking!"
Ninth Uncle cut off Xu Taiping, who had been explaining with utmost seriousness.
Then he glared at Liu Songshan and the others ahead of him and said:
"What are you staring at? Get lost! I never want to see you lot again!"
"Y-yes!"
They fled at once.
"White Rainbow, let's go. We still have things to do."
After driving the others away, Ninth Uncle saw how warmly Xu Taiping and White Rainbow were getting along and immediately called White Rainbow over, looking thoroughly put out.
"Yes, Ninth Uncle." White Rainbow first nodded to Ninth Uncle, then turned back to Xu Taiping and said:
"Taiping, we're leaving. Cultivate here in peace; no one will come to bother you again. If I have some free time in a few months, I'll come visit."
"Thank you, Uncle Bai, for making a special trip to bring Ninth Uncle to my little courtyard."
Xu Taiping clasped his hands and bowed to White Rainbow in sincere thanks.
To his mind, if not for White Rainbow, how could someone of Ninth Uncle's stature possibly have come to his little courtyard for a meal?
So in his eyes, Ninth Uncle was merely a guest. Uncle Bai was the one he truly ought to thank.
"Taiping, you probably..."
"White Rainbow!"
White Rainbow had just begun to explain when Ninth Uncle interrupted him from behind.
"Stop dawdling. It's time to go."
Ninth Uncle glared at White Rainbow, then shot into the sky atop his flying sword. The gust stirred up by the sword split the clouds and mist overhead in two.
"Wait for me, Ninth Uncle."
White Rainbow spread his wings and chased after him.
"Ninth Uncle, why didn't you tell Taiping the truth? You're the one he ought to thank."
After catching up with Ninth Uncle, White Rainbow turned to him and asked in bewilderment.
"Since when did I, Sword Nine, need gratitude from some little fellow?"
Ninth Uncle curled his lip.
"Of course you don't, Ninth Uncle."
White Rainbow could naturally tell that Ninth Uncle's words belied his feelings, but he did not expose him.
"Still, if that boy had spent the whole day flattering and fawning over This Old Man, This Old Man would have disliked him instead. The way he behaved today suited This Old Man quite well. He knew This Old Man was no ordinary person, yet remained neither servile nor arrogant. That temperament far surpasses his peers. It's rare even among the Inner Sect Disciples of the Seven Peaks."
Ninth Uncle spoke with great approval.
In all the years White Rainbow had known Ninth Uncle, this was the first time he had heard him speak so highly of a junior. A hint of astonishment entered his eyes.
"Could it be that you're considering taking him as a disciple, Ninth Uncle?"
White Rainbow asked tentatively.
"A demon lotus has sprouted in the Heavenly Pool of Greedy Wolf Country on the northern frontier. If it's left unchecked, I fear the Divine Continent will gain another demon kingdom. This Old Man intends to cut it down before it emerges into the world. This journey will take at least two years. If that little fellow manages to break through to the Gate Opening Realm in those two years, then even if his aptitude is only white bone, I, Lü Sword Nine, will take him as my Personal Disciple and pass on all my swordsmanship to him."
Ninth Uncle's expression turned serious, something exceedingly rare for him.
Beside him, White Rainbow froze. He had not expected Ninth Uncle to truly consider taking a disciple, much less to be willing to pass on every last bit of his swordsmanship. Some disciples of the Azure Profound Sect's Seven Peaks had even pleaded with the sect leader for a chance to learn his swordsmanship, yet Ninth Uncle had refused to teach them even when the sect leader himself asked.
"Little White, this journey to Greedy Wolf Country offers nine chances of death and one of survival. If you're afraid, you can turn back now."
Ninth Uncle suddenly turned to glance at White Rainbow beside him.
"I have no fear. I am willing to follow you, Uncle Nine, and sever Greedy Wolf Country's demonic root!"
White Rainbow's expression changed, and he spoke with unwavering resolve in his eyes.
Meanwhile.
In a forest dozens of miles from Green Bamboo Abode.
Smack!
Thud!
Xu Youzhi, Hall Master of the Raging Wind Hall, lashed out with hand and foot, viciously slapping Zuo Ju across the face and kicking Zhou Gu.
"You two idiots!"
He pointed at the two men kneeling on the ground and hurled abuse at them.
"Grand Martial Uncle was generous enough not to hold this against you today. In the old days, your souls would probably have been scattered to the winds by now!"
Pavilion Master Liu likewise glared viciously at them.
"Pavilion Master Liu, Hall Master Xu, we'll never dare do it again! Never again!"
"That's right! How could we have known that boy had Grand Martial Uncle backing him?"
The two knelt on the ground, weeping and begging for mercy.
"Pavilion Master Liu, do you think Grand Martial Uncle really won't pursue this any further?"
Xu Youzhi asked Pavilion Master Liu beside him with some concern.
His unspoken meaning was clear: if Grand Martial Uncle intended to pursue the matter, these two could not be allowed to live.
"This Old Man paid close attention earlier. That Xu Taiping didn't seem to know Grand Martial Uncle at all, but he was quite close to that scoundrel White Rainbow. I suspect White Rainbow was borrowing Grand Martial Uncle's authority to intimidate us."
Liu Songshan frowned in thought.
"So that scoundrel really was behind it!"
At this, Xu Youzhi stamped his foot viciously, crushing a rock beneath it to powder.
"Let these two live for now. Why would Grand Martial Uncle care whether an ordinary Outer Sect Disciple lived or died? It was nothing more than a passing whim."
Liu Songshan finally decided.
"Are we just going to let that scoundrel White Rainbow off, then?"
Xu Youzhi asked again.
"I heard White Rainbow will soon accompany Grand Martial Uncle to Greedy Wolf Country on the northern frontier. They won't return for two or three years, and he may even die there."
Liu Songshan murmured.
"White Rainbow has always opposed our West Wind Pavilion, relying on his command over the spirit birds in the western mountains. If he dies in Greedy Wolf Country this time, it will be a rare cause for celebration for both of us."
A greedy gleam entered Xu Youzhi's eyes as he spoke.
"After White Rainbow leaves, his wife Night Sparrow should take command of the spirit birds of the Western Mountain in his stead. But her cultivation is far below his. Perhaps we can find a way to bring her down. Then the entire Western Mountain will fall under our West Wind Pavilion's control. Even if White Rainbow returns alive, the wood will already have been fashioned into a boat, and there will be nothing he can do."
Liu Songshan narrowed his eyes and looked at Xu Youzhi with a cunning expression.
"An excellent suggestion, Brother Liu!"
At those words, a smile appeared at the corners of Xu Youzhi's mouth as well.
Before you continue