When Lu Ming arrived at the ward office, he went straight to the inner courtyard with practiced ease.
However, when he entered the inner courtyard, he was slightly taken aback, because he did not see Zhou Xuan and Zhou Fuling, but instead saw three unfamiliar figures.
A beautiful woman in palace attire, with a stunning face and a voluptuous figure, sat languidly in a stone pavilion. Her slightly raised eyebrows gave her a somewhat aloof and unapproachable air.
Behind the beautiful woman stood a young couple.
The young man was dressed in black, his posture upright like a pine tree, quite handsome. The girl was dressed similarly, her black hair tied in a high ponytail, her slender figure exquisite and graceful, like a flower bud in full bloom. Her features were also quite beautiful, her Liang Gao like a distant mountain, very three-dimensional.
Lu Ming was puzzled when he saw the three strangers. This inner courtyard was the residence of Zhou Xuan and Zhou Fuling, so those who could come here should all be people Zhou Xuan knew.
Therefore, Lu Ming decided to step back first.
"Hey kid, come here."
However, before he could leave, the beautiful woman in palace attire in the stone pavilion raised her eyes and spoke in a faint voice, which was somewhat arrogant and domineering.
Upon hearing this, Lu Ming hesitated for a moment, then went inside, stopped outside the stone pavilion, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Greetings, Senior."
He could faintly sense the subtle pressure emanating from the beautiful woman in palace attire; she must be a Divine Ability Master.
"What senior? Am I that old?" The beautiful woman in palace attire frowned and spoke with displeasure at his address.
Lu Ming was speechless. This woman had a terrible temper. Should I call her "Auntie" instead of "Senior"?
"Hehe, Aunt Shan, this is just him showing you respect, no need to take it to heart." At this moment, the young man in black standing behind the beautiful woman in palace attire spoke up with a smile, smoothing things over.
The girl glanced at Lu Ming casually, then paid him no further attention.
After being reassured by the young man in black, the beautiful woman in palace attire let out a soft hum and said, "You must be Lu Ming? The promising student Zhou Xuan found to cultivate the ' Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner '?"
Hearing that the other party knew the secret of the " Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner," Lu Ming was stunned for a moment. However, he couldn't figure out where the other party came from, so he pretended to be deaf and dumb and counted the ants on the ground with his head down.
"Why didn't you answer when Aunt Shan asked you a question?" the girl said, her words tinged with reproach.
Lu Ming felt a bit numb. Who were these people? Where was Zhou Xuan? Where was his senior sister? Where did she go?
" Cheng Shan, you're really being unwelcome. Why are you throwing a tantrum at a young man?" Just as Lu Ming was feeling uneasy, Zhou Xuan's familiar voice finally rang out, bringing him a sense of relief.
Lu Ming looked up and saw Zhou Xuan leading Zhou Fuling from the outer courtyard, presumably they had gone to handle some business earlier.
Zhou Fuling quickly walked to Lu Ming's side, smiled sweetly, and patted his shoulder.
Upon seeing this, the girl standing behind the beautiful woman in palace attire slightly furrowed her brows, then smiled broadly and greeted her, saying, " Fuling, it's been a long time."
Upon seeing the enthusiastic girl, Zhou Fuling smiled and nodded, saying, " Ye Ling, long time no see."
"Hehe, and my brother's here too."
The girl named Ye Ling quickly waved to the young man in black in the stone pavilion. He could only step forward helplessly, nod to Zhou Fuling, and smile, " Fuling, we meet again."
Zhou Fuling smiled and nodded, then pointed to Lu Ming and introduced him, "This is Lu Ming, a promising student my fourth uncle found to cultivate the ' Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner.' This kid is quite amazing. He possesses High-Grade Divine Ability Bone, and although it has only been a few months since his bone was opened, he has already become Great Divine Ability Practitioner. Moreover, he has extremely high talent in cultivating divine power techniques."
Ye Ling glanced at Lu Ming and said indifferently, "I heard he came from a peasant background at the Third-Tier Divine Ability Hall?"
"What's wrong with the Third-Tier Divine Ability Hall? Outstanding talents emerge from humble backgrounds. Throughout history, countless Divine Ability Grandmaster have come from the Divine Ability Hall." Zhou Fuling sensed the disdain in Ye Ling's words and couldn't help but express her dissatisfaction.
Seeing that Zhou Fuling was a little angry, Ye Ling stuck out her tongue resentfully.
The young man in black then chuckled softly at Lu Ming, "Hello, my name is Ye Yuan."
"Little sister Ye Ling, she's always had a sharp tongue, please be understanding and ignore her, just pretend you didn't hear her."
His smile was carefree, and his eyes were quite sincere. He did not show any disdain for Lu Ming's background as Third-Tier Divine Ability Hall member, just like Ye Ling did, which made it easy for people to feel a sense of goodwill towards him.
Lu Ming could sense the other person's attitude and the goodwill they were conveying, so he smiled and nodded, saying, "Hello, my name is Lu Ming."
"Little sister, apologize to them," Ye Yuan scolded.
Ye Ling reluctantly pouted and whispered, "Fine, I admit I was wrong."
"Fine."
Lu Ming also didn't want to deal with these unruly girls, so he simply nodded in acknowledgment.
"Senior sister, since you have distinguished guests, I'll come again next time," Lu Ming said, turning to Zhou Fuling.
"Hi, no need."
Zhou Fuling laughed heartily, then whispered to him, "Your senior sister is protecting you; no one can bully you."
"By the way, Ye Yuan also cultivated the ' Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner '."
Upon hearing Zhou Fuling's words, Lu Ming looked at the young man named Ye Yuan in surprise. The other party had also cultivated the " Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner "?
He seemed to be deep in thought. Zhou Xuan had said before that the noble person was looking for a promising candidate to cultivate the " Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner," and it couldn't be just him. Clearly, this Ye Yuan must be the promising candidate that the beautiful woman in palace attire had found.
Moreover, the people selecting promising talents may not be limited to Zhou Xuan and the beautiful woman in palace attire; there may be many more...
From this perspective, it seems that the great benefactor was casting a wide net to select the most suitable seedlings.
That's quite a generous gesture.
Moreover, his identity must be quite terrifying, otherwise how could he command so many Divine Ability Master to work for him and search for promising talents everywhere?
"My brother has already cultivated the ' Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner ' to the Minor Accomplishment Realm. If he continues to work hard for a while, he might be able to reach the Major Accomplishment Realm when His Highness arrives," Ye Ling said with a hint of pride.
Your Highness?
Lu Ming, who was standing to the side, suddenly realized this important information. Could this so-called "Your Highness" be the great esteemed person Zhou Xuan had mentioned?
Throughout the entire Great Shang Kingdom, there are two types of people who dare to call themselves Your Highness. One type is the direct descendants of the domain lords. The Great Shang Kingdom seven domains, and the domain lords of the seven domains each govern a vast domain. Their strength, status, and power are all extraordinary. The other type is the true royal family of the Great Shang Kingdom.
hiss.
Lu Ming secretly took a deep breath. No matter which one it was, they were definitely true benefactors. No wonder Zhou Xuan dared to say that as long as a benefactor spoke, Divine Ability Grandmaster in the Great Golden Crow Hall would give him face.
"What about this kid? What level has he reached?" At this moment, the beautiful woman in palace attire named Cheng Shan, after chatting with Zhou Xuan for a few words, turned her beautiful eyes to Lu Ming and asked with some scrutiny.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xuan smiled nonchalantly and said, "This kid has just started learning."
Cheng Shan immediately pouted and said, "Isn't your task, assigned by His Highness, a bit too perfunctory? You've only just begun? Are you planning to hand over a Minor Accomplishment student who's only at the beginning of his studies?"
Zhou Xuan smiled and said, "With so many promising talents, one less won't make a difference."
He paused for a moment, then continued.
"Moreover, his main purpose in studying with me is to learn Dao of Alchemy; the Sun-Shining Golden Flame Banner is only secondary."
"Hehe, as you know, finding a talented Dao of Alchemy genius is much harder than finding High-Grade Divine Ability Bone."
Upon hearing this, Cheng Shan, Ye Yuan, and Ye Ling were all taken aback, and for the first time, a look of astonishment appeared on their faces as they re-examined Lu Ming.
"He?"
"A genius in Dao of Alchemy?"