A Multiverse Tale: In Little Garden, Becoming a God Through Once Proven, Forever Proven

Qin Qi spoke.

"The cultivation method for Threefold Reversal."

The Old Celestial Master smiled as he spoke. This lesson in combat experience had originally been the last thing he intended to teach Qin Qi.

But Qin Qi's talent had truly exceeded his expectations. He had thought this would fill the remaining three days.

He hadn't expected Qin Qi to learn it in a single night. With another day left, the Old Celestial Master decided to bring out something else worthwhile.

"Ah, when I see a piece of uncarved jade, I can't help wanting to teach him a little more. Oh well, let's call it forming a good karmic bond."

The Old Celestial Master shook his head, then prepared to spend the night in another room.

It's not over yet, the mass release is still going, and my writing soul is still burning!

Chapter 54: Good night, Old Master Tian Jinzhong. Sweet dreams! (Fifth release)

On the morning of his third day on Mount Longhu, there were no morning lessons, so Qin Qi went to find Tian Jinzhong after eating.

"Old Master Tian, how are your arms and legs recovering? Have you had any adverse reactions?"

When Qin Qi reached the doorway, he saw Xiao Qingzi, who was responsible for looking after Tian Jinzhong (this wasn't Gong Qing). He handed him the snacks, ice cream, and other things he had bought at the foot of the mountain.

"Xiao Qingzi, I bought some snacks for you. Take them and share them with the other senior and junior brothers."

Qin Qi spoke.

"Um..."

Xiao Qingzi couldn't help licking his lips as he looked at the big bag of snacks, but he didn't accept them right away. He looked back at Tian Jinzhong.

His eyes looked like a child's. Oh, no, he actually was a child.

"Go ahead and take them, Xiao Qingzi, but remember to thank him for what he gave you."

Tian Jinzhong smiled as he spoke.

"Yes, grandmaster. Thank you, Layman Qin Qi."

Xiao Qingzi happily accepted the snacks, then hugged them to his chest and trotted out to share them with the other disciples.

Soon, only Qin Qi and Tian Jinzhong were left in the room.

"My arms and legs are recovering quite well. I can pick things up by myself now, though walking is still a little difficult."

"I haven't moved around in so many years that I actually forgot how to walk for a while. Don't you think that's funny?"

Tian Jinzhong had tried walking on his own before, but hadn't succeeded. Three days was still too short a time, and he needed to take his rehabilitation training slowly.

He wasn't in a hurry, though. He had endured it for decades, and this was only a small test.

"Old Master, you really do have a good outlook. You might not be able to cultivate qi anymore, but who knows how far above everyone else your state of mind is?"

Qin Qi stepped forward and poured Tian Jinzhong a cup of tea, then poured one for himself and sat down.

"You brat... when someone offers favors for no reason, he's either a scoundrel or a thief. Whatever it is, just say it. As long as I can help, I certainly won't say no."

Tian Jinzhong looked at Qin Qi and spoke.

"It's nothing much. As a veteran of the Outlander world, you must know about a lot of things, right?"

"I was hoping you could tell me about the various families, sects, and factions in the Outlander world today."

Qin Qi had begun preparing for his future actions. Information was always the most important thing; only by knowing yourself and your enemy could you fight a hundred battles without danger.

"Hmm... that's no problem, but why didn't you ask my senior brother? As the Old Celestial Master of Mount Longhu, he knows more about it than I do."

Tian Jinzhong nodded. It wasn't anything he couldn't talk about, but he was a little curious why Qin Qi hadn't asked his senior brother.

"The Old Celestial Master stands too high. From his perspective, a lot of things aren't worth mentioning. I asked him."

"I asked him what the Wudang Sect was like, and the Old Celestial Master said... not bad, I suppose. I asked him how the Lü Family's Ruyi Jin was, and he said, not bad, I suppose."

Qin Qi couldn't help laughing when he got to that point. In the Old Celestial Master's eyes, those things were probably all just "not bad, I suppose."

"My senior brother... he's always been like that. Apart from his own affairs, he doesn't care much about anything else."

"He's changed a little over the years for Mount Longhu's sake, but in the end, he's still the same Zhang Zhiwei he was back then."

"Let me tell you, our master put a tremendous amount of effort into polishing my senior brother's character back then... and still didn't succeed."

Tian Jinzhong began rambling on. As he talked about the past, Qin Qi listened quietly.

"Back when we were on the mountain, we all thought Senior Brother was the strongest apart from Master. But only after I left the mountain did I learn the truth."

"It wasn't just on the mountain. Outside, Senior Brother was also number one among the younger generation back then."

"You probably don't know about the martial contest at the Lu family compound, do you? Old Lu fought my senior brother, and Senior Brother slapped him straight into the ground."

"I heard he even beat Old Lu to tears. Old Lu was stubborn, though, and insisted through clenched teeth that he hadn't cried."

Tian Jinzhong began laughing as he spoke. He looked at Qin Qi, and somehow felt quite happy.

Perhaps it was because his arms and legs had recovered, or perhaps Qin Qi reminded him of his senior brother back then. It was also possible that someone was listening to him talk about the old days.

He was in a good mood today, very happy.

"The Old Celestial Master really wasn't being decent. It would be one thing to spread word that he'd won, but how could he also tell everyone that Old Master Lu cried after being beaten?"

Qin Qi couldn't help complaining.

"Hahaha, that's just how my senior brother is. He's got a big mouth. As soon as he came back, he told us all about it, and by the next day even the vegetable sellers at the foot of the mountain knew."

"He was famous for his loose lips back then, while I was famous for keeping mine sealed."

Tian Jinzhong burst out laughing at Qin Qi's words and spoke.

"Phew, when people get old, they love rambling about the past. All right, all right, back to the subject. I'll tell you about the situation in the Outlander world today."

Once Tian Jinzhong had laughed enough, he took a sip of tea to moisten his throat and began telling Qin Qi about the current situation.

Qin Qi sat to one side, listening intently and asking questions from time to time. Tian Jinzhong answered them all.

As they talked, noon arrived in the blink of an eye.

"Old Master, it's time for lunch. I'll go get your food."

Qin Qi spoke.

"There's no need. Xiao Qingzi and Xiao Yuzi will bring me my meal. Sorry to trouble you."

Tian Jinzhong hurriedly replied.

"Don't be so polite, Old Master. I'll bring my meal over too, and we can keep talking while we eat."

Without waiting for Tian Jinzhong to agree, Qin Qi turned and left.

"Ah."

Tian Jinzhong watched Qin Qi leave and shook his head helplessly. Then a smile appeared on his lips. He really did like the kid.

In the Mount Longhu dining hall.

"Hey, Xiao Qingzi, just the person I wanted to see. I can bring Old Master Tian's meal over. You sit down and eat."

Qin Qi was waiting in line for food when he happened to run into Xiao Qingzi, and spoke to him.

"All right. Th-thank you, Layman Qin Qi."

Xiao Qingzi was hunched over, and his expression looked a little strained as he spoke.

"You're welcome."

Qin Qi spoke.

Xiao Qingzi was ahead of him. He got his food and went to sit down and eat, and only then was it Qin Qi's turn.

"One serving for me, and one for Old Master Tian."

Qin Qi had just finished speaking, and the dining hall staff were serving his food, when something happened on the other side.

"It hurts!"

Xiao Qingzi had barely taken two sips of hot soup when he felt a stabbing pain in his abdomen. He clutched his stomach with both hands, his face twisting in discomfort.

Rong Shan, who was sitting nearby, saw this and immediately threw his food on the ground. Then he shouted:

"Nobody eat! The food's poisoned! Xiao Qingzi's been hit!"

The moment Rong Shan finished speaking, the people eating in the dining hall put down their food, their faces filled with disbelief.

Poisoned? What's going on? Gong Qing poisoned the food!

Qin Qi looked at the food in front of him, stunned for a moment. He examined it himself, but found nothing wrong with it.

A colorless, odorless deadly poison! Even I can't detect it!

Qin Qi looked at the food on his plate. Although he hadn't found anything wrong with it, since someone had said that, he'd better not eat it.

He silently reached out and put his plate down. This was like crying wolf; whether it was true or not, no one would dare eat the food now.

"Senior Brother Rong Shan, n-no, that's not it. I-I just have an upset stomach. Th-the food isn't poisoned. Y-you misunderstood."

Clutching his stomach, Xiao Qingzi hurriedly explained.

He had simply eaten too much ice cream earlier because he couldn't resist it, and then had something hot to drink. His stomach and intestines couldn't take it for the moment.

"An upset stomach? Really? Could you have been poisoned without knowing it?"

Rong Shan hurried forward and took Xiao Qingzi's pulse. He really didn't seem to have any symptoms of poisoning.

"Uh... everyone, I think I made a mistake. The food doesn't seem to be poisoned."

Rong Shan examined the food himself, and after confirming that it really didn't seem to be poisoned, scratched his head and spoke.

"..."

For a moment, the people in the dining hall looked at the food in their hands, unsure whether to eat it or not. What if there really was something wrong with it, but they just hadn't found it?

Qin Qi shook his head and turned to leave. It was lunchtime; if he hurried down the mountain, he should still be able to buy a meal and bring it back.

[You bought a generous spread of food at the foot of the mountain, brought it back up, and went to Tian Jinzhong's room.]

[You told him what happened in the dining hall, and Tian Jinzhong laughed and said, "Xiao Qingzi probably couldn't resist eating too much ice cream."]

[The two of you talked as you prepared to pick up your chopsticks and eat, and at that moment, the Old Celestial Master arrived.]

"Ah, I was going to get something to eat, but I didn't expect there to be a poisoning in the dining hall. I still have to arrange for someone to investigate."

"Now I don't even have a meal to eat. Oh, Junior Brother, you've got quite a spread here. Come, come, I happen to have a bottle of wine with me. Let's eat together."

Without waiting for Tian Jinzhong or Qin Qi to speak, the Old Celestial Master sat right down. He had even brought his own chopsticks!

"Senior Brother... your skin is getting thicker and thicker."

Tian Jinzhong spoke.

"Come, come, don't be polite. Let's eat. Oh, right, this medicinal wine of mine has been aged for who knows how many years."

"It's very nourishing. Come on, kid, you're in luck today. Have a taste."

As though he hadn't heard him, the Old Celestial Master reached out for two large bowls and poured wine for Qin Qi and himself.

"Junior Brother, you seem quite happy today. Would you like a cup too?"

The Old Celestial Master invited him in a perfectly natural tone.

"No, Senior Brother. You know me, I don't drink."

Ever since that incident, Tian Jinzhong had neither slept nor drunk alcohol, because he couldn't let his guard down. He was afraid he might say something he shouldn't.

He really did have tight lips.

"This wine... has no alcohol in it. It tastes just like water, though it really is nourishing. Have a sip, Old Master Tian."

"Your arms and legs were just reattached. Having a little to nourish yourself will do you good."

As Qin Qi spoke, he picked up his bowl and drained it in one gulp. Afterward, he said it had no alcohol and was just like water, a sincere smile on his face.

"Just like water? How could that be? Let me try."