Senior sister, stop working and go home for dinner.

Chapter 424 What Kind of Behavior Is This?

Xuanzhenzi looked at him without saying a word.

Lei Xiaozi felt a chill run down his spine under that gaze, but he still forced himself to continue, "Think about it, we were brought here yesterday at noon, and it's been almost a day and a night now. Aside from that monk and that demon woman, there are only a few young men doing odd jobs at the Yunyin Sect; none of the main figures have shown up. They've left us here, our spiritual energy sealed, our magical artifacts can't be opened, and there's not even anyone to relay a message. What's going on?"

"Exactly," another elder chimed in. He was a kind-looking old man, but his brows were now furrowed. "If you want to kill me or torture me, give me a straight answer. What's the point of leaving me hanging like this?"

Qingluo didn't speak, but just stood to the side with her eyes downcast.

Xuanzhenzi remained silent for a long time.

So long that Lei Xiaozi began to move his feet restlessly again, so long that the smoke from the chimneys of the settlement outside the window grew thicker and thicker, so long that someone began to sigh softly.

"What do you think," Xuanzhenzi finally spoke, "why doesn't that Master Chen see us?"

Everyone looked at each other.

Lei Xiaozi tentatively suggested, "Perhaps... he's busy? He just subdued so many forces yesterday, he has a lot to deal with and can't spare the time for us?"

Xuanzhenzi shook his head.

"If you were," he said, "possessing the ability to instantly subdue all forces within a thousand miles, and having gathered over a thousand surrendered followers, whom would you meet first?"

Lei Xiaozi was stunned for a moment, then understood.

The Valley Master at the Nascent Soul stage.

An elder at the Golden Core stage.

These people, who would be treated as honored guests in any sect, are now left unattended in this ordinary person's house for a whole day and night.

What does this tell us?

This shows that in the eyes of that Master Chen, they were not worthy.

At the very least, she doesn't deserve for him to put aside his work and come all the way to see her.

Lei Xiaozi's expression changed; he wanted to say something, but couldn't utter a word.

The kind-looking old man coughed lightly, his voice tinged with a hint of bitterness: "Does the Valley Master mean... that we are insignificant in their eyes?"

Xuanzhenzi did not answer.

He simply gazed out the window at the gradually bustling settlement, at the ordinary people carrying hoes to the fields, at the women carrying wooden basins to the well to wash clothes, and at the children chasing and playing.

"Let's go." He suddenly stood up.

Qingluo looked up: "Valley Master, where are we going?"

"Let's go for a walk," Xuanzhenzi said. "Since they won't see us, let's go and see what kind of place this is."

Lei Xiaozi was taken aback: "Valley Master, you're going to... mingle with those mortals?"

Xuanzhenzi glanced at him.

That gaze was indifferent, yet it made Lei Xiaozi instinctively shut his mouth.

"What difference is there between you and me now," Xuanzhenzi said, "and those mortals?"

Xuanzhenzi pushed open the wooden door of the secluded courtyard and stepped out.

The five Golden Core elders behind him exchanged glances, but ultimately followed. Lei Xiaozi hesitated, his gloomy face showing some reluctance.

The morning light has already begun to spread.

The streets of the settlement were bustling with people, much more lively than when they first arrived yesterday.

Farmers carrying hoes walked in groups of three or five towards the terraced fields, chatting loudly in their local dialect as they went. Several women returned from the well carrying wooden basins filled with freshly washed clothes; water droplets dripped onto the ground, leaving small, dark stains. Children chased after a round object, their laughter echoing along the way.

Nobody was watching them.

Xuanzhenzi walked slowly along the impossibly smooth road, watching the mortals passing by.

Each of them stood upright with calm eyes, showing no fear, no avoidance, and no instinctive reaction of kneeling before a cultivator.

He had lived for a thousand years and had never seen such a mortal.

"Valley Master," Qingluo said in a low voice as she walked beside him, "look over there."

Xuanzhenzi looked in the direction she pointed.

Ahead was a wide open space with several wooden frames erected there, on which hung some objects he couldn't identify. A group of young people were gathered around them; some wore short-sleeved shirts, some wore Taoist robes, and a few others wore strange clothes, squatting on the ground fiddling with something.

Two of them are the most eye-catching.

A middle-aged man was bending over a huge wooden board, holding a strange pen and drawing something on it. Beside him stood a young woman, holding a roll of drawings and whispering something.

Behind the two men stood several craftsmen dressed in short clothes, listening intently.

Xuanzhenzi paused in his steps.

He recognized the middle-aged man; he was one of the people who had disembarked from the wooden bird aircraft yesterday. He remembered that the man's name was Feng Wenyuan, one of the heads of the "Feng family." The young woman was probably a junior member of the Feng family.

But at this moment, they were squatting there, squeezed together with the calloused craftsmen, so close that their shoulders were almost touching.

"Senior Feng, look here, shouldn't this mortise and tenon joint be two inches deeper?" a craftsman asked, pointing to the pattern on the wooden board.

Feng Wenyuan leaned closer to take a look, then shook his head: "No, this depth is just right. Any deeper and it won't be able to support the weight." He paused, then added, "Old Zhang, you've been in this business for years, you know more than I do. What do you think?"

The craftsman named Old Zhang was taken aback for a moment, then laughed: "Senior Feng, you're joking. It took me three days to understand even 30% of your drawing. Just tell me how much, and I'll make it exactly as you say."

Feng Wenyuan replied earnestly, "Drawing is one thing, but when it comes to actual combat, you're better than me. We each have our strengths, so there's no need to be so polite."

Old Zhang opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he just smiled憨厚ly and continued to bury himself in his work.

Xuanzhenzi stood still, watching this scene, and remained motionless for a long time.

Behind him, Lei Xiaozi's expression had changed.

"This..." Lei Xiaozi lowered his voice, his tone filled with disbelief, "The Feng family are cultivators, after all, how come they're mixing with those peasants? And even calling each other brothers?"

No one answered him.

Another elder stroked his beard, his brow furrowed: "It's not just the Feng family. Look over there."

Everyone looked in the direction he pointed.

In an open space not far away, several young men dressed in Jiang family attire were squatting among a pile of parts, surrounded by a group of teenagers. The young man in the lead, Jiang Yun, was holding a piece of iron up to the sunlight, gesturing and muttering incantations.

"Watch closely," Jiang Yun handed the metal sheet to a child beside him. "This is called a gear, and it's the core of the mechanism. Clean it thoroughly, sand it smooth, and make sure there are no burrs."

The child took the piece of metal and nodded earnestly, "Master Jiang, is it finished polishing?"

"After you finish polishing, take it to Lingqiao Workshop and give it to Uncle Asheng." Jiang Yun patted the child's head. "Good job. Go to Xianshan Workshop later to get two steamed buns each."

The children cheered and ran off with the parts in their arms.

Jiang Yun stood up, dusted off his hands, and turned his head, meeting the gazes of Xuan Zhenzi and the others.

He paused for a moment, then smiled, nodded as a greeting, and continued to squat down and fiddle with the parts.

Lei Xiaozi's face turned even uglier.

"A dignified cultivator," he gritted his teeth, "mingling with a bunch of brats without spiritual roots... what kind of decorum is this?"

The kind-looking elder coughed lightly and said in a low voice, "Elder Lei, please keep your voice down..."

"Why are you speaking so softly?" Lei Xiaozi retorted, "Am I wrong? A cultivator should act like a cultivator. What's the point of cultivating the Dao if you're hanging out with mortals and worrying about mundane things all day? What's the point of seeking immortality?"

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