With a sword drawn, he laughs proudly, his martial prowess dominating the heavens!

Chapter 14 Growing Discord

As night fell, inside the Suoyoubuwei Pavilion, Ning Zhongze placed a teacup on the table beside Yue Buqun.

The latter lifted the lid of the cup, and the rich aroma of tea spread, instantly refreshing the senses.

"Brother Huo, you're too kind. The few jars of wine we sent over are probably not as valuable as this half-jin of Yunwu tea."

"You two, one a sect leader and the other a manor lord, seem to appreciate each other quite a bit. As his wife, I'm even a little envious."

Upon hearing this, Yue Buqun chuckled awkwardly, "Junior Sister, you must have had a hard time on this trip."

"What's so difficult about this? In the past, Madam Huo treated me very well. If I didn't go, she would definitely complain about me."

Seeing that he was in high spirits today, Ning Zhongze changed the subject and asked, "Has Senior Brother passed on the Purple Cloud Divine Skill to Che'er?"

"Hmm, this child is decisive, highly talented, and very much to my liking. What do you think, Junior Sister?"

The latter nodded and smiled, "Senior brother's judgment is naturally good. This child has a clean background and is now all alone, so he is now tied to our Huashan Sect."

"But senior brother, have you noticed anything wrong with Shan'er?"

"Hmm? What's wrong with Shan'er?"

Ning Zhongze rolled her eyes at him, secretly blaming him for being careless. "In the past, Shan'er always doted on Chong'er, but this time when she came back, I noticed that she was closer to Che'er."

"You mean?"

Ning Zhongze nodded silently, but after a while, she heard him say, "Sigh~ daughters grow up and leave home. Shan'er is not young anymore. Whatever she wants, it's not good for us parents to interfere too much. Let her be."

Ning Zhongze's eyes were a little strange. Why did it sound like her senior brother was "aiding and abetting evil"?

After a moment's hesitation, she asked again, "Senior brother, Chong'er is still kneeling. How do you plan to punish him this time?"

Yue Buqun took a sip of tea, but this time he showed no anger. Instead, he seemed more disappointed and sighed, "What else can be done to punish him? He'll just have to kneel and be beaten."

He's been punished so many times over the years, but he's never learned his lesson.

Sigh~ As the senior disciple, he should set an example for the sect. Instead, he disappeared for three days, causing chaos among the disciples and delaying their training.

I think it would be better to let someone else do the role of senior disciple!

Although it wasn't explicitly stated, Ning Zhongze already understood; it seemed her senior brother had already decided to make Li Che'er a direct disciple of Huashan.

She was somewhat worried, but did not offer any further advice.

"Junior sister, starting tomorrow I will be going to the Cliff of Contemplation to instruct Che'er in his training and to make copies of his sword techniques. I will be grateful if you could guide me in my training."

"That's only natural."

Inside the Righteousness Hall, Linghu Chong was still kneeling, silently calculating the time. It was around this time last time that his junior sister brought him food.

He then thought, "When my junior sister arrives, how should I ask her what this 'important matter' is? And if she really is with Junior Brother Li... what should I do then?"

Never mind, I have to make my feelings clear tonight no matter what.

Even if she chooses Junior Brother Li, at least I can give up!

But the thought of his junior sister living happily ever after with someone else made his heart ache like it was being pierced by needles, and the courage he had mustered dissipated.

"Ta-da—!"

"Junior Sister!"

"Senior Brother, keep your voice down, it's me."

A person tiptoed in from outside the door; it was Lu Dayou.

He was holding a bulging bundle in his arms, and a water bag in his right hand.

"What are you doing here? Where's Junior Sister?!"

Lu Dayou didn't notice anything amiss in his tone. He looked around to make sure no one was nearby, then quickly took out what he was carrying. "Senior Brother, you should eat quickly. The fire in the stove has gone out, and the food is a bit hard. It's better to eat it with water than to go hungry."

"Did your junior sister send you to deliver this? Did she have any message for me? Why didn't she come herself?"

Lu Dayou's wrist ached slightly from being gripped so tightly. Seeing his senior brother staring intently at him, he had no choice but to say, "Junior Sister... her foot injury has just healed. Master's wife examined her injury and told her to go to bed early."

"Lu Hou'er, you've started lying to me now, haven't you?!"

"Huh? No, Senior Brother."

"Still not admitting it? Ever since you were little, your eyes have been darting around whenever you lie. Tell me, what's wrong with Junior Sister?!"

Lu Dayou smiled wryly and said, "Senior Brother, you eat first, we can talk while you eat."

Linghu Chong slammed the pancake he was offered onto the ground. "Tell me quickly, where did Junior Sister go during the day? What urgent matter is it?!"

"Senior brother, let go! I can't breathe!"

"Hoo—!" Lu Dayou straightened his slightly wrinkled collar and stammered, "Master, Mistress, and Junior Sister went during the day to the Cliff of Contemplation."

But I really don't know the specifics of what happened.

Seeing that his senior brother was still glaring at him, he had no choice but to say again, "Originally, I did go to see my junior sister earlier. But she said... said..."

"What are you saying? Speak up!"

"Junior Sister said, 'Senior Brother doesn't keep his word. If you want to go, go yourself. I'm not going to pay any attention to him.' Senior Brother, what did you agree to?"

If it's just some food or toys, I'll sneak down the mountain right now and bring them back first thing tomorrow morning. You can go ask your junior sister again..."

Linghu Chong swayed, then knelt on the ground in a somewhat defeated manner. "Let's go!"

"No, where can I buy it...?"

"roll!"

Lu Dayou was startled. After a moment of stunned silence, he sighed, got up, picked up the pancake that had fallen under the chair, glanced at his senior brother with a complicated expression, and then turned and left helplessly.

The crescent moon in the sky was still bright, and its light shone into the Zhengqi Hall. Linghu Chong, who had no heart to appreciate the moon anymore, felt even more lonely.

......

As dawn broke, Yue Buqun arrived at the foot of the Cliff of Contemplation. He saw a figure sitting cross-legged facing east on the cliff edge in the distance and nodded with satisfaction.

Li Che, who was meditating and practicing his qi, suddenly opened his eyes and turned his head to look, only to see that Yue Buqun had already walked three zhang behind him.

"Not bad, you're quite alert."

Li Che hurriedly stood up and bowed, "This disciple is terrified, how could I dare to trouble Master to bring me a meal?"

"It's alright. I promised to teach you the martial arts today, so I brought it along. Have you looked at the incantation?"

"This disciple has memorized everything."

"Oh?" Yue Buqun took the manual from Li Che and said, "Eat first, and I will regulate your Qi later to help you get started."

"yes!"

Besides porridge and vegetables, the top empty layer in the lunchbox contained writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.

Li Che dared not delay and finished cleaning the plate and bowl in less than a quarter of an hour.

"Che'er, sit cross-legged, clear your mind of all distractions, and face upwards with your palms facing the sky!"

Yue Buqun sat cross-legged behind him, but saw his body tremble slightly, his qi rising from his dantian and gathering in his palm, and in an instant his face turned a faint purple.

Li Che felt a warmth on his back, and a warm current flowed into his body. He had already relaxed his mind, and the Hunyuan internal energy and Zixia internal energy were of the same origin, so they surged into his meridians without resistance.

"Carefully observe the practice route. Remember, any mistake or omission will have dire consequences!"

Li Che did not respond. His consciousness had already followed the flow of energy. The energy flowed along the Ren meridian and entered the Lung meridian of the Hand Taiyin, passing through important acupoints such as Zhongfu, Yunmen, and Chize, and guided the energy to circulate along the Lung meridian several times.

Then it turns to the Stomach Meridian of Foot Yangming, and then travels through the Ren and Du Meridians to other regular meridians.

Li Che had read the manual last night. The Purple Cloud Divine Skill belongs to the Taoist health preservation techniques. The opening method of practicing the skill is to breathe in the morning and evening, and to guide the Qi through the meridians with the mind.

What Yue Buqun was doing at this moment was to help him familiarize himself with the Qi-leading route, which was somewhat like an open-book exam.

Of course, Zixia herself has not yet reached a high level. Reaching this level through thirty years of exploration is already quite an achievement. Although this move cannot be called forcing growth, it shows her desire for her disciple to become a dragon.

After about fifteen minutes, Yue Buqun stood up and said calmly, "Have you remembered it?"

"This disciple has memorized it thoroughly!"

"Alright, you can continue your breathing exercises on your own. You don't need to pay any attention to your master."

"yes!"

After saying this, Yue Buqun took the brush, ink, paper and inkstone and went into the cave. Li Che did not see him. At this moment, Yue Buqun's expression was both surprised and delighted.

He glanced at Li Che outside the cave and thought to himself, "No wonder Che'er's internal energy has progressed so rapidly. His meridians are wide and unobstructed. It's no wonder that my Qi Sect is destined to flourish!"

......