Chapter 79 – Trouble
“It seems that this Bai Clan master is also certain about the fact that I do not want to have a falling out with the Bai Clan over such a trivial matter. However, an engagement proposal is nothing. Currently, I am already a Late Spirit Apostle and once I become a core disciple, even if the Bai Clan exposes my identity to the sect, I will not suffer from too harsh of a punishment. If I am able to become a Spirit Master, Barbarian Ghost Sect will most likely turn a blind eye to this matter.” Liu Ming muttered to himself as this plan formulated in his heart.
A month passed by; Liu Ming had just about finished consolidating his Fa Li when the Small Competition bell abruptly rang once again on Nine Infant Mountain.
Hearing it, Liu Ming didn’t hesitate and immediately rushed toward the plaza on the mountain top.
The small competition this time, aside from Gui Ru Quan, Zhu Chi and Martial Aunt Zhong astonishingly didn’t even show up.
Moreover, the entire process of the Small Competition seemed much more rushed than before. It seemed that Gui Ru Quan, who was in charge, was preoccupied with something else.
This competition showed that not many older disciples had increased their cultivation much. Instead, within the new disciples, Wan Xiao Qian had surprisingly become a Middle Spirit Apostle while Xue Shan was still stuck at the Beginning Spirit Apostle Level. Since his cultivation hadn’t increased, he left with a face full of dejection.
As for Xiao Feng, the disciple with a Nine Spiritual Pulse, although he was still a Middle Spirit Apostle, his aura was much more powerful than before. It seemed that he wasn’t far from breaking through to a Late Spirit Apostle.
Liu Ming, on the other hand, forcibly suppressed his aura to that of a Middle Spirit Apostle. Furthermore, he hastily went through the three tests, only displaying a slight improvement from last time.
The current reward for the Small Competition wasn’t too appealing to him so he naturally didn’t want to attract attention.
Otherwise, if a Three Spiritual Pulse disciple unexpectedly had quicker cultivation speed than a Nine Pulsed disciple, it would obviously bring a lot of trouble.
Fortunately, Gui Ru Quan wasn’t too interested in his new disciples’ accomplishments at this Small Competition, otherwise, despite Liu Ming’s attempts to suppress his aura, he wasn’t sure if his true cultivation would stay hidden.
After the last competition ended, he only earned a bottle of Fa Li Recovery Pills and descended the mountain with the others.
However, once he returned to his dwelling, another uninvited guest was waiting for him.
“Senior Mu!” Liu Ming was slightly astounded as he called out to the young lady in front of him.
“Is Junior Bai not going to invite me to sit?” The girl smiled sweetly.
“I am lacking in manners; Senior, please enter!” Liu Ming recovered his composure and invited the young lady into his courtyard. They proceeded to a hall in the side wings.
“Junior is surprisingly extremely simple and crude!” Mu Xian Yun quickly glanced around as a face of astonishment appeared on her face.
This hall, which was specifically used to receive visitors, had nothing aside from a wooden table and a few chairs.
“My heart has been solely on cultivating and is not interested in any external objects. I have made a fool of myself. That’s right, why has Senior Sister Mu come to find me?” Liu Ming offered the young lady a seat as he lightly smiled and asked a question.
“Junior Bai, has that girl, Ming Zhu, come and found you in the past few days?” Mu Xian Yun also skipped formalities and immediately responded with a question.
“Lady Ming Zhu really did come and find me once.” Liu Ming wasn’t surprised by the question and calmly replied.
“It seems that Junior already knows about that elder brother of mine wanting to betroth Ming Zhu to you.” Hearing his words, Mu Xian Yun’s expression relaxed.
“I originally did not know, but since Lady Ming Zhu came to find me in such a manner, how could I not know? Which side proposed the marriage? If there was no one coordinating this, I don’t believe that both clans would want Lady Ming Zhu and I together.” Liu Ming bitterly laughed.
“Hmm, could it be that Junior want’s to find the matchmaker and thank him or her?” Mu Xian Yun lightly laughed.
“Don’t tell me that this matchmaker is Senior?” Liu Ming saw that the young lady’s smile was hiding a trace of astuteness. He cycled his thoughts and instantly came to a sudden realization.
“Junior truly is an intelligent person. That’s correct, having Ming Zhu marry you really stemmed from me bringing this up to my elder brother. However, when my Mu Clan proposed this, the Bai Clan unexpectedly immediately agreed to it. In an extremely fast speed, they exchanged betrothal gifts and arranged the marriage. The date has been set, three years later, you two will be married! I let Junior take the magnificent beauty of my niece as his wife; I don’t know how you plan on thanking me as a matchmaker.” Mu Xian Yun was startled at first, but started giggling.
“Thanking you? Did Senior Mu think that this younger disciple didn’t have much trouble on hands, so you purposely found some things to give me a headache? I’m not going to talk about the other things, but do you really think that Lady Ming Zhu and I fit together? From back then to now, I have only seen your niece twice, yet you threw the two of us together. Don’t even mention me feeling annoyed by this, your niece probably wants me to die.” Liu Ming rubbed his chin and shook his head as he spoke.
“I have always admired Junior Bai’s maturity at such a young age, but why are you spouting such naive things? Although the Mu Clan is incomparable to the Lei Clan, it ultimately is a Cultivation Clan with a bit of reputation in the Kingdom of Xuan. How can the marriage between boys and girls be decided by the own individual? As for Ming Zhu, despite her current hatred toward you, once she marries you, her mood will slowly shift. This, I can guarantee. Moreover, this marriage is extremely important to both our Mu and Bai Clans. Even if Junior Brother already is a Spirit Apostle, I’m afraid that you cannot reject the marriage arrangements of your esteemed father. Furthermore, besides Ming Zhu not being a Spirit Apostle, she has a natural talent in other areas and coupled with Junior, you two can be said to be a couple well matched.” Mu Xian Yun calmly and unhurriedly said.
“Since Senior believes that it will only bring good, why have you still come to find me!?” After listening to her speak, Liu Ming was quite gloomy and rolled his eyes as he spoke.
“One of the reasons for coming here is to illustrate the proposed marriage in order to prevent any misunderstandings. The second reason is for Junior to be careful of a person.” Mu Xian Yun’s smile disappeared.
“Be careful of someone!? Who?” Liu Ming responded with a question.
“It obviously is Gao Chong.”
“Gao Chong, that disciple with an Earth Spiritual Pulse who was taken as a disciple by the Sect Leader!” Even though Liu Ming displayed a calm expression, hearing her words, Liu Ming’s heart still skipped a beat.
“That’s correct. During the past few years, he and Ming Zhu were very close; if he were to find out about the marriage, I’m afraid that he wouldn’t let the matter rest.” Mu Xian Yun calmly said.
“What does “they are very close” mean?!” Liu MIng stared at the young lady with a frosty gaze.
“I’ll phrase it like this: Ming Zhu has set her heart upon this boy. Moreover, Gao Chong extremely cares about my niece. Thus, I wish for you to be more careful. However, you can relax because I can guarantee that nothing too excessive has happened between Ming Zhu and this boy.” Mu Xian Yun hastily replied.
“Is Senior Mu joking?! Your niece already has someone she likes, moreover it is a Earth Spiritual Pulsed disciple who has a promising future. Yet, why does the Mu Clan still want her to marry me?” Liu Ming’s furrowed his brows but his face was still expressionless.
“I definitely will not let Ming Zhu and Gao Chong end up together. As for the reasons, I do not wish to speak of them further. However, you only have to know that my elder brother and the entire Mu Clan think the same way. Furthermore, if Ming Zhu really ends up with Gao Chong, not only will she not be able to become his cultivation partner, she will further end up in an extremely plaintive state.” Mu Xian Yun’s expression turned solemn.
“Therefore, the Mu Clan has chosen me to be the scapegoat. The opposing party is a Earth Spiritual Pulse disciple, does Senior think that I can provoke him?” Liu Ming seemed not to have been affected by the other person’s reassurance and talked with a gloomy expression.
“Truthfully, this really will make things difficult for Junior Bai. However, this marriage was gladly accepted by your esteemed father. Furthermore, betrothal gifts have already been exchanged. Thus, even if you with to renege, it is already too late. Junior doesn’t have to be too worried about Gao Cong. That boy is under exceptionally strict conditions by the Sect Leader, and the chances of him coming to find you are not high. Nonetheless, there are a few older disciples who adhere to his side and I’m afraid that once they know about this, they will come to you with trouble. Therefore, regarding this possible circumstance, Junior should try as much as possible not to leave the sect. As long as you endure till the Life and Death Trials, no harm will befall you after that.” Mu Xian Yun was slightly apologetic as she spoke.
“Endure after the Life and Death Trials, and nothing will befall me? What does this mean?” Liu Ming felt his heart beat.
“According to my information, Gao Chong just recently became a Late Spirit Apostle. Equipped with his Earth Spiritual Pulse, if he wants to become one of the ten large core disciples, it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. If he is to participate in the Life and Death Trials and survives, when he returns, he will receive enough benefits and resources to directly enter the peak stage of a Spirit Apostle and prepare to become a Spirit Master. Even if he wants to find trouble, the Sect Leader definitely will not agree to such a thing. Moreover, becoming a Spirit Master is extremely difficult and one may not even finish becoming one within a few years. When the time comes, you and Ming Zhu will have already become husband and wife; what can he do to Junior then?” Mu Xian Yun laughed.
“What if he actually ends up becoming a Spirit Master?” Liu Ming glared at the young woman and asked a question.
“Junior probably doesn’t know that Sect Leader’s Faction’s cultivation method is extremely particular. Once one becomes a Spirit Master, he or she will not easily fall in love. Moreover, when this time comes, Sect Leader will not keep him on a leash, and I don’t how many young girl cultivators will throw themselves into his arms. Why would he still want Ming Zhu? If you truly are worried, after you marry Ming Zhu, you can apply to become deacon outside the sect. This way, in the long run, there naturally will not be a problem.” Mu Xian Yun seemed to have already have planned everything as she narrated systematically.
After hearing her speak, Liu Ming remained silent. A while later, he suddenly said something that caused Mu Xian Yun to be dumbstruck.
“Senior Mu, I do not wish to speak further of the matter regarding Lady Ming Zhu. Right now, I want to ask about the Large Competition and the Life and Death Trials. Senior has spent so long in the sect that you must know about matters pertaining to these events.”
……
After the time it takes to have a meal, the young woman wore a smile as she left. Within the room, only Liu Ming remained. He was seated upon a wooden chair pondering silently.
He truthfully wasn’t fretting over the Gao Chong and Mu Ming Zhu situation. Instead, he was contemplating the Large Competition and the Life and Death Trials.