Chapter 53: What to Do When Your Disciple Is Too Monstrous (Please Read! Please Bookmark!)

"That is how things stand."

Meanwhile, in a small grove within the back residence of the Lu estate, Zhang Jingqing sighed with a trace of helplessness.

"My disciple possesses exceptionally high talent, especially when it comes to self-protection methods, which are frankly a bit too overwhelming. At the very least, among his peers on Mount Longhu, there is no longer anyone who can stand against him as an opponent."

"The pursuit of cultivation is simply too easy for him. This is a blessing, but also a curse. I worry that this little scoundrel might develop a sense of arrogance and conceit, so I want to temper his sharp edges. However, I cannot have the senior uncles and elders of the mountain take action against him; even if he were to lose, it would only inflate his ego."

"As it happens, Patriarch Wang just suggested that the younger generation spar and practice tomorrow. With countless young talents gathered here today, perhaps someone among them will be able to teach him a lesson."

Upon hearing this, a profound silence fell over the gathering. Lu Xuan, the head of the Lu family, cast a rather peculiar look at Zhang Jingqing, strongly suspecting that this old Taoist priest was deliberately showing off and taking the opportunity to make his disciple famous.

The only reason he was saying all this now was to lay the groundwork in advance, just to prevent any awkward situations from arising tomorrow.

"Hahahaha—"

Just as Lu Xuan was about to reply, a hearty laugh rang out from beside him, coming precisely from Zuo Ruotong.

A moment later, Zuo Ruotong ceased his laughter and, under the puzzled gazes of both Zhang Jingqing and Lu Xuan, explained candidly, "Celestial Master, oh Celestial Master, I never imagined that one day the two of us would share the exact same trouble."

"Would you believe it? Such a headache-inducing disciple is something I also have on my hands."

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Zhang Jingqing's interest was piqued, and he probed cautiously, "The disciple Brother Zuo speaks of could it be young master Lu Jin?"

"No, no, no. Although Jin'er's talent is high and his strength surpasses many of his senior peers, he is not yet enough to give me such a headache."

With that, Zuo Ruotong first offered an apologetic smile to Lu Xuan beside him before continuing.

"The disciple I am referring to is named Wu Xian—'Wu' as in the state, and 'Xian' meaning envy. I found him seven years ago when I was passing through a village suffering from a severe famine."

"At the time, I simply felt that the boy had decent innate bones and, seeing him on the brink of death, I was moved by a surge of compassion and brought him back to the Triple One Sect."

"Later on, after he passed the trials I set up, I naturally took him in as my disciple and imparted the techniques of the [Triple Inversion of Mortality]."

At this point, a strange look crossed Zuo Ruotong's face. "At first, it was fine. The boy's speed in achieving the first stage of the Triple Inversion was not particularly fast, ranking only slightly above average among his peers."

"However, on a certain day five years ago, he suddenly seemed to have an epiphany. His progress in the cultivation of essence and life became breathtakingly rapid, advancing a thousand miles a day, and he even broke through to the second stage of the [Inversion] with ease."

"Nowadays, among all his peers in the entire Triple One Sect, not a single person can withstand even a single blow from him. Even Jin'er was easily defeated at his hands."

"Because of this, I developed the exact same trouble as you, Celestial Master—both overjoyed to have cultivated such an exceptional disciple and worried that his excessive talent might lead him astray in the future. Therefore, I wished to make him understand the concept that there are always people better than oneself, but alas..."

Zuo Ruotong did not continue, but his implication was clear: he, too, could find no one capable of delivering a setback to this disciple, and it was driving him mad with frustration.

"Is that so... What an extraordinary coincidence."

Hearing Zuo Ruotong's account, Zhang Jingqing was equally astonished.

As a close friend, he knew Zuo Ruotong very well. Although Zuo Ruotong possessed a gentle and magnanimous temperament, his standards were exceptionally high. For him to speak in such a manner meant that the little fellow named Wu Xian was undoubtedly extraordinary.

Could it be... that Zhiwei really stood a chance of losing tomorrow?

Though this thought flashed through his mind, Zhang Jingqing found it somewhat difficult to believe.

There was no help for it; that little scoundrel was simply too monstrously gifted.

No matter the technique—be it the Eight Divine Incantations or the Lightning Method—he would master it the moment he learned it, and perfect it the moment he mastered it. Moreover, he could draw inferences about other cases from one instance and invent entirely unique approaches; he was a truly born genius of cultivation.

To exaggerate slightly, had he not been born in this era of declining universal spiritual energy, he might well have had the potential to attain ascension in the future, or at the very least become a terrestrial immortal.

An unrivaled monster of this caliber might not appear once in several centuries, let alone two of them coexisting in the exact same era.

Naturally, though he thought this in his heart, Zhang Jingqing would never voice it aloud.

After all, he was the one who had proposed finding someone to teach his disciple a lesson. To utter such words now would simply be too humiliating. As the current Celestial Master of Mount Longhu, he could not afford to lose that face.

"Wu Xian... So it was that child? I remember now. Jin'er once mentioned him upon returning home, saying he had a junior brother who was exceptionally formidable and defeated him in sparring with effortless ease. It seems it was all true."

On the other side, Lu Xuan wore an expression of sudden realization, then smiled as he looked toward the Old Celestial Master and said,

"Isn't this just perfect? Tomorrow, let these two children cross paths directly and see whose talent and methods are superior. Win or lose in the end, it is bound to be a fierce battle, and whatever arrogance they hold will be thoroughly curbed."

Hearing this, Zhang Jingqing and Zuo Ruotong exchanged glances and broke into simultaneous laughter.

"Indeed, let them have a go. The winner shall make their name known across the realm, and the loser shall learn what it means when they realize the sky is vast, the sea is boundless, and one is not truly free."

"Let it be done!"

...

With the blink of an eye, morning of the next day arrived.

For ordinary people, sleeping off a heavy night of drinking was an utterly miserable experience.

However, the vast majority of those attending the Lu family's birthday banquet were seasoned experts within the circle. With just a slight circulation of their internal Qi, the lingering effects of the alcohol vanished completely, leaving everyone spirited and eager to watch the upcoming spectacle.

True to the progression of events, the proceedings began with a few individuals challenging Lu Jin. As the host, Lu Jin naturally did not shy away from a fight and accepted each of their challenges in turn.

Furthermore, owing to a certain someone's influence, Lu Jin's current strength and mental fortitude far surpassed what they had been in the original timeline.

Consequently, when dealing with Liu Dewei of the Yanwutang and Feng Ping of the Huode Sect, he appeared even more relaxed, drawing the sideways glances of senior experts from various sects who silently thought that the Lu family and the Triple One Sect had worthy successors.

"It's about time..."

Watching Lu Jin on the stage, full of high spirits and radiating the aura of someone who had weathered the storm and returned triumphant, Zuo Ruotong could not help recalling the scene from half a year ago when the boy had been beaten to tears. He smiled amusedly, then turned slightly to speak to the Old Celestial Master:

"Celestial Master, I have a somewhat presumptuous request. Might I ask you to order your esteemed disciple to make the first move and teach Jin'er a minor lesson?"

"Hm? And why is that?"

Zhang Jingqing asked with slight puzzlement, "Was young master Lu not already thoroughly defeated once by Brother Zuo's disciple? That lesson should be more than enough."

Zuo Ruotong shook his head. "It is not the same. Sparring between fellow sect members, no matter the outcome, given Jin'er's temperament, will only leave him thinking that he simply hasn't worked hard enough, while simultaneously transforming his original arrogance toward himself into arrogance toward the methods of the Triple One Sect."

"Only by having a peer from outside the Triple One Sect step forward and defeat Jin'er can he truly understand the vastness of this world, rather than remaining a frog at the bottom of a well, confined to a single household and sect."

"I see. Brother Zuo's intentions run truly deep."

Zhang Jingqing sighed softly. Did he not harbor the exact same sentiment? Otherwise, he would have dragged that "rat" from Mount Longhu out long ago to discipline him and jointly dig a pit for Zhang Zhiwei.

As for now... he could only hope that the disciple Zuo Ruotong spoke of was truly as unfathomable as claimed. If so, he would finally have the leisure to focus on sorting out that "rat."

With this thought, Zhang Jingqing glanced toward the distance, where a somewhat lazy figure sat beneath a large tree, and spoke in a deep voice: "Zhang Zhiwei!"

"Coming!"

A slightly flippant response rang out.

At the same time, a tall youth dressed in gray Taoist robes rose from the shade of the tree and, amidst the surprised gazes of the rising generation of geniuses, strode toward Lu Jin.

————

Friends who have read this far, if you enjoy the story, please be sure to turn a couple more pages to reach the active readership interface (it won't show if you're outside the top 100, but it still matters), which is vital for a new book. I'm counting on you!