bookrebus Chapter 3: A Master of Pretending
Chapter 3: A Master of Pretending
Wang Hao was lifted up, but he was still struggling.
"What are you doing! What are you doing! Why are you arresting me instead of that crazy female lead! My father is..."
"Shut up! Your noise is annoying!"
Liu Xingxing thrust a cold knife at him, and Wang Hao was immediately frightened into silence.
Li Fan, however, was not so cowardly; he immediately fainted, though it was unclear whether he was faking it.
Liu Xingxing walked leisurely ahead, followed by members of the punishment team. This display of power caused passersby to stop and stare, wondering which senior they were.
Before long, the group arrived at the Chongshan Hall, the residence of the sect leader.
One of the junior members of the team had been curious the whole way, and the moment they stopped, he couldn't help but whisper to Ning Shen, "Senior Brother Ning, who is this girl? We're from the disciplinary team, why do we have to listen to her like this?"
The Punishment Team has always been in charge of others, directly under the Punishment Elder. If it were an elder from another peak, that would be one thing, but when has it ever been someone else's turn to be in charge of them, especially a complete stranger?
Ning Shen glanced at him: "Stop asking around, you'll find out soon enough."
When the messenger at the entrance of Chongshan Hall saw that it was Ning Shen and his group, he immediately walked past Liu Jun with a smile and stood in front of him.
"Senior Brother Ning, what brings you here? Is there something you need to report to the Sect Leader?"
Ning Shen bowed respectfully and asked, "Is my master inside?"
"Yes, Elder Xing is discussing matters with the Sect Leader. Senior Brother Ning, do you have something to discuss with Elder Xing? I will go and report to him immediately."
Liu Xingxing sighed softly, "Why are we starting to chat?"
Since everyone was already there, and she didn't want to waste time waiting, Liu Xingxing went straight inside.
Upon seeing this, Chen Niansan immediately stopped her: "Hey, junior sister, you can't just barge into Chongshan Hall. Did you come with Senior Brother Ning?"
"No, never mind, you should go and report it."
Seeing that the person in front of her was quite nice, Liu Xingxing decided not to make things difficult for him.
Chen Nian San gave her a strange look before going into the hall to report.
The Chongshan Hall was very large and divided into several areas for use. Xing Lou and Lü Yuanbai were leisurely drinking tea and playing chess in the back hall, chatting occasionally.
Xing Lou sat casually, looking at the evenly matched game of chess, and stroked his white beard: "Tell me, how many of the new disciples recruited this year are capable of entering the inner sect?"
The stark contrast was evident in Lü Yuanbai, who sat upright opposite him.
Lu Yuanbai considered for a moment, then placed a piece and said, "This year's results are good. We've recruited several with single spiritual roots and many with dual spiritual roots. After the competition in three months, we should be able to get a batch of disciples into the inner sect."
"Um……"
Xing Lou pondered his next move.
A presence approached, followed by footsteps.
Chen Niansan, standing outside the screen, bowed respectfully to those inside, saying, "Reporting to the Sect Leader, Elder Xing, Senior Brother Ning is outside the hall."
Xing Lou was somewhat surprised: "Ning Shen? What's he doing here?"
Chen Niansan truthfully replied, "Senior Brother Ning seems to have arrested two people, and there's another unfamiliar face, probably a new junior sister."
Xing Lou was even more puzzled: "He arrested people and went back to the punishment hall, why bring them here?"
Chen Niansan was also puzzled: "This...this disciple does not know."
Lu Yuanbai then spoke up, "Ning Shen has always been measured in his actions; he must have something important to discuss with you."
“That’s true. This kid is always reliable. Let him in.”
Xing Lou spoke, and Chen Niansan, having received permission, went out again.
Liu Xingxing was already rolling her eyes in exasperation. Seriously, big sects have so many broken rules. They dared to keep the patriarch and the others waiting for so long. If Liu Xingxing hadn't been so polite, she would have already gone in to fight.
Liu Xingxing calmed herself down: Stay calm, I can't let my aloof persona crumble.
If you're going to show off, you have to be patient.
After waiting for a while, Chen Niansan finally came out: "Senior Brother Ning, you've been waiting for a long time. Elder Xing wants you to go in."
Ning Shen said, "Thank you."
Liu Xingxing was about to step inside when Chen Niansan stopped her again: "Hey, junior sister, Elder Xing wants to see Senior Brother Ning. You should wait here."
Liu Xingxing was getting impatient waiting. Damn it, she's not going to pretend anymore!
Liu Xingxing immediately removed the spiritual energy disguise from her body. In an instant, a huge pressure covered the entire main peak. The other peaks also felt the abnormality and immediately flew to the main peak to see what had happened.
The two people inside the hall were shocked and instantly flashed outside the hall, where they saw that the oppressive aura was coming from the girl.
Liu Jun looked at the two men with a sinister gaze. Upon seeing his face, the two men were startled and immediately bowed deeply again: "Welcome, Ancestor Qingjun!"
"Welcome, Grandmaster Uncle!"
Xing Lou wiped away his cold sweat and said, "We don't know when our grandmaster uncle came out of seclusion. We haven't received any news at all. We have been negligent."
The other elders had also almost all arrived, and upon seeing that it was Liu Jun, they all bowed deeply in surprise.
"Welcome back to Patriarch Qingjun upon his return from seclusion!"
The scene was once incredibly impressive.
The younger generation behind them had already been forced to kneel when Liu Jun released his oppressive aura.
Ning Shen couldn't believe that the excessively beautiful girl in front of him was actually the Qingjun Ancestor. His guess was that she was an elder who had been in seclusion for a long time or someone in the Mahayana stage.
Liu Xingxing acted very aloofly: "Yes, get up, everyone."
This feels so good! No wonder everyone in ancient times wanted to be the best. This is a really good show of bravado.
If I had known, I wouldn't have bothered pretending to be a grandson. Wouldn't it have been better to be the patriarch?
Liu Xingxing began to make a boastful statement.
"I had some recent thoughts, so I came out of seclusion to take a walk and see what the world looks like now, and how the Xuanshan Sect is developing. You don't need to spread this, I don't want too many people to know."
Apart from the elders and a few juniors, there was no one else present.
If everyone knew, how could she go out and have fun?
When the ancestor gave his instructions, those present naturally had to listen, whether they wanted to or not. There were even a few who listened with tears streaming down their faces.
Liu Xingxing dismissed them and sent them back to their respective peaks. Then she remembered that there were still some unresolved matters, so she turned her attention back to Xing Lou, who immediately felt immense pressure.
"I was in a good mood when I left the pass today, but I ran into a few blind fools, look."
Liu Xingxing glanced at the two people who had actually fainted.
Xing Lou glanced at the two and respectfully replied, "Grandmaster Uncle, these two disciples must be new recruits this year. Have they done something to displease you?"
Liu Xingxing said calmly, "We'll find out what they've done and what they've done before by taking them back and asking them. We'll also take his father, the one surnamed Wang, back with him. How can a father not know what his son has done?"
Xing Lou was puzzled. Who was the disciple's father? There were many people with the surname Wang in the Xuanshan Sect.
Ning Shen spoke up at the opportune moment: "Master, it is True Man Wang Ren."
Wang Ren?
He does know a little about that.
Xing Lou hesitated, "Grandmaster Uncle, Wang Ren is, after all, a real person. The Punishment Hall needs evidence to arrest him..."
Liu Xingxing looked at him calmly, showing no emotion: "True Person? Aren't there enough True Persons in the Xuanshan Sect? If you can't capture him, then I will go and find him myself."
Indeed, there are countless True Immortals in the Xuanshan Sect. If Wang Ren's mistake was minor, being punished by the Punishment Hall wouldn't be a big deal. However, if Liu Jun were to arrest him herself, she wouldn't be able to care about his life or death. After all, this is the Ancestor, and who can control her?
Xing Lou swallowed silently: "I'll arrange for someone to go right away."
"Very good."
Liu Xingxing then turned her gaze to Lü Yuanbai.
Lu Yuanbai felt a chill run down his spine. Well, now it was his turn.
"Elder Qingjun, what instructions do you have?"
Liu Xingxing said earnestly, "Xiao Bai, although managing a large sect is not easy, you still need to be careful when recruiting new disciples and accepting new retainers. You can't just look at their abilities; you also need to pay attention to their character."
Lu Yuanbai listened attentively: "I have remembered the instructions from the Ancestor."
"Well, I'm going down the mountain to travel for a few days. When I come back, please remember to arrange my accommodations. I estimate I won't be able to go into seclusion for a while."
The elders all know about her leaving seclusion, and they will definitely bother her every day to ask for guidance. Liu Xingxing had the foresight to go out and hide for a few days first.
Finally, Liu Xingxing glanced at Ning Shen and smiled at Xing Lou, saying, "You've made a good disciple; he has potential."
Xing Lou's eyes lit up and he slapped Ning Shen on the back: "Grandmaster Uncle is praising you, so why don't you thank him!"
Ning Shen glanced at Liu Jun, his eyes filled with admiration, and then bowed, saying, "Thank you for your praise, Ancestor."
"Ah."
Liu Xingxing gave him a mysterious look, then turned and disappeared from their sight.