Why do I have so many masters?-Chapter 480 - 139: Coward (2/2)

Mr. Ying was known for his aloofness and rarely showed such solemnity.

Not daring to neglect, Wang Anfeng closed all the doors and windows before quickly stepping into the inner room.

The bed in this elegant chamber was a large, carved wooden one, placed at the very back, with two layers of thick curtains hanging down from above. From the outside, one couldn't see what the person inside was doing.

This arrangement had originally been designed for romantic affairs, but it now conveniently served Wang Anfeng. Lifting his hands, he let the two layers of curtains fall, ensuring his privacy and no longer needing to worry about being detected from outside.

He then took off his shoes, sat cross-legged on the bed, calmed his mind, and revealed the string of Buddha Beads around his right wrist with a gesture, paused, and whispered,

"I want to return to Shaolin Temple..."

The familiar sensation once again enveloped Wang Anfeng.

The world, which had become somewhat dim because of the curtains blocking the light, began to fragment and shatter, the bed, the curtains, the embroidery, all lost their initial forms and became blurred as if he had plunged into the chaos that existed before Heaven and Earth were divided.

In the next instant, it was as if the break of dawn had been recreated.

Light pierced through the dim and vague parts and cascaded down.

Wang Anfeng instinctively closed his eyes.

A gentle breeze lifted his black hair, tickling his face, and if it were spring, he could also smell the fresh scent of grass shoots after a spring rain.

The young man opened his eyes.

He saw green peaks piercing the sky, with white clouds drifting to and fro.

Before him was the landscape of Shaolin Temple.

"Hey, little crazy one, you've finally arrived..."

Before Wang Anfeng could find Mr. Ying, a familiar merry voice reached his ears, accompanied by the spirited sound of a horse's neigh. A red flash streaked across several tens of feet, stopping firmly in front of Wang Anfeng, its hooves hitting the ground with a dull thud.

Fire seemed to cascade, winding through the air.

Then it gradually dispersed.

Wang Anfeng's eyes widened.

Before him stood the same thin red horse he had chosen to leave with from the Tan Residence at the insistent request of Hong Luoyu. Back then, the horse was just slightly thinner compared to the bigger, robust horses.

But now, the thin horse could truly be described as "gaunt," yet it did not seem weak; instead, it exhibited many unusual signs, unlike ordinary horses. Almost subconsciously, a line of poetry appeared in Wang Anfeng's mind.

The Celestial Horse springs forth from the Moon Grotto, with a back like tiger stripes and dragon-winged bones.

Its appearance had become even more arrogant; upon seeing its former master, it merely glanced at Wang Anfeng out of the corner of its eye and snorted disdainfully, emitting a puff of white breath.

Wang Anfeng's lips twitched slightly.

Stupid horse...

Hong Luoyu was sitting astride this thin red horse, wearing a bright smile and looking rather relaxed. Judging by his demeanor, it seemed nothing serious had happened at Shaolin Temple, which eased Wang Anfeng's mind. He raised his hand in greeting and said,

"Third Master..."

"Hm, hm, let's skip the formalities. Come over quickly, I've got something fun to show you today..."

Hong Luoyu nodded casually and began to speak cheerfully.

The thin horse beneath him turned and leaped to the side, and Wang Anfeng looked around to see that he wasn't on the isolated peak where he usually would be but was instead among the mountains behind Shaolin Temple. He settled his thoughts and, with an uplift of energy, performed Qinggong to follow swiftly behind the red horse.

Among Wang Anfeng's several masters, in terms of killing prowess, no one could match Mr. Ying, while Wu Changqing excelled the most in healing. Ci Hui's expertise in Hard Kung Fu had already made him unparalleled in the current Martial Arts World, without an equal.

"""

And Hong Luoyu, skilled in various martial arts and knowledgeable in various techniques, could still be considered almost ignorant compared to the other masters. Even facing those innately talented top-notch experts, he might fall into a disadvantage.

Speaking of swordsmanship alone, even inferior to Hong Hui.

But his light-body skill alone had almost reached the realm of the Way.

When Wang Anfeng was in the Imperial Grandson's residence, he and Xue Qinshuang once talked about Mr. Lin, mentioning the five individuals of the previous generation who dominated the world, the strongest of whom had drawn a line outside his own dwelling.

In the Taoist Sect, there is the sun and moon within the pot, a universe within the sleeve.

In the Confucian Sect, there is an inch away as the ends of the earth, a space within the square inch.

Even for a grandmaster from the outside world who had crossed mountains beyond mountains to get there, upon seeing the unkempt old man, they couldn't surpass that final line.

That line was the Three Thousand Worlds, the myriad forms of all living beings.

How could one person step through the Three Thousand?

This remark, heard by Qinshuang's grandmother, caused a great tremor in her heart.

Yet, when Mr. Ying once casually assessed the martial artists of the world, he mentioned that while surely no match in direct combat, with Hong Luoyu's light-body skill, at the very least, there was a chance to step over that line and share a drink with the world's number one.

If in a good mood, he might even boast for a while and then casually procure something.

The thing he procured, that number one expert in the world might not even notice.

And Wang Anfeng's light-body skill, having fully received Hong Luoyu's true teaching, was actually able to tread the air through emptiness. At this moment, although the thin horse was already transformed, he didn't feel the slightest strain following behind at full speed. After traveling for quite some time, he stopped on a rather flat piece of ground.

In the back mountain of Shaolin Temple, Wang Anfeng had traversed countless times when he first began practicing, and he knew it all too well. But in his memory, the back mountain of the temple was steep and it was impossible to have such a large flat land and vast expanses of green bamboo. He was somewhat startled.

"Anfeng, are you here?"

"Come over, come here, this way…"

Wu Changqing raised his eyes to see Wang Anfeng, cheerfully waving him over.

The youth nodded and strode over, first paying respects to Mr. Ying and the two masters before standing behind the four, curiously observing the bamboo forest that had suddenly appeared in the midst of Shaolin Temple.

"Almost there, almost there."

"This should be good."

Someone in the bamboo forest chuckled lightly.

Curious, Wang Anfeng raised his eyes to look and saw a figure emerging slowly from the bamboo forest, clad in a grey and white Taoist robe, with a gentle face like a woman's, and a teardrop mole at the corner of the eye, smiling and nodding lightly towards him.

Wang Anfeng, not daring to be negligent, returned the gesture with cupped fists.

The Taoist seemed quite pleased, took another glance at Wang Anfeng, then shifted his gaze away and said softly:

"Is he the one?"

Mr. Ying frowned and replied:

"Haven't you already seen him before?"

"Why ask again?"

The Taoist chuckled lightly, seemingly oblivious to the sharpness in Mr. Ying's tone, looked Wang Anfeng up and down again, and said with a smile:

"I have indeed seen him before."

"But I had not anticipated someone of such caliber."

"You are actually willing to part with him."

"""

"Even the unparalleled champion Ying has such a generous day, I am somewhat flattered..."

He said this in a calm and gentle manner, while Mr. Ying, with a cold face, said,

"The Taoist Sect emphasizes fate and law, regardless, you must pass on this swordsmanship to him."

He was referring to the matter of Taoist Su Xing waking up because of Wang Anfeng.

Wang Anfeng was stunned for a moment.

The Taoist clapped his hands and said with a narrow smile,

"I didn't say I wouldn't pass it on."

"It's just a set of swordsmanship, if the champion is willing to wait outside for me, even if it were ten or eight sets of swordsmanship, I would still teach them. Why must you be so anxious, Champion?"

"Could it be, my face... makes you feel a bit guilty?"

His lips curled with a smile, as he looked at Mr. Ying warmly.

The scholar in the green shirt slightly raised the corner of his mouth, but he did not form the usual cold smile; instead, he just snorted coldly, turned his sleeve and said,

"Utterly ridiculous."

Hong Luoyu, however, had no such scruples. He rode up to the white-haired Taoist and said with a grin,

"Yo-ho, Ancient Taoist, it's been a while."

The Taoist retracted his gaze, nodded with a smile and said,

"If you don't come to my Zhenwu Pavilion to steal something, naturally you won't see me."

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"Judging by the time, it has indeed been a while since I saw you."

Hong Luoyu's expression stiffened, and he chuckled twice, trying to change the subject he said,

"Oh right, I still don't know, how is your sister doing?"

"I have been in Jianghu all along and had no chance to meet her."

The Ancient Taoist shook his head and sighed leisurely,

"Not good, very bad..."

"Because of a certain coward, my sister waited in Hongguang Pavilion for a full seven days. After returning to the mountain, she fell ill claiming sickness, and I haven't seen her since..."

Upon hearing this, an exaggerated look of regret appeared on Hong Luoyu's face as he shook his head and sighed,

"That really is some coward..."

"Tsk tsk tsk, I wonder if he's got the guts."

"Alas, Brother Hong's insight is astute, though somewhat crude."

"Haha, men, ah, if they aren't a bit coarse, can they even be called men?"

Ci Yuan silently watched Hong Luoyu for a moment, then gave the expressionless scholar in green another look, pulled Wang Anfeng, and stealthily moved back half a step, thought for a moment, and then took a big step further back.

He pressed his palms together in front of his chest and silently recited a Buddhist invocation in his heart.

Amitabha...

Just at that moment, the Ancient Taoist stopped talking and looked up at the expressionless Mr. Ying with a smile and said,

"Speaking of which, Mr. Ying, as the leader among dragons, do you know the identity of this person?"

"Because he caused my sister to fall ill, as her blood brother, I must 'thank' him properly."

The cheerful voice of Hong Luoyu came to a sudden halt.

His face became a bit stiff as he looked at the Taoist, then turned his head stiffly to look at Mr. Ying.

His eyes slowly widened.

Wait, teasing is one thing...

Is he planning to pull the tiger's whiskers directly now? Oh, my goodness...

Could it be that this Taoist is that fierce?

The scholar in the green shirt raised his eyes indifferently, staring at the warm and smiling Taoist until Hong Luoyu started to tremble inside. Suddenly, the scholar in green lightly smiled, and the oppressive aura vanished without a trace, his right hand brushing his sleeve and resting it on his back, he casually said,

"Back in the day, you all denounced me as an evil heretic, while Wudang was honored as the righteous leader, and your honored sister is the Palace Master of Zixiao Palace, famous throughout Heaven and Earth."

"Those who walk different paths do not make plans together."

"How could I know anything related to the Palace Master of Zixiao Palace?"

The smile on the Ancient Taoist's face slightly retracted as he stared fixedly at Mr. Ying, then suddenly laughed and said,

"I see, I see..."

"Since the Champion does not recognize her, let us drop the matter and not discuss it further."

"Young brother, you want to learn swordsmanship, don't you?"

His gaze fell on Wang Anfeng again, his smile and tone once again as warm as jade.

Wang Anfeng was startled, as he still didn't fully understand the situation.

But Hong Luoyu had already started shouting from the side,

"That's right, that's right, it's him."

"Ancient Taoist, from now on this lad is your disciple, hahaha, let me tell you, this lad has immense respect for his master, you can scold him and discipline him however you like."

Joy filled his face and his heart.

From today onwards, he himself would no longer be at the bottom of the rank.

Beneath the third master, there was now a fourth master.

Although it was just a minor and trivial matter, Hong Luoyu felt utterly delighted, his eyes almost shining with light, and he kept talking about various benefits.

He almost wanted Wang Anfeng to take the Ancient Taoist as his master on the spot.

The Ancient Taoist's gaze landed on Wang Anfeng and he said with a smile,

"Just as the Champion said, the matter between you and me is merely fate and law. To address each other as master and disciple is somewhat inappropriate."

The tone paused, and the Taoist's eyes shifted, glancing over Hong Luoyu's face before leisurely continuing,

"From now on, you may simply call me Taoist."

Hong Luoyu's radiant smile froze momentarily.

PS: The second update for today is here...