Chapter 368: Renowned Throughout the Valley

If not for Ning Zhuo's innocent and eager expression, and the clear, guileless look in his black-and-white eyes, Lin Shanshan would have scolded him as a "lecher."

Just as Lin Shanshan was about to refuse, Ning Zhuo patted his belt and took out the mechanical arm from before.

"Miss Lin, I would like to gift these two mechanical floating hands to you."

"How about you control them to guide me in my martial arts?"

Lin Shanshan gasped, and the misgivings in her heart mostly vanished. She hesitated, "These mechanical floating hands are your trump card, and you're just giving them to me like this?"

What kind of trump card was this!

But Ning Zhuo still acted as if he were hesitant for a moment.

Then, he said sincerely, "Firstly, I trust your character, Miss. Even exposing the details of the mechanical arm in front of you, I have no worries at all."

"Secondly, I am deeply aware of my flaws in martial arts. Having dealt with Hanzhou this time, I will have to face other figures in the future, and every battle will require me to confront this. It is better to start solving this problem from now on!"

Such a firm attitude made Lin Shanshan feel even more admiration.

With no more concerns, Lin Shanshan took the mechanical floating hands, "Since that is the case, let us begin the special training."

The training focused on actual combat, with Lin Shanshan trying her best to imitate Hanzhou's fighting style to spar with Ning Zhuo.

Ning Zhuo's cultivation base was only at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, while Lin Shanshan was at the late stage. Furthermore, Ning Zhuo could suppress the power of his spells; the goal was to simulate how to turn the situation around and create distance when being closed in on by a strong enemy.

Lin Shanshan's repeated assaults left Ning Zhuo struggling to cope, and he was soon drenched in sweat.

An hour and a half passed quickly.

Seeing Ning Zhuo's movements becoming distorted and his stamina exhausted, Lin Shanshan stopped voluntarily, "Let's end today's training here."

Ning Zhuo was extremely exhausted, panting heavily, his clothes soaked with sweat, "Th-thank you, Miss Lin..."

"Today's sparring has benefited me greatly!"

Lin Shanshan also had a light sheen of sweat, but a sweep of her magic power made her fresh and dry again.

She said, "Young Master Ning Zhuo, it is clear that you usually focus on practicing spells. You rarely engage in sparring like today, right?"

Ning Zhuo nodded, "Miss Lin's discerning eyes are sharp; I have embarrassed myself."

Lin Shanshan shook her head, looking serious, "You might not have noticed your performance before and after this sparring session. You have improved significantly, which shows your talent."

"You have aptitude; only by thinking carefully, realizing your shortcomings, and constantly adjusting can you achieve such training results today."

"What you lack most is actual combat experience."

"Therefore, Small Struggle Peak is truly very suitable for you, Young Master Ning Zhuo."

"This time, even if you lose to Hanzhou, please do not take it to heart. As long as you stay on the Small Contention Peak for a few months, you will surely undergo a transformative improvement!"

Lin Shanshan was affirming Ning Zhuo's talent and aptitude on one hand, while giving him sound advice, comfort, and guidance on the other.

Even if you lose, it doesn't matter; the future is yours.

Ning Zhuo nodded, staring intently at Lin Shanshan, "Without your guidance in every round, how could I have achieved today's results by just working behind closed doors?"

"When shall we continue here tomorrow?"

Lin Shanshan was stunned.

She had never thought about continuing to guide him. In her mind, teaching him this once was enough.

My Buddha Heart Demon Seal!

Under Ning Zhuo's influence, the words Lin Shanshan was about to use to refuse turned into agreement, "Alright, here tomorrow, at the same time, how about that?"

"Thank you, Miss Lin!" Ning Zhuo bowed deeply and took out four stalks of Mist Show Orchid, "This is a small token of my appreciation..."

Lin Shanshan laughed, "I have already said, Hanzhou's challenge is partly my responsibility. Young Master Ning Zhuo, I am merely following my own heart. If I accept your gift, the situation will change for me."

"Can you understand?"

Ning Zhuo sighed deeply, "I understand. Miss Lin, your noble character is worthy of being a pride of the Myriad Medicine Sect! Such demeanor is the best I have ever seen in my life!"

Lin Shanshan had been praised too many times, but this was the first time she had been praised so directly, face-to-face, so intensely, and with such sincerity by Ning Zhuo.

So much so that when Lin Shanshan walked out of the sparring arena, her steps were slightly hurried.

"An hour and a half... the two of them stayed in the sparring arena the whole time..." Many sect members had been watching.

Seeing Lin Shanshan and Ning Zhuo come out together, they all cast covert glances.

They saw the drenched, unsteady Ning Zhuo, and also saw Lin Shanshan walking in front with a slightly tense expression.

All kinds of speculations emerged in their hearts.

As Lin Shanshan passed by the sect members, she suddenly paused.

"By the way," she instructed, "Reserve one of the Heaven-grade sparring arenas; I will be using it for the next few days!"

"Understood." The sect member agreed immediately, while their heart was shaken. Judging by Lin Shanshan's words, she intended to spend much more time with this young man!

"Who exactly is this young man?" This huge question swirled in many people's minds.

Therefore, when Ning Zhuo and Lin Shanshan said their goodbyes and left, he was immediately approached by many people who tried to sound out his background.

Ning Zhuo did not hide anything; he stated his identity, explained the ins and outs, and praised Lin Shanshan as a pride of the Myriad Medicine Sect, kind-hearted and of exceptional character, for taking the initiative to help him prepare for the battle.

"Is our Young Lady such a warm-hearted person?"

"She is indeed helpful, but this is the first time she has helped a stranger to such an extent."

"Why wasn't I challenged by Hanzhou? This kid Ning Zhuo is truly blessed by misfortune!"

News about Ning Zhuo and Lin Shanshan spread quickly.

When Li Jingqing learned of this news, his face turned deathly pale!

"It's over!"

"It would be easy for Lin Shanshan to find out the truth behind this. Her taking his side so blatantly shows her attitude toward me."

"I was supposed to build a good relationship with the Myriad Medicine Sect, and suddenly, I've offended the Sect Master's beloved daughter. What kind of situation is this?!"

Li Jingqing felt like slapping himself.

"Counterproductive!"

"It's counterproductive!" He sighed bitterly and suffered from insomnia that night, tossing and turning in bed.

By dawn, he made up his mind, washed up, and carefully groomed himself.

After leaving his cave dwelling, he climbed all the way up and finally stopped in front of Cave Dwelling No. 281.

He channeled his magic power into the array on the mountain wall at the entrance and then pushed his visiting card into the array.

The next moment, the visiting card was transmitted to Ning Zhuo's hands through the array.

Ning Zhuo unfolded the letter and took a look; it was a thousand words long, but he only saw the two words "apology."

"Interesting."

He put away the visiting card, stood up, and first notified Sun Lingtong, who was sleeping inside the Ten Thousand Mile Swimming Dragon, to control the mechanical dragon to lurk nearby as a backup to prevent any accidents.

Then, Ning Zhuo opened the cave's array and leisurely invited Li Jingqing into the cave for a detailed talk.

Li Jingqing brought heavy gifts to come and offer an apology.

Ning Zhuo, however, did not accept any of them, "I already learned from Senior Sister Lin Shanshan that you were the one plotting behind the scenes."

"I understand you, but I also despise you."

"However, since you took the initiative to apologize today with such sincerity, we can consider this a case of not knowing each other without fighting."

"I will not accept these gifts."

"To tell you the truth, being able to fight Hanzhou is my honor, and I am quite looking forward to it."

Li Jingqing pointed to a jade slip among the gifts, "This is the latest intelligence on Hanzhou that I have collected; it is absolutely authentic."

Ning Zhuo glanced at the jade slip and looked away, "I believe you are truly apologizing. But I will not use such things."

"I want to rely on my own strength to welcome the first battle."

"I will speak to Senior Sister Lin Shanshan about your matter."

Seeing Li Jingqing about to take out more heavy gifts, Ning Zhuo waved his hand, interrupting him directly, "Don't even think about me speaking well of you! I will only tell the truth."

"You may go now."

Li Jingqing observed Ning Zhuo's serious expression and realized he shouldn't push too hard. He had no choice but to bow and scrape, take back all the gifts, and leave the cave.

When he saw Lin Shanshan again, Ning Zhuo told her the truth about Li Jingqing.

"A mere merchant, not worth mentioning." Lin Shanshan shook her head, "I never intended to make things difficult for him."

"However, don't tell him; let him stay anxious for a few days."

Lin Shanshan was very satisfied with Ning Zhuo's handling of the matter; this was what a good man should look like. If Ning Zhuo had truly accepted Li Jingqing's apology and withdrawn from Hanzhou's challenge, Lin Shanshan would have understood, but she would have looked down on him.

"I will come to watch your battle with Hanzhou." Lin Shanshan felt even more favorable toward Ning Zhuo and couldn't help but say.

Ning Zhuo's eyes lit up, and he clenched his fists, "In that case, I will definitely not lose!"

Lin Shanshan secretly cheered, her own fighting spirit ignited, "Young Master Ning Zhuo, Hanzhou is indeed stronger than you, but you are not without a chance of winning. The special training in the next few days might be the key to victory or defeat!"

Ning Zhuo nodded, "I understand, let's begin."

The two of them trained like this for several days, sparking many rumors.

Since she was a child, Lin Shanshan had always been the focus of attention in the Myriad Medicine Sect. This led to countless cultivators learning about Ning Zhuo. When many male cultivators mentioned Ning Zhuo's name, they all felt a gnashing of teeth.

Some cultivators secretly found Hanzhou, offering to lend him magic tools or provide intelligence on Ning Zhuo.

As a result, Hanzhou refused them all.

His words were very direct, "I heard about Li Jingqing wanting to give my intelligence to Ning Zhuo as an apology. As a result, he refused."

"He is so upright; although I am a beggar, I am also a man. How can I lose my backbone?"

"Go away, all of you, let me have a hearty battle with him in the open!"

Under Sun Lingtong's efforts, the performances and choices of Ning Zhuo and Hanzhou spread in the form of rumors.

The battle between Ning Zhuo and Hanzhou attracted even more attention.

Their reputations and public opinion rose accordingly.

Especially Ning Zhuo, as an outsider, had become famous throughout the Small Contention Peak and the Original Mountain in less than half a month.