Chapter 47: Please Take the Seat of Honor

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The vigorous ancient cypresses, the ginkgo trees as thick as a man's embrace, and the uneven paving stones all highlight the simplicity and grandeur of the Green Cloud Temple, with its antique charm; even the old well beneath the tall, golden ginkgo tree seems to possess a deep sense of history.

The little Daoist boy Lichen walked in front, chattering away as he introduced the rules of the temple: no chatting up female disciples, no loud noises, no...

Su Yuanshan followed with his hands behind his back; he seemed to have little interest in the "rules" Lichen was introducing, lingering instead on the beautiful scenery around the temple.

He looked around while walking slowly with his hands behind his back, but as he passed by the old well, a wisp of faint blue smoke suddenly emerged from it, followed immediately by a little man with a white beard who drifted out; the little man grew in the wind, soon reaching the size of a real person.

The old man wore fluttering yellow robes and had a flowing white beard, looking quite like a transcendent being with a Daoist air; he wore an orange-yellow crown and held a jade tablet, and upon seeing Su Yuanshan, he bowed low and spoke.

"The Well God of Green Cloud Temple pays respects to the Prefecture Lord!"

Su Yuanshan stopped and nodded slightly, considering whether to ask about the whereabouts of the Centipede Spirit; after all, the other party was a local Well God and might have his own channels of information, since he could not rely on the Yinchai and ghost officials of the City God's Six Bureaus for everything.

Unexpectedly, the little Daoist boy Lichen suddenly turned around and asked in confusion.

"What are you doing standing by the well? Did you remember all the rules I just told you, Young Master?"

He clearly could not see the Well God, so his gaze was focused on Su Yuanshan; Su Yuanshan waved his hand to dismiss the Well God before saying.

"I was a bit distracted just now; could you repeat what you said, little master?"

The little Daoist boy Lichen was speechless and had to explain it all over again.

After being led to the bathhouse and taking an artemisia-scented bath in a wooden tub, Su Yuanshan felt much more comfortable.

Although his body was fashioned from clay, it was no different from a true flesh-and-blood body, and in fact, it was far superior.

It even had special qualities: the first was that its senses were nearly twice as sharp as a mortal body, and it could perceive many things that ordinary flesh-and-blood bodies could not, such as the density of Qi; the second was that, unlike a true mortal body, it had the benefit of being immune to cold and heat, was not as prone to illness, and had a certain level of immunity to poisons and Gu toxins.

Footsteps gradually approached, and there seemed to be more than one person—there were two.

Soon the footsteps disappeared at the doorway, and immediately after, voices could be heard whispering outside.

"Lichen, is that young master inside now?"

A respectful voice replied.

"Yes, Master."

"Are you looking for him? I will go in and call him out now."

However, the voice replied.

"No need, just invite the guest to the parlor later; I will wait for him there."

"Respectfully seeing you off, Master."

The footsteps gradually faded away.

Su Yuanshan climbed out of the wooden tub, dried his body, put on his clothes, tied his hair, and finally stood before a bronze mirror to examine himself.

With thick eyebrows and star-bright eyes, and fair skin, his appearance could not be called as handsome as Pan An, but it was very pleasing to the eye; moreover, his scholarly temperament revealed a sense of composure and fortitude, as if he possessed a maturity and charm far beyond his years.

His temperament alone already surpassed ninety-nine point nine percent of men.

With a "creak," he pushed open the door, and the little Daoist boy Lichen outside couldn't help but have his eyes light up, unable to stop himself from saying.

"After a wash, the benefactor seems much more spirited, as if you are a different person."

Su Yuanshan smiled faintly.

"Little master, you flatter me; take me to see your master."

Upon hearing this, the little Daoist boy Lichen said.

"So you heard it all; then please, follow me."

Su Yuanshan followed him to the door of Lv Qingshan's room.

The little Daoist boy Lichen said respectfully.

"Master, the guest has arrived."

A voice from inside said.

"Come in."

Lichen pushed open the door and led Su Yuanshan into the room, where he saw a thin, green-robed cultivator sitting upright at an Eight Immortals table; the cultivator was about forty years old, with a black beard reaching his chest, looking quite like a master from beyond the world.

He was Lv Qingshan, the master of Green Cloud Temple; seeing Su Yuanshan, his eyes lit up with a strange light.

With his cultivation, he could not discern Su Yuanshan's depth, which surprised him greatly.

The little Daoist boy Lichen was just about to proudly introduce his master to Su Yuanshan, but unexpectedly, Lv Qingshan stood up to welcome him, smiling and cupping his hands.

"A distinguished guest has arrived; I have been negligent."

"Please, take the seat of honor."

"Lichen, prepare some tea!"

At that moment, the little Daoist boy was dumbfounded; he never expected that his master, who was always so aloof, would be so polite to a strange young man, not only welcoming him personally but also offering him the seat of honor!

And he wanted to serve him good tea?

What was wrong with Master?

Seeing that his little disciple was still standing there blankly despite his command, Lv Qingshan frowned slightly and raised his voice.

"Why are you dazed? Go serve the guest tea, good tea."

Lichen suddenly realized, and ran off to busy himself, thinking to himself, this is incredible; I must tell the senior sister about this later—this young brother seems to have a significant background.

Seeing the little Daoist boy leave, Lv Qingshan stroked his beard and smiled.

"My disciple is dull-witted; please forgive him, Young Master. Please, sit."

At this moment, Su Yuanshan was somewhat surprised; he thought to himself, could this old cultivator have seen through my origins at a glance? It seems I was careless.

Su Yuanshan did not stand on ceremony, sat down gracefully, and said lightly.

"Thank you."

Lv Qingshan stroked his beard and smiled.

"I am Lv Qingshan; may I ask how to address you, Young Master?"

Su Yuanshan merely spat out two words indifferently.

"Surname Su!"

Lv Qingshan nodded slightly.

"So it is Young Master Su, my apologies. I wonder which sect Young Master belongs to, and who is your master?"

Su Yuanshan was stunned upon hearing this, then smiled.

He thought to himself, so I misunderstood; this person takes me for a cultivator like himself, otherwise he would not ask in such a way.

Therefore, he replied.

"I belong to no sect or faction, I am merely a rogue cultivator."

A look of regret appeared on Lv Qingshan's face as he sighed and wrung his hands.

"What a pity, what a pity."

Su Yuanshan looked puzzled.

"Why does Daoist Lv say this?"

Then he saw Lv Qingshan stroke his beard and say.

"I observe that Young Master has a unique bone structure and inner Qi, not the appearance of a commoner; you are like a piece of peerless uncut jade. If polished well, your future achievements will surely be astonishing. If you have no famous master to guide you and no sect resources to assist you, relying solely on your own exploration in cultivation, your achievements will inevitably be limited.

In this poor Daoist's view, Young Master is like a bright pearl covered in dust, so I feel regret for you."

"Seeing a bright pearl covered in dust, is there anything more regrettable than this?"

Only then did Su Yuanshan understand that this Lv Qingshan wanted to take him as a disciple but could not bring himself to ask directly.

Su Yuanshan smiled, gave a slight smile, and cupped his hands to say.

"Daoist, you overpraise me, but I, Su, have my heart set on the mountains and rivers, not on cultivation."