Chapter 22: Deciding to Take a Master

Dongzhu, it's time to eat!

A loud shout woke Liu Dongzhu, who had been feeding Wang Ping'an in the room; seeing that Wang Ping'an was full and had buttoned his clothes, she carried him out of the room and immediately saw Yuan Liang sitting in the seat of honor.

Liu Dongzhu gratefully said, "Young Daoist, thank you this time for coming to bless our Ping'an!"

"Madame Wang, your Ping'an is fated with our Xuanqing Temple!"

Yuan Liang opened his mouth, very much wanting to beg Liu Dongzhu to let Wang Ping'an become his disciple and study at his Xuanqing Temple, but remembering his master's parting instruction, the words on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back, and he changed his wording:

"This is what we should do, Madame Wang, you need not thank me!"

Before his master left, besides asking him to properly bless Wang Ping'an, he also had to watch over Wang Ping'an's safety, and no matter what, never mention the matter of taking a disciple.

Everything should take its natural course!

Liu Dongzhu said, "Young Daoist, after your master returns, could you say a word for me, letting our Ping'an become your disciple and learn your skills?"

Yuan Liang's eyes lit up at once; he had never imagined that, before he himself had brought it up, Liu Dongzhu would say it out loud, suppressing his inner surprise, he exclaimed excitedly:

"No problem, certainly no problem, Madame Wang, rest assured; after my master returns, I will tell him about this!"

This time, he helped his master resolve the matter, letting Wang Ping'an become his master's disciple; after returning, his master would not know how to thank him.

Who let this be the thing his master most wants to do now but cannot accomplish!

He didn't care either; his master would be so grateful as to perform the great ritual of three kowtows and six bows, teach him a couple of powerful techniques, and he would be content.

While everyone was gathered around the dining table eating and chatting, the awakened Wang Ping'an did not rush to cultivate; instead, with a thought, he used the skill Pet's Eye and immediately saw house after house and patches of grass.

Faintly, Hei Mao Bu Tou seemed to be running along eaves and walls!

Afterward.

Just as Wang Ping'an was preparing to use the skill Beast Taming to command Hei Mao Bu Tou to hunt mice and earn Merit, he faintly heard a clamor.

"You little bastard, get lost, this road is not for you!"

"Huh, this is weeds, what is this little bastard picking weeds for?"

"Don't you know? She and her mother eat weeds at home every day!"

Wang Ping'an commanded Hei Mao Bu Tou to approach and saw on a main road several boys about eight or nine years old surrounding a girl about four or five years old.

The girl was shoved to the ground, the bamboo basket in her hand falling; inside were weeds, no, actually wild vegetables, scattered all over the ground.

The girl looked expressionlessly at the jeering boys, silently stood up, squatted on the ground, and was about to pick up the scattered wild vegetables.

"You little bastard, I'll make you eat weeds!"

A boy suddenly stepped on the girl's palm.

"Wild vegetables, my wild vegetables!"

The palm burned with pain, yet it did not make the girl cry; however, seeing the wild vegetables trampled to shreds by the other boys, she could no longer hold back and burst into tears.

These wild vegetables were painstakingly gathered from the mountains, enough for her family's food for three or four days.

Three meals a day of wild vegetable porridge were her family's sole food.

Never would she have imagined that the wild vegetables she had painstakingly gathered would be trampled to ruin by those bastards.

Xiao Cao glared at the boys, weeping, "Return my wild vegetables to me!"

"Get lost!" the boy who had stepped on Xiao Cao's palm, seeing her angry expression, not only was not frightened but wore a look of triumph, gave a cold laugh, lifted his right leg, and was about to kick out.

Pfft!

A spray of blood burst out; the boy only felt a black shadow flash before his eyes, then his face hurt, and he let out a painful wail before realizing that a black cat had appeared beside him at some point.

It was Hei Mao Bu Tou!

"You beast, dare to hurt me? I'll kill you!"

The boy cursed angrily, shifted his attack target to Hei Mao Bu Tou, but before he could strike, his vision blurred and a burning pain spread across his chest; looking down, he saw his chest clearly torn by claws, and he wailed:

"Clothes, my clothes, don't just stand there, quickly kill this beast!"

The other boys, about to rush Hei Mao Bu Tou, were reminded by the first attacked boy: "Throw stones at it!"

Hearing this, the other boys immediately reacted, picking up stones from the ground and hurling them fiercely at Hei Mao Bu Tou.

Stones fell like rain, only to see black shadows flash and disappear one after another.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft……

This novel you to

The sounds of clothing being torn rang out; the boys who had originally picked up stones from the ground to throw at Hei Mao Bu Tou all fell to the ground, wailing in tears, "Clothes, my clothes!"

Before the words were finished, Hei Mao Bu Tou came crawling over, baring fangs and brandishing claws like a tiger descending the mountain, frightening the boys into scattering like birds and beasts.

"Run!"

"I'll go tell my father that there's a monster in our village, have him kill it to avenge me!"

"Yes, yes, yes… we must certainly not let this beast go!"

Wang Ping'an, using Pet's Eye, watched the disheveled boys' retreating backs, did not pursue to the end, and turned his head to look at the girl who had just been bullied.

Her clothes were ragged, her hair dry and brittle, her complexion sallow, a pitiful sight that made one's heart ache.

He could not understand why several eight- or nine-year-old boys would bully a pitiful little girl.

"Ding! You helped a little girl escape bullying, congratulations on earning Merit +10, your talent: proficiency of kind heart +1!"

A mechanical, cold voice rang out in Wang Ping'an's mind, making his face flush with excitement he could hardly conceal.

"Divine cat, are you sent from heaven to save me?"

After a long while, Xiao Cao came to her senses, looking at Hei Mao Bu Tou before her, her face full of admiration; before she could finish speaking, she self-mockingly said:

"Wrong, how would heaven care about the life or death of someone like me, a jinx?"

While speaking, Xiao Cao looked heartbroken at the ruined wild vegetables, picked up the bamboo basket fallen on the ground, and limped home.

Not long after, a dilapidated thatched hut.

"Xiao Cao, how much wild vegetables did you gather……"

As the room door opened, a woman working inside instinctively spoke; before she could finish her sentence, she suddenly saw the dust on Xiaocao's body, hurriedly rose from her chair, ran over, and said, "Xiaocao, what's wrong? Were you bullied again?"

Xiaocao cried, "Mother, why, why does everyone dislike Xiaocao? Other children bully Xiaocao; Xiaocao has never done anything bad, why do they do this, why?"

Tears welled in the woman's eyes as she grabbed Xiaocao in an embrace, saying, "It's Mother's fault for being useless, letting you, Xiaocao, suffer injustice."

(End of chapter)