Chapter 262: Young master chat room

Inside the carriage, a Great Master, dressed simply and with an ordinary appearance, sat on a stool.

He looked like an uncle from the roadside, with a full beard and clothes clearly woven from Gu, seamless and without any stitches, and the style was not from Tang Nation, but a common design from Shaman God Mountain.

He was on the stool, asking Li Qi questions.

Hearing the Great Master’s words, Li Qi immediately nodded: “That is indeed the case.”

The two Young Masters beside him immediately looked sideways at Li Qi.

Yan Ke’s face was full of disbelief. Had this Li Qi really done something like that?!

Bo Yue had a headache, as if saying: “I knew you were capable of such a thing.”

The Great Master, however, was noncommittal and continued to ask: “Then, Gongzi Qi, can you explain why?”

Li Qi raised his head and said: “She is my wife, and she came with me willingly.”

The Great Master raised his eyes slightly, his expression a little surprised.

Then he said: “Then why did I hear that you and Zhu Fengdan fought all the way to the entrance of Mount Luofu, forcefully abducted her, and caused a Ordained Invoker to personally come to apologize?”

“Uh, it might be a misunderstanding,” Li Qi said, banking on the fact that the other party hadn’t directly examined his Dao Heart.

Great Masters were all quite cultured and rarely directly delved into others’ inner thoughts.

Even if they had the ability, they rarely used it.

“A misunderstanding? A misunderstanding so big that a Ordained Invoker personally came to apologize?” The Great Master raised an eyebrow.

“Perhaps the misunderstanding was indeed quite large, but Shui Bi definitely came with me willingly,” Li Qi said honestly.

“A Fifth Grade Daoist Master of the Dao Sect, are you trying to say that you two are deeply in love? Li Qi, perhaps you’re not very clear, but there is a fundamental difference between Fifth Grade and Eighth Grade. You can’t even be considered the same species,” the Great Master reminded him.

Li Qi pouted.

It sounded as if they were the same species when they were born…

They were never the same species.

However, Li Qi didn’t say much, only cupped his hands and said: “Great Master, please discern.”

This was him lying flat and being defiant.

Saying “discern” (明鉴).

The actual meaning was “believe it or not.”

“Forget it, just be responsible for your own actions.” The Great Master shook his head, seemingly not caring about the matter at all.

Then, he looked to the other side and said: “Zhong Minglou, you are responsible for asking about this matter. Let the children resolve their own issues.”

After he finished speaking, Li Qi suddenly looked up and saw a blind man with cloth over his eyes walking out of the carriage!

It was the same charlatan who had initially said they would meet again!

Damn it, he really was a charlatan, and he really followed them.

“Junior Brother, look, we meet again.” This blind man adjusted his hair and ‘looked’ at Li Qi with a smile.

Although his eyes couldn’t see, it had to be said that his gaze still had a feeling of seeing through everything.

The Diviner named Zhong Minglou had an ordinary appearance, but just as ordinary people become more attractive with a mask, he covered the upper half of his face with a silk ribbon, wore a Tang Nation gentleman’s attire, and tied his long hair into a ponytail. At first glance, he actually looked like a humble Young Master.

Coupled with his habitual smile, it gave people the illusion of a mysterious Young Master.

However, Li Qi felt some doubt in his heart. He ignored Zhong Minglou and looked at the Great Master: “Wait, Great Master, didn’t you say only three people were admitted? Why is there a fourth?”

The Great Master stood up, tidying his belongings as he spoke: “Yes, three. Zhong Minglou, Yan Ke, Bo Yue, three people. You snuck in privately. Who said you had the qualifications to enroll?”

Upon hearing this, Li Qi immediately felt a headache.

How petty!

It was just leaving early, how did that upset him?

Wait, no.

While Li Qi had a headache, he suddenly realized that if he really couldn’t enroll, how did he get in yesterday? The terminal had registered his identity, hadn’t it?

Just as Li Qi felt something was amiss, he heard the Great Master say: “However, although you cannot be specially admitted, I can’t just leave you to wander Tang Nation doing nothing. I have still registered you. In twenty-one days, there will be the Imperial Academy’s entrance examination. You can compete for those few admission spots with the other people who came through the open selection.”

“I’ve arranged for Zhong Minglou to investigate your situation. You all can chat. Afterwards, he will submit a report to me. What you say and how you cover it up without being discovered is your business. Lying is fine, but don’t let Zhong Minglou find out. I’ll be grading you.”

“I have other matters, so I’ll leave first. I’ll pick you all up for the banquet tonight. There are still six hours until the banquet. In the meantime, you can sit here for a while. You can also go out for a walk, but when I return, it’s best if all of you are here.”

The Great Master finished speaking and walked out of the carriage.

Only four young people were left, looking at each other.

“Cough, cough.” It was Yan Ke, from the Human-Ghost lineage, who took the initiative to speak. This handsome man with an approachable aura was the first to say: “Alright, now that it’s just us, let’s not make it too awkward. Oh, by the way, let me say it again, my name is Yan Ke.”

“Since we’ll all be staying in Tang Nation for a while now, why don’t we get to know each other? Li Qi, hello, nice to see you again. Thank you so much for last time. After I went back, I carefully considered what you said, and now I have a new understanding of the Human-Ghost lineage.”

Seeing this, Li Qi also nodded slightly and cupped his hands: “Senior Brother Yan, it’s good if I could help you.”

“I’ll introduce you to everyone. His name is Li Qi, from the Invoker Di Qi lineage. His Master is Mr. Zhu Fengdan,” Yan Ke mediated among the stiff group, trying to liven up the atmosphere.

“Bo Yue, you should introduce yourself too. This should be your first time meeting Li Qi, right?” Yan Ke proactively said again.

Bo Yue took a deep breath, looking impatient: “I’m definitely more familiar with him than you are. Stop talking nonsense, it’s finally quiet for a bit, let me be alone!”

It was clear that Bo Yue was truly annoyed at the moment.

Yan Ke smiled bitterly and shook his head, no longer pressing the conversation. Instead, he continued to introduce: “Then I’ll speak for him. Bo Yue, from the Diviner Divination lineage. His Master is Master Shu Xuan.”

Then, he looked at Zhong Minglou: “Everyone knows his name. Zhong Minglou, from the Diviner Geomancy lineage. His Master is Jiang Ding, Elder Jiang.”

Li Qi nodded, indicating that he understood.

This was the first time he knew Bo Yue was from the Divination lineage, but it made sense when he thought about it.

Diviner, like Invoker, were also divided into several branches: The Way of Dreams, Divination, and Geomancy.

The Way of Dreams could enter dreams, delve into people’s hearts in dreams, deduce past events and future motivations. They focused most on reasoning and analytical abilities, similar to detectives.

Divination was easier to understand. Divination involved using a method similar to mathematics for calculations, emphasizing calculation over metaphysics, calculating probabilities. The key attribute was intelligence; otherwise, one couldn’t perform Divination.

Geomancy, on the other hand, was entirely metaphysics. ‘Shi’ (眡) means to observe, and ‘Jin’ (祲) refers to the essence of Qi and auspicious signs. The meaning of ‘Shi Jin’ (眡祲) was to observe Qi, to deduce future fortunes and misfortunes by observing changes in Qi.

Then, he continued: “Lastly, there’s me. Everyone should know me. Invoker Human-Ghost lineage, Yan Ke. No need to say more, you probably already know.”

It had to be said that Yan Ke’s efforts were very effective.

After the introductions, they were finally not so awkward.

However, the atmosphere was still a bit strange.

Bo Yue looked impatient, constantly manipulating something with a spell disk in his hand, fully focused, as if he would fight anyone who disturbed him.

The charlatan Zhong Minglou still smiled without speaking, just quietly looking at Li Qi, making Li Qi’s hair stand on end.

Li Qi, as a normal person, didn’t know what to say while sitting there.

Yan Ke, as the second normal person, after finishing the introductions, also didn’t know how to continue the conversation…

So, the two Invoker exchanged glances and sighed: “Ah!”

Both of them found resonance in that sigh.

Indeed, all Diviner were crazy.

We Invoker are much more normal!

After reaching a consensus, their communication became less constrained.

Yan Ke sat down next to Li Qi and said: “Forget it, Diviner are always so mystical, let’s not talk to them. But you, Junior Brother, how did you think of running off by yourself? And what the Great Master just said, are you really involved with Moonborne Daoist Master?”

“Why is everyone focusing on this?” Li Qi wiped sweat from his brow, shaking his head helplessly.

Why were these people concerned about his wife?

Then, he explained: “What I just said wasn’t perfunctory at all. It was all true.”

Yan Ke’s expression immediately became subtle, his eyes filled with astonishment.

“Sneaking in is one thing… Moonborne Daoist Master, how did you do it? The Great Master said she was Fifth Grade, right?” Yan Ke asked, very surprised.

Li Qi was annoyed.

“Ah, Senior Brother Yan, why are you so surprised about this?” Li Qi asked back helplessly.

“A Fifth Grade mighty being, don’t you know that each grade is a new heaven? Eighth Grade and Fifth Grade view the world from completely different perspectives, and they find each other very difficult to understand. It’s like… my Master once gave me an example, I’ll tell you.”

Yan Ke pondered his words and said: “I once asked, ‘Master, why can you change into different appearances, and why can Mistress always recognize you, even though your aura and appearance have completely changed?’”,

“At that time, my Master asked me in return, ‘Yan Ke, I remember you raised some white mice for cultivating Gu. Did you change your gloves when you fed them?’”

Yan Ke said with a smile: “At that moment, I understood what my Master meant.”

Li Qi nodded. He wasn’t foolish, so he naturally understood as well.

Even if you don’t disguise yourself at all and kindly feed your small mice, the mice in the cage will only recognize your hand. They don’t even know what you are.

It’s not that you are hiding your identity, but because the small mice simply cannot perceive your full form. Even if they stare with wide eyes and full concentration, they can only see the shape of a few of your fingers and cannot comprehend how magnificent your entire body is.

Fifth Grade and Eighth Grade are pretty much like that.

Regarding this, Li Qi couldn’t help but start thinking.

Why?

Perhaps it was because Shen Shuibi had lost all her cultivation?

And she had a naive personality, only realizing much later that her perspective had changed.

She was no longer an immortal, so she could better understand the thoughts of Mortals.

He truly did get a bargain.

Then, thinking differently.

Shen Shuibi was about to recover to Fifth Grade. Would she cause any trouble because of her recovery later?

She… probably wouldn’t, right?

Li Qi couldn’t help but feel a little worried at this thought.

But Yan Ke didn’t seem to notice, turning to strike up a conversation with Zhong Minglou: “Junior Brother Zhong, what about you? Aren’t you going to say something to Junior Brother Li? You have to write a report, right?”

Upon hearing this, Li Qi also recovered from his thoughts and looked at Zhong Minglou.

But Zhong Minglou smiled, revealing an extremely charlatan-like smile, and then said in a gentle voice: “No need to ask, I already know.”

Li Qi and Yan Ke, the two Invoker, exchanged glances, feeling that communication was impossible.

Talking to a Diviner… it was so painful.

Afterwards, Li Qi and Yan Ke began to converse.

Their conversation naturally revolved around recent events.

Through chatting with Yan Ke, Li Qi finally understood what had happened before.

It turned out that Yan Ke and Bo Yue originally didn’t need to come.

The designated person was only one, and that was Zhong Minglou, and then they would find others to make up four.

This Diviner, however, directly stated that the remaining two spots should go to Bo Yue and Yan Ke.

How credible was the divination result of an Eighth Grade Diviner?

But the higher-ups actually believed it!

And so, these two spots were finalized.

Yan Ke originally had his own matters, and this matter was brought to him by Li Qi.

Ever since Li Qi said, “Manipulating the tyranny of a world cannot be considered the Dao of a Invoker,” Yan Ke was so struck that he ran home to ponder over it.

However, Yan Ke quickly found the answer, which was:

Guidance is not manipulation. The grand trends of history are the result of their own operation. Everyone participates in them, and no one can play a decisive role. It is as natural as water flowing and carving out a riverbed. A single individual cannot possibly influence it, because no single individual can detach from history. Everyone is just a drop of water in the long river of history, including Invoker themselves.

And guiding the grand trends is precisely what the Human-Ghost lineage should do.

Having understood this, Yan Ke’s Dao Heart stabilized once again, and his cultivation became even more profound.

So, when he was called upon, he chose to go gladly, because he wanted to explain to Li Qi what he had figured out, as if to share good news.

However, Bo Yue was not so happy.

Bo Yue had obtained the Mountain and River Grand Formation blueprint of Guangyang, and was joyfully studying it, and had broken through to Eighth Grade with it. He was just about to spend half a year thoroughly understanding the Shanshui foundation.

But just then, the order from above came, which was why Bo Yue was so displeased.

Now, not only could he not focus on his research, but he also had to come here for classes, and he held the Imperial Academy in extremely low regard, so he was very unhappy.

Ever since they set off, he had maintained a poker face.

As the two chatted to this point, Bo Yue suddenly walked over.