Volume 5 Chapter 79

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Volume 5 Chapter 79: Greetings and Farewells, So Many Old Friends (Part 1)

"I am the younger generation, Xu Qingfan, greeting all esteemed masters."

In "Qingxu Hall," the masters appeared very casual, scattered around the empty hall. Xu Qingfan first bowed to the three masters sitting in the main seats, then bowed to each master standing around, missing none.

Immortal Zizhen naturally knew that this Xu Qingfan was the rogue cultivator Xu Fan from years ago, but he did not mention this to anyone, as it involved the reputation of "Qingxu Gate." During the battle in Southern Wasteland, he even sacrificed dozens of Condensed Core Stage cultivators. Afterwards, he took out a large amount of "Qingxu Gate" savings to compensate the disciples of the cultivators who died in that battle. The world believed that Immortal Zizhen did this to boost morale and out of his own pity. Little did they know, it was merely his way of making amends.

At this moment, Immortal Zizhen also looked at Xu Qingfan as if he were seeing him for the first time. Indeed, Xu Qingfan had changed a lot over the years. After Xu Qingfan finished bowing to each master, Immortal Zizhen merely nodded slightly to indicate Xu Qingfan could rise, and he saw that Xu Qingfan also seemed to act as if he were meeting him for the first time, with a hint of satisfaction in his eyes.

"So, Jiuhua has emerged?" Immortal Zizhen, as the host, was the first to ask.

Xu Qingfan respectfully replied, "Report to you, senior, Jiuhua emerged ten days ago."

Immortal Zizhen nodded slightly, then asked Xu Qingfan about Jiuhua’s recent situation. When he learned that Jiuhua already had forty-five Condensed Core Stage elders, he was somewhat surprised and found the progress of Jiuhua’s new generation of disciples remarkable.

Then, he reminded them about the plans for joining the Righteous Alliance in the future and encouraged them. He had Qinglingzi and the others take Xu Qingfan away.

Just as Xu Qingfan reached the entrance of the "Qingxu Hall," an elderly man with a youthful face and white hair sitting next to Immortal Zizhen suddenly called out to Xu Qingfan, "Kid Xu."

Hearing the old man’s address, Xu Qingfan was slightly taken aback, but without hesitation, he stopped, turned around, and bowed to the elder, asking, "May I ask what you need, sir?"

As Xu Qingfan spoke, he felt puzzled in his heart; he had never seen this old man before, and being called "Kid Xu" felt too friendly.

The elder looked at Xu Qingfan carefully, as if trying to see something in him. After a long while, he asked, "Is there an elder named Liu Huaxiang in your sect? What is your relationship with him?"

When Xu Qingfan heard this question, he felt even more curious, but he still respectfully replied, "The Liu Huaxiang you mentioned is my Martial Uncle."

"Nonsense," the old man joked lightly. "Everyone knows that. I’m asking about your relationship beyond that."

Xu Qingfan hesitated for a moment and then answered, "Martial Uncle Liu has taught me for twenty years."

Hearing Xu Qingfan say this, the old man murmured softly, "That’s right."

As he spoke, the old man began to close his eyes and rest, just like when Xu Qingfan had first arrived. Xu Qingfan waited for a long time, but he found that the old man said nothing more and followed Qinglingzi away, constantly guessing in his heart about the old man’s sudden mention of Liu Huaxiang.

After Xu Qingfan followed Qinglingzi and the others away, Qinglingzi smiled and asked, "Mr. Liu, I didn’t expect that this Xu Qingfan would actually be the disciple of Taoist Friend Li Xuhan."

Mr. Liu snorted coldly and said, "What’s there to be surprised about? I saw it the moment that kid came in. Every move he makes, his expressions and mannerisms, all remind me of Li Xuhan from back then. Just now, dealing with Fan Xiaoyao at the mountain gate, his actions were exactly like Li Xuhan’s methods. It’s clear that Li Xuhan had a deep influence on him. That old man Li Xuhan, he died, yet he raised such a disciple to continue bothering people."

From the tone of Mr. Liu’s words, it seemed he was very familiar with Li Xuhan; however, when he mentioned Li Xuhan, he had a completely disdainful expression.

As for the master of the "Xingyin Sect" present, an old man who had been very calm suddenly showed a hint of embarrassment on his face after hearing Mr. Liu’s words.

Qinglingzi seemed to understand the relationship between Mr. Liu and Li Xuhan very well. He didn’t care about Mr. Liu’s earlier rebuttal and simply smiled as he said, "I wonder how much of Taoist Friend Li Xuhan’s skills this Xu Qingfan has learned. But looking at how he does things, perhaps in a thousand years, Jiuhua Mountain will produce another Li Xuhan."

Mr. Liu’s expression turned slightly sad, but he still countered, "So what if there are two Li Xuhans? Back then, even they couldn’t do anything to Zhang Xusheng."

After a while, Mr. Liu muttered again, "Besides, there will always be only one Li Xuhan. Even if that kid learns all of Li Xuhan’s skills, he won’t be Li Xuhan. If that kid really becomes another Li Xuhan, that old man Li Xuhan might not even want that."

Hearing Mr. Liu say this, Immortal Zizhen couldn’t help but laugh quietly.

At that moment, the third master sitting with Immortal Zizhen and Mr. Liu, an elderly man who looked wealthy like a rich gentleman from the mortal world, suddenly spoke up and said, "It is completely different."

Hearing the old man’s words, both Immortal Zizhen and Mr. Liu were taken aback and turned to look at him, but the old man was already gazing out the window, no longer saying a word.

※※※※

After Xu Qingfan stepped out of the "Qingxu Hall," he suddenly felt a sense of relief. While he was in "Qingxu Hall," he hadn’t noticed, but only now did he realize that even though the masters there seemed relaxed, his mind had been tightly strung with tension. It was only after leaving the grand hall that he felt a natural sense of relaxation.

"Senior Qinglingzi, may I ask who that elder was just now? From his words, it seems he knows my Martial Uncle Liu very well."

After walking a short distance from "Qingxu Hall," Xu Qingfan spoke up.

A strange look crossed Qinglingzi’s face, and after a moment, he slowly said, "I do not know much about Mr. Liu’s background, but the other masters hold him in great respect, and it seems he has a very high status."

After hesitating for a moment, Qinglingzi glanced at the sect leaders beside him and then conveyed, "However, before this Mr. Liu arrived, I heard my master mention that he seems to have a great grudge against your sect’s Senior Li Xuhan, who has already passed away."

Upon hearing Qinglingzi’s words, Xu Qingfan was slightly taken aback, not expecting that Mr. Liu would have a grudge against Elder Jiuhua. Moreover, from Mr. Liu’s expression and demeanor while he was speaking earlier, he seemed more friendly and concerned. It might just be Xu Qingfan’s impression, but there seemed to be a hint of sadness or regret as well. He didn’t appear to be someone with a grudge. Nevertheless, since Qinglingzi said so, Xu Qingfan made a note of it in his mind, thinking he would report it to Zhang Hualing when he got back to hear his opinion.

Then, Xu Qingfan discussed some specific matters and details regarding Jiuhua’s joining the Righteous Alliance with Qinglingzi. Qinglingzi arranged for Xu Qingfan to stay at "Ronghua Mountain," and since it was getting late, Xu Qingfan would return to Jiuhua the next day.

After saying goodbye to the Sect Masters, Xu Qingfan followed the guest disciples from "Qingxu Gate" to the guest room arranged for him, which was a small courtyard with four houses, just enough for each person to have their own room.

As night fell, Xu Qingfan, feeling tired from days of traveling to fulfill his promise to Hu Guangshan, returned to his room after arranging for his three disciples to meditate. He sat cross-legged on the bed, ready to rest for the night.

Just then, a voice suddenly came from outside the courtyard.

"Daoist Friend Xu, it has been many years; I have missed you. Shall we catch up?"

Hearing this voice, Xu Qingfan couldn’t help but frown slightly, for he recognized it as the voice of Deng Tianao, the leader of the "Liuhe Gate."

Xu Qingfan had a significant conflict with Deng Tianao, and he didn’t expect Deng Tianao would come to see him.

However, since Deng Tianao wanted to meet, Xu Qingfan felt he couldn’t refuse. He walked to the courtyard and opened the door, finding Deng Tianao with a friendly smile.

Xu Qingfan had met Deng Tianao three times in total. The first time was during the Newcomer Comparison, where Deng Tianao had a proud and aloof demeanor. The second time was when Xu Qingfan, disguised as Xu Fan, traveled and explored the cultivation world, where Deng Tianao was less proud and more polite. Now, during their third meeting, Deng Tianao appeared very warm and friendly.

"Maybe the sect leader has spent too much time, and Deng Tianao has slowly learned to be hypocritical."

Xu Qingfan thought quietly.

"Come in."

Although Xu Qingfan looked down on Deng Tianao’s character, he could not just turn away a smiling guest.