The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

Chapter 254: Every gift comes with a hidden price tag.

"Haha."

Upon hearing this, Fang Zheng immediately burst into a hearty laugh: "Sect Leader Yue's chess skills are also quite profound. When I played against Sect Leader Yue, I also felt a lot of pressure, and cold sweat even broke out on my forehead."

It was already noon. Yue Buqun and Fang Zheng had been playing chess here for several hours. During this time, Yue Buqun had also won against Fang Zheng, so it was a close match, but he lost more often than he won.

Fang Zheng reached out and wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead, and said with a smile, "Sect Leader Yue, you flatter me."

Yue Buqun chuckled and shook his head. Only then did he seem to notice the arrival of Jiang Ning and Fang Sheng.

"Oh? Ning'er, what brings you here with Master Fang Sheng?"

Yue Buqun looked surprised.

"Master, Grandmaster."

Seeing that the two had finished their game, Jiang Ning bowed to them before answering Yue Buqun's question: "I happened to meet Master Fang Sheng on the road and traveled with him to see the scenery of Mount Hua before arriving here. That's when I discovered that Master was playing a game of chess with Abbot Fang Sheng."

Fang Sheng then smiled and said, "Benefactor Jiang has shown me many scenic spots on Mount Hua and told me some interesting stories. I have truly benefited greatly."

"I see."

Yue Buqun nodded, then stood up and smiled at Fang Zheng, "Abbot, it's getting late. Why don't we have lunch first? I'll play a game of chess with you later."

Fang Zheng nodded and stood up: "Alright."

Without cleaning up the chessboard, the four decided to return to South Peak for a meal. Along the way, Yue Buqun and Fang Zheng and Fang Sheng chatted and laughed in harmony, while Jiang Ning walked behind, pondering the intentions of the two fellow disciples.

He had already noticed something was wrong. The two brothers had found him and Yue Buqun at the same time, which must have been for a purpose. However, Fang Sheng hadn't said anything when he was touring Mount Hua with him before, as if he just wanted to enjoy the scenery. Jiang Ning didn't understand his intentions. He planned to find a time later to ask Yue Buqun about the situation.

At this moment, the four of them returned from Yuntai Peak to Luoyan Peak and were heading towards the canteen. Halfway there, they saw two people walking towards them from the opposite direction. They were Linghu Chong and Chongxu.

Judging from the direction these two are coming from, they seem to be coming from the training ground.

The two were chatting and laughing as they made their way toward Jiangning, but it was Chongxu who was talking while Linghu Chong was scratching his head and grinning foolishly.

Upon seeing this strange pair, Jiang Ning and Yue Buqun's gazes sharpened. They glanced at Fang Zheng and Fang Sheng simultaneously before looking away, pretending to be nonchalant.

"Master, junior brother, and two great masters!"

At this moment, Linghu Chong also saw Yue Buqun, Jiang Ning, and the other three ahead. He quickly came over and bowed to Yue Buqun, Fang Zheng, and Fang Sheng. Chongxu also nodded and greeted the three of them.

"Master Daoist."

Yue Buqun first returned Chongxu's greeting, then looked at Linghu Chong and asked, "Chong'er, why did you come with Daoist Chongxu? Daoist Chongxu is your elder, is there anything impolite about it?"

"No, Master."

Linghu Chong quickly shook his head and said, "I planned to go to the training ground to practice my sword after I got up this morning. I didn't expect to run into Daoist Chongxu there. Daoist Chongxu then guided me in practicing my sword, and I've been practicing ever since."

At this point, Linghu Chong's face showed a hint of excitement: "The Taoist priest also taught me some Wudang sword techniques."

"It's not really about giving guidance, it's just about discussing things with each other."

Chongxu smiled faintly: "I have observed that Young Master Linghu possesses extraordinary talent in swordsmanship and has a far greater understanding of swordsmanship than ordinary people. I took a liking to his talent and discussed swordsmanship with him, and also taught him a little Tai Chi swordsmanship."

Tai Chi swordplay?

Jiang Ning and Yue Buqun's gazes sharpened again as they looked at Chongxu.

At this moment, Chongxu remained calm, as if it were just a trivial matter.

"hey-hey."

Linghu Chong ignored everything else and only heard Chongxu say that he was talented. He scratched his head and grinned foolishly.

fool.

Seeing his appearance, Jiang Ning and Yue Buqun thought to themselves at the same time.

Yue Buqun's face darkened the next second, and he shouted at Linghu Chong, "Tai Chi Swordplay is the treasure of Wudang! How could you let Daoist Chongxu teach you such a precious swordplay!"

Upon hearing Yue Buqun's words, Linghu Chong's expression changed from a silly grin to panic.

Tai Chi swordplay?

No wonder he, who had eaten coarse food, thought the sword technique was good; it turned out to be Tai Chi sword technique.

Linghu Chong then realized the problem and immediately tried to kneel down to admit his mistake.

"Master, please calm your anger, your disciple..."

Just then, Chongxu reached out and pulled Linghu Chong back, saying to Yue Buqun, "Sect Leader Yue, there's no need to scold Young Hero Linghu. This sword technique was taught to him by me. Young Hero Linghu didn't even know it was Tai Chi sword technique when he was learning it."

"Oh?"

Yue Buqun's expression quickly changed from anger to confusion. He asked, "Why is that, Daoist Master?"

Tai Chi swordplay is as important to the Wudang School as a family heirloom. Chongxu's actions are like someone carrying a family heirloom and wandering around the streets, randomly grabbing someone and offering them the heirloom. Even Yue Buqun did not understand Chongxu's meaning.

Chongxu smiled bitterly: "This Tai Chi sword technique was left by the founder of Wudang. However, I am not talented enough to comprehend its essence. Today, upon meeting Young Hero Linghu, I felt that he had an outstanding talent for swordsmanship. Therefore, I took the opportunity to teach him a little Tai Chi sword technique. Please forgive me, Sect Leader Yue."

Yue Buqun was still somewhat skeptical, but he frowned and said, "Even so, Daoist Master is still too kind to him. This is your sect's most prized treasure. I, Yue, am truly ashamed."

Chongxu laughed and said, "Sect Leader Yue, there's no need for that. Although I taught Young Hero Linghu some Tai Chi sword techniques, it was only the basics. It's nothing profound and won't hurt you."

Linghu Chong didn't understand much, but he felt that Daoist Chongxu was a really good person who selflessly taught him swordsmanship. He was even willing to teach him such a precious swordsmanship, just like Feng Qingyang, which moved him deeply. He was so touched that he almost choked up at that moment.

"Thank you, Taoist priest."

fool.

Seeing Linghu Chong on the verge of tears, Jiang Ning couldn't help but shake his head slightly, a very small movement that went unnoticed.

Every gift comes with a hidden price tag. No stranger will be kind to you for no reason. In this world, what is free is always the most expensive, but Linghu Chong did not understand this principle.

"Hurry up and thank the Taoist priest!"

Yue Buqun glared at Linghu Chong.

Linghu Chong quickly bowed deeply to Chongxu.

This time, Chongxu did not stop him and accepted the gift without hesitation.

"Amitabha."

Fang Zheng, who had been smiling all along, said, "Sect Leader Yue is truly blessed. Both of your disciples are exceptionally talented. I believe that with such outstanding talents, the Huashan Sect will surely become more and more glorious in the future."

Yue Buqun shook his head with a wry smile: "I just hope these two unworthy disciples don't go astray."

Chapter 255: A Young Man's Feelings

"Young Master Jiang and Young Master Linghu are both kind-hearted people, so I think Sect Leader Yue has nothing to worry about."

Fang Zheng said with a smile.

"I hope so."

Yue Buqun also smiled and shook his head.

Seeing the pleasant atmosphere of the conversation between the elders, Linghu Chong's anxious mood relaxed, and when he saw Jiang Ning behind him, he winked and made funny faces at Jiang Ning.

After they met, they went to the cafeteria together for a meal.

Besides Qingcheng and Emei, several other sects, including Shaolin, Wudang, and Kunlun, came to support Huashan Sect this time. There were many people there, and when Jiang Ning and the others arrived at the canteen, it was already full of people. Many people even had no room to sit down and were wandering around the mountain with their rice bowls in their hands.

Fortunately, Yue Buqun had stockpiled a lot of food last time, and in order to prepare for the worst-case scenario, he had stockpiled enough food for the Huashan Sect to use for a long time. Although there are more people now, they can still barely supply the sect. They just need to purchase more food as soon as possible.

Seeing that the canteen was packed with people, Yue Buqun took the initiative to invite Fang Zheng, Chongxu and the others to eat together at his Suoyoubuwei Pavilion. Jiang Ning, like the other disciples, carried his rice bowl and wandered around. He came to a cliff and sat down to eat while looking at the scenery below.

"Junior brother, why are you eating here? We saved a seat for you."

At this time, Lu Dayou found Jiang Ning.

“My fellow students and I couldn’t find you before, and we thought you had gone somewhere.”

Jiang Ning turned around and smiled: "It's fine here."

Seeing Jiang Ning sitting here, Lu Dayou also sat down, looking somewhat worried.

"What's wrong, Senior Brother?"

Jiang Ning noticed his expression and asked curiously.

Lu Dayou seemed a little embarrassed: "Um... junior brother..."

Seeing that he was speaking haltingly, Jiang Ning frowned slightly and asked, "What's wrong?"

Under Jiang Ning's urging, Lu Dayou finally said, "Junior brother, I have some questions I'd like to ask you."

Jiang Ning subconsciously sensed something was wrong and asked suspiciously, "What's the problem? Is it a problem with your training?"

In the past, Huashan disciples would come to him with problems in their training, and Lu Dayou had asked him before, but he was never as hesitant as he was now.

Lu Dayou quickly shook his head: "No, no."

Jiang Ning frowned: "What's the problem?"

Lu Dayou looked a little shy: "Well... I wanted to ask, if I wanted to give a girl a gift, what would be a good idea?"

"?"

Jiang Ning looked at him strangely and asked, "Why would you ask me this question, Senior Brother?"

It's one thing for Linghu Chong to come and ask him about his love life, but why is Lu Dayou coming to ask him too?

Lu Dayou said embarrassedly, "My senior brother said you know a lot, and he comes to ask you when he doesn't understand something. He also said you are very reliable in this area."

Jiang Ning didn't know what to say.

Linghu Chong is here to help him develop his business.

To be honest, Jiang Ning really doesn't understand matters of the heart. The advice he gave Linghu Chong before was always given reluctantly.

It's better to find Yue Buqun than him. At least Yue Buqun has successful experience, while he has no experience at all and relies purely on theory.

However, since Lu Dayou had asked, Jiang Ning couldn't refuse outright. As the saying goes, three cobblers are equal to one Zhuge Liang, so he could at least help analyze the situation.

"Is the senior sister that my senior brother mentioned a disciple of Mount Hua?"

Jiang Ning was curious about which faction Lu Dayou's crush belonged to.