With a sword drawn, he laughs proudly, his martial prowess dominating the heavens!

Chapter 54 A Casual Chat Between Fellow Disciples on a Rainy Night

【Preface】

I've always avoided writing about Linghu Chong, simply because he's too controversial.

But it's something we can't avoid.

After much thought, I decided to start with his personality and make a few changes to facilitate the transition in the plot.

After all, he hasn't encountered those so-called "heroes and heroines" yet.

In short... if there's anything inappropriate, please be gentle with your criticism... or2

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Halfway through the hour of Xu (7-9 PM), the sky, which had been clear and blue during the day, was now covered with dark clouds, and the weather had changed without warning.

As the evening breeze began to rise, Li Che, standing on the cliff top, opened his palm, and large raindrops began to fall. This first rain of the year would probably wash over Mount Hua for several days before it would stop.

Seeing the raindrops getting heavier, Li Che turned and walked into the cave.

Halfway there, they saw a figure rushing towards them from below the cliff.

"Senior Brother? What brings you here?"

Linghu Chong didn't use an umbrella; he simply covered his forehead with his sleeve. He took a few strides and arrived nearby, then laughed heartily, "Junior Sister said you wanted to see me, so here I am. Come on, let's go into the cave and talk."

Li Che was helped into the cave, but he noticed a hint of bitterness in Li Che's expression when he talked about his junior sister.

The two sat by the fire, remained silent for a moment, then smiled at each other.

"Junior brother, you don't look injured. You've been keeping it from your fellow disciples. Who are you trying to fool?"

Speaking of which, when I was returning as an elder brother, I passed through Chang'an and heard a storyteller mention my junior brother's reputation as a chivalrous man, and that my junior brother had suffered extremely serious internal injuries.

I wanted to come yesterday, but Master firmly stopped me. If I had known you were alright, I would have brought some wine and food. We could have drunk together on this rainy night and chatted about the martial world. Wouldn't that have been wonderful?

Li Che glanced at him curiously. After not seeing him for over a month, Linghu the Hero seemed more carefree than before.

"Knowing I can't hide it from my senior brother, I'm too lazy to pretend. This time, my junior brother caused a lot of trouble when he went down the mountain, so I'm going to lie low for now to avoid being noticed."

"A demonic cult?"

Li Che paused for a moment, then said, "The Songshan Sect!"

Linghu Chong was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, his face showing confusion. He then smiled and said, "It seems it's not a big deal. Otherwise, given Master's temperament, he would have sent someone to the Songshan Sect to mediate, and you would have been punished once you've recovered from your injuries."

Li Che thought to himself, "Could it be that this is too big of a deal? Senior Brother, you still don't understand our Master's temperament!"

Li Che didn't explain, but instead asked, "Senior brother, did your trip to Hanzhong go smoothly?"

"Everything's great! The people are great, the wine is great, the martial world is great!" Linghu Chong leaned against the stone wall, seemingly savoring the moment, then said listlessly, "The only bad thing is Lu Hou'er, and a few beasts from the Qingcheng Sect!"

"Oh?"

"This time, Lu Hou'er received a strict order from his master, who stopped me from drinking to my heart's content. Alas, I could only enjoy half of my full enjoyment. What a pity for all the fine wines of Hanzhong."

Li Che thought to himself, "This is strange. If he wasn't drunk, how could he have made a grudge against the Qingcheng Sect?"

He remembered that in the original story, Linghu Chong got drunk and started trouble for no reason, verbally insulting the four beasts of Qingcheng.

Before he could ask, Linghu Chong burst into laughter, "Bears, wild boars, the four beasts of Qingcheng. Junior brother, you didn't see it, those four wild beasts of the Qingcheng Sect are truly repulsive, shameless, and despicable..."

Amidst laughter and banter, Linghu Chong had already clearly explained what had happened.

It turns out that the Qingcheng Sect coveted the wine and medicine business of Xuejiabao in Hanzhong and had sent disciples to put pressure on them several times. This time, they just happened to run into Linghu Chong.

Lord Xue subtly complained, and Linghu Chong, being straightforward and nosy, verbally provoked Hou Renying and Hong Renxiong, giving them a lesson.

Li Che became increasingly curious as he listened. So this was a thing?!

The results were the same, but the reasons were completely different.

After a moment's thought, Li Che quickly asked, "Senior Brother, have you spoken to Master and Mistress about this?"

Linghu Chong waved his hand dismissively and said, "What's there to say? Do those four beasts dare to come and question us?"

"If they dare to come, then drive them down the mountain. They are not worthy of Linghu Chong's explanation."

really!

If he doesn't speak up today, given his stubborn nature, he'll be even less likely to speak up after being scolded by his master.

They probably think that since they've already scolded and punished, what's the point of explaining afterwards?

Old Yue was intolerant of any wrongdoing and always played the stern face in front of his apprentices. He would probably blame Linghu Chong for not speaking up earlier, which made him lose face instead.

If a rift develops, the worst thing is when one person cares and the other doesn't.

This master and apprentice pair is just... so awkward!

After a moment's thought, Li Che's expression turned serious, and he said solemnly, "Senior Brother, we should explain this to Master and Mistress! Don't rush to refute me, Senior Brother, let me finish."

The eldest brother is an upright and honest person with a clear conscience, but he cannot project his own experience onto others. If the Qingcheng Sect really comes to hold him accountable, he will argue his way out of things, and both sides will stick to their own version of events. Since the master is completely unaware of the situation, he will be in a passive position when dealing with it.

We are naturally not afraid of the Qingcheng Sect, but as the saying goes, it is better to guard against villains than gentlemen. Our master is known as the "Gentleman Sword".

Besides, your eldest brother easily defeated the four beasts of Qingcheng with just a few punches and kicks. Even if Master punishes you, he will be happy in his heart.

Actually, Li Che had one more thing he didn't say: he didn't want Lao Yue to get involved in the affairs of the Fuwei Escort Agency, or at least not to be the one to stick his neck out.

Although he now has Grandmaster Feng backing him up, he, as the disciple, is indeed somewhat worried about Old Yue.

Sigh~ This apprentice's job must be really tiring!

Linghu Chong's initially indifferent expression gradually turned serious. After Li Che finished speaking, he nodded, then smiled and said, "Junior brother, no wonder Master and Mistress value you so much. You are indeed the most suitable to be the 'Huashan Disciple'!"

"A direct disciple of Mount Hua?"

"Ha~ This is what my master's wife told me, and no one else knows. She must be worried that I might be jealous and hurt the friendship between fellow disciples."

Actually, I'd much rather be an ordinary disciple of Mount Hua. It would be best if you, my junior brother, could shoulder the heavy responsibilities of Mount Hua. What could be more enjoyable than riding through the martial world and drinking fine wine?

After saying that, he stood up, smiled, and bowed, saying, "Junior brother, senior brother thanks you."

Li Che was stunned for a moment, then stood up to return the greeting, thinking to himself, "Being friends with Linghu Chong is indeed a wonderful thing."

I hope your frankness and carefree attitude won't be taken advantage of by others. If one day you really lose your sense of right and wrong, don't blame me for helping you to see things clearly!

"Actually, there's something else... Senior Brother's swordsmanship..."

Linghu Chong waved his hand and said, "Junior brother, please don't mention this matter again. Firstly, I don't know who that senior is, and secondly, a man of his word is a man of his word. Even if I knew, I wouldn't reveal it."

Fine!

Anyway, Uncle Feng will take the blame...

With him in charge, those few pieces of rotten flesh from the Sword Sect can't cause any trouble.

The rain fell harder and harder, and a gust of cold wind rushed into the cave, smothering the flames.

The flickering firelight reflected in Linghu Chong's eyes, and he unconsciously felt a sense of loss.

"Junior Brother Li, Junior Sister, she..." Before Li Che could speak, Linghu Chong sighed and said, "I can tell that Junior Sister likes you too."

Li Che frankly replied, "Senior brother is right, there's no room for discussion on this!"

Linghu Chong raised his eyes, and their eyes met; neither of them showed weakness.

After a long while, laughter suddenly came from the cave again.

"If that's what you say, then that's for the best. Otherwise, even if Linghu Chong couldn't beat you, he would risk his life to teach you a lesson!"

With that, he seemed carefree, then shook his head and smiled bitterly, "This morning, my junior sister came to see me, and I... asked her. She said she only sees me as her older brother."

Brother, so that's what she meant when she used to call me Senior Brother?

Sigh~ Actually, I originally wanted to have a showdown with you.

But even if I could defeat you, what would be the point?

He was well aware that he had already lost months ago.

Although he was the eldest disciple, he was also convinced of the merits of his ninth junior brother.

As soon as he finished speaking, he looked directly at Li Che and laughed, "My martial arts skills are no match for yours, but when it comes to drinking, Linghu Chong has never been convinced by anyone. Junior Brother Li, when will you challenge me to a drinking contest?!"

"Alright, junior brother accepts this challenge. Even if we are punished by Master, we will definitely fight to the death with senior brother!"

"That's only right!"

......