The sword energy sliced through the air, suddenly extending into the distance, swirling up the fallen leaves on the ground. It also swept up the person standing not far away.

With a single stroke, Zhang Jing, who looked completely dazed, was sent flying two miles away. The onlooking disciples had their clothes flapping in the wind, their eyes wide open, collectively taking half a step back, casting incredulous glances at the person involved.

“?”

The person involved, Lin Zhusheng, was just as incredulous. Holding his little broken wooden sword, he stood there, glancing at the sword and then at his partner who had flown off far away, his eyes wider than those of the other disciples.
【Current Level: LV2 (1202/2000)】
This shouldn’t be happening.

He had tried before; his strikes shouldn’t have this kind of power.

Silence reigned in the training ground today, until an elder finally broke the quiet, gesturing a couple of times and saying, “…not bad.”

It was indeed very good, far exceeding expectations… just a bit too much.

The person flew too far away, and he needed to squint to see clearly.

Then the person who had flown away returned, his steps getting faster, the sword in his hand becoming clearer.

Lin Zhusheng swung his sword; it was now Zhang Jing’s turn.

It was a back-and-forth; the one who had just sent someone flying was now sent flying himself, though not as far, experiencing a few seconds of floating in the air.

Seeing that the two still intended to continue, the elder quickly spoke up to stop them.

Very successfully, on the first day of morning sword practice, Lin Zhusheng left a deep impression on everyone’s minds with his quiet and reserved friend, becoming known as “the two guys who sent each other flying two miles.”

Since childhood, Lin Zhusheng had never lacked attention from others. He adapted well, practiced swordplay normally, and communicated with his fellow disciples. After finishing sword practice, he rushed to the library.

He hadn’t finished reading the book from yesterday and was very worried that someone else would borrow it today, delaying his plan to plant vegetables in the spring.

As it turned out, his worries were completely unnecessary. The Tian Zong still didn’t have any other disciples so keen on planting vegetables, and the book was right where it had been, untouched.

It didn’t rain today, and the library had more people than yesterday, finally not looking so empty. Holding the book, he went to the spot he had sat in yesterday. He found a small pavilion with quite a few people, and after surveying the area, he finally looked down at the quiet courtyard in the center.

That should be the place with the fewest people. Quickly making a decision, he tucked the book under his arm and headed straight down the stairs.

The weather was great today, with sunlight streaming through the windows and the carved wooden railings into the corridor, warming the wooden walkway with a soft yellow glow.

The courtyard, which had been damp last time, looked much warmer now. The trees in the corners had sprouted new buds, a tender green, looking very lively.

The person he had seen last time was still there, standing in the middle of the courtyard, one hand holding a broom, slowly sweeping the leaves on the ground, the gray hem of their clothes moving slowly.

The only difference was that this time, the person was holding an umbrella, shielding them from the sunlight above, casting them into shadow.

Stepping into the light, Lin Zhusheng greeted them as he walked.

The other person turned their head, their white hair moving with them, a strikingly bright section emerging from the shadow of the umbrella.

Quickly averting his gaze to protect his eyesight, he slightly raised his head to look at the face hidden in the shadow.

Unlike last time when the rain had drenched their hair and obscured their face, this time, the person’s face was mostly visible, with a pair of light golden vertical pupils that stood out.

They really didn’t look human, at least not when just looking at their eyes.

But none of that mattered. Lin Zhusheng waved his hand and jogged closer, pulling out some sweet, soft snacks like a magic trick, complete with a self-made “ding ding ding” sound effect.

The little cat nestled in his arms, its black furry head popping out, said, “Shouldn’t it be ‘dang dang dang’ instead?”

Lin Zhusheng responded by pressing the little cat’s head back into his clothes.

The little cat slipped out from his clothes, its four paws scrambling as it ran off to a place far from the courtyard.

Realizing the snacks were meant for himself, Wu Qi, caught between the umbrella and the broom, chose to set the broom down and slowly extended his hand.

Lin Zhusheng plopped the snacks into his hand with a “pop.” This time he was prepared, placing oiled paper under the snacks, so he didn’t have to worry about them getting dirty.

As he placed them down, he smiled and said, “You can sit here for a bit; consider this a thank-you gift.”

Because he was afraid of this strange servant who was a bit of a beast, the courtyard corridor rarely had anyone come by, let alone the courtyard itself. It was quiet, and he could soak up the sun, making it an excellent place to read, aside from the fact that there was a beast lurking nearby.

Given that the last time they met, the other person had been dazed and hadn’t said a word, Lin Zhusheng thought he would find a place to sit down himself after finishing his sentence. However, suddenly, a voice came from beside him, “Okay.”

It was a hoarse voice, as if it had been squeezed out from the throat. Although it was just a single word, it had a very distinct strange tone, as if they hadn’t spoken to anyone in a long time.

“?”

Startled, he quickly turned to look at the person standing beside him, meeting those light golden vertical pupils, and the words slipped out of his mouth: “So you can talk.”

It was a rather redundant statement.

In any case, having received permission, he found a clean spot and sat down, generously patting the space beside him, inviting the other to sit as well.

He didn’t look at all like the one borrowing a seat here.

Surprisingly, Wu Qi, who could actually speak, really did sit down after a brief moment of silence. He moved like a rusty machine, every action slow, with an indescribable sense of delay, even when eating the snacks.

He pulled out some snacks for himself and took a bite, while Lin Zhusheng opened his book, turning to look at the person still holding the umbrella beside him, reminding, “It’s not raining anymore; you can put the umbrella away.”

Wu Qi looked up at the umbrella, then at him, but ultimately didn’t move.

Most people couldn’t stand this kind of quiet atmosphere, but Lin Zhusheng, who was super chatty, didn’t mind the silence at all. He continued, “If you put the umbrella away, you can soak up the sun.”

Glancing at the sunlight falling on himself, he enthusiastically recommended, “The sunlight is great today; it feels really nice.”

The person beside him didn’t put away the umbrella, but finally moved it slightly aside, allowing their skin to touch a bit of sunlight.

Lin Zhusheng turned a page in his book, smiling as he said, “Right? It feels nice.”

When he smiled, the curve of his eyes was quite special, making it clear that he was very happy. Wu Qi’s facial muscles twitched a couple of times, as if he wanted to mimic the smile, but he only managed to twitch twice, completely unable to make a smiling expression.

He didn’t smile, but Lin Zhusheng was amused by him. Originally wanting to lower his head and pretend he hadn’t seen, he couldn’t help but chuckle, quickly saying sorry afterward.

“Your hair,” not caring about Lin Zhusheng’s laughter, Wu Qi turned his gaze, saying, “It’s different from before.”

Lin Zhusheng didn’t expect him to remember his hairstyle from yesterday. He instinctively scratched his head but quickly stopped himself, tilting his head to show off, saying, “A kind-hearted senior brother helped me with it.”

It had been done last night, and he hadn’t learned how to replicate it, so he hadn’t dared to take it apart. He had been very careful while sleeping, ensuring the style remained intact, and had stubbornly maintained it until today.

Sure enough, when a senior brother helped, the results were different; even Wu Qi could see the difference.

He patted his own hopelessly clumsy hands and continued munching on the soft snacks, looking down at his book.

Thanks to the fearsome beast’s reputation, he sat quietly here for an entire afternoon, until the sky gradually darkened, dark enough that he couldn’t read anymore, and only then did he return the borrowed book just in time.

After returning the book, he found the little cat that had popped out on its own. As he walked away, he said goodbye to the person still sitting in the courtyard.

The man stood up, still moving slowly. After truly standing up, the person who had been in the corridor had already walked far away. Standing in the night with the umbrella, he finally withdrew his gaze, looking down at the iron chain on his feet.

The following period was all sunny.

The spring sunlight wasn’t harsh; it felt very comfortable on the skin, and it was quite regular. Lin Zhusheng practiced swordplay in the morning, took a nap at the academy in the morning, and in the afternoon, he went to the library to read about planting vegetables and flowers while also feeding Wu Qi. In the evening, he explored the mountains he hadn’t been to before, arranging his day clearly.

Although he had initially doubted whether he was a bit slow-witted in the cultivation world, it turned out he seemed to have some talent. The academy was no problem, and his sword practice was going well; he was keeping up with everything and even making rapid progress.

Every time he swung his sword with all his might, his experience skyrocketed by 100. While his fellow disciples were preparing to draw energy into their bodies, he boldly stepped into LV3.

But that wasn’t the most important thing; the most important thing was that after running to the library so many times, he could finally start clearing land for his own courtyard.

On a beautiful day, which was also a rare day without needing to get up early for sword practice, as soon as the sunlight streamed through the window, the cyber farmer lying in bed sprang up, quickly putting on clothes and grabbing seeds to bounce into the yard.

The peach blossoms in the peach forest halfway up the hill across the house had been falling faster and faster, and green leaves were starting to sprout, looking very friendly to the eyes.

Cheap vegetables and expensive flowers were strictly separated. He buried the soil he had brought back from his mountain runs into the ground, squatting down to plant seeds one by one in his little courtyard, moving slowly.

Until the last planned seed was in the ground, each seed received proper watering. He finally stood up, stretching his old back, facing the light and wiping away nonexistent hardworking sweat.

He had used less than half of the seeds he bought before, and he still needed to find a place to clear more land.

Worried about his seeds, the little cat lounged under the eaves, its tail swishing back and forth, looking up to ask him, “Aren’t you going to find Wu Qi to boost your favorability today?”

“I’ll stop by when I go to the academy in the afternoon,” feeling a bit tired standing, Lin Zhusheng squatted down, asking, “Why?”

“Nothing much, just remembered that your favorability should be quite high by now.”

The little cat blinked, reminding him that there was a side quest to have Wu Qi recognize him as a master, irresponsibly suggesting, “Why don’t you just let him recognize you as a master, just right…”

With a “pop,” Lin Zhusheng quickly rejected the idea.

He refused too quickly and too firmly, and it seemed a bit serious. The little cat had never seen him with this expression and was startled, standing up, thinking there was some principle issue, asking, “Why?”

“After he recognizes me as a master, he has to call me ‘master.’”

The serious farmer Lin scratched his head, making a simple sound, “A big man calling me that makes it seem like I have some weird fetish.”