stonecrandall Chapter 23: Engagement, Participation in the Competition
Chapter 23: Engagement, Participation in the Competition
That night.
With the moon and stars shining brightly, Li Jiuyou arrived at the entrance of Ning Fengzhi's courtyard.
As he walked to the door, seven shadows lurking in the environment appeared.
"Knock knock knock!"
With his knuckles pressed against the door, Ning Fengzhi opened it after a short while.
"Nine Netherworlds, what's wrong with you?"
Ning Fengzhi glanced behind Li Jiuyou, somewhat unsure of what this meant.
"Uncle Ning, it's like this..."
Li Jiuyou recounted the events of the day to Ning Fengzhi, but did not reveal his plans or conjectures, only explaining the sequence of events.
Ning Fengzhi immediately realized the seriousness of the matter.
It's not that there are spies within the sect.
This is quite normal; other sects all have spies planted by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School to varying degrees.
The key point is that people have actually started reaching out to Li Jiuyou.
He was able to resist the temptation this time, but what about next time, and the time after that?
Ning Fengzhi led Li Jiuyou directly into the courtyard and sat down, then spoke:
"Nine Netherworlds, does anyone else know about this?"
"I had them investigate, but I don't know the result. Uncle Ning, listen in and give me your opinions."
"it is good."
Then, at the signal of the two, Shadow began to report the situation.
Shen Er did not leave the sect. He met many people today, but spent the most time with an elder who managed salaries.
The elder was named Ning Gu. He was an old man in the sect, and now, at over sixty years old, his cultivation had only just broken through to the level fifty Soul King.
When Shen Er left, he took a thousand gold soul coins with him.
The shadow then secretly followed Ning Gu and discovered that he had left the sect and submitted an application to go out for drinks with old friends.
"Understood... You may leave now."
Ning Fengzhi waved his hand, and the seven shadows immediately disappeared into the night.
As he pondered, he also asked Li Jiuyou:
"Nine Netherworlds, what do you think?"
When his gaze fell upon Li Jiuyou, the latter uttered the words he had prepared long ago:
"I sense he has ill intentions. I want to get in touch with him and help the sect resolve its hidden dangers."
He needs to showcase his talents beyond cultivation, but he also needs to keep them hidden.
Li Jiuyou's meaning was clear: he wanted to get involved, rather than continue to hide.
Whether it's Ning Fengzhi or Xue Qinghe,
Even other people and forces,
All they have is powerful combat strength, and combat strength that will become even more powerful in the future.
Therefore, I am the bargaining chip.
If the chips were people, they would be pathetic most of the time, because they are like objects. They seem to be scrambled for, but in reality, no one cares about their feelings or life and death. Only the value they create is valued.
However, there are times when one can turn the tables on the opponent by personally entering the game.
Since they want to gain the value they will create in the future through competition.
Then one can profit from it, acquiring resources from both sides, while simultaneously winning over those on the chessboard who are like oneself.
"That's acceptable."
Ning Fengzhi didn't seem too resistant; it was as if he had already come up with a plan.
"Do you know what I discussed with Xue Qinghe today?"
"Uncle Ning, do you want me to participate in the competition?"
Li Jiuyou was also in the room during the day and overheard things related to the competition.
"That's only one thing; there's another matter that concerns you."
"I?"
Li Jiuyou had some guesses, and his gaze, hidden in the courtyard at night, subtly changed.
Then, just as he had expected, Ning Fengzhi spoke with a smile.
"I'm going to arrange a marriage between you and Rongrong."
Engagement is an efficient means in this era.
It represents a bond at the bloodline level, a deep and profound connection.
Only an engagement could reassure Ning Fengzhi and allow Li Jiuyou to participate in the competition.
Because all the more talented disciples of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School have taken whale glue, if they participate in competitions, it is inevitable that the strong will see through their abilities.
Ning Fengzhi didn't want the sect's secrets to be discovered, nor did he want Li Jiuyou to be at risk of being poached.
Therefore, he chose to bind them through marriage.
However, all of this is predicated on the fact that Li Jiuyou also cares about the so-called marriage contract.
It's a pity.
Li Jiuyou is a time traveler. His era is different from the present. Although he values this to some extent, it is far from being able to completely bind him.
Moreover, he is Li Jiuyou.
"Of course I'd like to... but I don't know about Rongrong..."
"Haha, I'm glad you're willing. I already talked to Rongrong about it this afternoon, but she's just too shy to see you!"
Ning Fengzhi was much happier to see that he had achieved his psychological expectations.
Li Jiuyou suddenly realized.
No wonder Ning Rongrong had that expression when he brought her food.
Later, he even escaped and returned to his own home.
So she knew everything.
The two then chatted for a while, mostly about future plans, such as when they would get married.
Li Jiuyou maintained his persona throughout, keeping his head down and remaining silent, only occasionally agreeing with "Mm".
"Alright, let's talk about it tomorrow."
Ning Fengzhi glanced at the night sky; it was getting late.
"Qinghe said he also invited some people from remote sects and academies to participate in the competition. At the same time, we also need to block the nearby mountains and investigate the situation."
"The competition will begin in March. During this time, practice diligently and come to me if you encounter any problems."
"Thank you, Uncle Ning. I'll head back now."
After saying goodbye, Li Jiuyou immediately returned to his courtyard and continued reading books related to pharmacology.
"Snake apricot grass can multiply the potency of toxins..."
……
In the following three months, Li Jiuyou's cultivation returned to its previous state.
He and Shen Er would meet from time to time to keep in touch.
Most of the time, I'm still studying medicine and practicing cultivation.
However, there was a difference: when he practiced swordsmanship, he was no longer forced to swing the sword a certain number of times, but began to learn coherent basic sword techniques from Chen Xin.
The prelude to the Seven Kill Sword Technique, every move is filled with killing intent, and every strike will draw blood.
However, Chen Xin made some adjustments because of Li Jiuyou's different martial soul, changing his sword moves to be more expansive and powerful.
However, that murderous aura was always contained within the sword moves.
Chen Xin often marveled at Li Jiuyou's kind heart; his attacks were devoid of murderous intent, making him a truly benevolent person.
Li Jiuyou thrust out his final sword strike, then stopped and stood still.
"You practiced well today and have made a lot of progress."
Chen Xin nodded in satisfaction, indicating that Li Jiuyou could rest.
Li Jiuyou escorted Chen Xin to the door, and then saw Ning Rongrong running towards him.
For the first few days, she stayed indoors because she was too embarrassed to go out.
Later, after Li Jiuyou finished his cultivation, he would go to eat candied hawthorns and buy some gifts along the way.
After a few days, Ning Rongrong insisted that she had too many gifts to put away, so she stayed at Li Jiuyou's place for a week before being taken back by Ning Fengzhi.
One of them disregarded the storage soul tool.
One man pretended to be busy with official business, only to discover several days later that his daughter was missing.
Li Jiuyou sighed that both the father and daughter were talented, and he followed their example.