The Masked Strength of the Sect's Trash chapter 2

Chapter 2 Senior Brother is back

Xiao Chuang and Xiao Yi left Tianyu Peak feeling satisfied.

Xiao Yi, however, was puzzled by Xiao Chuang's behavior. "Uncle, why are you insisting that I join Tianyu Peak?"

Xiao Chuang replied, "Didn't I explain earlier? The Peak Master of Tianyu Peak, Shao Cheng, lacks a direct disciple. If you follow me, you can only be an inner disciple, which is a far cry from being a direct disciple."

"But I heard from Senior Brother Lu that joining Tianyu Peak might not be such a good thing," Xiao Yi said worriedly.

Xiao Chuang scolded her sharply, "Don't believe that nonsense! Joining Tianyu Peak is a rare opportunity."

"Why?" Xiao Yi asked, still unconvinced. "If you don't explain it clearly, I don't want to join Tianyu Peak."

Xiao Chuang sighed and said, "In addition to the chance of becoming a direct disciple, you'll also have an excellent senior brother to guide you. Do you know who the strongest disciple in the Lingxiao Sect is?"

Xiao Yi, catching on, asked, "Uncle, are you referring to the senior brother of Tianyu Peak?"

Xiao Chuang nodded. "Yes, the strongest disciple in the Lingxiao Sect is Ji Yan, the senior brother of Tianyu Peak. He's at the late Core Formation stage and can even defeat cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage."

Xiao Yi's eyes widened in disbelief. "Uncle, are you serious? A Core Formation stage cultivator defeating someone at the Nascent Soul stage?"

Xiao Chuang said, "Why would I lie? Ji Yan is truly the most talented genius in our Lingxiao Sect. His skill in swordsmanship is unmatched, even surpassing the founder of our sect. Ten years ago, Junior Brother Shao was in the late Core Formation stage. After recruiting Ji Yan, he broke through to the Nascent Soul stage in less than a year, all thanks to Ji Yan's relentless drive."

Xiao Yi was even more astonished. "A disciple pushing the master to improve?"

"Exactly," Xiao Chuang said. "With someone like Ji Yan around, how could anyone slack off? Being near him forces you to keep up with his pace. That's the real reason I want you to join Tianyu Peak. With such a senior brother, your strength will improve by leaps and bounds."

As Xiao Chuang painted this picture, Xiao Yi couldn't help but imagine a figure of unwavering determination and progress. But suddenly, the image of Lu Shaoqing flashed in her mind.

"Uncle, what about Senior Brother Lu? Is he also that strong?" Xiao Yi asked.

Xiao Chuang's face soured. "Him? When you join Tianyu Peak, stay away from him and don't let his laziness rub off on you."

Curious, Xiao Yi asked, "What kind of person is Senior Brother Lu? Why do you speak of him like that?"

Xiao Chuang sighed, "Lazy, very lazy, extremely lazy."

"Greedy, very greedy, extremely greedy."

Xiao Yi was stunned. She didn't expect her uncle's evaluation of Lu Shaoqing to be so negative. But remembering Lu Shaoqing's behavior earlier, she thought her uncle might have a point.

"And what about his strength?" Xiao Yi asked. "You said being around Senior Brother Ji Yan would push me to work harder. Shouldn't Senior Brother Lu be strong too?"

Xiao Chuang's mood worsened. "Except for him, he’s an exception. Just listen to me. After you join Tianyu Peak, stay away from him."

Xiao Yi asked again, "Uncle, are you sure I can enter Tianyu Peak? Didn’t Senior Brother Lu say it was difficult to pass Senior Brother Ji Yan’s test?"

Xiao Chuang replied, "Even though that kid is lazy and greedy, he still has principles. He’ll do things properly once he’s paid. And he knows Ji Yan better than anyone. His method will work. When Junior Brother Shao returns, I’ll take you to become his disciple. Follow his advice, and you’ll succeed."

Later that evening, at Tianyu Peak

Lu Shaoqing sat contentedly, counting the 500 spirit stones he had earned earlier that day. He chuckled to himself and then disappeared.

He reappeared in a hall bathed in white light. In the center of the hall was a jade table with a blank spirit tablet and an incense burner, both also made of jade. Besides these, the hall was empty.

Lu Shaoqing approached the table and threw 10,000 spirit stones into the incense burner. The burner glowed with white light as it absorbed the spiritual power, reducing the stones to powder. The spirit tablet also emitted a faint white glow, with indistinct words flashing across its surface. Finally, the words "one year" appeared on the jade table.

Sighing, Lu Shaoqing muttered, "Ten thousand low-grade spirit stones for a year of time... it's too expensive. It's hard to make money. I spent so long saving up those spirit stones, and now I’m back to square one."

Shaking his head, he continued, "But what choice do I have? My senior brother is a monster. Without this ring to trade spirit stones for time, I’d never be able to keep up with him."

"Fortunately, after crossing into this world, I found this ring. Without it, I wouldn't have survived here."

With that, he sat down cross-legged and began to cultivate.

Lu Shaoqing had crossed over to this world eighteen years ago and had become a disciple of Tianyu Peak by chance. He had also discovered a ring that functioned similarly to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber in Dragon Ball. Thanks to this ring, he had managed to keep up with his monstrously talented senior brother, Ji Yan.

Both Lu Shaoqing and Ji Yan had entered Tianyu Peak at the same time and had been accepted as disciples by Master Shao Cheng. Ji Yan was a true genius, especially in swordsmanship, with talent that even surpassed the founder of Lingxiao Sect. He was highly motivated and hardworking, advancing from a mortal to the late Core Formation stage within ten years, leaving everyone else in the sect far behind.

After more than a year of intense cultivation, Lu Shaoqing finally awoke and assessed the results of his efforts.

"One year of hard training is probably only equivalent to half a year for my senior brother," he lamented. "After a year, I’ve only managed to break through a small realm. I really envy geniuses."

He shook his head, and in a flash, he was back on his bed. Despite the long period of cultivation, only a quarter of an hour had passed in the outside world.

"Unfortunately, the ring's time-warping function has a one-month cooldown," he mused. "But that's fine. I’ll rest for a while and combine work with relaxation."

Lu Shaoqing quickly fell asleep like an ordinary mortal.

The next day, when he woke up, it was already noon. Noticing that both his master and senior brother had yet to return, he stretched and decided, "Time to order some takeout."

He took out a paper crane, infused it with spiritual power, and the crane's eyes lit up, coming to life.

"As usual," he instructed the paper crane, which then flew off to place his order.

At his cultivation level, food was no longer necessary, but Lu Shaoqing felt that skipping meals would take away much of life's enjoyment.

He lay down on a hammock outside, took out his Tianji card, and started browsing the news.

The Tianji card, about the size of a palm, was a masterpiece from Tianji Pavilion. It served as a medium for publishing news, similar to Earth’s news outlets. The Tianji Pavilion had many disciples across the world, known as Tianji people or Tianji dogs, akin to reporters.

After arriving in this world and acquiring the nameless ring, Lu Shaoqing developed a habit of resting after long periods of cultivation. Without a break, he found it hard to endure the monotony.

Yesterday’s year-long cultivation session had been his first, and reading news on the Tianji card was his favorite way to pass the time.

As the hammock swayed gently, and the red bird on a nearby tree chirped softly, a gentle breeze blew, making Lu Shaoqing feel extremely comfortable.

Half an hour later, someone arrived outside.

"Brother Lu, your food is here."

A young man in his twenties approached with a hot food box.

Lu Shaoqing, still lying on the hammock, looked at the young man and said, "Junior Brother Wang, why are you so late today?"

The young man, named Wang Yao, was an outer sect disciple of the Lingxiao Sect. With average talent, he was still in the Qi Refining Stage.

"I had two orders before yours," Wang Yao explained. "It's all because of you, Senior Brother Lu. Everyone in the Lingxiao Sect has started ordering takeout like you."

"You know, my boss is so stingy he won’t hire more staff, so we’re swamped."

Lu Shaoqing remarked, "But you must be earning a lot too."

His tone revealed envy. If not for the sect rules forbidding inner sect disciples and above from working, he might have considered delivering takeout to make extra money.

Wang Yao shook his head. "No way. I work hard, but only earn a few spirit stones each month."

"Here’s your boiled spirit beans, jade soup, and roasted spirit pigeon," he added, handing over the food.

Lu Shaoqing peeled a spirit bean, popped it into his mouth, and chewed thoughtfully. "The taste is a bit different. Did the chef change?

Wang Yao said, "That's right. Business is good, and there's more work, but the boss is stingy and refuses to pay us more. Uncle Hu quit in anger."

Lu Shaoqing asked, "Where did he go? Tell me."

Wang Yao's eyes widened. "Brother Lu, are you planning to switch restaurants too?"

Lu Shaoqing replied, "Nonsense. How can ordinary people compare with Lao Hu's cooking skills?"

Wang Yao said, "So, in the future, we'll have to change restaurants for Tianyu Peak's takeout?"

Lu Shaoqing responded, "How would I know? Master and Senior Brother..."

Wang Yao said goodbye and left Tianyu Peak.

He muttered to himself, "Looks like I might need to quit my job too."

"Brother Lu is so picky; no one can satisfy his taste. That miserly boss will just have to wait for bankruptcy."

"Brother Lu said he didn't know whether Master Shao and Senior Brother Ji Yan would switch, but all their takeouts were ordered by Brother Lu."

"When the Lingxiao Sect finds out which takeout Brother Ji Yan ordered, they'll definitely follow suit."

"Hehe, that stingy boss is in for a tough time."

Wang Yao smiled proudly.

Suddenly, a streak of light flew across the sky.

Wang Yao looked up. "Hey, isn't that the master of Chiyue Peak? What's he doing at Tianyu Peak?"

"Oh, forget it. That's their business. A small fry like me shouldn't meddle in the affairs of the big shots."

"Better to focus on earning money, breaking through to the Foundation-Building stage, and becoming an inner disciple first."

The streak of light descended, and Xiao Chuang appeared at Tianyu Peak with Xiao Yi.

Seeing them approach, Lu Shaoqing greeted them, "Uncle Xiao, Sister Xiao."

He then continued to crack open spirit beans while listening to the news on the Tianji card. Occasionally, he tossed two spirit beans onto it, and the red bird on it quickly caught and swallowed them in one gulp.

The Tianji card could be used to read the news or listen to it like a radio.

"The Young Disciple Competition of the Three Major Sects in Qizhou and the Duchang Spiritual Vein Discussion Meeting concluded successfully."

"Ji Yan, a young representative of the Lingxiao Sect, delivered the closing speech."

When Xiao Yi heard the name Ji Yan, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Big Brother Ji Yan!"

Yesterday, Xiao Chuang had told her about Ji Yan, and a seed of admiration had been planted in her heart.

Xiao Chuang laughed and said, "Junior Brother Ji Yan has once again made our Lingxiao Sect proud."

Lu Shaoqing remarked, "Sending Senior Brother there is like bullying the people of Shuangyue Valley and Guiyuan Pavilion."

"Shouldn't the Sect Leader be ashamed?"

Xiao Chuang replied, "This was about the distribution rights of the new spiritual vein discovered in Duchang for the next ten years. Of course, we had to go all out."

"How can a lazybones like you lie around basking in the sun all day without contributing anything?"

Lu Shaoqing said, "Believe it or not, when Senior Brother comes back, I'll tell him you think his performance in this competition was shameful."

Xiao Chuang jumped at first, then quickly smiled and said, "Shaoqing, what are you talking about?"

"Uncle Master was just joking with you, don't be angry, don't be angry."

"This roasted spirit pigeon smells so good, come on, give some to your Uncle Master."

Lu Shaoqing slapped his hand away. "Get lost."

Xiao Chuang retreated, looking dejected.

Xiao Yi found it amusing. "Uncle, you're one of the five peak masters, but you're afraid of Brother Lu?"

Xiao Chuang, annoyed, replied, "What do you know, girl? I'm not afraid of him."

"I'm just giving face to his Senior Brother."

Xiao Yi laughed even harder.

Seeing how Lu Shaoqing could easily control her uncle, Xiao Yi found it fascinating.

"Brother Lu is quite interesting too."

Xiao Chuang became wary and stared at his niece. "Girl, I've warned you, stay away from him in the future."

Xiao Yi said, "Uncle, I'm not even a disciple of Tianyu Peak yet."

Xiao Chuang replied, "Don't worry, you'll have no problem becoming one."

Xiao Yi continued, "If I really become Master Shao's apprentice, Brother Lu will be my Second Brother. We'll all be living here together. How can I stay away from him?"

Xiao Chuang's expression froze, and he continued to caution her earnestly, "Anyway, I don't care. Just stay away from him."

"Don't end up like him."

After about an hour, Lu Shaoqing, who was lying on the hammock, suddenly changed his expression.

He glanced to the northwest, then his face returned to normal as he continued looking at his Tianji card.

Xiao Chuang's face lit up. "They're back."

Soon, a streak of light passed by in the distance and landed in front of everyone.

A middle-aged man and a young man appeared.

The middle-aged man had a kind face and a warm smile, making people feel at ease at first sight.

The young man carried an ancient long sword on his back, his stern face full of determination, and his sharp eyes exuding an intimidating aura.

When Xiao Yi saw him, she felt as if she were looking at an unsheathed sword, radiating an intimidating edge.

Xiao Chuang went to greet them, "Junior Brother Shao, Junior Nephew Ji Yan, congratulations on your victory."

"Junior Nephew Ji Yan has made our Lingxiao Sect proud in the competition. Thank you for your hard work."

Ji Yan replied calmly, "They were all weak opponents; it wasn't difficult."

There was no contempt or arrogance in his tone, making it clear that he was simply stating the truth.

Shao Cheng politely bowed in return. "Senior Brother Xiao, you're too kind. We're all doing this for the sect, so there's no need to talk about hard work."

Lu Shaoqing, still lying on the hammock, asked, "Master, did you bring me a gift?"

Shao Cheng responded unhappily, "No, get lost."