"You are... the Sect Leader of Wuyou Temple?"
Professor Huang's original appearance resembled that of an angry Vajra from a mural, exuding a fierce aura. His body, honed by farm labor, was terrifyingly strong.
But upon seeing Liu Lingyu weakly raise her hand to admit she was the Sect Leader of Wuyou Temple, the fierce demeanor on his face softened a bit, and he asked in confusion:
"Are you really the Sect Leader of Wuyou Temple?"
"Yes..."
Liu Lingyu fiddled with her phone for a moment, opened the Qin Wuyou mini-program on WeChat, and displayed an interface showing a certificate issued by the official Taoist organization.
The certificate had a photo of Liu Lingyu in a Taoist robe, identifying her as a Taoist priest, her monastery, and her current position in Taoism.
Liu Lingyu was unmistakably the Sect Leader of Wuyou Temple.
"..." Professor Huang pondered with a pensive expression, glanced at Liu Lingyu, and after a moment of contemplation, asked:
"Then... where is your predecessor? Is that old man still in the monastery?"
Professor Huang's expression turned slightly gloomy. When he traveled to Wuyou Temple, he claimed it was to clarify matters and prevent the resident Taoists from bothering Ah Qing anymore.
But his real intention was to stir up trouble and make it known to both Ah Qing and the others that scholar practitioners can also be formidable. If Ah Qing wished to practice martial arts, there was no need to join a temple; she could cultivate her physique effectively by clearing hundreds of acres of wilderness and engaging in marathons against the "little treasures" emerging from the fields.
After all...
If you can't outrun a Spirit Beast, it can easily send you flying.
However, Liu Lingyu, standing there, looked clearly like a student. Her age noted on the certificate indicated she was only slightly older than Ah Qing.
She must be a recent graduate or a grad student.
"Uh... my father went to work for the government, so you all might have got the wrong temple." Liu Lingyu expressed with a compliant face, explaining the whereabouts of the former Sect Leader.
Her father went to Han Zhong city and even got penalized by public security for playing Mahjong, which Liu Lingyu thought was quite something. She didn't even want to mention that scoundrel father of hers...
As Liu Lingyu spoke, all the professors present fell into silence, exchanging glances.
"Wuyou Temple is currently under my management. Any matters involving apprenticeship need my stamp of approval," Liu Lingyu added.
"Fine, fine, just give me the address where your father is detained later. Ah Qing, you come over here."
Professor Huang sighed, his initially relaxed posture hunching over again. He beckoned with a wordless gesture, an inexplicable sense of frustration building inside him, unsure of how to vent it.
It's not a matter of gender; Professor Huang just felt like bullying a child seemed pointless now.
"Ah Qing?"
Upon hearing Professor Huang's call, Liu Lingyu's pupils trembled slightly, her mouth opened in perplexity as she scanned the circle of elder professors, forming a mental question mark.
But before Liu Lingyu could understand the identities of the elderly professors, Ah Qing, with a white fox perched on her shoulder, emerged into view, awkwardly greeting Liu Lingyu with embarrassment:
"Hello, I'm Yu Xueqing. Everyone says my name is quite a mouthful, so they usually call me Ah Qing or Weather Girl or something..."
"Ah Qing!"
Upon seeing Ah Qing, Liu Lingyu immediately recognized her as that Ah Qing from the online video.
"Are they all your..." Liu Lingyu looked around at the circle of senior professors with a blank face.
"They're all my teachers." Ah Qing replied with an awkward smile. "I'm pretty good academically, and I secured a guaranteed graduate spot in the second semester of my freshman year. When Uncle Wang Yang and the others came to school at night, it was reported at school, and after the teachers found out, they came to counsel me."
"..."
Liu Lingyu glanced sideways at Professor Huang, whose face clearly displayed: [We didn't come to do any counseling. Our purpose here was simply to eliminate you!]
"So they're all professors from the school..." From the looks in the professors' eyes, Liu Lingyu could tell they probably wanted to become Ah Qing's graduate advisors.
"However... Ah Qing, your current situation is quite dangerous in a sense," Liu Lingyu said softly, clearly preparing for a daring conversation.
"Hmm?!"
Professor Huang raised an eyebrow, but Liu Lingyu, no fool, cleverly moved behind Ah Qing, using her as a screen to block Professor Huang's gaze.
Joking!
With Ah Qing such a good candidate, she could become a Mountain Guardian Daoist meant to intimidate everyone.
"This world isn't as peaceful and stable on the surface, but instead is inhabited by cultivators."
"Cultivators like us righteous ones maintain our health, absorb the essence of heaven and earth, and gradually enhance our strength."
"But some evil cultivators love to feed on the flesh and blood of other cultivators to strengthen themselves." Liu Lingyu chuckled, wrapping her arm around Ah Qing's waist, ready to use light-footed martial arts to take Ah Qing to the mountain peak for a breathtaking view.
Liu Lingyu lightly tapped the ground and took the first step to lift off.
But Ah Qing grabbed her arm, dragging Liu Lingyu firmly back to the ground.
"Hiss..."
Liu Lingyu's pupils contracted sharply, staring at Ah Qing in shock and exclaiming, "Your... your body..."
"Huh?"
Ah Qing was stunned. She just wanted to keep Liu Lingyu from escaping and held onto her arm tightly.
What's so surprising about this?
"Hmph!" Professor Huang snorted coldly, a trace of pride appearing on his face.
"I'm really sorry..."
"But I genuinely have no interest in this. I'm almost at my internship, and I don't have the energy to spare for more training." Ah Qing said reluctantly, rejecting Liu Lingyu.
"This, this..."
Upon hearing this, Liu Lingyu was momentarily at a loss for words. She glanced at the hawk-eyed old teachers, feeling a bit down: "Alright! Since you've said your heart isn't in this... then please come in and have a cup of tea before you leave! We still know how to treat guests."
Liu Lingyu, feeling conflicted, glanced at the professors cornering her against the wall, took out the key, unlocked the main gate of Wuyou Temple, revealing the scenery inside.
The courtyard had nothing extraordinary, just an ordinary quadrangle, leading straight to the main hall, with side rooms for resting on both sides.
But Liu Lingyu guided everyone to the back courtyard.
At the end of the rain corridor, there stood a rusty metal gate, a barrier preventing further advance and incredibly heavy and solid.
"Bang—"
Liu Lingyu struck the solid metal gate, causing a trembling sound, as the fixed door frames on both sides shook.
With the moon gate in the back courtyard open, the landscape within was exposed to everyone.
The backyard was devoid of any ethereal sights or grandiose scenery; it was covered with dense metal structures.
Benches made of hundreds of pounds of cast iron, tables weighing tons, tea trays weighing no less than 200 pounds, and stainless steel cups weighing over a dozen pounds were scattered around, along with some unknown metal cylinders.
Liu Lingyu glanced back and smiled playfully. Under Ah Qing's curious gaze, she leapt gracefully, moving like a celestial in jeans, out from the legend.
Liu Lingyu landed, her fingers spread into a claw shape, grasping a metal cylinder firmly, lifting it with one hand and slamming it onto a pile foundation.
"Boom—"
Dust and noise splattered, with crimson sparks shooting from the pile foundation sleeve.
Liu Lingyu whirled around, her steps agile and graceful, like a dragon, repeatedly kicking the metal cylinder, making it slightly lift upon hitting the metal steps.
Liu Lingyu added another kick, dragging the cylinder horizontally onto the pile foundation sleeve, propping up each metal cylinder.
"The pavilion is ready. Please come in and sit!"
Liu Lingyu stood atop the pavilion, folded her arms, and looked at everyone with a mischievous expression on her face.
"Ying?"
Ansheng watched the whole process with a strange expression. The fox paw rummaged through the saddlebag, pulled out brass knuckles, and offered them in Professor Huang's direction.
Professor Huang noticed Master Fuli stretching out its paw and saw the brass knuckles being handed over. He paused, then discreetly put the brass knuckles into his palm.
"Thank you, Master Fuli..." Professor Huang mouthed at Master Fuli on Ah Qing's shoulder.
"Ying~" Ansheng waved its paw.