BXBX NOVEL Chapter 249: All Members Must Participate
Chapter 249: All Members Must Participate
The person in first place was Chu Liang from Silver Sword Peak. Many people were surprised by this.
The way Chu Liang had rushed to sell the puzzle answers had given them the impression that he hadn't wanted to compete for the position of first place at all. They'd all thought that his only focus had been to make money.
The first part of his strategy was that his team had to sell the answers faster than everyone else could solve the puzzles. Otherwise, no one would buy them. The second part was that he had to solve the puzzle for the next stage faster than his team sold the answers for the previous stage. That was how he'd managed to confidently maintain his lead in the competition.
In other words, Chu Liang had been two steps ahead of everyone else. He was simply terrifying!
Previously, he'd gotten a little famous within the sect for selling teas and fruits on the Red Cotton Peak. After the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony, all of Mount Shu now knew about this fellow disciple who was an extremely intelligent profiteer.
The person in second place was Jiang Yuebai from Azure Falling Peak. This was within everyone's expectations.
Before the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony began, everyone had predicted that Xu Ziyang and Jiang Yuebai would compete to be placed first and second, with the majority leaning a little more toward Xu Ziyang getting first place.
If Xu Ziyang had won first place, it would be easy for the other disciples to accept the result of Jiang Yuebai getting pushed down to second place. However, first place had been taken by that profiteer instead. This result made the disciples feel resentful toward Chu Liang.
The person in third place was Zhao Zhizhuo from Heavenly River Peak. Many people hadn't heard of this name, and there wasn't anything surprising about that.
The reason why this junior brother even had a name at all was that he'd outbidded everyone else at the Chu Liang's auction with a bid of 2,200 sword coins and acquired the answer for the third puzzle.
Chu Liang had even thoughtfully gifted Zhao Zhizhuo a high-grade Green Pill as a bonus and made an exchange on his behalf for the White-Jade Porcelain Cup.
That led to all three White-Jade Porcelain Cups having owners.
That was the extent of the spotlight that the third-place winner received. There weren't as many gazes directed toward him as those directed at Jade Sword Peak.
The most shocking news was that Xu Ziyang didn't have a ranking. His team hadn't even made it into the top three!
Of course, this was also related to Chu Liang.
Xu Ziyang had been too prideful to buy the answers from Chu Liang. When the rest of the disciples had already advanced to the next stage, Xu Ziyang remained immersed in his thoughts. By the time the treasure hunt ended, he was still contemplating the intricately carved jade in the cave on Treasured Pagoda Peak.
It wasn't that Xu Ziyang had solved the puzzles too slowly; it was just that compared to Chu Liang, Xu Ziyang had been pretty far behind.
All Xu Ziyang could do was accept the loss rationally. A loss was a loss. Everything would be fine as long as he won at the Mount Shu Summit.
Considering that even Xu Ziyang and Jiang Yuebai had been unable to solve the questions as quickly as Chu Liang, some Mount Shu disciples had even suspected that he'd stolen a copy of the puzzles beforehand.
After all, he was Di Nufeng's disciple. It wouldn't be surprising if he did something that shameless.
Nevertheless, that suspicion was swiftly shut down because Mount Shu's higher-ups wouldn't have let such a thing happen. So, the disciples then suspected that perhaps Chu Liang had connections among the higher-ups and received special treatment.
Chu Liang had earned such a large amount of sword coins from selling the answers... Did the higher-ups have a share in it? In particular, the Hall of Alchemy seemed very suspicious because of the way they had intervened the auction at the last minute. Could it have been to guarantee Chu Liang's victory?
Some disciples of the Hall of Alchemy cursed at those negative speculations.
The young detective Xu Ziqing, with her keen eyes, was the only one who managed to see through the web of rumors and figure out the truth of the matter.
She felt a bit sad because her and her brother's teams hadn't gotten into the top three. Nonetheless, seeing Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai take first and second place put a small smile on Xu Ziqing's face.
In all of Mount Shu, I'm the only one who knows how they got first and second place.
But I won't tell.
Hehe.
...
On Silver Sword Peak...
Di Nufeng erected a board in the hall of her pavilion and gave all the members of her peak a pep talk before they headed into battle.
"The Mount Shu Summit, held only once a decade, is a rare opportunity for us. The first-place winners of the recreational events will each receive a prize of around three thousand sword coins. As for the main competition, the disciple who wins the title of Head Disciple will acquire immeasurable resources! We must treat this with utmost seriousness."
Di Nufeng picked up a bamboo rod and pointed at the name "Chu Liang" on the board.
"First of all, you're the only one who can participate in the main competition, so I won't give you extra pressure. As your teacher, I don't have high expectations for you. You just need to defeat Xu Ziyang and Jiang Yuebai," Di Nufeng said nonchalantly.
Chu Liang responded with a warm and innocent smile.
Hehe. Sure.
"Do you want to participate in a few other events?" Di Nufeng asked.
"Esteemed Teacher, I, your disciple, will respond to your call for action! When you summon me, I'll rush over promptly, and once I've arrived, I will fight!" Chu Liang answered. "I'm planning to sign up for the Flying-Sword Race and the Mahjong Tournament!"
"Very good. Your fighting spirit to vie for first place is very commendable," Di Nufeng remarked. Then as she turned to Liu Xiaoyu'er, she said, "You set a great example for the other members
to learn from."Liu Xiaoyu'er blinked. Her eyes were filled with confusion.
Seeing Liu Xiaoyu'er remain motionless, Di Nufeng cleared her throat. "Ahem. Xiaoyu'er, are you not planning to participate in an event?"
"Can I participate?" Liu Xiaoyu'er asked.
Strictly speaking, she wasn't a disciple of the Mount Shu Sect, but she couldn't be considered a spirit pet either. Nevertheless, the recreational events didn't have rigid regulations. So, as a humanoid demonic beast, Liu Xiaoyu'er could participate in all of the events except the main competition.
"You can certainly participate in the events. You just need to choose the right event," Chu Liang explained. "The Wine-God Contest is where people like my esteemed teacher compete in drinking wine... The Spirit-Pet Combat Tournament is where demonic beasts like the Golden-Furred Hou fight... The Flying-Sword Race is where people like me compete in using a sword to fly..."
Liu Xiaoyu'er swiftly made a decision. "Then I'll participate in the Mahjong Tournament."
"You know how to play mahjong?" Chu Liang asked doubtfully.
Ever since she came to Mount Shu, I've never seen her leave our peak to play. Did she learn how to play mahjong in the river?
The little girl's expression remained as calm as before. "I don't."
Chu Liang: "..."
It went without saying that the Golden-Furred Hou would be participating in the Spirit-Pet Combat Tournament. Big Head was napping outside the pavilion, totally unaware of the heavy responsibility that had been placed on his shoulders.
Peak Master Di Nufeng set three objectives for them to achieve in the competitions.
"Be stylish, shine brilliantly, and win sword coins."
She then gave each member of Silver Sword Peak warm words of reassurance and encouragement.[1]
...
After the pep rally, Chu Liang returned to his cabin.
Soon after that, someone came looking for him. When Chu Liang saw who it was, he was genuinely surprised.
"Alchemy Master?" Chu Liang uttered, hurrying to bow to the Alchemy Master.
Chu Liang's past encounters with the Alchemy Master hadn't been particularly pleasant. Nonetheless, the Alchemy Master was, after all, one of the Mount Shu Sect's Four Guardian Elders, so it was still necessary for Chu Liang to treat the Alchemy Master with proper etiquette.
The Alchemy Master gave a slight nod. "Mm
."Then, with his bright eyes, the Alchemy Master scrutinized Chu Liang for quite a while, until Chu Liang became visibly uncomfortable.
Right then, the Alchemy Master finally spoke. "That high-grade Green Pill in the gourd—did you concoct it yourself?"
So, that's what he came to ask about? Chu Liang thought.
"Yes," Chu Liang answered with a smile and a soft nod. "Actually, the high-grade Green Pills in that gourd were produced from my practice attempts. Pretty much all of them have some sort of defect. Only the last few I made can be considered perfect."
"As long as pills can deliver the desired effect, what does it matter if there are some minor defects?" the Alchemy Master asked, shaking his head. "Do you have previous experience with alchemy?"
"No." Chu Liang shook his head. "I just had some interest in it. I have the Mountain God Memorial Ceremony to thank for giving me the determination to try concocting pills myself."
"So, you've never concocted any pills before, and it only took you a little over a month to concoct your first high-grade Green Pill?" the Alchemy Master asked with a seemingly casual demeanor.
Chu Liang nodded. "Yes, that's about right."
Actually, he'd taken even less time than what was mentioned.
"I came to ask you..." the Alchemy Master suddenly said, "if you’d like to join the Hall of Alchemy and become my disciple[2]? Moreover, you’d be my successor[3]."
Huh?
When the Conservation Master tried to recruit Chu Liang previously, Chu Liang hadn't expected it, but the offer hadn't been that big of a shock.
However, this time, the Alchemy Master's offer was truly astonishing. After all, the two parties harbored animosity for each other due to what had happened in the past.
The Alchemy Master noticed Chu Liang's expression and figured out what he was thinking.
Then the Alchemy Master said softly, "There were some conflicts between the Hall of Alchemy and Silver Sword Peak in the past, so perhaps you bear some grudges against my hall. You must understand that it is impossible to avoid having conflicts between disciples of the same sect. However, when it comes to truly important matters, such conflicts are insignificant.
"I saw the Green Pill you concocted. I've never in my life seen someone who is as gifted in alchemy as you. If your talent isn't fostered to reach its maximum potential, it would be an absolute waste of such rare talent. I am confident that I can train you to become the best alchemist in Mount Shu... perhaps even in the whole world.
"I'm old and nearing the end of my life. I hope to leave behind an alchemist who can be a pillar for Mount Shu after I'm gone. My disciples are still nowhere near that level... So, for some years, I've been looking for my successor. I never imagined it would be you. Nevertheless, as long as you agree to be my disciple, all past conflicts will be forgotten, and I will bring all members of the Hall of Alchemy over to apologize to you."
His words were sincere and rather heartfelt.
Chu Liang could hear it in the old man's tone. The old man genuinely wanted to take Chu Liang as his successor.
Compared to potentially leaving behind a world-best alchemist for Mount Shu, all the conflicts they had previously were indeed trivial.
"Esteemed elder, I'm grateful that you have such high hopes for me. I am sincerely honored and humbled," Chu Liang said. "If Mount Shu needs me to, I am, of course, willing to further my studies in alchemy... But is it really necessary for me to be your disciple? Can't I remain as a disciple of Silver Sword Peak and serve as an attendant at the Hall of Alchemy?"
"Do you not want to change your teacher?" the Alchemy Master asked with a frown.
It wasn't odd at all that a disciple would choose not to change teachers, but the Alchemy Master seemed rather surprised to hear that coming from Chu Liang.
"Isn't your teacher Di Nufeng?"
1. Just a reminder that yes, Silver Sword Peak only has three members, and that's including their mount, good old Big Head. ☜
2. We've translated 亲传(personal)弟子(disciple) simply as "disciple" because it's usually used with a pronoun to indicate whose disciple they are. The teacher imparts some of their knowledge, skills, and techniques to their disciples. ☜
3. We've translated 关门(close-door) 弟子(disciple) as "successor". It literally means the teacher will "close their doors" and stop accepting new disciples after this disciple. The teacher will impart all of their knowledge, skills, and techniques to their successor. The successor has a special status among the other disciples of the teacher and enjoys privileges the others don't. ☜