Chapter 316: Brotherly Love is Deep and Unfathomable
Seven Star Peaks.
At this moment, the seemingly calm eight peaks were, in reality, not so calm.
Lu Chengwen drove over with Hua Xuening, who was studying the map:
"Master, the previous road collapsed. Although this road is longer and harder to navigate, it should still get us to the mountainside. But I don't know which peak Senior Tiangang is on!"
Lu Chengwen replied, "My master can reach the heavens. Once we're there, he should be able to find us. Don't worry."
"Master, there's a car up ahead!"
Lu Chengwen stopped his car on the side of the road and got out to take a look. To his surprise, it was Long Aotian.
"Haha! Senior brother! Ah, senior brother! I missed you so much!"
Before Long Aotian could react, Lu Chengwen had already come over and given him a bear hug.
Long Aotian looked at Lu Chengwen with a smile:
"Chengwen, you've come to see Master too?"
"Yes! The two of us brothers really think alike and work together. With two disciples as filial and united as us, Master is truly blessed!"
Long Aotian smiled faintly but thought to himself:
I bet you're also here because you're stuck and want Master to help you improve, right?
What's a little guy from the middle Four Gates doing meddling in this?
But truth be told, Long Aotian himself had been feeling stuck recently.
He had reached a plateau!
No matter how much he trained, there was no progress!
Clearly, he started off in a maxed-out, cheat-like state and should have quickly reached an intermediate level in the upper Four Gates.
Thanks to his talent, he had quickly touched the bottleneck.
But since then, he was stuck there, unable to move forward!
In the past, his path to advancement was always faster and smoother than others.
Though every breakthrough had its challenges and was often accompanied by legendary moments, his natural gifts made his journey much easier than that of most people in the world.
This time, he had come to seek Master's guidance on why he couldn't break through this stage.
Lu Chengwen glanced at Long Aotian's car.
"Broken down?"
Qi Meishao looked at Lu Chengwen coldly.
"Is that any of your business?"
Lu Chengwen said, "Oh, come on, it's not like I didn't 'borrow' a little gift from you before. One day, I'll return it tenfold."
Qi Meishao's face instantly turned red as she drew her sword and glared at him.
"If you say another word, I'll kill you!"
Long Aotian was stunned and asked Qi Meishao, "What did he steal from you?"
Qi Meishao froze for a moment:
"He… actually didn't steal anything…"
"Then why do you want to kill him?"
"Huh?" Qi Meishao was confused.
"Exactly!" Lu Chengwen chimed in.
"If I didn't actually steal anything, why do you want to kill me?"
"You…" Qi Meishao gritted her teeth.
"You know exactly what you took!"
Lu Chengwen shook his head.
"I don't. Some things are better clarified."
Feigning ignorance while knowing full well, he said,
"I'm very wealthy. Whatever I supposedly stole from you, just say it, and I'll repay you tenfold or a hundredfold. Go ahead, tell me."
Qi Meishao was about to explode.
This man is shameless!
What he stole—can that even be said?
Can it be said in front of the Young Master?
I, Qi Meishao, a descendant of Nuwa, was robbed by you of… something unspeakable. If word gets out, how can I live? How can I move in the martial world?
Qi Meishao gritted her teeth.
"Nothing was stolen!"
Long Aotian sensed something was off.
"Meishao, what's going on? Speak clearly. My junior brother isn't the kind of person to shirk responsibility. Right, junior brother?"
"Of course, of course!" Lu Chengwen said immediately.
"I'm the kind of person who settles accounts clearly. Miss Meishao, just tell me what I stole: its size, color, shape, material, smell… I'll make sure to return an exact copy!"
Qi Meishao was about to die of anger.
This man—does he have no shame?
If I could say it, wouldn't I have said it already?
He's clearly doing this on purpose to humiliate me!
Qi Meishao drew her sword and charged at Lu Chengwen, but Hua Xuening quickly stepped in to block the blade.
"Meishao, it's just a…"
"Shut up!"
Hua Xuening pouted.
"Over such a small matter, you want to kill my Master? It's not worth it! I'll return a whole bunch to you later!"
Qi Meishao was furious.
"Hua Xuening, you're straying further and further!"
Hua Xuening blinked in confusion.
"I've been standing here the whole time. I haven't moved!"
"Alright, alright, that's enough," Long Aotian said, stepping in as the voice of authority.
"Meishao, whatever misunderstanding you have with Chengwen, let's forget it, alright? On my account, let's just let it go. Shake hands and make peace."
Lu Chengwen quickly extended his hand, looking at Qi Meishao with sincere intent.
Qi Meishao was so angry that she wanted to stab him to death.
But then she glanced around and saw Hua Xuening staring at her and Long Aotian waiting for her to follow his instructions.
Reluctantly, Qi Meishao shook hands with Lu Chengwen. Lu Chengwen took the opportunity to place his other hand on the back of her hand.
"So smooth!"
"Let go!" Qi Meishao pulled back and unsheathed her sword.
"Alright, that's enough," Long Aotian said, pushing Qi Meishao aside and turning to Lu Chengwen.
"Chengwen, what have you been busy with lately? That land project—when will it be finalized?"
Long Aotian had already heard that the procedures for that land were absurdly complicated.
That's why he had sent Xu Xuejiao to handle it. He was fishing for information now, trying to probe the project's progress.
Of course, in his mind, this whole thing was Xu Xuejiao's operation, and Lu Chengwen was just the meat on their chopping block.
What was the relationship between Lu Chengwen and Xu Xuejiao?
The information-sharing in this regard was lightning-fast—it could be sorted out during pillow talk at night.
Lu Chengwen immediately pretended, "Big brother, little brother apologizes to you! The procedures for this land are a hundred times more complicated than I imagined. Honestly, it would've been less trouble if I just developed it myself."
"Oh, is that so..."
Long Aotian intentionally looked disappointed. "Well... alright. I never thought that, between brothers, even such a simple matter couldn't be handled. Sigh..."
"Big brother!" Lu Chengwen said, "To express my apology, I have an idea!"
"What idea?"
Lu Chengwen said, "Big brother, well... Xu Xuejiao..."
"Ah, I know."
Lu Chengwen looked quite embarrassed. "I don't know why, but lately, she's been coming to find me again, saying she admires my literary talent and even asked me to write a poem for her. 'Though the love between two lasts long, why seek to stay together morning and night…'"
"Alright, alright," Long Aotian laughed and patted Lu Chengwen on the shoulder. "Chengwen, we're brothers, aren't we?"
"Yes, big brother!"
"And didn't we agree before? Any girl in the world, we're both free to pursue! If you succeed, it's your skill; if not, it's just bad luck. No hard feelings between us, right?"
Lu Chengwen clapped his hands. "Big brother, your magnanimity and demeanor truly make me feel ashamed! You're really not angry with me?"
"Sigh, what nonsense are you saying?" Long Aotian said. "It's just Xu Xuejiao, right? Take her! I can see it—she doesn't like me; she prefers you."
Lu Chengwen looked very uncomfortable. "Big brother, how can I accept that? I feel terrible about this—it's too difficult for me to move past it..."
"Move past what?!" Long Aotian said. "Let me put it this way: let's say one of my three female bodyguards takes a liking to you—how could I stop her?"
"Oh?" Lu Chengwen's eyes lit up.
"Could I get angry about it?"
"Oh!"
"Could I stubbornly block or prevent you two from being together?"
"Impossible! Big brother, you're not that petty!"
"Exactly!" Long Aotian said. "If I did that, would I be worthy of our master? Would I be worthy of you? Would I be worthy of the vows we made that day? Wouldn't that make me no better than a beast?"
Qi Meishao listened, feeling as if her heart was being stabbed.
She tugged at Long Aotian's sleeve. "Young master, young master, please say no more..."
"Go, go, step aside, you're being rude."
Long Aotian, with his arm around Lu Chengwen, continued earnestly, "Xu Xuejiao is yours! Don't hesitate! Honestly, junior brother, I think you two make a great pair! A handsome man and a loli girl—it's perfect! And I'll say it again, not just Xu Xuejiao—if you fancy any of these three by my side, just tell your brother. No problem!"
Qi Meishao tugged at Long Aotian's coat again. "Young master, let's go. We've discussed enough."
"Scram!" Long Aotian turned and gave her a meaningful look.
He thought, Others might not know, but don't you?
Xu Xuejiao is the nail I hammered into Lu Chengwen's heart!
I absolutely cannot let Lu Chengwen suspect anything!
Why are you trying to stop me!?
Qi Meishao thought, I know what's on your mind, but you have no idea what's on Lu Chengwen's and Luo Shiyin's minds!
If not for Sister Shiyin's skills in certain areas, allowing her to control things freely, her belly would've been showing by now!
Long Aotian said, "This time, when we go to find Master, could you do your brother a favor?"
"Big brother, just say the word!"
Long Aotian smiled. "If Master makes us compete again, you could just..."
Lu Chengwen continued, "I'll deliberately lose to you, big brother, so you can advance first!"
Long Aotian was very pleased. He patted Lu Chengwen on the shoulder. "Brother, this isn't me bullying you; it's just that right now..."
"Big brother! Regarding the land and Xu Xuejiao, your magnanimity is truly admirable! If I were to fuss over something so trivial, could I even call myself a person?"
"My good brother, I have to say, dealing with you is just refreshing!"
"It must be refreshing!" Lu Chengwen said. "I'm just a businessman; whether I advance or not doesn't matter. Big brother, you're the first disciple, the true hero! In the future, I'll be counting on you to have my back!"
Lu Chengwen and Long Aotian, each harboring their own schemes, mentally calculated away.
They laughed together heartily, and in each of their eyes gleamed a sly light.
Long Aotian said, "Brother, my car broke down. Shall we take the same ride?"
"Let's go, big brother! I was wondering why you parked by the roadside!"
Long Aotian glanced at Hua Xuening and, confirming she was still a virgin, felt more at ease.
Lu Chengwen said, "Big brother! Please get in the car; little brother will personally drive you to the mountainside!"
"Then... I'll trouble you, dear brother?"
"Big brother, no need to be polite! For the rest of my life, I'll be relying on you! In the future, if anyone dares mess with me, I'll just mention your name and scare them off!"
"Hahaha! As you should, as you should!" Long Aotian said with satisfaction, "Not to brag, little brother, but under the heavens, there really aren't many who can touch me, Long Aotian. Of course, if Master gives me one more push, things will only get better..."
Just as they were about to get in the car, a figure descended from the sky, like a galloping horse.
Boom—!
The four of them scattered and were flung backward.
A tall yet incredibly fit young man stood up slowly, sneering.
"Hahaha, finding both of you at once saves me a lot of trouble!"
Long Aotian frowned. "Who are you?"
The man raised his chin, carrying a large blade. "You're not worthy of knowing my name!"
Lu Chengwen growled angrily, "You little punk! How dare you talk to my big brother like that?!"