Xiao Shi looked somewhat embarrassed. "Master, that Ye Qingyun is actually a mortal—the kind without a single shred of cultivation."
The white-haired old man froze.
A mortal?
"Impossible!"
He flatly refused to believe it.
Could a mortal paint something containing the Great Dao?
Absolutely not.
Anyone capable of producing such a painting had to be a supreme expert—someone the white-haired old man could only look up to with reverence.
The kind whose greatness knew no bounds.
"Perhaps your insight is too shallow to pierce the true facade of an expert, causing you to mistake a master for a mere mortal," the white-haired old man said.
Hearing this, both Xiao Shi and Uncle Jiu began to doubt reality itself.
"Could that fellow really be a reclusive expert?"
Xiao Shi furrowed her delicate brows.
Uncle Jiu, however, was suddenly jolted awake.
"Eldest Miss, we encountered two Demon Beasts along the way. Originally, I was no match for them, but it was as if they were suppressed by some kind of force, and I easily chased them off."
Xiao Shi came to her senses as well.
Her eyes widened in utter disbelief.
"You mean... it was Ye Qingyun who intervened from the shadows back then?"
Uncle Jiu nodded repeatedly.
Hiss!
Xiao Shi was stunned.
Put that way, it all made sense.
Whether it was the painting or the events on the road, everything proved that Ye Qingyun was by no means as ordinary as he appeared.
He was actually a worldly expert hidden among mortals?
"What are you two talking about?"
The white-haired old man looked at them in confusion.
"Master, it's like this..."
Right then and there, Xiao Shi recounted how they had met Ye Qingyun and everything that had happened along the journey.
When she finished, the white-haired old man looked at them with a gaze that suggested he wished he could slap them to death on the spot.
Xiao Shi and Uncle Jiu felt thoroughly awkward.
A reclusive expert had traveled alongside them the entire way, yet not only had they failed to recognize him, but they had even treated him like that.
Thinking back on it now, both of them broke out in cold sweats.
"You two!"
The white-haired old man shook his head again and again.
"Fortunately, that senior is magnanimous and didn't stoop to your level. Otherwise, how could either of you still be alive?"
The two could only nod repeatedly.
"Such an expert... if I don't pay my respects in person, I will never find peace of mind."
Carefully rolling up the scroll, the white-haired old man placed it inside his storage pouch.
"Hurry up and take me to this expert. I must ask for his guidance in person."
Xiao Shi was taken aback.
I was the one who came to seek apprenticeship, so why is my own master rushing to kowtow to someone else?
"Master, what about these apprenticeship gifts..."
"What apprenticeship gifts? This painting is the best apprenticeship gift you could possibly have. Take everything else back."
"Fine."
Xiao Shi wore a helpless expression.
Anxious to the extreme, the white-haired old man urged the other two to set off immediately.
Learning that Ye Qingyun had appeared at the market at the foot of Fuyun Mountain, the white-haired old man grabbed Xiao Shi and Uncle Jiu, one in each hand, and soared into the air.
Whoosh!
Utilizing his wind-riding flight, the white-haired old man whisked the two of them away in the direction of Fuyun Mountain.
...
Ye Qingyun returned to Fuyun Mountain.
Gazing at his old nest, a wave of profound peace washed over him.
"There's no place like home."
Having taken such a trip out, Ye Qingyun deeply felt the warmth of home.
Rumble...
He was starving and quickly ate something to fill his stomach.
Once full, Ye Qingyun enjoyed a wonderfully sound sleep.
He slept all the way until noon the next day.
Only then did Ye Qingyun lazily get out of bed.
Pushing open his door, he stepped outside.
To his surprise, someone was standing right outside the courtyard.
"What are you doing?"
Seeing the sneaky figure trying to pluck a pear from the tree, Ye Qingyun let out a loud shout.
Startled, the person tumbled right out of the pear tree, landing flat on their back.
It looked like a painful fall.
The person let out an "ou ouch" and sat on the ground, unable to get up.
Ye Qingyun quickly stepped forward.
To his surprise, it was a child.
He looked to be only seven or eight years old.
Filthy and in rags, with messy, unkempt hair, he looked for all the world like a little beggar.
The child was shivering, his face twisted in pain from the fall.
"You've got a lot of nerve, trying to steal my pears?"
Ye Qingyun sneered.
The little beggar rubbed his leg and struggled to his feet.
"I wasn't stealing."
"I caught you red-handed, and you still say you weren't stealing?"
Ye Qingyun was so angry he laughed.
The little beggar snorted.
"So I was stealing, so what? Are you going to beat me to death or something?"
Ye Qingyun was left speechless.
Well, what do you know.
At such a tender age, the kid was already a hardened little rascal.
Still, Ye Qingyun didn't really intend to punish him. After all, being reduced to begging at such a young age was genuinely pitiful.
"What's your name?"
Ye Qingyun asked.
"I don't have a name."
「No name? Then what do people call you?」
The little beggar crinkled his nose. "Everyone calls me Little Bastard."
Ye Qingyun shook his head helplessly.
"What's your father's surname, then?"
The little beggar paused, a blank look on his face.
"My dad's last name was Guo."
"What about your parents?"
"They're both dead."
A wave of sympathy welled up in Ye Qingyun's heart.
He walked over to the pear tree and picked a dozen pears.
Then he fetched a bag of rice from inside the house.
"Take these to eat. If you finish them, you can come back here."
Ye Qingyun handed the items to the little beggar.
The little beggar looked at him with a mix of surprise and suspicion, not daring to reach out.
"From now on, don't steal things anymore."
Chapter 23: Demon King Blocking the Way? A True Dragon Soaring to the Heavens?
The white-haired old man brought Xiao Shi and Uncle Jiu all the way to the market at the foot of Fuyun Mountain.
"Master, it was right here in this market that we met Ye Qingyun," Xiao Shi said.
The white-haired old man grunted in acknowledgment, then closed his eyes, sweeping his spiritual sense across the entire market.
With his profound cultivation, the old man could inspect every corner of the market in an instant.
Yet, a moment later, disappointment washed over him.
There were indeed a few martial artists in the market.
However, all of them possessed meager cultivation and couldn't possibly catch his eye.
Naturally, none of them could be that mysterious expert.
On second thought, however, that expert might be constantly concealing his cultivation, wishing to wander the mortal world in the guise of an ordinary person.
Perhaps among the ordinary people he had scanned, the mysterious expert was hiding in plain sight.
With that, the white-haired old man steadied his mind and began wandering through the market.
Xiao Shi sent Uncle Jiu back to Beichuan first, while she herself stayed behind to accompany the white-haired old man as they combed through the market.
They searched for a full seven days.
By now, the white-haired old man had thoroughly mapped out every inch of this tiny market.
He even knew the exact number of old folk and children living here.
Yet there was still no sign of Ye Qingyun.
"Could this expert have already traveled far away?"
The white-haired old man couldn't help but wonder.
Suddenly, Xiao Shi remembered something.
"Right! It seemed like he was acquainted with Old Man Huang, the storyteller at the teahouse."
The white-haired old man glared at her.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?"
Xiao Shi looked somewhat embarrassed.
"Forgive me, Master, I forgot."
The white-haired old man: "......"
Since they had a lead, they naturally needed to track it down immediately.
Master and disciple made their way to the teahouse.
Old Man Huang happened to be in the middle of storytelling.
And the story he was telling was none other than *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, which Ye Qingyun had taught him.
Old Man Huang delivered the tale with vivid expressions and boundless passion.
Every seat in the teahouse was taken, packed to maximum capacity, leaving the tavern keeper grinning from ear to ear as he constantly signaled the waiters to refill the guests' cups.
It was fair to say that ever since Ye Qingyun told a story here, the teahouse's business had been booming day after day, far outperforming its former self.
Although Ye Qingyun hadn't returned to tell stories since, Old Man Huang was quite capable of recounting *The Legend of the Condor Heroes* on his own.
"Master, that's Old Man Huang," Xiao Shi whispered, pointing at the storyteller.
The white-haired old man glanced at Old Man Huang and confirmed the man possessed zero cultivation.
Instead of interrupting him directly, he stood off to the side, listening in on Old Man Huang's tale.
Before he knew it, the white-haired old man found himself completely absorbed, his mind swept along by the twists and turns of the story.
Once that segment of the story concluded, many of the patrons dispersed.
Only then did the white-haired old man instruct Xiao Shi to make inquiries.
Soon enough, Xiao Shi returned.
"Master, I've asked around. That Ye Qingyun seems to live on nearby Fuyun Mountain."
"Fuyun Mountain?"
The white-haired old man furrowed his brows slightly.
He had a vague recollection of having visited this place before.
Pondering further, the white-haired old man remembered.
A century ago, he had clashed with a formidable enemy, pursuing him all the way through Fuyun Mountain.
Back then, the white-haired old man had even been shaken by the restrictions shrouding Fuyun Mountain.
"Let's go to Fuyun Mountain."
Without a moment's delay, the two immediately headed toward the mountain.
When the white-haired old man saw that the dark mist had completely vanished from the peak of Fuyun Mountain, a look of profound surprise crossed his face.
"The restrictions from back then are actually gone!"
He remembered it vividly.
When he passed by Fuyun Mountain in the past, he had assumed it was merely ordinary dark fog, only to trigger the restrictions and almost lose his life there.
Now, all the dark mist on the mountain had dissipated, signifying that the restrictions had been lifted entirely.
"Could this be the work of that expert?"
The white-haired old man couldn't help but suspect.
Collecting himself, he and Xiao Shi began climbing up the mountain.
Before long, the white-haired old man came to a sudden halt.
"Master, what is it?"
Xiao Shi asked, looking at him in confusion.
The white-haired old man remained silent, his gaze fixed ahead with an expression of intense gravity.
Following his line of sight, Xiao Shi looked forward.
There, resting lazily on a boulder not far away, was a large golden-haired dog basking in the sun.
The golden-haired dog had even rolled over onto its back, exposing its belly in an attitude of utter indolence.
"That's the dog that follows Ye Qingyun!"
Xiao Shi recognized it instantly.
Just as she was about to step forward, the white-haired old man grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"What is it, Master?"
Xiao Shi asked, bewildered.
The white-haired old man's expression was grim to the extreme—one could even detect a hint of terror.
Staring at the large golden-haired dog, his breathing grew heavy.
"This is a Demon King!"
Xiao Shi froze.
What did he say?
A Demon King?
Fear flickered through the white-haired old man's eyes, and he dared not take another step forward.
He bowed deeply toward Damao.
"This old man, Mo Tianshu, pays respects to Your Excellency the Demon King!"
Damao flicked its tongue without offering any response.
If anything, the white-haired old man grew even more tense.
Because he could not fathom Damao's depth at all.
Yet he was certain of one thing: this was unequivocally a Demon King.
A Demon King!
A sovereign among Demon Beasts.
Even in territories where the demon race congregated, the number of Demon Kings did not exceed ten.
Every single Demon King possessed heaven-shaking, earth-shattering capabilities.
Wiping out an entire nation was child's play to them.
The white-haired old man was considered a rare powerhouse among mankind.
Yet compared to a Demon King, a considerable gap still remained.
"Hmm? Did you just say this Demon King is with that expert?"
The white-haired old man suddenly asked.
Xiao Shi nodded repeatedly.
A tremor went through the white-haired old man's heart.
Indeed!
That Ye Qingyun was undeniably an unfathomable expert.
He was even capable of commanding a Demon King.
Terrifying. Truly terrifying.
What manner of horrific existence could boss around a Demon King?
The white-haired old man was well-traveled and knowledgeable, but when it came to commanding a Demon King, he reckoned only the Tiance Dragon Sovereign—who had dominated an era millennia ago and made countless powerhouses bow their heads—had ever achieved such a feat.
Yet even the Tiance Dragon Sovereign had only managed to subjugate a newly ascended Demon King.
As for the golden-haired dog before him, it was clearly far from a simple newcomer to the realm of Demon Kings.
"My master dislikes drawing attention."
At that moment, Damao spoke.
Both the white-haired old man and Xiao Shi tightened up instantly.
"If you wish to pay a visit to my master, you must not reveal his identity, nor are you allowed to disrupt his state of mind while he experiences the mortal world."
The white-haired old man nodded repeatedly.
"Naturally, naturally. Since the expert is living in seclusion here precisely to experience the mortal world, this old man will certainly cooperate."
Xiao Shi, however, was caught up in a more complicated web of thoughts.
She recalled all of Ye Qingyun's previous behavior.
So it had all been an act.
The man was a genuine reclusive expert; he simply wanted to experience ordinary mortal life.
At the thought of how she had bullied Ye Qingyun back then, Xiao Shi wished she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
How mortifying.
Fortunately, the senior hadn't lowered himself to her level.
"You may pass."
Damao said casually.
"Many thanks!"
The white-haired old man bowed again before leading Xiao Shi further up the mountain.
They had barely walked a few paces when a thunderous ripping sound split the air.
The white-haired old man abruptly jerked his head upward.
He beheld the most shocking sight of his life.
An azure dragon soared from the summit into the clouds.
"A True Dragon?"
Horrified, the white-haired old man nearly popped his eyeballs out of their sockets.
Chapter 24: Who First Awakened from the Great Dream?
"Disciple, am I hallucinating?"
The white-haired old man rubbed his eyes, staring blankly up at the sky.
Xiao Shi had also witnessed the True Dragon vanish into the clouds and stood there in a stupor.
Hearing her master's words, Xiao Shi instinctively rubbed her own eyes as well.
"Master, I think I'm hallucinating too."
Master and disciple exchanged glances.
Both of them hallucinated at the same time?
Impossible!
The only logical explanation was that a True Dragon piercing the clouds had indeed been witnessed by their very own eyes.
"Could this dragon also be related to that expert?"
The white-haired old man couldn't help but wonder.
Along this entire journey, they had encountered a Demon King blocking the path and then laid eyes on a True Dragon.
In all his long decades, the white-haired old man had never experienced such a thrilling sequence of events.
At this moment, his desire to meet the expert atop the mountain reached a fever pitch.
Continuing upward, the master and disciple pressed on.
Before long, they arrived outside Ye Qingyun's courtyard.
Inside the courtyard, a rabbit was leisurely gnawing on a carrot.
It paid no heed whatsoever to the two arrivals standing outside.
"That's the rabbit the senior was holding back then," Xiao Shi whispered, pointing at it.
The white-haired old man surveyed the courtyard.
Though simple, it was arranged with exquisite taste—tranquil and profound.
It was far superior to the thatched hut in his own valley.
"Truly a dwelling place for a reclusive expert: tranquil, refined, and utterly refreshing to the soul," the white-haired old man thought to himself.
Just then, his attention was caught by the various plants growing inside the yard.
"These... these are all heavenly treasures!"
The white-haired old man's expression shifted drastically, disbelief plastered across his face.
Though Xiao Shi lacked deep knowledge, she could still recognize a few rare spiritual herbs and let out a series of gasps.
The white-haired old man didn't even know where to look anymore.
Everything in this courtyard was a heavenly treasure.
Some of them were specimens he had only ever read about in ancient texts.
Trembling with excitement, the white-haired old man could barely contain himself.
"To think this expert has planted so many heavenly treasures here... What manner of existence is he?!"
He wanted to step forward.
To his surprise, the rabbit spoke up.
"My master is taking a nap. Do not disturb him."
Xiao Shi jumped in fright.
The white-haired old man, meanwhile, stared intently at the rabbit, a trace of wariness in his eyes.
While it wasn't a Demon King, the rabbit's cultivation was clearly nothing to sneeze at either.
"We wouldn't dare disturb him. We will wait right here for the expert to wake up."
The white-haired old man bowed respectfully to the rabbit.
Then he stood there obediently.
Watching her master act like this, Xiao Shi was rendered somewhat speechless.
When she had gone to Yutian Valley to seek apprenticeship, she had acted precisely the same way.
Never had she imagined that both she and her master would now be standing here, waiting for Ye Qingyun to wake up from his nap.
How utterly ironic.
Ignoring the two outsiders, the rabbit went right back to crunching on its carrot.
As for Ye Qingyun, he was indeed soundly asleep.
Having eaten a rather heavy lunch and strolled around the mountain for a bit, he had come back and crashed the moment his head hit the pillow.
The master and disciple waited for a full two hours.
Until the sun slanted toward the west.
Having slept to his heart's content, Ye Qingyun leisurely awoke.
He sat up on the bed, feeling thoroughly refreshed, and couldn't help but stretch lazily.
Suddenly recalling the "Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage" episode from *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, a couple of lines of poetry involuntarily slipped from his lips.
"Who first awakened from the great dream?"
"My whole life, I know myself."
"In the thatched cottage, spring slumber is deep,"
"Outside the window, the sun lingers slow."
Ye Qingyun had merely recited those lines on a whim.
Yet the people outside the courtyard heard every single word crystal clear.
Hearing the poem, the white-haired old man instantly fell into deep contemplation.
Moments later, shock bloomed across his face.
"What a poem! What a brilliant poem!"
"Though plain and unadorned, it seems to pierce through the ultimate principles of the Great Dao, taking everything with utter detachment!"
An expert truly was an expert.
Even a casual verse murmured upon waking from a nap could possess such unfathomable profundity.
Beside him, Xiao Shi wore a puzzled expression.
The poem sounded pleasant enough, but was it really as divine as her master made it out to be?
"Disciple, you must not show any disrespect in the presence of the expert!"
The white-haired old man admonished Xiao Shi in a low voice.
"This disciple understands," Xiao Shi hastily replied.
By now, Ye Qingyun had already stepped outside.
As soon as he emerged, he spotted two people standing outside his courtyard.
One was an unusual-looking white-haired old man.
The other was a delicate-looking young woman.
As for the young woman, Ye Qingyun felt she looked somewhat familiar.
"Who are you two?"
Ye Qingyun asked with curiosity.
The white-haired old man quickly stepped forward and bowed. "This old man, Shen Tianhua, having heard that an expert resides here in seclusion, has come specifically to pay my respects."
"This is my disciple, Xiao Shi."
Xiao Shi also bowed toward Ye Qingyun.
"Xiao Shi pays respects to Senior."
Xiao Shi?
Isn't that the one who dressed up as a man?
Ye Qingyun looked closer.
It really was her!
What is she doing here?
And why did she bring her master along?
"Uh, I think you've got the wrong person..."