The Martial Arts World is Full of Experts Chapter 33

98

Zhang Xiaoyuan felt extremely guilty.

Upon careful calculation, it had been a month since he joined the sect.

But he hadn't even memorized the first few pages of the sword manual. He had only practiced for fifteen minutes in total.

Eldest Senior Brother, in this situation, was still memorizing the sword manual. No wonder his martial arts skills were so good. Eldest Senior Brother was truly the hope of their sect!

Zhang Xiaoyuan made a firm decision. After watching the current excitement, when he returned to his room at night, he would definitely memorize the sword manual diligently and work hard! He wanted to bring glory to his master!

After giving instructions to the manager, Pei Wuluan returned.

"Rooms are tight within the Alliance. Perhaps a couple may have to share a room," Pei Wuluan cautiously looked at Xing Yan, "However, men and women should not be too close. I have arranged a separate room for Miss Xing."

Xing Yan gave him a gentle smile. "Then, many thanks to Chief Pei."

Zhang Xiaoyuan, looking at the newly emerged words above her head, felt that Xing Yan's bias against Pei Wuluan was indeed significant.

「Flattery won't work, dog man.」

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

As they followed the manager, Hua Liuque seemed extremely eager to return to the room for a rest. Pei Wuluan pulled Pei Junze aside for a private conversation. Zhang Xiaoyuan, glancing from a distance, observed their lip movements and roughly understood their conversation.

Pei Wuluan grabbed Pei Junze's arm, as if clutching the last straw for salvation. "Save me..."

Pei Junze: "I will write a letter to my foster father to explain."

Foster father?

Zhang Xiaoyuan paused.

Having observed the commotion for so long and considering the events that had happened earlier, the "foster father" mentioned by Pei Junze likely referred to Mo Wentian, the Master of the Demon Sect.

So, Pei Junze wasn't Mo Wentian's biological son?

Upon closer consideration, when Pei Junze's head bore the title "Son of Mo Wentian, Master of the Demon Sect," it was merely a label. If the bond between them was strong, being treated as a true son was understandable. After all, Pei Junze had spent fifteen years by Mo Wentian's side, so calling him Mo Wentian's son didn't seem out of place.

Would he really call Pei Wuluan "dad"? Could he actually be the biological child of Pei Wuluan and some confidante?

Zhang Xiaoyuan became increasingly curious.

Now, he knew another thing — Eldest Senior Brother likely knew the truth, and Eldest Senior Brother never hid anything from him. If he asked, Eldest Senior Brother would tell. After returning to his room tonight, he vowed to extract the truth from Eldest Senior Brother!

......

As they approached the courtyard they would stay in, they encountered Ke Xingwen, rushing out while holding a book.

Lowering his head, he nearly collided with Lu Zhaoming walking ahead. He hastily halted, apologizing to Lu Zhaoming, "Young hero, my apologies. I—"

Upon seeing Lu Zhaoming's face, he swallowed the latter half of his sentence, even subconsciously straightening his back and tensing his buttocks.

As Zhang Xiaoyuan anticipated, the Scatterred Blossom Palace senior disciple, Ke Xingwen, upon spotting Eldest Senior Brother, only felt a twinge in his buttocks.

Lu Zhaoming had long forgotten who he was. Without much thought, he nodded slightly in acknowledgment and proceeded to walk into the house. Ke Xingwen cautiously stepped aside, standing there as if intending to watch them leave.

Yet, he noticed Hua Liuque.

His eyes slightly widened, as if witnessing something unbelievable. After a moment of astonishment, he merely mumbled, "Junior Brother Hua?"

He shook his head, seeming quite remorseful, lowering his head even further.

It was as if he believed that uttering those words was an extremely undesirable thing.

Hua Liuque showed no reaction, treating Ke Xingwen as if he hadn't seen him. He continued walking hastily, visibly anxious, darting into the courtyard to search for his room.

The recent gossip about the Martial Arts Alliance Chief and the Demonic Sect Master was too stimulating. It almost made Zhang Xiaoyuan forget about the story between Hua Liuque and Scatterred Blossom Palace.

Mei Leng'an was Hua Liuque's former master. Why, when they met, did they seem not to recognize each other? Perhaps the events of the past were too awkward, prompting them to deliberately feign unfamiliarity?

Mei Leng'an not remembering Hua Liuque was somewhat understandable. With hundreds of disciples under his sect, aside from a few direct disciples, most were just names. Mei Leng'an, with modest martial arts skills, rarely instructed his disciples personally. Moreover, Scatterred Blossom Palace was vast, and with strict rules, many had been expelled over the years. Perhaps Mei Leng'an simply didn't remember who Hua Liuque was.

But how could Hua Liuque not remember Mei Leng'an?

Zhang Xiaoyuan frowned, first looking at Ke Xingwen's head, where there was only an introduction of his identity. Then, he looked at Hua Liuque's head — empty, devoid of any information, even the exclamation about Xing Yan had disappeared.

Among the people Zhang Xiaoyuan knew, Hua Liuque was usually easy to read. Whenever he had a thought, Zhang Xiaoyuan was unlikely to miss it, but now... perhaps Hua Liuque truly had no thoughts.

Perhaps seeing Ke Xingwen, his former fellow disciple, threw his mind into chaos. Consequently, he didn't think about anything and didn't dare to.

Zhang Xiaoyuan began to feel that everyone around him, except himself, had intriguing stories.

Including Eldest Senior Brother, who seemed to know everything but never spoke about it.

99

As expected, Hua Liuque pitifully ended up sharing a room with Jiang Jianyu, while Zhang Xiaoyuan once again successfully roomed with Lu Zhaoming.

After returning to his room, Zhang Xiaoyuan carefully closed the door to prevent anyone from eavesdropping on his private gossip. Then, he turned to Lu Zhaoming and called out, "Eldest Senior Brother!"

Lu Zhaoming set down his luggage, as if already knowing what he wanted to ask, and replied, "Yes, I've known Chief Pei since childhood."

Zhang Xiaoyuan felt an inexplicable awkwardness. "Then... why didn't you tell me when we discussed Chief Pei?"

Lu Zhaoming remained calm, casually responding, "It was quite interesting."

His expression didn't look like he found it interesting at all.

Zhang Xiaoyuan didn't beat around the bush. He straightforwardly asked, "Did you know from the beginning who Big Brother Pei's biological mother was?"

Lu Zhaoming nodded. "I heard it from my master."

Zhang Xiaoyuan asked, "Who was it?"

"It was Master Pei's senior sister," Lu Zhaoming replied. "Chief Pei could be considered his foster father."

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

Both were foster fathers.

Zhang Xiaoyuan vaguely felt that he was starting to understand.

Adopting the child of a deceased senior sister within the sect and treating them as one's own was already an uncommon but not unheard-of tale.

However, in most such stories, the foster parent wouldn't conceal it like Pei Wuluan did. Even if branded with the title of a heartless playboy, they would insist the child was their biological offspring.

Pei Wuluan came from a prestigious background. He could have openly adopted his senior sister's child. In the eyes of outsiders, it would have been a commendable act. If Zhang Xiaoyuan's guess was correct, there were likely many untold stories hidden within this situation.

Lu Zhaoming had already seated himself at the table. Pouring a cup of tea for himself, he seemed a bit hungry. He picked at the pastries on the table, hesitated for a moment, took a piece, cautiously took a bite, furrowed his brow — perhaps the taste wasn't quite right. Unsure whether to swallow or spit, he paused for a while before finally swallowing whatever was in his mouth.

Zhang Xiaoyuan pulled out a chair and sat next to Lu Zhaoming. "Eldest Senior Brother, Hua Liuque just met Elder Mei. Do you know if anything happened between them?"

Lu Zhaoming shook his head. "I certainly don't know."

He was frowning, gazing at the pastry he had taken a bite from, appearing deeply hesitant.

Zhang Xiaoyuan said, "I'm a bit worried about him."

Lu Zhaoming stuffed the remaining pastry into his mouth.

"Also, that Ke... Scatterred Blossom Palace's senior disciple, why would he appear in this courtyard?" Zhang Xiaoyuan asked, "Could he be staying here too?"

"Hmm," Lu Zhaoming said, "Hmm hmm."

After saying this, he turned to look, covering his mouth. Perhaps he choked. Zhang Xiaoyuan was startled, hastily pouring water for Lu Zhaoming. "Eldest Senior Brother! If it doesn't taste good, just throw it away. No need to force yourself!"

Lu Zhaoming coughed a couple of times, finally managing to swallow the pastry. He said, "Wasteful."

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

Lu Zhaoming: "Mei Leng'an probably didn't recognize him."

As he said these words, Lu Zhaoming extended a finger, pushing the plate of pastries on the table away, farther and farther until it was in front of Zhang Xiaoyuan, only then did he retract his hand.

"I always feel something's off with Hua Liuque." Zhang Xiaoyuan sighed deeply. "And... Eldest Senior Brother, do you know if Chief Pei has any connection with the Demon Sect?"

Lu Zhaoming: "What connection does he have with the Demon Sect?"

Zhang Xiaoyuan fell silent.

Well, it seemed that at least on this matter, Eldest Senior Brother knew nothing.

......

In the evening, after finishing dinner, Zhang Xiaoyuan sat in the courtyard to get some fresh air, watching Ke Xingwen return to the courtyard.

He indeed lived in the same courtyard.

Zhang Xiaoyuan felt awkward, especially since Ke Xingwen fell right in front of him when Eldest Senior Brother kicked him. He thought Ke Xingwen would recall this humiliating incident upon seeing him, so he consciously retreated into his room. However, he heard the door of the adjacent room creak, and Ke Xingwen entered the room next to his.

Lu Zhaoming was originally polishing his sword in the room. Seeing Zhang Xiaoyuan rush in anxiously, he furrowed his brow and asked, "What's wrong?"

Zhang Xiaoyuan whispered, "Eldest Senior Brother, Ke Xingwen is in the next room."

Lu Zhaoming asked, "Ke Xingwen?"

He seemed unfamiliar with the name, so Zhang Xiaoyuan had to explain again, "He's the Scatterred Blossom Palace senior disciple you kicked that day."

Lu Zhaoming: "He's in the next room. What about it?"

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "Ke Xingwen and his master—"

He paused, unsure how to explain the peculiar information he had heard. After a moment's thought, just as he was considering using the excuse of hearing it from a storyteller, the door next door creaked again. He vaguely heard Ke Xingwen's surprised voice, "Master, why are you here?"

The two rooms were separated by at least one wall. Ke Xingwen's voice was muffled, not entirely clear, but he seemed too surprised, making his voice unintentionally louder. Zhang Xiaoyuan heard it distinctly, and even Lu Zhaoming raised his head, glancing towards the wall connecting the two rooms.

Mei Leng'an's voice was softer, and whatever he said, Zhang Xiaoyuan didn't catch.

Ke Xingwen continued, "Master! We're in the Martial Arts Alliance!"

Mei Leng'an raised his tone, plaintively shouting, "What's wrong with being in the Martial Arts Alliance!"

Ke Xingwen: "Being away from home—"

Mei Leng'an: "In the Martial Arts Alliance! Do you no longer love me?"

Zhang Xiaoyuan: "......"

Lu Zhaoming: "......"