"Brother Li, you don't recognize this young man?"
The disciples of Qingyun Sword Pavilion were surprised.
“We really don’t recognize him. This is the first time we’ve seen this young man.” Another young man shook his head as well.
To be honest, they were just as surprised.
Lu Qing was not only unfamiliar with his appearance, but his aura was also quite ordinary.
Why do his elders look at him with such awe?
This was a scene they had never seen before.
Some quick-witted individuals suddenly thought of something and were startled.
But then he hesitated to confirm, saying, "Could this be the young hero who, according to the rumors these past few days, defeated a martial arts master head-on in the battle at the city gate that day?"
After his reminder, the others also realized what was going on.
"Yes, it must be that one. Otherwise, how could so many martial arts masters be so respectful and fearful of him!"
Looking at Lu Qing's somewhat immature face, the group of young people were all shaken.
No wonder they didn't think of this for a while, because when the elders of the clan mentioned this matter these days, they were either vague or simply referred to him as "young hero".
They thought this person would be at least as old as them, but they never expected him to be so young.
"What are you saying, folks? This young man defeated a martial arts grandmaster? You must be joking!"
Upon hearing this, the disciples of Qingyun Sword Pavilion all showed expressions of disbelief.
No wonder they don't believe it.
What these people said was simply too absurd.
How could a teenager defeat a martial arts master whose internal organs have reached perfection?
This is utterly absurd no matter how you look at it!
A martial arts master in his teens?!
Let alone in this remote Cang County, even in the most prosperous and talented Central Plains, such a person is a rare sight.
It is likely that only the most elite super sects can cultivate such monstrous geniuses.
How could such a genius be born in such a small place as Cang County?
“Brother Zhao, we know this is hard to believe, but it is true. If we are not mistaken, this young man is very likely the same young man who saved the Wei family not long ago.”
After saying this, the young men from prominent families recounted the events that had occurred recently.
After chatting for a while, everyone learned that these young men with unique temperaments were fellow disciples of the eldest son of the Wei family, and came from a major sect in Jizhou.
Naturally, they wanted to befriend such a person, so they recounted in detail what had happened in the county town recently.
After hearing this, the disciples of Qingyun Sword Pavilion looked at each other in bewilderment.
The incident of Cangzong's invasion of the Wei family that day was not bad, as they had heard about it on their way here.
But the more they listened to what was said next, the more outrageous it seemed.
Especially what these people said, that the young man defeated a martial arts grandmaster with his perfected Bone and Tendon Realm cultivation?
How is that possible!
This is not just absurd, it's utter nonsense.
No matter how strong one is in the Bone and Tendon Realm, they can never be a match for a Martial Arts Grandmaster.
The two are not even in the same league in terms of cultivation level or realm!
If they were to truly face off, there would be no other outcome for someone at the Bone and Tendon Realm except defeat.
Several disciples of Qingyun Sword Pavilion, who came from major sects, all possessed the cultivation level of the Bone and Tendon Realm. In their daily lives within the sect, they had witnessed more than one contest between martial arts grandmasters.
Therefore, they are very clear about just how exaggerated the gap is between the Bone and Tendon Realm and the Martial Arts Grandmaster.
That is a chasm that cannot be crossed by techniques and martial arts alone!
It's such a small place; even such a clumsy rumor can spread. The people here have such poor knowledge of martial arts.
In an instant, several disciples of the Qingyun Sword Pavilion made their own judgments.
They believed that what had just been said was nothing but nonsense.
These young masters are either blindly following the crowd and believing rumors, or they're just bragging to get their attention.
However, despite their disdain, the Qingyun Sword Pavilion disciples remained composed and did not show it.
Instead, he continued to chat politely with the several country princes.
As for what they were really laughing at in their hearts, only they know.
"Your Excellency, Lord Zhirui has arrived!"
Just then, a message came from the gatekeeper outside.
The guests inside the courtyard stirred again, all looking out.
Soon, the county magistrate and the mysterious Lord Zhirui entered together, led by Chief Steward Wei.
"Your Excellency, Your Excellency Zhi Rui, please have a seat here."
Chief Steward Wei led the two to the banquet table where Lu Qing was, and said very politely.
"Young Master Lu, we meet again."
The county magistrate waved his fan and laughed.
"Yes, I was very disappointed that I couldn't drink with the magistrate that day. Today, my wish has been fulfilled." Lu Qing smiled as well.
The county magistrate's smile froze instantly.
The young man in plain clothes standing to the side couldn't help but twitch his lips as he looked at Lu Qing's polite demeanor.
He found that what the boy said was quite interesting.
Without making a sound, you can give your friend a hard time.
After being rebuffed, the county magistrate did not continue to talk to Lu Qing. Instead, he sat down opposite him and began to drink by himself.
Lu Qing ignored him and remained seated calmly.
He couldn't say he disliked this county magistrate, but he subconsciously felt a certain aversion to him.
Therefore, it's best if they don't have any interaction.
This, however, did make the other people at the banquet table somewhat uneasy.
The head of the Ma family keenly sensed that Lu Qing and the county magistrate seemed to be at odds.
Unfortunately, he was a nobody and his voice carried little weight. Even if he discovered it, he dared not say anything and could only sit there silently, trying to minimize his presence.
As for the young man in plain clothes, he was not a talkative person to begin with, and he would never strike up a conversation with anyone.
For a moment, the most important banquet table fell inexplicably quiet.
Fortunately, it wasn't long before all the guests arrived.
Wei Xinghe and his wife, along with Ma Gu and other main characters, also came out from the inner courtyard.
With a shout from Chief Steward Wei, the apprenticeship ceremony officially began.
There's not much to say about the ceremony itself.
Although there were many procedures, nothing went wrong. Apart from Magu looking a little nervous, everything went smoothly.
After Wei Zian knelt down and kowtowed several times, tea was offered to him. After Ma Gu drank the tea, the apprenticeship ceremony was considered truly complete.
Upon witnessing this scene, all the various factions knew that the matter was settled and could no longer be changed.
However, they really didn't expect that the Wei family would actually make Wei Zi'an become Ma Gu's apprentice.
They initially thought there was more to the story.
The head of the Ma family was overjoyed.
With so many people witnessing, the master-disciple relationship between Ma Gu and Wei Zi'an was finally settled.
From then on, Ma Gu became the personal tutor of the young master of the Wei family and had the responsibility of teaching him.
Similarly, they also have the right to discipline Young Master Wei.
Even regarding his future marriage, if Magoo wanted to, he could have a say in it.
"Congratulations to Young Master Wei on finding a good teacher, and congratulations to Master Ma on gaining a fine disciple!" At this moment, a plump guest stood up and congratulated him loudly, "I have a small gift for you, a small token of my appreciation, please accept it, Young Master."
The guests were taken aback at first, then realized what was happening and couldn't help but curse the old fox in their hearts.
Their gifts were given as soon as they entered the house.
But no one expected that someone would pull this stunt.
Giving the items in front of Wei Xinghe will definitely leave a deeper impression, and he might be happy, which would be a win for him.
"Master Qian, what treasure have you acquired that you're giving it away in front of Master Wei?" someone asked jokingly.
However, people are indeed quite curious.
What kind of gift could make this shrewd old fox from the Qian family so confident in giving it away in public?
You see, under such public scrutiny, if the gift isn't special enough, it won't be about showing off, but rather about making a fool of yourself in front of everyone.
"It's just a little trinket, but the young master will definitely like it."
With a fawning smile on his face, the head of the Qian family presented a beautifully crafted wooden box about a foot long and walked forward.
"Really? What is it?"
Wei Zian was also intrigued and looked at the wooden box.
Everyone looked at the wooden box in the Qian family head's hand, their curiosity completely piqued.
Lu Qing was no exception. However, when he focused his gaze on the Qian family head who was walking towards Wei Zian, a warning arose in his heart, causing him to subconsciously activate his superpower.
Immediately afterwards, his expression changed.
He shouted urgently, "Young master, be careful!"
Upon hearing this loud shout, the first to react was not Wei Zian, but the head of the Qian family.
The ingratiating smile on his face vanished abruptly, replaced by a cold, hard expression.
Bang!
The wooden box shattered, revealing its contents.
It was a sharp black short sword that gleamed coldly, with a trace of blood on its blade!
At the same time, a powerful yet chilling aura suddenly erupted from the Qian family head, suppressing everyone's minds.
Grasping the short sword in one hand, the Qian family head unleashed a burst of powerful strength, shattering the bluestone beneath his feet. He pounced like an arrow towards Wei Zian, who was more than ten steps away!
