The figure on the Yu Lin River stood alone. He pointed at the sky and commanded the wind, causing the river to surge.
Hua la la la—
Waves crashed against the banks, shattering tiles and wetting the surrounding citizens.
The commotion was so great that the pedestrians on the street ran away in fear. The customers in the pleasure boats by the river even rushed ashore in a panic. Some even knelt on the ground and shouted that an immortal had appeared.
This scene was as if the Dragon King had descended to the mortal world!
In the private room that had been turned into an open-air concept on the third floor of the Pavilion, the many nobles who were holding a banquet were already shocked to the extreme.
They realized that they had made a huge mistake. They had always thought that this man was a cheat. There were many fake stories about stepping on the river and riding the wind, but now they realized that this was not a trick at all, but a true divine power!
“Deity! This person is really a deity! He actually has the ability to summon the wind and rain!”
Zhao Xing’an cried out involuntarily. His years of posture as an official had been completely destroyed at this instant.
This was not the first time Ye Shunzhong had seen Zhou Jing use a divine power, but his previous methods were merely parlor tricks compared to this time. This was the first time he had seen such an intense scene. While he was secretly proud, he also felt a sense of reverence.
“That’s right. These descendants of the aristocratic families have repeatedly questioned him, and most of them have angered Lord Daoist. He probably deliberately did this to teach these people that the methods of the immortals can be calm and collected, or they can change the colors of this world, showing us humans as a form of deterrence…”
Ye Shunzhong’s heart trembled.
He saw that the high-ranking officials and nobles were all shocked, and the commotion on the street was becoming more and more chaotic. Therefore, he quickly got up and went to the open hole before shouting at the top of his voice,
“Daoist Ling Fengzi, everyone is convinced. Quickly retract your divine powers!”
Zhou Jing turned around and looked at the scene in the room upstairs. Suddenly, he flipped his palm, and the whistling wind suddenly turned into a gentle breeze. The restless river slowly calmed down.
In the next moment, his clothes fluttered as he rose into the air and flew back to the room on the third floor of the Green Jade Pavilion.
Stepping onto the ground again, Zhou Jing placed his hands behind his back, looking like an otherworldly expert. There was actually no water on his body at all. He calmly stated,
“It’s just some insignificant divine power. Lord Zhao, now that you’ve seen it, don’t forget what you promised me.”
Zhao Xing’an jolted and jumped up as if his butt was on fire. He hurriedly went forward and bowed in apology.
“Perfected One, don’t misunderstand! I’m really curious, that’s why I wanted to see your methods. Now that I see it, you’re really a god of the world. It’s an eye-opener for me! I’ll naturally do my best for your instructions.”
His address had even changed from “Daoist” to “Perfected One”.
(TL Note: In mythology and religion, the term “Perfected One” is actually one level higher than “Immortal”.)
The aristocrats present came back to their senses and could no longer sit still. Their attitudes had also changed from before. They now quickly went forward to chat warmly, apologizing and flattering him.
Realizing that this person was a true expert of the world, they were in awe and nervous. They were afraid that Zhou Jing would be dissatisfied with their suspicions just now and only wanted to quickly make up for it.
They also felt helpless. They had not witnessed this person’s divine power with their own eyes, so of course they were skeptical and did not dare to take it seriously.
Most of the aristocrats present usually thought highly of themselves and felt that their knowledge was higher than those ignorant commoners. With such a superior thought, they naturally did not care much about the commoners, believing that the rumors were really exaggerated. They felt that they could not fool themselves and would never easily believe them.
Liu Ping’s face was pale, and he was afraid. He also went forward to apologize and said nervously, “Perfected One, please don’t blame me. I was entertaining angels unawares. I was rude just now, please…”
“You don’t have to say anymore.”
Zhou Jing interrupted him indifferently.
He deliberately displayed a cold attitude, as if he could not be bothered to talk to this person.
This attitude of not blaming but not saying anything made Liu Ping even more nervous. He knew that his rude words had already offended the expert.
He wanted to continue apologizing, but Zhou Jing did not give him a chance.
Liu Ping was anxious and felt that their relationship had frozen at this point. He did not know how to salvage the situation. He was so anxious that he wished he could kowtow to Zhou Jing on the spot.
He himself being ignored was a small problem, but if he implicated the family and made the expert have a prejudice against the Liu family, he would suffer a huge loss.
Because there was a hole in the room, the shocked passersby on the street pointed in their direction and were currently in an uproar.
Zhao Xing’an had to ask the pavilion owner to change to another private room in order to block the gazes of the people in the city.
As for the room that Zhou Jing had made into an open-air room, Ye Shunzhong originally wanted to bear the repair fees.
Unexpectedly, the owner rejected him. He excitedly expressed that it was his honor to have the expert display his divine power here. He actually wanted to keep it in its original state for others to admire. This person was quite the shrewd businessman.
After everyone sat down in the new room, they chatted warmly with Zhou Jing. As they spoke, they further introduced the families behind them. They all said that they wanted to visit in the future and wanted to befriend such an expert on behalf of their families.
Zhao Xing’an even expressed on the spot that he would settle the matter of “seeking the heavenly secrets” that Zhou Jing had requested.
They were so enthusiastic not only because they were shocked by Zhou Jing’s divine powe r— the fact that his divine power had been proven made everyone believe that he had true ability. Therefore, Zhou Jing’s previous words about refining pills were now more believable as well. These high-ranking officials and aristocrats naturally wanted to obtain pills that could extend their lifespans.
Zhou Jing did not agree immediately, but he did not refuse either. He only said that they would discuss this matter in the future and changed the topic.
His arrogant and casual behavior made the nobles present feel that this was what an expert should do. They became even more enthusiastic.
These children of high-ranking officials and aristocratic families could put on airs in front of people who were inferior to them, and they could also flatter those who needed to curry favor. They were always prepared to have two faces and could switch between them freely. They were all well-educated and knew how to do things better than ordinary people.