Chapter 4: Outer Court Disciple
Little Fatty’s parents were elite inner court disciples, and in those days, they were admired by everyone, with thousands of disciples attempting to ingratiate themselves with the duo. Little Fatty reaped some benefits from it as nobody dared to bully him, and instead had to be subservient towards him. But the moment they died, Little Fatty went from hero to zero, immediately being chased out from the inner sanctuary to the peripheral mountains to be a janitor. Whenever Song Zhong recalls this, he would always end up in a mad fit. But now, Song Zhong has decided that he will gain back everything which he lost.
The next day, Little Fatty got up early in the morning. After washing up, he took off the beggar costume which he intentionally dirtied, and wore a fresh set of robes. Today, he would report to the sect that he has stepped into the XianTian stage, so as to assume the role of an official disciple. Thus, he could no longer afford to be sloppy.
After dressing up, Little Fatty admired his reflection in his wash basin and realised that he was still considered to be a little handsome. However, his chubby face was as lecherous looking as ever, in addition, he had that tinge of a silly look, this completely did not suit his demeanour as a Taoist monk. Instead, he looked like a retarded fool, which made Little Fatty unable to decide whether he should laugh or cry. This was to be expected; after these few years of pretending that he was silly, this no doubt made him even think that he was an idiot. In such a short time, there was no way to get rid of the silly look on the face. Out of desperation, he can only leave it as it was currently.
Coming out from his old hut, Little Fatty rushed up the mountain. After sprinting for a good hundred miles or so, he arrived at a big courtyard which occupied a few miles in length. This is the outer courtyard of the Mystical Sky Yard, which handles the chores of the sect. Servants could be seen streaming in and out, periodically.
Maintaining his trademark smile on his face, Little Fatty went in. Compared to powerful cultivators who can summon the wind and rain to be at their beck and call, Little Fatty is just a beginner brat. Thus, he does not have the guts to be arrogant here. Contrary to what he thinks, he must always remain humble and servile.
Plenty of servants who come here all recognise Little Fatty. Seeing how he is dressed differently from normal times, their faces revealed a face of shock. One of them called Nan Pi, who likes to pick on Song Zhong daily, blocked his way of passage directly, and laughingly said to him, “Silly little fatty, why are you dressed like a human today? Don’t tell me you’re no longer a retard?”
“Hehe, I have never been as retarded as you!” Little Fatty replied with a grin.
“What?!” As Nan Pi heard the reply, his face changed colour immediately. Possessing a big and tall build, plus the fact that he has stayed on the mountain for over a decade, he usually likes to bully people, with Little Fatty being one of his biggest targets. He never thought that the Little Fatty who used to be so afraid of him would one day scold him right in his face. ‘I have actually been criticised by an idiot? How can this be? How can I still show my face around here?’
Thinking about this, Nan Pi immediately flared up, and raised his fist, fiercely shouting, “Stupid Fatty, you must be itching for a beating, today I shall~”
Before he even finished talking, a loud snap was heard. This tall and big guy took several steps back, landing on the floor. While on his face, there were five clear finger imprints, and a trail of blood was seen flowing down from his mouth.
“Ahhh~!” Only after he landed onto the hard ground, did Nan Pi finally realise what happened. He spat out 2 teeth which got knocked out, and while trembling, stared at Song Zhong with a face of shock, saying, “You, you actually dared to hit me?”
“Hehe, aren’t you asking the obvious?” Little Fatty continued grinning and said, “Even though I know you’re stupid, but I didn’t think you would be stupid to the point that you do not know what happened even after being trashed by someone!”
“You, I’ll fight you to the death!” Nan Pi shouted as his eyes started to turn red. After shouting, he prepared to rush towards Song Zhong but was held back by his buddies who were around him. They whispered to him “Boss, can’t you tell? He has already entered the XianTian stage!”
“Ahh~!” As Nan Pi heard it, he got a shock as he hurriedly looked carefully, indeed, Song Zhong’s skin was slightly glowing, which is an obvious indication that he entered the XianTian stage. ‘No wonder he could send me flying with a single palm slap! So this was the reason.’ For a XianTian stage to trash a mortal, it was effortless.
After understanding this, Nan Pi immediately became similar to a deflated ball, displaying a face of shock as he said “XianTian Stage? This… How could this be possible? His talent is known for being trash. Without a hundred years of cultivation, there should be no way for him to enter the Xian Tian stage!”
It wasn’t just Nan Pi, even the surrounding audience were shocked. One has to know, for a mortal to even live for a hundred years is a problem. So, under normal circumstances, someone with a low aptitude like Little Fatty would not be able to enter the XianTian stage just by relying on himself. It was just that Little Fatty was blessed with serendipity. After all, times were good when he was young. When he was born, his parents had been stuffing him with spiritual medicine for a good few years. His cultivating method was also one that was deliberately requested for by his parents, and can be considered to be above average. Added to that, the Mystical Sky Yard can be considered to be a precious cultivating location, which greatly increased the process of his cultivation. Otherwise, he would have been a mortal for life. A person with an average talent under such circumstances would have broken through by the age of 10, and not have to wait until such an age.
Little Fatty also knew that his circumstances were special, seeing that he gave them such a nice surprise, the many years of grievance could be considered vented. He gave an insidious smile, and said, “Nan Pi, you being a little servant dare to block the path of a formal disciple, in addition, throw verbal provocation at him, you must be really bold. Do you want me to call the Sect brothers of the Enforcement Hall to talk to you about life?”
“Noo~” Nan Pi was really scared this time since outer court disciples are also considered formal disciples. They are not people who the servants can talk back to. One has to know that for any sect, the hierarchy is something where large importance is placed on. If this was found out by the people of the Enforcement Hall, a light punishment would be 100 whips, a heavy one would be being chased out of the mountain. In order to give him a chance at cultivation, his parents almost went bankrupt, if they found out that he was chased out, wouldn’t that anger them to the point of death?
Thinking about this, Nan Pi did not dare to be overbearing any longer, he immediately gave in and said, “Song Zhong, I did wrong, is that okay?”
“You really lack sincerity!” Little Fatty did not even look at him, instead shaking his head and saying, “Although you are a little stupid, but shouldn’t you have the courtesy to kowtow when you apologise?”
The moment Nan Pi heard that his face turned green, but as the saying goes, the people who live under someone else’s eaves, cannot afford not to lower your head. One would rather be humiliated than suffer the heavy punishment of being chased out. Knowing what was more important, Nan Pi gritted his teeth and eventually knelt on the floor and begged, “Song Zhong, Elder brother Song, Grandpa Song! Please have mercy on me, I was wrong!”
“Hehe, good grandson! I shall let you off just this once!” Song Zhong smiled, gave Nan Pi’s head a pat and then walked inwards. Even though he really wanted to continue humiliating Nan Pi to get payback for all the past humiliation he suffered, but now was not the right time. Many people had already begun to gather in the surroundings, and he does not want to become a walking target which everybody notices. Staying low profile is what he really needs, thus there is no need to ruin his master plan for a mere childish servant.
Only after knowing that Song Zhong was too far away to notice him, did Nan Pi dare to stand up. Touching his swollen face, he lamented, “Shit, this must be my unlucky day, the moment I stepped out, I was sent to my death! (EN: MC’s name is Song Zhong which means sending someone to his death) In future, when all of you see him, avoid him. Since we bullied him relentlessly in the past, now he is out for revenge.”
“Yes, yes~”, all the servants replied while nodding their heads, while praying in their heart that they would not meet Song Zhong in future.
Little Fatty naturally could not be bothered with these bunch of people. After taking a leisure walk within the yard, he soon reached a quiet place, it was the location of those who were in charge of registering and managing external affairs of the Sect. There was a little boy seated on a chair outside, doing sentry duty.
Little Fatty walked up, smiled apologetically and said, “This junior brother of mine, I am Song Zhong. I have just entered the XianTian stage and have especially come to report this matter!”
The little boy was initially listless, his nose facing skywards, not wanting to receive someone looking as lecherous as Little Fatty. But, the moment he heard that the other party had entered the XianTian Stage, he immediately put on a smile and said: “It is actually Sect uncle visiting, please sit here for a moment, I will go and report this matter to the elder!” After saying this, he excitedly ran in.
Seeing the other party’s instant change in expression, Little Fatty didn’t know whether to cry or laugh. But this was something considered as a common occurrence, and so he did not find it strange. The world of cultivation is cruel, there is nothing that can be done about it. He can only laugh bitterly, seat down and wait patiently.
At this moment in the yard, under a big peach tree, a white-bearded old man is sitting on a couch, relaxing and enjoying his tea. This person is called Li Ping, one of the 8 great elders of the Mystical Sky Yard. Even though his position seems very high, this is actually not the case. Putting it plainly, he is just a steward that waits upon the inner court. He is already more than 200 years old this year, but only at the 4th level of the XianTian stage. Thus, there is already no more hope for further breakthroughs, and he can only await his death.
The silver lining amongst the clouds is that he knows that there is no hope for advancement, instead treasuring his remaining days more. With the many years of hard work, he finally managed to achieve this relaxing post, where there isn’t much to do every day. Hence, he spends most of his time drinking tea and living a fulfilling life.
Today, he had just brewed a pot of tea and was about to enjoy it when suddenly, the little boy barged in and said to him, “Elder, there is a disciple who requests an audience!”
“Who is it, that has nothing else better to do!” Li Ping replied with impatience.
“It’s Song Zhong!” The little boy replied.
“Pu~” Li Ping spat out the tea in his mouth, and angrily scolded, “You little bastard, you want me to serve your head on a bell? You think that I’m dying too slowly?”
Li Ping, who already does not have many years to live, treats this as a great taboo, and hearing this just as he was in a good mood, definitely irritated him to the extreme. The good mood which he initially had was now lost, small wonder that he was angry.
The little boy who was scolded for no reason helplessly said: “He really called himself by this name!”
“Dammit!” Li Ping had naturally heard of Song Zhong before. Initially because he hated this name, he sent him far away, but he still came again. He angrily scolded, “Ask him to get lost, I do not have the spare time to see him, tell him to never come and see me again!”
“Oh~” After hesitating for a little while, the little boy still boldly asked, “Elder, Song Zhong sect uncle has already entered the XianTian stage, and has come to report this matter today. Are you really going to chase him away?”
“What nonsense are you spouting, the person I am chasing away is precisely him-” After saying this, Li Ping suddenly realised something and quickly said, “Wait, did you say that he has entered the XianTian stage?”
“How can this be? That trash, among everybody I’ve seen and heard before, is the biggest form of trash there is. Is even he able to enter the XianTian stage at this age? A female pig can probably climb a tree!” As Li Ping said this, he immediately added, “Go and get him here!”
“Yes~”, and as the little boy replied, he immediately turned and returned from where he came.