Chapter 124: The Former Abbot
When her eyes met those deep blue eyes, Qiao Wan's head went numb and she stuttered, "E-e-elder?"
She attempted to pull her fingers back.
This time, she managed to pull them back.
Miaofa casually averted his gaze, his expression unreadable. He simply instructed, "Hold it properly."
As soon as she held the porcelain bottle, Qiao Wan gripped it tightly, showing her determination.
The Buddha's gaze swept across her face and moved on to the next person.
Qiao Wan was nervously holding a porcelain bottle, feeling a bit confused.
She felt that the way the senior looked at her was somewhat strange, but apart from when she was possessed and did something crazy, she hadn't done anything out of the ordinary.
Don't try to guess what Venerable One Miaofa was thinking, because you won't be able to figure it out no matter how much you guess.
But now, Qiao Wan had no time to think about all this. After three consecutive days without rest, and right after coming out of the secret realm, her highly tense nerves had just relaxed when a strong sense of fatigue suddenly hit her.
When the awards ceremony ended, Qiao Wan finally walked down from the high stage feeling relieved.
The people from Buping College immediately greeted her excitedly.
"The Master is back!"
"Master, you're back?!"
"Master, are you tired? Do you want some water and rest?"
"What's the story behind killing the pig?"
Whoever just said the Master couldn't do it, come forward!
"Master."
A deep male voice slipped past.
A group of little cabbages shivered one by one and willingly made way.
Li Pan, carrying those two black and white swords, walked slowly towards Qiao Wan and glanced at her expression.
"Let's go."
The man turned around first and started walking, lifting his feet: "We've been in this illusion for three days, it's time for a rest."
After the first session of the conference ended, not only Buping College, but also the other sects were tidying up, getting ready to take their disciples back and rest.
On the peak, the monks stood tall like mountains, calmly dealing with the greetings coming from all directions.
The leaders of the sects, such as Zhanyun Peak and Chongde Ancient Garden, slightly bowed to each other, exchanging a few polite words. Then, they stepped onto their magical artifacts, their clothes billowing in the wind, and floated away with their disciples.
As soon as Qiao Wan looked up, she saw the magnificent and luxurious Heavenly Palace of Chongde Ancient Garden. Qi Feidao was standing behind the railing, smiling and waving at her.
Fang Lingqing struggled for a moment, reluctantly waving his paw.
The disciples of Buping College, who took the bus number 11 to come here and were going to take the bus number 11 back, couldn't help but gulp and envy, saying sadly, "When can we have such prestige?"
Before Qiao Wan could speak, another disdainful male voice suddenly interrupted.
The voice was not loud, but clear enough for all the disciples of Buping College to hear.
The man sneered, "Hmph, they've never seen the world."
Another voice followed with a low laugh, "The head of the mountain is just a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment stage. Senior brother, what can you expect from them?"
Qiao Wan and Li Pan looked up together.
In front of them stood a row of scholars, each with a shiny golden "good" embroidered on their sleeves. The young man who spoke before was one of them. Lu Dechang, who was the leader, stood not far away and glanced over here with silent acquiescence, clearly approving of his disciple's provocation.
The disciples of Buping College were taken by surprise.
At that moment, the disrespectful young man laughed again and asked, "What? Are all you taoist friends curious about what I am doing?"
The disciples of Buping College clearly recognized that the arrogant cultivators in front of them were from Sun Tao College. Although they felt anger inside, they clenched their teeth and chose not to confront them.
Encountering situations like today was not uncommon for them.
It couldn't be helped, as their highest cultivation in the college was only Li Shishu. The small sects in the cultivation world either had to rely on major sects or clans, or they had to be submissive. Even if they encountered situations like today, they had to endure it.
However, preserving their wisdom and protecting themselves didn't mean that the head of their college could be demeaned and bullied.
Zheng Wenliang took a step forward gracefully and respectfully asked, "May I ask, taoist friend, what did you mean by your previous words?"
"What does that mean?" The young man smiled, but his eyes fell on Qiao Wan. "Whatever you think, I'll think the same."
Even Zheng Wenliang, who was usually calm and composed, couldn't help but change his expression.
They were at Sun Tao College.
Although Qiao Wan felt the coldness of the Bodhi beads in her sleeve, she didn't notice the provocation from the two young men. Her gaze, through the crowd, landed on Lu Dechang.
Lu Dechang noticed her gaze, possibly because he had been paying attention to her since earlier, and glanced at her casually.
Qiao Wan pursed her lips and unconsciously touched her sword.
The other disciples of Buping College were also glaring angrily, almost turning red-eyed.
In this tense atmosphere, Li Pan's voice suddenly came, calm and steady, "Let's go."
The Buping disciples were dumbfounded, "Senior Brother?"
Li Pan remained unaffected and whispered, "Let's go."
Zheng Wenliang became anxious.
How could they just leave like this?!
Before, they were insulted and endured it quietly, but now it's happening to the head of the mountain! Isn't the head of the mountain the face of their academy?
Li Pan spoke in a calm voice, "When a dog bites you, would you still get angry at the dog?"
"Bold!" The young cultivator's face changed as well, "What do you mean by that?!"
Li Pan looked at him calmly, "What you think, is what I mean."
The man had narrow, slanted eyes with a deep and mysterious gaze.
The young cultivator felt inexplicably guilty upon seeing this.
These...these were just some small unknown sects that he had never heard of before. How could they have this kind of gaze...
This gaze didn't seem like it came from a small sect. It looked more like...
The young cultivator suddenly woke up.
This gaze looked more like it came from the battlefield!
Thinking about this, the young cultivator's forehead started to sweat uncontrollably.
Li Pan's expression didn't change, but through the man's eyes in front of him, it seemed like he could see a hot wind, carrying the smell of blood and smoke, rushing through a battlefield filled with corpses.
But just as the disciple of Sun Tao College was about to get a clear look, that feeling had already disappeared without a trace. Standing in front of him was still the ordinary middle-aged cultivator in a green robe and white shoes.
Maybe he had seen it wrong.
How could an elder from a small sect have such eyes that have seen the flames of war?
The disciple of Sun Tao College glanced back at Lu Dechang, seeing that he hadn't spoken yet, and calmed himself.
"So, your sect is unhappy with our Sun Tao College," the disciple sneered, his eyes sweeping over the sword in Qiao Wan's hand. "Do you still want to fight us here?!"
Li Pan looked at the disciple in front of him and whispered, "We don't want to fight your sect, and I believe your sect doesn't want to fight us either."
"Where do you get the confidence to think that we won't dare to take action?"
Li Pan spoke in a deep voice: "The elites of Buping College had a hard time in the last quarter of an hour, and it's not easy for them in their hearts."
"If your Sun Tao College were to start a fight with us here, it wouldn't be a big deal if Buping College were to lose, but if others were to see it, they might say that your College can't afford to lose and lacks the elegance of scholarly etiquette."
Without further ado, as soon as he spoke, this sentence hit Sun Tao College right where it hurts.
As a result, all the disciples of Sun Tao College turned pale.
After all, in the last quarter of an hour, the disciples of Sun Tao College were beaten miserably by Qiao Wan and Fang Lingqing , and all the sects on Lotus Seat Peak clearly saw it.
The disciples of Sun Tao College were immediately furious, and one of them drew his sword and angrily said, "You!"
"Enough." Not far away, Lu Dechang finally spoke, and his gloomy gaze swept across Li Pan's face.
"Elder." The disciples of Sun Tao College turned back anxiously.
Lu Dechang withdrew his gaze. "Let's go."
"So as not to give the villains a chance to take advantage."
The disciples of the Sha Tao may have hesitated, but since the elder spoke in front of outsiders, they had no choice but to listen. Their faces turned unfriendly, and they left with a cold snort, shaking their sleeves.
"Let's go." Li Pan turned around and raised an eyebrow at the dumbfounded disciples of Buping. "Why are you just standing there?"
"What's wrong? What's wrong?" Zheng Wenliang vigorously shook his head and exchanged a glance with Lü Yao. Both of them were amazed.
It was the first time they realized that Senior Li was so powerful.
...
Usually, cultivators don't need to sleep, but after three days of honing in the illusion, Qiao Wan immediately fell into a deep sleep once she touched the bed.
When she woke up, there was already a lamp lit in the room.
It was a small and worn-out oil lamp, casting a dim light.
A figure sat upright at the table, casting a large dark shadow on the mottled wall.
As soon as Qiao Wan sat up from the bed, she heard that familiar deep male voice: "Awake?"
"Senior Li."
Qiao Wan got out of bed and walked over to Li Pan who was sitting at a table. She noticed that there was a Hanqing Scroll spread out on the table next to him, and he was reading it under the light of a lamp.
On the bamboo scroll, a middle-aged cultivator was busily working at a desk, with the light from outside casting a shadow of a peach blossom branch.
It was a beautiful spring scene, with the peach blossoms blooming heavily on the branches and the soft grass by the pond.
The middle-aged cultivator was dressed in a green robe, with a crane cloak draped over his shoulders. He had well-groomed eyebrows and eyes, and stood tall and proud. He had a gentle and friendly appearance, shining like a bright moon in the sky. On the wall behind him hung the Wen Si Xing Zhu Sword that Qiao Wan had seen before.
Qiao Wan immediately recognized that this was the former head of Buping College as mentioned in its chronicles. For some reason, when she saw the Hanqing Scroll, she felt a mix of emotions that she couldn't quite describe.
Qiao Wan lowered her head and deep in thought.
She just felt a strong sense of familiarity.
However, she was certain that she had never met or heard anything about this senior before.
"What's wrong?" Li Pan asked, sensing Qiao Wan's deep thoughts.
"It's nothing," Qiao Wan shook her head and looked away.
She couldn't help but suspect that this senior was getting too close. Even though she thought so, she couldn't resist taking another glance.
"Senior Li..." Qiao Wan composed herself and asked, "May I ask the name of the previous head of the mountain?"
Li Pan replied, "Meng Guangze. Have you heard of him?"
The name "Meng Guangze" circled in Qiao Wan's mind, but she shook her head, "No, I haven't heard of him."
Li Pan calmly closed the Hanqing Scroll.
Qiao Wan temporarily shifted her attention from the Hanqing Scroll and another stunning face popped into her mind.
Senior must be angry.
Qiao Wan's heart skipped a beat and her gaze slowly fell onto the tattered bed, she thought,
Should I...take a look in my dreams?
