MMLZ CH13

“Get back to sleep!!”

Uncle Jiu glared at the two of them, clearly ready to lash out if they caused any more trouble or embarrassed him again. Wen Cai and Qiu Sheng quickly scurried back to their rooms, too scared to act up further.

After calming down Master Simu, Uncle Jiu pulled him aside for a heart-to-heart. The two senior brothers hadn’t seen each other in a long time and had much to catch up on.

From what Master said, I’ll soon reach the Earth Master level… but how do I really know when I’ve reached it?

Xu Yan was puzzled by this, but now wasn’t the time to ask. He’d have to figure it out gradually.

Shaking his head, Xu Yan sat on a chair and began practicing the Thunder Arts again. Although the spiritual energy in this world was weak, persistent cultivation still had some effect. He couldn’t rely solely on the system.

Xu Yan felt like he was becoming more and more like the cultivators in xianxia novels, though much weaker—comparable to a low-level Qi Refining cultivator at best.

“Ha!”

“Hup!!”

At 5 a.m. the next morning, Xu Yan was already up practicing martial arts in the courtyard.

My strength has increased so much!

There was a grindstone in the courtyard, weighing at least 200 jin (~220 pounds). Normally, it would take both Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai to lift it, but Xu Yan found he could lift it by himself quite easily—he even had strength to spare.

Xu Yan’s eyes lit up. If I keep cultivating, won’t I become as powerful as the legendary cultivators?

With brute strength and the ability to summon lightning at will—that image alone gave him a thrill.

“This kid is seriously hardworking… sigh~~”

Inside the room, Master Simu looked out at Xu Yan lifting the grindstone and sighed, full of envy.

A disciple like that is truly the envy of others.

Comparing Xu Yan to his own slow-witted disciple Jiale made Master Simu want to roll his eyes.

“Talent means nothing without hard work,” Uncle Jiu said with a smile, becoming more and more pleased with Xu Yan.

“Brother, has there been any word from the Underworld?”

Master Simu looked at his elder brother curiously. With such an outstanding disciple, surely Uncle Jiu had pulled some strings to get Xu Yan a proper, legitimate identity.

“There should be news soon,” Uncle Jiu replied, glancing at him without hiding anything. “Once it’s finalized, it’ll benefit Xu Yan a great deal.”

Having an official Underworld identity—as a kind of human ghost guard—was extremely difficult to obtain. It often required large sums of money. But with it came official recognition from the Underworld and many advantages. Even though it meant spending more during festivals and rituals, it was worth it.

“You’re really going all out, brother. I can’t keep up,” Simu sighed in frustration. “I can’t even get that status for myself, let alone for my disciples.”

Simu is broke…

If Xu Yan had heard that, he would’ve choked on his own saliva. The man had an entire box of gold bars hidden away—and he dared say he was poor?

No connections maybe, but poor? Please.

Uncle Jiu gave his junior a deep look but didn’t say anything.

Such favors couldn’t be handed out recklessly, or the entire system would descend into chaos. A master helping his disciple was expected, but helping a fellow disciple’s disciple? That’s your own problem—not his.

That night, after a full day of sleep, Master Simu planned to leave. Even though Uncle Jiu urged him to stay, he couldn’t convince him. Before leaving, Simu even teased Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai, leaving them red-faced with embarrassment.

Using my clients for jokes—unbelievable.

The corpses he was transporting were his livelihood. If his reputation took a hit, who would hire him in the future?

“Xu Yan, Wen Cai, come with me to town.”

Early the next morning, Uncle Jiu called the two of them along.

“Master, why are we going to town? Isn’t buying groceries usually the junior’s job?” Wen Cai asked curiously.

Uncle Jiu carried his smoking pipe, hands behind his back, strolling in front, “The Ren family—the local gentry—has invited me to discuss relocating their ancestral graves. I figured I’d take you to see the world a bit. Learn from your junior.”

Foreign tea?!

Xu Yan paused for a moment, realizing that the plot was moving forward quickly. During this part, Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai usually caused a lot of comedic trouble. And if he remembered right, the Ren family’s daughter was quite pretty—maybe he’d meet her soon.

Though his presence had altered the plot slightly, the main story seemed intact. Since the Ren family wanted to move the grave, the rest of the plot would surely follow.

“Uncle Jiu, good morning!”

“Uncle Jiu, here for groceries?”

“Wow, Wen Cai looks sharp today. Xu Yan too—these Western suits really suit you!”

At this time period, Western-style suits weren’t as formal as they would be later, so Xu Yan and even Qiu Sheng would wear them casually. Wen Cai, however, usually avoided them.

“No groceries today—just taking Wen Cai out to see the world. Let him learn how to drink foreign tea properly!”

With Xu Yan around, Uncle Jiu wasn’t worried at all. Foreign tea? Please. My disciple drinks it like water.

Uncle Jiu was well-respected in town, and people constantly greeted him along the way. He’d stop here and there to chat and laugh with familiar faces.

“Junior, how exactly do you drink this foreign tea?” Wen Cai whispered, worried he’d embarrass himself later. He pulled Xu Yan aside to ask quietly.