"Ah? Are you talking about me?"

Ruan Dongqing stared at the girl kneeling before him, her head bowed and hands respectfully clasped in front of her forehead, looking utterly bewildered.

It had been over a year since he inadvertently arrived here, but he still felt like these cultivators were somehow insane. Just moments ago, two old men suddenly leaped into the courtyard.

Without a word, one threw a magical treasure while the other used supernatural powers, splashing colorful lights everywhere like in a mobile game, blinding to the eyes.

As he stepped out of his room, intending to ask these two seniors why they, masters of cultivation, had come to visit a mundane person like him, they shouted strangely and vanished without a trace.

Ruan Dongqing gritted his teeth, wanting to curse... Was this some prank played by troublemakers in the cultivation world? Did these two crazy old men suddenly want to show off their skills and deliberately come to his place to dazzle VIP-style, amusing themselves like playing with a dog?

Where was their dignity? Their moral character? The demeanor of esteemed seniors?

Though angry and annoyed, Ruan Dongqing could only suppress his rage.

Fine. Even if they mess around, as an ordinary person, he could still enjoy chicken dinners and eat fruit to his heart's content just by letting them be. He endured it. Endure for a while, and the storm will pass... It was just door smashing, not murder.

Ruan Dongqing sighed.

He might be the luckiest and unluckiest transmigrator in this world.

Lucky: He was walking on the road when he transmigrated, suddenly finding himself in this ancient courtyard. Before coming here, he was a decent scholar with education, enough income to eat, and loving parents who cherished him. Compared to those young people stabbed to death or betrayed, he was living relatively peacefully.

Unlucky: Perhaps because when Ruan Dongqing transmigrated, he had nothing except the clothes on his back. Others had treasures, systems, all sorts of things, becoming protagonists in another world as soon as they arrived, rising like they were powered by engines. And him? He had nothing.

Ruan Dongqing couldn't even understand the writing of this world, let alone write. Luckily, everyone here spoke English for some reason, so he wasn't mistaken for a wild man and thrown into a cage as some sideshow performer by those cultivators.

Speaking of cultivation...

Ruan Dongqing couldn't cultivate at all. He tentatively assumed that the physiology and anatomy of Earthlings were too different from those of people in this world, but of course, he didn't dare to investigate deeply.

As an ordinary person, dissecting and studying people was practically asking for trouble. What if others thought he was practicing some evil technique with corpses and formed some "Alliance Against Demons," unleashing a "Five Thunder Judgment" on him?

Boom!

Ruan Dongqing would be a goner.

In other words, he knew he was just a nobody.

So...

When Xie Tianhua knelt on the ground insisting on taking him as her master, he found it inexplicable.

Though in his eyes, there wasn't much difference between ordinary people and cultivators, escaping from those two who could use supernatural powers showed that this girl was not simple.

Caught between a rock and a hard place...

Ruan Dongqing took a deep breath, sweating profusely. He could only clench his buttock muscles tightly to maintain composure.

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Initially, hearing someone wanted to become his disciple made him very happy. As an ordinary person, having a cultivator covering his back meant he could go out more safely, no longer having to live like a prisoner in the suburbs.

But now, he was afraid.

Should he run away?

Should he refuse or accept?

If he refused, would the other person, out of injured pride, punch him and send him flying five meters away?

If he accepted without anything to teach, would they get angry, thinking he had deceived them, and give him a punch that would shatter him to pieces?

Ruan Dongqing wanted to raise his middle finger and curse at the sky.

"Dear Heavens, you're relentless! Every path seems like a dead end. What should he do? He can't take on a disciple! But he can't offend people either!"

Ruan Dongqing cleared his throat and said, "Miss, with your unique features, bright eyes, and the red mark on your forehead, you're a rare talent in this world. I'm ignorant and inexperienced; how could I dare to guide you? My reputation is trivial, but letting such a gem remain obscure would be a grave mistake. Please forgive my refusal."

Ruan Dongqing employed all the flowery language he had read in those exaggerated martial arts novels from his childhood, hoping to pass this predicament onto someone else.

Xie Tianhua's shoulders trembled slightly before she raised her voice, "Tianhua knows she's not bright enough to catch Sir's attention, unworthy of being under the senior's tutelage. But my parents are in imminent danger, and I beg Sir to have mercy on them and teach me even a bit of 'filial piety.' If I can save my parents in the future, I'm willing to repay Sir with anything, like an ox or a horse."

Xie Tianhua bowed respectfully, unaware...

If she were to look up now, she would surely see the mysterious "Sir" with a pale face, drenched in sweat, eyes wide open in panic.

Panic.

Ruan Dongqing's face was now as wrinkled as a monkey's and as dark as the bottom of a pot, cursing in his heart, "I knew it! It's involving internal power struggles within the clan. Red flag! This is definitely a red flag! Touch it and you die! Feuds among immortal clans—why should they drag me, a mere mortal, into this? I'll die! Just a breath from you and I'm dead, old lady!!!"

Of course, he didn't dare say such things in front of Xie Tianhua.

This disciple couldn't be taken!

Ruan Dongqing cleared his throat and said, "Miss, haven't you noticed I'm just a weak and powerless mortal?"

"Sir... Please accept me."

"Well... Miss, please don't make things difficult for me."

"If Sir won't accept, today I'd rather kneel to death here than be taken back and used as a pawn!"

Ruan Dongqing found himself talking until he was blue in the face, but the girl remained determined to become his disciple. He was both angry and amused, but the strongest emotion was fear.

At this moment, he just wanted to kneel on the ground and plead, "I beg you, I'll kowtow to you, just leave, if you stay here any longer my heart will give out."

But, if Ruan Dongqing learned anything from his work, it was that sometimes he shouldn't be too humble. Otherwise, others would take advantage, surely taking more than a mile. In a world where people could move mountains and fill oceans, perhaps others had only advanced a step and a half, and Ruan Dongqing's grave would already be nine feet tall.

Both sides were at a standstill, one refusing and one pleading, until a person from the west wing cleared their throat and said, "Enough. Why drive away this injured sister? Miss, if you don't mind, you can come in and stay with me for a few days. We're both women; I'm sure you won't mind, right?"

Then, the door of the west wing opened as well.

A young woman around 25 or 26 years old, with shoulder-length hair and dressed in a red gown, emerged gracefully. She was accompanied by a dog and a cat. The dog was skinny and dark, while the cat was plump and snow-white. Both animals walked awkwardly, each for their own reasons.

Ruan Dongqing declared, "Staying here is fine. But taking on a disciple is absolutely out of the question!"

"Can we discuss that later? You blockhead. Is now really the time? I'm a bit hungry. Take Bai Cai and Xiao Shi into town to buy things. Stop munching on everything in the courtyard; it's getting tiresome."

The girl chuckled and then had the two animals follow Ruan Dongqing. The dog and cat seemed unusually smart, as if understanding human speech. The black dog darted over and nipped at Ruan Dongqing's pant leg. The white cat elegantly approached, hopped into the vegetable basket, and refused to budge.

In the end, Ruan Dongqing had to carry the basket with the white cat inside.

As he worked, he grumbled, "Why do I always end up with these two?"

"Who named them? Their names are so awful!"

Upon hearing the girl in red speak, Xiao Shi and Bai Cai voiced their agreement. Ruan Dongqing smirked and said, "What do you know? These are pseudonyms of a great literary master, and aliases of heroes."

The girl in red burst into laughter and said, "Alright, alright. I see you're cultured now. Illiterate neighbor, have fun."

"Just you wait! By the end of this year, I'll definitely learn to write and show you, neighbor!"

Ruan Dongqing tried to swing the vegetable basket, but Bai Cai was too heavy, so he clenched his fists instead. Ignoring him, the girl in red walked over to Xie Tianhua, helped her up, and they both entered the west wing.

Bang!

The door closed.

Ruan Dongqing took a deep breath, then smiled, "Alright, Xiao Shi, Bai Cai, let's head into town. Today, I'll continue telling you the story of Wang Xiaoshi and Bai Choufei."