White-Robed Chief

Panda Novel

Li Ruolan dragged Lu Zhen back to her own courtyard. Once they were inside the house, Li Ruolan sat Lu Zhen down on the bed and impatiently said, “Senior Sister Lu, have you lost your mind? What made you say that all of a sudden?”

“I’m not crazy. I’m very calm,” Lu Zhen replied.

“Calm?” Li Ruolan scoffed.

Lu Zhen said, “Don’t you think that Zhao Dahe has an impressive presence? Zhao Dahe looked incredibly heroic when he stabbed Monk Zhi Shan in one swift motion. My heart is instantly filled with admiration when I think of that scene. Zhao Dahe is truly a peerless hero!”

Li Ruolan shook her head and said, “Heroic? Zhao Dahe was terribly injured by Monk Zhi Shan at that time!”

“Zhao Dahe managed to stay calm and unfazed despite being in a hopeless situation. He found an opportunity to be victorious by turning the tides. It’s uncommon to find a man who is naturally as daring as him,” Lu Zhen said. “Zhao Dahe is the true definition of a hero!”

Li Ruolan sighed before she grudgingly looked at the other woman. “Don’t you think that he’s ugly?”

“Ugly?” Lu Zhen frowned and said, “Are physical appearances really that important? There are many reasons to be attracted to a man, but his appearance should be the last thing on your mind. The only men who rely on their looks are pretty boys with nothing else to offer!”

“Hmph…” Li Ruolan shook her head and said, “It seems like you’re not crazy after all. You’ve actually fallen in love with him.”

Lu Zhen praised Chu Li and said, “A hero like him deserves a beautiful woman.”

Li Ruolan shook her head. “Zhao Dahe has a terrible temper and an extreme arrogance. Senior Sister Lu, a strong-willed person like yourself will definitely clash with him. You and Zhao Dahe will argue day and night if you end up together. You should just abandon this idea.”

“If Zhao Dahe doesn’t accept my proposal, then so be it.” Lu Zhen nodded. “I’ve never had to worry about getting married anyway. I’m obviously not going to shamelessly pester Zhao Dahe if he doesn’t like me. However, it’s still unfortunate.”

Li Ruolan sighed in relief before she said, “That guy was really embarrassed when you kicked up such a big fuss.”

“Why should he be embarrassed?” Lu Zhen said, “All of you have underestimated him. You’ve failed to realize his true potential just because of his looks.”

“I’ve never underestimated him. I know that he’s amazing,” Li Ruolan replied.

Lu Zhen shook her head and kept quiet.

Li Ruolan sighed again. “Zhao Dahe is arrogant and conceited, but he’s more than just a boastful person. I believe that he can refine the Detachment Pill.”

Lu Zhen smiled and said, “I’m so lucky!”

Li Ruolan gently nodded.

Chu Li sat on the cattail hassock, but he did not move. His mind was still preoccupied with the previous event.

Chu Li had never imagined that Lu Zhen would make such a bold statement. She had openly said that she would marry him. Regardless of whether Lu Zhen was lying or being sincere, her words had nonetheless shocked Chu Li.

Everyone in the Holy Church of Light looked down on Chu Li when he took on the guise of Zhao Dahe. Li Ruolan was extremely close to Chu Li, but she had never been attracted to him simply because of his looks. Li Ruolan had merely treated Chu Li as a friend.

Lu Zhen was the only person in the Holy Church of Light who did not care about Chu Li’s hideous appearance. If Chu Li said that his mind was calm and unruffled after Lu Zhen said those things, he would be lying to not only himself but everyone else. Unlike plants, humans had emotions. Furthermore, it was not necessarily true that plants were completely incapable of feeling things.

Would Lu Zhen keep her word if Chu Li agreed to her marriage proposal?

Chu Li unconsciously allowed his imagination to roam when he thought of this.

Chu Li remembered his goal soon after that.

Chu Li chose to conceal himself when he came to the Holy Church of Light because he wanted to obtain information about the Holy Church of Light and discover their weaknesses. Chu Li could not get emotionally involved with the members of the Holy Church of Light because he wanted to defeat them. Otherwise, he would be burdening and torturing himself!

Chu Li’s happy thoughts instantly vanished as though someone had splashed cold water on his face.

Chu Li rose and cultivated the thirty-six energy-nurturing forms.

Time passed slowly. Chu Li could clearly see everything inside the alchemy furnace when he looked through the Omniscient Mirror.

“Come in, Senior Brother Zhou,” Chu Li suddenly said while he was cultivating the thirty-six energy-nurturing forms at a snail’s pace.

Zhou Jinchun entered slowly. His entire body looked uncomfortable.

Chu Li did not look at Zhou Jinchun because he was still cultivating the thirty-six energy-nurturing forms. “Senior Brother Zhou, are you here to interrogate me?”

“No…” Zhou Jinchun shook his head.

Chu Li remained silent and continued to cultivate the thirty-six energy-nurturing forms.

“To be honest, you shouldn’t have rejected Junior Sister Lu,” Zhou Jinchun said.

Chu Li maintain his composure as he continued his cultivation.

Zhou Jinchun seemed to be lost in his own world. Zhou Jinchun sighed before he said, “Frankly, there are many other people like me in the Holy Church of Light who are in love with Junior Sister Lu. She’s liked and admired by everyone. However, Junior Sister Lu is like a proud Spirit Crane whose eyes have never looked down. Junior Sister Lu can’t see us because she’s always looking up at the sky.”

Chu Li kept working.

Zhou Jinchun said, “None of us deserved her. I hoped that a man would be able to touch her heart one day and make her fall in love with him… But I never imagined that you’d be that person, Junior Brother Zhao!”

Chu Li continued his cultivation. “Are you saying that because I’m ugly?”

“Yes…” Zhou Jinchun seemed slightly hesitant when he nodded slowly. “But Junior Sister Lu is such a noble and refined person. She looks at everything from a different perspective than the average person. Junior Sister Lu would never be blindsided by the ways of the world. She sees things that other people would normally overlook.”

Chu Li smiled and stopped moving.

Zhou Jinchun said, “Junior Sister Lu is such a proud person, but you rejected her. You shouldn’t have done that!”

Chu Li sat down on the cattail hassock again. He added two more anthracite coals underneath the alchemy furnace. “Senior Brother Zhou, I was forced to reject Senior Sister Lu because I don’t deserve her affections!”

“You’re right, you really don’t deserve Junior Sister Lu…” Zhou Jinchun said.

Chu Li briefly glared at him. “You’re contradicting yourself.”

Zhou Jinchun smiled. “You should feel extremely blessed that Junior Sister Lu has fallen for you. However, you rejected her instead. How dare you!”

“Senior Sister Lu merely said that on impulse because she was grateful.” Chu Li said, “Please leave once you’ve finished speaking. Don’t disturb me while I’m refining these pills. Otherwise, you shouldn’t blame me if the refining process fails!”

“Alright, I won’t disturb you while you’re refining the pills.” Zhou Jinchun hastily nodded before he withdrew himself.

Chu Li let out a drawn-out sigh of relief before he helplessly shook his head. Lu Zhen was extremely attractive. Zhou Jinchun was terribly infatuated with her, but he was not the only one.

Chu Li began cultivating the thirty-six energy-nurturing forms again.

Chu Li did not realize that it was already nighttime. The courtyard was brightly illuminated now.

The bright lights made the scarlet flames underneath the alchemy furnace more obvious. The scorching temperature made the courtyard much hotter than the outside. Chu Li was sitting close to the furnace, but he was not sweating at all.

There was a serious look on Chu Li’s face. The crucial moment finally arrived one day later.

The lack of resources was not the reason why nobody else had refined the Detachment Pill earlier. After all, the Common Knotgrass was not extinct. Nonetheless, it was extremely difficult to refine the Detachment Pill because its temperature would have to undergo changes several times. This spirit pill needed to be cold first before its temperature was warmed up and finally cooled down again. It would undergo numerous changes.

It was already difficult enough to handle these changes for the first time. There were fewer Pill-refining Masters now because they lacked the innate talent. It was nearly impossible to find someone who could control those constant changes. They would inevitably experience failure when they were refining spirit pills. However, there was a chance that they could succeed by sheer luck.

Chu Li suddenly reached his hand into the void and raised it before all of the anthracite coal flew out from below the alchemy furnace. The coals were bright red, seeming as though they were about to melt.

When the temperature of the alchemy furnace decreased, Chu Li took a ladle of water and poured it into the furnace. A sizzling sound echoed and white steam rose as the temperature of the alchemy furnace rapidly decreased.

The medicinal liquid inside the furnace was undergoing strange changes. Just as Chu Li pushed his palms forward, all of the anthracite coals that were now crimson flew back to the bottom of the furnace as the heating process continued.

Several moments later, Chu Li sighed in relief. These changes proceeded without any problems this time. However, the changes would occur two more times. The pill would be successfully refined if Chu Li managed to smoothly complete the changes.

“Namo Amitabha…” The sound of Buddha’s name echoed through the night sky before Monk Zhi Shan appeared at the top of the wall in the courtyard. The monk’s loose red cowl flapped and made fluttering noises when the night breeze blew against it.

Chu Li furrowed his eyebrows. Monk Zhi Shan had arrived at the most crucial moment of pill-refining!

Monk Zhi Shan’s eyes scanned across the alchemy furnace. “Almsgiver Zhao, are you refining a pill?”

Chu Li coldly scoffed. “Monk Zhi Shan, have your knife wounds healed?”