Chapter 412: Chapter 408 Shi Su

"Mr. Ye, why didn’t you tell me that Xiaozhu also came to attend the Heavenly Mechanism Great Ceremony?" Ling Chen asked Ye Liangyong beside him.

"You wrong me; it’s not that I didn’t tell you, I didn’t even know she was here until I saw her just now."

"Zhu Xiaozhu?" Zhong Yang turned to the man beside him and asked, "Is there this name among the guests? Why don’t I remember it?"

The man took out a tablet, checked the guest invitation list, and shook his head, "Mr. Zhong, there’s no one by that name on the list."

"I was not invited," Zhu Xiaozhu took the initiative to say, "It was my master who brought me here."

Hearing this, Zhong Yang instantly understood. Among those invited were members of sects; just like Xu Song, they came with their masters to see the world. In this regard, the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion was quite generous.

Ling Chen nodded secretly; so Zhu Xiaozhu came here with her master. He had heard from He Ziyun that Zhu Xiaozhu’s master was skilled in medicine and had a deep friendship with He Ziyun; hence, Zhu Xiaozhu always stayed at the Qingyun Martial Arts Hall whenever she was in East Sea City.

"Miss Zhu, may I ask who your master is?" Zhong Yang inquired.

"My master..."

"It’s me!"

Before Zhu Xiaozhu could finish speaking, a cold and distant voice slowly came from outside the crowd, making everyone turn their heads. Immediately, they saw a woman gracefully walking toward them.

The woman, about forty or fifty years old, had a dignified appearance with well-maintained, smooth, and fair skin tinged with a hint of pink, resembling an eighteen-year-old girl. However, the faint crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes betrayed her real age.

Her graceful figure and a temperament cold as the moon, noble and haughty, almost perfectly displayed the charm of a woman to the extreme.

Seeing the woman appear, both Qiu Yong and Qu Yuan’s expressions changed at the same time. The former was surprised, while the latter was frightened, eyes filled with disbelief.

Qu Yuan had never expected Zhu Xiaozhu’s master to be this woman.

"Master."

Zhu Xiaozhu hurriedly went over, affectionately holding the woman’s arm, and said with embarrassment, "Master, I’m sorry for causing you trouble."

"It has nothing to do with you; don’t blame yourself," the woman’s expression was indifferent, and she glanced at Qu Yuan beside her, seemingly talking to herself sarcastically, "There are always some who overestimate themselves, thinking being a sect leader means they can do whatever they want."

Hearing this, Qu Yuan’s old face immediately turned ugly.

At this moment, Zhong Yang came up with a smile, his words tinged with respect, "So Zhu Xiaozhu is your disciple; we were disrespectful earlier. I hope Ms. Shi won’t take offense."

At this point, Ling Chen gently touched Qiu Yong’s forearm and asked softly, "Big brother, what’s the story with this Ms. Shi? Seeing Old Man Qu’s expression, he seems quite afraid of her."

Qiu Yong responded with surprise, "She is your friend; don’t you know who her master is?"

Ling Chen touched his nose. He truly didn’t know as he had never discussed Zhu Xiaozhu’s master with her before.

"That woman is named Shi Su, born into a family of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners. Her medical skills are exceptionally brilliant. In terms of traditional Chinese medicine skills alone, looking throughout Huaxia domestically, if she claims to be second, probably no one dares to claim first. Not only that, even the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion Master once invited Shi Su to help treat illnesses. The Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion Master even publicly declared Shi Su a friend of the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion, stating that anyone who dared to harm Shi Su would be opposing the entire Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion. Think about it, with the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion as her backer, who would dare provoke her?"

So powerful!

Ling Chen was secretly amazed, not expecting Zhu Xiaozhu’s master to have such a profound background. No wonder the people of Qingyang Sect feared her. With the Heavenly Mechanism Great Ceremony currently ongoing, if Shi Su wanted to make life difficult for the people from Qingyang Sect, the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion would certainly cooperate.

"My disciple, who was bullying you just now? Tell me, I will stand up for you."

Hearing Shi Su speak up, Zhu Xiaozhu immediately directed her gaze toward the people from Qingyang Sect, preparing to speak, but then saw Sect Leader Qu Yuan stride over, cupping his fists and saying: "Ms. Shi, the youngsters are ignorant; it is my Qingyang Sect’s failure in teaching. I apologize on their behalf to Miss Zhu and ask you to give me, Qu, some face and let this matter rest. I assure that such things will not happen again."

"You assure?" Facing Qu Yuan who was admitting his fault, Shi Su seemed unappeased and coldly said: "My disciple doesn’t know martial arts. If it weren’t for someone stepping in to help just now, your disciples might have already succeeded in their attempt. For scum like them, not only do you not punish them severely, but you also speak on their behalf, which fits the old saying perfectly: ’A crooked beam makes a crooked rafter.’ Sect Leader Qu, it’s apparent that your character isn’t that great either."

Being publicly questioned about his character, Qu Yuan’s old face couldn’t hold. However, thinking of Shi Su’s status, Qu Yuan had to suppress his anger, speaking sternly: "Then what should I do to satisfy Ms. Shi?"

"The Heavenly Mechanism Great Ceremony has its rules. Zhong Yang, this matter should be handled by the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion."

"Yes, Ms. Shi," Zhong Yang instantly understood, turning to face Qu Yuan and said: "Sect Leader Qu, according to the rules of the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion, anyone who violates regulations, given the severity of the situation, will be convicted. Your several disciples behaved improperly, endangering others’ safety. On behalf of the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion, I sentence each of them to fifty lashes and ten days’ imprisonment. Do you have any objections?"

After hearing Zhong Yang’s verdict, Qu Yuan’s face darkened, his eyes gloomy, suppressing the fury in his heart. He coldly said: "The Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion has spoken; how dare I object?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Song and others’ expressions changed drastically, and they hastily pleaded: "Master, you can’t just stand by and watch us die. Fifty heavy lashes will take half of our lives, Master..."

"Shut up!" Qu Yuan yelled angrily: "You brought this upon yourselves; who can you blame?" After speaking, Qu Yuan’s gaze shifted, his expression turned icy as he stared at Ling Chen, gritting his teeth: "What a freak; we shall see."

Shi Su he dared not offend, thus he could only vent his anger on Ling Chen and the eight eccentrics.

Qiu Yong snorted coldly, fearlessly saying: "You’re welcome to bring trouble from Qingyang Sect; we, the eight eccentrics, are always ready to entertain."

After Qu Yuan left with his subordinates, Zhong Yang immediately ordered men to take Xu Song and others away.

At this time, Shi Su, followed by Zhu Xiaozhu, walked up to Ling Chen, sizing him up, and lightly said: "Are you Ling Chen?"

"Yes." Facing Zhu Xiaozhu’s master, Ling Chen dared not be rude, greeting her respectfully: "I have seen Ms. Shi."

"My disciple often mentioned you to me before, saying you are young and handsome, with good skills and talented."

Ling Chen replied modestly, feeling embarrassed: "Not at all; Xiaozhu is exaggerating."

"Not bad."

Ling Chen was just being modest, but Shi Su nodded: "It seems you are self-aware. Indeed, you are not that outstanding; compared to the top five in the Newcomer List, you are far behind. I brought Xiaozhu here to introduce a promising young man to her. As her friend, if you really have her best interests at heart, I hope you will keep your distance from her in the future to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings."