This is the true immortal of the Taoist sect.

May has arrived in the blink of an eye. In the midsummer season, the heat rises and all things begin to grow, as if carrying a restless energy.

Although Zhu Jiu, whose true form is a snake, has embarked on the path of transforming into a dragon, his inherent nature remains.

After entering May, he felt unwell no matter what.

Almost every day at dawn, he would jump into the Luoying River next to the house, revealing his true form, which would shrink to a length of ten feet, and sink to the bottom of the river.

Only in this way could he feel comfortable.

After understanding Zhu Jiu's habits, Qingfeng and Mingyue were both annoyed and amused. How could this be human?

Moreover, from the perspective of spiritual practice, the more adversity one is in, the more suitable it is for spiritual practice.

Early in the morning, Qingfeng came to Zhujiu's room and saw that the door was open and the room was empty, so he knew that the child had gone into the water again.

Arriving at the riverbank, Qingfeng picked up a stone, threw it in, and laughed:

"Xiao Jiu, wake up. I've cooked your favorite duck blood and minced meat congee..."

The sound of the breeze, under the influence of magic, condensed into a thread and traveled to the bottom of the river at an extremely fast speed.

Before long, several bubbles rose to the surface of the river, and a pair of sharp horns slowly emerged from the water. Then, a flash of dark light appeared, and the horn landed on the riverbank, transforming into a seven or eight-year-old boy.

Zhu Jiu shifted his body, glanced at the slowly rising sun, and felt uneasy all over.

"Brother Xi...have some porridge..."

Qingfeng, upon hearing this, was both amused and exasperated. She casually removed the waterweed hanging from his head and said:

"He's a senior brother, not a department..."

Zhu Jiu nodded seriously and repeated:

"Brother~~~"

Qingfeng shook his head helplessly.

"Fine, whatever. Let's go back and have some porridge..."

Zhu Jiu swayed as he followed Qingfeng back into the courtyard.

Under the camphor tree, Mingyue had already laid out breakfast. Seeing Zhujiu return, she couldn't help but smile and say:

"Little Jiu ran off to the water again? Come on, have some porridge..."

Zhu Jiu grinned and happily swayed to the dining table, then buried his head to drink the porridge.

"Little Nine..."

Mingyue gently reminded her.

Zhu Jiu was taken aback, then chuckled, grabbed the chopsticks on the table, clenched them into a fist, picked up the bowl with his other hand, and began shoveling food into his mouth.

Halfway through drinking, it didn't forget to stretch out its snake head, which was at least half a foot long, and lick its entire face.

Just as Qingfeng was about to remind him, Mingyue pressed down on his arm, shook her head, and said:

"Senior brother, this is Xiao Jiu's nature, let him be..."

Qingfeng thought for a moment and nodded.

Compared to when Zhu Jiu first arrived, he has clearly made great progress.

Master also said that there is no need to be too deliberate, just be natural.

After finishing his porridge, Qingfeng was about to go to the clinic in the front yard to treat patients. Before leaving, he reminded Zhujiu:

"Xiao Jiu, you haven't done your homework yet. Your senior brother will check it when he comes back later. If you haven't finished, you'll be punished by copying scriptures."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jiu immediately put on a crying face and pouted, saying:

"Brother...you're bad..."

Qingfeng couldn't bring herself to cry, but she also found the boy really cute and almost softened her heart.

However, in the end, he deliberately kept a straight face and left without saying a word.

Zhu Jiu suddenly felt that the duck blood and minced meat porridge in the bowl had lost its flavor.

Seeing this, Mingyue smiled and ruffled Zhujiu's hair, saying:

"Don't be upset, Xiao Jiu. Your senior brother is doing this for your own good."

"This period is the most agonizing time for you snakes, but it is an excellent opportunity for cultivation. Work hard, and once you have fully transformed into a dragon, you won't feel uncomfortable when you encounter such a season again..."

Zhu Jiu nodded, opened his mouth wide, poured all the porridge in the bowl into it, wiped his mouth, and said:

"Sister...cultivation..."

Mingyue nodded and said softly:

"Okay, go ahead."

Zhu Jiu clenched his fist as if to encourage himself, then went into the room without looking back and began to calm his mind and meditate.

Seeing this, Mingyue breathed a sigh of relief.

They all knew Zhu Jiu's background very well. In fact, in terms of strength, Zhu Jiu, who had already begun to transform into a dragon, was significantly stronger than her and Qing Feng.

If we extrapolate from the levels of martial arts in the Jianghu, Zhu Jiu is at least a sixth-level grandmaster, and ordinary grandmasters are probably no match for him.

Even if Qingfeng and Mingyue used talismans, they couldn't withstand Zhujiu's supernatural powers of controlling lightning and water.

Although he was powerful and his true form was a giant dragon, he was simple-minded and had no ferocity like a beast; on the contrary, he was very peaceful.

Therefore, he never disrespected his senior brothers and sisters.

It was just some childish whining.

"Senior sister, senior sister?"

Just as she was lost in thought, Wang Jingshu's voice came from the doorway.

Wang Jingshu, who will soon turn fourteen, has grown into a graceful young woman.

She was very beautiful, but not in the way that a typical lady from a wealthy family would be. She exuded a heroic and spirited air about her.

Her eyes and brows showed no trace of the shyness of a delicate woman; instead, they always carried a sharp edge in their gaze.

Perhaps it was because she had matured, but Wang Jingshu no longer liked wearing those pink and green dresses. Instead, she wore a blue, form-fitting outfit with neat and clean bandages wrapped around her arms.

Combined with the slender blade of the sword in her hand, she perfectly embodies the image of a female knight-errant straight out of a storybook.

Upon hearing Wang Jingshu's voice, Mingyue raised her head, a smile appearing in her gray eyes.

Judging from her energetic demeanor, she clearly had something interesting to share with me again.

Sure enough, Wang Jingshu had barely sat down, and before she even took a sip of water, she excitedly exclaimed:

"Senior sister, Magistrate Liu has issued an official document offering a reward, saying that there is a bandit problem in Qinghe Town under his jurisdiction, and he is summoning martial arts masters and constables from the yamen to suppress the bandits."

Upon hearing this, Mingyue smiled and said:

"Suppressing bandits? You want to go?"

Wang Jingshu nodded.

"Yes, I've been practicing swordsmanship for several years now. You and my senior brother have both said that even a third-realm martial artist wouldn't be a match for me now."

"A mere band of mountain bandits probably wouldn't have any experts like the Fourth Realm Grand Martial Master."

"Consider it going to rid the people of a scourge..."

Mingyue lowered her head and thought for a moment, then nodded and said:

"Well, it's not impossible, but you still need to find out first how strong that band of bandits is, and how many men the county government will send to suppress them."

"Also, has your father given his consent?"

When talking about her father, Wang Jingshu hesitated for a moment:

"Sigh, it's because my father doesn't agree that I've come to find you."

"Father said that as long as Master agrees, he will let me go."

"But Master is in seclusion, so we can only ask for your and Senior Brother's opinions. Father has always respected Senior Brother, so as long as Senior Brother goes to talk to Father, Father will definitely not stop us."

What Wang Jingshu said wasn't entirely untrue. A few years ago, Qingfeng had a battle with the renowned Young Master Wei outside the city, which caused quite a stir at the time.

Therefore, in the eyes of Wang Juren, who was not very familiar with Qingfeng's abilities, he was undoubtedly a master.

Mingyue nodded, not too worried.

After all, Wang Jingshu had a protective talisman drawn by her master, so at least her life was not in danger.

Wang Jingshu follows the way of the sword, and her Yiru Sword is the purest form of swordsmanship. Without experiencing battles, it is difficult to make significant progress.

Moreover, paying fees is beneficial to the local people, so it's worth doing.

Mingyue thought for a moment and said:

"Once your senior brother is finished with his work, I'll have him go and tell your father."

Wang Jingshu was overjoyed and hugged Mingyue tightly, nuzzling her head against Mingyue's neck, and said in a deliberately coquettish voice:

"Senior sister is so kind, you're the best senior sister in the world..."