Gou Zai Xianwu Wenjing Search for Opportunities

June 27th.

Today is the day for Guanchao Teahouse to compete and make a name for itself.

The dog days of summer are incredibly hot.

A group of his fellow disciples accompanied Lin Yuan to battle, all dressed in tight-fitting clothes, exuding high morale, causing passersby to give way.

As you travel by boat to the middle of the lake, the rolling river water rises and falls in waves.

"The lake is rising really fast!" Lin Yuan remarked casually.

"Yes, it's strange that the rainy season has stopped but the water level is still rising!" Zhao Sheng said in surprise.

Li Shi understands the hydrology and topography of Yuanhu Lake: "Yuanhu Lake has seven or eight rivers. No matter where the rain falls, it will flow back into the lake. In the end, it is we downstream who will suffer."

So the group began to discuss the hydrology of Yuanhu Lake.

Wu Yong wasn't interested in any of that. Instead, he pointed ahead and said, "Look, the sun is rising, and the lake is shimmering with light, just like in a poem or painting."

Lin Yuan pondered and said, "The water and sky blend into one color, just like a fairyland."

Li Shi couldn't appreciate it, but he still nodded in agreement. However, he was at a loss for words, finally uttering only two words: "Beautiful!"

"It looks really good!" Hu Cai chimed in.

"It's really beautiful!" Zhao Sheng agreed.

Wu Yong, intrigued, asked, "Linyuan Immortal Temple is located on the island in the middle of the lake. I wonder what kind of fairyland it is?"

"Is the Immortal Temple right in the middle of the lake? Can we go in and take a look?" Lin Yuan asked curiously.

"We can only enter the Taoist temples on the outer island, not the Taoist temples on the inner island," Li Shi said.

"I see."

The group arrived in the county town.

Upon arriving at Guanchao Teahouse, one is immediately struck by the bustling atmosphere inside, with tea drinkers filling the room. It would be no exaggeration to say that the place was packed.

Lin Yuan muttered under his breath, "Why so many people?"

How many pots of tea will I need to send?

Don't bankrupt me!

"How can you become famous if there are too few people?" Wu Yong thought it made perfect sense. "Let's go upstairs first."

At that moment, the quick-witted waiter immediately shouted in unison, "Young hero Lin Yuan has arrived!"

Once the waiter started singing along, the waiters next to him joined in, and soon the song spread throughout the entire teahouse.

Upon hearing the chant, the storyteller seated on the platform immediately began his announcement: "Today, young hero Lin Yuan challenges young hero Xu Zhan of the Tiger List... The duel will take place at three-quarters past Chen hour. We invite everyone to be our witness!"

After saying this, he bowed respectfully to those around him.

Suddenly, all the tea drinkers' eyes were focused on the four people who had just entered. Seeing so many eyes, Zhao Sheng became a little nervous, shrank his neck, hid two steps behind Li Shi, and secretly sized up Lin Yuan.

Hu Cai swallowed hard, keeping his composure as he looked at Lin Yuan.

Only Wu Yong calmly invited Lin Yuan to walk in front of the group. Lin Yuan was a little flustered, but he still stepped forward with composure, clasped his hands in greeting to the surroundings, and put on a confident smile so that others would know who he was.

Immediately, the tea drinkers began to whisper among themselves and discuss the matter.

"What a handsome young man! Whose son is he?"

"They seem to be distant relatives of the Li family," one of the shop assistants replied.

"Oh, I see."

"..."

Just then, Li Ye came downstairs to greet everyone and took Lin Yuan's hand, saying, "Young Master Lin, please come in."

"I wouldn't dare trouble you, Fourth Brother!" Lin Yuan was somewhat flattered.

"Young Master Lin is exceptionally talented..." Li Ye pulled him around to show them off, so that all the tea drinkers could see the two of them clearly.

Lin Yuan then realized that Li Ye was supporting him, revealing his backing, and hoping that all the tea drinkers would keep their eyes open and not cause trouble or offend those they shouldn't.

After Li Ye finished his demonstration, he led Lin Yuan to the Tianzi Jia Chen suite on the third floor. The suite was very large, with a large window on the south side, offering a good view of the arena below.

Once inside the tea room, with no one else around, Li Ye released him and casually invited everyone to sit down: "I heard that Young Master Lin was born in the year of Jia Chen, so I specially booked this room for good luck."

"Si Lang is so thoughtful!" This changed Lin Yuan's stereotype of aristocratic scions.

After chatting for a while, Xu Zhan brought over three friends, and another round of singing and dancing ensued, sparking another round of discussion in the teahouse.

Li Ye did not go to greet them personally, but sent Wu Yong instead. Xu Zhan did not mind, as he was there to play a supporting role and naturally had to distinguish between the main and secondary roles, and could not take the lead.

Xu Zhan entered the Jia Chen suite, introduced himself to everyone, and exchanged names.

After getting acquainted, Xu Zhan said straightforwardly, "I heard from Si Lang that Brother Lin has already broken through to the Bone Forging Realm. In that case, let's proceed as agreed."

Lin Yuan had asked Wu Yong to convey this message a few days ago. Seeing that Xu Zhan was so easy to talk to, he immediately said frankly, "Brother Xu, you can give it a try."

"No need, I trust him." Xu Zhan said indifferently. It was only a few hundred taels of silver anyway, so he would just do Li Silang a favor. After saying that, he looked at Li Ye.

Li Ye smiled warmly, invited him to have tea, and then had Lin Yuan pay the remaining three hundred taels on the spot.

Xu Zhan accepted the money, distributed some to his companions, and then clasped his hands in a fist salute to Lin Yuan: "In the upcoming match, I will hold back. You just need to fight with all your might. We'll decide the winner in three hundred moves. You can use your final move, the Horizontal Fist Returning Horse, and I'll use that momentum to throw you off the stage."

"Should I hold back a bit?" Lin Yuan was worried that going all out would be uncontrollable, so he wanted to save some strength to deal with unexpected situations.

Xu Zhan laughed loudly, "No need to give me face, I can handle it!"

Even if you really break through to the entry level of the Bone Forging Realm, so what? Can you still be a match for me, who is only at the early stage of the Bone Forging Realm?

"Okay." Lin Yuan nodded.

The group chatted for a while longer.

It was three quarters past Chen Shi (7:45 AM).

As the challenger, Lin Yuan had to go downstairs first. He publicly swallowed two Body Tempering Pills with tea and politely asked, "Brother Xu, would you like a couple as well?"

"I don't need to!" Xu Zhan waved his hand in refusal, instead encouraging him, "Brother Lin, fight hard today, don't hold back, or we'll all lose face!"

"Alright!" Lin Yuan immediately clasped his hands in greeting to everyone, and then went downstairs with Hu Cai and Zhao Sheng.

The storyteller on the stage struck his wooden clapper, then rose and began to sing: "The story of Emperor Taizu sending Jingniang ends here. To find out what happens next, please listen to the next chapter. It is now three-quarters past Chen hour. Please, young hero Lin Yuan, ascend the stage."

Lin Yuan and the other staff moved the tables and desks away before going on stage and bowing in greeting.

The surrounding tea drinkers cheered and made a ruckus.

At that moment, in the third-floor tea room, a young man in fine clothes looked out the window and asked with a smile, "With all this commotion today, is it going to be another three-hundred-move match to decide the winner?"

"Young Master Liang, the show that Li Silang put on is probably pretty much the truth," the person beside him said obsequiously.

"This is so boring, I knew I shouldn't have come!" Liang Yingxiao said, losing interest. "Let's go somewhere else to have fun."

"Young Master Liang, after all, this was arranged by Li Silang. Leaving now would be a bit..."

"Alright, let's give him face and have some tea before he leaves."

……

Lin Yuan stood on the stage, without even saying a word. Just by standing there, the middle-aged storyteller would enthusiastically introduce Lin Yuan to the tea drinkers, spouting clichés from traditional storytelling.

Lin Yuan felt a little embarrassed listening to this, and almost dug out a two-bedroom apartment.

After a while, Xu Zhan finally took the stage, and the storyteller immediately began to boast: "Young Master Xu's family's Mountain-Opening Palm technique is unparalleled in the Nine True Sects of the South, almost without equal..."

Xu Zhan was sweating profusely from listening to this. He couldn't bear it any longer and immediately cupped his hands towards Lin Yuan, saying, "Young Master Lin, please!"

Lin Yuan immediately lowered his body and planted the barricades, raising his hand to form the starting stance of a long fist. At the same time, he closed his eyes and recalled the image of a whip lashing out in his mind. He shuddered and entered a state of self-forgetfulness. He continued to recall the image of the whip, and the image of the whip kept flashing. His whole body trembled slightly, and he entered a state of trembling like a snake.

He had learned the Snake-Slaying Saber Technique, which everyone knew. The Snake-Slaying Saber Technique's seven steps of snake movement are only a small part of the Snake-Walking Footwork of Snake Intent Fist, so he planned to use this set of footwork.

Lin Yuan's body trembled slightly, unseen by tea drinkers far away, but clearly visible to those nearby.

"Hey, we haven't even started fighting yet, why are you already shaking with fear?"

"Well, this is the first time I've ever seen this!"

"Don't talk nonsense, maybe it's someone's unique skill?"

"Shaking before the battle even begins?"

"Ha ha……"

Xu Zhan was also stunned, but as an expert, he could clearly see that Lin Yuan wasn't trembling with fear, because his posture and expression were very steady, indicating that he wasn't scared.

However, most of the tea drinkers around didn't know anything about martial arts; they were just watching the spectacle and inevitably started gossiping.

Xu Zhan felt a surge of anger rising within him. He thought to himself, "This kid usually seems pretty normal. Why is he playing these tricks on the stage? Just come up and fight!"

After finishing his status update, Lin Yuan opened his eyes and gestured, "Brother Xu, please!"

After saying that, he didn't rush to attack. Instead, he warmed up by maintaining his snake-like form and getting his blood and energy flowing freely.

Xu Zhan didn't want to listen to others' discussions anymore, so he took the initiative and immediately launched a Mountain-Splitting Palm attack. Fearing that he might injure someone, he held back his strength and deliberately slowed down his palm speed.