Chapter 9 – These guys have problems
Early in the morning, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, dozens of disciples had already gathered outside the kitchen.
When Ye Changqing opened the door, he was startled by the scene outside.
"Senior brothers and sisters, you're here so early?"
"Not early at all."
"Exactly, the morning is the best time of the day, getting up early is nothing."
Everyone shook their heads. Heaven knows how they spent last night dreaming about these braised noodles.
Ye Changqing was helpless about this. These guys were really going all out for a meal.
Without saying much, he let everyone into the courtyard. Ye Changqing went to prepare the minced sauce, while everyone else busied themselves with chopping wood, fetching water, and lighting the fire, all to get a taste of the braised noodles as soon as possible.
Before long, the fragrance of the minced sauce wafted through the courtyard. Dozens of disciples from Divine Sword Peak squatted in groups of three or five, eating heartily without any concern for their image.
Each one of them devoured the food like hungry wolves, lacking any semblance of the demeanor of sect disciples, more like rustic old men from the countryside.
"Junior Brother Changqing, another bowl of noodles."
"Two bowls here."
"And here too."
The calls for more noodles came one after another. Even the female disciples needed at least two bowls, not to mention the male disciples.
"Junior Brother Changqing, prepare more noodles for lunch."
After eating, everyone washed their bowls and tidied up. Someone even told Ye Changqing that the braised noodles were never enough.
Upon hearing this, everyone present agreed, but Ye Changqing just shook his head.
"No more noodles for lunch. I've been working on a new dish."
Eating noodles every meal can get tiring. Fortunately, the system rewarded him with a new dish, stir-fried pork, which could offer them a change of taste.
It's a simple home-cooked dish, using top-quality red-spotted pork, balanced with fat and lean meat, easy to make, and paired with rice, it's definitely a delicacy.
Hearing about the new dish for lunch, the disciples' eyes lit up.
In the past, they might not have had any expectations, but now, after tasting the braised noodles, their opinion of Ye Changqing's cooking had completely changed.
"Great, great, Junior Brother Changqing, if you need any help, just let us know."
"Exactly, I have a few Body Refinement Pills here, Junior Brother Changqing, take them for your cultivation."
"Senior Brother, you're too kind. I still have quite a few pills from yesterday."
"That doesn't matter, if you have too many, just treat them like candy."
Hearing about the new dish, everyone was eager to help, offering to assist or giving pills and powders.
Ye Changqing repeatedly declined, but in the end, he had no choice but to accept these pills.
They'd rather let Ye Changqing treat them like candy than take them back.
"No need for help, just come at meal time, senior brothers and sisters."
There wasn't much help needed, so everyone didn't say much more. After breakfast, they left one after another.
Almost all of them were menial disciples, each with their own tasks, so they couldn't stay with Ye Changqing for long.
However, Lu Youyou didn't leave. Seeing her stay behind, Ye Changqing smiled and asked.
"Sister Youyou, do you have nothing to do today?"
"I never have anything to do."
Lu Youyou replied with a smile, while Ye Changqing couldn't help but twitch his mouth.
"I mean, Sister Youyou, don't you need to cultivate?"
"I do, but there's no rush. I can cultivate at night. By the way, do you need any help, Junior Brother?"
As a direct disciple, Lu Youyou's only task was cultivation, with everything else taken care of for her.
But thinking about the new dish for lunch, she lost all interest in cultivation and decided to stay and wait for lunch.
Seeing this, Ye Changqing didn't say much more and planned to practice cultivation for a while since it was still early for lunch.
"Then suit yourself, Sister. I'll go practice for a bit."
"Let me teach you."
She said without hesitation. Having a direct disciple personally guide you was a rare opportunity for any disciple.
Moreover, to have such an opportunity, one must pay a very high price.
After all, not everyone could interact with direct disciples, just like how many menial disciples never recognized Lu Youyou's identity because they never had contact with direct disciples.
"Alright."
Ye Changqing didn't refuse, and the two began practicing in the courtyard.
But after just half an hour, Lu Youyou began to doubt her life choices.
Perhaps it was because everyone's experiences were different. Lu Youyou had always been surrounded by geniuses.
But Ye Changqing's talent was somewhat indescribable.
His comprehension was high; he understood many cultivation concepts after just one explanation and could even infer other things. But when it came to actual practice, it was a different story.
It was like his mind understood, but his hands and feet didn't.
Simple basic martial skills took Ye Changqing a long time to learn each move.
To Lu Youyou, such simple martial skills should be mastered after one or two tries.
Seeing the confusion in Lu Youyou's eyes, Ye Changqing couldn't help but blush.
"Sister Youyou, maybe you should rest while I practice on my own?"
"No, I can do it. If not, we'll practice a few more times. Master said diligence can make up for lack of talent."
Lu Youyou stubbornly said. This little girl was persistent. She said she would teach Ye Changqing, and she was determined to do so.
***
They practiced until it was almost noon. Seeing that it was about time, Ye Changqing began preparing lunch.
Meanwhile, Lu Youyou was lost in thought, pondering how to teach Junior Brother Changqing.
Not bothering with her, Ye Changqing fetched half a side of red-spotted pork, over a hundred pounds, which should be enough for lunch.
He washed, sliced, marinated it, and then prepared the ingredients and started cooking rice.
While Ye Changqing was preparing lunch, menial disciples all over Divine Sword Peak were silently keeping track of the time.
At the main square on the mountainside, more than a dozen menial disciples were cleaning, and three of them gathered together, drooling as they spoke.
"How much longer?"
"Don't worry, there's still half an hour until mealtime."
"Damn, how is there still half an hour? I'm starving."
"Stop whining, finish cleaning quickly and get in line, or you'll miss out."
"Right, right, let's finish up and get in line."
For the sake of a meal, the three of them suddenly seemed energized, their brooms swinging so fast they almost left afterimages.
Seeing the three of them sweeping so vigorously, the other menial disciples looked on with complex expressions, eyes filled with confusion.
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"Senior Brother, are they okay? They seem a bit off."
"I don't know, could they be practicing some martial skill?"
"Can't be, what martial skill involves a broom?"
"Seems like none. Whoa, it's on fire, look!"
Following the direction of the finger, they saw one of the brooms was indeed catching fire from the vigorous sweeping, leaving everyone dumbfounded. Sweeping the floor, and you set the broom on fire, what does that even mean?"
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