The whole family is insanely eavesdropping on my thoughts Chapter 481
Chapter 481: Not for Bread, But for Dignity
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
As dusk settled, a gentle knock echoed at the door.
The young man frowned slightly, glancing at Chao Chao. With a wave of his hand, he set up a barrier to ensure her dreams remained undisturbed.
The latch unfastened on its own, and Xie Yu Zhou entered with a fawning smile.
“Little bro, I just knew you’d be here today!” He chuckled, eyes gleaming as he saw the youth sitting by the window, meticulously carving a bamboo sword. His expression turned into one of understanding.
The young man raised an eyebrow at him.
His fingers danced with precision, and soon, a bamboo sword engraved with defensive formations rested on the windowsill.
“Little bro, strongest little bro in the Three Realms, I beg you, do me a favor…” Xie Yu Zhou began, his tone ingratiating.
“You see, I am friends with Chao Chao, and you are also friends with Chao Chao. By extension, doesn’t that make us close friends too?” Xie Yu Zhou carefully probed the young man’s temperament. He had observed how Lu Chao Chao interacted with him.
Extremely easy to fool.
Powerful yet easy to fool.
The young man’s fingers paused for a moment before he looked up at Xie Yu Zhou, his lips curving into a cold and fleeting smile.
His gaze, carrying a subtle pressure, concealed an untold number of sharp edges.
If he so desired, nothing in the Three Realms could escape his control.
Xie Yu Zhou’s attempt at familiarity was as childish as a toddler’s trick before him.
Under the weight of that gaze, Xie Yu Zhou unconsciously stepped back, a hint of fear flickering in his expression.
Damn, he’d been tricked!
This youth was nothing like the foolish demeanor he showed before Chao Chao!
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Xie Yu Zhou quickly changed tactics, adopting a fawning tone. “Bro, I won’t lie to you. I want to learn some magic. Don’t you think I have great potential?”
“Even Windchaser, that dog, has some spiritual energy fluctuations—why wouldn’t I have any?!”
“Everyone laughs at me! I need to prove myself and slap their faces!”
“Not for bread, but for dignity!” Recalling the mockery he suffered in the inn yesterday, Xie Yu Zhou’s face darkened with fury.
In the Spirit Realm, even dogs had the audacity to kick him around.
The young man gave him a sidelong glance. His gaze then flickered toward Lu Chao Chao, who had turned in her sleep. Though he knew she couldn’t hear, he instinctively lowered his voice.
“I see no talent in you, but you do have an exceptional affinity for wisdom.”
So much so that it was nearly tangible.
The Buddhas in the Buddhist Realm must be losing their minds over him.
Xie Yu Zhou shook his head wildly, waving his hands. “No, no, no! I don’t want to become a monk! I don’t want to renounce the mortal world! Little bro, please teach me!”
With a thud, he wrapped his arms around the young man’s leg in a desperate plea.
Just as the young man was about to refuse, Xie Yu Zhou sighed dramatically. “If you don’t teach me, I’ll have to ask Chao Chao…”
The young man fell silent.
“What do you want to learn?”
Xie Yu Zhou’s eyes sparkled as he sat cross-legged on the ground. “How about becoming a sword cultivator? Roaming the world with a sword in hand—how cool would that be?!”
The young man stared at him expressionlessly, setting down the wooden fish in his hand. Becoming a sword cultivator was possible.
But one could not abandon the wooden fish only to pick up a butcher’s knife.
One could abandon the blade to become a Buddha, but he had never seen a Buddha turned into a killer.
Sensing rejection, Xie Yu Zhou scratched his head.
“Talisman master? Curse master? Artifact refiner?”
“Ah!!” A sudden realization struck him, and he slapped his forehead in excitement. “Teach me divination! I could even set up a fortune-telling stall on the street. If I can predict a couple of things correctly, I’ll finally redeem myself!”
The young man considered this—divination wasn’t difficult.
In truth, if Xie Yu Zhou simply embraced the Buddhist path, all these techniques would come naturally to him.
With just a few casual words, the young man imparted some basic techniques. To Xie Yu Zhou, it was as if a great door had opened before his eyes, revealing the mysteries of heaven and earth.
“Can I acknowledge you as my master?” Xie Yu Zhou asked eagerly. He didn’t know the young man’s identity, only that Chao Chao held him in high regard.
And anyone important to Chao Chao couldn’t be bad!
The young man’s brows furrowed slightly. “No.”
“I did not guide you in cultivation, merely indulged in casual conversation. You and I have no karmic ties, no connections whatsoever.”
“Leave.”
With a flick of his sleeve, the young man shut the door, leaving Xie Yu Zhou standing outside, bewildered.
“He seems really determined to avoid any ties with me. I may be a bit slow, but I’m not that bad, am I?” Xie Yu Zhou, being the carefree sort, thought little of it and happily returned to practice his new skill.
Oddly, when practicing divination, one was supposed to see colorful auras representing spiritual energy. Yet, Xie Yu Zhou saw nothing but a dull gray mist.
Undeterred, he persisted through the night, only to remain shrouded in fog.
At dawn—
“Hey, little mortal, I heard you’re learning magic? Can you sense spiritual energy yet?” A patron at breakfast asked with an amused smile. It was rare to see such an utterly mundane human in the Spirit Realm.
After all, even the weakest mortal lineage should have some latent traces of spiritual power.
Xie Yu Zhou’s face twisted with frustration.
His eyes darted mischievously before he rushed to the entrance, setting up a small fortune-telling stall.
When Lu Chao Chao woke up, sixteen bamboo swords were already neatly arranged by the window.
“Wow…” She admired the engraved patterns. Holding one, she felt the righteous aura emanating from it.
Bamboo from the Purple Bamboo Forest, tempered by incense and thunder, made excellent training swords.
Though small, they carried considerable power.
After stashing them into her spatial storage, she gave some pointers before heading downstairs.
She had barely taken a few sips of soup when she noticed a growing crowd outside.
Being a gossip-lover, she eagerly brought her bowl along and squeezed into the gathering.
Thanks to her small size and nimble frame, she managed to find a spot.
Only to see—
Xie Yu Zhou!!
With a solemn face, he was reading the bones and facial features of a beautiful female cultivator.
“Little Master, do you think he and I have a chance to reconcile?” The woman asked nervously.
Xie Yu Zhou stroked his chin, feigning wisdom. “I see from your features that you are blessed with great fortune. Worry not, you two are destined to reunite!”
The female cultivator beamed with joy, handing over a few spirit stones before departing happily.
The onlookers exchanged skeptical glances.
This youth had no trace of spiritual energy—he was clearly a mortal.
A beggar scoffed. “Tell me, when will I strike it rich? If you’re accurate, I’ll spread word of your talent.”
Feigning deep thought, Xie Yu Zhou finally said, “Walk five hundred meters north, then eight hundred meters west—you’ll find wealth waiting for you!”
The beggar sneered but wandered off anyway.
Xie Yu Zhou clapped his hands. “Two fortunes told today—that’s it, folks! Dismissed!” He hastily packed up.
Lu Chao Chao frowned. “Since when do you tell fortunes? Also, that woman’s fate line was severed—how could she possibly reconcile?”
“And that beggar—his fate is one of poverty. Where would he find riches?”
Xie Yu Zhou bolted before she could question him further.
“I was completely accurate!” He huffed, panting as he sprinted away.
Just before the beggar arrived at the designated spot, Xie Yu Zhou discreetly tossed a money pouch onto the ground.
“Who says I’m wrong? I, Xie Yu Zhou, will not lose face!”