Chapter 27: Mask

Su Tang could not figure it out. He scratched his head with his hand, only to find that he could not feel his hair at all. When he lowered his hand, his fingertips brushed against his face, making a crisp metallic sound.

Su Tang was stunned. He slapped his face with his hand again, and it made a clapping sound. The feel was extremely hard, yet his face felt nothing. After feeling around, he realized that his face was completely covered by some unknown metal.

Su Tang turned and rushed toward the bedroom. He ran to the dressing table and wiped the dust off the mirror with his hand. He saw a strange Mask. The Mask was a single piece without any gaps, but his vision, smell, hearing, and even breathing were not affected at all. In other words, if he had not happened to touch it, he would not have felt that there was a Mask on his face.

Su Tang then shifted his attention to the cloak. He found a small knife in the drawer of the dressing table and tentatively scratched and poked at the cloak.

The cloak was incredibly tough. Su Tang spent a long time and used every bit of his strength before he barely managed to poke a hole in the cloak. However, at the same time the cloak was pierced, Su Tang felt a sting in his brain region, as if he had been pricked by a needle. He immediately realized that he had done something foolish…

Grimacing, he threw the small knife aside. Su Tang broke into a smile, and the smile grew wider until it turned into loud laughter.

If there had been people around, Su Tang would have restrained himself, but now, there was no need to hide his inner feelings.

His joy could not be described in words, because his path and his direction became crystal clear at this very moment, and that one arrow had given him enough confidence.

He poured his consciousness into his brain region and retracted the Mask. Regardless of the dirt, Su Tang slowly sat on the edge of the bed; he needed time to digest the new information he had mastered.

After an unknown amount of time, the noisy sound of people came from outside. Su Tang woke up, stood up to tidy himself up simply, and walked out of the room.

Long Qi had already entered the yard with a group of people dressed as servants and was instructing them to clean the courtyard. Seeing Su Tang walk out, he was stunned for a moment: “Where did you go to mess around last night? Why are you so dirty?”

Su Tang only smiled and did not answer.

“Go outside and fetch some water,” Long Qi said to a middle-aged woman. Then he remembered something: “Right, there is a water well in the backyard, but it is sealed with a stone. Take a few people and go open the well mouth.”

The middle-aged woman answered respectfully and led several men toward the backyard.

“Is there anything to eat?” Su Tang asked. Perhaps because his Spirit Soul had been activated, his stomach was now painfully hungry, and he even showed signs of shaking.

“Hungry?” Long Qi turned and called another person, telling them to go to the street corner to buy some breakfast. Then he said to Su Tang: “Today, we will clean up a courtyard first, then I will take you to buy some furniture, and… we still need to go to the East Market to pick a few girls.”

“Forget about the girls,” Su Tang said. “I don’t have much money; I can’t afford to support them.”

“You… a monkey becomes a king, but you still think of yourself as a monkey. You have no dignity of a king at all.” Long Qi shook his head with a smile: “The great Pavilion Master of Miaodao Pavilion cannot even support a few girls? People would die of laughter if this got out.”

“I just like peace and quiet,” Su Tang said. He understood Long Qi’s personality to some extent; he liked to mock people, but his inner attitude was kind.

“Ha… if liking peace and quiet could actually bring peace, this position wouldn’t be yours to sit in,” Long Qi said. “Besides, in such a large courtyard, you must have a few servants.”

“Why did you come so early?” Su Tang changed the subject.

“Something happened at Miaodao Pavilion last night,” Long Qi said. “But for you, it is a good thing.”

“What happened?”

“Great Master Wen Ping became seriously ill last night. Looking at his condition, he can hold on for two months at most,” Long Qi said. “You are quite lucky. You just became the Pavilion Master, and you are about to become the Great Master.”

“Why do I feel like you are gloating?” Su Tang smiled.

“I wouldn’t call it gloating, just some old grudges,” Long Qi said. Then he looked Su Tang up and down: “Have you felt that some significant changes have happened to you?”

“Me?” Su Tang was stunned. Did Long Qi not have a way to perform Cultivation? Could he still feel the changes in Su Tang’s body?

“Yesterday, you seemed cautious and your attitude was humble. You even deliberately showed respect to me. Hehe… I know you tried hard, but in my eyes, it felt a bit fake, as if it were carved,” Long Qi said. “Today is much better. It is very natural, and there is a spirited glow between your brows. It seems… you have figured something out, or accomplished something.”

“I was in the yard all last night; I didn’t go out at all…” Su Tang said with a bitter smile.

“No need to rush to explain. The more you rush, the faker it sounds, hehe… Besides, I was just speaking casually, and I don’t require a definite answer. You can just ignore me,” Long Qi said. “Alright, your breakfast is here.”

The breakfast here was very simple. There were not many shops on the street because most people ate at home. The servant only bought back a few large steamed cakes. They were dry when bitten, with a few pitiful sesame seeds sprinkled on top. However, Su Tang was starving and could not afford to be picky.

Seeing Su Tang devouring the cakes, Long Qi was astonished: “What on earth did you do last night? Even if you slept with ten women, you wouldn’t be this hungry, right?”

Su Tang almost choked. He didn’t bother with Long Qi, turned his body to the other side, and continued eating.

At that moment, the middle-aged woman from the backyard walked over carrying a wooden basin. Su Tang then remembered that he had forgotten his personal hygiene, so he kept a cake in his mouth and began to wash his dust-covered hands.

This made Long Qi, who considered himself a superior person, grimace: “You weren’t lying. It looks like you really are a wild boy…”

If it had been yesterday, Su Tang would have certainly shown an embarrassed, silly smile or acted shy. In truth, he wasn’t intentionally deceiving Long Qi; he was simply using body language to convey certain messages—such as “I know I was wrong,” “I am very well-behaved,” “I won’t hold a grudge,” and so on. But today he understood that Long Qi simply had that kind of personality, and this guy’s eyesight was incredibly accurate and his intuition keen. He might not be able to deceive him, so rather than pretending and being exposed, it was better to just ignore him.

Su Tang quickly finished the cakes and patted his stomach with satisfaction: “Brother Long, what are we doing today?”

“Today will be very exciting,” Long Qi said. “First, I’ll take you to make an appearance. Our new Pavilion Master should make his debut. Then we’ll take a walk around the Pavilion to meet some people. In the evening, Tong Fei, Xiao Buhui, and Wen Xiang will all come; there is work to be done.”