Chapter 133: Green Mountain Village_l |
After returning home.
Chen Mobai was tightly embraced by the emotionally overwhelmed and tearful
Tang Panchui.
Chen Xinglan was also back home, standing there with her eyes slightly red, watching the mother and son hugging each other.
They initially wanted to go to the scene to cheer him on, but Chen Mobai, citing his potential distraction, asked them and even his aunt and uncle’s family not to come.
“Brother, you’re truly awesome!”
His cousin Wang Xinying shrieked and dashed over, plunging into Chen
Mobai’s arms.
Her family had been there early, watching the whole magic duel on the living room TV.
“Come here, my nephew, let me have a good look at you, I really didn’t expect
it!”
Uncle Wang Jianyuan came over, patted Chen Mobai’s head, a look of awe on his face.
“Don’t forget whose son he is.”
Pride was written all over Chen Xinglan’s face, and for once, the typically argumentative Wang Jianyuan didn’t rebut.
“Your uncle will come over tomorrow evening, let’s have a good celebration
today.”
The celebration went on for a full three days.
After the family meal, Chen Xinglan and Tang Panchui invited their neighbours and friends over.
After all, getting admitted into one of the four Great Dao Academies was a rare event in Red Sandstone City.
The last one who got admitted was Yu Tianguang in his red robe, who had now reached Core Formation.
Whether Chen Mobai could reach Core Formation after entering the Dance Tool Dao Academy remains to be seen, but Foundation Establishment should not pose any problems.
After all, the Foundation Establishment success rate of students from the four Great Dao Academies is as high as 8o7o.
After celebrating at home, Chen Mobai was summoned back to school.
Representing the fifth high school, he faced more than a dozen reporters, beneath the banner hanging at the school gate that read, “Warmly Celebrate our student Chen Mobai being accepted into the Dance Tool Dao Academy.” He also posed for photos with He Jingshan and answered numerous questions. Initially, He Jingshan was worried that Chen Mobai, being young, would be overwhelmed facing such a large crowd.
But Chen Mobai surprised him with his mature demeanour, answering reporters’ questions skilfully, neither humble nor arrogant, displaying humility with intense self-confidence.
Representing the school, there were other journalists from dozens of media outlets wanting to interview him.
However, Chen Mobai rejected them all.
He did not lose himself in the limelight, knowing perfectly well that in the world of cultivation, only realm is the reality.
However, his home address was quickly discovered by the infamously keen paparazzi. Although they did not dare to barge in, their daily loitering still frustrated Chen Mobai.
He didn’t even dare to go to the Tianhe Realm.
Perhaps there were reporters with the ability to detect his disappearance in the room.
At first, Tang Panchui enjoyed flaunting the fact that her son had been admitted to one of the four Great Dao Academies.
But after a while, she too started to grow annoyed.
Chen Xinglan had already returned to Red Dawn Institution to continue her preparation for Foundation Establishment.
“These guys really don’t give people a moment’s peace.
After returning home in the evening, Chen Mobai and Tang Panchui found a camera pointed at them across the street while they were having dinner. The latter was understandably annoyed, but there was nothing they could do about these people.
“Mom, how about we go back to the village to stay with grandma and grandpa for some peace and quiet?”
Chen Mobai also didn’t want to stay in Red Sandstone City, unable to meet his friends outside anymore.
He could only stay home, cultivate, shop, prepare ink, and draw talismans every day.
Though he had the Qi-replenishing Spirit Water, so his cultivation progress hadn’t slackened too much, he hadn’t gone back to the Tianhe Realm in a month. He was unsure of the situation regarding the island surrounded by demonic beasts there.
Even though everything was basically settled before he left, this was the place where Chen Mobai planned to make his fortune and collect Spirit Stones. He was just afraid of the unforeseen.
But then he thought, if something unforeseen were to happen, his current cultivation level wouldn’t be of much help.
But he couldn’t give up now, not after he had finally received an offer from the Divine Wood Sect.
It so happened that every year during the holidays, he would go back to the countryside with Tang Panchui to visit their grandparents. This was a good opportunity for him to lay low in the mountains.
“Alright, I’ll ask the boss for time off now.”
Tang Panchui had also had enough over the past few days. Both of them were action-takers; once they’d decided, they immediately began packing their bags.
That evening, they left Red Sandstone City.
Before leaving, Chen Mobai asked his uncle, Wang Jianyuan, to help them out. Wang Jianyuan drove them to the bus station, and before the reporters could react, they bought tickets and left.
After the mother and son duo arrived at a suburban stop, a slightly tanned old man who had been waiting for them with a pipe in his mouth was already driving a pickup truck.
As soon as the old man saw Chen Mobai getting off the bus, his eyes lit up and he rushed over to hug him.
“My precious grandson, you’ve finally arrived!
“Dad, let’s go quickly. I guess there are quite a few people following us.” Tang Panchui urged them to leave while stowing their luggage in the back of the pickup truck.
“Once we get to the mountains, let’s see who dares to bother you.” The old man huffed dismissively, speaking with a dictatorial manner. His name was Tang Lu, he was the village head of Green Mountain Village, he was also Tang Panchui’s father, and Chen Mobai learned officialdom from him. After alighting at this stop, they drove in a pickup truck for another three hours before arriving at a beautiful mountain village filled with terraced fields. “Panchui, I heard your son got into Dance Tool Dao Academy.
Tang Panchui had already bragged to Tang Lu, and the latter was not good at keeping secrets. It seemed that the entire Green Mountain Village knew that Chen Mobai had been accepted into one of the Four Daoist Academies. Showboating in public, especially in the place where she grew up, immediately energized Tang Panchui.
“Auntie, long time no see. This matter, well, the bulk of the credit goes to me. If I didn’t take him to the temple on the mountain to pray during the holidays, how could this rascal possibly have such good luck…
After getting off the bus, Tang Panchui started chatting with an old lady in the village. Soon enough, a group of women got the news and came to see the genius prodigy rumored to be bom to Tang Panchui – a fusion of the divine celestial scholars and warriors.
Chen Mobai could only force a smile. Thankfully, Tang Lu called him to carry the luggage, and he quickly slipped away from the circle of women. The women didn’t pursue, choosing instead to surround Tang Panchui, who was loudly bragging about her unique experiences in child-rearing. They looked on with envy.
“Grandma.”
When he arrived at a house in the deepest part of Green Mountain Village, Chen Mobai saw an old woman with silver hair waiting at the door and called out to her.
“Ah, my good grandson, you’ve really made your grandma proud.” The woman hugged Chen Mobai tightly, a proud smile on her face.
That night, the whole family gathered.
In addition to his grandparents, there were also two uncles and aunts.
After two or three days of celebration, Tang Panchui was thoroughly bathed in glory.
“Oh, right, tomorrow we’re going to the temple on the mountain to fulfill our vows, so don’t run around.”
That day, as Chen Mobai was in the courtyard, mixing ink for drawing talismans with his pieced-together ink-making tool purchased online, Tang Panchui, who had just returned from an outing, suddenly spoke.
“Mhm, I know.”
After replying, Chen Mobai glanced at the turtle shell resting on the stone table, which he had been using to press down on the talisman paper..
