Chapter 128: Like a Madman

Chapter 128: Like a Madman

The cool mountain breeze blew from afar, rustling people’s clothes and bringing a touch of chill. Two figures approached slowly from the distance, one old and one young—the elder was Yan Luo, and the young girl was Yi Xin.

They looked over from afar. Yan Luo frowned and gave Yi Xin an instruction. Yi Xin nodded and walked over.

In the midst of the crowd, under everyone’s gaze, Lu Chen had been silent for a while, while He Changsheng urged him, “Lu Chen, come on, you’ve seen my stone amaryllis many times before, haven’t you?”

At this moment, Su Qingjun suddenly stepped forward and looked at Lu Chen, saying, “Lu Chen, do you really know this person?”

Lu Chen was silent for a moment before nodding, “Yes, his name is He Changsheng. Like me, he is also a new disciple of the sect this year. I recognize him.”

Su Qingjun glanced at her brother Su Mo, who smiled back at her with a somewhat strained expression.

A glint flickered in Su Qingjun’s clear eyes, like a breeze stirring a calm lake, creating a slight ripple.

After a moment, she turned back to Lu Chen and said calmly, “We haven’t known each other for long, but since you’ve helped me cultivate the Red Amber Ginseng, you must be a trustworthy person. If you can prove this amaryllis is his, I will believe you.”

Lu Chen’s gaze lowered slightly, his lips forming a faint, ambiguous smile that seemed neither amused nor angry. It was unclear what he was truly feeling at that moment. Meanwhile, the crowd around them erupted into an uproar, and their gazes toward Lu Chen changed.

He Changsheng, on the other hand, was overjoyed, smiling broadly as he grabbed Lu Chen’s arm and exclaimed, “Quickly, tell us, tell us, that amaryllis is mine!”

Lu Chen’s eyes narrowed slightly. After a moment, he looked up and ignored He Changsheng, instead gazing calmly at Su Qingjun and her companions, as well as Lin Kuangyi and the others. “You can ask me whatever you want.”

Su Qingjun pondered for a moment and asked, “Among the miscellaneous disciples in the Liuxiangpu garden, is this person the best at cultivating stone amaryllis?”

“Yes,” Lu Chen answered directly.

He Changsheng laughed heartily, while Su Qingjun frowned slightly, then nodded. The expressions of the people from the Su and Lin families were mixed. Soon, Su Qian from the Su family stepped forward and asked, “May I ask you a few questions?”

Lu Chen replied, “Certainly, go ahead.”

Su Qian glanced at He Changsheng standing next to Lu Chen and asked, “Since you are familiar with He Changsheng, do you recognize this Zhang Zhi?” He pointed to the unconscious disciple still lying on the ground.

Lu Chen said, “I recognize him, but we don’t have much contact, so I’m not very familiar with him.”

Su Qian’s eyes lit up. “So you’re not familiar with Zhang Zhi?”

“Not familiar.”

“In that case, do you rarely visit Zhang Zhi’s field?”

“Almost never.”

Su Qian clapped his hands and said, “Then have you ever seen the stone amaryllis Zhang Zhi planted?”

Su Qingjun sighed and said, “Forget it, you can go now.”

Lin Kuangyi and the others quickly agreed and left in haste.

Su Qingjun glanced at Lu Chen, who was still standing there, hesitated as if wanting to say something but ultimately said nothing. She merely gave him a slight nod, then called out to Su Mo and the others, and left.

In the meadow, the onlookers began to disperse gradually. However, the image of He Changsheng’s mad behavior was deeply etched in everyone’s minds.

Soon, only Lu Chen was left in the crowd. He stood silently for a moment, and just as he was about to leave, he suddenly saw a girl standing not far away. It was Yi Xin.

She looked around to ensure no one was nearby and quickly ran over, gently tugging at Lu Chen’s sleeve, and whispered, “Brother Lu, don’t be upset. I saw everything that happened...”

“I’m fine,” Lu Chen interrupted her with a smile.

Yi Xin blinked and asked, “Really?”

Lu Chen smiled at the young girl, taking in her soft, graceful face and the hint of concern in her gentle eyes.

“It’s true. I’m really fine,” he said softly.

“Okay.” Yi Xin’s face lit up with a smile. She pointed ahead and said, “Master Yan is still waiting for me. I’ll go over now.”

Lu Chen smiled and nodded, “Alright, go ahead.”

Yi Xin smiled and turned to leave, her dress fluttering in the mountain breeze like a flower dancing in the air.

※※※

This scene and this incident soon passed. Some saw it as a thunderclap, as if the sky had split open, while others considered it a trivial matter.

From that day on, He Changsheng became enemies with Lu Chen.

Whenever they happened to cross paths, He Changsheng would glare at Lu Chen with extreme hatred, as if he wanted to kill him with his eyes.

Lu Chen was well aware of this blatant animosity. He found it somewhat amusing and tiresome, but he didn’t show it on the surface. Most of the time, he merely passed by He Changsheng with a calm, expressionless face.

A few days later, somehow, the matter was reported to the people at the Hundred Herbs Hall. It was said that a high-ranking official, displeased with the situation, informed the Hundred Herbs Hall. Consequently, the Hundred Herbs Hall took action. The Su brothers and Lin Kuangyi were unaffected, while the miscellaneous disciples were punished—He Changsheng, Zhang Zhi, and Lu Chen were summoned to the supervising cultivators and given a severe reprimand.

In the end, regardless of the twists and turns, Zhang Zhi and He Changsheng, as the instigators of the disturbance, were fined twenty spirit stones. Lu Chen, who was only called in as a witness and couldn’t be held accountable, was spared from fines but was scolded before being let go.

After that, He Changsheng seemed to become increasingly unstable, talking to himself and even carrying a sharp blade secretly, as if he were on the brink of madness.

Those living near him said that recently, He Changsheng’s most frequent words were, “I’ll kill you, I’m going to kill you...” (To be continued.)