Dragon Hermit

“Martial uncle!” Xia Yan quickly interrupted him and said with a bitter smile, “You should call me by my name in the future, you can even call me Lil Yan if you want. Don’t ever call me headmaster, or else, I won’t ever dare to come here again.”

“Hahaha, fine!” Yao Shigu laughed heartily. He seemed quite delighted. Thereafter, he turned his head around and called Yao Ting, “Lil Ting, come over here and greet your martial uncle.”

“I won’t…” Yao Ting’s face got flushed. Xia Yan was obviously younger than her. So, how could she call him ’uncle’?

“Martial uncle, I’m at the same age as Miss Ting, so let’s not adhere to our seniority, okay?” Xia Yan quickly spoke.

“This is…” Yao Shigu hesitated for a moment, but he still said in the end, “It’s fine to call each other like this in private, but on major occasions, you should adhere to seniority, as if words of this spread out, our One-knife School will become a laughingstock.”

“Fine!” Xia Yan and Yao Ting exchanged a glance and nodded in agreement.

“Lil Yan, our One-knife School got a new headmaster, and I plan to carry out an official ceremony so that everyone recognizes you,” As all of them sat down, Yao Shigu spoke again.

“Martial uncle, don’t ever do this,” Xia Yan said quickly.

“How could you say this!” Xia Yan was agitated. “I have dreamed for so many years of our One-knife School’s rise, and since you have already emerged out, then we must carry out everything properly, or else, people will assume that our One-knife School has already declined.”

“Martial uncle, my skill is still far from perfection…” Xia Yan quickly waved his hand. Getting the headmaster’s position was already out of his expectations, and if this affair was carried out publicly… He didn’t even consider the consequences, as keeping a high-profile just didn’t fit with his character.

“Nonsense!” Yao Shigu glared at him and said anxiously, “This carving of a tiger descending the mountain is already more than enough, and I bet there aren’t any people that dare to acclaim that they are better than you. Your skill has already reached a great master’s level, and if anyone dares to slander you and say that your skill is far from perfection, then I will teach him a memorable lesson.”

“Martial uncle, I’m still a student,” Xia Yan quickly said.

“So what if you are a student? I didn’t ask you to quit school,” Yao Shigu said anxiously.

“My master didn’t even come here.” Xia Yan came up with another excuse.

“Yeah, you’re right!” Yao Shigu nodded and said while stroking his beard, “Let’s do it this way, I’ll discuss it with your master right now, give him a call for me.”

Even though Yao Shigu tried his best to speak calmly, Xia Yan still discerned the excitement apparent through his words.

[Could it be that my martial uncle’s real objective is speaking with my master?]

Xia Yan was quite skeptical, he always believed that his master had a valid reason for not speaking with his martial uncle for so many years, but since they already spoke up to here, he didn’t have any reason to prevent those two old men from having a chat.

“Uncle Li, it’s me, Xia Yan… I’m fine and well, can I trouble you with passing the phone to my master? Thanks.” Xia Yan gave a call to the public phone and turned on the loudspeaker.

“Doesn’t your master use a phone?” Yao Shigu asked in surprise.

“Nope, my master said that he doesn’t need it,” Xia Yan replied.

“It’s no wonder that my senior brother’s achievements are far better than mine, he has focused wholly on studying the carving craft, while I couldn’t even resist the modern temptations,” Yao Shigu sighed and spoke.

After a short while, an old yet calm voice transmitted from the phone. “Lil Yan, what’s the matter? Didn’t you give me a call yesterday, don’t you have to pay for long-distance calls?”

“Hehe, master, I have a subscription plan, and I got to enjoy several hundred minutes of free phone calls every month. If I don’t use it, only China Mobile will benefit,” Xia Yan said mischievously.

“No Kidding! If you have something to say, then say it,” Han Yidao said impatiently.

“I’m now in my martial uncle’s store, don’t you want to say anything to him?” Xia Yan quickly got into the main topic. When he raised this question, he noticed that Yao Shigu’s breathing became quite rough.

“…” Han Yidao quieted, and at this moment, Yao Shigu, Yao Ting, and Xia Yan didn’t dare to utter a single word. After a long while, Han Yidao finally spoke, “I won’t speak with him, if he gave you the other half of the carving knife, then you will be in charge of everything and you don’t have to ask about anything, and if he didn’t give it to you, then just leave and don’t ever look at him as your martial uncle.”

“He gave it to me, he gave it to me,” Xia Yan said quickly. He had already noticed that Yao Shigu’s face fell and his hands started trembling. He couldn’t help but say inwardly, [Master is really heartless, I wonder what conflicts occurred between those two fellow apprentices in the past, is it some ridiculous love triangle?]

“Since he gave it to you then everything is fine, did you tell him to pick one of his granddaughters to be your wife…” Han Yidao spoke further.

Xia Yan hung up the phone decisively, and his face instantly got flushed.

A startled look appeared on Yao Shigu’s face, and he immediately started laughing.

As for Yao Ting, she also wore a shocked look, and her face was as flushed as Xia Yan.

[Master, you have done this deliberately, didn’t you?] Xia Yan laughed bitterly inwardly. This old man really worked hard to find a wife for his disciple, and he exploited all means possible.

“Cough, cough. Master was always fond of cracking jokes… He’s really just cracking a joke, don’t take it seriously.” Xia Yan didn’t know what to do, and he attempted to give a reasonable explanation.

“Hehe!” Yao Shigu smiled and didn’t say anything.

“Martial Uncle Han is really…” Yao Ting lowered her head with her face still flushed as before.

“Oh, by the way, martial uncle, that carving of a tiger descending the mountain is my gift for you.” At this moment, Xia Yan didn’t know what to do other than changing the subject.

“Lil Yan, your knife skill is far better than mine, and even though the carving of a tiger descending the mountain was only made with red sandalwood, it can still easily sell for a hundred thousand.” Yao Shigu held the carving of a tiger descending the mountain in his hands. He was really fond of it!

“Hundred thousand?” Xia Yan was surprised. His master had only taught him his craft, and he didn’t speak much about the sculpture world. Usually, he carved seals only for dozens bucks, and the two Soul Ataraxia Stones got sold for a high price of a million only thanks to the necromancy magic. It was this carving of a tiger descending the mountain that represented the true value of One-knife School’s craft.

“Lil Yan, if you have the former fame of my senior brother, then this carving of a tiger descending the mountain won’t just reach a hundred thousand, and it may easily reach a million. Moreover, this is still because it’s made of ordinary materials, if it was made with fragrant rosewood, Sandalwood, yellowstone, or high-grade Jadeite; then its price may even surpass a hundred million,” Yao Shigu sighed as he spoke.

“Is my master’s craft so lucrative? Then why I’m now so poor?” Xia Yan was astounded by those high figures. [If my master had such a skill, then why did he stay in a fifty square meters little cabin? His house didn’t even have any decent furniture]

“This is why, Lil Yan, if we spread the news that you become One-knife School’s headmaster, then it won’t be an issue for you to get resounding fame, and your works’ price won’t be any lower than my senior brother’s.” Upon seeing that Xia Yan was tempted, Yao Shigu continued advising and urging him.

“Martial uncle, just forget about it, I can’t use so much money, and I’m still only a student.” Xia Yan didn’t even give this any consideration and he refused Yao Shigu’s suggestion as before. He was only shocked, and this wasn’t enough to make him change his lifestyle.

Yao Shigu tried to persuade Xia Yan again, but upon seeing that Xia Yan was unmoved, he could only give up on this matter for now. But soon after, he recalled something else and asked with a smile, “Lil Ting, what do you think of Lil Yan?”