Chapter 181 That Was His Nature (1/2)
With his intellectual capacity, he had guessed that Zhang Ruoxu did not have much time left. Zhang Ruoxu was merely waiting for him to return so that he could say his last words.
No wonder Zhang Ruoxu only allowed for him to return after he had attained the state of Huandan, as he did not want Shen Lian to be affected by it and hindered his Huandan progress.
An icy gust of air rushed out as Shen Lian pushed open the door to the hall. He shivered from the cold.
He still felt cold, with his state of cultivation. It showed how cold the icy gust of air was.
As he walked into the hall, he saw that a thick layer of ice had formed on the stone couch Zhang Ruoxu used to sit on. Zhang Ruoxu was on it and resting with his eyes closed.
Shen Lian approached the stone couch and knelt down. He kowtowed to Zhang Ruoxu solemnly.
At that moment, Zhang Ruoxu opened his eyes. The thick layer of ice melted immediately. Zhang Ruoxu looked as though he was in his thirties. His hair and facial hair were black, and he seemed to be in good health.
The purplish gold Daoist robe looked oversized on him, though. Actually, it was because that he had lost weight.
”Silly child,” Zhang Ruoxu sighed.
”Sorry for being so useless and made you worry,” said Shen Lian.
Zhang Ruoxu shook his head. ”You are one of the best of your generation, and I didn't do much for you too. I have merely been doing what I'm supposed to do as a chief,” Zhang Ruoxu said with a smile.
Zhang Ruoxu meant what he said. He had never given Shen Lian special treatment. Moreover, when the way of Dao was concerned, there was no way that one could attain success by leeching off others. Shen Lian was where he was due to his own fate, heart, and determination. Zhang Ruoxu merely gave him a push, and could not be considered as having done much.
”Actually, I'm not only waiting for you. I'm waiting for Jianmei too. Since he is not back, it seems that he is not interested in the position of the chief. Shen Lian, would you take my position? It's not a great deal, though,” Zhang Ruoxu spoke as he looked out of the hall.
Shen Lian was shaken inside. He should have known something seeing how Chen Jianmei did not return. Chen Jianmei would gladly go against Yanxu for Zhang Ruoxu, but he did not want to be the chief. Even though he was the most qualified candidate to take over Zhang Ruoxu's position as the chief, it was not what he wanted to do.
Even though Chen Jianmei was the most rightful successor, but it was clear that he had given up his right.
”Shen Lian is willing to do it,” Shen Lian replied after a brief moment of hesitation. At this point, there was no way that he could say no to Zhang Ruoxu.
There were many reasons that he could have used to refuse the position. Moreover, it was not as though he was the best fit for the position.
In spite of those, Shen Lian could not bring himself to say no and took up the position as the chief. At this point, he could not say no. No matter how difficult it was, he would have to give it his best.
There were ripples in Zhang Ruoxu's eyes. ”You are so different from them,” Zhang Ruoxu sighed.
In the beginning, he found Shen Lian to be similar to Yanxu. Both of them were talented, and they were not very determined when it comes to the pursuance of Dao. Immortality was more of a need than a final goal for both of them.
Shen Lian had the tenacity, but he was not dead set on pursuing Dao. On this point, he was different from Chen Jianmei, which was what Zhang Ruoxu had been worrying about.
Because he did not have a pure heart of Dao, it would be extremely difficult for him to ascend to the pinnacle. Yanxu was the same as Shen Lian. However, both of them were fundamentally different, as Shen Lian was passionate about life, while Yanxu saw it as a game.
”Actually, everyone is different. I know that I could not let go of a lot of things, but I never wanted to let anything go. It's nice to just be myself anyway,” Shen Lian replied.
It was a reply directed to both Zhang Ruoxu and himself. If he could not have a steel heart of Dao, he should just go with the flow.
”Qing Xuan has always emphasized on the cultivation of mind before body. How could I change you by force? I don't think I need to explain to you what a chief should do. You will learn eventually. I shall pass on the Seal of the Chief to you now,” Zhang Ruoxu replied in a nonchalant tone.