Section XXII

In the 12 years since he was born and grown up in another world, Li Yuntao has been living in a remote Xiaoji Town.

He misses his former relatives, friends, and the bustling and busy world; Mobile phones, computers, cokes, and everything else you can think of.

But he also has another life, his father, his uncle and aunt in the neighborhood, his classmates in the book, his husband, and his friends of a similar age, although he only treats them as little children and disdains to play together.

In this life, he has no feelings for his family and country, no spiritual beliefs, it seems that he no longer has so many fetters at this time, even if he chooses a strong man in a foreign country to be a teacher, it is a good choice.

Li Yuntao's heart was hesitating, swaying left and right between his hometown and foreign countries. Drink with a single sword, or harness your magic to become a high-ranking spellcaster, mingling with the ladies of the nobility between banquets, servants, slaves, money, and status at your fingertips.

Comparing the two with each other, it seems that it is not so difficult to choose?

"I want to be the second hero in the world." The scene of the boy saying this sentence in tears resurfaced before him just as he was about to make a decision.

"The master is above, please accept the apprentice for a bow." Song Tingyu's slightly stunned expression even looked a little funny.

Li Yuntao closed his eyes and took a deep breath with a struggling expression.

Sun Jingxiao and Cen Yuping stood aside with great interest, neither helping Aris to persuade nor saving for the Imperial Sword Gate.

Aris looked at the young man in front of him with a kind face, looking at the struggle, hesitation, hesitation, every expression on his face, every movement of the corners of his lips and eyebrows, he was like the most patient old hunter, waiting quietly before the prey showed his flaws.

Serena looked at Li Yuntao with concern and anxiety, of course she hoped that he could become her classmate, Li Yuntao helped her, and she had a good sense of him, and the most important thing was how strong Teacher Aris was, and how generous he was as a student.

Learning from Aris and becoming an apprentice under his personal guidance, even if Li Yuntao does nothing, his status is no less than that of some children from dukes' families, and when he learns to become a teacher, his status will rise again, and the money, power, glory and popularity that will be obtained will make Serena envious just thinking about it.

She tried to open her mouth to persuade her, but before she could open her mouth and spit out a word, she was stopped by her mentor Arris. She could only stand aside helplessly and be anxious.

'Dear Lee, promise to come down, quickly agree to come down. She kept repeating in her heart, hoping that Li Yuntao could hear her heart.

The boy's breathing became heavier, but he slowly adjusted himself to take a deep breath, and then his dark brown and almost black eyes, with a slight amber glow at the edges, opened, and he seemed to have made up his mind, and was adjusting his breathing while considering his words.

"Don't worry, child, this will be a choice related to your life's fate, don't be in a hurry to say it first, I'll give you one night to think about it again. When the sun rises tomorrow, I will ask you for answers, and I hope that every word you say will not be regretted by your choice. Aris had a slightly kind smile on his face, and with his long white beard and eyebrows more than an inch long from the corners of his eyebrows, he looked like a kind elder who cared for his younger generation.

The words that were about to be said were blocked, Li Yuntao felt that his breath was blocked in his chest and he felt uncomfortable, and he pretended to be flattered and grateful and said: "That's really good, I don't think I should make a decision in such a hurry." It's safer to go home and discuss with your dad about such a big thing as apprenticeship. ”

The kindness on Old Arris's face, there is no problem with the young man's wording, but shouldn't you be grateful at this time and quickly agree?

Unexpectedly, he tried and tested this trick to retreat as advance, and he actually lost his hand here with the young man. He smiled kindly and nodded, then turned to Serena.

"I'll put that aside, Serena, and it's time to talk about you. By the way, are you preparing dinner? We happened to be in a hurry, and we didn't have time to have dinner, so you can prepare it together. ”

"Yes, Teacher." When Serena saw Aris mention herself, she bowed respectfully, and then glanced at Aveline's little maid who was not far away.

"It's not too good to stand and talk here, let's go inside, and hope your reception room will be better than these shacks outside." Aris glanced at the earthen houses outside the terrace, his beard shaking. Without waiting for Serena to lead the way, he stepped into the inner room that served as Serena's bedroom connected by floor-to-ceiling windows.

The inner room was much larger than the living room, with a large bed draped with a veil on the side of the wall to the north of the room, and a wardrobe, dresser, and coat rack arranged in order. The bed was covered with beige bedding that looked fluffy and soft as a white cloud, and several robes were thrown on it, and the weight of the robes weighed down on them and sagged slightly.

Behind the arch that connected the living room, there was a small room connected by two doors that stood opposite the wall, one of which was a washroom, which Li Yuntao had borrowed before.

The scent of lemon and calendula in the room is stronger, but the fresh aroma doesn't smell as strong as roses or tulips, and the smell is stronger and less uncomfortable.

The decoration in the room was already the most luxurious Li Yuntao had ever seen, but Aris just nodded unknowingly when he passed by, and then walked through the arch and bypassed the screen into the small living room.

Li Yuntao's salute was still placed in the corner of the small meeting room at this time, and the tattered package wrapped in copper books and the backpack stained with mud and stains left by the drying up of unknown liquids were piled together, which seemed incompatible with the relatively delicate furnishings of the meeting room.

Old Aris glanced at Li Yuntao's salute on the ground, then ignored it and went straight to an independent sofa and sat down.

The Sun couple came together, only looked at the decoration of the small living room for a while, and quietly chose the couch and sat down.

Without Arris's words, Druffo neatly laid out tea sets, pastries, and fruits. Then start boiling water and prepare to make tea.

Albert, who was snoring slightly, was asleep in the lonely sofa opposite Arris, and the knight had not been able to wake him up when he had passed by with his horse, and he was obviously very sleeping.

Serena had no place to sit down, and she did not dare to sit down in front of Arris, so she stood obediently on the side of the sofa where he was, waiting for the teacher's lecture.

Li Yuntao chose the side of the sofa of the Sun couple to stand on, as if the Taoist couple from the East would protect themselves.

"You've done a good job this time." Aris was the first to speak, nodding affirmatively at Serena, without the slightest hint of the harshness and arrogance of before. "Did you know that there were eighteen students who sent me requests for help at the same time, including eighteen official warlocks of the Warlock Council, including you? Among them, there were five second-level spellcasters and one third-level contract warlock, and they all lost the towns they were stationing in.

Even the third-level contract warlock had brought the barony he was in charge to a catastrophe. He didn't even want to ask for help after he escaped, you idiots! Why didn't he die himself, and then come back to me in a dream after he died? Old Arris seemed to think of the way his previous apprentice had been, and scolded mercilessly.

"Forgive me, you know I'm not usually like this, I'm all pissed off by these idiots. Hum! ”

"You are very good, my most distinguished apprentice, dear little Serena, that you have become one of the five apprentices to hold on to your town, and it seems that you have not lost much, at least on the surface everything is in order and looks good." He immediately put on a smiling face again, and kindly patted the girl's ... Buttocks.

Dilulu, who was busy boiling water, saw this scene, and she did not hesitate to throw out a disgusted expression behind Arris.

"Not only that, but you've discovered the monsters' methods of harming humanity, sensed the hidden dangers, and deduced that a more advanced and powerful monster organization has launched this attack, which is remarkable, and none of your classmates have done this. To launch an attack on eighteen small towns at the same time, how could it be possible to say that there was no organization and command behind the monsters? ”

"Tell me, dear Serena, how did you do that?"

This is also the part that all the latecomers in the field are most concerned about, a small first-level warlock not only resists the monster's attack, but also senses the conspiracy behind the monster's siege, which can't help but arouse their curiosity.

"And thanks to my dear Lee, I wouldn't have been able to do what you said without him at this critical time... Feat. Serena reported to her teacher, Arris, that she no longer used Donghuang in order to express herself more accurately.

Serena began to narrate what had happened, from her own point of view.

Time passed silently, and after a while, Serena ended her report, the content was basically true, but she changed the existence of higher-level monsters to a conjecture shared by herself and Li Yuntao.

"That's how it happened, you did a good job and handled it in a timely and proper manner. Even if it were me, it wouldn't have been better. This little guy is really helping a lot. Aris looked at Li Yuntao, who was standing next to the couch, and his evaluation in his heart had improved.

Li Yuntao's overflowing spiritual power he felt very clearly, and his appreciation for him at that time came from his qualifications and talents as a spellcaster. After listening to Li Yuntao's performance in the incident, he began to show interest in this person's style of acting and careful thinking.

It is selfless to be able to think of saving people first after a monster attack, and to warn of the erosion of evil blood, and to generously give a cure for this 'epidemic'. Calmly analyze the various doubts when the monster is attacking the city, and guide his female apprentices to guess the hidden dangers behind it, for the sake of courage and strategy.

Even Sun Jingxiao and Cen Yuping, who were sitting on the sofa on the side of the listener, had a higher evaluation of the young man standing on the side of the sofa.

Such an apprentice is valuable in the sect, but he is now a subordinate of the Imperial Sword Sect, and it doesn't matter if the old man is a foreign powerhouse, but it is not easy for the two of them to rob people.

"So you've got the infected dealt with?" Old Arris looked at the female apprentice in front of him, this beautiful little girl like a doll, who was so decisive and ruthless, and he really couldn't tell that she would be a dormant black widow just by looking at her appearance.

"Yes teacher, it's the new captain of the city guard who did it, and after all this time, I guess he should have finished it by now." The female apprentice made a mage salute and nodded in acknowledgement, after all, the captain of the city guard borrowed her name, in a sense, she arranged all this, and she was not ashamed to admit it.

Old Arris's eyes twitched, and he cautiously withdrew the palm that was slapped at her ass again.

"Since the harm of the 'corpse' plague has been stifled in the cradle, then we are here waiting for the person behind the scenes to appear, I think if you sabotage its plot, it will definitely jump out in a rage, and it will not let you go so easily." He nodded, this matter is over, and he only needs to stay here for one night to see if the high-level monster will retaliate.

If he hadn't come, he wouldn't have stayed here, the Great Magister was very busy, Li Yuntao gave the relevant information and treatment methods of the corpse, he needed to go back to study the potion, and by the way, he would have investigated several cases that had been reported to the Warlock Council in the past two years.

The tragic circumstances described in the reports of those tragic cases are very consistent with the situation after the complete outbreak of the corpse mutiny described by Li Yuntao, and if the causes of these cases can be ascertained, his status in the Senate will be improved again.

At the end of Serena's retelling of the incident, Xia Lulu entered the small living room from the direction of the terrace, and when she saw that the conversation was over, she boldly reminded her: "Dear lord, dinner is ready, I wonder if it is convenient for you to move to eat now?" ”

"Oh~ I came at the right time, I'm already hungry now. What's the main course today? When the old man saw Xia Lulu, the beard on his face smiled in an arc.

"Lamb chops fried in butter, drizzled with lemon juice and pepper, served with cactus salad and mushroom bisque." Xia Lulu bowed down and said.

"So, you two, I wonder if I have the honor to invite you to dinner?" Old Aris instead extended an invitation to Sun Jingxiao and his wife, who were sitting on the side.

"It's hard to resist hospitality. And the starry night sky at the edge of the desert has a special charm, doesn't it? Sun Jingxiao said in response, and then turned to the Taoist couple.

Cen Yuping covered her nose with a fan, and nodded with tenderness in her eyes.

The three of them got up and went to the terrace to eat, and on the terrace that was cleaned up, the candlelight dinner prepared for Serena and Li Yuntao was used on them at this time.

Of course, Serena and Li Yuntao were not qualified to sit down and share dinner, so they consciously went downstairs and sat with the guards in the hall on the first floor, and then ordered a dine-in meal with the boss behind the counter.

The chef of the hotel moved quickly, and the dine-in meal was brought to everyone not long after, Li Yuntao was really hungry at this time, surrounded by rough men, he didn't have to pretend to be elegant, this mutton soup with roasted sand fruit cake was killed by him like a storm, and Serena, who was sitting opposite him and had only eaten two mouthfuls of broth with a spoon, was dumbfounded.

"Boss, let's have another serving, no matter what dish is better to have meat!" Li Yuntao waved his hand and shouted loudly to the boss who was standing at the counter, who was also dumbfounded.

As the owner of an inn on the edge of the desert, he often has to entertain business travelers who travel all over the world, and Li Yuntao's Donghuang language is completely unable to constitute an obstacle for him to make more money.

The boss turned around and yelled in the direction of the back kitchen, then turned back and added a note to the account book at the counter.

Dinner at night after the sun goes down is the busiest time on the first floor of the hotel. Not everyone chooses to eat in a restaurant, and the same goes for pubs.

The hall is served by two enthusiastic waitresses, who come and go like swallows in a shuttle, serving dishes and drinks to a table of guests, and occasionally returning a big slap and dropping a few scolds after being touched on the buttocks.

Several sturdy and good-looking female guards, mixed with the male companions who came to dine or drink, laughed loudly.

Some took the lead in humming popular songs from small towns on the edge of the desert, others brought out the characteristic shamisen to accompany the music, and some bold female guards came to the small open space next to the stove in the center of the hall, twisted their bodies to the beat and danced a simple but cheerful dance.

Even the guards and knights who had followed Aris were no longer rigidly outside, they occupied several tables, ordered a glass of wine, and joined the joyous crowd. The camel tethered to the door seemed to hear the music and couldn't help but join in, calling twice and occasionally to the tune.

Such an atmosphere, such vulgar, simple and pure happiness, is something that Serena has never been exposed to, and she has always been like a flower to be cared for, even if she goes out to practice, she lives in a high-class room, or eats under the protection of the guards during the time when there are few people.

The sound of the piano, the singing, and the cry of the camel surrounded her, and something in her heart was touched, and she couldn't help but want to join in.

When the beat of the music reaches a climax, suddenly someone raises a wine glass: "Cheers to us alive!" ”

"Cheers!" Li Yuntao raised the wooden wine glass that had been placed in front of him at some point, and followed with a chant.

Serena found that she had an extra glass in front of her, so she raised her glass and took a big sip. The sweet and sour taste of the wine is almost invisible, and it is very refreshing in the mouth.

The toasts followed one after another, but the ballads and music were not so much, and the three songs began to be repeated after that. Unconsciously Serena, who had drunk the third glass, felt more and more excited, and felt an unrestrained desire to let go to her heart's content, and Li Yuntao, who was originally sitting opposite her for dinner, had several wine glasses of various types on the table, each wine glass represented a different variety of wine, and the price was also different.

And the figure of the young man had already jumped to the center of the hall, and on the pyre next to the stove he let go of his throat and sang loudly, singing in a language that no one understood, singing a high melody.

there's a fire starting in my heart.

reaching afever pitch and it's bringing me out the dark.

......

The melody is bright and beautiful, and it is quickly mastered by the violinist, who blends the sound of the piano into it with the boy's singing.

Singing happily, Li Yuntao picked up two chopped firewood and began to knock on the chimney of the stove next to him leading to the roof, striking a rhythmic drumbeat.

When the drum beat and the piano sound were combined, coupled with the voice of the teenager, the atmosphere in the audience was ignited again, and more people crowded into the small open space in the center and began to twist their bodies to the rhythm of the drums.

Serena swayed her shoulders and waist as well.

When it ended with a repetitive song, Li Yuntao finally stopped his crazy behavior and stuffed the firewood in his hand into the stove to add some fire to the boiling water.

He walked back to his table and raised his glass: "To all the victims!" With that, he raised his head and drank all the wine in his glass.

The cup in his hand was a wooden cup containing high rum.

"To all the victims! Cheers. Everyone in the hall was silent for a few seconds, then raised their glasses and shouted, emptying them as well.

Tong!!

The halls were kicked open.

"If you really pay homage to the victims, please explain what all this is for?!! Why did my Abba and my brother go to the magician for treatment, but now they are told that they have died!! ”

A tight-fitting guard outfit, with hard leather armor tied to her shoulders and heart, and a scimitar in her hand, Ani's eyes were blood-red and she rushed into the hall, the corners of her eyes peeled open, and blood and tears covered her cheeks.

"I've heard that the magician who was kind enough to make my Abba and Big Brother Sumed sacrifices lives in the old turnip, and now, has anyone told me where he is?" Her voice was hoarse, and her originally crisp guttural voice seemed to have been cut into countless holes by broken glass.

As she spoke, Ani's eyes swept across the hall on the first floor, and the guards who had followed Old Aris stood up from the wine table, while the four heavily armored knights removed their chest-high tower shields.

Ani's gaze turned around, and she had locked on the beautiful and clean boy she had almost not recognized before.

Li Yuntao looked at her, his lips pursed and he couldn't say a word, he only felt that his head suddenly hurt like a pinprick, the scene in front of him was quickly distorted, and the edges of everything were plated with a purple-black hook, and the painter who hooked the edge was very sloppy, and countless inks overflowed the border.

Nausea, pain, dizziness followed.