harleyscars Chapter 7: Old Master Qi?
Chapter 7: Old Master Qi?
"Old Qi?" Ning Yuanshan asked in confusion. He searched through his memories, but no matter how hard he tried, he had no recollection of this old man who called himself "Old Qi".
Standing before Ning Yuanshan was an old man with snow-white hair and frost-like hair. The old man seemed to have not groomed himself for a long time, his white hair was long and messy. Two white eyebrows hung on his eyelids, drooping down to the corners of his eyes, each a good two inches long; his beard was also completely white, in clumps, almost completely covering his lips.
The old man was frail and aged, his face sallow and covered with brown age spots. He held a thick book in his hands, which were also wrinkled and age-spotted. But he had a pair of bright, piercing eyes, seemingly filled with a passionate curiosity about everything. The old man was very kind to Ning Yuanshan, his eyes smiling, looking just like a portrait of an old man, inspiring a sense of closeness in everyone.
Ning Yuanshan was surprised to see two completely different qualities in the old man: a deep sense of age and a vibrant sense of life.
Ning Yuanshan had read the Douluo Continent novel a long time ago in his previous life, when he was still in elementary school. Because it was so long ago, he didn't remember most of the plot clearly now, but he was sure that there was no character named "Old Qi" in the original novel. "Are you the dean? A friend of the master?" Ning Yuanshan asked.
In the original novel, Director Su, the student director of Notting College, mentioned that the master was able to freeload at the college because he was "a friend of the dean." It's clear that Elder Qi and Yu Xiaogang have a special relationship.
Old Qi smiled, a very satisfied smile. He patted Ning Yuanshan's head and said, "You guessed wrong, I'm not the dean of the academy. As for... friends... I guess we were friends before..."
Upon hearing Ning Yuanshan's question, Old Qi's weathered face appeared even more aged, his eyes deep and unfathomable. The old man seemed to have an extraordinary past.
Ning Yuanshan wasn't in a hurry to find Tang San. He knew there would be another battle for the dormitory head position in Dormitory 7, and Ning Yuanshan, who had lived two lives, didn't want to get involved in the fight between a group of kids. "Hmm... it's not that I can't beat them..."
Therefore, Ning Yuanshan was very willing to chat with Elder Qi and inquire about information not mentioned in the original Douluo Continent novel.
Ning Yuanshan, of humble origins and whose special abilities had yet to manifest, needed to find a powerful patron. For this, he was somewhat shameless, or perhaps possessed the tenacity of a scholar standing in the snow outside his teacher's door. Otherwise, he wouldn't have repeatedly and brazenly visited Tang San's family despite Tang Hao's indifference towards him in Holy Soul Village. Fortunately, Elder Qi was very talkative and patient with Ning Yuanshan's various questions.
After some conversation, Ning Yuanshan roughly understood his identity. Old Qi was a lecturer of theoretical courses at the Notting Junior Soul Master Academy and also the only librarian of the academy. His experience was remarkably similar to Yu Xiaogang's; both had only half a level of innate soul power. The difference was that, unlike Yu Xiaogang, who came from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, he didn't have abundant resources to utilize. His family background was ordinary, and he received no assistance in cultivation. Therefore, Old Qi's soul power level hadn't broken through level twenty for many years, falling short of Yu Xiaogang's.
Like Yu Xiaogang, Qi Lao dedicated almost the entire first half of his life to solving the problem of improving martial soul levels, which is also the reason why he was able to get to know Grandmaster. "Later, I felt that I had no hope in the path of martial soul cultivation in this life, so I wanted to do some theoretical research, hoping to do something for Douluo Continent before I die..."
The two chatted all the way until they arrived at Elder Qi's residence, at which point they stopped talking. "Young friend, you don't need to be so respectful to me. I'm different from Yu Xiaogang; besides these scraps of paper, I'm afraid I can't teach you anything useful," Elder Qi said. Before them was a wall of bookshelves, piled high with manuscripts and books. As Elder Qi had said, he was indeed an unusual Soul Master obsessed with theoretical research; to conduct his research, he had even moved his residence into the library…
"I don't think I'm qualified to take anyone as a disciple. If you have any questions in the future, you can ask them in my class or come to the library to find me..." In this world, the strong are respected, and not many people on the entire continent value theoretical research. Just as everyone knows Yu Xiaogang's title of "Master," Ning Fengzhi in the original work also said, "He who gains the master gains the world," but in all these years, who has truly been able to treat a master with respect?
Taking Ning Yuanshan's past life as an example, some intangible cultural heritage artisans undeniably possess exquisite and world-class skills. However, aside from chasing a few trending topics online, getting a few likes, and posting a few comments, who really cares? Will the general public admire them? Will these outstanding craftsmen become world-renowned?
It's impossible for Douluo Continent to have only one scholar researching theories, so why is it that only Yu Xiaogang has some fame in the world?
Taking Ning Yuanshan's previous life as an example of a craftsman, some craftsmen don't know how to market themselves or pursue popularity, so naturally they remain unknown. However, Yu Xiaogang, who has nowhere to go in his martial spirit cultivation journey, is extremely concerned about his reputation as a "master." He comes from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and is the beloved of the Pope of the Spirit Hall. With just a little effort, how could he not become incredibly successful?
To get back to the point, based on his abilities alone, Elder Qi wouldn't be qualified for a higher-level Soul Master academy. However, Notting City, situated between the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empires, could gather resources and information from both empires, which is why he chose to work at Notting Academy. Furthermore, unlike a "Grandmaster," Elder Qi was willing to impart his research findings and theoretical knowledge to his students without reservation, regardless of their aptitude. Having suffered much disdain over the years due to his own mediocre talent, Elder Qi naturally empathized with Soul Masters with low Soul Power, even those from humble rural villages with no Soul Power at all, and never hesitated to teach them.
In fact, the theoretical focus of Master Qi's later life was precisely on the impact of martial spirits on ordinary people. His dedication to using martial spirits to benefit the people and connect with the general public was another reason why he was not well-known, and also the key reason for the rift in his relationship with the Grandmaster.
"Master Qi, I think you are the real master. That guy with the crew cut doesn't look like a good person..." Ning Yuanshan was also a little annoyed after being scolded by Yu Xiaogang.
"Xiao Gang... Xiao Gang really has unique advantages in theoretical research. He comes from a good family and can sit still and endure loneliness, so he was able to read through all the books on martial spirit enhancement in the Martial Spirit Temple Library in just a few years. What a pity..." Old Qi fell into memories of the past.
"Unfortunately, Xiao Gang's ambitions lie elsewhere. He was single-mindedly focused on improving his own soul power and didn't have a particularly passionate pursuit of research. Later, after realizing he was powerless to solve his own problems, he became a different person and started chasing after empty fame..." Old Qi was a pure scholar, and even as a friend, he couldn't help but feel disgusted by Yu Xiaogang's fame-seeking behavior. Over the years, he had always conducted his research alone, and today he finally met a "confidant" willing to listen to the old man's ramblings, so he couldn't help but become more talkative.