Chapter 5: An Old Immortal Fell from the Sky
"Hmm, I'd better think about it carefully." Zhang Fang heard Zhang Cheng's words and his eyebrows furrowed involuntarily. He really hadn't thought of these things before.
"By the way, Father, during the last clan competition, did Elder Brother rush back?" Zhang Cheng asked.
"At this time, there is still almost a month before the big competition within the clan. I'm afraid your elder brother won't be able to make it back in time. Previously, he sent a letter saying that he was about to go into seclusion to break through to the sixth-grade boundary. If he can successfully reach the sixth-grade boundary within a month, he will have the qualifications to join the Hua Tian Peak and may become an immortal in the future." As he said this, Zhang Fan's face broke out into a smile.
"Brother has now reached the peak of fifth-grade, with brother's talent, breaking through to sixth-grade in a month shouldn't be a problem. If big brother really becomes an immortal, then our Zhang family will have an immortal too, at that time, the Wang and Li families won't dare to confront us." Zhang Cheng said excitedly.
"Yes, but the Wang and Li families have also sent people to Tianfeng Gate. If they can break through to the sixth rank as well, our situation won't change much, it will just be slightly better than now." As he said this, Zhang Fang glanced at Zhang Cheng, his expression dimming: "Cheng'er, actually your talent is even higher than your brother's, unfortunately your body... If not for that, then this time the Zhang family would have two immortals, and no one in Shaoyang City would dare to challenge us."
"Father, this is fate, can't be forced." Zhang Cheng was very open-minded about this. Anyway, he's living on borrowed time now, as long as he could spend the rest of his life happily, that would be enough.
"Alas, it's all because of Father's incompetence. It's been so long and we still haven't found a way to cure your illness. I'm really ashamed in front of your mother." Zhang Fan said with a pained expression.
"Dad, I know you've done your best, so there's no need to blame yourself. Besides, you, sister and big brother have all been so good to me, I'm already very satisfied." Zhang Cheng said sincerely.
"Good boy!" Zhang Fang stroked Zhang Cheng's head and said softly.
However, the more sensible Zhang Cheng became, the more unbearable Zhang Fang felt. If he had a choice, he would rather be the one suffering from illness himself.
"Father, after the Da Bi ceremony this year, according to our clan rules, I will have to leave the family. Can I ask you for one thing?" Zhang Cheng said.
According to the Zhang family rules, anyone who reaches the age of ten and has not yet reached the level of a second-grade martial artist will be sent to take care of the family business in the family industry, and will never have the opportunity to practice martial arts again for the rest of their life.
In fact, this is also a kind of exile. In a world that respects martial arts, being deprived of the right to practice martial arts is no different from exile.
This matter was established by the ancestors of the Zhang family, and it is to urge the members of the family to work hard and cultivate themselves. No one can violate it, even if Zhang Fang is the current head of the Zhang family.
So, in order not to make things difficult for his father, Zhang Cheng took the initiative to bring it up.
"You little scamp, as long as I'm in this family for one day, I will never let you leave the family." Zhang Fan said firmly.
"But..."
"There's nothing good about it, just stay at home and I'll take care of the rest." Zhang Fang saw that Zhang Cheng wanted to say something else, so he waved his hand to interrupt him, saying categorically.
"Alright!" Zhang Cheng knew that once his father made a decision, no one could change it, so he could only nod in agreement.
"Alright, you're also tired, go back and rest!" Zhang Fang said.
"Oh, then I'll take my leave first, Father." Zhang Cheng nodded and turned to walk out of the training grounds. As he was about to exit, he turned his head to see Zhang Fang still standing in the same spot, seemingly lost in thought.
"Alas, what's the point of this?" Zhang Cheng shook his head and let out a sigh of resignation before walking out of the martial arts arena.
Earlier, Zhang Cheng had searched the entire Huaxia Kingdom for famous doctors under Zhang Fang's insistence, but everyone was at a loss as to what to do with his condition, and some even said that he wouldn't live past ten years old.
At that time, he felt they were wrong, so he secretly vowed in his heart that no matter what, he had to live until the age of eleven to prove it to them.
But judging from his current rate of physical deterioration, it's really difficult for him to live past ten years old.
Since Zhang Cheng saw this point, he began to use the identity of a third party to examine this world, and used the eyes of an onlooker to look at everything that happened in this world.
Sometimes he even feels that in this world, he is just a fleeting passerby. Just like a meteor, although brilliant, but fleeting.
So, in order not to make those who love him and whom he loves sad, he has never dared to show off too much, getting used to hiding himself in a certain corner, avoiding everyone's attention while watching all sorts of things happening in this world.
Sometimes, he would even consciously distance himself from his loved ones, to put it bluntly, what he was doing was actually preparing for his own death, he didn't want his father, brother and sister to be sad after he died.
So in his view, continuing to stay in the family and being expelled from the family had no big difference.
However, Zhang Fang did not think so, but this was no longer something he should consider.
After returning to his own room, Zhang Cheng lay down on the bed and fell asleep, because now except for sleeping, he had nothing else to do, or rather, there was nothing else he could do.
In the evening, he was woken up by Zhang Xin, had dinner and went back to his room to continue sleeping.
However, he had slept for a whole day and was now wide awake. With his hands behind him, he gazed out the window at the full moon hanging in the sky.
Because this is the only thing that is the same in this world and on earth, he often watches the moon when he has nothing to do, thinking of his childhood companions.
After watching for a long time, Zhang Cheng felt his eyes were sore and uncomfortable, his eyelids were getting heavier and heavier, and he was weakly drooping.
"Hmm——"
Just as he was about to fall asleep, but not really asleep, in a state of half-sleep and half-awake, a dull thud came from outside the house, just like a heavy object falling from the sky and hitting the ground.
The sound suddenly woke Zhang Cheng up from his drowsy state, and he sat up in bed as if he had been struck by lightning.
Listening carefully, there seemed to be some other sound over there. My heart couldn't help but feel a little strange: "Could it be that I'm just dreaming?"
Shaking his head, Zhang Cheng threw away the miscellaneous thoughts in his mind and then lay back on the bed, ready to continue sleeping.
But just then, a very faint sound came from outside the door.
If this sound had occurred during the day, it would have been drowned out by the din of noise. But at this moment, it was deep in the night, so this faint small sound was amplified countless times and successfully caught Zhang Cheng's attention.
Zhang Cheng couldn't hold back his curiosity, so he got out of bed and opened the door.
But as soon as he opened the door, he was frightened by what he saw in front of him.
All that can be seen is an old man wearing a Taoist robe and a golden crown, who is currently lying in his own courtyard, with a pool of bright red blood under him.
"What's wrong with this!" Zhang Cheng muttered to himself, then looked around and saw no one, so he slowly walked up to the old man's side and gently poked his body with a slender finger as thin as a chopstick.
"Hmm!" The old man was poked a few times by Zhang Cheng and then let out a faint voice.
Upon seeing this, Zhang Cheng's face lit up with joy, thinking: "He hasn't died yet."
Then he walked up without thinking and wanted to help the old man get up. He didn't know where his strength came from, but he actually pulled the old man into his house and put him on the bed.
At the same time, he was also exhausted, panting heavily with his mouth open, sitting on one side.
After stopping, Zhang Cheng thought back to the previous events in his mind, and secretly feared that if he had used too much force just now, he would have fainted again, and if he died, it wouldn't be him.
He shook his head, threw out the miscellaneous thoughts, rested for a while, and then crawled up from the ground again. He walked to the bedside and looked at the old man who was half dead on the bed.
Zhang Cheng saw that the old man was wearing a Taoist robe, with a golden hair crown on his head and a light golden hairpin inserted horizontally from his bun, looking like a fairy wind and Taoist bone.
At this moment, Zhang Cheng guessed that he might be the legendary immortal.
Just thinking about saving a fairy, Zhang Cheng's heart was extremely excited, this is a fairy, that is a legendary existence.
However, he saw that the old immortal was half dead and probably suffered extremely serious injuries, so he went out to find his father to see how to treat him.
But just as he was about to leave, he suddenly felt his right hand being grabbed by someone.