Chapter 65: The Boss and His Partner

  Remember in one second

  Three strong bandits were holding a basket of wild vegetables, sitting in the corner with tears streaming down their faces. It wasn't until Shepu shouted for Leiga to go to the kitchen to eat lunch that they finally got their chance and escaped from the Baoluo Tavern.

  Leiga's strength is already clear to them, let alone the three of them. Even if they gathered all the remaining strong bandits and mercenaries from Crow Ridge, they might not be a match for Leiga's seventh-stage Dou Qi. Moreover, what's even more terrifying is that Leiga's speed of upgrading his moves is unprecedented in the history of the Four Kings Continent.

  Just this alone would make even the most daring bandits lose their courage.

  Lei Ga finished his lunch and continued to work as an "apprentice", wiping the tables, chairs and benches of the Bai Ya Tavern. At first, he was a bit restless, after all, he had just risen to the seventh rank of Dou Qi in one breath, and his heart was eager to learn techniques from Xie Pu as soon as possible. However, he quickly realized this and made an effort to calm down, kneeling on the floor to carefully wipe the already bright tables, chairs and benches, making them even more dazzling.

  After finishing his work, he reviewed it again, and a smile finally appeared on his cold face, feeling very satisfied with the result of his hard work.

  He walked to the counter and said to Xie Pu, who was bowing his head and counting: "Boss, I've wiped all the tables and chairs clean, only the wine cups are left. I estimate that after I finish wiping the wine cups, there is still some time before dark, can you start training me?"

  Xie Pu still lowered his head and replied in a very casual tone: "Unqualified, re-wipe."

  Lei Ga's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he protested unwillingly: "I've already wiped it very carefully."

  Xie Pu put down his work, raised an eyebrow and stared at him with a nearly stern gaze, "Are you going to argue with me?"

  His expression when speaking was completely different from the one he had when dealing with the three robbers earlier, it was entirely that of a tavern owner, and yet still exuded the majesty of being a top assassin of the Balance Faction.

  Lei Ga pursed his lips and said calmly, "I'm not being presumptuous, but you didn't even take a look before dismissing my efforts, which makes me quite unhappy."

  "I don't even need to look and I know you're not putting in enough effort."

  Xie Pu said in a stern tone: "Don't think that just because your strength has increased, you can be complacent. Your current level is not even enough to defeat my bird."

  Lei Ga clenched his fists involuntarily. "If you train me, I guarantee that within three days, I will defeat Crow."

  "What's next?"

  Skeptical, Sheppard asked: "So you defeat a crow and then what? Is that all the training is for, to beat one bird?"

  Lei Ga was taken aback by the question, he didn't want to make the conversation so awkward, but Xie Pu's tone deeply stimulated his self-esteem, and he said bluntly: "Then I will defeat you!"

  Xie Pu's arms were crossed in front of his chest, his face calm as he stared at him, not speaking for half a day. The white scars on his arm shone like lightning, radiating a silver glow.

  Lei Ga felt a chill run down his spine, and as soon as the words left his mouth, he knew he had made several serious mistakes: impulsiveness, childishness, arrogance, and confusion after making these mistakes. Xie Pu was after all a heroic assassin, and judging from his ability to instantly kill heroic spirits, he was absolutely not just a master-level hero, but very likely a hall-of-fame level hero, second only to legendary heroes.

  Challenging a Hall of Fame hero is almost equivalent to challenging someone who has already set foot in the legendary realm. Although Le Ga had confidence in becoming a legend, he still had a long way to go and couldn't stay in Crow Ridge just to challenge Xie Pu. His most pressing matter was to kill Doudan and retrieve the Cangying Sword.

  And yet, Xie Pu has been trying his best to help him, but he still said such impolite words in a moment of impulse...

  Thinking of this, Lei Ga lowered his head in embarrassment. "Sorry, boss. Suddenly being promoted three levels, although I'm trying my best to remain calm, I still feel a bit dizzy."

  "You dare to say such a thing, it shows you have a heart that pursues progress, I won't blame you."

  Shep's face slightly relaxed, "Anyone with ability, before they have a great awakening, will feel discontented with everything around them. This is probably a common disease. In fact, when I was your age, I was even more discontent than you. I also challenged my teacher and succeeded at the age of 18. I defeated my teacher in front of all my fellow disciples in the Shadow Land and boasted about it for a long time, even openly defying my teacher in later training sessions. My teacher called me to a deserted place alone and used the most ordinary move he had taught me to knock me to the ground. I got up, and before I could react, he used the same move again to strike me down. The third time was the same, the fourth time was the same, until I couldn't get up anymore."

  "I was both terrified and depressed at the time, unable to understand why my teacher had intentionally let me defeat him. He saw through my thoughts, helped me up, and told me: First, you have to defeat yourself before you can truly defeat your enemy, because your enemy will pretend, you think you've won, but in fact, you've lost to yourself."

  He paused for a moment, as if his mind was still stuck in the past. "I've never told anyone else about this shameful incident. I'm only telling you because I want you to understand that with me as your goal, you'll only lose to yourself. As for the tables and chairs you wiped clean, all I can say is that you're indeed hardworking, but absolutely not meticulous. Hard work and being meticulous are two different concepts. You can work hard to wipe down old tables and chairs until they shine like new ones, but only if you're meticulous will you be able to see the places you can't see."

  "I... don't understand."

  "Boss, I need your guidance."

  Xie Pu smiled slightly and walked out from behind the counter, stopping in front of a shiny table and chairs. "Do you think it's been wiped clean?"

  Lei Ga glanced at the table and said confidently: "Of course."

  "What if I can find some dirt?" Shep asked.

  "It's impossible." Lui shook his head resolutely. Every table, chair, and bench, every nook and cranny, he had carefully wiped down.

  "If I find out you're dirty, will you accept punishment?"

  "Even if it's just a little bit of dirt, I'm willing to accept punishment."

  "It's good to have confidence, but..."

  Xie Pu grasped the table leg and suddenly flipped it over, turning the table onto its four legs. The dirty underside of the table legs was now clearly visible. "See? You lost to yourself. Fortunately, this isn't a life-or-death duel, you just need to accept my punishment."

  Lei gazed at the stain on the table leg, his handsome face filled with shame, "I didn't think... I still thought..."

  "So I'm saying you're not being diligent. If you were, you wouldn't just see the table as a surface to wipe down, but notice all its intricacies. But you only see it as a table and think you've been diligent by wiping it down, when in fact, you're just making an effort, not being diligent. Lelouch, you're clever, if this table were your enemy, I'm sure you'd find the problems hidden beneath its surface and come up with a solution in no time, just like you did with the Stitched Man. But precisely because this table seems harmless to you, you only notice its surface and neglect what's underneath. If you were an idiot without any insight, I wouldn't say you're not being diligent, but are you an idiot? No, you're just not diligent enough."

  Xie Pu put the table and chairs back in order, his face serious as he said to Lei Jia: "Do you think that just by enduring hardships, you can become a superior person? If success were really that simple, then legends would be as common as dogs. Only by thinking of things that others haven't thought of can you do things that others can't do, and only then can you surpass me and become a true legend."

  It turns out that this is the real significance of this lesson.

  Rising three levels at once might be worth boasting about, but in the long run, it's just a small episode on the road to progress. Rega felt that he had suddenly come to a realization and bowed his head sincerely towards Chepu, "Boss, I understand now. Before, I thought that bitter training was only for tempering my will and torturing my body, but now I know that I should treat it with heart, as long as I use my heart, any form of thing is not important."

  The exaggerated feeling of Dou Qi rising to the seventh rank completely disappeared from Lei Ga's body, replaced by a calmness after enlightenment.

  Sherlock's stern gaze turned into a satisfied nod of approval, "I believe you won't let me down, you're an excellent - fellow."

  "You're also an excellent... boss."

  The two of them looked at each other and burst out laughing in mutual understanding.

  After laughing, Xie Pu continued: "Alright, let's talk about your punishment. You must re-wipe the chair and bench 100 times, and I will also punish you by not allowing you to sleep tonight, go sweep the storage room in the backyard. Do you have any objections to this punishment?"

  "No, I accept completely," Rega said.

  "Then go get it done."

  After finishing speaking, Xie Pu turned around and returned to the bar counter, lowered his head, and continued with the work that had been interrupted earlier, as if nothing had happened just now.

  Lei Ga's heart was filled with gratitude towards Xie Pu, this time the pointer was much more useful than advancing from 4th rank to 7th rank, directly leading him to the door of a higher realm.

  He picked up the rag, clearing his mind of all distractions and worries, not thinking about how to deal with Dorton who wielded the Cangyan sword, not thinking if he would see Chunyu again, not thinking when Xie Pu would teach him combat skills, not even thinking where to wipe first and where to wipe later, but completely emptying himself, treating his ascetic practices as ordinary life, resting when tired, drinking water when thirsty, just like an ordinary tavern servant.

  Content with simplicity, you can rise from the most ordinary.

  The whole afternoon, he worked with a calm attitude until all the tables and chairs were wiped clean. Only then did he realize that Xie Pu had long since finished his work and stood beside him for a long time.

  "Old chap—"

  A faint smile of undisguised amusement played on Shep's lips, with a hint of mockery and a touch of severity, but mostly satisfaction. "You're really one of the gang now."

  Lei Ga smiled and replied: "I will work hard to be an excellent partner, just like you are working hard as a boss."

  "Kiss my ass?"

  Xie Pu grunted and turned towards the kitchen. "What are you standing there for? Don't you go in and eat your dinner?"