The group sat together, discussing profound arts for a while. The four Southerners appeared somewhat distracted, speaking little.
Xiao Ming, listening intently, grew increasingly bored. He stood up, whispered a word to Long Xiao, and intended to explore other parts of the estate.
Long Xiao stopped Xiao Ming, saying, "Xiao Ming, don't leave yet. Perform a trick for the four masters from the Southern Kingdom before you go."
"Perform what? I can't do anything," Xiao Ming replied, looking troubled at Long Xiao.
Long Xiao glanced around, then walked over to a small tree that had shed all its leaves. He broke off a branch and said, "Here's a twig for you. Make leaves grow on it. That shouldn't be difficult, right?"
Xiao Ming took the twig and asked, "How do I make them grow?"
Long Xiao leaned close to Xiao Ming's ear and told him to input some life force, and the twig would grow leaves.
Xiao Ming looked at Long Xiao and asked, "Really?"
Long Xiao nodded and said, "Of course, it's real. When have I ever lied to you?"
Xiao Ming, half-believing, raised the twig in his hand and began his performance.
Everyone watched Xiao Ming. Even Lin Wei didn't know Xiao Ming understood profound arts, let alone the others. In their eyes, Xiao Ming was just an ordinary child, a friend of Long Xiao, whom Long Xiao liked to bring everywhere.
Under everyone's bewildered gaze, tender buds appeared on the twig Xiao Ming held.
Everyone watched in astonishment. None of them had expected it to actually sprout.
In less than a minute, the buds turned into leaves, and they grew at a visible speed.
"Reviving the dead wood into spring. How can he know this profound art at such a young age?" Ruan Tianlong exclaimed, standing up and looking at Xiao Ming.
Not only were others surprised, but Xiao Ming himself was astonished. He hadn't realized life force had such an application.
"Young friend, this isn't fake, is it?"
Ruan Tianhu stood up and quickly walked to Xiao Ming. He snatched the twig from Xiao Ming's hand. He carefully examined the leaves on the twig and found them to be real.
"How is this possible? 'Reviving the dead wood into spring' has been lost to history!" Ruan Tianhu asked Xiao Ming, his face full of surprise.
Seeing Ruan Tianhu's reaction, Xiao Ming couldn't help but laugh. "Silly, you don't even understand such a simple principle, hehe."
Long Xiao, fearing Xiao Ming might reveal too much, quickly said, "Xiao Ming, go play. Remember to come back for a feast at noon."
Xiao Ming nodded happily and said, "Alright, I'm leaving."
Seeing Xiao Ming about to leave, Ruan Tianhu reached out to grab him. Xiao Ming dodged his hand, used the 'Chimei Xiaoyao Step,' and instantly vanished behind the bushes.
"What profound art is this? How did he disappear?" Ruan Tianhu exclaimed, looking at the bushes in disbelief.
Long Xiao sat with his legs crossed, leisurely sipping his tea, as if the matter had nothing to do with him.
Ruan Tianhu turned to Long Xiao and asked, "Long, Master Long, what profound art did that child just use? How did he disappear so instantly?"
"Have you heard of Qimen Dunjia?"
Ruan Tianhu nodded. "Qimen Dunjia is the foundation of profound arts. Everyone present understands it, right?"
Long Xiao shook his head. "I don't understand profound arts. Qimen Dunjia is a type of trickery. The ten heavenly stems represent ten directions. Remove the Jia position, and you're left with nine directions. Can you understand this?"
Ruan Tianhu nodded, looking as serious as a primary school student listening to a lesson.
Long Xiao continued, "Xiao Ming just used the principle of Qimen Dunjia to遁入 Jia position. You didn't see it, but he didn't actually disappear."
Ruan Tianhu said, "I didn't understand that."
Long Xiao smiled. "If you didn't understand, it means you haven't truly learned Qimen Dunjia. You haven't even mastered the basics of this trick, so how can you talk about profound arts?"
"Are profound arts related to trickery?"
Long Xiao shook his head. "I don't know. I only understand trickery. If you want to see it, I can perform for you. But my master once said that tricks are performed for the audience, and to see a trick, you must buy a ticket."
"You can also do that 'reviving the dead wood into spring' trick?" Ruan Tianbao asked.
Long Xiao nodded. "I followed my master for five years and learned many tricks."
"Good, let's watch," Ruan Tianlong said. "How much per person?"
"It depends on what is being performed. For example, the 'reviving the dead wood into spring' trick, one million per person per viewing. For tricks like conjuring wind and rain, or scattering beans to create soldiers, five million per person per viewing..."
Long Xiao listed a series of prices. The four Southerners looked at each other. Ruan Tianlong said, "Perform 'scattering beans to create soldiers' for us. We'll each give you five million."
'Scattering beans to create soldiers' was a lost profound art. People in the realm of metaphysics had heard of it but had never seen it.
Long Xiao looked at the sunflower seeds on the coffee table. "Let me explain first. 'Scattering beans to create soldiers' doesn't mean turning beans into people, but making the beans array themselves like soldiers and kill people."
Ruan Tianhu nodded. "I know that. Let's begin."
Long Xiao took out his phone and said, "Transfer the money first. I'm afraid you'll renege on the payment after the performance. This would go against ancestral teachings, and I wouldn't be able to perform anymore."
Lin Wei watched from the side, thinking this guy was definitely a骗子 (piànzi - swindler). He always said he could read fortunes for money, but it turned out he was deceiving people everywhere for money.
In Lin Wei's understanding, metaphysics was a profound study. Conjuring wind and rain, or scattering beans to create soldiers, were mere legends and impossible in reality. Even the leaves growing on the twig earlier, he believed, was Long Xiao's sleight of hand.
The four Southerners, eager to see Long Xiao's performance, readily transferred five million each to Long Xiao.
Long Xiao, receiving the money, was secretly pleased. He thought, this money is too easy to earn. These people are truly foolish and rich.
After putting away his phone, Long Xiao grabbed a dozen sunflower seeds and threw them on the ground. He clasped his hands together, formed a strange hand seal, and began chanting.
Soon, the sunflower seeds on the ground stood up, automatically lining up, and floated towards the four Southerners.
"They're actually moving! How can this be?" Ruan Tianlong rubbed his eyes and said.
Long Xiao chanted for a while. The dozen sunflower seeds floated in the air, forming a line. Long Xiao waved his hands a few times and said, "Attack."
The dozen sunflower seeds whistled and shot towards the coffee table next to the four Southerners' seats. With a few bangs, the coffee tables next to them were pierced by the sunflower seeds.
"I understand now. 'Scattering beans to create soldiers' refers to the 'soldier' of weaponry, not a human soldier," Ruan Tianhu said with a look of sudden realization.
"Master Long, is 'conjuring wind and rain' similar to this?" Ruan Tianbao asked.
Long Xiao smiled. "Scattering beans to create soldiers is a trick. I can perform whatever you want to see, as long as you can afford it."
The four Southerners felt like they had been tricked, yet they were still curious and wanted to see Long Xiao perform more.
Long Xiao saw what the four were thinking. "Actually, tricks are just illusions, and shouldn't be taken seriously. Where are there any profound arts? I think they're all lies. In this age of scientific advancement, there are still people who believe in profound arts. I really don't know what you people are thinking."
The four Southerners came from the Ruan family, a prominent metaphysical family from the South. They had cultivated profound arts since childhood and achieved considerable success.
After witnessing Long Xiao's performance, they began to have grave doubts about profound arts. They felt that what Long Xiao said had a point.