Chapter Text
Liu Qingge barely even glanced at the sea of disciples digging their holes.
It was boring and he didn't especially want any disciples, they were annoying and incompetent.
He was more than ready to call it a day when his eyes caught a boy, his gaze was filled with determination and even from way up there Liu Qingge could see that the boy was brimming with potential.
“I want that one,” Liu Qingge said without looking up.
“Really, which one, Shidi?” The sect leader said in a slightly surprised tone.
“Curly hair, fourth row.” he replied.
“Yes, he is quite skilled," Shen Qingqiu chimed in with that disgusting tone that told Liu Qingge that he was up to something. “Perfect for Qing Jing.”
Liu Qingge snapped his head over to where Shen Qingqiu was sitting, idly fanning himself with that female disciple standing by his side.
“I already said that I wanted him.”
Beside Shen Qingqiu he could see a female disciple start to pout.
“I’m afraid that I will have to take him off your hands, really Shidi. I'm sure that you will find some other little brat to join your Bai Zhan” Shen Qingqiu said with that expression that Liu Qingge could recognize to be a grin.
“Liu-Shidi, Shen-Shidi does have the seniority to take on any student not yet claimed by any peak, and since there has been no official ceremony, the boy is his to take on.” Yue Qingyuan explained with that ever polite smile that never seemed to falter.
“Fine”
The female disciple looked as if she had been given the world's greatest gift and promptly hurried down to the selection area.
Liu Qingge continued to watch over where the curly haired boy was now being led away from and all his thoughts stopped dead in their tracks.
A few meters behind where the curly haired boy was digging there stood another boy, this one had straight, pitch black hair, fair skin, and most importantly, a face almost identical to the peak lord sitting next to Liu Qingge.
He looked over at Shen qingqiu who was entirely absorbed with watching the curly headed boy making his way up to their platform. Soon he was saying something to the boy about Qing Jing and he heard the boy thanking Shen Qingqiu profusely and then they left, going back to Qing Jing.
Liu Qingge allowed himself to look back to the mini Shen Qingqiu and this time he took a closer look.
The boy was now wearing some sort of veil or scarf covering the lower half of his face, one that must have slipped down before, with it on it was harder to see the resemblance but he could still recognize the boy's eyes as the same eyes that mocked him just moments before.
He seemed to be about 11 or 12 and he actually had a pretty good core, he was digging with a determination and decisiveness that even Liu Qingge could admire.
With his mind made up Liu Qingge briefly told the sect leader that he was taking a student and went down to retrieve the boy himself.
Shen Yuan was digging like crazy now. He had already been digging with all his might before but seeing Luo Binghe getting selected had only driven him further. Luo Binghe was nice, they had met before the selection had started when Luo Binghe was getting picked on by some rich brats who were sure that some poor little orphan could never get into somewhere as prestigious as Cang Qoing Mountain Sect.
Ha, Jokes on them! Shen Yuan thinks that he could still see them a couple of holes away barely able to stand after barely making a dent in the dirt.
He had been scared out of his wits when the Qing Jing disciple—ning something—had started walking in his direction. He thought that Shen Qingqiu had somehow seen through his disguise and had come to take him back home but then she had stopped in front of Luo Binghe.
Shen Yuan was so relieved when he saw that the disciple lead Luo Binghe away without even so much as a glance in his direction that he accidentally let his scarf slipped down his face for a moment but seeing how Shen Qingqiu was now walking away from the selection site with Luo Binghe, Shen Yuan knew that he did not see.
With the worry of his brother discovering him being gone Shen Yuan could focus on digging his hole but he was soon disrupted.
“You there, come with me.” said a booming voice that came from ahead.
Shen Yuan looked up to see a handsome man with pristine white and blue robes standing before him.
Something within Shen yuan recognized this man, was he the one that broke Madame Feng's most prized vase? If so then this must be Liu Qingge!
Even from just the highly partial stories about him from his gege, Shen Yuan knew that Liu Qingge was one of the strongest and most talented cultivators of the whole world!
Shen Yuan could only stare at him and Liu Qingge stared back.
“...Are you coming or not?” Liu Qingge said, now with a slightly annoyed expression.
Shen Yuan was so taken aback from actually getting to meet Liu Qingge that the man's words had barely even registered to him and therefore Shen Yuan had completely forgotten to react.
He only fully understood the meaning of the words that were spoken when Liu Qingge had turned around and started walking away.
Shen Yuan snapped out of his trans, dropped his shovel, and started following behind Liu Qingge.