Stroking his beard, the Second Elder lifted his chin with immense pride, pointing at Jiang Jin, who had just pushed himself up from the spring. “Who else could it be? My disciple, of course.”
Hearing this, Jiang Jin's lips curled up slightly. He hurriedly smoothed his robes and bowed, performing his etiquette flawlessly. “Disciple Jiang Jin greets the elders.”
The elders all recognized him.
He was the most talented disciple from the entrance ceremony. He had no shortage of ambition, wishing to become a personal disciple, only to have Xie Zhou reject him to his face multiple times.
Back then, everyone's impression of him wasn't great. However, he was just a child after all—and an exceptionally talented one at that—so they couldn't harbor actual prejudice against him.
The elders nodded in approval. The Great Elder stroked his beard and laughed. “Good! Condensing a Golden Core after being in the sect for barely two months—you will surely become a pillar of our Nine Saints Hall in the future!”
The Fifth Elder nodded calmly. “To have such fortune at such a young age is indeed rare.”
“When the Sect Master emerges from seclusion for the Grand Sect Tournament at the end of the year, he might very well take you in as his closed-door disciple.”
At these words, the smile on Jiang Jin's face deepened. He quickly cupped his hands again, only to be interrupted by the Second Elder. “That's not necessarily the case. My disciple wasn't the only one who broke through. That second wave of lightning tribulation was drawn by Lin Mu.”
The elders were all stunned, their faces filling with astonishment.
They were equally impressed by Lin Mu.
A quiet, aloof little girl who had clamored to leave the sect before even choosing a master, only to be trapped here because she couldn't pay back over five thousand spirit stones.
The Teaching Elder gasped in disbelief. “Didn't she just reach Foundation Establishment not long ago?! I saw her do it with my own eyes! It—it hasn't even been two months, has it?! From Foundation Establishment to Golden Core in two months?”
The elders fell completely silent.
Two months from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core—what kind of concept was that?
Even for those with legendary God-grade spiritual roots, they would still have to steadily temper their foundation for three to five years. How could anyone leap through cultivation realms like this?
The entire back mountain instantly fell into a dead silence, and even the mountain breeze seemed to have stopped.
Only after a long while did an elder draw in a sharp breath and marvel in disbelief, “She is a bona-fide monster, isn't she? When the personal disciples of the main peak entered the sect back then, the fastest among them took over half a year to condense their Golden Core. But she... took less than two months?”
“Furthermore...”
The Teaching Elder added with difficulty, “Ever since this child entered the sect, she has barely attended a single class properly. She requests leave every day, claiming her soul is fragmented and her body is weak. She spends most of her time sleeping on Baicao Peak.”
The Second Elder sighed. “For those with high comprehension, even sleeping is a form of cultivating.”
Another brief silence fell.
Gazing at the distant mountains, the Great Elder let out a heavy sigh. “A Heaven-grade wood spiritual root is naturally adept at drawing in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and her talent is exceptionally outstanding. It seems that as long as she performs normally in the grand tournament at the end of the year, once the Sect Master emerges from seclusion, he will likely accept her as a personal disciple of the main peak.”
Hearing this, the expression on Jiang Jin's face froze visibly.
Earlier, his mind had been entirely occupied by Lin Mu's attitude toward him, and he hadn't given this any thought at all.
Now that they brought it up, a deeply terrifying sense of crisis washed over him.
This Lin Mu looked lazy and did nothing all day, yet she always managed to stay one step ahead of him in every aspect.
This included their time in the demon realm two days ago.
How on earth did he end up leaving that cellar?
How did those twin wraiths disappear?
Lin Mu had only said that she drove them away with two super-powerful talismans of her own, but having fought them himself, he knew they were definitely not that weak.
Could that have been Lin Mu's doing as well?
As he struggled to suppress the frustration building in his chest, another elder sighed. “But this child is a bit strange. With such great aptitude, she is suited to be a spiritual cultivator or a sword cultivator, yet she insisted on becoming a pill cultivator. And even as a pill cultivator, I heard she blew up three cauldrons just to refine a single pill. Isn't this just fooling around?”
The Ninth Elder grumbled angrily, “I already told her to learn the sword from me, but she refused! She is truly wasting her talent. If she had followed me, I would have definitely made her famous throughout the world.”
“If the child's heart is not set on cultivation, there is indeed nothing we can do. The Sect Master might not necessarily take her as a disciple either.”
“Besides, doesn't she still want to leave the sect?”
“Ah, well, let nature take its course. As long as we don't end up raising another Song Yao, anything is fine...”
As the elders conversed, Jiang Jin relaxed slightly, his thoughts drifting.
So what if Lin Mu advanced quickly and possessed a Heaven-grade wood spiritual root? Since she lacked ambition, she likely wouldn't become a personal disciple anyway.
Furthermore, her obsession with being a pill cultivator didn't conflict with his own path.
With such outstanding talent, if she followed him in the future, refining pills for him, protecting him during breakthroughs, and serving as his backing, it wouldn't be a bad thing.
It would be even better if she could study medicine as well to heal his wounds.
...
Song Yao didn't even have time to change her clothes before rushing toward the main peak.
She had heard that Zhu Zhao was rarely in the sect, so she had to seize the opportunity while Zhu Zhao was recovering from her injuries to collect the debt.
The main peak usually had a barrier, but today, for some reason, the way was completely clear.
Just as she stepped through the mountain gate, she was greeted by winter plums clustering on the branches, their falling petals swirling like snow in the wind generated by a sword.
Xie Zhou's white robes fluttered gracefully. The long sword in his hand seemed like an extension of his own arm, his sword movements sharp, elegant, and fluid.
Every slash and strike carried a crisp, cold sword qi, slicing the falling plum petals cleanly in half. His side profile in the play of light and shadow was pale and handsome, dazzlingly beautiful.
Song Yao dazed for a brief moment.
Xie Zhou was a talisman cultivator who rarely wielded a sword. These sword moves were actually taught to him by her; in the past, when she had nothing to do, she would force him to practice them for her amusement, finding it exceptionally pleasing to the eye.
She just hadn't expected to witness it again after her rebirth.
As she stood in a daze, the tip of Xie Zhou's sword suddenly veered. The long sword that had been slashing at the plum branches tore through the air with a sharp whistle, thrusting straight toward her face.
Almost instinctively, Song Yao reached for her sword. But the moment her fingers brushed the scabbard, she snapped back to her senses and forced herself to halt.
The gleaming tip of the sword stopped barely two inches from her eyes, the sword qi stinging her cheeks.
Xie Zhou's dark eyes stared coldly at her, his tone aloof and indifferent. “As a sword cultivator, you don't draw your sword immediately when attacked?”
Song Yao: “...I'm a pill cultivator.”
“A pill cultivator?”
He let out a soft chuckle.
With a flick of his wrist, Xie Zhou smoothly sheathed his sword.
Walking over to the stone table beneath the plum tree, he said in a flat, emotionless voice, “Sit.”
Song Yao hesitated. “But I'm here to find Second Senior Sister...”
Xie Zhou looked up, giving her a lukewarm glance.
Song Yao was forced to shut her mouth and sit down obediently.
Damn feudal sect.
Even among fellow disciples, there was a strict hierarchy.
She really missed the days when she was the Third Senior Sister.
Back then, with just a single look from her, Xie Zhou had no choice but to obey.
Just as she sat down, several pale-gold talismans drifted out of Xie Zhou's sleeve, gently spinning around her. A warm spiritual energy instantly spread out, drying her damp robes, which had been soaked by the spiritual spring, until they were warm and fluffy.
Song Yao froze. Before she could react, Xie Zhou had already knelt on one knee before her.
With one knee resting on the bluestone slab and his white robes spreading across the fallen plum blossoms, he held a small jar of translucent white ointment between his fingers. His slender, well-defined hand gently clasped her ankle, exposing her wound.
Not only had the scratch from the wraiths failed to heal, but after being struck by the lightning tribulation, it had actually worsened.
For some reason, she panicked slightly. “Fourth Senior Brother, I can do it myself.”
“Don't move.”
“...”
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