Starting with a Debt of 67 Million

Since the other party was so frank and had spilled all their dark history at once.

What else was there to say?

He was giving in.

"Eldest Senior Brother, rest assured."

Ye Shu said with a sincere expression, "I am by no means someone who breaks his promises. Since I said I would join the Profound Heaven Sword Lineage, I naturally won't look down on you just because you've fallen on hard times. As the saying goes, you follow whatever path you've chosen. Once a chess piece is placed on the board, there is no taking it back."

"Good! As expected of our Little Junior Brother."

Jian Wuhen patted his shoulder, sheathed the longsword he had drawn halfway, and smiled gently.

"Entering our Profound Heaven Sword Lineage makes us family."

"Don't worry, since you are willing to join, we will never mistreat you. If you need anything in the future, just ask."

"And don't be afraid of anyone bullying you."

"In this Azure Mystery Sect, your senior brother has your back."

Ye Shu nodded, but secretly grumbled in his heart: "These words sound so familiar. I feel like in my previous life, when I just started working at BYD, the workshop director fed me the exact same line of nonsense."

Regardless, he had entered a den of thieves.

Since he was already here.

He might as well make the best of it.

Just then, Xiao Qingli, who had been hiding behind Ye Shu the whole time, raised her hand, blinked her big eyes, and asked in a crisp voice:

"Then, then, Eldest Senior Brother!"

"Since your master owed so much money, why didn't you just switch allegiances? If a disciple has to pay a master's debt, wouldn't it be fine if you just stopped being his disciples?"

This question also voiced Ye Shu's inner thoughts.

He was also very curious. What made this group of people so dead-set on staying?

It must be some unforgettable story, right?

But Jian Wuhen's answer was quite simple.

"The prerequisite for not inheriting the debt is not accepting the favors."

"Since we enjoyed the blessings he brought, naturally we must also bear the debts he left behind."

"That... makes so much sense..."

Xiao Qingli looked at Jian Wuhen with some admiration, feeling that he was just like her big brother.

He was the kind of person who took responsibility.

Even Ye Shu had to admit that this Eldest Senior Brother made some sense.

However...

"So, Eldest Senior Brother, exactly how much money did our master owe?"

Ye Shu rubbed his hands together, asking the question he cared about the most.

"Uh... well, it's actually not that much." Jian Wuhen coughed dryly. "Just a mere sixty-seven million spirit stones."

"How much?!!!"

Ye Shu's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

Over sixty million?

Even if he sold Xiaobai, he wouldn't be able to pay that off!

"Big Brother, is that a lot?" Seeing his terrified expression, Xiao Qingli was a bit puzzled.

"Let me put it this way."

Ye Shu thought for a moment and gave an analogy.

"Assuming I go sell my body right now, and I can earn fifty spirit stones a time, doing it ten times a day. For sixty-seven million spirit stones, I would have to sell myself for a full three hundred and seventy years to pay it off."

"Three hundred and seventy years?!"

Xiao Qingli gasped.

Didn't that mean she wouldn't be able to consummate her marriage with her big brother for a whole three hundred and seventy years?

By the time her big brother paid off the debt, she would be old.

She wouldn't be pretty anymore.

She didn't want that at all!!!

"Big Brother, how about we secretly run away?" Xiao Qingli quietly tugged at Ye Shu's sleeve.

Ye Shu: "........"

Did her attitude really change that fast?

"Don't be afraid." He gently patted Qingli's little hand and whispered, "It's been so long. Even if they haven't paid off most of it, they should have paid off a good chunk."

After saying that, he looked up at Jian Wuhen.

"Senior Brother, then how many spirit stones does our Profound Heaven Sword Lineage still owe the sect right now?"

"Sixty-seven million."

"???"

Ye Shu and Xiao Qingli's eyes widened at the same time.

They hadn't paid back a single cent.

Seeing this, Jian Wuhen sighed helplessly.

He put his hands behind his back, his eyes looking melancholic.

"You both know that as cultivators, the resources required for cultivation are immense."

"And the situation of our peak is rather special."

He pointed at Lu Shouzhuo, who was currently chopping wood: "Shouzhuo has a wooden personality and is an honest person. Master said he has a clear sword heart, but in reality, he just has no guile. He is straightforward and wants to spar with anyone he meets. Letting him go out would likely cause trouble."

"As for Jinghong..."

He glanced at Chu Jinghong, who was hiding in the corner.

"Don't be fooled by his unreliable appearance."

"In fact, he is the one among us with the most hope of becoming an immortal. He reached Qi Condensation at three, Foundation Establishment at nine, and Golden Core at fifteen. He has never encountered any bottlenecks along the way."

"Master said that Jinghong possesses a pure, childlike heart."

"As long as he continues to cultivate step by step like this, he is destined to become an immortal. Therefore, Master never let him leave the mountain gate for even half a step. Even if he had to go out, Master would bring him along."

"Even now, I am unwilling to let him take risks."

"Normally, I go out alone to take on sect missions, letting them stay at home to watch the door. Coupled with the resources needed for cultivation, the bits and pieces left over are only enough to pay the interest."

"So that's how it is."

Ye Shu was stunned. Who would have thought that the careless, seemingly unreliable Chu Jinghong was actually a figure destined to become an immortal in the future?

It was no wonder he was a bit neurotic.

Because he was destined to become an immortal, he was instead imprisoned in this small courtyard, unable to leave.

"Alright."

Ye Shu nodded somewhat helplessly.

Since things had come to this, what else was there to say? Being in debt was still better than being stabbed in the middle of the night.

"Oh right, I forgot to tell you."

Jian Wuhen seemed to have suddenly remembered something and spoke up, "Because Master is no longer around, our Profound Heaven Sword Lineage doesn't have a mountain peak."

"No mountain peak?"

Ye Shu was taken aback. "Then what was that massive mountain gate I just saw?"

"That is the mountain gate of our Azure Mystery Sect, didn't you know?" Jian Wuhen looked at him with a strange expression. "Why do you think we live here? Since we don't have a mountain peak anyway, we just live right by the main gate. As a bonus, we can earn some spirit stones for guarding the gate."

Ye Shu's mouth twitched.

So he was starting off with a debt of sixty-seven million, and they didn't even have their own territory?

"Even though we're down and out, I still must give you a welcome gift."

Jian Wuhen extended a hand toward him, and in his palm rested a crystal-clear jade pendant.

"I don't have much, nor do I have spirit stones."

"This is a protective jade pendant Master gave me when I was young. It has accompanied me for thirty years. This item contains Master's peak sword intent from thirty years ago."

"Anyone below the Void Return realm can be slain with a single strike from it."

"Nowadays, it doesn't have much use for me, serving at most as a keepsake. I'll give it to you."

Ye Shu froze for a moment.

Such a precious item, just given away like that?

But he didn't stand on ceremony either. This item was indeed a rare treasure for him right now. He took the jade pendant, carefully stored it away, and then cupped his hands toward Jian Wuhen.

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

"No need for formalities."

Jian Wuhen waved his hand and continued speaking.

"In half a month, the sect will hold a disciple recruitment ceremony. You should go through the motions there, get to know some faces, and let the others know that you belong to my Profound Heaven Sword Lineage."

"For this half a month, you can just cultivate here first."

After saying that, Jian Wuhen waved his hand somewhat wearily: "I still have other tasks to do tonight. I'll head back to rest first; make yourselves at home."

Looking at Jian Wuhen's retreating back.

Ye Shu couldn't help but feel that he was looking at his past self from his previous life, forced to work desperately just to make a living and pay off debts.

"From now on, we have a home too."

He withdrew his gaze, looked at the few small wooden cabins, and sighed with emotion before rubbing Xiao Qingli's head.

"Let's go. It's time to build a house of our own."

"Yay!!"

"Qingli wants to share a room with Big Brother!"