Li Yingling's icy expression matched her ruthless words.
Li Xingtian silently turned his head to look at Li Yingling. If her plate hadn't contained a half-eaten rabbit head, he might have been utterly ashamed.
But...
Still, Li Xingtian opened his mouth to explain, "It's not that I don't appreciate your kindness, but I have many things to do and can't stay in the sect for long."
"Otherwise, I would have agreed to your offer earlier. I understand that you didn't take a fancy to me for any particular reason but wanted to save my life by taking me as your disciple."
Hearing Li Xingtian's sincere explanation, Chu Xingchen nodded in agreement:
"Ordinary sects do like to bind their disciples tightly."
Halfway through his words, Chu Xingchen's tone shifted as he leisurely added, "But our Dao Alliance is different. As long as your heart is with the sect, you can go anywhere under the heavens."
Hearing this, Li Xingtian glanced at the delicious-looking rabbit in front of him and, without hesitation, picked up his chopsticks.
He wasn't oblivious to the underlying message from his senior. A disciple it is, then.
Repaying kindness was one of Li Xingtian's principles, and perhaps becoming a disciple was the true opportunity for rebirth after his near-death experience.
If this sect turned out to be trash, he could always find a way to escape again.
Taking a small bite, he was stunned.
The moment the rabbit meat entered his mouth, Li Xingtian felt it was the most delicious rabbit he had ever tasted.
Indeed, the more expensive the rabbit, the better it tasted. Li Xingtian couldn't shake the feeling that he had sold himself for a rabbit.
With a smile, he praised, "Master, putting everything else aside, your cooking skills are truly remarkable."
[Disciple successfully recruited]
[Second Disciple: Li Xingtian]
[Reward issued: Primordial Demon Bone Body Refinement Divine Art]
[To be used in conjunction with the Heavenly Demon Physique]
[Task One Completed: Reward - Spirit Gathering Formation]
[All rewards have been placed in the system inventory]
Seeing the system's summary page, Chu Xingchen nodded with satisfaction:
"If you like it, eat more."
Li Xingtian responded respectfully, "Yes, Master."
Li Yingling, seeing Li Xingtian's newfound humility, couldn't help but cough lightly and straighten her posture, offering words of encouragement:
"As the second disciple of our master, you must work hard and not disappoint."
Understanding the intentions of his senior sister, Li Xingtian quickly cupped his hands and replied,
"Understood. I will certainly not let Senior Sister down."
A satisfied expression appeared on Li Yingling's face.
This new junior brother was quite perceptive. She would look out for him in the future.
After all, he had almost lost his life just a day after leaving the sect. He must not be the brightest.
She couldn't figure out what the master saw in him, but then again, perhaps the sect was just that desperate for members.
Still, this was Li Yingling's first time being a senior sister, and the thought of it filled her with excitement.
Her gaze drifted toward the master, expecting him to relax and smile now.
But the reality was quite the opposite. The master's face showed a trace of worry...
What was going on?
Li Yingling wasn't the only one who noticed this; Li Xingtian also caught it.
Li Yingling cautiously called out, "Master?"
Hearing her call, Chu Xingchen closed the system panel in front of him and turned to Li Yingling:
"What is it?"
"Master, are you alright?"
"Why wouldn't I be?"
"If you're fine, why did you look so troubled earlier..."
Realizing that his earlier expression had been noticed, Chu Xingchen quickly explained,
"Oh... I was just studying your junior brother's cultivation technique."
Li Xingtian immediately interjected, "Master, there's no need. I have my own cultivation technique."
Chu Xingchen didn't elaborate further but simply extracted the Primordial Demon Bone Body Refinement Divine Art from the system.
A book with a blood-red cover materialized in Chu Xingchen's hands, and he handed it directly to Li Xingtian, reassuring him:
"It's fine. Take a look at this technique first. If you find it unsuitable, you can continue with your own."
Relieved that it wasn't a mandatory requirement, Li Xingtian accepted the book, which faintly exuded a bloody aura.
After handing the book to Li Xingtian, Chu Xingchen silently got up and returned to his wooden plank to lie down.
The two disciples exchanged a puzzled glance before looking back at their master.
Li Xingtian raised an eyebrow, silently asking with his eyes:
[What's wrong with Master?]
Li Yingling understood the look but simply smiled slightly before continuing to nibble on her rabbit head.
If I knew what was wrong with Master, I wouldn't have asked about his troubled expression earlier.
This junior brother... not the sharpest tool in the shed.
Li Xingtian was left scratching his head but said nothing. He lowered his gaze to the dark red book in his hands.
The characters on the cover were written with a majestic and imposing aura, tinged with a hint of killing intent.
Curious, he touched the cover, only to find it was made of ordinary paper.
A copied version? But why does it carry this bloody scent?
Without overthinking it, Li Xingtian flipped open the first page.
Immediately, his mind was shaken. He rapidly scanned the contents, flipping to the second page in no time.
The more he read, the more astonished he became.
Seeing his shocked expression, Li Yingling adopted a knowing tone to reassure him:
"Junior Brother, it's normal for cultivation techniques to go through many revisions. Some parts might be unclear, but don't worry. Just practice boldly."
Li Xingtian silently looked up at Li Yingling, then glanced back at Chu Xingchen lying on the wooden plank.
In a low voice, he asked incredulously, "Senior Sister... is our Dao Alliance a demonic sect?"
Frowning, Li Yingling retorted, "A demonic sect? What nonsense are you spouting? We practice orthodox techniques. There's nothing demonic about us."
Li Xingtian said nothing but silently handed the Primordial Demon Bone Body Refinement Divine Art to Li Yingling.
Taking the cultivation manual, Li Yingling curiously flipped open the first page and began reading.
The characters were clear, the strokes powerful, and the handwriting was neat—clearly the work of a master calligrapher.
What's wrong with this book? At first glance, it looks far superior to mine.
With this thought, Li Yingling continued reading, and soon she too was filled with trepidation.
After flipping through a few pages, she shoved the book back into Li Xingtian's hands.
Damn it! What kind of cultivation technique is this bloody?
"Senior Sister?!"
"Cough, Senior Sister is tired. I'm going to bed. You can find a spot to rest."
Li Yingling didn't even finish the half-eaten rabbit head. She quickly walked to her bed, pushed aside the wooden partition blocking her view, and went inside before closing the partition again.
Chu Xingchen, being a Golden Core cultivator, naturally overheard their conversation: "That book is not a demonic technique."
Li Xingtian looked down at the contents again—during the Foundation Establishment stage, one must first kill a thousand blood sacrifices, dismember their bodies, and refine their bones.
"Master... don't you think your definition of 'demonic' is a bit too lenient?"
"Blood sacrifices don't necessarily have to be humans. We can just find a few spiritless beasts in the forest ten miles away to make up the numbers."
Hearing this, Li Xingtian looked back at the book in his hands. If what the master said was true and substitutions were allowed, then this technique was far more powerful than the one he had practiced in his previous life.
Moreover, it was perfectly suited to his Heavenly Demon Physique, which he had fused with the Thousand-Year Bone Jade.
Li Xingtian wasn't one to dwell on things. Since he had to use blood sacrifices during the Qi Refinement stage anyway, he might as well try this technique after refining the Thousand-Year Bone Jade. If it didn't work out... he could always stop practicing it.
Li Xingtian's worries vanished.
But Chu Xingchen's did not. His earlier troubled expression had a reason.
The system's reward, the Spirit Gathering Formation, was just a blueprint...
It wasn't something that could be placed anywhere after extraction, without consuming materials or requiring manual effort.
Nor was it something that would magically appear once activated.
The Spirit Gathering Formation was simply a blueprint!
Not only did he have to gather the materials and spirit stones himself, but he also had to build it from scratch.
The blueprint's only use was to meticulously guide him on how to construct it.
How infuriating!
Where was he supposed to get the money and spirit stones to build this thing?
Would the True Martial Hall also just be a blueprint, requiring him to build it himself?
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
