Yi Ling sat inside the main hall of Snowfall Peak, regulating his breath. As his spiritual energy flowed slowly through each of his meridians, he remembered staying at the Great Perfection of the Spirit Transformation Stage for a long time in his past life. He had even once believed he would never be able to break through.
Back then, what exactly caused him to break through that bottleneck?
He calmed his mind and carefully recalled his memories from that period.
At that time, Cang Yu had already entered his sect as his disciple, and Luo Xingzhou had not yet started framing or fabricating false charges against him. Luo Xingzhou would merely set minor obstacles for Cang Yu during morning classes, but none of them were a major issue. Yi Ling simply treated it as normal competition between fellow disciples.
Later, they secretly snuck into the deep forest behind the mountain, where Cang Yu inadvertently contracted a deadly poison. Yi Ling used his spiritual energy to help force the poison out for him. It seemed to be right around that time that the shackles on his cultivation began to loosen.
Of course, Yi Ling did not believe it was the effect of that deadly poison. Looking back now, could it have been because his spiritual energy had intermingled with Cang Yu’s?
However, why would Cang Yu’s spiritual energy affect Yi Ling’s own cultivation? According to common sense, cultivators generally reject another person’s spiritual energy. Yi Ling had only resorted to that method because Cang Yu’s situation was critical back then; otherwise, he certainly would not have poured his own spiritual energy directly into Cang Yu’s meridians.
Yi Ling knit his brows tightly. He had no reason to test this theory now, as he could not guarantee whether Cang Yu’s life might be put in danger.
“E-Elder, ” Cang Yu called softly.
Yi Ling’s thoughts were interrupted. He slowly opened his eyes and turned his head to look.
It had taken Cang Yu a full hour and a half to walk up to the peak. Vast, endless snow fell on Snowfall Peak all year round, making it very suitable for Yi Ling, who possessed an Ice Spiritual Root, to cultivate. However, for Cang Yu, who was currently only at the First Layer of Qi Refining, it was still far too cold.
His nose was bright red from the frost, and his entire body was shivering uncontrollably.
Yi Ling remained silent.
He had been too deeply absorbed in his thoughts earlier and had actually forgotten to go down and fetch him up.
He stood up and walked over to Cang Yu. Stroking the storage ring on his right thumb with his fingertip, a Sunfire Stone appeared in his palm.
Yi Ling handed it to Cang Yu. “Use this to keep warm.”
On the surface, Cang Yu appeared calm and unruffled, but internally he was utterly shocked. Pretending to be composed, he accepted the Sunfire Stone, thinking to himself: A Sunfire Stone costs at least thirty thousand spiritual stones and is a top-tier material for forging swords, yet Yi Ling is using it so casually just to keep warm.
Although he had heard rumors about Yi Ling’s extravagant lifestyle in his past life, he had never had the chance to witness it with his own eyes. Only now did he realize the rumors were indeed true.
He lowered his head and whispered softly, “Thank you, Elder.”
Hearing this, Yi Ling gave a light chuckle. “Are you still calling me ‘Elder’ now?”
“Ah, I, this disciple,” Cang Yu opened his mouth several times, but he flushed so red with embarrassment that he could barely choke out a word. In the end, his eyes even turned red, glistening with two tears that hovered right on the brink of falling.
Yi Ling was stunned.
He silently reconsidered his actions just now and could not find any possibility that might have made Cang Yu feel wronged or sad. Although a look of confusion crossed his face, he still lifted his sleeve, intending to wipe away the tears for him.
Seeing Yi Ling’s raised hand, Cang Yu instinctively flinched backward and dodged it.
“You are afraid of me,” Yi Ling lowered his hand, his hibiscus-red eyes dipping into shadow. “Why are you so reluctant to become my disciple?”
“I am not! I just,” Cang Yu immediately spoke up to refute.
How could he not want to be Yi Ling’s disciple? But in his past life, he had racked his brains and exhausted all his efforts just to become an outer disciple, yet Yi Ling had never once looked him in the eye.
The only times he had been able to come into contact with Yi Ling in his past life were when he was expelled from Lingxiao Palace, and when Yi Ling personally suppressed him.
Even though there was immense suffering in his heart, his master had never believed him. Cang Yu could never forget those eyes of Yi Ling’s, filled with coldness and disappointment.
Cang Yu wanted to speak up and say that he had been reborn, only to discover that it felt as though a restriction had been placed upon him, leaving him completely unable to utter a single word about the matter.
He tried several times, but remaining unable to speak, he had no choice but to give up.
“This disciple merely feels that Master possesses such divine talent, whereas this disciple has virtually no aptitude for cultivation. I am somewhat overwhelmed by your favor.”
There was indeed no flaw to be found in Cang Yu’s words, but Yi Ling knit his brows slightly. He remembered that in his previous life, Cang Yu was utterly incapable of speaking such slick and diplomatic words. Where had he learned this from?
Moreover, when did he start caring about his own aptitude? What happened to that stubborn drive of his from before, when he was determined to join his sect even at the cost of his life?
However, since he had given an explanation, Yi Ling did not wish to dwell on it any further.
He raised his hand and lightly tapped Cang Yu’s forehead, saying, “Now that I accept you as my disciple, since your name is Yu, it shall take the meaning of an osprey soaring high into the sky. From this day forward, your Dao title shall be Xuan Yu. May your path to immortality be smooth and unhindered from now on, and may all things be free of taboos.”
In their past life, Cang Yu had only been his outer disciple, and the courtesy title Yi Ling had always wanted to give him was never granted until the very end.
A golden seal emerged following Yi Ling’s words, sinking into Cang Yu’s consciousness and carving itself upon his spiritual platform.
Immediately afterward, a force from the Heavenly Dao of this world surrounded the two of them, drawing forth the spiritual energy from within their meridians. The pure blue-white energy and the mottled five-colored energy intertwined, finally merging together before splitting into two again and integrating into their dantians.
The Master-Disciple Bond was established. From this moment onward, Cang Yu was his one and only personal disciple in this world.
Yi Ling walked outside the hall, summoned the Qingshuang Sword, stood upon it, and extended his hand toward Cang Yu. “Come here. We are going to Harmonize with the Light and Blend with the Dust.”
Cang Yu froze, staring at the hand Yi Ling had extended toward him.
His hand was slender and well-proportioned, like a carving of jade. Beneath his fair, pale skin, blue veins faintly showed, winding through like tiny rivulets in jade.
Cang Yu had once secretly observed Yi Ling reading ancient texts. His two spring-onion-white fingers would pinch the paper, his lowered eyes gleaming with a hibiscus hue, looking just like a banished immortal from a painting.
He carefully placed his hand into Yi Ling’s warm palm, feeling a faint, subtle touch of warmth. Cang Yu had to exert an immense effort to suppress the urge to rub the base of Yi Ling’s fingers; he merely held that hand gently and stood awkwardly on the sword.
The Qingshuang Sword hummed and vibrated, seemingly very excited that Cang Yu was standing on it.
Yi Ling looked down in mild surprise.
“Master, why are we going back?”
The corners of Yi Ling’s lips curled into a smile. “Naturally, there will be a good show to watch.”
He urged his spiritual energy forward, and the Qingshuang Sword emitted a faint white light. Giving off a clear sword ring, it promptly rose into the air.
“Ah!” This was Cang Yu’s first time riding a sword, let alone riding someone else’s. He instinctively reached out to grab the person in front of him to steady himself, but remembering that this person was Yi Ling, he immediately pulled his hand back the moment he touched him. “I am sorry, Master, I,”
“It is fine,” Yi Ling slowed the speed of the Qingshuang Sword. “If you cannot stand steadily, you may hold onto me.”
“What?”
Cang Yu was thoroughly shocked, but his body had already made the decision for him. Without a second thought, he hugged Yi Ling’s waist tightly and refused to let go. However, he used so much force that he could clearly feel Yi Ling’s body shudder.
Cang Yu’s face turned bright red, wanting to cry but having no tears. “This disciple is truly too afraid of falling down.” After all, at a height of several hundred yards, his entire body was shaking. If he fell, he would likely be smashed to pieces.
“It matters not.”
＊
Lu Yufeng was currently sitting on the high platform with a group of elders, watching the matches on the martial arena. In the middle of taking a sip of tea, he looked up and saw two figures clinging very closely together, flying toward them on Yi Ling’s prized Qingshuang Sword. He nearly knocked over the teacup in his hand.
Lu Yufeng thought to himself: As Yi Ling’s closest senior brother, even I have never been invited by him to ride that Qingshuang Sword. What is going on with this trash disciple he just accepted? How is he allowed to ride it?
The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. Wait, no, why is Yi Ling allowing his disciple to cling so closely to him? I clearly remember that when we were kids, I just touched the corner of Yi Ling’s clothes and he blasted me flying!
Lu Yufeng’s gaze glared fixatedly at the two of them until Yi Ling walked over and sat in the empty seat beside him.
Yi Ling communicated with him using his divine sense: “What are you doing, staring at me like that?”
Lu Yufeng glared fiercely at Cang Yu standing nearby, then looked back at Yi Ling, replying via divine sense as well: “Are you asking me when you already know the answer? Since when can your Qingshuang Sword carry other people?”
“Why can’t my disciple ride it? Master Yun Chen used his personal sword to carry us in the past as well.”
The moment Yi Ling brought up their master, the Sect Leader, Lu Yufeng was instantly left speechless. Yet, still refusing to concede, he slammed his teacup onto the table and spoke resentfully, “Valuing your disciple over your friend!”
Cang Yu stood silently to the side.
Yi Ling did not want to say anything more to him, so he changed the subject. “What stage has the tournament reached?”
“The top four disciples have already been decided,” Lu Yufeng leaned back, slumping into his chair with a complete lack of poise fitting for a Sect Leader. “That Luo Xingzhou is indeed very strong. What, do you regret not taking him as your disciple?”
Hearing this, both Yi Ling and Cang Yu’s breathing hitched.
Yi Ling thought: Luo Xingzhou still hasn’t given up on joining my sect. It seems I must do something about it.
Cang Yu thought: Sect Leader Lu is practically saying this on purpose for me to hear. However, he had no way to confirm whether the current Yi Ling truly would not accept Luo Xingzhou as a disciple. No matter from which aspect, Cang Yu was currently no match for Luo Xingzhou. Besides, a personal disciple was not restricted to just one. Yi Ling had never promised that he would only take him as a disciple in this life either.
Just as Yi Ling was about to speak, he suddenly caught a wave of emotion in his heart that did not belong to him: bitterness, sadness, and anger.
Catching a glimpse of Cang Yu’s pale expression out of the corner of his eye, he felt puzzled. Could these be Cang Yu’s emotions?
Thus, he tried speaking up, “I said I would not take him as a disciple, and I will only accept one personal disciple in this life.”
Immediately after, he felt an almost uncontrollable surge of joy and delight, nearly losing control of his composure to hide a smile. Beside him, even though Cang Yu was covering his mouth, he was visibly grinning.
Yi Ling thought: It seems these really are Cang Yu’s emotions.
Is this the effect of the Master-Disciple Bond? But since when did the Master-Disciple Bond have a function like this?
Lu Yufeng let out a “Ha!” and said, “Fine, fine, fine, I get it. But if the guy takes first place, it will not make sense if you do not accept him, right?”
Yi Ling nodded unconcernedly, “I naturally have my ways.”
His gaze swept over the martial arena and quickly found Luo Xingzhou.
As if sensing something, Luo Xingzhou happened to turn his head and meet his eyes, bowing very dutifully.
Remembering how Luo Xingzhou had smiled while making Cang Yu’s soul scatter into complete destruction in their past life, Yi Ling only felt sickened.
Just as he was preparing to calm his mind and think of a way to prevent Luo Xingzhou from becoming a personal disciple, a familiar voice suddenly sounded in his ears:
【Host, the target’s favorability toward you is currently at 45, which is already noticeably lower than his favorability toward ordinary people.】
Luo Xingzhou was shocked, conversing with the system in his mind: How is that possible? I have not even done anything yet! Could he know about what I did to Cang Yu before the Disciple Acceptance Ceremony started?
【Currently, we have not detected any abnormal behavior from the target, but fluctuations in favorability are normal.】
However, you mentioned his favorability toward ordinary people just now. What is his current favorability toward the male lead right now? Let me take a look.
【Understood. Querying target’s favorability toward Cang Yu… It is at 100.】
Wait a minute? Luo Xingzhou was completely rendered speechless. Leaving aside the massive gap in favorability between me and the male lead, what is with him starting at 100 right out of the gate? I did not even notice anything different about him!
It was the conversation between Luo Xingzhou and the “System.”
Yi Ling did not listen to the rest of the conversation, because he had unintentionally released his aura pressure, causing the surrounding Origin Infant Realm elders to be unable to sit steady and fall directly onto their knees. Meanwhile, his own left hand had almost crushed the storage ring on his right thumb.
It was a conversation between Luo Xingzhou and the “System.” Right before his death in his past life, Yi Ling had suddenly become able to hear their conversations, thereby learning that he was a “protagonist” in a storybook.
He had also clearly realized back then that Luo Xingzhou was nothing more than a heartless, ungrateful wolf.
Lu Yufeng realized something terrible was happening and quickly shielded Cang Yu. Although he still did not understand why Yi Ling was so set on accepting Cang Yu as a disciple, if Yi Ling accidentally crushed his own disciple to death with his aura pressure, he, as the senior brother and Sect Leader, would definitely be beaten up severely by Yi Ling.
Cang Yu was extremely surprised that he inexplicably felt exceptionally angry inside, yet could find no reason for it at all. The only person around him right now who seemed to be in a terrible mood was his master.
He could not help thinking: Could it be that after being reborn, I am able to sense Yi Ling’s emotions?
However, since I can feel such an obvious surge of rage, Master’s anger must be even worse.
Therefore, copying what he had seen other disciples do when their masters were angry in his past life, he knelt on the ground, holding up a cup of tea in both hands, and looked at Yi Ling with sincere eyes, saying, “Master, please do not be angry anymore. Please have some tea.”