Chapter 21: Disciple Ye Feng Pays Respects to His Master

Clang!

Liang Zhichao drew his precious sword just in time to block Zhu Lan’s attack.

He arched an eyebrow, looking somewhat surprised.

“Oh? So you actually have a Level 8 Qi Condensation cultivation. But no matter how strong you are, you’re losing to me today!”

Zhu Lan’s eyelids flickered.

She could tell the fat man’s weapon was significantly higher grade than hers.

The force of the strike vibrated through her sword, numbing her palm.

“How does it feel? Using your mundane weapon against a sword forged for 3,000 silver coins—the sensation in your hand isn’t pleasant, is it?”

Liang Zhichao acted unhurriedly, as if victory were already in his grasp.

“Even if a manure bucket is plated in gold, it’s still a manure bucket!”

Zhu Lan centered her breath and parried with a thrust, forcing Liang Zhichao back several meters.

“Your Level 7 Qi Condensation cultivation is so hollow that I could probably kill you easily even if I were only at Level 6.”

After a few rounds of exchange, Zhu Lan immediately noticed that his footwork was unsteady.

His cultivation wasn’t solid at all; it was clearly the result of piling on too many medicinal pills.

Being poked in his sore spot, Liang Zhichao could no longer maintain his facade of calm.

His face contorted, his fat squeezing together in rage.

“Sharp-tongued brat! Once you’re begging for mercy beneath me, I’ll see if you can still talk this big!”

Liang Zhichao launched a reckless, boar-like charge, wildly swinging his sword.

For a moment, Zhu Lan truly couldn’t find an opening to get close.

Her sword was simply too low-quality.

After just two clashes, the blade she had bought for thirty silver coins was already covered in cracks.

She was at a severe disadvantage regarding weapon strength.

Liang Zhichao noticed this as well, and his face instantly filled with smugness again.

“You’re just a poor rogue cultivator. How can you withstand a sword forged for 3,000 silver?”

He swung his sword around like a club.

With two loud cracks, Zhu Lan’s sword shattered completely.

Liang Zhichao pressed forward, forcing her toward the edge of the arena.

“Hahahaha! I’ve changed my mind! Today, I’m not just going to knock you off this stage and ruin your chance to join the Tianyan Sect. Later, I’m going to tie you up in my family’s secret chamber and torture you day and night!”

Liang Zhichao lost his patience.

He channeled his turbulent spiritual energy into his sword.

“Take this! My Liang family’s ancestral sword technique—[Enhanced Strike]!”

Zhu Lan was caught in a dilemma.

Reason told her it was best not to expose the Seven Slaying Technique in such a crowded place, but the fat man was closing in.

If she didn’t use it, she might really be knocked out of the arena.

‘I have no choice but to use the Seven Slaying Technique…’

Just as Zhu Lan was about to activate the technique, a tiny pebble—so small it was almost invisible—suddenly flew from below the stage.

It struck the fat man’s left calf.

“Agh!”

Liang Zhichao instantly lost his balance and let out a scream.

The spiritual energy he had gathered dissipated entirely.

‘Now’s my chance!’

Seeing Liang Zhichao stumble, Zhu Lan didn’t hesitate.

She seized the opportunity and kicked him right off the arena.

“Zhu Lan wins.”

The Tianyan Sect disciple acting as the referee gave Ye Feng, who was standing below the stage, a deep look but said nothing.

There was no need to offend a certain genius who was destined for greatness just for the sake of a hollowed-out waste who relied on pills.

Due to her perspective, Zhu Lan hadn’t seen the pebble.

Although she didn’t understand why Liang Zhichao had suddenly lost his balance, she could only attribute it to him being so physically weak that he had tripped himself up while trying to use a big move.

“All matches have concluded. The disciples qualified to enter the Tianyan Sect have been decided. Those who failed shouldn’t be too discouraged; our Tianyan Sect holds new recruitment every year…”

It was over.

The heavy stone in Zhu Lan’s heart finally dropped.

She realized the downside of not having any offensive cultivation techniques.

She could only rely on raw spiritual energy to fight, and since she couldn’t use the Seven Slaying Technique in public, her frontal combat power was quite low.

The rest of the process was relatively simple.

The failed candidates were sent back to Liangchuan City.

The disciples who had stood out during the arena assessments were highly regarded and given the right to choose their own masters.

The Sect Master of the Tianyan Sect was a vigorous-looking middle-aged man.

He took the initiative, wanting to take Ye Feng as his disciple.

To everyone’s surprise, Ye Feng actually refused!

Beneath the Sect Master were seven Peak Masters.

Zhu Lan didn’t know who Ye Feng eventually chose as his master.

In any case, an inconspicuous bit of cannon fodder like her had to follow the general assignment.

In the end, she was assigned to Spirit Beast Peak, under the Peak Master of Spirit Beast Peak.

Soon, a disciple led her to collect her uniform, disciple token, and monthly stipend.

The affairs within the sect were similar to the patterns in the other webnovels Zhu Lan had read.

…

“What?! The Master’s name is Fairy Xueli?!”

Zhu Lan blurted out in shock.

“What’s wrong with Master?” a refined woman dressed in white asked, looking puzzled.

“Nothing, it’s nothing. Senior Sister, I’ve just heard that our Master, Fairy Xueli, is exceptionally beautiful and that her beast-taming skills are praised by everyone.”

Zhu Lan faked her way through the explanation, but her heart was in absolute turmoil.

‘Fairy Xueli is also one of the protagonist’s harem members in the original novel.’

‘Not only that, but Fairy Xueli has a daughter, and she was also taken into the protagonist’s harem!!!’

‘A mother-daughter pair!’

‘That protagonist is a literal stallion machine who only knows how to fire his cannon whenever and wherever.

Who knows how many beautiful women he has ruined!’

‘In the original text, as long as a woman was mentioned as having “extraordinary beauty,” she basically had a thing with the protagonist.’

‘The stallion machine is truly terrifying.’

While Zhu Lan was lost in thought, a transmission talisman sounded beside them: “Come to my peak. I have matters to discuss.”

“Let’s go. Master is looking for us.”

….

“Bai Xue, Little Lan, a newcomer has joined our Spirit Beast Peak today.”

Inside a fairly luxurious building, Fairy Xueli sat in the high seat, explaining things to the two disciples kneeling before her.

“Master, we’re getting a third member?” Bai Xue asked excitedly.

“Usually, there are too few people on Spirit Beast Peak—just you and me. Now that the cute and pretty Little Lan is here, is the newcomer a Junior Brother or a Junior Sister?”

Fairy Xueli shook her head.

“Neither. From today on, he is your Eldest Senior Brother.”

Fairy Xueli’s words shocked both Bai Xue and Zhu Lan.

“Bai Xue, from now on, you are the second disciple. Little Lan, you are the third.”

Zhu Lan and her Senior Sister were both stunned.

“Master, shouldn’t it be based on the order of joining the sect…”

“Disciple Ye Feng pays his respects to Master.”

Ye Feng entered from outside and knelt beside Zhu Lan to pay his respects.

‘The protagonist?!’

“You…” Zhu Lan started to speak but caught herself immediately.

Fairy Xueli felt a bit of a headache looking at him.

“The Sect Master wanted to take you in, yet you refused. Why come to our Spirit Beast Peak? I’ve heard of your talent, but we study the Dao of Spirit Beasts. Are you actually interested in this path?”

Ye Feng bowed respectfully.

“In response to Master: yes. I, Ye Feng, wish to study the Dao of Spirit Beasts.”

Having lived for so long, Fairy Xueli could naturally tell that Zhu Lan and Ye Feng seemed to have a prior relationship.

She saw through it but didn’t expose them.

“In that case, settle into my lineage and focus on your studies. The Sect Master said you should be the Eldest Senior Brother, which isn’t an issue. Today’s gathering is just so you fellow disciples can get to know each other. If there’s nothing else, you are dismissed.”