Chapter 23: A New Master

Walking deeper into the hall, Gu Yuan soon came face to face with a beautiful woman dressed in black.

She appeared elegant, her posture graceful and her expression calm. Yet that was only the surface, Gu Yuan could sense a deep, bone-chilling coldness seeping from her very being. Not killing intent like the disciples of the Disciplinary Hall, but somehow, it was still far more terrifying.

Gu Yuan felt like crying, yet no tears come out.

When Elder Luo Yunjin turned her icy-blue eyes toward him, Gu Yuan immediately bowed.

"Gu Yuan humbly greets Elder Luo Yunjin."

Qin Lan hurriedly followed with her own greeting before introducing him.

"This is Junior Brother Gu Yuan, who entered the inner sect today. After asking him what kind of elder he wished to follow, he expressed a desire to come under Elder Luo Yunjin’s tutelage, so I brought him here."

Please refuse. Please refuse... Gu Yuan silently prayed.

Unfortunately, Luo Yunjin showed no intention of refusing him outright. Instead, she looked at him with a faint trace of curiosity in her eyes.

"Why do you want to become my disciple?"

Luo Yunjin had already heard of Gu Yuan. After all, her master, Ji Yue, had once shown some concern toward this young man. Now that he had actually appeared before her, she couldn’t help but wonder what kind of cultivator he was.

Gu Yuan took a breath, before he sincerely answered.

"I’ve heard the tales of Elder’s ruthless methods during the assault on the Crimson Flame Sect, and this disciple has long since admired that kind of strength."

He paused, then added with an almost admiring tone, "Unfortunately, I could never be like that."

Qin Lan, standing at the side, immediately gave him a strange look.

This was rather different from the way Gu Yuan had described his requirements earlier.

Still, she wisely kept her mouth shut.

Luo Yunjin’s impression of him, meanwhile, seemed to drop slightly.

"So you wish to become someone like me?"

Gu Yuan’s heart tightened... that wasn’t what he meant at all.

"I only wish to admire Elder from up close."

He said it with a completely serious expression.

What he meant was simple enough. He didn’t want to become ruthless, nor did he have any interest in charging into battle whenever there was an opportunity. But obviously, telling that to an elder of the Black Desolation Sect would be rather unwise.

So, he would simply admire her... from a safe distance.

Luo Yunjin studied him for a moment before finally nodding.

"Qin Lan, you may leave."

Despite feeling that something about the exchange was strange, Qin Lan was relieved to see that Gu Yuan had not been rejected. Her task was complete, so she offered Luo Yunjin a respectful bow and withdrew, leaving the two of them alone in the hall.

The moment Qin Lan disappeared from sight, Gu Yuan’s face seemed to lose all color.

He had actually been accepted.

More importantly, the contempt in Luo Yunjin’s eyes was so obvious that Gu Yuan couldn’t understand why she had agreed to take him as her disciple in the first place.

Before he could make sense of it, Luo Yunjin’s cold gaze settled on him.

"Aren’t you going to kneel and acknowledge me as your master?"

Gu Yuan immediately came back to his senses and knelt without hesitation.

"Disciple Gu Yuan greets Master."

For a moment, the hall fell silent, with Gu Yuan kneeling before Luo Yunjin while she simply looked down at him.

"Stand up."

Gu Yuan rose, and Luo Yunjin continued, "What weapon technique do you cultivate? Attack me. Let me see your ability."

Gu Yuan nodded. He certainly wasn’t going to reveal the Heaven Rend Saber Technique this soon. Taking a mortal saber from his storage bag, he raised it and executed the Basic Saber Form.

Although he deliberately held back, the attack still carried the strength of the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Yet, Luo Yunjin didn’t even bother to dodge. She simply raised two slender fingers and caught the blade between them.

Gu Yuan’s eyes twitched.

"Is this the only weapon technique you know?"

"Yes." He answered without the slightest hesitation.

Luo Yunjin flicked the saber away with her fingers before continuing, "I have two techniques. One is a weapon technique, and the other is a movement technique. As my disciple, you may choose one of them. Which do you want?"

Gu Yuan’s heart immediately brightened. A technique from an elder of her level, and he could simply choose one for free?

Still, he didn’t let his excitement show.

"May I ask what rank they are?"

"Both are at Top Profound grade."

"Then I’ll take the movement technique."

A trace of disappointment flashed through Luo Yunjin’s eyes, but she didn’t comment on his choice. With a wave of her hand, a crystal slip flew toward Gu Yuan, followed by a token bearing the mark of her disciple.

Gu Yuan caught both and immediately bowed.

"Thank you, Master."

Having received a technique for free, Gu Yuan’s courage grew a little. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Master, do you have a Metal Qi cultivation technique? The one I’m currently cultivating is rather low grade. If you do, I can take that instead of the movement technique."

Luo Yunjin shook her head.

"No. I don’t have any. However, if you cultivate diligently and show satisfactory progress, I will look for a suitable technique for you from the Scripture Pavilion later."

She continued in a calm, matter-of-fact tone.

"Your senior sister lives in this hall. You can stay here as well. Find an empty room and settle in. As for your registration as an inner sect disciple, you’ll need to complete that yourself later. If you don’t know where to go, ask your senior sister."

She paused briefly before adding, "Other than that, you are free to do as you wish. Focus on your cultivation and don’t cause trouble. You are still required to complete your allotted mission once every ten years, but aside from that, I won’t interfere with your affairs."

"And if you encounter any problems in your cultivation, you may come and ask me."

With that, Luo Yunjin had made it clear that their conversation was over.

Gu Yuan naturally didn’t linger.

"Thank you, Master."

After giving her another bow, he turned and left.

The hall was quiet as he walked through it, and before long, Gu Yuan found an unused room tucked away in an inconspicuous corner. It was simple and empty, exactly what he wanted, so he decided to take it.

"Maybe being under Elder Luo Yunjin isn’t so bad after all."

He sat down on the floor and muttered to himself.

At first, he had been worried that becoming Luo Yunjin’s disciple would mean being dragged into battles whenever she decided to go to war. Given the fact that she had personally participated in the attack on the Crimson Flame Sect, that had seemed like a very real possibility.

But now, it seemed his worries had been unnecessary.

Shaking his head, Gu Yuan turned his attention to the crystal slip he had just received from his new master.

It was a Profound grade technique, only one step below the Earth grade. Compared with the Heaven-grade saber technique he cultivated and the Heaven-grade treasure he now possessed, it might not sound particularly impressive.

But Gu Yuan was only at the Foundation Establishment Realm.

For someone at his current level, a Top Profound grade movement technique was still extremely valuable.

He infused the crystal slip with his Spiritual Sense, and the contents of the technique immediately flowed into his mind.

Nine Phantom Steps.

A movement technique that emphasized lightness, unpredictability, and sudden changes in direction. When cultivated to a high level, the user could move at tremendous speed while leaving behind multiple afterimages, eventually creating nine phantom figures that could confuse an opponent’s senses.

Gu Yuan carefully went through its contents, and his eyes gradually brightened.

Although it was only Profound Rank, its practicality was excellent.

It could be used to evade attacks, escape from dangerous situations, close the distance with an enemy, or suddenly change direction in the middle of a battle. For a cultivator who valued his life as much as Gu Yuan did, there was hardly anything more important than having a good movement technique.

"Not bad."

Satisfied, Gu Yuan spent some more time studying Nine Phantom Steps before putting it aside and turning his attention toward his cultivation.

After entering the inner sect, he intended to continue honing his Artifact Forging skills. That hadn’t changed.

However, he had just learned that inner sect disciples needed to complete only one mandatory missions every ten years, rather than three ones every year like the outer sect.

With such a long period of freedom, Gu Yuan decided that he might as well focus on improving his cultivation first.

As the Orb of Creation continued to quietly and steadily strengthen his Spiritual Root, his cultivation speed had been increasing little by little. Although his Spiritual Root had yet to advance from the Second Grade to the First Grade, Gu Yuan could clearly feel the difference.

At this rate, perhaps another five years would be enough for his Spiritual Root to undergo its first transformation.

Moreover, now that he had sat down and truly calmed himself to cultivate, he noticed something else. The Spirit Qi within this hall was more than five times denser than what he had experienced in the outer sect.

With such an environment, his cultivation speed would increase considerably, and he couldn’t help but have some thoughts.

If he continued cultivating here for ten years, how far could he advance? Could he perhaps break through into the Golden Core Realm before then?

Once he reached the Golden Core Realm, wouldn’t completing his mandatory mission become much easier? The more Gu Yuan thought about it, the more feasible the idea seemed.

So, he quietly set himself a goal.

Break through into the Golden Core Realm within nine years.