Chapter 188: Disciple to a Golden Immortal
"Bai Suyuan, given your outstanding aptitude, you won't have to start off as an outer sect disciple like all other new disciples. Let me ask you this: are you willing to accept me as your master and become a direct disciple of mine?" Deputy Dao Lord Xiong asked in a gentle voice?
Bai Suyuan's mouth gaped open in shock, and she was completely rooted to the spot.
Right at this moment, a hazy voice suddenly rang out before spreading through the hall like waves of gentle, rippling water. "Xiong Shan, you're cultivating the laws of metal, while this child possesses the Moonlight Immortal Physique, so you're not suitable to serve as her mentor. Hand her over to me instead."
As soon as Han Li heard this voice, he felt as if had fallen into a boundless sea of flowers. His mouth and nose were completely filled with a floral aroma that intoxicated the mind.
However, he was able to instantly return to his senses thanks to a sudden jolt from his enormous spiritual sense.
A hint of frustration flashed through Deputy Dao Lord Xiong's eyes in the wake of this turn of events, but he quickly regained his composure.
Right at this moment, a ball of white light appeared out of thin air within the hall, and it was so bright that everyone was forced to avert their eyes.
In the next instant, the white light abruptly vanished, and a young woman in a palatial dress appeared on the stone platform.
The woman appeared to be in her thirties with an oval face and a set of features that looked as if they had been taken straight from a masterful piece of artwork. In particular, her eyes were extremely seductive, and her tight-fitting white robe hugged her voluptuous curves to perfection.
Her entire body was giving off an overwhelming aura of seduction, captivating the beholder and lulling them into countless lustful fantasies.
Han Li was stunned by the woman's incredibly seductive qualities, and he immediately averted his gaze, not daring to look at her any longer. At the same time, he began to circulate his spiritual sense, and a cool and refreshing sensation spread through his mind, snapping him back to his senses.
"Xiong Shan pays his respects to Dao Lord Yun," Deputy Dao Lord Xiong greeted as he cupped his fist in a salute.
Han Li was initially rather surprised to hear this, but he quickly realized that this was only to be expected. After all, only one of the 13 Golden Immortal Stage dao lords of the Blaze Dragon Dao could possess such a terrifyingly seductive aura.
He immediately extended a salute as well, while Qi Liang had already lowered his head in a deep bow, not daring to look at the white-robed woman at all.
Meanwhile, Bai Suyuan was staring at the woman in a complete daze, clearly already completely intoxicated by the woman's seductive aura.
It seemed that her seduction was effective on both men and women.
With a wave of the woman's sleeve, a hint of clarity immediately returned to Bai Suyuan's eyes.
She immediately noticed that Han Li and the others were all saluting the woman, and she hurriedly leaned forward to extend a bow as well, but the white-robed woman caught her before she could do so. "There's no need for such formalities, my child."
The woman gently pulled Bai Suyuan closer to her, and the more she looked at Bai Suyuan, the more pleased she became.
"Your name is Suyuan, right? Your Moonlight Immortal Physique pairs up quite nicely with my cultivation. Are you willing to become my disciple and cultivate under me?" the woman asked in a gentle voice.
Bai Suyuan immediately extended a deep bow upon hearing this. "I am. Suyuan pays her respects to her mistress."
"Great! From this day forth, you will be my fifth direct disciple. This fortune bracelet is a spirit treasure that I obtained some years ago, and I'm gifting it to you now in the hope that it'll protect you in your time of need."
A pleased smile appeared on the woman's face as she flipped a hand over to produce a white jade bracelet before slipping it onto Bai Suyuan's wrist. The bracelet was giving off astonishing spiritual power fluctuations, indicating that it was a top-grade spirit treasure.
Bai Suyuan was ecstatic, and she hurriedly expressed her gratitude. "Thank you, Mistress!"
Only then did the white-robed young woman turn to Deputy Dao Lord Xiong as she said, "I'm taking this child with me. Do you have any objections, Xiong Shan?"
"Of course now," Xiong Shan hurriedly replied with a smile. "Your cultivation art its a perfect match for her, so she's naturally much better off with you."
A faint smile appeared on the white-robed young woman, and she turned to Han Li and Qi Liang, with her gaze lingering momentarily on the former.
Xiong Shan noticed the white-robed young woman's gaze, and he immediately explained, "He's an itinerant cultivator by the name of Li Feiyu, and he's joined our sect using Blaze Dragon Token. I've just examined his aptitude."
The white-robed woman's gaze only lingered on Han Li for a moment before looking away in a disinterested manner as she said in a casual voice, "I see. I'll leave these matters to you then."
"Let's go, Suyuan." She latched onto Bai Suyuan's hand as she spoke, then swept a sleeve through the air, releasing a burst of gentle white light that enveloped both of them.
Bai Suyuan hurriedly turned to Han Li, but in the next instant, her vision was obscured by a flash of white light.
The white light then vanished in an instant, as did Bai Suyuan and the white-robed woman.
Xiong Shan's smile instantly faded following the woman's departure, and he turned to leave with a dark look on his face.
"Deputy Dao Lord Xiong, what role is to be assigned to Fellow Daoist Li?" Qi Liang hurriedly asked.
"Do I have to tell you how to do everything? Just get him to serve as an ordinary attendant in the inner sect!" Xiong Shan replied in a cold voice, paying no heed to whether he was offending Han Li with his abrasive demeanor.
As soon as his voice trailed off, he immediately vanished from the spot amid a flash of golden light.
Following Xiong Shan's departure, Han Li fell into deep thought with an absentminded look on his face.
"Everyone's fate is different on the path of cultivation. It's already a remarkable feat that you were able to reach the True Immortal Stage, so there's no need to be envious of others," Elder Qi cautioned.
Han Li faltered slightly upon hearing this, and he knew that Qi Liang had most likely misconstrued his contemplative expression, but he didn't bother to explain himself, merely nodding in response.
"Seeing as Deputy Dao Lord Xiong has instructed me to instate you as an inner sect attendant, I must inform you of some of the sect's rules. As for some of the more specific details, I'll update you on that later," Qi Liang said with a smile.
"Thank you, Elder Qi. May I ask what duties I have to perform as an attendant elder of the inner sect?" Han Li asked.
"There are two options available to you, the first of which is to complete three regular elder missions released by the sect every century. Of course, if you have sufficient merit points to offset the missions, then you won't have to complete them," Qi Liang explained.
"What's the second option?" Han Li asked.
"The second option is to do what I'm doing and perform some daily duties in a certain pavilion in the sect. All you need to do is perform these duties for one decade out of every century. However, in order to not affect their cultivation, many elders choose to perform these duties for 100 consecutive years so that they can spend the next 900 years focusing on cultivation," Qi Liang replied.
"If they don't want their duties to get in the way of their cultivation, then why don't they just use merit points to exempt themselves from those duties instead?" Han Li asked.
"Firstly, merit points are extremely precious to the elders and disciple of the Blaze Dragon Dao, so no one is willing to use them to offset missions. Secondly, the sect doesn't permit one to use their merit points to exempt oneself from their daily administrative duties," Qi Liang explained.
"If these merit points are considered to be so precious, then they must be very difficult to obtain, right, Elder Qi?" Han Li asked with a contemplative expression.
"Indeed. Most of the sect's disciples can generally only earn some accolade points by tending to spirit farms for several years at a time, whereas elders can earn some merit points by performing monthly administrative duties," Qi Liang replied with a nod.
"Then what if I choose to complete regular elder missions instead?" Han Li asked.
"Each regular elder mission requires one to perform different tasks, and they also vary in difficulty, so the number of merit points that can be earned from completing each mission naturally varies as well. Generally speaking, mission rewards range from around a dozen to over 100 merit points.
“Of course, if you make some special contributions to the sect, then you'll be rewarded with additional merit points. You'll become more familiar with this system once you've been in the inner sect for a while," Qi Liang explained in a patient manner.
After some contemplation, Han Li decided, "In that case, I think I'll select the first option for my first 100 years in the sect."
"That's the option that the majority of new elders choose. Come with me. The Abode Assignment Palace just so happens to be nearby as well. I'll take you there so you can select a cave abode," Qi Liang said with a smile.
He led Han Li out of the Ostentatious Palace as he spoke, then rose up into the air before flying toward a nearby mountain.
In contrast with the mountain where the Ostentatious Palace was situated, this mountain was far more lively and bustling.
A cluster of red buildings that took up a massive area had been constructed on the mountain summit, with hundreds of palatial structures among them. The giant plaza outside wasn't exactly completely packed, but there was definitely a huge number of people on it.
Streaks of light could occasionally be seen whizzing through the air, either descending onto or flying up from the plaza.
"As the name suggests, the elders and disciples of the Abode Assignment Palace oversee cave abode assignment duties, as well as the distribution of resources, so it's always one of the busiest places in the entire inner sect," Qi Liang introduced to Han Li after the two of them landed on the plaza.
"No wonder there are so many people here. Looks like you'll have to wait with me for quite some time," Han Li said in an apologetic manner.
"Not to worry. I'm close friends with Elder Yu of the Abode Assignment Palace, so I can take you to see him right away," Qi Liang replied with a smile.
"Thank you, Elder Qi."
As the two of them passed through the plaza, many of the disciples would greet Qi Liang upon seeing the elder robes that he was wearing, and Qi Liang would respond with slight nods of acknowledgement.
Through the palace gates, Han Li could see that this was indeed an extremely busy place.
Under Qi Liang's guidance, Han Li was taken to a hall situated in the deepest part of the area.
At this moment, there were seven or eight people in the hall engaged in a spirited discussion, seemingly arguing about something.
"Brother Yu!" Qi Liang called out as he stepped into the hall with Han Li.
A large head with a bright, rosy complexion emerged from behind the seven or eight arguing figures, and the head took a glance at Qi Liang and Han Li, then disappeared back behind the small crowd, immediately following which a loud voice rang out.
"Alright, all of you can go back for now. Come back tomorrow and I'll make a decision on your cave abode reassignment requests."
The disciples could only cease their argument upon hearing this, then took their leave before exiting the hall.
Elder Yu was a portly man with a large head, and he said, "It's been quite a while since you paid me a visit. Who's this?"
Despite his unremarkable appearance, Han Li could sense that Elder Yu was also a True Immortal cultivator.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢