The light from the Luminous Stone scattered within the Cave, illuminating the young man's tense face, his forehead glistening with sweat.
Facing the being before him, whose depth he couldn't fathom, Xiao Yan didn't even dare to breathe heavily. He held his breath, waiting for his fate to be decided.
This kind of waiting, where resistance was impossible and only judgment awaited, truly tested one's composure. Zhao Li had done nothing, yet Xiao Yan felt an immense pressure.
Seeing Xiao Yan's nervous demeanor, waiting for his fate, Zhao Li smiled inwardly. No matter what happens in the future, right now he really is just a Little Guy who's just starting out.
He hadn't intended to scare Xiao Yan just now. He had simply been thinking too deeply and genuinely hadn't noticed Xiao Yan, who was still a Nobody at this point. At this stage, even if Xiao Yan stood there and let him hit him, he wouldn't be able to break through his defenses.
He seemed to just realize this, looking at Xiao Yan, causing Xiao Yan to feel that absurd sensation again – his gaze was clearly on him, yet it definitely wasn't on him!
Xiao Yan was quite filled with Doubt, completely unable to understand what this big shot meant. As he was thinking, within the Cave, Zhao Li suddenly said:
"What? An old friend is here, aren't you going to meet him?"
An old friend, who? Me? Impossible. Then... Master Pharmacist!
Xiao Yan's mind raced upon hearing Zhao Li's cryptic words. He wasn't completely foolish after all. Although he hadn't initially thought of Yao Chen, there were only a few people here. If it wasn't him, it could only be Yao Chen. In this not-so-spacious Cave, which he could almost see through at a glance, it wasn't possible that it was already occupied by people he couldn't see, was it?
Involuntarily, Xiao Yan shivered. As an ordinary person who had transmigrated from Earth, he naturally had some fear of ghosts and spirits.
But he quickly reacted. If there were ghosts, Master Pharmacist should be the King of ghosts. Since he spent every day with him, there really seemed to be no need to fear such things.
As if to specifically verify his guess, before he could think further, a ball of white mist appeared from the Storage Ring, then stopped in the air, slowly condensing into a human figure, until it looked almost indistinguishable from a real living being.
Then, in Xiao Yan's dark eyes, his pupils involuntarily constricted. Master Pharmacist, who was like a deity in his eyes, actually bowed to that mysterious person as a disciple!
"Yao Chen thanks Teacher for the grace of rebirth."
As soon as Yao Chen appeared, he respectfully performed a great bow towards Zhao Li.
Seeing Master Pharmacist's respectful actions and hearing the address in his words, Xiao Yan was stunned. He seemed to be analyzing the meaning contained within the words, and then his heart suddenly leaped. This terrifying person was actually Master Pharmacist's Master, then...
His heart, which had almost been squeezed out of his chest, relaxed. Then, he began to complain inwardly:
Could it be that Senior experts really have some strange quirks? They love to scare people so much.
Just now, when Zhao Li suddenly appeared and cut off his connection with Yao Chen, he was truly frightened.
Yao Chen's words didn't just stun Xiao Yan; even Zhao Li was somewhat taken aback.
Although they were both young when he met Yao Chen, and although Yao Chen treated him as a Senior, he also had a special expectation for this person who occupied most of the original story. He had never hidden anything from him, teaching everything that should be taught. Yet, he had never considered himself a teacher.
The main reason for this was naturally that when he met Yao Chen, he was already considered a minor expert. Before that, he hadn't done anything, so it was naturally awkward to take credit for someone else's efforts.
Although, he also hoped that among his disciples, a true Genius would emerge to represent them.
Perhaps because his own path of advancement seemed to have very few bottlenecks, Zhao Li believed that as long as one had resources, Cultivation Techniques, and a Teacher, breaking through bottlenecks was as simple as eating and drinking Water. Based on this, he didn't pay much attention to Talent or Bloodline when Taking on a Disciple.
In fact, this was true in the early stages of Cultivation. Seeing Zhao Yannian and Yun Shan, who could be considered geniuses in a small place but were completely incomparable to those of the Imperial Clan, advance rapidly, Zhao Li even found it hard to understand why Xiao Xuan, a dignified Peak Nine-star Dou Sheng existence, would gamble everything on Bloodline.
But later he understood. The Cultivation system and Realms on the Dou Qi Continent seemed numerous, but in the end, there were actually only four major hurdles: Dou Disciple, Dou King, Dou Sect, and Dou Sheng!
Dou Disciple condenses a Qi Cyclone, having the foundation for Cultivation. Dou King can slightly borrow Heaven and Earth Energy from within and without. Dou Sect comes into contact with the Origin of Rules, transforming their Soul and increasing their lifespan. Dou Sheng delves deep into the Origin, effortlessly mobilizing the Power of Heaven and Earth. These four hurdles are each more difficult to cross than the last.
His two disciples, whether it was Zhao Yannian or Yun Shan, had almost no bottlenecks before Dou Sect. But starting from Dou Sect, it became somewhat difficult.
Although they were both now on the Route of Transcending to Saint, at this point, external help was almost useless. They could only rely on themselves. At this step, if one's Talent was insufficient, it wasn't impossible to be stuck for a lifetime.
It wasn't until then that he began to understand Xiao Xuan. Without the Bloodline Power, the geniuses he poured his efforts into cultivating were barely comparable to Juniors with thick Bloodline Power. The gap was truly too large.
After all, without Bloodline Power, people with the Talent of someone like Yun Shan were actually very rare.
Zhao Li suppressed the thoughts in his heart, looked at Yao Chen, and reminded him:
"I am not your Teacher, there is no need for this. Besides, we have known each other for decades, you should know that I don't care about these things."
But as soon as he said this, he saw Yao Chen kneel before him and kowtow, saying:
"Senior, though you have no name of Master and disciple with me, you have the reality of it. Today, you have even shown me the grace of rebirth. I beg Senior not to abandon me and allow Yao Chen to serve by your side."
This decision was not a temporary impulse. As early as when he was Pill Venerate, he treated him as a disciple. Now, from life to death, and from death to rebirth, in this Reincarnation, he had already understood what he wanted and what he should do.
In his first half of life, the person who influenced him the most was Han Shanshan. In his latter half, Zhao Li was the first. Not only did he make himself famous in the Central Plains Continent, but he also allowed him to seek life from death and find the possibility of being reborn.
Moreover, the person who influenced him the most in the first half of his life, he also got clues about her because of Zhao Li. This kindness, he felt he could not repay.
Zhao Li looked at Yao Chen, then at Xiao Yan, and did not refuse. This kind of relationship seemed quite good.
He gently raised his hand, and Yao Chen felt himself stand up uncontrollably, his heart filled with shock. It seemed that no matter how much progress he made, he had never seen Zhao Li's Limit.
"If you are willing, then so be it. How have you been these years?"
Zhao Li was in a good mood. This way, when he trained student Xiao Yan again, he would have a legitimate reason.
Of course, this didn't mean that Yao Chen was purely a Tool. Just as he himself said, although there was no formal Master-disciple relationship, there was indeed the reality of it. He deserved it.
Yao Chen recounted the events of that year to Zhao Li in detail, and finally bowed again:
"It is thanks to Teacher's Imparting Techniques that I was able to survive the great disaster and even make significant breakthroughs."
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