Under the weight of countless stares and a mixture of unspoken emotions, Yun Jin walked forward step by step.
As always, her presence drew every gaze. The crowd instinctively parted to make way for her.
Lin Xiao stood ahead, watching her approach with a confident smile. He still didn't fully understand what made this girl so coveted by others.
But that didn't matter.
Once she entered Qingxiao Pavilion, she would be one of his disciples. Even if her talents turned out to be mediocre, just the thought of using her to get under Ji Wusi's skin made it worth the effort.
Maybe one day, she could even become leverage against Ji Wusi, helping him extract a few benefits. In short, he had already made up his mind. This disciple, he would take.
Still, with Ji Wusi and the others failing to appear, Lin Xiao assumed they had wisely chosen to back down. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
Yun Jin finally stopped before him.
He gave a small smile. "I assume you've come to a decision?"
Yun Jin nodded, expression calm. "Naturally."
Lin Xiao's smile deepened. If she was this sensible, and truly talented, he might just be willing to nurture her properly.
"Then, what is your decision?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
Zhao Wuji was staring at her so intently that his heartbeat was nearly audible. Yun Jin was a strange one, and if she really had talent in divine arts and caught Lin Xiao's eye, then she'd become untouchable. Worse, she might even jeopardize his father's favor with the sect master.
She had to refuse. She had to.
Zhao Wuji silently shouted in his heart: Refuse! Quickly!
Yun Jin gave a soft smile. Her voice was steady. "Sect Master Lin, I don't wish to join Qingxiao Pavilion."
The smile on Lin Xiao's face froze. His gaze turned sharp. "Oh? You don't wish to join Qingxiao Pavilion? Then, is it the Kunlun Sword Sect you're choosing?"
Yun Jin shook her head. "It's not that either. I won't be joining Kunlun Sword Sect."
Lin Xiao paused. His expression eased just a little. As long as it wasn't Kunlun, he could breathe more freely.
"Then Xuandan Gate? Or the Beastmaster Sect?" he pressed.
He'd heard she was talented in alchemy. If she chose the pill path, it would make sense. Zhao Wuji hadn't mentioned anything about her Beastmaster skills, but if Liu Li had come in person, it had to mean something.
Qingxiao Pavilion had no real conflict with those two Holy Lands. If she chose one of them, he would be displeased, but he could accept it.
But Yun Jin shook her head again. "Of the current four Holy Lands, I wish to join none."
That silenced everything.
Even Lin Xiao stared at her, stunned.
Everyone around them looked at Yun Jin with disbelief.
Everyone knew that the four Holy Lands represented the pinnacle of cultivation in this realm. Only they possessed the complete path to ascension.
And yet Yun Jin, with one sentence, had turned her back on them all.
Zhao Wuji could hardly contain his glee.
She had lost her mind. Absolutely lost it.
To reject the four Holy Lands outright… she'd done it to herself.
The prideful masters of those sects would not take kindly to this. Even if she changed her mind one day, they might not accept her anymore.
"Oh?" Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes. "And why is that?"
Yun Jin spoke plainly. "It's said that in the past thousand years, not a single cultivator from this realm has ascended."
Lin Xiao frowned. "And?"
It was true. No one had ascended for a millennium. Even Ji Wusi, the so-called number one of this era, had stalled just short of that final step, unable to pierce the veil.
Yun Jin gave a faint smile. "Then isn't it possible… that the path itself is flawed?"
Lin Xiao's eyes turned dangerous. "You're questioning the path of the four Holy Lands?"
Yun Jin shook her head. "The four Holy Lands have produced many ascendants throughout history. Their paths are not wrong. But the fact that none have ascended in a thousand years… perhaps it means that the road to immortality now requires a new way."
Her voice was composed, almost serene, but carried a spark of bold defiance.
Lin Xiao laughed. "So you mean to say, you, a mere Golden Core stage disciple, intend to forge a new path?"
Yun Jin nodded. "That is exactly what I mean. I will carve out my own Dao. The four Holy Lands do not suit me."
Her words were calm, yet beneath them surged an unshakable will.
Lin Xiao laughed even louder.
How long had it been since he'd heard something so absurd?
He had assumed that if Ji Wusi, Qing Yun, and Liu Li were all fighting over this girl, she must be some kind of rare prodigy.
But this? This was lunacy. Nothing but the mad ramblings of a frog at the bottom of a well.
His interest in Yun Jin vanished on the spot.
Everyone knew the strongest Dao lay within the four Holy Lands. To reject them was to sever one's future. Whatever early brilliance she showed, she was doomed to fade into mediocrity.
With a sneer, Lin Xiao said, "Then I wish you the best of luck."
"Thank you," Yun Jin replied earnestly.
Every word she had said was sincere.
And she knew that sincerity would make Lin Xiao give up on her completely.
That was exactly what she wanted.
Lin Xiao raised an eyebrow. "Then would you dare swear that for the rest of your life, you will never join any of the four Holy Lands?"
Yun Jin replied calmly, "I would."
He produced a sheet of golden paper. "Then leave a Heavenly Dao Oath."
He was forcing her to sever her own future.
Yun Jin smiled and took the paper without hesitation. "Very well."
Before the stunned eyes of everyone present, she poured spiritual power into the sheet.
Word by word, she said: "I, Yun Jin, swear that in this life, I will never join any of the current four Holy Lands. If I break this oath, may my soul be shattered and never find peace."
The paper turned into a beam of golden light and fused into her body.
The oath was sealed.
Lin Xiao's smile grew wider. His tone was light. "Since you have such grand ambitions, I suppose I can no longer insist. Then may you succeed in walking the fifth path."
His voice was filled with mockery.
But Yun Jin responded with all seriousness.
She would walk it. One step at a time.
Now that he had forced the oath out of her, Lin Xiao was in a decent mood. As long as she did not join the Kunlun Sword Sect, he didn't care whether she joined Qingxiao Pavilion or not.
"With this matter settled, let's return," he said coolly.
The whole incident with Li Heng had made him lose face. Forcing Yun Jin to take the oath had barely salvaged some pride.
And Ji Wusi… that coward still hadn't shown himself.
What reason was there to remain?
As Lin Xiao turned to leave, Zhao Ling grew anxious. Ji Wusi and the others were still lurking, and leaving Zhao Wuji behind would be dangerous. He had come with the intention of taking his son back, but now Lin Xiao seemed to have forgotten that promise.
"Sect Master," Zhao Ling said carefully, knowing Lin Xiao was still simmering, "about my disappointing son…"
Lin Xiao gave Zhao Wuji a cold glance. "If you already know he's useless, then a mid-tier sect shouldn't be beneath him."
The flattery on Zhao Wuji's face froze instantly. He felt as though he had been struck by lightning.
His future… had just been cut off.