"..."
"..."
Lian Yue felt awkward when she couldn't find a single method worth choosing in this pile of trash.
'Why is not a single one of these good? What is father doing?'
She thought, feeling extremely embarrassed.
Seeing Zhiran still staring at her, she felt so ashamed that she snatched the nearest technique, acted seriously, and hurled it at him without actually glancing at it.
"Umm…I think these two techniques suit you, junior. Practice it to perfection and see its magic. Okay, I am quite busy, so I will take my leave."
After saying that, she directly left the Martial Pavilion with a thought, even forgetting to do what she came here for.
She didn't want to see another junior losing respect for her again.
'What an odd girl. Is she really the daughter of the sect leader?'
Mo Zhiran, of course, saw her gaffe and shook his head, speechless. He felt that Lian Yue seemed too enthusiastic and childish.
'Forget it…let's see what she chose.'
He thought, finally looking at the jade slip and a scroll.
---
[Nutcracker Palm (Yellow Rank, Late Stage) — A cultivation technique that condenses qi into the heel of the palm, creating a narrow, crushing force. A single strike can fracture brittle materials or weak points in an opponent's body. Precise and tactical, it requires control and leaves the practitioner's palm slightly numb with repeated use.]
---
"…"
'Is this…really suitable for me?'
Zhiran was totally speechless. Just the name of the technique, he didn't want anyone to know ever.
Why would he practice such methods?
'What about movement technique?'
Zhiran couldn't help but look at the jade slip, only to be stunned once again.
---
[Lotus Drift (Late Yellow Rank) — A flowing, hovering step technique that emphasizes grace and elegance, allowing the practitioner to move with the lightness and poise of a drifting lotus; highly refined and subtle, better suited to female cultivators.]
---
"..."
"Is she joking with me?"
Zhiran mumbled, confused, but no one answered him.
"Forget it…let's choose something decent and leave."
He shook his head and put aside this weird encounter with the daughter of the sect leader.
However, just when he was about to place the scroll and jade slip on the shelves, suddenly, a crisp voice sounded in his mind, followed by the strong pulling force,
"The duration for Martial Pavilion has ended. Please return outside."
It was the recorded voice of the array telling him that his time inside was over. Now, even if he wanted to, he couldn't stay inside anymore.
"Wait…I still-"
Zhiran was caught off guard by the sudden announcement and wanted to say something, but he was forcefully ejected from the pavilion without a choice.
He couldn't even place two techniques on the shelves and carried both of them out in a hurry.
"Oh…boy, you are out."
The place where Zhiran was thrown out by the array was right in front of Elder Bai, who was dozing off at his table.
Seeing him appear, though, he became a little more enthusiastic and immediately used his power to snatch the techniques taken out by Zhiran with his power.
"One movement and one attack, huh. Perfect. Don't worry, boy, I will register this for you right now."
He said with a big smile, seemingly trying to leave a good impression on the disciple in front. He thought that maybe Zhiran was repulsed by the amount of Spirit Dew he asked.
'If I behave like a wise old man and propose the deal with less Spirit Dew wine, he would probably accept my deal, right?'
He thought and quickly looked through the name of the technique so that he could register.
"Wait…that's not what I chose."
Zhiran was completely caught off guard by Elder Bai's quick response and was about to stop him, but he was too late.
"Two late-stage Yellow rank techniques, Nutcracker Palm and… Lotus Drift?"
"..."
"..."
Elder Bai looked at the name of the techniques and went silent all of a sudden.
He then couldn't help but look at Mo Zhiran with a weird look, scanning him from up to down.
"Cough…Elder, it was a mistake, okay. I didn't choose them. I just didn't realize the time was over and…and…"
Zhiran wanted to explain, but didn't know what to say. He couldn't say that it was the Sect Leader's daughter's fault, right?
Even if he said it, no one would believe it.
Just like now, Elder Bai didn't believe him at all.
Even setting aside whether he noticed the time was up, why was he holding two such techniques in his hands to begin with?
If he wasn't planning to choose them, was he simply admiring them?
"Cough…boy, no need to explain. It isn't something bad."
Elder Bai took a moment to react and waved his hand to stop Zhiran from explaining.
From how he looked, he seemed to have realized something.
"The world is too big and there are all kinds of people everywhere. Who knows what kind of technique will come in handy?"
He said as if understanding his choice, writing down the name on the register. Since Zhiran took them out, he would take them, whether he liked it or not.
There was no exchange policy in the Martial Pavilion.
"Here you go. You are now registered. Take these techniques you chose and practice them hard."
"Who knows, your weird technique might win you a place in the inner sect by catching the enemy off guard. Just…"
Elder Bai looked down, a flicker of fear crossing his face as he subconsciously drew his legs together and whispered to Zhiran.
"Be merciful and don't really break the…you know. After all, all of you are disciples of the same sect."
He said, making Zhiran speechless.
As for his motive for accepting him as a disciple and scamming some wine, he totally forgot about them.
This boy was a genius and probably would reach a higher realm than him in the future. If he took his light joke personally and cracked his nut in anger…
Just remembering it made Elder Bai shiver in fright.
Not to mention, with that female movement technique, it seemed Zhiran especially hated nuts with passion.
"Okay, you can go."
So, Elder Bai directly asked Zhiran to leave with no intention of entertaining him anymore.
Zhiran could, of course, see what was going through his head.
But seeing that nothing was going to work, he sighed and put the techniques aside before leaving the martial pavilion.
'Fuck…Lian Yue, just wait for my revenge.'
Although he didn't forget to curse the girl who caused all of this.
If there was a chance, he would definitely show that daughter of the Sect Leader exactly who she had provoked.