"I …"
With a reddened face, Zhang Xuan stood on the spot helplessly.
"Grandpa Feng, let's go!"
Bai Ruanqing said.
Grandpa Feng frowned for a moment before nodding in agreement. The two of them swiftly vanished from the spot.
"They must have gotten away with it …"
Seeing that they had left, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
He had no intention of becoming the disciple of an elder!
If Elder Bai Ye was willing to acknowledge him as his teacher, he might have been willing to take him in.
Thus, he had put on a show with Bai Ruanqing. They had intentionally lost to Elder Bai Ye when they were at the same cultivation realm so as to show that they were weaker than him. If Bai Ruanqing reported the matter to Elder Bai Ye, there was a good chance that the latter would give up on the idea of taking him in as his disciple.
Even if Elder Bai Ye was unable to stop Elder Bai Ye, his weak swordsmanship should still be able to delay the matter.
After dealing with the problem, Zhang Xuan swiftly made his way back to the Inner Sanctum Mountain Range, and it didn't take him long to return to his residence.
Dan Xiaotian was still practicing the Third Young Master's Swordsmanship. He had already mastered the Third Young Master's Swordsmanship to perfection, and it was already ninety percent of his original style. Now that he had sufficient money, Dan Xiaotian gave him a few Basic Immortal Pills and gave him some pointers, and he was able to achieve a breakthrough in his cultivation.
He managed to achieve a breakthrough to Ancient Sage 2-dan.
As lustful as Cao Chengli was, he was much more hardworking than Sun Qiang in terms of cultivation.
As a bandit, he knew the importance of one's cultivation. With sufficient pills and high-tier cultivation techniques, he was able to improve swiftly.
In just ten short days, his cultivation had already reached Great Sage 3-dan, and he was on the verge of reaching Ancient Sage 4-dan. Barring any mishaps, he should be able to push for a breakthrough to Ancient Sage within the next few days!
Zhang Xuan instructed the two of them to continue with their cultivation before returning to his room.
It's about time for me to make a breakthrough …
Using the second Ethereal Token, Zhang Xuan bought a total of a hundred Basic Immortal Pills before he finally flipped through the Heaven's Path Divine Art in his head and calmed himself down to cultivate.
As soon as the pills entered his body, they morphed into surges of spiritual energy that flowed through his meridians. He had already reached Dimension Shatterer realm consummation previously, and with the help of the Heaven's Path Divine Art, he was able to overcome all his bottlenecks without any hesitation.
Ten minutes later, his cultivation reached its peak, and with a resounding boom, he broke through his bottleneck, reaching Pseudo Immortal realm.
He continued to swallow the pill into his body.
The Heaven's Path Divine Art was extremely taxing on Basic Immortal Pills, but given how wealthy Zhang Xuan was, he couldn't care less about it.
Whenever he felt that his strength was lacking, he would swallow a pill and drive the Heaven's Path Divine Art to raise his cultivation swiftly.
Early Pseudo Immortal realm!
Middle stage False Immortal realm!
…
Two hours later, his cultivation level had risen by an entire major stage, and he had reached the pinnacle of the Pseudo Immortal stage!
At this moment, the hundred Middle Grade Immortal Pills that he had purchased were more or less depleted. Furthermore, it seemed like Middle Grade Immortal Pills would not have much of an effect on his cultivation. If he wanted to increase his cultivation further, he would likely need even higher tier Middle Grade Immortal Pills.
"With a single thought, the soul is like true gold, and the flames are unscathed … This is what it means to be a False Immortal!"
Sensing the changes in his body, Zhang Xuan clenched his fists tightly.
Although it was only a breakthrough of one major level, the increase in strength was unparalleled.
There was a qualitative difference between the Pseudo Immortal realm and the Dimension Shatterer realm. It was like the difference between 'Sage' and 'Immortal'. Be it in terms of lifespan or strength, they were completely different.
If he had been using true energy before, then now he was using immortal energy!
The power of immortals.
"I sure am lucky that I was able to knock Bai Ruanqing out …"
Feeling his newfound strength, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but feel relieved that he had been able to knock Bai Ruanqing out.
If he had not seized the initiative and allowed Bai Ruanqing to recover, he would have been the one to lose.
Putting aside True Immortals, just Pseudo Immortals was already more than ten times stronger than Dimension Shatterer realm cultivators.
His cultivation had soared, and his comprehension of the Gods' Sword Intent had also deepened. With this sword art, he would be able to kill even Heavenly True Immortals with ease!
As for High Immortals, he had never crossed blows with them before, so he did not know much about their strength. However, based on the records in the books, it was unlikely that he would be a match for them.
"It's about time for Vicious and my clone to make a breakthrough as well …"
After buying sufficient pills, Zhang Xuan released his clone and Vicious to cultivate.
As for the Dongxu Gourd, it seemed like it was still far from recovering after consuming a hundred Basic Immortal Pills. As soon as it saw that Zhang Xuan had released it, it immediately cried out, begging for food.
Zhang Xuan felt that it was being too noisy, so he tossed it into his storage ring, not bothering with it anymore.
Zhang Xuan was a righteous person, so he could not help but wonder what kind of sins he had committed to tame such a glutton as his pet.
More importantly, he had no idea what other uses the Dongxu Gourd had for it other than its healing properties.
If the Dongxu Gourd really failed, he would just have to find a Heavenly High Immortal and test it out. If it failed, he could consider using it as a shield to take a beating in battle.
…
While Zhang Xuan was cultivating, Bai Ruanqing and Bai Feng had already returned to Elder Bai Ye's residence.
"How did it go?"
Elder Bai Ye asked upon seeing the two of them.
"Since Young Mistress has tested him out personally, I'll leave it to you," Bai Feng said as he took a step back.
"Grandfather, Zhang Xuan's swordsmanship is extremely lacking. He can't even execute the most basic swordsmanship. Even though we are at the same cultivation realm, I was still able to subdue him with just a casual swordsmanship. He doesn't have the right to be your student!"
Bai Ruanqing exclaimed.
As she said those words, her admiration for this' Senior Uncle 'of hers rose a few notches.
There were countless people in the sect who wanted to become her grandfather's disciple, but this' Senior Uncle 'of hers actually went through so much trouble to turn them down. She was really too low profile!
Her personality was truly a role model for her generation!
Elder Bai Ye frowned.
"This is the battle that I recorded using a Record Crystal. Take a look!"
Bai Ruanqing said as she took out a Record Crystal and passed it over.
Elder Bai Ye took the Record Crystal and tapped it with his finger. The earlier battle immediately appeared before him, and he swiftly finished watching it.
"I didn't lie to you, did I? It's true that his cultivation is lacking. If grandfather were to accept him as your student, he would only bring shame to your dignity! "
Bai Ruanqing said.
"I understand. You can leave for now. I still have matters to discuss with Xiaofeng!"
Elder Bai Ye replied nonchalantly. It was hard to tell whether he was agreeing or not.
"Yes, grandfather!"
Bai Ruanqing turned around and left.
Shortly after she left the room, Elder Bai Ye turned to Bai Ruanqing and asked, "What do you think?"
Bai Feng paused for a moment before replying, "I am confident that my disguise is flawless, but the other party seems to have predicted that I would appear. Despite the fluster in his eyes, he was actually extremely calm, as if he wasn't worried about being killed at all …"
Both he and the Old Master were High Immortals. No matter how well the other party hid his true identity, he was still easily seen through.
"If he's really afraid, he would have tried to escape or send a message to the Old Master. He wouldn't have shown such an expression …" Elder Bai Ye nodded.
He shared the same opinion as Bai Feng.
"Then … Old Master …"
Bai Feng said.
"My granddaughter has been spoiled by me. She has always been a reckless person, and her foundation in swordsmanship has always been lacking. Yet, she was able to come here and challenge Zhang Xuan to a duel. Not to mention, she was even able to execute such a powerful sword art. I don't believe that she didn't have an agreement with Zhang Xuan beforehand! "
Elder Bai Ye said with a bitter smile as he stroked his beard.
"An agreement beforehand? Old Master, you mean to say that … "Bai Feng frowned.
"After you left, that lass left as well, so I got someone to investigate the matter. She went to the Compendium Pavilion and entered a chamber with Zhang Xuan, and they stayed there for an hour …" Zhang Xuan explained.
Elder Bai Ye said as he tossed a jade token over.
Bai Feng hurriedly caught it, and after taking a look at it, his lips twitched.
A man and a woman sharing a silent chamber … and for them to stay there for such a long time … Could there be something going on between them?
"Old Master, do you suspect that the Young Mistress has some sort of relationship with Zhang Xuan?"
Bai Feng asked.
"For the next few days, follow her discreetly and see what she's up to. If there's any news, report it to me right away. Also, keep an eye on Zhang Xuan as well. To think that an inner disciple like him would be able to make me, a fearless granddaughter, listen to him obediently and cooperate with him. I really want to know what kind of charm he has! "
Elder Bai Ye said with a light chuckle.
As one of the Three Grand Elders of the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion, Elder Bai Ye's eye of discernment was extraordinary as well.
When his granddaughter heard that he was going to accept Zhang Xuan as his disciple, she immediately turned around and left. Fearing that she might cause some sort of trouble, he had sent someone to follow her. Eventually, he learned of what had happened in the library.
After spending an hour with Zhang Xuan, when Bai Feng was testing the waters, she suddenly appeared out of nowhere and said that Zhang Xuan was a weakling.
Bai Feng nodded before turning around to leave.
"Don't get too close to her. Don't let her notice you, or else she'll cause a ruckus again! Also, look into Zhang Xuan's background and identity. I don't recall seeing his name among the inner disciples, "Elder Bai Ye said with a wave of his hand.
"Yes!" Bai Feng nodded before leaving.
…
Oblivious to the fact that her act with her 'Senior Uncle' had been exposed, Bai Ruanqing was currently in her room, practicing her swordsmanship.
After a dozen blows, a deep frown appeared on her forehead.
The swordsmanship that her Senior Uncle had imparted to her was extremely profound. She was able to comprehend it swiftly at the start, and she was able to improve by leaps and bounds. However, the more she practiced, the more difficult it became.
"I should ask him about it …"
After practicing for another two hours, Bai Ruanqing felt that she was unable to make any further progress. Gritting her teeth, she leaped onto the back of the aerial steed and flew toward the peak where the inner disciples resided.
Before she left, she had asked Zhang Xuan about his residence, so she was able to find out his exact location.
Not too long later, she arrived at the entrance of the residence. She leaped down from the back of the aerial steed and knocked on the door.
Jiya!
A middle-aged man walked out to welcome her. Upon seeing her appearance, his eyes lit up. "You are …"
"I'm here to look for Junior Zhang Xuan!"
Bai Ruanqing replied.
Her Senior Uncle was unwilling to reveal his identity, so she dared not address him as Senior Uncle in front of outsiders.
"You're looking for the Young Master?"
The middle-aged man widened his eyes in realization.
Naturally, he was Butler Cao Chengli.
He had thought that such a beautiful lady would come to look for him, but it seemed like he had rejoiced for nothing.
But then again, it seemed like the Young Master was quite formidable as well.
He had thought that with his poker face and eccentric personality, it was unlikely that he would be able to find a girlfriend in his lifetime. Who could have thought that he would be able to hook up with such a top-notch beauty in less than a day after arriving at the Ascendant Cloud Sword Pavilion?
One really couldn't judge a book by its cover!
"Young Master is inside. This way please …"
Cao Chengli was just about to step over the door when he suddenly recalled something. He staggered and switched to his right foot.
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