First Lesson - Thanks to "Universe's First-Class Retreat Drum Performer" for the Alliance Leader Reward!

Fukang Ward, Linmen Street.

Zhu Nanyin's little tavern had once again sold out its stock early and closed for the day.

"The young lady's drawing power is truly incredible. People are coming from several wards away just for the reputation, all wanting to buy our wine," Da Hu said. "At this rate, we can support the brothers on the mountain just by selling wine."

"That would be wonderful. It'd save everyone from all that fighting and killing." Zhu Nanyin smiled faintly.

Er Hu asked innocently, "Young Lady, if you don't like fighting people, why did you travel thousands of miles to find a master?"

Zhu Nanyin replied, "Not liking to fight doesn't mean I can choose not to cultivate. On the contrary, the stronger I become, the more likely I am to avoid fighting."

"Huh?" The words were clearly too winding for Er Hu, and his mind stalled for a moment.

"It's simple. Say I told you to find any Imperial Capital Guard on the street and beat him up—would you dare?" Da Hu asked.

"Of course I would!" Er Hu puffed out his chest, though he had no idea why the target had to be an Imperial Capital Guard.

"Then if I told you to punch me right now, would you dare?" Da Hu asked again.

"Well..." Er Hu's chest immediately deflated, and he said with far less conviction, "Not really, at the moment."

Only then did Da Hu explain, "What the young lady means is, because I'm stronger than you and my fist is bigger than yours, you have to weigh things carefully before hitting me. That way, I can fight a lot fewer battles."

"Oh..." Er Hu nodded repeatedly. "Now I get it."

"But what I don't understand is, the Great Chieftain is already the number one man below the Immortal Realm. Why do you still need to come out and take a master?" Da Hu asked in puzzlement.

"He's first on the Reaching Heaven Ranking, but that doesn't mean he's the best teacher," Zhu Nanyin said. "Third Uncle recommended this master to me. He said the Sword Heart Unification method he created himself was a stroke of breathtaking genius, the martial cultivation technique best suited to me."

Da Hu nodded. "If the Third Master said it, it shouldn't be wrong."

Er Hu folded his arms and frowned. "But I keep feeling that Daoist doesn't look very reliable. Is he really some powerful sword cultivator? He's not putting on an act, is he?"

"Can't you sense how strong he is?" Da Hu snorted. "It's actually the same as looking at the Great Chieftain. With Sixth Realm cultivation, you can't feel how strong they are. With Seventh Realm cultivation, you can sense a trace of pressure. Only when you reach the Grandmaster Realm can you truly feel just how terrifying people like them are."

Er Hu was left dumbfounded. "Is the gap really that huge?"

"The three Immortal Realm beings press down upon all living creatures. Many people leave everyone else in the dust in the Grandmaster Realm, yet can never advance. At the peak of the Grandmaster Realm, one may be called a Grandmaster. The gap in combat power between two Grandmasters may be even greater than the gap between a Grandmaster and an ordinary person. When we look upon them, it is like ants gazing at a lofty mountain. It is only natural that we cannot discern their true appearance," Da Hu said gravely.

"That is exactly right," Zhu Nanyin said as well. "Third Uncle once said that there are four great sword cultivators in the world today, all from the Sword Control Branch of the Mystic Gate. Deng Yunzi, the current head of the Sword Control Branch, naturally counts as one. Third Uncle himself counts as one. Sword King Sun of the Four Heroes and Three Wonders counts as one. And the fourth is this Shouyi Zhenren. In terms of combat power, he is absolutely not the weakest; in terms of talent, he may very well be the strongest."

"If that's the case, then the young lady's master isn't bad at all," Da Hu said.

"It hasn't been decided yet." Zhu Nanyin smiled. "He has his own selection process too. I tested the Dianjin Orchid the day before yesterday, and I only had three and a half vines. If someone with four vines, one of Heaven's Chosen, comes along, then I can only become a Nominal Disciple."

"His reputation isn't prominent, and he comes from the Mystic Gate. He's surrounded by Qi Refiners—where would he so easily find a martial Heaven's Chosen?" Da Hu said. "Rest assured, Young Lady. Becoming his personal disciple is already set in stone."

At this moment, inside Yunzhi Temple.

One of the four great sword cultivators of the world was giving Liang Yue his first lesson.

"Boy, do you know what is most important when a martial artist deals with Qi Refiners and Mystic Art Masters?" Wang Rulin asked in an unhurried manner.

"Getting close?" Liang Yue answered tentatively.

He did not have much combat experience himself, and he had encountered Qi Refiners and Mystic Art Masters even less often. If he counted carefully, there had only been the battle the day before yesterday, when he had slain the Demon Tamer with a blade.

The reason he had been able to defeat someone above his level while below the Second Realm was precisely because he had gotten close while the other party's Divine Soul was possessing the demon beast.

"Correct!" Wang Rulin was very satisfied with his answer and continued asking, "Then do you know what is most important for getting close?"

Liang Yue answered without hesitation, "Movement techniques?"

In his view, relying on movement techniques and speed to force his way in was naturally the first choice.

"No." Wang Rulin shook his head this time.

That's not it?

Liang Yue pondered for a moment, then said, "Defense?"

Relying on the toughness of one's physical body to endure attacks while closing in was also a common method, though one would inevitably take hits that way.

"No." Wang Rulin shook his head again.

"Please enlighten me, Senior." Liang Yue grew solemn.

Wang Rulin smiled slightly and uttered two words. "Personal ties."

Pfft.

Liang Yue nearly failed to hold it in.

For a moment, it sounded utterly absurd, yet there was a thread of reason within the absurdity.

Wang Rulin spoke with great fluency. "If you face each other openly in battle, everyone will be on guard. Getting within thirty feet of your enemy will naturally be fraught with countless difficulties. But if you are friends, and you invite him to a meal, then things become much simpler."

Wen Yifan took a deep breath, rose to her feet, and walked outside the main hall. She took several breaths of the fresh air in the courtyard.

"Hoo..."

As a Supreme Immortal Body, she should have been without feeling or desire, without the slightest emotion. Yet after hearing just a few words from Wang Rulin, she felt her blood and qi surging, inexplicably gathering in her head.

Could this unfamiliar emotion possibly be the legendary... anger?

Inside the hall, Wang Rulin was still enthusiastically imparting his teachings. "You have an advantage in this regard, because you are upright and imposing in appearance. People are naturally inclined to like you. As for how to cultivate personal ties with others, there are countless subtleties involved. As the saying goes: wine, women, wealth, and temper..."

Liang Yue felt his worldview thoroughly overturned.

So this was what the first lesson after joining the Mystic Gate taught?

He turned to glance at Miss Wen. Wen Yifan seemed to sense his thought and silently shook her head, her expression seeming to say: no, it was not.

Seeing Wang Rulin speaking with growing enthusiasm, as though he intended to continue, Wen Yifan truly could not bear it any longer and said, "Martial Uncle, the Dianjin Orchid should have grown by now, shouldn't it?"

"Oh?" Wang Rulin rose at her words and walked into the courtyard.

Suddenly.

His body jolted, and he actually froze where he stood.

"What is it?" Liang Yue's heart skipped a beat. Could the result be bad? He hurried over to look as well.

Yet when he saw it himself, he too froze for a moment. "Senior, this is..."

Seeing the strange expressions on both their faces, Wen Yifan personally stepped forward to take a look. Her pupils abruptly contracted as well.

There in the flowerpot, the Dianjin Orchid's petals were tightly closed, already coated in a faint layer of gold. At some unknown time, several slender vines carrying the patterns of the Great Dao had sprung up around it. Tiny leaves grew from those vines, every single leaf bearing a unique Dao resonance.

As had just been said, one-vine orchids marked talent, two-vine orchids marked earthly talent, three-vine orchids marked genius, and four-vine orchids marked one of Heaven's Chosen!

But now, around that Dianjin Orchid, there was one vine, two vines, three vines, four vines... five vines.

A full five immortal vines twisted together. Wang Rulin's gaze swept over them again and again, but every look brought the same result.

"This is..."

"A five-immortal-vine Dianjin Orchid!"

Good morning.

Thanks to "Universe's First-Class Retreat Drum Performer" for becoming this book's thirteenth Alliance Leader. Thanks, good brother!