Holy Guiding Spirit Furnace (III)

Long Haochen, nearly twelve now, was different from how he had been a year and a half ago. His originally pretty, somewhat delicate little face had gained a few firmer lines, turning beauty into handsomeness. With his well-proportioned, slender frame and shoulder-length black hair, he was nearly perfect, without a single flaw to be found.

Li Xin, what was wrong with you? He was your little brother—eight years younger than you! Did you want an old cow to eat tender grass? After silently scolding herself, her emotions finally settled. Yet she found herself even fonder of Long Haochen. She had been the youngest child in her family and had always longed for a younger brother. Though she had not spent much time with Long Haochen, she felt exceptionally close to this little brother in her heart.

"Eh, little brother, I remember your eyes weren't this color before! They should have been azure blue. How did they turn pale gold?"

Long Haochen came back to his senses, scratched his head, and said, "After Father helped me undergo Sacred Awakening, they became like this."

Li Xin froze. "Sacred Awakening can make your eye color change? How come I've never heard of that? Ah! You've already undergone Sacred Awakening, so doesn't that mean your spiritual power has surpassed two hundred? Hurry and tell your sister—what's your Internal Spiritual Power?"

Long Haochen shook his head. "Sister, I don't want to lie to you, but Father told me not to say."

Suddenly, as if Li Xin had thought of something, she covered her mouth with one hand and muttered under her breath, "Heavens! A third-tier knight not even twelve years old. Come on, I'll take you to see Uncle Nalan. He'll definitely be scared silly."

"What could possibly scare me?" A teasing voice rang out. Long Haochen and Li Xin turned around to see Nalan Shu walking down the stairs.

Upon seeing Long Haochen, Nalan Shu was also startled. But his gaze instantly turned fervent, and he strode quickly over, looking Long Haochen up and down as he asked in barely restrained excitement, "That day... that day, was it your teacher...?"

Long Haochen was slightly taken aback, but he quickly understood what Nalan Shu was asking. He nodded, proud and jubilant.

Nalan Shu drew a deep breath, his eyes brimming with fervent admiration. "I knew it. I knew it."

Li Xin asked doubtfully, "Uncle Nalan, what riddle are you two speaking in?"

Nalan Shu's face darkened. "Why haven't you gone to train yet? You're already a seventh-level knight. Whether you can break through to Great Knight before the Demon Hunter Group Selection Competition is crucial to whether you can become a member of a Demon Hunter Squad. Hurry up and train. Leave Haochen to me."

Li Xin stuck out her tongue and said to Long Haochen, "Little brother, I'll go train first. Tonight, your sister will welcome you properly and treat you to a grand feast. Hehe." With that, she turned and ran off.

Nalan Shu spoke with both helplessness and affection. "That child—she's almost twenty, yet she's still so wild and scatterbrained. Children from ordinary families would be getting married at her age."

Drawing back his gaze, Nalan Shu looked at Long Haochen and nodded. "Haochen, come with me."

Long Haochen followed him once more to Nalan Shu's office on the second floor. After Nalan Shu shut the door, he could no longer suppress his excitement. "The Divine Seal Throne of Doom and Slaughter! Haochen, do you know? The Devil Race was originally planning a major move this time. But because of your teacher's intervention, he forcibly frightened off five Devil Race legions that had infiltrated the Alliance's territory. Where is your teacher? Could you let me meet Lord Xingyu?"

Long Haochen shook his head. "Temple Master Nalan, he left. This is for you." As he spoke, he took out the letter his father had left behind and handed it to Nalan Shu.

Nalan Shu impatiently tore open the envelope and began reading. A look of astonishment quickly appeared on his face. Only after reading the letter several times did he look at Long Haochen again in disbelief. "You... you're actually Lord Xingyu's son. But why did Lord Xingyu ask you to study Guardian Knight skills under me? Why not become a Punishment Knight? Lord Xingyu is the number one Punishment Knight of our Knight Alliance!"

Long Haochen said, "Temple Master Nalan, Father told me not to say too much. If he didn't tell you in the letter, then I can't tell you either."

Nalan Shu took a deep breath and carefully put away the letter. After pondering for a moment, he said, "All right. No matter the reason, I cannot disobey Lord Xingyu's orders. From now on, you are truly a member of Haoyue Branch Temple. I will do everything in my power to nurture you. Lord Xingyu instructed in his letter that you are to participate in the Demon Hunter Group Selection Competition in a little over two years."

"Mm, I'll follow all your arrangements." Long Haochen straightened his back and gave Nalan Shu a standard knight's salute.

Nalan Shu patted him on the shoulder. "From now on, call me Uncle Nalan, just like Xin'er does. To be honest, I'm truly a little uneasy about teaching you knightly techniques. But I believe that before long, you will become the greatest glory of our Haoyue Branch Temple. Come, I'll first show you around our branch temple and arrange a place for you to stay."

"Thank you, Uncle Nalan."

Haoyue Branch Temple covered an enormous area. It was not limited to what Long Haochen had seen; behind the main hall lay a vast expanse. It was chiefly divided into three sections: refined residences for the knights to rest in, a Knight Square for training, and a Knight Hall for imparting knowledge and skills.

With Bright Moon City at its center, the nearby villages and towns sent a batch of Attendant Knights to Haoyue Branch Temple for assessment every two or three years. Only those who passed the Quasi-Knight assessment could remain at Haoyue Branch Temple to study and train. If they could break through to third-tier knight within five years, they would become true members of Haoyue Branch Temple, as well as officially registered members of the Knight Temple. Otherwise, those Quasi-Knights would either join the army or handle other affairs for the Knight Temple.

Thus, what Long Haochen had seen before had merely been the façade of Haoyue Branch Temple. The true Haoyue Branch Temple was actually in the rear. Nearly a hundred knights and more than two thousand Quasi-Knights lived here. According to Nalan Shu, aside from himself, Haoyue Branch Temple also had one Earth Knight and seven Great Knights. Anyone who advanced to Great Knight would go to the Knight Temple to receive their title and be reassigned.

Naturally, living conditions differed according to rank. Quasi-Knights shared a refined residence four to a room, while knights each had a room of their own.

Nalan Shu arranged Long Haochen's quarters beside Li Xin's. After taking him to eat, he instructed him to rest first. His training would be arranged starting tomorrow.

Once one reached the third tier, the treatment was excellent no matter which temple one belonged to. After all, when battling the Devil Race, they were the main force resisting them.

Long Haochen's refined residence was on the third floor of the knight building in the residential district. It was a suite, with one room for resting, a quiet chamber for meditation and cultivation, and a separate washroom for relieving himself and washing up. There was a simple magic array in the quiet chamber, embedded with several magic crystals from Light Attribute Magic Beasts. This made the Light Attribute in the chamber noticeably stronger than outside, providing a certain degree of assistance in cultivating Internal Spiritual Power.

The favorable surroundings did not affect him. After taking out his personal clothes from the Forget-me-not Ring and tidying them up simply, Long Haochen entered the quiet chamber and began cultivating.

Time always passed quickly during cultivation. The afternoon soon slipped away, and it was not until evening that a crisp knock at the door shattered the tranquility of the refined residence.

"Who is it?" Long Haochen woke from meditation.

"Little brother, it's me."

Long Haochen opened the door and saw Li Xin standing prettily outside. She was no longer wearing her soft armor, having changed into a fitted white outfit. She seemed to have just bathed, and her long pink hair still hung damply over her shoulders. Like this, she had lost some of her heroic air and gained a touch more allure.

"Come with me. Uncle Nalan asked me to take you to test your spiritual power, then your sister will show you around and take you out for a good meal to welcome you."