Apprenticeship Ceremony

"Ugh... my head hurts. I really shouldn't have drunk yesterday," Zhou Yi sat up in bed, covering his head with both hands.

As Zhou Yi prepared to get out of bed and reached to lift the covers, his hand didn't find the blanket but instead touched something hard. Zhou Yi turned his head to look and saw it was a knife. Staring at the knife, Zhou Yi fell into thought.

"Hiss, last night... what did I do last night?"

Zhou Yi's thoughts gradually drifted back to the previous night.

Zhou Yi remembered that after becoming an apprentice, his Cheap Master had dragged him out for drinks, calling it an Apprenticeship Ceremony.

At the time, Zhou Yi had thought with confusion, Shouldn't I be the one treating for the Apprenticeship Ceremony? But I'm dirt poor, my pockets are cleaner than my face. Where would I get the money to treat my Cheap Master to drinks? But in the end, he couldn't refuse his master and was forcibly dragged along.

Upon arriving, Zhou Yi actually relaxed. Since he had no money, the worst that could happen was him working as a waiter at the restaurant.

So, with a relaxed mind, Zhou Yi started eating with his master. As they ate, they began to drink. With the experience from his past life, Zhou Yi's alcohol tolerance was no joke. But who knew that his Cheap Master would start crying as they drank, looking at Zhou Yi and saying, "I've been here for almost ten years. Heaven has eyes, finally sending me a good seedling. After I'm gone, Qingzhu Village will depend on you."

At this moment, Zhou Yi was completely bewildered, not knowing what had gotten into his Cheap Master. However, seeing how sadly his master was crying, he proactively started drinking with him. As they drank, even Zhou Yi, with his tolerance, started to feel overwhelmed.

Looking at his Cheap Master again, well, he was red like a boiled crab, about to bubble over.

Zhou Yi prepared to pay the bill, but after fumbling around on himself for a long time, he only found a few copper coins. He smiled awkwardly at the waiter. Seeing the waiter's increasingly unfriendly expression, Zhou Yi had no choice but to reach out to his drunken master. He fumbled around on his Cheap Master's body and, whoa, turns out he was a rich guy. After taking a silver ingot from his Cheap Master's money pouch to pay, Zhou Yi prepared to take his master home.

Zhou Yi supported his master with his arm and walked towards the door. Stepping outside, Zhou Yi wanted to ask his master for his home address. But the drunken Cheap Master kept mumbling about going to the Patrol Team's storeroom to pick out a weapon for him as a true "Apprenticeship Ceremony."

Hearing that there was such a good thing, Zhou Yi immediately helped his Cheap Master to the Patrol Team's storeroom.

Arriving at the storeroom entrance, Zhou Yi saw an old man sitting with his eyes closed at the entrance. This old man was none other than the Talisman Master he had met today.

Hearing the footsteps at the entrance, the old man opened his eyes and saw Zhou Yi and the drunken Qu Yong. He frowned, "Why are you so drunk?"

Zhou Yi scratched his head and said with an awkward smile, "Master insisted on dragging me out for drinks today. I... I couldn't stop him. And now, he's drunk like this."

Qu Yong, next to Zhou Yi, heard the Talisman Master's voice and regained a bit of consciousness, saying, "Today is the first day I've taken this kid as my disciple. As the master, I have to show my appreciation. I was just about to give him a handy weapon."

The old man chuckled, "I knew you would take this kid as your disciple. Alright, alright, you can go in."

Qu Yong bowed to the old man, "Well then, Old Qin, we're going in."

Qu Yong said as he pulled Zhou Yi inside. Zhou Yi also bowed to Old Qin, "Talisman Master, we're going in."

Old Qin waved his hand, "Since you've become Qu Yong's disciple, you no longer call me Talisman Master. You can call me Old Qin too."

Zhou Yi nodded, "Okay, Old Qin."

After speaking, Zhou Yi followed his Cheap Master towards the storeroom.

Upon entering the storeroom, Zhou Yi was shocked. Weapons racks hung on the walls, and the variety of weapons on them dazzled Zhou Yi. In the center of the storeroom was also a display shelf, but it held various items instead of weapons. There were hairpins, embroidered shoes, vases... but absurdly, Zhou Yi even saw a red bellyband.

"These are all items tainted with Yin Energy. Every item you see has at least one life attached to it.

Although Yin Energy is harmful to humans, the weapons Old Qin has processed can not only absorb Yin Energy but also allow the Yin Energy to nourish these weapons. This way, these weapons can harm Weirdness without the need for blood or talismans, and they can also prevent the wounds inflicted on Weirdness from healing easily. Normally, they require merit points to exchange. Today, pick one, and I'll consider it a gift to you."

Qu Yong explained to Zhou Yi.

Upon hearing "Yin Energy," Zhou Yi's eyes lit up. Qu Yong thought Zhou Yi was shocked by his "generosity," unaware that Zhou Yi was actually thinking about how to "legitimately" siphon off all this Yin Energy.

Zhou Yi pondered for a long time. To absorb Yin Energy, he needed to come into contact with the items. If he touched them directly, his master probably wouldn't allow it. He wondered if he could absorb Yin Energy through a weapon by contacting the items.

"Forget it, let's give it a try," Zhou Yi thought to himself, while carefully examining the weapons on the wall. After all, this was the "divine artifact" of the novice village, no, Qingzhu Village.