Disciple Token

"Specifically, you can figure it out yourself," Zhou Hai continued.

"As for the choice I gave you, go back and consider it carefully. You can give me your answer at the Pillars of Cultivation Pavilion in the next two days."

Ning Ri immediately said, "Thank you, Elder Zhou. You should go about your business first."

Zhou Hai nodded and then quickly disappeared.

After watching Zhou Hai leave, Ning Ri turned and walked into the Golden Osmanthus Garden, returning to his small cabin within it.

The cabin was simply furnished, with just a table, a chair, a bed, and a meditation cushion.

On the table were a kettle of water and a bottle of Bigu Pills. One couldn't stop eating entirely while in the Qi Refining stage, so Bigu Pills were the most convenient and very filling.

Bigu Pills came in various flavors, prepared by frying, stir-frying, deep-frying, boiling, stewing, and simmering. Ning Ri had eaten a clear soup-flavored one the day before yesterday; it wasn't greasy and he still wasn't hungry.

The room was quite cool. Sunlight like gold foil lay on a few small green plants by the small window, and a bit of spiritual energy emanated from them.

Ning Ri had sat on the meditation cushion the past two days, and it was quite comfortable.

It was just a round seat woven from cattail reeds, with no structure to support the waist or abdomen. It looked ordinary, yet it made one feel very comfortable.

When Ning Ri meditated on it, his legs didn't get sore, his lumbar muscles didn't get strained, and even his neck naturally fell into a comfortable position...

It was truly magical!

He had previously wondered if people with poor posture would suffer from herniated lumbar discs when meditating.

Now it seemed that cultivating immortality would naturally resolve these issues.

Returning to the cushion, Ning Ri first set aside his disciple robes, then took out his disciple token. He used the [Painless Needle] provided by the sect to painlessly draw blood, then dripped it onto the characters "Ning Ri" on the token's surface.

This was the method Zhou Hai had told them to use to bind the token when he issued it.

The [Painless Needle] was mainly to avoid inconvenience for young children in the outer sect when drawing blood, and sometimes children cried so loudly. The [Painless Needle] could effectively solve this problem and the noise disturbance caused by crying.

After Ning Ri's blood dripped onto the token, the disciple token quickly bound to Ning Ri.

This sense of binding made Ning Ri feel a tickle on the top of his head, as if something had grown there. And that something allowed him to sense the token...

This was successful binding.

Upon binding, a calm voice immediately emanated from the token: "Congratulations on successfully joining the Heaven Defying Sect. From now on, you will embark on your journey to become an immortal. In the Heaven Defying Sect, you will gain far more than you can imagine."

The voice was calm and deep, incredibly rich, and gave one a sense of peace.

Hearing this voice, Ning Ri looked surprised—

There really is an Artifact Spirit?!

The token continued, "The first step for future great powers of the cultivation world, on the path to the vast immortal realm, is to first learn to use the disciple token in your hand."

"To learn to use your disciple token, you must first master me!"

"Now, please begin to master me!"

"Please choose the role I will play and the way I will interact with you. Please choose carefully; you can only make one choice within three days."

"Please note that mortals without cultivation cannot choose freely."

As soon as the voice finished.

A row of glowing orbs popped out from the disciple token:

[Elder] [Mentor] [Friend] [Partner] [Arch-nemesis] [Fellow Disciple, Both Enemy and Friend] [Childhood Sweetheart Lost for Years] [Childhood Friend Who Has Nothing in Common After Reuniting] [Servant Who Loves and Hates You]...

Simultaneously, a second row of glowing orbs popped out:

[Peaceful] [Strict] [Irritable] [Emotionless] [Warm and Considerate] [Kind] [Indifferent] [Doting] [Arrogant and Overbearing] [Sharp-tongued]...

Ning Ri stared at the large number of glowing orbs that had popped out, his eyes glazed over.

No way, man, you...

This sect of yours is too heaven-defying and too weird!

This is what you call an Artifact Spirit?!

What kind of mess is this?

This isn't an Artifact Spirit, this is clearly a custom-made person!

And now I understand why mortals without cultivation aren't allowed to choose...

Mortals can't handle this...

He thought for a moment and decided to first choose a [Peaceful] [Mentor].

I'm here to cultivate immortality.

Not to mess around with this stuff.

"Disturbing my mind brings today's troubles."

Don't come here to add to the chaos.

What the hell is all this?

These later ones must have been created by the Joyful Union Courtyard, right?

He ignored all the messy tags that followed.

After a moment of contemplation, he hummed for a bit before retracting the hand that was about to fall...

It wasn't like he wanted to mess around.

I'm just curious...

A warm and considerate rival, a kind fellow disciple who is both friend and foe, a childhood sweetheart who became arrogant and domineering after years apart, a servant who loves and hates him but dotes on him... what would these even be?

Since I've studied artifact refining, there's no harm in looking.

Ning Ri ultimately chose the [Warm and Considerate] [Rival].

After making his selection, he waited quietly...

He had no idea what would pop out.

After he finished choosing, all the light clusters above the disciple token retracted. Immediately, a voice slowly sounded from the disciple token, saying:

"Long time no see!"

"Ning Ri, I didn't expect you to join the Heaven Defying Sect too."

"Heh heh, but you didn't expect this, did you? You can't keep up with my cultivation anymore. You're truly useless..."

"Never mind, for the sake of our eventual peak discussion, I'll nurture you myself."

"Do you have any questions?"

Ning Ri looked at the disciple token, thinking, Is this how you show 'warm and considerate'? And 'peak discussion' is how you shape a rival? Isn't this character design a bit too superficial?

Ning Ri pondered for a moment and decided to say, "You think you're worthy?"

Disciple Token: "..."

Ning Ri looked at the silent disciple token and couldn't help but wonder what this guy would reply.

After a long silence, the disciple token spoke:

"Your question is too complex. The token could not understand. Please rephrase your question."

Ning Ri: "..."

Are you playing dead?!

He finally understood why Zhou Hai said this disciple token "practically has an Artifact Spirit."

It just disappears when it encounters something it can't handle!

Ning Ri decided to try again, politely asking, "I wanted to ask you, what gives you the right and confidence to nurture me?"

The disciple token responded normally this time, saying nonchalantly, "I naturally have that qualification. Ning Ri, you don't know how much more I've experienced than you."

"Before you entered the Heaven Defying Sect, I was already the most knowledgeable existence in the Heaven Defying Sect."

Ning Ri scratched his head