Taking a Disciple, Jiang Rongyue.

Jiang Rongyue lowered her bamboo hat, hiding her beautiful face under a black veil to avoid attracting attention. Only her naturally affectionate yet inexplicably clear peach blossom eyes were exposed. She stepped into the tavern, her senses heightened to the limit by State of Still Water, trying to find a flaw within it.

She was born with extraordinary signs from a young age. As soon as she became slightly intelligent, she entered the Misty Mountain, wielding a sword made of black wood and keeping company with demons. It wasn't until five years ago, when she used the head of a white ape demon as a token, that she truly mastered her ancestral swordsmanship and gained the right to leave the mountain.

The young girl discovered that the immortal Legend of the Immortal left by her ancestors was no different from the ordinary Qi techniques of herself and the outside world. That's why she entered the world for the first time and embarked on the opportunity to find other inheritances and trigger the true power of the Stigmata.

Jiang Rongyue's heart was filled with nothing but a cold, sharp blade, and even after experiencing the music imbued with the power of the Manas consciousness, her goal remained unwavering.

Her life experience signifies the utmost purity.

This is a pure heart forged and a clear sword mind, honed by the coldness of the sword's edge and the blood of demons amidst mountains and mist.

The moment the immortal participated in the Martial Arts Gathering, the first person he noticed was not Su Qing'an, who was perfectly concealed by his Manas consciousness, but rather this peerless talent who had already taken shape amidst a sea of flowers and snow.

This innate state of clarity, even without awakening Stigmata, inevitably leads to a chance at reaching the Great Void.

This child also shares many similarities with Xiao Yun from thousands of years ago, some of which evoke nostalgia.

If we disregard other trivial matters and take them under our wing, it would certainly benefit the protection of the many people on this Shenzhou.

On the other hand, after absorbing the memories and emotions of both timelines, Fu Hua also began to seriously consider implementing the suggestions made by the Tome of Cangxuan.

As we all know, the goal is to establish an organization or even a sect that can be passed down through generations.

Excluding external factors such as resources and location, the most important factor is talent.

Talented individuals with exceptional Honkai Energy skills are extremely rare across the entire land of Shenzhou.

Given the deliberate intention to change the traditional methods of exorcising demons, Jiang Rongyue, a talent truly rare in a thousand years, naturally became an entity that could not be ignored.

Therefore... Fu Hua deliberately left an illusion of Udu-dust around her.

By following the guidance of this illusion, Jiang Rongyue will be able to find the true Immortal Chi Yuan.

For the girl, who only had a vague guess about this but didn't know the real reason behind it, the area indicated by the crimson feather hovering in her palm was clearly something to be wary of.

Although it may seem like a divine connection, the possibility of demonic interference cannot be ruled out.

However, this possibility is extremely slim...

Jiang Rongyue has been traveling the martial world for over five years, and has seen countless strange demons and ghosts. She has never encountered anything similar in her knowledge. Is it too far-fetched to consider this a predestined encounter with immortals?

Their ancestors did receive the Legend of the Immortal, but if you calculate carefully, it's been more than a thousand years. Even if it's passed down to Jiang Rongyue, whether she still possesses the bloodline from back then is a question.

She has very few relatives in this world, and after leaving the valley, she is all alone. In truth, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call her the last successor of the Dao.

If a divine intervention occurs, it has nothing to do with this.

If it were unrelated to this, she would find it even harder to imagine such an event happening to her.

Therefore, when a young girl steps into a tavern, her five senses are heightened to their most acute state.

Her heart was like a deep, icy spring, allowing all kinds of information to be extracted from it.

Those born with Stigmata possess physical abilities that are beyond the reach of ordinary people. When paired with the state of perfect Clear Mirror, Still Water, which allows them to reach Path of Sincerity that is similar to that in the physical sense.

All the footsteps, the gurgling of blood, the rhythmic twitching of muscles, the frequency of breathing, and the interweaving of words on the three floors present naturally converged in the chest cavity, slowly rising and falling, leading to one seemingly complicated and useless yet highly observable conclusion after another.

In that instant, Jiang Rongyue was clearly a top-tier constable, a rare find in the world, yet she still couldn't find a trace of immortality. Her peach blossom eyes lowered involuntarily, looking at the table pointed to by the feather in her palm. Suddenly, she saw a crimson arc of light spreading out in a grand manner, and the illusion in her hand shattered into nothingness, turning into wisps of light dust.

Now, what you see before you is no longer an empty desk.

She was a stunningly beautiful young woman, possessing a unique charm that set her apart from the crowd.

Her appearance was ageless, like the snow of the Tianshan Mountains. Her eyes, which seemed to glimpse the swaying Qinghai Lake, were so clear and bright, yet they also conveyed a sense of sacredness and solemnity, making people hold their breath in silence.

And this immortal, who should only exist in stories and dreams, calmly sipped his tea, raised his eyebrows slightly, looked at himself who could only calm his mind by stroking his sword, and softly uttered the words he had longed for.

"Jiang Rongyue, would you be willing to become my disciple?"

Jiang Rongyue was stunned by what she heard. Her chest heaved as if a tsunami was crashing inside her. Her naturally cold mind was unusually complicated at this moment.

Her purpose in coming to the Capital City was nothing more than for the legendary Legend of the Immortal, but even that she didn't have much hope at first. At most, she thought that it would be worth the trip if she could spar with a famous martial artist.

But not only did Master Su reach an extremely terrifying level of true skill, even the expected best outcome of Legend of the Immortal inexplicably evolved into the Immortal Chi Yuan personally accepting him as a disciple.

This was an honor that even her original ancestor, the true Yue woman, had never received.

The ancestor only taught him one or two moves and a specially crafted Qi technique, far inferior to the [Red Robe] who truly entered Mount Taixu to cultivate and received a divine weapon as a gift.

Even the one in red and the immortal were only master and disciple in reality, but not in name.

The fact that she never used this name in the world after she descended the mountain reveals the truth behind it.

Jiang Rongyue knew that she possessed unparalleled talent and potential in martial arts and Qi cultivation, but compared to the peerless talents who had shone like fireworks over the past few thousand years, she still seemed ordinary and unworthy of being treated so well by the Immortal Chi Yuan.

But even after a moment of mental blankness followed by a flurry of thoughts, the girl still had no reason to refuse.

Why refuse?

Jiang Rongyue's purpose in life was to possess that extremely cold and sharp sword in her heart.

In her childhood, she wanted to use that broken sword to cut away the Sea of Mist over that mountain, and also to cut away the heavy snow that buried the plum blossoms in winter.

And all of this was accomplished in the year they left the valley.

Yet it still feels empty, still lonely.

It was only then that the girl realized that her mother's dying wish to send her to the Fog Mountain was meaningless.

She said that when you leave the valley, you will be invincible.

As long as you are invincible, there will naturally be nothing in this world that will make you feel sad or upset, and you will surely be able to obtain happiness for the rest of your life.

But where can happiness be found?

The girl couldn't even perceive the slightest bit of satisfaction; she could only stand before the nameless tombstone, feeling the hollow that had been carved into her chest.

Therefore, her remaining life consisted only of martial arts.

What scenery awaits beyond the extremes?

Actually, I'm not really curious about this, I just feel... let's go and see. If I stay here and don't move forward, even the meaning of survival will cease to exist.

So when she encountered this immortal, whose name was recorded in history and who seemed to live as long as heaven and earth, she silently bowed her head and respectfully performed the grand ceremony before earnestly replying:

"I do."

Fu Hua gazed into the girl's eyes and brows, as if she could glimpse the inner world of Jalana within them, and whispered:

Aren't you going to ask who I am?

In this entire land of Shenzhou, only one true immortal, Chi Yuan, exists.

Yet, countless immortals and deities are celebrated in popular folk tales and complex historical accounts.

This originates from the mythology first spread by Dan Zhu, which has evolved into various forms and branches in later generations. Upon closer examination, even the original Immortal Chi Yuan has branched out into other stories and immortals based on his deeds over thousands of years.

She holds a unique position on this land.

But in the eyes of the world, immortals are not the only ones.

Jiang Rongyue replied:

About half a month ago, the entire Qingzhou was briefly shrouded in colorful clouds late at night.

She continued:

"I left the mountain in search of the immortal's traces and inheritance. In order to speed up the process of achieving my goal, I made a deal with an intelligence organization called Longying. All information about the Immortal Chi Yuan is within my scope of collection."

"The strange phenomenon in Qingzhou this time matches the legendary ability of immortals to change Celestial Phenomenon, and that's how I came to this conclusion."

"And now, just half a month later, I have met you."

"Legend has it that immortals have endless lifespans. Compared to such a long period, half a month might seem as brief as a few breaths."

"So... I don't think this is a coincidence."

Even disregarding these reasons, the Immortal Chi Yuan is the closest being to the mortal world, leaving traces in every dynasty and always purging demons when they run rampant.

Such beings are unintentionally more real than gods and immortals who only exist in stories.

The little girl, who was watching the play from inside the scroll, blinked. She found the scene quite amusing. She knew, of course, that her immortal was not good with words and this was the first time he had formally accepted a disciple. He must be struggling to figure out how to communicate with her right now, which made her laugh.

However, since the suggestion to take on a disciple was made by Tome of Cangxuan herself, she felt a subtle sense of obligation towards it. So, she moved her face closer to the girl, and, with the intention of easing the tension, asked:

"Little girl, what's your name?"

She looked up at the tiny, adorable creature before her, surprised, but still answered:

"Jiang Rongyue."

"Jiang" refers to the river.

"The 'melting moon' is the 'melting moon' in the line '[Pear blossoms in the courtyard, melting moonlight; willow catkins by the pond, gentle breeze]."

Xiao Xuan patted the other person on the shoulder and said:

"I'll remember that, Rongyue."

"You guessed right, the elm tree next to you... cough cough, the beautiful young woman, is none other than the famous Immortal Chi Yuan."

"I am the Tome of Cangxuan, my name is Cang Xiaoxuan, and I am Armed Puppet responsible for taking care of the immortals' daily lives. How about that, pretty impressive, right? Rongyue can call me Xiaoxuan."

Jiang Rongyue said earnestly:

"Senior Xiao Xuan, I understand."

Xiao Xuan blinked. Her core goal in having Fu Hua take her as a disciple was naturally to ensure that she would no longer be lonely. Even if she couldn't continue to accompany her, she would still have someone to keep her company in the future.

But now that she's awake, she hopes the immortal's disciple will be more interesting, not as rigid as someone else. Otherwise, the entire Mount Taixu will remain the same as before, filled only with blockheads like herself—how dull that would be!

But now, she had a bad feeling.

Is he another blockhead?

The girl brought her face even closer and said:

"You can just call me Xiao Xuan."

Jiang Rongyue hesitated for a moment. When she first entered the martial arts world, she suffered a lot because she didn't know etiquette. After that, she became very particular about etiquette after a few incidents. She said seriously:

"Then... I'll call you Senior Xiao Xuan."

"You have served the immortal for a long time; proper etiquette must not be neglected."

Xiao Xuan now strongly suspected that this disciple, whom his immortal had just taken in, had actually not received much formal education since childhood and had ventured out into the world. He wondered where he had learned such manners from.

So adorably silly!

The term "senior" might be a colloquial expression thousands of years from now, but in the present day, it can only be used if there is a connection in the family genealogy. Otherwise, it can easily cause subtle misunderstandings. Even those in the martial arts world wouldn't be so casual about it.

But think about it, even if a peerless swordsman with innate Stigmata uses inappropriate language, at most he will only be considered to have some eccentricities.

Jiang Rongyue was initially investigated for making a foolish mistake due to a lack of common sense because she was not famous. It was normal for those with ill intentions to take advantage of her good looks to make trouble for her.

But after the name of Yue Maiden Sword spread, everyone knew that this little girl was not only orphaned and extremely lonely, but also had a weak sense of law and morality, and her fighting power was terrifyingly strong. Anyone with a little knowledge wouldn't dare to be disrespectful to such a person, okay?

What if my whole family is killed?

Not only can you not beat your opponent, but because they are extremely isolated, even retaliatory measures that could harm innocent bystanders are meaningless.

To many, Yue Maiden Sword Jiang Rongyue is the most terrifyingly stubborn character; why deliberately make things difficult when you can please her?

So it seems normal that this error has remained uncorrected.

For example, right now, Xiao Xuan noticed this and found it rather cute. Maybe when the other person finds out later, they can treat it as a precious embarrassing history, and there's nothing to correct about it. So she chose not to mention it at all.

She affectionately pulled the shy little girl, who was still kneeling on the ground, to sit opposite the immortal, poured her a cup of tea, and chatted with her casually under the secretly relieved gaze of someone else, quickly easing the sense of distance that made her seem like a towering figure.

Ten minutes later.

Xiao Xuan swallowed the mung bean cake in his mouth, his eyes widened, and he said indignantly:

"Your mother just threw you a few sword manuals, qi techniques, and a wooden sword, and left you in a mountain full of Sea of Mist and demons for several years? And then she never came to see you? She didn't give you any support or supplies?"

Jiang Rongyue nodded and said calmly:

"When I was five years old, I lived with my mother in a village in the mountains. From then on, she often asked the hunters in the village to teach me how to survive in the mountains. I learned a lot of skills. I spent about a year and a half there."

"Looking back now, I suppose this was preparation for that."

Xiao Xuan said:

"That's too much of a stretch. You were only six and a half years old then. Even for someone born with a Stigmata, surviving in that kind of environment for several years would be..."

She replied:

"There was nothing we could do about it. Ever since my mother's martial arts were crippled, she had no choice but to sell herself to support me. Her health deteriorated day by day, and she later contracted an illness. She didn't have much time left."

"Back then, a brothel wanted to buy me into prostitution, but my mother refused. She said that those people would eventually hire thugs to kidnap me, and even if they could kill them all, I was too young to stand up to their connections and the local government."

"After that, she forced herself to use her Qi techniques to support her broken body, leading me to a mountaintop shrouded in mist, where it would be difficult to spot her. She left behind a few last words and then died."

"Actually, I know my mother was also reluctant to let me undergo the Yue Maiden's trial so many years early, but her health was too poor... At most, she could only bring me to hide in the mountains."

Jiang Rongyue whispered:

Who would have thought that a demon would be born in that mountain?

Xiao Xuan comforted him, saying:

"Those people are so bad."

"But it's alright, from now on, Senior Xiao Xuan and the immortals will protect you..."

She suddenly realized that there was no one in the world she couldn't defeat, so she quickly changed her words:

"Yes, I'll eat with you Tiāntiān so you won't be lonely anymore, and you'll definitely find happiness."

Are you happy?

Jiang Rongyue didn't quite understand the word, but she still politely replied with a thank you.

Fu Hua observed this disciple, who was the first she had truly accepted as her apprentice.

Although she used the Udu-dust to screen and confirm the other party's character, out of respect and because of her own hyperthymesia, she did not pry into all of the other party's memories and past life.

Now, even with just a few words, she can roughly understand why Jiang Rongyue's initial impression of her was described with such a wonderful metaphor.

This is not merely an innate strength.

Rather, it is an ultimate quality extracted from both innate strength and rigorous training.

Jiang Rongyue was not born a detached and aloof person, but her later encounters unexpectedly made her fit the principles and conditions of the Void Sword Qi.

First, to slay demons and eliminate evil.

Secondly, their resolve to follow the Dao is unwavering.

"Disciple?" Recalling the scenes of teaching Su Qing'an in the past, the girl's lips parted slightly, and she looked at the person and said:

"Rongyue, come back to Mount Taixu with me."

"I will impart the Void Sword Qi to you."

Jiang Rongyue paused for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

She gazed into his clear eyes, which seemed to hold the promise of eternity, and her heart was filled with a myriad of emotions.

Perhaps the mother was wrong from the very beginning.

What's the point of simply being invincible?

There are always some beings who have never entered this world, and who will never belong to this world.

If you really want to pursue something, then set a domineering vision that makes you the only one who reigns supreme in the world.

At least this way, regardless of whether you feel happy after achieving it, you won't feel lonely during the pursuit.

Now... let's try chasing after the immortal's silhouette.