Personal Disciple

Lei Dong's face broke into an uncontrollable look of delight and excitement. He hurriedly knelt and bowed solemnly. "Many thanks, Ancestor, for granting my wish."

Seeing that expression, the Ancestor assumed he was overjoyed to become a Personal Disciple and gave another quiet nod. If he had known the boy was actually happy to have escaped death, and didn't care much for the title of Personal Disciple at all, he might have slapped him dead on the spot and chosen someone else.

"Little Lei, cultivate well from now on. Don't bring shame upon the Ancestor," the Ghost Slave said gravely.

"Yes, Lord Ghost Slave," Lei Dong replied, putting away his delight and answering with utmost seriousness.

The Ghost Slave then began explaining all the benefits of being a Personal Disciple. For example, each month he would receive two Spirit Stones and a bottle of Pill for Cultivating Origin as his allowance. As his cultivation rose, his monthly allowance would continue to increase. In addition, at the end of every month, the Ancestor would hold a lecture for all the Personal Disciples. They could ask the Ancestor about any questions they encountered during cultivation. They could also move into the quarters reserved for Personal Disciples. Not only were those quarters far better than the ordinary disciples' lodgings, but, most importantly, their Cultivation Chambers had been built over Spirit Caves, where the spiritual energy was far denser and more abundant.

There was one more benefit unknown to ordinary disciples: when Personal Disciples exchanged their contributions for items, they only had to pay eighty percent of the listed price.

Lei Dong, who had once looked down on the idea of being a Personal Disciple, now gradually began to take it seriously. He had to admit that some of the privileges were exactly what he needed. With the heaven-defying treasure, the Soul Devouring Pagoda, his combat power could be greatly increased. But it did little to improve his cultivation. Unless he was willing to upgrade more Middle Grade Spirit Ghosts and sell them, then use the Spirit Stones he earned to buy pills like Pill for Cultivating Origin, he could only indirectly speed up his cultivation to some extent.

But if he kept selling Spirit Ghosts, sooner or later he would run into trouble. Eventually, someone would notice something was amiss. No matter how lucky a person was, he couldn't keep obtaining Middle Grade, or even Upper Grade Spirit Ghosts, with ease, could he?

Being a Personal Disciple was different. Twenty-four Spirit Stones a year was neither a lot nor a little, but he could openly add them to the wealth in his Storage Bag. A bottle of Pill for Cultivating Origin every month was even more precious, far better than the Lesser Vitality Pills Lei Dong had used before. The quarters built over Spirit Caves and the Ancestor's personal guidance were also benefits that directly helped his cultivation. As for the privilege of exchanging items at eighty percent of the listed price, in the long run, it would save him a great deal as well.

There really were plenty of benefits. No wonder Zuo Chao and Zhou Minghua had both advanced to the Fifth Layer in just three years, while Ding Wanyan's cultivation had surged forward. Their exceptional talent was certainly a factor, but the many advantages of being a Personal Disciple had helped them considerably. At the very least, once Lei Dong gained those benefits, he would cultivate much faster than before.

"Little Lei, today is your first day as a Personal Disciple, so the Ancestor is granting you special treatment. If you have any questions about cultivation, you may ask him now," the Ghost Slave said. He had interacted with Lei Dong several times and found the boy rather likable, so his manner toward him had grown much warmer.

It was true that Lei Dong had spent much of the past three years figuring things out on his own, and he had accumulated plenty of questions. After obtaining the Ancestor's permission, he raised, one by one, the questions he had pondered for so long without finding answers to. The Ancestor was unusually amiable as he answered each of them.

Questions that had troubled Lei Dong for a long time often took the Ancestor only a sentence or two to explain, illuminating everything at once. Lei Dong's admiration for the Ancestor grew, both in his heart and on his face. Of course, he was only receiving such treatment because he was now a Personal Disciple and had found favor with the Ancestor. Ordinary disciples could barely stand upright in the Ancestor's presence, let alone dare to ask him questions.

Half a day later, Lei Dong had no more questions. Only then did the Ancestor solemnly bestow upon him a treasure that left him somewhat torn between laughter and tears: a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost.

There was no denying that this was a generous reward. Its market price was well over a thousand Spirit Stones. However, a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost was little more than a white elephant to Lei Dong. With a bit of effort, he could produce one himself in a month or so.

Of course, he still put on an expression of delighted surprise and thanked the Ancestor repeatedly for the gift.

After taking his leave of the Ancestor, he returned to his quarters and collapsed onto the bed, utterly exhausted. The process of paying his respects and becoming a Personal Disciple had been more draining than a life-or-death battle with Zhou Minghua. Still, Lei Dong felt extremely fortunate to have truly become a Personal Disciple. He knew his talent was, at best, above average; if anything, his comprehension was the only thing worth noting. Now that he was a Personal Disciple, the road ahead would be much easier.

After the Ghost Slave announced that Lei Dong had become a Personal Disciple, many people came to visit and curry favor with him. Lei Dong met with only two of them and turned away the rest. After a brief get-together, they each went back to cultivating in preparation for the upcoming matches.

Lei Dong advanced smoothly through the matches. Most opponents immediately conceded as soon as they faced him. Their expressions were full of fear and respect; they were probably afraid he would kill them and feed them to his ghosts. Their trembling, wary looks left Lei Dong both amused and exasperated.

In the nineteenth round, he faced Chen Ge. After putting on a show of exchanging blows, Lei Dong declared that he conceded. In the twenty-third round, he faced Wei Hua and, naturally, fought for a while before conceding again. In the twenty-seventh round, he finally drew Ding Wanyan. He had no choice but to concede this time; even with all three ghosts out, he would not be a match for Senior Sister Ding.

In the thirtieth round, his opponent turned out to be Zuo Chao. After a moment's thought, Lei Dong realized he would probably need all three ghosts just to stand a chance of beating Zuo Chao. His two powerful Ghost Soldiers were already conspicuous enough. If he brought out all three ghosts, people would surely grow suspicious. After all, he had only been cultivating for three years. With an Upper Grade Soul Nurturing Pagoda, repeated Blood Sacrifices, and all the effort he had put into carefully raising them, two powerful Ghost Soldiers were already the limit of what he could plausibly have.

But it would be a shame not to fight at all. So Lei Dong used two Ghost Soldiers and fought Zuo Chao with all his might, only to lose by a narrow margin. Still, Zuo Chao had hardly come away unscathed. His Low Grade Magic Tool shield had been shattered, and he had even taken a Return Origin Pill, just to barely defeat Lei Dong.

Whether it was because Zuo Chao was young and spirited or because he was kindhearted by nature, he didn't resent Lei Dong for forcing him to break his shield and use up a pill. Instead, he admired Lei Dong greatly, saying that if Lei Dong had become a Personal Disciple three years earlier, Zuo Chao would never have stood a chance against him now. He also said that he was younger, and even if he ranked above Lei Dong this time, he didn't want Lei Dong to call him Senior Brother. Instead, he took to calling Lei Dong Senior Brother.

Lei Dong admired him just as much. He was so young, yet already had such a level of cultivation. Even more impressive was his skill with spells; he was far better than Zhou Minghua, that good-for-nothing.

In the final match, Lei Dong faced a girl who had only reached Qi Refining Third Layer. With a sorrowful, pitiful expression, she begged him to let her win once, promising to pay any price. Otherwise, she would fall below twentieth place. Lei Dong only gave a cold laugh, summoned a Ghost Soldier, and forced her to concede in less than ten breaths.

The rankings for this Small Competition were announced soon afterward. As expected, Ding Wanyan won all thirty-one of her matches. Zuo Chao took second place with thirty points, while Chen Ge came in third with twenty-nine. Chen Ge had lost only to Ding Wanyan and Zuo Chao. It was also fortunate that Lei Dong had killed Zhou Minghua first, allowing the two people who had yet to face Zhou Minghua to each receive a point by default.

Wei Hua had also been very lucky. He hadn't faced any formidable opponents early on. In the middle of the competition, he happened to advance from the peak of the Third Layer to the Fourth Layer. With his decent cultivation, Magic Tools, and spells, he surged through the matches and finished fourth with twenty-eight points. Lei Dong had twenty-seven points and ranked fifth. Although he came in fifth, everyone knew he was the true third-place contender.

Only Lei Dong knew that if he unleashed all three ghosts, he could beat Zuo Chao. For a moment, he couldn't help sighing again: the Ghost Taming Art was truly powerful when paired with good Spirit Ghosts.

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