They spent the entire afternoon in the library.
After Nie Li tested them, everyone in the group learned the attributes and forms of their Sea of Soul and received a corresponding cultivation art.
Xian Wu: red Sea of Soul, Chaos Attribute, black-hole form; taught the Chaos Spirit Devouring Art.
Du Ze: yellow Sea of Soul, Lightning and Fire Attributes, Sky Kylin form; taught the Sky Kylin Art.
Lu Piao: red Sea of Soul, Chaos Attribute, blazing-sun form; taught the Chaos Sacred Spirit Art.
Wei Nan: red Sea of Soul, Holy Light Attribute, cross form; taught the Holy Light Cross Art.
Zhang Ming: red Sea of Soul, Wind and Thunder Attributes, flying-swallow form; taught the Wind Thunder Flying Swallow Art.
Zhu Jun Xiang: red Sea of Soul, Fire Attribute, giant-dragon form; taught the Fire Dragon Brahma Art.
Once everyone had received their cultivation arts, Nie Li asked the six of them to swear an oath to the Heavenly Dao, promising to keep secret that he possessed a large number of god-tier cultivation arts.
No one hesitated. Only a fool would turn down such ridiculously awesome cultivation arts just because they had to swear an oath to the Heavenly Dao.
With these cultivation arts, ordinary people like them could finally make something of themselves.
After the oath, Xian Wu pulled Nie Li into an empty side room.
The other five exchanged bewildered looks. They were curious about what those two big shots had to discuss in private, but for now, their top priority was absorbing and digesting the cultivation arts they had just received.
As soon as Nie Li stepped inside, Xian Wu slammed the door shut with a bang, making Nie Li's butt clench in alarm.
Was Xian Wu going to offer himself to him?
No, no!
Xian Wu pressed himself against the door and listened carefully to the sounds outside.
Only after confirming that no one was eavesdropping did he slowly turn around.
To Xian Wu's surprise, Nie Li had somehow retreated to the window. He stood there with his legs clamped together and his arms wrapped around himself, warily watching Xian Wu.
"Relax..." Xian Wu approached with a beaming smile.
His smile only made things worse. Nie Li's hair stood on end.
"Don't come any closer! If you have something to say, say it from there!" Nie Li nearly shouted.
If Xian Wu came any closer, he was going to scream for help.
What Nie Li never expected was for Xian Wu to drop to his knees with a thump.
"What are you doing? It's just a cultivation art. There's no need to make such a grand gesture." Nie Li hurried over to help him up.
This kid, Xian Wu, was far too formal. Nie Li had already taken him on as a follower; one mere cultivation art was nothing.
Xian Wu shook off Nie Li's hands and said, one word at a time, "Let's be honest with each other. You're not Nie Li, are you?"
"Huh???" Nie Li took half a step back and tried to play it off. "What nonsense are you talking about? I'm Nie Li."
"Stop pretending. I know the truth!" Xian Wu pursed his lips.
"Nie Li is only thirteen. He couldn't possibly know as much as you do, let alone possess so many god-tier cultivation arts. To be precise, you're not the Nie Li of this time—you're the Nie Li from the future."
"I heard you mutter, 'I've been reborn.'" Seeing Nie Li clench his fists, Xian Wu continued, "But don't worry. I won't tell anyone. I swear it to the Heavenly Dao."
"I don't know how old you really are, but you're definitely older than me. This unworthy one, Xian Wu, would like to acknowledge Lord Nie Li as his adoptive father. I humbly ask you to accept!" As he spoke, Xian Wu knocked his head against the floor.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
After three loud kowtows, Xian Wu stood up, rubbing his hands together as he sidled up to Nie Li with a grin. "Father!"
Nie Li stood rooted to the spot like a block of wood.
He stared blankly at Xian Wu and muttered, "Are you crazy or something?!"
"Thinking of backing out?" Xian Wu pointed to the dust on his forehead and declared, "I've already kowtowed three times. You can't back out now."
"Father, do you have any other cultivation arts that suit my Sea of Soul? Teach me one!" Xian Wu clutched Nie Li's sleeve and pleaded. "I'm your own godson! You can't keep anything from me."
Nie Li opened his mouth, then closed it again, at a loss for words. Xian Wu was so shameless that he had shattered Nie Li's worldview several hundred years in the making.
"No!" Nie Li shook his head.
Xian Wu didn't believe him. "Surely there could be one."
"There really isn't." Nie Li pushed Xian Wu's grabby hand away.
He explained, "Your Sea of Soul is so unusual that, after racking my brains, I could only find one cultivation art suited to you. Let me put it this way: you're the second person since the dawn of creation to possess this kind of Sea of Soul. The first was the senior who created this cultivation art. He later died in an explosion after devouring someone else's Soul Force."
In his previous life, Nie Li had spent several hundred years without a single child. Now that he had been reborn, he'd somehow acquired a godson out of the blue. He was deeply conflicted.
Still, if he accepted Xian Wu as his godson, the two of them would be closer, and it would be easier to use Xian Wu's strength against the Sacred Emperor.
All right, accepting this godson didn't seem like a bad deal.
Years later, Nie Li would regret that decision. He hadn't just taken on a godson—he'd practically taken on an ancestor.
"I see." Xian Wu scratched his head.
He gave Nie Li a once-over, then rubbed his thumb and forefinger together with a smile. "Father, I was wondering what kind of gift you're going to give your godson?"
Xian Wu didn't care who he called his godfather. In a world where only the fittest survived, staying alive mattered most.
Besides, both before and after transmigrating, he had no idea who his parents were. He didn't have the slightest qualm about finding an adoptive father.
Just look at Gao Qiqiang. He'd done pretty well for himself with a godfather.
"I-it's all a bit sudden. Give me a few days, and I'll prepare a big gift for you." Nie Li still wasn't used to the role of godfather, especially when his godson was taller and sturdier than he was.
"Thank you, Father!" Xian Wu grinned until his eyes narrowed to slits.
"Wait." Nie Li called after Xian Wu as he headed for the door. "In front of other people, just call me Nie Li. Otherwise, they'll think you've got something wrong with you. And you'll have a hard time explaining things to Xiao Ning'er..."
"Should I ask her to call me Father too? Do you think she'd agree?" Nie Li awkwardly scratched his cheek with a finger.
Xian Wu waved a hand. "I'll call you Father, and she'll call you classmate Nie Li. We'll each do our own thing. No problem."
"Each do our own thing... Heh, heh, heh..." Nie Li smiled bitterly.
They returned to the small meeting room.
When he saw the two of them come back, Lu Piao asked curiously, "What happened, Nie Li? Don't tell me you got the wrong end of it? You look awful!"
"Xian Wu!" Nie Li snapped his fingers and jerked his chin at Lu Piao.
"Chaos Spirit Devouring Art!"
Xian Wu formed a sword sign with his right hand and pressed it to the Baihui point on the crown of Lu Piao's head.
Immediately, Lu Piao convulsed like he'd been electrocuted, flailing his arms and legs.
In less than a minute, all twenty-odd points of Soul Force he'd worked so hard to cultivate had been sucked away by Xian Wu—not a drop remained.
The other three were so frightened that they hurried behind Du Ze, afraid Xian Wu would use them as cultivation cauldrons.
Xian Wu took out a Soul Crystal and slowly poured his Soul Force into it.
"Just twenty-one points of Soul Force? Is this supposed to feed a beggar?" Xian Wu said with a look of disdain, picking at his teeth.
Clinging to Xian Wu's leg, Lu Piao wailed, "Give it back! Give it back! Give me back the Soul Force I worked so hard to cultivate! Boohoo..."
"Giving it back isn't out of the question..." Xian Wu narrowed his eyes and looked at Lu Piao's butt.
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