Becoming Old Man Yao's Disciple

"Cough, cough, cough—"

As if stunned by Xiao Han's reaction, the white, unidentified mass that had been floating above his head, pressed against the ceiling, slowly descended until it hovered before him.

This mass twisted and coiled like mist, converging and then dispersing again.

In less than ten seconds, the white mass transformed into smoke, which quickly outlined a humanoid silhouette. Another ten seconds passed, and the smoke sharpened into clarity, revealing a truly distinct, transparent human figure.

Xiao Han rubbed his eyes. The process of this thing skyrocketing from 360p pixelation to a 4000k ultra-clear image left his vision momentarily dazed.

At first, he'd been startled by the sudden appearance of the strange object, but once it took human form, his fear faded.

After all, in this world, those with formidable Soul Power could often cling to life as remnant souls.

Gazing at the white-haired old man before him, Xiao Han instinctively stroked his chin. Strange—at this point in time, where did a soul body come from? And this soul body was going to guide him in alchemy...

Wait!

Alchemy?

Xiao Han looked up again at the old man, who floated a head higher than him, and felt a crick in his neck.

If you're going to fly down, can't you come a little lower? Staring up like this is seriously exhausting!

Making up his mind, Xiao Han lowered his head, quickly adjusted his expression, then coughed lightly into his fist: "Esteemed elder, might I ask what guidance you have for me in my room?"

"Oh? Little lad, why aren't you afraid of me?"

The white-haired elder smiled faintly, stroking his beard.

"I was startled by you at first, Senior, but I'm not an ignorant man. As a newcomer dreaming of becoming an Alchemist, I have some understanding of Soul Power.

As everyone knows, when a person's Soul Power is too strong, even if their physical body is killed, they can rely on that power to transform into a soul body and escape."

Xiao Han spoke with authority, laying out nearly everything he knew.

"...Furthermore, the strength of Soul Power is one of the key criteria for judging an Alchemist's rank. The stronger an Alchemist's Soul Power, the more crucial their overall control during alchemy—whether it's heat management, purification, or pill formation, none of it can do without Soul Power's aid."

In the small room, only Xiao Han and the elder remained. After Xiao Han finished reciting these basics, the elder's face beamed with satisfaction. He nodded repeatedly: "Good! Good! Good! For a beginner, knowing this much is no small feat. I didn't expect you to remember it all so thoroughly in just a few hours."

How does he know I bought those books only a few hours ago?

Could this old bastard have been spying on me?

A chill ran down his spine, but Xiao Han kept his composure, watching the elder as he took two steps back.

Yet seeing the elder's appreciative expression, Xiao Han made a decision. Without a word, he knelt before the elder and knocked his head on the ground: "Please, esteemed elder, accept me as your disciple!"

"Oh? You don't even know who I am, yet you kneel so easily and ask me to take you as a disciple?" The elder shook his head, waving his sleeve. A gentle force lifted Xiao Han back to his feet.

In response, Xiao Han explained with a smile: "Just now, Senior came out and guided me to successfully purify that medicinal herb I'd failed dozens of times, pinpointing the problem at once. That shows Senior has considerable skill in alchemy.

And as I said earlier, some powerful Alchemists possess extremely strong Soul Power. Even if their physical bodies die, their souls don't dissipate.

Being both skilled in alchemy and possessing such formidable Soul Power, I imagine Senior was an extraordinary Alchemist Master in life."

"You're quite sharp, lad. To deduce my identity from such small details in so short a time—that mind of yours is no ordinary thing."

The elder examined Xiao Han like a rare treasure, his strange gaze making Xiao Han's skin crawl.

"Heh, Senior flatters me."

"I don't take disciples lightly, but seeing your sincere heart, I'll reluctantly accept you as my student."

It's true he doesn't take disciples lightly, but his first disciple was a backstabbing ingrate. Raised from childhood like a son, that disciple turned around and teamed up with the master's sworn enemy for a nice little "father-son reunion"—truly exasperating.

Even as he silently mocked the elder, Xiao Han knelt respectfully, performed the Three Bows and Nine Kows ceremony of becoming a disciple, then rushed to brew a pot of hot tea from his room. Offering it to the elder in place of wine, he fulfilled every courtesy.

"Disciple greets Master."

"Good, good disciple! Rise quickly."

Seeing such a well-mannered new student, the elder's smile never faded: "Do you know your master's name?"

"Your disciple listens with respect."

Xiao Han said obediently.

Cut the act, big guy. With such an obvious appearance, entrance, and that alchemy skill, who doesn't know you're Yao Chen?

"I am called Old Man Yao. As for my origins, it's not convenient to explain yet, lest you be distracted. You only need to know that your Jia Ma Empire's so-called 'Dan King Gu He' isn't worth a fart in front of me."

Old Man Yao opened his mouth with the classic old braggart's flair. Though Xiao Han knew he was telling the truth, he couldn't admit he recognized him—otherwise, he'd have no way to explain.

If he hadn't known Old Man Yao's background, Xiao Han might have been intimidated by his boasting. But knowing it made it all tasteless, and he had to play along with the act—truly a pain in the ass.

As for why Old Man Yao could move after absorbing Xiao Yan's Dou Qi for two years, while in the Original Work he had to drain three full years and only appear after Nalan Yanran broke off the engagement, Xiao Han had some guesses.

First, Old Man Yao wanted to polish Xiao Yan's foundation, so he deliberately dragged it out to three years.

Second, Old Man Yao wanted to temper Xiao Yan's character, so he deliberately dragged it out to three years.

Third—sorry, haven't thought of a third yet.

Or you could say Old Man Yao got too high on absorbing Dou Qi and never showed up.

As for why Old Man Yao couldn't hold back and came to find him, Xiao Han could understand.

In terms of cultivation talent, he was no weaker than Xiao Yan. And in Soul Power, he could crush Xiao Yan outright.

As for character, setting aside the fact that Xiao Han had always been approachable over the years, never once letting his exceptional talent go to his head or making him arrogant and overbearing, he was easy to get along with everyone in the Xiao Family.

Furthermore, over the past two years, Xiao Yan had been bullied and treated like a dog by those around him. Aside from Xiao Xun'er and his two biological brothers, Xiao Han was the only cousin brother who hadn't added insult to injury. Even before Xiao Yan became a waste material, when he used to talk to Xiao Han with his nose in the air every day, Xiao Han had been magnanimous enough not to hold it against him, always treating Xiao Yan like a brother.

With such loyalty and righteousness, where could one find a disciple of this caliber?

Such character and temperament perfectly matched Old Man Yao's criteria for choosing a disciple.

And besides...

Given Old Man Yao's powerful Soul Power and his subtly flamboyant nature, if he truly intended to take him as a disciple, he must have secretly watched him countless times over the years—he just hadn't noticed.

"Teacher, since you're so all-knowing and all-powerful, I have a request. Please, you must agree to it." Having made up his mind to mess with Old Man Yao a little, Xiao Han smirked inwardly.

"Sure, sure."

Old Man Yao said happily. Having taken on such a fine disciple today, he would agree to anything as long as it wasn't too excessive.

"It's like this... blah blah blah..."

So Xiao Han respectfully gave Old Man Yao a deep bow, then lowered his head and forced out a few tears as he began recounting how his younger cousin Xiao Yan had inexplicably become a waste material over the past two years and was being bullied everywhere.

As he spoke, Xiao Han got deeply into character, gnashing his teeth and cursing, saying that once he found the true culprit behind Xiao Yan's fall, he would make sure that person regretted it.

As Xiao Han talked on, he didn't notice the beads of sweat forming on Old Man Yao's forehead, his face full of awkward smiles.

"Well, my good disciple, your cousin brother losing his Dou Qi cultivation actually has something to do with me..." Weakly raising his right hand, Old Man Yao said sheepishly.

"What?"

Xiao Han put on an expression of disbelief, then looked at Old Man Yao with contempt.

"Teacher? What do you mean by 'has something to do with you'?"

"Ahem, it's a long story..."

Old Man Yao was also straightforward, quickly recounting how he had fallen from grace, clung to life by relying on a ring, and happened to discover a young man with powerful Soul Power who had put on his ring. With no other choice in his desperate situation, he had to absorb Xiao Yan's Dou Qi, causing Xiao Yan to suffer for a full two years.

Mm, what a truly touching story. The world where only Xiao Yan got hurt was complete.