Awkward

"Is that so?" Looking up at Jia Xingtian, Yao Ye sensibly and obediently tucked away the scroll and Storage Ring before her. She then bowed gracefully to Zhang Nian, her voice sweet as she said, "Disciple Yao Ye thanks Master for the reward~"

[Ding! Detected the granting of the Xuan-tier high-level flight Dou Technique, Wings of the Eagle, to disciple Yao Ye... Returning...]

[Current return multiplier for Yao Ye: 3000]

[Ding! Returned the Heaven-tier intermediate flight Dou Technique, Soaring Nine Heavens]

[Ding! Detected the granting of the Rank 5 Magical Beast, Sun-Flame Eagle wings, to disciple Yao Ye... Returning...]

[Current return multiplier: 3000...]

[Ding! Returned the Rank 9 intermediate Magical Beast, Profound Sky Ancient Peng wings... Returning...]

Watching the young girl before him who was carefully choosing her own path, Zhang Nian uncharacteristically reached out and ruffled Yao Ye's hair. At this time, Yao Ye was only a thirteen-year-old girl. Perhaps due to the nature of this world, she possessed a maturity that did not belong to her age, a maturity that made one's heart ache.

"Alright, I'll have the senior disciple arrange two maids for you later, and then a room. Whenever you hear the bell ring, it's time to eat together. Don't forget, there is no need to worry about such formalities within the Sect; just be natural. Go on now."

Zhang Nian then gave Cailin, who was standing beside him, a look. At this moment, the latter wore an indescribable expression. Perhaps because she heard that the issues regarding the Snake-People Tribe had been resolved, her mood had improved significantly. However, when she saw Yao Ye, a flash of jealousy and envy crossed Cailin's eyes, and her conviction to increase her strength grew even stronger, simply because Ya Fei, Yun Yun, and even the Yao Ye who had entered the mountain gate today all possessed long, slender legs that countless men would flock to.

"Follow me..." she said in a flat tone. As a fellow girl, Yao Ye naturally felt the hostility coming from the Master's first disciple. Although she did not know why, the mature-minded Yao Ye chose to swallow her pride and followed obediently, saying, "Thank you, Senior Sister."

On the other side, seeing that Zhang Nian had agreed to take her as a disciple, Jia Xingtian, having achieved his wish, left sensibly without further disturbance.

Turning around, Zhang Nian returned to his private training room. With a flip of his palm, a golden scroll appeared in his hand; it was the Heaven-tier intermediate flight Dou Technique obtained through the system's return.

Just by looking at the name, one could feel the power of this flight Dou Technique: Soaring Nine Heavens...

Adjusting his spirit and energy to their peak state, he spread out the scroll. Immediately, the two golden, holy, and noble wings depicted on the scroll caught his eyes. These wings were merely painted on the scroll and looked unremarkable, yet the golden radiance overflowing from the canvas revealed an extraordinary aura.

As his palm brushed across the surface of the scroll, a golden aura shot directly into his brow and vanished in a flash.

Immediately, the image of a Kunpeng appeared in his mind. He saw that figure, which blotted out the sky and sun, crossing the sea and whipping up waves of water spouts. As it turned into a Peng, with the flapping of those giant wings, the figure soared straight into the nine heavens. The wings emitted a golden aura, reflecting the vast sea, and for a moment, the world turned into a golden expanse.

When the vision ended, a line of golden text appeared: The Peng migrates to the Southern Abyss, striking the water for three thousand miles, and soars ninety thousand miles up on the whirlwind.

This Dou Technique requires the wings of a Rank 9 flying Magical Beast as a catalyst to be integrated into the body. The moment the wings are flapped, one can soar ninety thousand miles high, leaving no trace as time passes, and leaving no footprints as one treads upon the clouds.

"Hiss..."

It really is impressive... The Dou Qi consumption must be a terrifying figure, but it's worth it! At this speed, even if someone used spatial power, they might not be faster than him. It could be said that he was invincible at the same level. He didn't believe anyone else could be as awesome as him, being able to obtain a Heaven-tier intermediate flight Dou Technique.

Placing the system-returned Profound Sky Ancient Peng wings onto the scroll, under Zhang Nian's gaze, the scroll emitted a golden light. Following that, the wings he had just obtained visibly merged into the scroll. Then, the golden wings, patterned with faint auspicious clouds, seemed to be infused with a soul; they detached from the scroll and hovered in the void before him.

Blinking slightly, he was still sighing in his heart. It truly was a Heaven-tier intermediate technique; it was worlds apart from that Xuan-tier high-level flight Dou Technique. He couldn't help but feel a bit guilty toward Yao Ye, after all, this item was brought to him by her. Well, next time he got something good, he would definitely give it to Yao Ye.

Anything returned by the system was bound to be a premium item. This golden emblem had already absorbed all the soul essence contained within the Rank 9 Magical Beast wings when it absorbed them. This meant that these Soaring Nine Heavens wings were now as obedient as a newborn baby.

There was no need for any soul confrontation or the like. However, thinking of this, he wondered if Yao Ye had already started practicing the Purple Cloud Wings! One had to know that Yao Ye's soul was not as strong as Xiao Yan's; if she practiced it now, she would inevitably suffer a soul attack from the Rank 5 Purple Cloud Eagle within the scroll!

Accompanied by a flash of light entering his body, these Soaring Nine Heavens wings were considered completely refined. Zhang Nian quickly stood up and, guided by a maid, arrived at Yao Ye's room.

"Creak~"

As the door was pushed open, Yao Ye, who had just removed her outer garments and hadn't yet had time to put on others, saw the door swing wide open and Zhang Nian rushing in.

"Ah!!"

She hurriedly grabbed the quilt on the bed to cover her body. Having lived two lives, Zhang Nian had never seen such a scene, and his old face couldn't help but flush red. Although Yao Ye hadn't fully developed yet, everything that should be there was there... He raised a hand to cover his eyes, while his other hand fumbled until he found the doorknob, and then he said to the room:

"That... Yao Ye, Master came to see you because there is an important matter to tell you. Let me know when you're ready. Don't worry, Master didn't see anything!"

"Bang~"

The door closed rapidly, and Zhang Nian's somewhat flustered figure departed.

Yao Ye smiled slightly. The embarrassment just now was a girl's instinctive reaction. Deep in her heart, she had already regarded Zhang Nian as her man. Perhaps she didn't deserve a title, but she didn't care. If he saw, he saw.

Two minutes later.

"Master, you can come in." Yao Ye's call came from inside the room. Zhang Nian straightened his clothes properly, let out a heavy breath, and while relaxing his mind, pushed the door open and walked in.

Looking at the blush that hadn't yet faded from Yao Ye's face, Zhang Nian could only cough twice to cover his embarrassment.

"Cough, cough, that... Master suddenly remembered that the flight Dou Technique contains the soul of a Rank 5 Purple Cloud Eagle. If your soul strength isn't enough right now, you might get hurt, so I came to..."

"Mm, thank you, Master..." Her voice, as small as a mosquito's, indicated Yao Ye's attitude. With her head lowered, her hands drew circles in front of her chest, perhaps because of nervousness, or perhaps because...

The atmosphere in the room was a bit off. Even though Zhang Nian had been single for decades, he sensed something was wrong and immediately chose to "go to the bathroom" to escape.

"Master has some business to attend to, I need to step out for a moment. You rest well. If you still want to practice that Dou Technique, remember to tell me in advance!"

With that, his figure rushed out of the door...