Coaxing Zi Yan

Zi Yan shot a glance at the person before her. Zhang Nian looked much younger than the old man Su Qian, and he didn't carry the same threatening aura that Su Qian did. It must be because she had been eating too much lately, and the old man Su Qian was feeling the pinch!

That hateful old man is truly wicked!

Little Zi Yan was filled with indignation, her two small, pink fists clenched tightly behind her back. Suddenly, she fixed her eyes on Zhang Nian and asked in a milky, childish voice, "You want to be my teacher?"

Medusa, standing behind Zhang Nian, watched Zi Yan with her beautiful eyes. For some reason, a sense of affection welled up within her. As a Snake-Person, she quickly realized that Zi Yan was not human; she looked like a Magical Beast that had consumed a Humanoid Pill, or perhaps she had ingested a Humanoid Grass?

Su Qian, who was holding onto Zi Yan, and the Qian and Bai Elders standing on either side, knew full well how formidable Zhang Nian was. This young man, who appeared harmless to both humans and animals, was someone capable of destroying the Jia Nan Academy with a mere flip of his hand.

My little ancestor, please, you must be careful with what you say.

"That's right." Zhang Nian smiled slightly. Taking Zi Yan as his disciple was inevitable. This little female dragon would play a crucial role; the key to breaking through to the final level on this continent was the Source Qi of the Emperor. The only way to obtain it was to head to the Tou She Ancient God's Cave Mansion and retrieve the Emperor Grade Embryonic Pill, and the gatekeeper there was the father of Zi Yan, the Dragon Emperor of the Ancient Void Dragon tribe.

He didn't know much about the system yet, so all he could do was plan for his future. Although the major plot had yet to unfold, the conspiracy of the Soul Clan had been brewing for a long time. He currently lacked strength, and his only means of self-defense were the two Dou Sheng Experience Cards gifted when the system awakened. He had already used one to secure his disciple, and with only one left, Zhang Nian would never use it unless absolutely necessary.

"Hmph!" Although Zi Yan was immature in her thinking, she understood some social nuances. From the expressions on the faces of Su Qian and the Qian and Bai Elders, she could tell that this young man was likely not simple. However, she didn't want to follow Zhang Nian either. She wrinkled her small nose, shook off Su Qian's hand, put her hands on her hips, and began to make things difficult: "You say you want to take me as your disciple, but I can eat a lot. Look at the old man Su Qian; he only wants to send me away because he's afraid of how much I eat."

Hearing such innocent words, everyone couldn't help but chuckle. Medusa, standing behind Zhang Nian, cast a look of pity. Watching little Zi Yan's wary gaze, she seemed to vaguely guess something and sighed inwardly: I'm afraid this little one had a very hard life before coming to the Jia Nan Academy.

Indeed, the world of Magical Beasts was simpler than the human world, yet far more dangerous. Magical Beasts without strength would be bullied, especially those like Zi Yan who were inherently weak and, having consumed a Humanoid Pill or Humanoid Grass, lacked the strength to revert to their true form.

Su Qian wore a bitter smile: This person in front of you can conjure up anything you want to eat; he is a Dou Sheng powerhouse, after all.

"That doesn't matter. I know you have a big appetite, but..." Zhang Nian flipped his palm, and a brown medicinal pill hovered above it.

"Hiss! This pressure! This pill is at least grade eight or higher!" The Qian and Bai Elders were shocked to their cores. As expected of a Dou Sheng powerhouse, he could produce such a formidable pill with a mere flip of his hand.

A fragrance of medicine permeated the air. Medusa stared at the pill in Zhang Nian's palm. She didn't know why, but she felt a deep sense of anticipation. It was an intuition that if she could consume this pill, she would undergo a brand-new transformation.

Gazing at the extraordinary pill, a few drops of crystal-clear, viscous saliva dripped uncontrollably from the corners of Zi Yan's mouth.

"Slurp~"

She raised her soft, pink hand to wipe the drool from her mouth, and her childish voice rang out again: "But why do you want to take me as your disciple! We have never met before, and how did you know I was here! You're suspicious!"

Well, Zhang Nian was a bit tongue-tied. It was true that he couldn't reveal that he had a script in his head, and his sudden appearance, coupled with naming her specifically to be his disciple, was indeed a bit rash.

He scratched his nose awkwardly, one hand naturally behind his back, and looked up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, putting on a look of reminiscing about the past. Then, he spoke in a tone filled with rich emotion:

"It's like this. About fifteen years ago, I was eating dumplings on the side of the road when a master of metaphysics passed by. He looked at me deeply and told me that I was destined to be your teacher. He told me that fifteen years later, I should go to the Jia Nan Academy to find a little girl named Zi Yan and take her as my disciple, otherwise, my cultivation would be destroyed, and I would even suffer the backlash of heavenly lightning. That is why this happened today."

"My god..." Su Qian covered his mouth in disbelief. From his terrified eyes and trembling eyelashes, he seemed to believe this explanation. In his heart, he even wanted to find the mysterious master Zhang Nian spoke of; he also wanted to know where his own destined opportunity lay.

The Qian and Bai Elders exchanged glances, seeing doubt, shock, and confusion in each other's eyes. Where in the Dou Qi Continent did such metaphysical talk come from? Could it be unique to the Central Plains? But they had never heard of it. Could it be that they had stayed in the Jia Nan Academy for too long and were out of touch with the outside world?

Perhaps only Medusa understood the full story. A helpless smile appeared on the corner of her mouth. Well, her master really did have a thick skin; he used the same excuse to fool two disciples, and if he couldn't explain it, he just called it destiny. She shook her head and, considering her position, chose to remain silent.

As naive as she was, Zi Yan tilted her head, seemingly thinking about something in her mind. After a long while, she asked cautiously: "Then, did that master of metaphysics ever say where my clansmen or my relatives are?"

"Hoo~"

Exhaling slowly, Zhang Nian looked at Zi Yan with deep affection and said: "His exact words were that this involves a heaven-shaking secret that he cannot reveal, otherwise he would suffer the backlash of the Heavenly Dao, be struck by five thunders, and leave no bones behind. But he calculated that I am the fated person to help you find your clansmen and relatives. So, we, as master and disciple, are here to help each other. Do you understand now..."

Fooling... no, after finishing his words, Zhang Nian fell silent. He glanced at the less than twenty minutes of experience time remaining in his mind and felt a bit panicked. This system was incredibly strict; he feared that once the time was up, his strength would vanish completely. He couldn't afford to consume the other experience card; that was his life-saving trump card.

"Is that so..." Supporting her cheek with one hand, Zi Yan looked thoughtful. After a long while, she nodded vigorously and affirmed: "In that case, I'll go with you! From today on, you are my teacher!"

"Hoo~"

Zhang Nian breathed a sigh of relief and didn't say anything more. He had already taken the opportunity to store the Fallen Heart Flame in his space. Now, he just needed to take Zi Yan back and carve out a piece of land in the Jia Ma Empire for them to live on.

[Ding! Detected that Zi Yan has sincerely offered to be a disciple, binding in progress...]

[Ding! Disciple accepted successfully. Current number of disciples: 2. Remaining slots: 0. Updating Zi Yan's attribute panel...]

[Name: Zi Yan]

[Strength: One-star Dou Spirit]

[Bloodline: Ancient Void Dragon]

[Items: None]

[Ding! Successfully accepted Zi Yan as a disciple. Reward: Portable Herb Repository (comes with 100 random herbs of each grade from grade 1 to grade 9). Note: Herbs provided by the system in the repository given to the disciple will not be returned.]