Zhua Yun's Promise

At the appointed time, the third quarter of the Rat hour, the moon was hidden, the stars were sparse, and all was silent.

Almost the instant Long Zhanye's feet touched the soft earth at the bottom of the cave,

another nimble figure landed soundlessly beside him—it was Zhua Yun.

The two exchanged a glance in the darkness. Neither spoke; everything was understood without words.

Zhua Yun nodded and was the first to push open the heavy wooden door.

The familiar smell—a mixture of old wood and a faint trace of blood—washed over them once more.

Long Zhanye closed his eyes briefly, then followed Zhua Yun into that dim, eerie pool of light.

Inside the secret chamber, nothing had changed.

Countless containers stood silently arranged on the shelves, while Old Man Gu

was curled up in a battered wooden chair padded with dry grass and torn scraps of cloth.

His head lolled to one side. His breathing was long and faintly accompanied by snores; he had already fallen deeply asleep.

Zhua Yun softened his steps as he approached, bent down by his ear, and called in a low voice, "Master? Master??"

The old man was not sleeping deeply. Disturbed by the sound, he let out an indistinct grunt, and his eyelids laboriously cracked open.

"Mm... what is it, Zhua Yun? In the middle of the night..."

His voice was heavy with sleepiness and irritation at being disturbed.

"Master," Zhua Yun said, stepping back half a pace to reveal Long Zhanye behind him.

His tone was respectful but carried a trace of tension. "Long Zhanye is here. He... he wishes to take you as his master."

"What?!"

Those simple words made the old man's originally cloudy, drowsy eyes fly wide open, all sleep vanishing in an instant.

In its place came a sharp gleam mixed with shock, disgust, and irritation.

He abruptly straightened in his chair, his voice shrill and icy. "Take a master?! What kind of joke is this!"

"I'm a mad old man with one foot in the grave, and I'm supposed to take a disciple? A... a short-lived ghost who's about to die?"

"Get out! Get out of here right now! Just seeing you brings bad luck!"

As he spoke, he waved his arms with extreme impatience as though swatting flies, his face filled with undisguised disdain.

This reaction did not come as a surprise to Long Zhanye.

Before coming here, Zhua Yun had already privately explained Old Man Gu's temperament to him in detail.

"Although my master's mind is sometimes clear and sometimes muddled, and his temperament is strange and reclusive, he is exceptionally stubborn about anything he has set his mind on. He especially values taking disciples and passing on his teachings."

"When he took me as his disciple back then, he observed and tested me for a long time. More importantly, when it comes to his disciples, he truly teaches them everything he knows, with virtually nothing held back."

"If you can successfully enter his tutelage and earn his recognition, then asking for the Grafting Technique afterward will be far more likely to succeed."

Zhua Yun had warned him as much. "So the first step, no matter what, is to find a way to make him accept you as his disciple."

Now, faced with the old man's merciless dismissal, Long Zhanye steeled himself, clenched his teeth, and took a sudden step forward.

With a thud, both knees struck the ground solidly.

He raised his head and looked directly at the skeletal old man in the chair, his voice utterly sincere.

"Elder Gu! The other day, this junior was ignorant and rash, and my words were offensive. I beg you, sir, to forgive me and not lower yourself to my level!"

He bowed deeply, his forehead nearly touching the ground, and performed an exceptionally solemn ceremony of apprenticeship.

"Only afterward did this junior learn that Elder Gu possesses immense talent and learning beyond mortal reach!"

"You are a true veteran and grandmaster of our Body Sect, and your research into the essence of Martial Souls is without precedent!"

"Though this junior is crippled and short-lived, my heart's pursuit of the path has not died. I do not wish to sink into ruin like this. Today, I have come boldly to beg Elder Gu for your mercy and ask that you accept me as your disciple!"

"This junior is willing to follow at Elder Gu's side, heed your teachings, and never show the slightest negligence!"

He remained bowed in worship, awaiting fate's judgment.

Yet the response he received

was still Old Man Gu's cold, utterly detached voice, now carrying even more mockery than before.

"Immense talent? Learning beyond mortal reach? Heh... brat, I got sick of hearing and believing such flattery decades ago."

"Put that act away. I'm already a man about to die, with dirt up to my neck. What disciple could I possibly take?"

"Having Zhua Yun inherit this crooked path of mine is already enough."

"You? Go back where you came from. Don't waste time here, and... don't waste what little time you have left."

He refused outright, leaving no room for negotiation.

Long Zhanye's heart sank, but he did not rise. He remained kneeling, lifting his head as all color drained from his face.

"If Elder Gu refuses, this junior... will remain here and not leave."

"Oh?" Old Man Gu seemed to have been angered into laughter.

But his gaze turned even colder. "Trying to play the rogue with me? You think that just because you don't want to leave, you can squat here?"

"Don't forget the state your body is in! If you keep kneeling, you'll probably pass out before I even have to throw you out!"

"Get up now. Don't force this old man to personally 'invite' you out. That would be ugly."

Long Zhanye pressed his lips together and said nothing. He merely straightened his back a little further, using silence to declare his resolve not to yield.

Seeing this, Zhua Yun knew the time was right.

He suddenly stepped forward as well and dropped to one knee beside Long Zhanye. Facing his master, he spoke with earnest urgency. "Master!"

"This disciple has already told you everything about Long Zhanye's background and misfortunes. His family was destroyed, his Martial Soul crippled, his life hanging by a thread..."

"He truly has nowhere left to turn! Please, for the sake of his tragic and pitiful fate, make an exception and take him in!"

"Just... just consider it an act of kindness. Give him a little hope, won't you?"

"Pitiful?" Old Man Gu snorted coldly, his gaze shifting back and forth between Zhua Yun and Long Zhanye.

"Does Gu accept disciples based on the word 'pitiful'?"

"There are as many pitiful people in this world as fish crossing a river, and plenty have suffered worse fates than his. Am I supposed to accept every last one as a disciple?"

"I might as well turn this secret chamber into a charity hall!"

He paused, his cloudy eyes locking tightly onto Long Zhanye as his voice abruptly lowered.

It carried a probing suspicion born of long experience. "Brat, this old man can understand something of your troubled fate."

"But you did not come early, nor did you come late. You came only after learning of this secret chamber and this 'madman' reputation of mine, suddenly asking to become my disciple..."

"Isn't that a little too convenient? Tell me, what exactly... are you really after?"

At those words, both Zhua Yun and Long Zhanye, kneeling on the ground, shuddered inwardly. A layer of cold sweat instantly broke out on their backs.

This old fellow truly had become shrewd with age. Even if his mind was often unclear, his sharp intuition and insight remained terrifying!

But things had reached this point; they absolutely could not give up now! Zhua Yun knew that further concealment would only make his master more suspicious and disgusted.

He abruptly raised his head, his face showing the resolute expression of someone ready to stake everything. "Master!"

"At this point, this disciple dares not hide it from you any longer! To tell the truth, Long Zhanye... was invited here by this disciple!"

Old Man Gu's eyebrows shot up.

Zhua Yun threw caution to the wind, speaking rapidly. "Master! Are you truly willing to accept this?"

"Willing to let the theories you spent your entire life developing—enough to change the fate of the Body Sect—remain buried forever beneath this lightless earth?"

"To turn to dust along with you? Are you willing to bear the stigma of 'madman' and 'heretical path' forever, unable to rest even after death?"

He pointed at Long Zhanye beside him, his tone impassioned. "Long Zhanye already knows about the Body Grafting Technique! And he has agreed!"

"He is willing to use his broken body to gamble on that sliver of survival—and also gamble on a... chance to clear your name!"

"Master, leave this place! Give it a try!!"

"Whether it succeeds or fails, it is better than waiting here endlessly, wasting away, and letting hope be extinguished completely! This disciple begs you!"

"Unfilial disciple—!!!"

A furious roar exploded through the secret chamber!