Early in the morning, dawn spilled across the ground.
When Ye Li's feet stepped into Spring Return Alley once more, the entire alley erupted into clamor!
Spring Return Alley, usually somewhat deserted during the day, was now incomparably bustling. They were all waiting for the same person!
Ye Li!!!
Only one night had passed, yet the Azure Dragon Gang's core disciples who had been impossible to get close to before now packed the street.
At this moment, Ye Li was even more sought-after in Spring Return Alley than the hottest courtesan.
If he nodded and agreed to sell himself like Yuan Zhang, he could earn several thousand taels a day.
That was far more than what one could get from slaving away to repay loans!
Ye Li clasped his hands behind his back and slowly strolled inside, only to be immediately stopped by San Niang.
San Niang was dressed more simply today, without so many ornaments in her hair.
Seeing Ye Li enter, she looked him up and down as though she were seeing an alien, then teased him, "Oh my, who would've thought? You brat silently became the gang leader's disciple. Tsk, tsk, tsk!"
"The eight characters hadn't even made a single stroke yet, so naturally I didn't dare trouble San Niang." Ye Li smiled bashfully. "But how about giving me today's Dragon-Tiger Pill first? I'll go back and take it later."
After all, countless people were eagerly awaiting him right now. Ye Li had no intention of putting on a street performance before so many people.
"Tch!" San Niang spat lightly, but she had no objections.
That was not merely because of Ye Li's current status.
More importantly, everyone else treated the Dragon-Tiger Pill like vipers and scorpions, while this kid savored it like sweet nectar. Every day, once he had taken and digested it, he would get up and leave.
After watching him for so many days, she had truly been convinced by Ye Li's willpower.
She believed that even without anyone watching him, Ye Li possessed tremendous self-control.
He ate that stuff like candy beans every day, yet he was not afraid of bursting from holding it in.
"Then I'll let Kang Min, Lin Xian'er, and Yan Ying know. They won't need to come keep you company."
As San Niang spoke, she shook her head and sighed.
"That's why they say people who've studied have good literary talent. The names you came up with are truly artistic. The girls have had more customers these past few days, too."
"The other girls are green with envy when they see them. They all want you to give them stage names."
Ye Li merely smiled without speaking at San Niang's teasing. Naturally, those names could not have been the girls' real names; they were simply stage names Ye Li had chosen for them.
Whenever he took a Dragon-Tiger Pill, San Niang would place several seductive girls beside him. If Ye Li could not endure it, he could only go for it.
But Ye Li was famously someone who did not play multiplayer games, so naturally he refused.
Still, he feared the medicine's potency would be too strong for him to withstand, so he gave the girls accompanying him stage names to cool his passions.
Those so-called stage names were naturally famous female characters from LKD in his previous life.
Perhaps because of the stereotype that there was no wuxia without cuckolding.
By accident, the names Ye Li gave these women had all turned out to be classic characters from wuxia novels.
Since the Dragon-Tiger Pill would create hallucinations of two-dimensional beautiful girls tempting him, he would bring in famous wuxia LKD characters to sever emotion and extinguish desire.
Those girls could not understand why, whenever Ye Li was about to lose control, he would always shout at them, "Your name!!!"
After being asked, the girls would all call themselves by the names Ye Li had given them—"Lin Xian'er," "Kang Min," and "Yan Ying." Then Ye Li's previously restless expression would immediately become as still as an ancient well without ripples.
The girls could not figure it out either. These names were clearly lovely—so why did Young Master Ye dislike them?
Yes, why did Ye Li dislike such refined names?
What a hard mystery to solve!
As Ye Li spoke with San Niang, a group of disciples gathered in the distance and discussed him in hushed voices.
"So this is the gang leader's newly accepted disciple. He truly is a man of striking presence!"
"Exactly. His talent is simply inhuman, like that of an immortal. He broke through Body Tempering in two months!"
"And he easily defeated seven opponents of the same realm by himself. A true divine man!"
"Divine Man Ye? That's rather interesting!"
After ending the conversation and receiving the Dragon Tiger Pills for the next two days from San Niang, the core disciples who had not dared approach because of the Elder-Reader Realm's dignity immediately swarmed forward.
"Senior Brother Ye! You've finally arrived. Last night, we heard you faced seven alone and emerged without a scratch. This junior's Iron Thread Fist would like your guidance."
"Young Gang Leader, from now on, the Azure Dragon Gang will have only one sky—you! We will follow wherever your horse's head points!"
"Young Gang Leader, could you tell us how you cultivate? We heard you broke through Body Tempering in two months, and we all wish to learn!"
In an instant, astonishment and flattery poured in from all around like a tidal wave.
Some were better at singing praises than others. Ye Li secretly shook his head, then raised a hand and said sternly, "I need to correct a grammatical error in what you said."
As Ye Li took the initiative to speak, the scene fell silent again.
After a brief moment of thought, everyone immediately realized that they had gone too far with their flattery.
Someone as low-key as Ye Li had been over the past month clearly could not possibly claim the extraordinarily eye-catching title of "Young Gang Leader" for himself.
But they were wrong!!!
Under the core disciples' gazes, Ye Li gently shook his head.
"You remembered incorrectly. I did not break through Body Tempering within two months."
"It took me one month, six days, and another shichen to break through the Body Tempering Realm!"
"My memory is not very good. Next time you praise me, remember to describe it in greater detail. I'm afraid I'll forget."
With that, Ye Li lightly patted the stunned core disciple on the shoulder, clasped his hands behind his back, and headed out toward the street.
Everyone at the scene was dumbfounded by Ye Li's shameless self-praise.
Should they say Ye Li cared too much about face, or had no shame at all?
But in truth, these people had thought too shallowly. This was Ye Li's supreme intellectual battle!
If he truly established himself as an impartial and incorruptible figure, and these people actually believed it—thinking some Hai Rui or Bao Zheng had come to the gang—what would happen if no one gave him gifts?
For those factions, they were not afraid of your desires being great. They were only afraid that you had no selfish desires.
Without selfish desires, how could they draw closer to you? How could they advance?
After a brief silence, the scene was immediately drowned beneath even louder praise.
"Young Gang Leader is truly genuine! He never turns things inward!"
"Exactly! Rather than deal with those hypocrites, speaking with Young Gang Leader is far more refreshing!"
"Young Gang Leader is domineering!"
Before long, Ye Li walked in front while the core disciples surrounded him.
The group formed an imposing procession and marched grandly toward the gang's grounds.
As Ye Li's identity spread, no one dared stop them now.
Their destination was the Martial Armory!
Although Zheng Tong had considered martial techniques nothing more than strange tricks and clever gimmicks, Ye Li had not received authorization to enter the Martial Armory!
But did lacking authorization mean he would not enter the Martial Armory?
He was the Young Gang Leader now!
He could not enter before becoming a disciple, and he still could not enter after becoming one.
Wouldn't that make this Young Gang Leader position completely pointless!
With a small act of willfulness born of power, Ye Li arrived at the Martial Armory without obstruction!
But very soon, Ye Li saw a roadblock. The Post-Heaven Realm elder guarding the Scripture Pavilion said with a troubled expression, "Brother Ye, you have no credential. This does not comply with the rules."
"The rules!" Ye Li's brows drew together. "In the Azure Dragon Gang, my master is the rules!"
"Your Martial Armory has quite the nerve. Do you think your rules are greater than the gang leader's?"
"Let me in at once! Do not disturb my master's cultivation over such a trivial matter! At worst, I'll make up a slip for you afterward!"