At those words, Daoist Fire Crane rose again. A glint of fire flashed through his eyes as he looked Liu Yunche up and down.
He looked surprised and said with a chuckle, "For Junior Sister Qinglü, who sets her sights above everyone else, to take you as a disciple, I'll have to take a good look."
Liu Yunche watched the middle-aged Daoist approach.
The man wore a red robe with white cranes embroidered on both sleeves. A three-inch beard hung from his chin to his chest.
There was a trace of irreverence in his eyes, and he was smiling at Liu Yunche.
Daoist Fire Crane seized Liu Yunche's arm and gave it several squeezes.
"Not bad, not bad. Your flesh is firm and has a natural sheen. It seems you've mastered the Water-Fire Immortal Garment. There's the faint roar of a tiger in your sinews. You've reached the Tiger Tendon Realm."
He had barely finished speaking when he stopped short, glanced east, then looked back at Liu Yunche.
A faint radiance seemed to cling to Liu Yunche. Daoist Fire Crane opened his Fire Eye for a closer look—and nearly had it blinded. That was no mere radiance but a blazing sun.
"This is..."
Daoist Fire Crane's eyes widened, uncertainty entering his voice.
He looked up at Qinglü, High Cultivator, and asked:
"Junior Sister, this disciple of yours...?"
Even as he spoke, Daoist Fire Crane kept studying Liu Yunche.
The white-robed youth's faint connection to the sun left him feeling as though a monkey were clawing at his heart. He desperately wanted an answer.
Qinglü, High Cultivator, smiled faintly. Rather than answer, she said, "Senior Brother, it seems your Star-Gazing Technique has improved again."
Daoist Fire Crane sighed helplessly. "Only a little. Hardly worth mentioning. I didn't even foresee that you,