Taking a Master

Xiao Yu followed behind Zhang Ziling, keeping his head lowered the entire way and never letting his gaze wander.

Once they reached a study, Zhang Ziling sat in a wooden chair and said, "You've got quite the nerve. You just reached the Qi Refining Stage, yet you dared to be so high-profile. Aren't you afraid someone will come looking for trouble?"

Xiao Yu stepped forward respectfully. "This disciple simply could not stand seeing those two bully Senior Sister Lü. Master has discerning eyes and naturally could not be fooled!"

Zhang Ziling said softly, "You're quite good at jumping to conclusions. I haven't even taken you as my disciple yet, and you're already so certain I will?"

Xiao Yu hurriedly dropped to one knee. "If Senior refuses to accept this disciple because of what happened just now, this disciple will bear no resentment. What we cultivators seek is a mind free and unburdened. Even if it happened again, I would not let Senior Sister Lü be bullied!"

"Senior Sister Lü first stepped in to help me, so naturally I had to vent her anger for her!"

Zhang Ziling lifted the cold tea beside her with a smile. "You're a sentimental and righteous little fellow. My tea has gone rather cold."

Xiao Yu was overjoyed upon hearing that. He hurriedly circulated his spiritual power to heat the teacup, then knelt on both knees and presented the warmed tea. "This disciple, Xiao Yu, thanks Master for accepting me!"

"This disciple, Xiao Yu, was born into a poor family and has long admired Master's great name. I wish to enter your sect and learn supreme spells!"

"More than that, I am willing to follow Master's teachings, promote our Hehuan Great Dao, and swear to shoulder Master's worries and resolve Master's troubles!!!"

The corners of Zhang Ziling's lips curled into a faint smile, but she did not interrupt him.

Xiao Yu lowered his head and continued, "This disciple is willing to observe a disciple's duty and remain forever at Master's side. I shall obey every command from Master and never fail Master's expectations!"

Zhang Ziling slowly accepted the tea Xiao Yu offered. "Not bad. You certainly know how to talk, and you're clever too!"

Xiao Yu did not rise. Instead, he kowtowed three times in succession.

He still understood the rules of the cultivation world. To take a master, one had to kowtow.

Otherwise, the other party would not drink the tea.

"This disciple, Xiao Yu!!! Thanks Master for your immense grace!"

Zhang Ziling nodded and raised the tea to drink.

Then she raised a hand, signaling Xiao Yu to stand. "Tell me, what do you want as an item to protect yourself?"

Xiao Yu lowered his head and cupped his fists. "This disciple already has the Puppet Eagle Master gave me. I would not dare ask for anything else!"

Zhang Ziling waved her hand. "No matter. That is what you deserved as an Alchemist. How about this? You may choose one: a cultivation art, a magical artifact, or talismans."

After thinking for a moment, Xiao Yu cupped his fists. "Thank you for Master's generous favor. This disciple... chooses a magical artifact!"

Zhang Ziling smiled lightly. "Oh? So you already have a cultivation art? Is it our sect's Joyful Union Art?"

Xiao Yu swallowed instinctively. Zhang Ziling was probing him after all.

He had been careless.

"Mm... this disciple cultivates the Joyful Union Art..."

Zhang Ziling slowly set the teacup down on the table. "I noticed that there seem to be several more maidservants in your alchemy room. You certainly can't sit still. But let me warn you: you are not allowed to capture mortals and bring them up here!"

Xiao Yu said, "This disciple... this disciple merely happened to release those four women from Elder Wu's Jade Maiden Gourd. This disciple absolutely did not go down the mountain to capture them. Moreover, I saw that they all possessed Spiritual Roots, so I thought of accepting them as disciples of our Hehuan Sect!"

"And this disciple has already promised them that if they wish to leave the mountain, I will send them down after the war ends..."

"Most importantly, the battle is tense right now. If I simply released them, then should those fame-fishing righteous sects discover them, they would certainly capture them and extract their souls. In order to destroy us, those righteous sects would crush a few mortals to death without even blinking!"

Zhang Ziling nodded slightly. "That is indeed so... Previously, in order to occupy Jiangliu Mountain, the Profound Spirit Sect set up an array and trapped every disciple of our sect on the mountain until they were all slaughtered. Naturally, the mortals on the mountain were not spared either..."

At this point, Xiao Yu looked around with a solemn expression. "By the way, Master... this disciple has something to report!"

Zhang Ziling raised her hand and cast a soundproof barrier. "Speak freely!"

Xiao Yu hurried forward and whispered, "Before Master came to the branch, this disciple heard some people discussing matters concerning the Jade Maiden Sect!"

"The Jade Maiden Sect's chief disciple, Hua Lian, privately pledged herself for life to the Profound Spirit Sect's chief disciple, Lin Ce. The Profound Spirit Sect's massive assault on Jiangliu Mountain may very well be related to this matter!"

"And it seems that the junior sister of the Jade Maiden Sect's Sect Master, Bai Yue, has also arrived near Jiangliu City. The other party should be a mighty cultivator of the Golden Core Stage. If our branch encounters her, I fear the odds will be stacked against us..."

"Master should make preparations early... This place lies on the front line. If it can be defended, then defend it. If it cannot, Master must not force it. Those people in the sect would love nothing more than to watch us make fools of ourselves."

Zhang Ziling frowned upon hearing this. No wonder the Hehuan Sect's Sect Master had remained on the eastern front line and had yet to return.

It seemed he had been tied down.

However, she truly had not known about Lin Ce of the Profound Spirit Sect and Hua Lian privately pledging themselves to one another.

"So that's how it is... No wonder Elder Wu died on Jiangliu Mountain. It seems Lin Ce's master was behind it!"

"Recently, word has spread that the Jade Maiden Sect's Sect Master, Bai Yue, is still alive. Three Profound Spirit Sect disciples said so, though no one knows whether it is true. You have been quite thoughtful."

As Zhang Ziling spoke, she took out a low-grade short bow and placed it before Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu thanked her again and put away the short bow.

Zhang Ziling rested her cheek on one hand. Her pitifully charming appearance caused Xiao Yu to lose himself for a moment.

Zhang Ziling shot him a sidelong glance, then said quietly, "Go back and continue helping me refine pills. The one-month deadline has not yet arrived, and it may delay your cultivation."

"Afterward, I will reward you with some century-old spiritual herbs. Your cultivation is still lacking, but you have stayed at this branch for some time. What do you think of this battle?"

Xiao Yu fell into thought. Although he had rarely gone to the front line and had mostly been doing odd jobs and loafing around here, since she had asked, he naturally had to say something.

Besides, he always felt that Zhang Ziling was probing his limits.

Or perhaps testing his sincerity?

After pondering for a moment, Xiao Yu looked at the map in the study and said, "Reporting to Master, at present, our Hehuan Sect's Sect Master has led the main force to join forces with the Thousand Poisons Sect and Blood Refining Hall. They have been engaged in a great battle with Wind-Riding Valley on the front line for several months!"

"The Demon Refining Sect and Spirit Taming Sect are fighting until the sky darkens and the earth turns upside down in the east over the title of strongest beast-taming sect. They have no mind to participate in the clash between the main forces!"

"The Profound Spirit Sect's main force is naturally also on the Wind-Riding Valley front line, leaving only part of its forces to guard Jiangliu City and Jiangliu Mountain."

"To put it bluntly, our place is merely a remote fringe. Supplies are scarce, high-level disciples are few, and we only have two large defensive arrays."

"I have always felt that this is a place meant for cannon fodder. We do not even have a single Golden Core Stage cultivator, so I dare conclude that many disciples in our branch have already prepared escape routes!"

"Some of them have likely long since contacted the righteous sects' lackeys and intend to defect. Master must be on guard!"

Zhang Ziling naturally knew why she had been sent here.

They claimed it was to have her tie down the Profound Spirit Sect's combat power and ease the pressure on the front line.

Yet she was the only Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator here.

Forget the enemy having one more Golden Core Stage cultivator—even one more Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator arriving here would shatter the balance of power.

And just this morning, she had received a secret order from the sect instructing her to lead the branch's three hundred disciples on a detour to attack Jiangliu City.

Once Jiangliu City was taken, they were to use the lives of all the city's mortals as shields. The Profound Spirit Sect would certainly return to defend it.

At that time, a gap would appear on the front line.

She dared say with certainty that those righteous sect bastards would never pity the lives of Jiangliu City's citizens.

And she did not want to drag mortals into this either.

Just then, Xiao Yu stepped forward holding a small flag. "Master, we can take the second-best option!"

"Those people want us to be cannon fodder, so we must consider ourselves. The area we occupy is shrouded in fog year-round, and there is a bay in the west that is rather well hidden!"

"We can send several dozen disciples to construct an underwater base in that water valley. Once the enemy launches a large-scale attack, we will have those disciples launch a surprise assault on the Jade Maiden Sect!!!"

"The enemy will certainly return to defend! We can pull them back and forth from both sides, dragging things out indefinitely!"

"If they do not attack, we do not launch a surprise assault. If they attack, we strike the Jade Maiden Sect! Then we set up a teleportation array. If they send Golden Core Stage cultivators over, we run immediately..."

Zhang Ziling looked at the Jade Maiden Sect's location with some confusion. "But the Jade Maiden Sect is now occupied by Huang Lin, Lin Ce's master. He is at Foundation Establishment, Fifth Layer, and his strength is comparable to mine. Though the Jade Maiden Sect has been destroyed, that place is easy to defend and hard to attack..."

Xiao Yu hurriedly said, "Our branch previously captured some Jade Maiden Sect disciples. Master can gather them and leave them to this disciple for interrogation!"

"Within three days, this disciple will certainly obtain the Jade Maiden Sect's strategic map! Once we know the Jade Maiden Sect's layout, we can seek out a breakthrough point!"

"The Profound Spirit Sect has only occupied it for a few days, so they certainly are not familiar with the Jade Maiden Sect's structure either. What if there are hidden passageways inside..."

Zhang Ziling's eyes immediately lit up. "You mean to shift the battlefield to the Jade Maiden Sect's former site? To stall for time?"

Xiao Yu said, "Mm... Those above do not care whether we live or die. By doing this, we can tie them down while also being able to flee at any time. We simply need to set up the teleportation array in advance and find a concealed location..."

"We can also use those Jade Maiden Sect female cultivators as hostages when the time comes!"

Zhang Ziling hesitated for a moment, and Xiao Yu hurriedly said, "This disciple merely offers a suggestion. Whether to adopt it is entirely up to Master! This disciple only wishes to preserve Master's safety and harbors absolutely no second thoughts. Even if I must do things that offend heaven and harmony, I will never regret it!"

"If those Jade Maiden Sect disciples ever get the chance to wield magical artifacts, they will certainly strike at us without mercy!!!"

Zhang Ziling nodded upon hearing this. "Good! I will hand over every Jade Maiden Sect female cultivator in the branch to your disposal. Within three days, you must draw a map of the Jade Maiden Sect! Draw every corner of the Jade Maiden Sect clearly for me!"

"You are very good! It seems this master did not misjudge you. If we take the Jade Maiden Sect's former site, you will receive the foremost merit!"

Xiao Yu hurriedly cupped his fists. "It is all thanks to Master's excellent guidance!"

After that, Xiao Yu returned to the alchemy room.

Along the way, he kept recalling Zhang Ziling's exquisite figure.

If she truly treated him sincerely, he would naturally do everything in his power to help her.

Thinking that he would soon be able to bring every Jade Maiden Sect captive in the sect to the alchemy room made him swallow excitedly.

Just as he was thinking about it, a Fireball Talisman suddenly shot over from the distance!

It nearly blasted him off the Jade Maiden Gourd.

Mei Chunlan wore an ugly expression. "You actually dodged it! In just a few days, you've reached Qi Refining, First Layer? You truly do have a great secret on you! I'm finding you more and more appealing, Junior Brother Xiao!"

Ma Cuihong beside her raised a hand and took out three Fireball Talismans. "Why waste words with him? Hurry up and finish him!"