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"This disciple admits her mistake."

He gave Li Zi no chance to speak at all.

The Fifth Elder swept his sleeve, and her body flew toward him against her will, landing firmly at his side.

She said nothing, but her mind was anything but idle.

Li Zi: [System, wait, what on earth is going on?]

The system: [Maybe the Fifth Elder saw your potential?]

Li Zi: [What potential could I possibly have? Didn't you say no one could detect my constitution before marrow cleansing? The sun really must have risen in the west today.]

The Fifth Elder suddenly glanced sideways at her, a hint of amusement in his clear, cool eyes.

"The myriad flower divine bone? A pity it has gathered dust."

Li Zi was stunned.

The system was stunned too.

Li Zi: [Master is so badass! He can actually detect my constitution, and he's a cold, aloof immortal lord to boot.]

The Fifth Elder curled his lips in satisfaction. "Zheng'er, Qing'er, take her back to the peak and show her around."

Ji Zheng and Fu Chaoqing answered solemnly, "Yes, Master."

Ji Zheng smiled gently at Li Zi and formed a hand seal to direct his sword.

A red longsword stopped steadily before her. "Junior Sister, I'm your Eldest Senior Brother, Ji Zheng. I'll take you there."

Li Zi wanted to ask whether this sword had exhaust fumes like the First Elder's, but remembering her current pitiful-little-thing persona, she swallowed the question.

She blinked obediently and said in a bright, clear voice, "Thank you, Senior Brother."

Below them, the sect's disciple selection was nearing its end.

After hearing Li Zi's thoughts, the other elders had lost all interest in taking disciples. They were discussing with the Sect Master how to convene a meeting as soon as possible to figure out what to do about the Nine Great Sects' assault.

The Second Elder had already hurried down the mountain to search for Immortal Ziyang.

Meanwhile, the disciples in charge selected those with good talent for the Inner Sect, sending those with lesser talent to the Outer Sect or dismissing them outright.

Li Zi climbed shakily onto the sword.

Afraid her fear of heights would flare up, the system distracted her with gossip.

The system said, [The Fifth Elder, a cold, aloof immortal lord? That's a bit of a stereotype. He isn't actually as aloof as he looks. In private, he really knows how to have fun.]

The elders discussing the meeting stopped moving.

The Second Elder turned back halfway down the mountain.

Gossip about the Fifth Elder?

They absolutely had to hear this!

Li Zi perked up. [Tell me more.]

[Host, do you know the Fifth Elder's name? Lin Shixian.]

Li Zi: [Huh? Shixian? Like the Shixian who said, "You're so slutty"?]

The Fifth Elder maintained his cold, aloof persona, but his face had fallen.

Though he did not understand what special meaning the name Shixian carried, he had an ominous feeling.

The system: [This Shixian isn't that Shixian, but they're actually pretty similar. The Fifth Elder has quite a legendary past. He used to be a country's crown prince, and he married a Crown Princess. The two were as harmonious as a zither and its companion, deeply in love. But the Fifth Elder liked excitement. A fox demon caught his eye, and the two hooked up.]

[The Fifth Elder was pretty impressive. He fooled around with the Crown Princess on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and the fox demon on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Neither woman knew the other existed, and both were deeply in love with him.]

Li Zi could not help herself. Clutching Ji Zheng's clothes to steady herself, she turned to look at the Fifth Elder.

The Fifth Elder still looked every bit the cool, aloof immortal lord.

His features were handsome, his brows sharp as if carved by a blade. Standing there, he resembled a lofty pine that would never fall.

Li Zi clicked her tongue in wonder. [That's it. I can't look at my handsome master the same way anymore. It's way too easy to picture Hong Shixian's face on him. His time management really was amazing.]

The system: [Well, before long, the affair came to light. In a fit of anger, the Crown Princess divorced him, and he was stripped of his position as crown prince. The fox demon also injected several strands of demonic power into his body, leaving him in such agony he wished he were dead. The scumbag got his just deserts.]

[But the Fifth Elder turned misfortune into a blessing. He sought help from the Spirit Sword Sect Master, who dispelled those strands of demonic power and opened his eight extraordinary meridians. He developed a spiritual root and became able to cultivate. After all that, the Fifth Elder finally reined in his wandering heart and devoted himself entirely to the Dao.]

Having finished savoring that juicy gossip, Li Zi could not help sighing. [These days, even scumbags can become immortals. The good really do die young, while scourges linger for a thousand years.]

The air around the Fifth Elder grew abruptly oppressive.

He tightened his grip on his sword hilt, bristling with murderous intent.

The system nodded in strong agreement. [But having three wives and four concubines is actually normal in this world. By local standards, the Fifth Elder doesn't even count as a scumbag. He just failed to keep his promise to the Crown Princess.]

Li Zi was somewhat unhappy with the system's argument.

But she could not refute it.

By this ancient world's standards, the Fifth Elder was not only no scumbag, but fairly virtuous as men went. Other men had three wives and four concubines; he had only two women.

As Ji Zheng carried Li Zi farther and farther away on his flying sword, her voice and the system's gradually faded.

The cultivators understood.

So hearing her thoughts depended on distance too.

Once she was far enough away, they could no longer hear her.

The Sect Master smiled at the Fifth Elder. "Good thing you acted quickly and took this little rascal in. We all owe you our thanks. With her at your place from now on, you'll have no shortage of commotion."

The Fifth Elder was tense from head to toe, his body rigid. He could not squeeze out a single word.

A rare blush colored his fair face.

All those stale old skeletons in his closet had been dragged into the open by Li Zi.

Social death.

The other elders came over to offer their condolences.

"Fifth Junior Brother, I'll visit your cave abode for a game of pai gow one of these days. You have seven disciples, after all. The gossip is bound to be especially juicy."

"I have some freshly brewed osmanthus wine. I'll come to your cave abode tomorrow, and we can drink together."

After meeting, the elders unanimously decided to keep their ability to hear Li Zi's thoughts a secret for now. Under no circumstances could she find out.

Otherwise, Li Zi would surely be so frightened that she would flee straight back to the Mortal World and hide out in the imperial palace, enjoying the gossip.

The meeting focused on two main issues.

How the Spirit Sword Sect could survive the deadly encirclement by the Nine Great Sects.

And how to make Li Zi a priority for training.