When I take disciples, I judge their drinking capacity, not their talent!

The proud expression on Gu Changqing's face left Ji Ren even more bewildered.

The man before him was truly strange.

He acted as though being called a "rotten drunk" were something worth celebrating.

More astonishing still, as Gu Changqing's words fell, they sent a thunderous tremor through Ji Ren's heart.

A man repays kindness with sword in hand, unwilling to spend his life in vain!

Those words seemed merely to praise Ji Ren's courage.

Yet unseen, they radiated a profound resonance of the Dao and an indescribable grandeur of spirit, sinking straight into Ji Ren's heart.

I'm not dead yet. Even in the face of the Demon Race's slaughter, I shouldn't give up!

In this life, even through a thousand trials and ten thousand dangers, I must keep striving to cross the waters, never wasting my days.

In an instant, countless insights arose in Ji Ren's heart.

Watching his people being slaughtered had filled him with grief and despair.

He had even begun to wish for his own destruction.

That was why he had been so fearless in the face of death.

One could even say that Ji Ren had been rushing toward his own death all along.

But that single sentence from Gu Changqing brought him to a sudden awakening.

"This..."

"Senior, who exactly are you?"

Abandoning his earlier hostility, Ji Ren asked with deep respect written across his face.

Hearing this, Gu Changqing took a mouthful of fine wine and laughed heartily.

"Ha ha! I am the Wine Sword Immortal!"

At those words, Ji Ren grew even more astonished.

"The Wine Sword Immortal?"

"Immortal, you're the Wine Sword Immortal, the Personal Disciple of Saint Tongtian of the Interception Sect?"

Clearly, Gu Changqing's illustrious reputation now resounded throughout heaven and earth.

Even the Humans had heard of him.

Gu Changqing said nothing, merely nodding with a smile.

At that confirmation, Ji Ren was instantly overjoyed.

His eyes burned with fervor, and he dropped to his knees without hesitation.

"To meet you today, Senior Wine Sword Immortal, is truly my great fortune!"

"Please accept me as your disciple and teach me the supreme Great Dao!"

Indeed!

Ji Ren had directly asked to become his disciple.

He had heard countless powerful figures speak of the many legends surrounding the Wine Sword Immortal.

The man before him was a truly mighty being.

If he missed this chance, Ji Ren feared he would never again have the opportunity to become the disciple of such a powerful figure.

Hearing Ji Ren's words, Gu Changqing neither agreed nor immediately refused.

He lifted the Wine Gourd in one hand and leisurely swallowed a great mouthful of wine.

Only then did he look at Ji Ren with interest and ask teasingly:

"Oh? You want to become my disciple?"

"Then tell me, why should I accept you?"

Ji Ren was somewhat at a loss for words.

Indeed!

Whenever mighty experts took disciples, their requirements for innate roots and talent were exceedingly strict.

As a mere Human, what right did he have to earn Gu Changqing's favor?

Suddenly, Ji Ren thought of something.

He rummaged through his robes and soon pulled something out.

"I am willing to offer this to you, Senior Wine Sword Immortal!"

"Though I don't know exactly what it is, this was what released immortal light earlier and helped me withstand a blow from the Demon Race."

Even as Ji Ren spoke, Gu Changqing's gaze had already fallen upon his palm.

A divine seal the size of a palm lay quietly in Ji Ren's hand.

Gu Changqing's gaze sharpened.

"Oh? Is this... the Kongtong Seal?"

Gu Changqing was somewhat uncertain.

After all, the Kongtong Seal was a legendary treasure he had never seen before.

But upon careful reflection, this was a place where Humans lived.

If any Spirit Treasure could be born here, it could only be the Kongtong Seal.

Moreover, according to Ji Ren, this divine seal possessed the power to protect Human lives.

That made it resemble the Kongtong Seal even more closely.

For a moment, Gu Changqing did not know whether to call Ji Ren lucky or unlucky.

He was lucky because the Kongtong Seal had fallen into his hands just after its birth.

He was unlucky because Ji Ren did not recognize the treasure at all, much less know how to unleash its full divine might.

Gu Changqing took a few mouthfuls of wine as he pondered.

Then he grasped across the empty air and took the Kongtong Seal for himself.

"Heh heh, in that case, it would be rude of me to refuse."

Ji Ren was delighted.

Had the Wine Sword Immortal before him agreed to accept him as a disciple?

Though he did not know exactly what that divine seal was, Ji Ren thought to himself, It was worth it!

After all, what mattered most to him now was having a master to teach him the Dao and lead him onto the path of cultivation.

Otherwise, even possessing a supreme chaos treasure would be useless.

Ji Ren immediately bowed deeply once more.

"Ji Ren pays his respects to Master!"

To his surprise, Gu Changqing raised an eyebrow at those words and said:

"Hmm? When did I agree to accept you as my disciple?"

"Teaching the Dao? I know nothing about that. All I know is drinking..."

As he spoke, Gu Changqing's face once again took on a drunken look.

Ji Ren was dumbfounded.

What was going on now?

The Wine Sword Immortal had clearly accepted his treasure, yet he still refused to take him as a disciple?

But before he could say anything,

Gu Changqing continued in a leisurely voice:

"Still... becoming my disciple isn't impossible!"

"When I take disciples, I judge their drinking capacity, not their talent!"

"If you can share a round of drinks with me, I might consider taking you along."

With that, Gu Changqing thrust the Wine Gourd before Ji Ren.

Drinking?!

Ji Ren's face filled with hesitation!

Yet Gu Changqing's expression did not look as though he were joking.

After hesitating a moment, he gritted his teeth.

"Fine, I'll drink!"

Then Ji Ren took the Wine Gourd and gulped down a great mouthful.

The Wine Gourd, however, currently held the Flat Peach immortal brew Gu Changqing had obtained from the Demon Court.

Ji Ren had no cultivation whatsoever. How could his Human body withstand the cleansing surge of such vast medicinal potency?

Thus, in a mere instant, he swayed and collapsed on the spot, dead drunk.

As the wine's potency surged through him, Ji Ren's blood and vital energy roiled, and streams of immortal power visible to the naked eye radiated from his body, dissipating into nothingness.

Seeing this, Gu Changqing frowned.

"Tsk, what a waste of my fine wine!"

"You brat, just because I told you to drink, couldn't you have taken only a little sip?"

He muttered to himself, somewhat pained by the loss.

But then a meaningful smile appeared on Gu Changqing's face.

Without another word, he lightly swept his broad sleeve. Immortal light burst forth in an instant, lifting Ji Ren.

Then the two rose into the air and vanished from the place.

This time, Gu Changqing made no further stops.

Within just a few days, he arrived outside Wuzhuang Temple and called out drunkenly, asking Great Immortal Zhen Yuanzi to come out and meet him.

At once, Wuzhuang Temple stirred, and Zhen Yuanzi naturally dared not neglect him.

He had long since witnessed the sight of Gu Changqing's twelve-petaled blossoms and immediately welcomed him into Wuzhuang Temple.

"Heh heh, greetings, fellow Daoist Zhen Yuanzi!"

"I came because I heard you possess a rather extraordinary Ginseng Fruit Tree."

"So I've made a special trip to ask you for a few immortal fruits..."

Gu Changqing was brisk and direct, stating his purpose outright.

At this sight, the two Daoist attendants, Qingfeng and Mingyue, secretly curled their lips.

What an ill-mannered Wine Sword Immortal.