Testing spiritual roots

Ying Huaixu was rather surprised.

The steps of the main quest were a little different, but almost all the characters who were supposed to appear had appeared.

Except this little junior sister from the Divine Firmament Sword Sect didn't have her fawn.

Her entrance was very different, too.

It wasn't as impressive as in the game. There wasn't even a CG cutscene.

She had simply appeared out of nowhere, then suddenly locked eyes with him.

The main problem was that Ying Huaixu had no idea what to say.

Lü Qingyi was also looking at Ying Huaixu.

Her mind was full of questions, too.

She was a cultivator, and she could see the rapist's strength perfectly clearly.

Although Ying Huaixu was fairly strong by mortal standards, he was nowhere near that rapist's level.

Yet despite that, Ying Huaixu had defeated him!

No, to be precise, it couldn't even be called a victory. Ying Huaixu had killed the rapist with two sword strikes.

Despite the enormous disparity in strength, Ying Huaixu had utterly crushed him!

What puzzled Lü Qingyi most was that, aside from his fairly decent Flying Snow Sword, everything else about Ying Huaixu seemed like the work of a complete novice.

It felt as though he knew no martial arts, yet was absurdly good at them.

Lü Qingyi couldn't help asking again.

"How did you do it?"

Ying Huaixu gave an awkward laugh.

"I just dodged, slashed, and killed him!"

Lü Qingyi: "..."

After a long silence, Lü Qingyi said again, "You're a little inconsiderate!"

Ying Huaixu: "???"

Then he immediately caught on and hurriedly crouched down to speak to her.

Lü Qingyi took out a strange stone and said to Ying Huaixu, "Put your hand on it!"

Ying Huaixu obediently did as she said.

He knew she was testing his spiritual root.

Sure enough, it was just like the game.

No matter how badass your starting spiritual root was, the test would always show a low-grade spiritual root.

The stone gave off a faint glow, along with wisps of cold air.

That indicated a low-grade spiritual root.

But Lü Qingyi stared at the testing stone without speaking for a long time.

"Young master! Young master..."

Just then, Ye Ningshuang's anxious voice rang out.

Then Ye Ningshuang rushed into the little courtyard with a large group of people.

Seeing that Ying Huaixu was unharmed, Ye Ningshuang let out a long breath of relief.

But when she saw Lü Qingyi standing beside him, she grew nervous again.

The others stared at the rapist's corpse on the ground, their eyes filled with shock.

"He's actually dead!"

Hall Master Zhao approached with extreme caution and examined the body.

After confirming that the man really was dead, he finally felt a weight lift off his shoulders.

At the same time, his admiration for Ying Huaixu grew even greater.

Being able to kill the rapist meant that Ying Huaixu was very likely a grandmaster!

Who wouldn't be delighted to have a grandmaster stationed in Peaceful Town?

But they had celebrated too soon.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

The other disciples of the Divine Firmament Sword Sect finally arrived on flying swords, surrounding Ye Ningshuang's home almost instantly.

The other residents of Peaceful Town all looked up in shock, then dropped to their knees.

"We pay our respects to the immortal masters!"

Ye Ningshuang hurriedly knelt as well.

Lü Qingyi finally came out of her long silence.

She swept her gaze over the crowd before fixing it on Ye Ningshuang.

"You, come here!"

Lü Qingyi called out in an indifferent tone.

Ye Ningshuang froze for a moment, then shakily walked over.

Lü Qingyi said, "Put your hand on the stone!"

Ye Ningshuang did as she was told.

The stone then flickered with a pale purple light.

Dark Mystery Spiritual Root... low-grade!

Lü Qingyi wasn't surprised by this result in the slightest.

The Dark Mystery Spiritual Root was a hidden spiritual root that required natural treasures to awaken it later.

Lü Qingyi only needed to confirm whether Ye Ningshuang possessed the Dark Mystery Spiritual Root.

With that confirmed, Lü Qingyi naturally asked, "Are you willing to join our Divine Firmament Sword Sect?"

Such an opportunity had descended so suddenly that Ye Ningshuang was caught off guard.

She instinctively looked toward Ying Huaixu, who was crouching nearby.

Ying Huaixu nodded.

Wasn't that obvious?

The rest of the main quest revolves around you. I'm just along for the ride.

Of course you have to join the sect.

Seeing Ying Huaixu nod, Ye Ningshuang hurriedly said, "I am willing!"

Lü Qingyi glanced at Ying Huaixu, then nodded.

She gave Ye Ningshuang an outer disciple token.

"Make your preparations. We return to the sect in three days!"

Ye Ningshuang bowed.

"Yes!"

And that was it.

Ying Huaixu was dumbfounded.

Wait.

What about me?

This isn't right.

Even though my test showed a low-grade spiritual root, according to the plot, I should become an outer disciple too!

What's going on? Where's my disciple token?

Ying Huaixu couldn't help looking at Lü Qingyi.

Lü Qingyi looked back at him.

The two fell into another long silence.

After an indeterminate amount of time, Lü Qingyi simply handed Ying Huaixu an outer disciple token.

Ying Huaixu froze.

"Aren't you going to ask whether I'm willing?"

Lü Qingyi said expressionlessly, "You are willing!"

Ying Huaixu: "..."

Fine.

I really am willing.

But as Ying Huaixu looked at Lü Qingyi, he kept feeling that something was off.

In the game, Lü Qingyi had been a proud, prickly little girl.

But what was going on with this Lü Qingyi?

Although she was still a little girl, her bearing made her feel like a queen descending upon them.

Was the difference between reality and the game really that great?

Lü Qingyi frowned.

"Why do I get the feeling that you know me, and that the way I'm acting now doesn't quite match your impression of me?"

Ying Huaixu was a little shocked.

"You can read minds?"

Lü Qingyi shook her head.

"I can't, but you seem to have everything you're thinking written on your face!"

"Also, you're very different. You give me the feeling that you aren't from this world!"

Ying Huaixu broke into a cold sweat.

Lü Qingyi wasn't this terrifying in the game.

The real Lü Qingyi made Ying Huaixu feel as though his hair was standing on end.

Ying Huaixu forced himself to say, "You must be joking, senior sister. Perhaps it's because my family always pampered me, so I seem different!"

Lü Qingyi chuckled.

It was a cold laugh.

A disciple of the Divine Firmament Sword Sect flew over on his sword and looked at Ying Huaixu.

"You mortal, you're lucky you encountered Senior Sister Qingyi. Had you met someone from another immortal sect, they would have crushed you like an insect for such disrespect!"

Ying Huaixu's eyes widened.

He looked at the other people from Peaceful Town.

Only then did he notice the anxious looks they were giving him.

Ying Huaixu hurriedly explained.

"I... I really didn't know about that rule..."

Lü Qingyi waved her hand.

"Forget it. From now on, you're a disciple of our Divine Firmament Sword Sect. Just keep acting as you do now when you're out in the world. That saves me the trouble of telling you how our disciples should conduct themselves outside!"

Ying Huaixu bowed. "I will follow your teachings, senior sister!"

Lü Qingyi nodded calmly.

"You also have three days to prepare. In three days, I'll come to collect you both. Make your preparations properly!"

Ying Huaixu nodded.

Then Lü Qingyi took to her flying sword as well. With her in the lead, the disciples behind her formed a V and flew off into the distance.

Ying Huaixu wiped away his cold sweat.

Immediately afterward, the envious residents of Peaceful Town came over to offer their congratulations.

"Congratulations on gaining the chance to cultivate!"

"Congratulations, congratulations..."