A Two-Faced Contract: The Apprenticeship Pledge Becomes a Marriage Contract!

At that moment, a woman with a graceful figure stood within the pure white space.

With ice-blue hair, a plain white dress, and a pair of blue Auspicious Beast dragon horns on her head, she sat cross-legged, playing an ancient zither.

It was none other than Qingxiao.

But at that moment, her blue, starlit eyes were staring blankly at Xu Qing.

"My disciple... my disciple."

"My disciple, why have you become so small?"

"Ah... and why aren't you wearing any clothes?"

"Aren't you cold?"

Xu Qing looked down at his completely naked body, equally embarrassed, and hurriedly covered his private parts.

Entering the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well would completely melt away his clothes, so of course he was naked.

Qingxiao smiled at his flustered appearance, set down her zither, came over to him, and took out a set of clothes.

"My disciple, put these on first."

Xu Qing looked at the clothes Qingxiao offered him with an odd expression.

They were finely made clothes with a slightly classical style, and they were sized for a child.

Since when had she kept clothes like these on her?

"What's wrong? Why aren't you..."

Seeing that he did not immediately get dressed, Qingxiao urged him to put them on in some confusion, only to meet his peculiar gaze. Her expression promptly froze.

She inwardly cursed.

Oh no, oh no! Surely my disciple hasn't discovered that I've prepared clothes for him at every age?

But Qingxiao quickly recovered her composure, her expression as still as an ancient well, her voice cool and imposing.

"My disciple, why aren't you getting dressed? Where is your decorum?"

Recalling the feeling of being under his teacher's thumb many years ago, Xu Qing was about to get dressed, but saw her staring straight at him.

"Qing... Master, could you turn around?"

Xu Qing was rather embarrassed, too.

After spending so much time with the big fox, it had been all right. After all, she was a fox spirit, seductive and bewitching, a femme fatale who often loved teasing him. His initial discomfort with her changing his clothes had soon vanished.

But he had barely spent a few minutes with Qingxiao before finding himself here with her, stark naked.

"What part of you hasn't your master seen?"

Qingxiao looked at him with a lingering gaze, but still turned her head. Although her face remained stern, the corners of her lips slowly curved upward.

I rarely get to see my disciple like this.

It looks like I should paint his portrait when I have time.

Mm, isn't my little disciple far too adorable? I really want to hold him and give him a good squeeze.

Xu Qing quickly dressed. Looking at how snugly the clothes fit, he gave Qingxiao an even stranger look.

These clothes fit far too well, as though they had been tailored for him.

Once Xu Qing was dressed, Qingxiao turned back to look at him.

Xu Qing now wore a black martial outfit. He had black hair, golden eyes, a serious little face, and a single cowlick on his head.

Qingxiao's heart stirred at the sight, and she instinctively reached out to pat his head.

Mm, my disciple's little head feels quite nice to touch.

But then she saw Xu Qing looking up at her. Her expression froze, and her white earlobes flushed red. She hurriedly lowered her hand, then placed it on his shoulder and examined him.

"My disciple, it has been so long. I never imagined you would have changed so much."

"Your strength has weakened so very, very much."

"You're practically like a newborn infant."

"Do you know what happened?"

Xu Qing shook his head.

He truly did not know.

He had only been playing a private-server galgame when a pitch-black hole swallowed him, bringing him to the Douluo World and shrinking his body.

As for his original strength, that could only have been his strength in the game.

"Also, my disciple, why do I feel you've become much more distant toward your master?"

Xu Qing looked up at the cool, aloof fairy before him.

Can I say that I've never actually met you in person?

Meeting offline is bound to feel a little different.

Seeing the look in his eyes, Qingxiao's heart trembled, and she understood a few things.

"You've lost your memories again, haven't you?"

"In that case..."

"Let me teach you once more."

At this point, Qingxiao's pupils trembled slightly, a purple gleam flashing through them. Then she raised her hand and took out a document.

The words "Apprenticeship Pledge" were written on its blue cover in neat, cool strokes, and she handed it to Xu Qing.

"Then let us do this again."

"Our status as master and disciple needs written proof."

Xu Qing gave Qingxiao a strange look, then looked at the apprenticeship pledge, accepted it, and opened it.

He found the usual apprenticeship contents within: clauses about imparting the Dao and teaching skills, strictly abiding by his master's instructions, and so on. The writing was neat, and he could see nothing unusual.

But it was strange. Hadn't Qingxiao originally accepted disciples by giving them a sword talisman jade pendant, followed by an apprenticeship banquet?

Why had it become an apprenticeship pledge now?

Still, he noticed nothing amiss.

After all, the Martial Soul cards were linked to his golden finger's private-server template.

Otherwise, it would not have been possible to pull someone across worlds to form a contract with him.

Under these circumstances, no one could possibly harm him.

"What's wrong? Is something amiss?"

The cool voice rang out. Qingxiao watched Xu Qing's every move, but the right hand held behind her back trembled slightly.

"Master, there's no brush."

Qingxiao paused, then took out a writing brush and placed it before him.

Xu Qing picked up the brush, signed his name at the bottom, and handed it to Qingxiao.

Looking at the signature, Qingxiao raised her eyebrows.

"It seems you've forgotten everything. Even your handwriting... mm, your master will supervise your calligraphy practice from now on."

"Thank you, Master."

Xu Qing looked up at her with great sincerity.

What normal person uses a writing brush?

Still, he did rather want to have beautiful, flowing brushwork.

"Mm, the ceremony is complete."

Qingxiao looked down at him, taking out a sword talisman jade pendant with her other hand and handing it to Xu Qing.

"From today onward, you are my disciple. No slacking off in your sword practice."

Looking at the familiar sword talisman jade pendant in his hand, Xu Qing raised his eyebrows.

All right, another tracking device.

"Master, I'll be leaving now. I'm still tempering my body."

Qingxiao nodded slightly, watching Xu Qing vanish before her eyes.

The pure white space fell silent. Qingxiao stood where she was and raised the document in her hand. After studying it for a long while, a smile slowly curved her lips.

Then purple light spread over her body. Her originally ice-blue hair and eyes, her Auspicious Beast horns, earrings, the inscriptions on her face, and her clothes all turned purple.

Even her red lips turned an alluring purple, and her formerly cool, aloof demeanor became seductive and bewitching.

She raised the apprenticeship pledge in her hand and looked at it for a long while, the smile on her face growing increasingly smug.

At that moment, she was no Fairy Qingxiao at all, but her inner demon.

"He finally signed it."

Qingxiao's Inner Demon chuckled.

As purple light flickered, the lettering on it changed. The words "Apprenticeship Pledge" dissolved and reformed as "Marriage Contract."

The clauses below changed as well. "Imparting the Dao and teaching skills" became "forever united in heart," while "strictly abiding by the master's instructions" became "never parting in life or death."

At the bottom, beside Xu Qing's name, Qingxiao's name sat in perfectly neat writing.

Qingxiao's Inner Demon carefully turned the marriage contract over and examined it several times, her eyes curved in a smile. Only then did she put the document away and clap her hands, brimming with smug satisfaction.

"We should have done this ages ago."

"That tight-lipped gourd would dither forever just over asking our disciple to sign. It still took me to get it done."

"But our disciple really is adorable after shrinking."

"Hehe..."

Qingxiao's Inner Demon folded her arms across her chest, recalling Xu Qing's appearance just now.

Then she extended two fingers on each hand, and another scroll appeared in the air, purple light gathering at her fingertips.

She drew a few strokes in midair, and Xu Qing's current appearance emerged on the blank scroll.

Black hair, golden eyes, a black martial outfit, a cowlick on his head, and a sword-shaped talisman cradled in his hands.

"Hehe, our tiny disciple is so adorable."

Qingxiao's Inner Demon looked at it for a long while before putting the painting away.

"But that little fox still got there first."

"Damn it, our disciple is covered in that fox's scent."

"It's all that tight-lipped gourd of a main body's fault. Otherwise, I would have met my adorable disciple long ago."

After thinking for a long while, Qingxiao's Inner Demon stretched again, fully displaying her graceful curves.

Her long purple hair swished. Then she composed her expression, and the purple slowly faded from her hair, eyes, and other features, returning to ice blue. Her expression also grew tranquil again as she reverted to the cool, taciturn Qingxiao.

She hurriedly took the marriage contract out of the space. Upon opening it, her body trembled and her cheeks flushed red.

"Inner Demon!!! What exactly have you done??!"

Master has appeared! In the next two chapters, the protagonist will reach level 30, and the third card is coming. Is there any character you're hoping will appear? Feel free to leave a comment.