340: She was adopted as a sworn sister and is about to become a Golden Immortal.

A loud commotion broke out among the crowd.

The title "True Disciple" left countless people in shock.

The gaunt man, in particular, was scared half to death by those words.

He hadn't expected that the stunning beauty with bright eyes and white teeth was actually associated with a True Disciple.

He didn't know if she was a maid or a concubine, but regardless, he was in deep trouble.

"Brother Su!"

Seeing Su Yu appear, Nangong Yue immediately beamed and jogged over to him, grabbing his arm.

"Hmph, I'll deal with you in a moment."

Su Yu pulled his hand away and then flicked his finger, giving Nangong Yue's head a sharp rap.

Though he didn't use much force, Su Yu's Physical Body was incredibly powerful; the single flick caused a large bump to swell on Nangong Yue's head.

Tears welled in Nangong Yue's eyes from the pain as she clutched her head, looking at Su Yu with a face full of grievance.

"True Disciple, spare me! I didn't know she was yours. If I had known, I wouldn't have dared to provoke her even if I had a hundred times more courage!"

Suppressed by a pressure nearing that of a Golden Immortal, the gaunt man struggled to voice his plea for mercy.

At this moment, he regretted not investigating further before deciding to act.

But it was her Taisu Immortal Body...

If he could present such an Immortal Physique to his Revered Master, perhaps his Revered Master could take that final half-step and enter the Dao Lord realm.

By then, he might even have a chance to ascend to Golden Immortal, becoming a mighty being with a lifespan as long as the heavens.

"Noisy."

Su Yu spoke indifferently as the power of the Law of Slaughter transformed into a sword beam and slashed into the gaunt man's body.

With a sharp crack, it actually shattered the gaunt man's Physical Body and immortal soul.

Su Yu didn't kill him; instead, he severed his Immortal form and immortal soul, causing his Realm to plummet directly to Mahayana. He would never be able to return to the True Immortal Stage in this lifetime.

For someone who had offended many enemies and now a True Disciple, this was undoubtedly a death sentence.

Having offended a True Disciple, even his Revered Master wouldn't step in to save him.

Furthermore, because he had attacked a fellow Disciple, he would likely spend the rest of his life in prison until he died of old age.

This was more painful than death, especially considering how those he had offended would torture him.

As for Su Yu, it was merely a case of legitimate self-defense.

Although the Immortal Academy's rules strictly forbade harming fellow Disciples, everyone present had seen Yin Qiandao strike first, so Su Yu's counterattack wasn't considered a violation.

Having finished this, Su Yu said to the girl in the green dress:

"Thank you for protecting this girl for me. This is my token; if you ever need help in the future, you can find me at Xuanxiao Blessed Land."

Then, Su Yu picked up Nangong Yue and returned to Xuanxiao Blessed Land.

Back at the blessed land, Su Yu's expression turned cold as he said, "Tell me, why did you run out?"

Tianxuan Immortal Academy was no place for the kind-hearted. Besides entering through recommendation...

...one could also fight their way in through the Tianxuan Immortal War.

Those who entered the Immortal Academy through the Tianxuan Immortal War were numerous, making up nearly half of the inner and outer courts.

Naturally, their character left much to be desired.

The outer court Disciples he had met in Qiyun Heaven and Earth had decent characters, which made them outliers in the academy.

However, a significant number of people shared the same temperament as that gaunt man.

Fortunately, he had a sudden whim to deduce the heavenly secrets and rushed over; otherwise, there was no telling what would have happened to Nangong Yue.

"I heard Sister Jin Yan say that the fifth day of the ninth month is your birthday, Brother Su. So, I planned to celebrate it just as you came out of Qiyun Heaven and Earth."

"That's why I went out to ask where I could buy a banquet."

"I happened to meet Sister Lüxuan, and we hit it off immediately. She took me to the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, saying that besides a banquet, some meaningful treasures would also make good birthday gifts."

"But who would have thought I'd suddenly run into Yin Qiandao? You know the rest."

Nangong Yue explained with a look of grievance.

As her words fell, Su Yu also gradually fell silent.

Ever since he arrived in the cultivation world, amidst the daily intrigue and deception, he seemed to have never celebrated a birthday.

It had been so long—long enough that he had almost forgotten the fifth day of the ninth month was his birthday.

On the path of cultivation, even with the System, he couldn't afford a single moment of carelessness. He had faced many schemes due to negligence.

If not for his good luck, he might have lost his life many times.

The System wasn't omnipotent. If he hadn't been cautious, he might not have made it this far even with another System.

However, with the Great Dao yet to be attained, he couldn't relax for a moment. The Immortal path was long, like rowing upstream.

Battles between mighty beings often spanned billions of miles with a single palm strike. If he grew complacent, the aftershocks of a fight between Dao Lords or even Dao Sovereigns might easily wipe him out one day.

Only by reaching the end of the Great Dao and mastering the power of a Dao Ancestor could he fully control his destiny in the dog-eat-dog Immortal Realm.

Only then would he no longer fear being schemed against or manipulated.

Nevertheless, Nangong Yue's actions still touched Su Yu's indifferent heart.

Su Yu sighed, rubbed Nangong Yue's head, and infused a trace of Immortal power to help the swelling subside.

"I appreciate the sentiment, but we Immortals stopped celebrating birthdays long ago, unless it's a ten-thousand-year jubilee or some other special occasion."

"So, whether you are sincere or insincere, you don't need to go to such lengths to please me."

"Furthermore, since I already have a Dao Companion, I naturally cannot take you in."

"But I can take you as my adopted younger sister."

"With this status, once you join the Immortal Academy, no one will dare provoke you, which will save you from much trouble."

Su Yu naturally understood the intentions behind Nangong Yue's actions, but he would never agree.

Ultimately, Nangong Yue was too weak, and because of her Physique, she was of no help to him whatsoever.

If not for Qin Xuanji, Nangong Yue would never have been involved with him in this lifetime.

This had nothing to do with whether he had a Dao Companion, but it served as a convenient excuse.

"I understand."

Nangong Yue murmured in disappointment.

Su Yu looked at the dejected Nangong Yue and left with a calm expression, returning to the main hall of his immortal estate.

At the moment, Jin Yan was in secluded sleep, Mysterious Wind was preparing to break through to the True Immortal Stage, and Bai Zhi was in seclusion practicing a secret technique.

Only Nangong Yue, due to her Taisu Immortal Body, would be stuck at the Early True Immortal Bottleneck for the rest of her life.

"I have enough immortal jade now. Next, I'll head out to raise my cultivation to Golden Immortal!"

Su Yu opened the System panel and muttered to himself as he looked at the balance of over six million immortal spirit points.

One million immortal spirit points for Early Golden Immortal, three million for Mid-stage Golden Immortal, and ten million for Late-stage Golden Immortal.

His current six million immortal spirit points were enough to reach Mid-stage Golden Immortal. He could then travel outside to raise his Realm to Late-stage Golden Immortal before returning after a few thousand years.

This way, even if people found it shocking that he broke through to Late-stage Golden Immortal in just a few thousand years...

...it would be more acceptable than him reaching Mid-stage Golden Immortal all at once.

Even a fool would know something was fishy.

But before that, he had to settle some matters.

After leaving a recorded shadow in his immortal estate, Su Yu planned to go to Dao Lord Mingsui's estate to take his leave.

"I should go bid farewell to Revered Master first, lest he tries to find me and, failing to do so, travels back through the river of time to get me."

Thinking about what might happen if he left Tianxuan Immortal Academy quietly without saying goodbye to Dao Lord Mingsui...

...if his Revered Master suddenly thought of him, he might actually traverse the river of time to catch him.