97: Forced to take on apprentices

"Have you heard? The Chiyan Sect has really blown up this time."

"Indeed. It's a huge joke; their precious Young Lord was robbed on his own turf. I heard he even lost the heavy treasure bestowed upon him by Sect Master Yan Huang."

"What heavy treasure? How could it make Old Ancestor Yan Huang so furious?" someone asked curiously.

"I'm not clear on the specifics, but it must be an extraordinary fire-attribute exotic treasure."

"I heard that when Sect Master Yan Huang came out of seclusion, the entire stone wall outside his Immortal Cave was melted into magma by his fury."

"The thunderous rage of a Mid-stage Core Formation expert... tsk tsk."

"That's not all. The Chiyan Sect has issued a death order to mobilize the entire Sect to ferret out the thief."

A collective gasp of cold air echoed through the teahouse.

"But... in such a vast sea of people, where would they look? That person must have some distinguishing features, right?"

"Features?" The well-informed man from earlier lowered his voice and leaned forward slightly. "There are some, but it's very strange... I heard that person's attainments in Formations are extremely high, enough to trap Young Lord Yan Li... And, worst of all, the Magic Treasure he wields is said to be... a gourd."

"A gourd?" Upon hearing this, the curiosity on everyone's faces instantly froze.

"A gourd-shaped Magic Treasure... This... this is rarely seen."

"Rarely seen is an understatement." The man lowered his voice even further. "I heard that because of this clue, the Chiyan Sect has 'invited' away all the Loose Cultivators who possessed gourd-shaped Magical Artifacts."

Lin Feng listened in silence, lowered his bamboo hat, and turned to merge into the flow of people in the market. He did not purchase any medicinal ingredients and left this place of trouble directly.

Outside the market, Lin Feng stepped onto his Flying Sword and flew at a moderate pace towards the mountain gate of the Tianxuan Sect.

Upon returning to his Immortal Cave on Baoyue Peak, he waved his hand to lower the stone door. For the next half year, the door of the Immortal Cave never opened again.

Lin Feng slowly opened his eyes inside the Immortal Cave. A flickering blue and red light circulated in his eyes, finally settling down and returning to a profound depth.

After six months of seclusion, with the help of the newly refined Fire Attribute Sword Essence, not only had his old injuries fully healed, but his cultivation had also progressed further.

He pushed open the stone door and strolled out of the Immortal Cave. Clouds and mist swirled around Baoyue Peak, and the air was fresh. He wandered aimlessly within the Sect, deliberately slowing his pace to savor the long-lost tranquility.

When passing by the square outside Shang Gong Hall, he found it much noisier than usual, with many Foundation Establishment Disciples gathered together.

After listening for a moment, he understood the reason. The Tianxuan Sect's decennial Secret Realm assessment was about to begin. This assessment was mainly aimed at them, the Inner Sect Foundation Establishment Disciples who had not yet taken a master.

Rumor had it that although the Secret Realm was fraught with crises—with spatial rifts, remnant ancient Formations, and mutated Yao Beasts emerging one after another—it also contained spirit plants and mineral deposits that were hard to find in the outside world.

More importantly, many Core Formation Elders would be watching at that time, selecting Disciples based on their performance in the Secret Realm. This was undoubtedly the best Opportunity for all masterless Disciples to ascend to the heavens in one step and leap over the dragon gate.

Hearing this news, Lin Feng frowned slightly. Having just experienced the Chiyan Sect incident, his most urgent desire right now was to cultivate in low profile, consolidate his strength, and not become the focus of everyone's attention.

Becoming a Disciple under a Core Formation Elder would certainly provide abundant resources, but it also meant more attention and potential scrutiny. He carried too many secrets; the earth core spirit quenching milk, Shadow Scale Snake, Slug, and wine immortal gourd were none of them suitable for public display. He understood the principle that a tall tree attracts the wind very well.

However, not participating at all would be unreasonable and would instead arouse suspicion. After a moment of thought, he decided to go.

His goal was not to find a master, but to take the Opportunity to collect some spirit plants unique to the Secret Realm, maintaining the behavior pattern expected of an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple to avoid standing out.

A few days later, at the entrance of the Secret Realm, light flashed as the Disciples entered one by one.

During the Secret Realm assessment, Lin Feng tried his best to restrain his edge. Relying on the keen perception of the heaven-stealing vine, he wandered in the lower-danger edge areas, focusing on searching for the medicinal herbs he needed.

When encountering Yao Beasts, he mostly focused on maneuvering and evading, only repelling them when absolutely necessary. He avoided all direct conflicts and resource disputes with other Disciples; his harvest was not abundant, but he did manage to collect a few of his target items.

The bell signaling the end of the assessment rang out, and the Disciples successively walked out from the light gate of the Secret Realm exit, gathering on the square to hand over their harvests, which were recorded by the deacon Disciples.

Several Genius Disciples who had ventured deep into dangerous areas, gained abundant harvests, and even joined forces to slay a Third-Rank Demonic Beast were surrounded in the center, enjoying everyone's envy and admiration.

Almost all the Disciples believed that these Prodigies would surely be favored by the Core Formation Elders watching the ceremony.

On the high platform, several Core Formation Elders who had come to watch and select Disciples wore smiles, their gazes occasionally sweeping over those most dazzling figures, exchanging glances with each other, clearly quite satisfied with this batch of good seedlings.

Just then, on the observation stand, a cold and aloof figure slowly stood up.

Like an ice spring dripping into boiling water, the entire venue instantly fell silent. All eyes, involuntarily and with a hint of confusion and awe, turned towards that usually low-key but ignored by no one, the master of Yunmiao Peak, Lu Yuchan.

Her movement of standing up was very light, yet it seemed to drain away all the sound from the square. She lightly swept past those Genius figures who were the center of attention, without pausing at all.

Finally, her gaze crossed the crowd and landed on the edge of the square, on a Disciple who was about to quietly retreat and whose harvest looked unremarkable.

"You," her voice was clear and melodious, reaching everyone's ears distinctly, "How about you take me as your master?"

The whole crowd was in an uproar.

Everyone was stunned. Countless gazes focused on Lin Feng, filled with disbelief.

How could Elder Lu name that Lin Feng, who looked completely devoid of highlights and was as ordinary as could be?

The smiles on the faces of those few Geniuses, who had originally been full of pride and satisfaction, suddenly froze; bewilderment, confusion, and even a hint of humiliation quickly emerged.

Lin Feng's heart sank, and he secretly cursed that it was bad. This Elder Lu was the very Senior who had demanded his nine nether soul return grass back in Xuan Yin Valley.

He braced himself, stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and spoke with a tone as sincere as possible:

"Disciple Lin Feng thanks Elder for your great kindness. However, this Disciple has shallow talent and limited learning; in the Secret Realm, I only managed to luckily collect some meager resources and truly have nothing outstanding. This Disciple is lazy and dull, and I fear I would struggle to adapt, so I implore Elder... to retract your command."

The words Lin Feng finally spoke made the expressions of the crowd colorful once again. They looked at him as if he were a fool. Did this guy not know how many people in this Sect were begging to become the Disciple of the beautiful Junior Martial Uncle before them? He actually dared to refuse?!

This time, even the few Elders on the high platform frowned, feeling that this child was being too unappreciative.

Lin Feng could clearly feel countless gazes pinned to his back, almost piercing through him.

He heard heavy, suppressed breathing leaking out from behind him, as well as a few indistinct whispers. Although he could not hear them clearly, he could vaguely make out the indignant tone of "Why?".

Facing this second refusal, Lu Yuchan's expression remained calm, as if she had expected it long ago. She did not offer any explanation at all, but simply said, in a faint tone, one last sentence:

"I do not yet have any Disciples. From today on, you are one. If you have any objections, it will be treated as betraying the Sect."