“Are you here to take part in the selection test to recruit Martial Emperor’s disciples and followers in a month?” The young man could not help but feel a little surprised to hear what Duan Ling Tian said. “With your level of Sword Dao comprehension, it’s just a matter of time for you to grasp the Emperor Stage Sword Concept… I don’t think there’s a need for you to be Martial Emperor Ling Xuan’s disciple.”
“Comprehending the Emperor Stage Sword Concept is just a matter of time?” Duan Ling Tian was secretly smirking to himself.
He had actually comprehended Emperor Stage Sword Profundity much earlier.
However, he did not reveal that to the young man. “I’m not interested in becoming Martial Emperor Ling Xuan’s disciple… I’m taking part in the selection test mainly to ask Martial Emperor Ling Xuan for a favor.”
“If being his direct disciple is the only way I can ask for his favor, I’ll do it. If possible, I don’t even want to be his direct disciple,” Duan Ling Tian said in one breath.
“Was becoming a Martial Emperor’s direct disciple that horrible a task to you?” Duan Ling Tian’s revelation made the young man’s lips twitch a little.
There were countless martial artists on the Cloud Continent who would give up their lives to become a Martial Emperor powerhouse’s direct disciple.
However, the purple-clad young man before him could not care less about that. If it were someone else who said that, he would definitely have mocked him.
Nevertheless, having witnessed the purple-clad young man’s performance earlier, he knew had no right to come up with any form of taunting..
Soon, the young man asked Duan Ling Tian, “What favor do you need from Martial Emperor Ling Xuan?”
“To him, it’s just a small favor… But to me, it’s immensely important,” Duan Ling Tian mumbled softly.
Although his memory had recovered a little the past couple of months, he had no idea about his identity and background at all.
It was as if that part of his memory had been sealed.
He had no idea where he came from and neither did he have any idea where he was heading to.
He only felt like he had one purpose in life at the moment, which was to find out about his past. That was it.
“I see,” said the young man as he nodded, “From what I know, Martial Emperor Ling Xuan of Ling Xuan Peak is very picky in selecting his direct disciples… He’s only taken in three direct disciples throughout the years.”
“Although you’ve deep Sword Dao comprehension, he might not make an exception to take you as his direct disciple just because of that,” added the young man.
“From what you’ve said, you seem to know Martial Emperor Ling Xuan very well… Could you be one of the three direct disciples?” Duan Ling Tian looked deep into the young man’s eyes and asked.
Facing Duan Ling Tian’s question, the young man replied with a mysterious smile. “Duan Ling Tian, I’ve something else to do. I’ll make a move first… Also, remember, my name’s Yang Hui.”
Yang Hui!
Yang Hui left after introducing himself. He disappeared into the mist, vanishing before Duan Ling Tian just like that.
“It’s a matter of ‘yes’ or ‘no’. What’s there to be so mysterious about?” Duan Ling Tian raised his eyebrows and subsequently left Ling Xuan Peak. He returned to the loft that he had been cultivating in and proceeded to cultivate and comprehend his Fused Profundity as well as Sword Profundity.
At that same time, in the south of the Inner Land on the Cloud Continent, an old man wearing a fiery red robe looked at the lady in red next to him and said softly, “Lady, we don’t have much time left. We should leave now.”
Her beautiful body shuddered a little when she heard him. There was concern written on her exquisite face that seemed to be covered with a layer of frost.
She was none other than Feng Tian Wu who had been searching for Duan Ling Tian for half a year now. She thought to herself at that moment, “Big Brother Duan, where exactly are you? I’m worried about you… Do you know that?”
She secretly sighed eventually.
“Big Brother Duan, my instincts tell me that you’re still alive. Wait for me. I’ll definitely come back for you when I’ve improved my ability!” Feng Tian Wu thought to herself.
Two silhouettes disappeared into the sky in the blink of an eye. They headed towards the north like two red lightning bolts streaking across the sky at a terrifying speed.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
…
As Feng Tian Wu left with the old man Chi Huo, four silhouettes appeared out of thin air along Ruo Shui River of the Outer Land on the Cloud Continent.
Among the four of them, the leader was a young lady who looked around fifteen to sixteen years of age. She was dressed in daffodil yellow and she had pretty and child-like features. One could tell that she would grow to be a drop-dead gorgeous beauty.
There was a hint of slyness in her eyes, betraying her quirkiness.
Next to her were three children who were two heads shorter than her. One was a boy in black, a girl in white, and a girl in gold.
The boy in black and the girl in white looked similar to each other as if they came from the same mold. They seemed like identical twins.
Meanwhile, the girl in gold looked seven or eight years old just like the other two children. They were chubby and cute, making anyone want to pinch their cheeks.
However, there was a cunning gleam in her eyes that was similar to the young girl in yellow. It was clear that she was a peculiar person too.
“Cloud Continent, I, Han Xue Nai am back!” A shimmer flashed in the young girl’s eyes in an odd manner as she announced excitedly.
She had gotten her father’s permission this time. Finally, she did not have to worry that her father would send someone to bring her back.
The girl in white seemed quiet. Although she was young, she looked like she would grow into a demure lady. She looked at the yellow-clad girl and asked with a shine in her eyes, “Sister Xue Nai, do you think Brother would recognize us now that we look like this?”
“Brother Ling Tian’ll definitely recognize all of you if the three of you are together.” Han Xue Nai observed the three children next to her and smirked. “How about this? When we find Brother Ling Tian, I’ll meet him first while the three of you wait. Then, you’ll come out one by one. I’m sure he won’t be able to recognize all of you.”
The girl in gold agreed to Han Xue Nai’s suggestion and voiced her plan, “Oh, that’s a marvelous idea! Sister Xue Nai will meet Brother first, then it’ll be my turn… Then it’ll be Little White’s turn and then Little Black!”
“Hmph! Little Gold, why am I the last to meet Brother? It should be me who appears after Sister Xue Nai. You’ll meet him last because you’re a rotten apple who’s the most stubborn among us!” The boy scoffed in disdain.
“You’re the rotten apple! Everyone in your family is a rotten apple! Wait, that’s not right. Little White’s from your family… Then, you’re the only rotten apple!”
The girl whom they called Little Gold pulled a funny face at the boy and stuck her tongue out in a silly way. “Also, you’re a gentleman. Don’t you know about ‘ladies first’?”
“I’m not a gentleman! I’m just a little boy,” he insisted.
“Alright, stop fighting the both of you… I’m getting a headache from you. When we find Brother Ling Tian, the three of you will play ‘rock, scissors, paper’ to see who’ll meet him first,” Han Xue Nai concluded as she felt her head starting to ache.
She thought she was mischievous herself, but with these three little fellows, she had to admit defeat.
The three little fellows were the three demon beasts that Han Xue Nai had taken away from Duan Ling Tian back then.
They were Little Black, Little White, and Little Gold.
Little Black and Little White were the two little variant pythons. They had been with Duan Ling Tian since the beginning and Han Xue Nai had taken them twice on separate occasions.
Years had gone by, and they had taken on a human form.
Little Gold was the mischievous little golden mouse who had left following Han Xue Nai, Little Black, and Little White.
To be exact, it was not Han Xue Nai who had intended to take them away.
Instead, it was Qing Nu, who had been by Han Xue Nai’s side, who wanted to take them away.
“Alright, let’s listen to Sister Xue Nai.” Little Gold nodded and subsequently made a funny face at Little Black. “You little rascal, who doesn’t know about ‘ladies first’!? Brother will definitely despise you when he sees you.”
“Hmph! You’ll be the one brother despises.” Little Black scoffed in disdain.
“Alright, stop fighting, the both of you. The two of you are born rivals!” Meanwhile, Little White stood there and shook her head lightly like a little adult.
“Little White’s the only good kid here.” Han Xue Nai patted the girl’s head and felt helpless as she looked disapprovingly at Little Gold and Little Black.
Although the three little fellows were now in human form and their intelligence had matured, their hearts remained at the stage of a human child. Apart from Little White who would listen to commands, the other two were like children who could never grow up.
Naturally, the three little fellows would have to break through the Innate Stage to be able to take on a human adult form.
If they failed, that would mean they would look like kids for the rest of their lives.
After all, any demon beast could only take on the human form once before breaking through the Innate Stage.
However, to take on an adult form, they had to break through the Innate Stage for the second time.
“Let’s go… We’ll look for the big dog at Skywolf Fort. Before I left the last time, I told him that if he’s yet to find out where Brother Ling Tian is when I come back, I’ll make him into a stew and gobble him!” Han Xue Nai ordered and she brought the three little rascals towards the south.
“Big dog? I hope he hasn’t found Brother yet… I’ve never tasted dog meat before,” Little Gold said while her eyes lit up.
“Hmph! Eating is all you know. You’ll die from eating one day! How could you forget about Brother just for a meal? What a heartless fella!” Little Black sneered.
“Little Gold, there’s no way that I can help you this time. How could you forget about Brother just for your appetite? Although I’d love to know how dog meat tastes like…” Little White licked her dry lips with her small tongue as she said.
Hearing what Little White said earlier, Han Xue Nai was secretly complimenting her but she noticed that something was off as the girl spoke further.
“Ahh, they sure are three little devils…” Han Xue Nai secretly forced a smile as she admitted defeat to the three children.