Su Bei looked at the massive, golden pill the size of an ox's eye right in front of him, his mouth clamped shut.
A look of stubborn defiance covered his face, his eyes flashing with extreme tenacity.
Thus he stared at the woman before him, who was unsparingly radiating the voluptuous charm rooted in her very bones.
He had no idea what this pill was supposed to do.
But Su Bei knew one thing for certain: if he ate this pill, he was completely and utterly "done for".
"Beibei, just open your mouth, ah~~"
"Be a good boy."
"..."
Su Bei felt a desire to cry without tears.
That perfect, slender-skirt-hugging curve right within arm's reach was, in his eyes, nothing short of a suffocating source of sin!
The last time this Senior Sister shoved that "Vigorous Detoxification Pill"—which she claimed made one "impervious to all poisons and adamantine in longevity"—down his throat, he hadn't felt impervious to all poisons at all.
——As for feeling adamantine and standing unyielding, he had most certainly experienced that.
He had experienced it for two whole days!
The group of elders surrounding them kept their eyes fixed straight ahead, maintaining utterly upright expressions.
Clearly, they were long since accustomed to this sort of scene.
Seeing that the two of them were still at a deadlock, a man in cyan robes gave a light cough, then spoke with a blank expression:
"Ahem."
"Senior Sister, the meeting is what's important."
"..."
The woman draped over Su Bei finally blinked her eyes, then gently pushed herself up and stood up from his body, looking as though she had just experienced a sudden epiphany:
"Oh! Xiao Xi is right! I actually forgot about something so important..."
"..."
Su Bei lay on the ground. Viewed from this angle, he happened to be looking right at those two massive, jade-bowl-inverted round mounds.
They blocked Su Bei's vision like a sky-covering cloud!
Su Bei wanted to turn his head away and salvage some backbone, but alas, he was no saint after all.
Damn it, they were blocking his view of Senior Sister's face.
——I really just wanted to take a look at Senior Sister's gentle face!
...
Wénrén Píngxīn returned to her seat and looked at the eight elders present.
Her eyes changed from their previous expression, and her demeanor turned serious as she began to speak:
"My fellow Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters!"
"As the Senior Sister of the Sword Sect, ever since the Sect Master left the Sword Sect and disappeared without a trace, I have continuously held the position of acting Sect Master."
"Now, under my leadership, the development of the Sword Sect can truly be called increasingly glorious, striking awe throughout the Twenty-One Provinces, flourishing day by day, bringing great honor to our doors, achieving great success, standing upright and righteous, and shining as a Holy Land under heaven..."
"..."
As the Fifth Elder, Su Bei sat on a nearby stool and listened to Wénrén Píngxīn's lengthy speech, curling his lip.
Good grief, if Master doesn't return soon, the sect is going to be ruined by this woman.
Seeming to notice Su Bei's absent-mindedness, Wénrén Píngxīn cast her gaze toward him, her delicate brows knitting together as her tone shifted:
"However!"
"Under my brilliant leadership, there are still some rotten parasites in this sect who are lazy in their cultivation, lack enterprise, and corrupt the atmosphere and reputation of the Sword Sect day and night with their salted-fish mindset!"
"Elders present whose cultivation is higher than Late Soul Formation, please stand up."
"..."
The moment Wénrén Píngxīn's words fell—
Whoosh!
In an instant, everyone except Su Bei—including Wénrén Píngxīn—stood up.
Immediately, Su Bei felt countless burning gazes wandering over his body.
Why was the chair behind him so hard?
It wasn't comfortable at all, poking right into his backside.
Su Bei looked at the flash of amusement in Wénrén Píngxīn's eyes, and anger surged within him!
This woman really was doing it on purpose!
So he raised his voice in a skeptical challenge:
"Why am I stuck at Late Soul Formation?!"
"Why couldn't it be Mid Soul Formation?"
"..."
Wénrén Píngxīn acted as if she hadn't heard, let out a sigh, and spoke:
"Fellow Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters, please sit."
"As disciples of our Sword Sect, and even more so as elders of the Sword Sect, your cultivation must not fall behind!"
"The world of the Cultivation of Immortality is full of deceit, and cases of murder for treasure are not uncommon. Only by strengthening your own power can you ensure your own safety."
"Some people—how many years has it been?"
"Always stuck in that awkward middle ground of Mid Soul Formation, wasting such genius good looks. I'll spare you some face this time and won't call out your name directly."
"As Senior Sister, I have the right to preserve a Junior Brother's self-esteem. Did you hear that, Su Bei?"
"..."
Su Bei said with a blank expression:
"I heard it."
"..."
I thank you so much.
I truly thank you for showing such consideration for my self-esteem.
However, he now had the maximum ten-thousand-fold feedback disciple-recruitment system!
And he already had a genius disciple with a protagonist template who looked like she was exceptionally good at cultivation—a year of her cultivation would equal a hundred years for anyone else!
Sooner or later, he would pin her beneath him and mold her however he pleased!
...
"Hahaha, Fifth Senior Brother!"
"You really ought to put in some effort. Look at me—hiccup! I cultivate so diligently—hiccup! That's how I achieved my current—hiccup! My current Early Void Return realm!"
"..."
A long-haired man dressed in black robes looked at Su Bei and spoke in a righteous manner.
Su Bei drifted his gaze in that direction, then gave a faint "Oh".
"My thanks to Sixth Junior Brother."
"..."
If you would wash your face, pick the sleep out of your eyes, and stop holding that liquor jar bigger than your head and pouring wine straight down your throat while saying things like that, it might carry a bit more persuasion.
Jūn Wúxié, draped in black robes, blinked at Su Bei, then patted the liquor jar in his hand, producing a thudding sound.
He communicated in a way that only he and Su Bei knew.
Thud! Thud-thud! Thud-thud-thud!
(Jūn Wúxié: Is that special strong liquor you made for me ready yet?)
(*￣rǒ￣)(-@y@)(((φ(◎ロ◎;)φ)))
(Su Bei: It's ready. A small bottle, sitting right on the table in my room.)
Thud-thud! Thud! Thud-thud-thud!
(Jūn Wúxié: Later, I'll come to Bujian Peak to find you and pick it up!)
...
Wénrén Píngxīn and the rest of the elders looked with bewildered expressions at Su Bei, who was making faces, and Jūn Wúxié, who was patting his liquor jar with a thudding sound.
"Do you suppose there's a chance the two of them are communicating?"
"Surely not? If they were communicating, wouldn't voice transmission suffice? Why would they make faces and bang on a jar?"
"Who knows?"
"..."
Wénrén Píngxīn then gave a heavy cough, interrupting Jūn Wúxié as he patted the jar, and spoke with a solemn expression:
"The reason I have summoned everyone to the main peak of the Sword Sect is to announce a major event!"
"..."
Jūn Wúxié hurriedly stopped his hand from patting the jar.
Su Bei also looked at Wénrén Píngxīn with a serious expression.
Joking around was fine on ordinary days, but when Wénrén Píngxīn put on this expression, they knew there was indeed an important matter to be announced.
"Fifty years have passed since our last recruitment of new disciples!"
"And in one month's time!"
"We will once again hold the Sword Sect's once-every-fifty-years Twenty-One Provinces Recruitment Grand Assembly!"
"This is an arduous task, and it concerns the future foundation of our Sword Sect!"
"Therefore, there must be no mistakes whatsoever! Thus, this task must be handed over to someone who is extremely responsible, and..."
"..."
Su Bei nodded along with the crowd of elders.
Mhm, responsible, that's right!
He wondered if he could recruit another tool-person disciple during this sect recruitment assembly!