Ye Feng knew very well that his master treated him quite well.
If it were anyone else taking on a disciple who hadn't done a single sect task in years, they probably would have kicked him out long ago.
How could he possibly have let him spend the past five years at the foot of the mountain, raising Ye Youning in peace?
Fortunately, his own judgment had been sound, picking this kind-faced old man at a single glance.
The scene of the master-seeking ceremony was still fresh in Ye Feng's mind.
He remembered he had been just over ten years old at the time.
A group of middle-aged uncles had surrounded a childish little kid, each one looking rather bizarre and wearing a stiff smile. Anyone who knew what was going on understood they were taking on disciples, but anyone who didn't would have thought it was child trafficking.
Only one white-haired and white-bearded grandpa looked somewhat pleasant to the eye, and fortunately, this grandpa found Ye Feng pleasing to the eye as well.
Li Muyang, the peak master, looked at Ye Feng with a beaming smile. "Not bad, not bad at all. To think he has a Top-grade Fire Spiritual Root—he's a perfect fit for my Hengjian Peak."
As soon as he said this, it provoked dissatisfaction from the other peak masters of the sect. "Old man Li, what makes you think he should be your disciple just like that? Just because your spiritual root affinities match?"
"Exactly, exactly! Haven't you ever heard of wood generating fire? If he joins my Ye Jian Peak, his future achievements will be boundless!"
"What does it have to do with spiritual roots? Resources are what matter! No matter how good your spiritual roots are, it's all wasted without spirit stones. When it comes to disciple benefits, our Shuilin Peak has never lagged behind anyone!"
"Hahaha!" Hearing the jealous tones of the other peak masters, Li Muyang's eyes crinkled into slits with laughter. He gently raised his hand, and a strong gale rose up, enveloping Ye Feng and carrying him soaring toward the horizon.
"Let's go! Good disciple, let them stay here and waste their breath!"
When Ye Feng snapped out of his daze, he was already inside the magnificent and majestic main hall of the Hengjian Sect.
This grand hall looked much like what Ye Feng had imagined a sect's main hall would look like. The only special feature was the dense, lush bamboo surrounding it.
These bamboo stalks were tall, upright, and dripping with emerald green, as if a green ocean was encircling the entire hall.
"It seems Master likes bamboo," Ye Feng noted silently to himself.
"Disciple, from now on, you can treat this Hengjian Peak as your own home. Master hasn't taken on many disciples, and you are the first true inheritor. You can make your own decisions about everything from now on."
"If you run into any difficulties or encounter any problems in your cultivation, come to this hall to find me."
"Haha, today really is a good day. I must have another two taels of wine. Disciple, you just focus on your cultivation. Once you reach the Golden Core stage, go participate in that Seven Peaks Assembly and show off the dominance of our Fire Spiritual Root, so that no one dares to slander our Hengjian Sect behind our backs again for having nobody."
The old man seemed to have already pictured the scene of that day, his eyes narrowing slightly. After a moment, as if remembering something, he tossed a brocade storage bag to Ye Feng and strode self-importantly with his hands behind his back toward the depths of the hall.
"This is a bit different from what I imagined..."
Ye Feng shook his head with a complex expression and opened the storage bag. Looking inside, he saw it was packed with various cultivation manuals, rare medicinal pills, and quite a few sparkling spirit stones, alongside a precious sword that looked valuable at a single glance.
"...Since I've already been taken as a disciple, I might as well just take things as they come."
...
[Ye Youning successfully enters the Tianjian Sect school.]
[Endowed with astonishing talent and dedicated to your cultivation, you experience an epiphany overnight and step into the Peak Golden Core stage, just a hair's breadth away from the Nascent Soul. Your master is overjoyed and, rarely ever leaving his quarters, specially takes you to various peaks to share the joy.]
[For the sake of your own safety, you refuse him, leaving Master Li Muyang to go alone.]
[One day, you accidentally receive news that Master Li Muyang, a Deity Transformation stage cultivator, has actually been injured.]
[After making numerous inquiries, you learn that while visiting various peaks to exchange experiences, Master Li Muyang boasted about your cultivation speed, which angered the various peak masters and led to this outcome.]
[Though speechless, you still set off to visit him.]
[You do not get to see your master, and your master refuses to utter a word about taking a beating. Instead, he tells you that the Tianxuan Sect has captured an inner disciple of the Tianmo Sect, and you can go investigate news regarding the Corrosive Pill Flame Spirit Curse.]
[You thank your master for his grace, and with no time to lose, you decide to set off tomorrow.]
...
"Clang, clang, clang..."
The deep tolling of a bell echoed continuously through the quiet valley, carrying an ancient and mysterious aura. Brilliant evening clouds spread across the horizon like a massive canvas.
Ye Feng, sitting cross-legged in meditation, opened his eyes. "It's getting late. I'd better hurry and pick up Youning."
"Ye Feng!" The tiny figure was waving her arms hard, standing at the school entrance as if hoping to reach Ye Feng's side all the sooner.
Ye Feng drifted down from the sky like a feather, stirring up a breeze that made the hair of the little girl running up to meet him dance wildly in the wind.
"How was your day?" Ye Feng asked gently.
"Great! The teacher even said Youning is smart!"
The girl proudly lifted her chin.
"Youning is truly amazing. Here." Ye Feng gently touched the girl's upturned little head and handed over a piece of candy.
"Brother Ye!" A crisp and joyful cry rang out from behind the girl, sounding like a flock of little birds singing in the branches.
Immediately afterward, a chorus of overlapping shouts followed: "I want some too, I want some too!" It turned out that because Ye Feng had arrived early, many other children were still waiting here for their family elders to pick them up.
Since Ye Feng came to pick up Ye Youning on time almost every day, he had gradually grown familiar with these children over time. When the children saw the candy in Ye Feng's hand, they swarmed over all at once like little bees spotting nectar.
"There's plenty, don't all rush." Ye Feng distributed the candies one by one. With every piece handed out, he heard a sweet expression of gratitude:
"Thank you, Brother Ye Feng!" "Brother Ye Feng is the best!" The children cheered.
The hem of Ye Feng's robe was tightly clutched, while the girl behind him seemed somewhat out of place at the moment. She stood there all alone, her small mouth puckering slightly as she muttered softly, "That's my brother."
After all, Ye Feng was a Golden Core cultivator, so he naturally heard it clearly. He gently took Youning's small hand and said, "You must be tired after a whole day. Let's go home."
...
"Ye Feng." In the dark, the girl's soft, milky voice broke the nighttime quiet.
Ye Feng, sitting cross-legged in meditation nearby, frowned. "Why aren't you asleep yet? How late is it? You still have to go to school tomorrow, and if you doze off then, you'll get..."
Suddenly remembering that today's situation was special, Ye Feng stopped his lecturing and said softly, "Your brother is just going out to execute a mission and will be back in three to five days. I've already spoken with Senior Sister Liu; you'll go stay at her house for the next few days. Don't you get along well with Senior Sister's daughter anyway?"
Today, the usually lively young girl was acting rather unusual. Cowering completely under the quilt, she muttered in a muffled voice, "I know. If worst comes to worst, I can also go to Grandpa Li's place. His house is big enough for Youning to stay."
"That's right, that's right. Youning is so smart." Ye Feng was somewhat amused.
In the quiet room, with a sudden "swish" of crisp sound, the tightly draped quilt was abruptly thrown open, revealing Li Youning's face. Two faint tear tracks hung on her normally fair and delicate cheeks, sparkling crystal-clear under the dim candlelight.
"What's wrong? Why are you crying?" Seeing this, Ye Feng was greatly startled and hurriedly reached out to gently wipe the tears from her face.
Ye Youning sat quietly without dodging, only asking in a soft, muffled voice, "Has Youning been a good girl?"
Taken aback by this sudden question, Ye Feng quickly replied, "Of course you have. Our Youning has been so good; you're the most obedient child."
"Then... will you abandon Youning?" Ye Youning's voice carried a trace of trembling, as if dreading to hear any bad answer.
"Hehe, how could that be?" Ye Feng chuckled softly, his eyes filled with doting affection. "Lots of people want a cute little sister like Youning, and I wouldn't even be willing to give her away. How could I ever abandon you?"
"Really?" The girl's pitch shot up abruptly, a flicker of anticipation flashing in her eyes.
Under that gaze, Ye Feng nodded repeatedly, stopping just short of raising his hand to swear an oath.
"Heehee, Youning is very well-liked." As if trying to prove herself, Ye Youning ticked things off on her fingers one by one. "I'm always very attentive in school, I'm polite whenever I see elders, I can boil my own water, I don't eat too much at meals, and everyone says Youning is cute..."
As she spoke, perhaps recalling some other heartbreaking matter, Ye Youning's previously excited voice gradually grew dim and desolate, and she mumbled in a tiny voice, "So even if Youning isn't your biological sister, you mustn't abandon Youning, okay..."
"Mm-hm, don't worry." Heartbroken, Ye Feng nodded repeatedly, reaching out to gently stroke the girl's head to comfort her.
"Who told you that?" Ye Feng suddenly snapped to attention. No wonder Li Youning had been acting so abnormal today; someone must have said something they shouldn't have.
"They all said so." Ye Youning's voice carried grievance. "They also said Youning can't cultivate and is different from them."
A sudden tightness gripped Ye Feng's heart, as if it were being fiercely squeezed by an invisible hand, and a piercing pain instantly surged into his chest. He understood that while no one might know their past in the small village at the foot of the mountain, hiding secrets within this sect was probably not so easy.
"They're just little kids who don't understand anything," Ye Feng explained patiently. "Youning is different from them. You'll definitely be able to cultivate just like them in the future; you'll just start a little later than them, Brother promises you."
In the pitch-black ink of night, Youning's pair of beautiful big eyes stared fixedly at Ye Feng like two gleaming gemstones, as if verifying the truth in his words.
After a moment, Ye Youning said nothing more. She slowly lay back down, pulled the quilt over herself, and whispered, "Youning is sleepy and going to sleep now..."
Not daring to disturb the girl, Ye Feng gently patted her through the quilt, his eyes carrying boundless hope as he looked out the window...