The White-robed Elder beckoned to Li Lin and said, "Come here, kid."
Li Lin had no suspicions and walked over. Only when he got close did he begin to examine the White-robed Elder carefully.
In an instant, Li Lin's pupils dilated and his scalp tingled. He scrambled back in a panic and tripped over to the ground.
Trembling, he stammered, "Are you human, or a ghost?"
The White-robed Elder looked down, inspected himself, and chuckled, "Are you scared?"
Li Lin was indeed terrified because, from this close distance, he saw that the White-robed Elder's body was not only translucent, but his feet were actually suspended in the air.
This reminded him of something the elders in his village talked about—a "ghost."
Though afraid, Li Lin forced himself not to admit it and dared not reply.
Seeing this, the White-robed Elder was not angry.
He sighed and muttered to himself, "Little fellow, don't be afraid. I am not a ghost, but I can no longer be considered human either. This is merely a wisp of my lingering soul."
Before Li Lin could respond, the White-robed Elder continued, "Your old master was once a prince of the Canglong Empire, who later embarked on the path of cultivation by a stroke of fortune."
"Along this long and tortuous road, I never dared to slack off in the slightest. I always believed that diligence could make up for clumsiness. Without the protection of a major sect and the support of resources, I, a mere rogue cultivator, was ultimately not all that inferior to those sect disciples," the White-robed Elder said with a hint of pride.
"However, the Cultivation World is always fraught with endless variables. During my travels, I inadvertently stumbled upon a blood sacrifice by the Demonic Sect and was besieged by several people. I can only blame myself for my inferior skills; my Divine Sense was accidentally injured and my realm plummeted."
"Worse still, my 'Chier' perished as a result. After a long period of recuperation, although I finally recovered, my strength was no longer what it used to be," the White-robed Elder said with some sadness.
"As time passed, I grew older while my cultivation remained stagnant. With my lifespan running out, I tried all sorts of methods to break through the bottleneck, but all ended in failure. Looking at my gradually aging face, a deep sense of powerlessness welled up in my heart."
"In my despair, I decided to leave my original place and seek new opportunities elsewhere. Thus, I traveled far and wide, hoping to find a way to elevate my cultivation and break through to the Hao realm."
"During this time, I experienced countless hardships and perils, and made some like-minded friends. Together, we explored ancient ruins and sought precious Dharma Treasures and pills, hoping to find the opportunity to break through my bottleneck. However, reality is often cruel; my efforts did not yield the expected results."
"Finally, feeling that my doom was approaching and filled with despair, I came to this mysterious mountain. Here, I discovered a unique feng shui formation—I call it the 'Spirit-Gathering Tripod.' This mountain has unique topography with a special spiritual Qi gathering effect, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and the essence of the sun and moon. Its tripod-like configuration allows it to lock the spiritual Qi here so it doesn't leak out, accelerating a cultivator's advancement. Seeing this place, a glimmer of hope ignited in my heart; perhaps this was the key to breaking through my bottleneck."
"Yet, no matter how hard I tried, because my Divine Sense foundation was injured, my Divine Sense grew weaker by the day, making it impossible to advance any further. With my days numbered, I could only hastily leave behind some heritage, hoping to await a predestined person, but I have waited over a hundred years for this. Alas!"
"Kid, are you willing to take me as your master?" the White-robed Elder asked abruptly with a sharp gaze.
Li Lin was listening intently when the sudden shout startled him, making him shiver. Recovering his wits, he had no idea what was going on.
The White-robed Elder said with mild annoyance, "Brat, I have decided to impart everything I have learned in my lifetime to you. Are you willing to inherit my mantle?"
This time Li Lin finally heard clearly. He widened his eyes, a look of incredulous wild joy appearing on his face as his mouth fell wide open.
Trembling all over with excitement and clenching his fists tightly, Li Lin suppressed the surging joy in his heart.
Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately dropped to his knees before the White-robed Elder, his movement swift and resolute.
His knees slammed heavily onto the ground, producing a crisp sound that expressed his respect and yearning for the old man.
He held his head high, cupped his fists, and his eyes were filled with anticipation and determination.
In a ringing voice, he said, "Master is above, please accept this disciple's bow!"
With that, Li Lin bowed down without hesitation, his forehead touching the ground as he respectfully kowtowed three loud times.
His actions were solemn and pious, showing his eagerness to become the old man's apprentice and his respect for this destined master-disciple bond.
When he raised his head, the White-robed Elder's face was full of smiles, nodding incessantly and looking very happy.
"Good, good, good. I, Chu Xingyun, finally have a disciple too; I can die without regrets."
Chu Xingyun continued, "I now have nothing left of value. Everything in this cave dwelling belongs to you, considered as a gift to you, kid."
"This disciple thanks Master." Li Lin respectfully kowtowed once more.
"Good, good, good. Disciple, come closer to your master," Chu Xingyun said with a gratified and kindly expression, beckoning to him.
Li Lin had no suspicions. He stood up, walked quickly to Chu Xingyun's front, cupped his fists, and bowed respectfully again. Chu Xingyun nodded slightly.
Then his hands danced rapidly at a speed difficult for the naked eye to follow. Every movement of his fingers was filled with power and skill.
As his gestures changed, an invisible wave of energy seemed to appear in the air, radiating a mysterious and powerful aura.
Finally, his fingers shifted rapidly, forming several mysterious hand seals, each containing boundless mysteries and power.
They transformed into an ancient rune, emitting a dazzling purple light, causing Li Lin to instantly and subconsciously close his eyes tight.
Chu Xingyun pointed with his right hand, and that ancient rune flashed, drilling straight into Li Lin's spirit platform.
"Ah!" Li Lin let out a painful, miserable scream, his body tilting violently backward as he collapsed straight to the ground.
His face instantly turned as pale as paper, cold sweat poured from his forehead, and his lips trembled slightly from the pain.
After falling, Li Lin began to roll around on the ground, as if trying to alleviate the excruciating pain in his head through this motion.
His hands tightly clasped his head, his ten fingers pulling desperately at his hair as if this could ease the agony.
His eyes were filled with despair and terror, his mouth wide open, emitting one shrill, miserable howl after another that echoed through the cave.
The sound was so wretched that anyone who heard it would feel their hair stand on end.
Chu Xingyun turned a blind eye to all of this, simply watching Li Lin quietly with a somewhat indifferent expression.
Only after the span of a full incense stick did Li Lin slowly quiet down.
Seeing this, Chu Xingyun finally broke into a slight smile and nodded with satisfaction.
He immediately spoke up, "Your master has sealed all the cultivation techniques, secret arts, insights, and esoteric lore I learned throughout my life into a rune and imprinted it into your sea of consciousness. As your strength increases, it will gradually allow you to slowly digest them."
He added, "Disciple, sit up cross-legged right now and first familiarize yourself with the changes within your body. If there is anything you don't understand or find unclear, you can bring it up, and your master will untangle your doubts one by one."