Ling Han was unable to continue his seclusion because Nie Yang had arrived.
âYou bastard, youâve kept me in the dark for so long!â he rebuked.
Ling Han smiled, and said, âThatâs because youâre dense. What can I do?â
Nie Yang slapped his forehead. Wasnât this Han Lin, when recited backwards, Ling Han[1]? The other party had indeed reported his real name from the beginning, but it was he himself who hadnât linked the two names together at all.
âI donât care. You have to compensate me!â He was behaving shamelessly.
Ling Han smiled, tossed out a pill bottle, and said, âThis is for you.â This was something he had decided long ago.
Nie Yang reached out and took it. He smiled, and said, âDonât tell me that this is a Meridian Guiding Pill.â
âThatâs right, itâs the Meridian Guiding Pill,â Ling Han said.
âHey, youâre not saying that youâre giving this to me as a gift, are you?â Nie Yang exclaimed.
Ling Han couldnât be bothered. Didnât he say from the start that it was a gift?
âF*ck, I knew I was right to become friends with you, youâre really something!â Nie Yang laughed loudly, and came over wanting to put his arm around Ling Hanâs shoulder.
Ling Han took a step back, not allowing him to succeed.
âHehe, weâre all men. Why are you shy?â Nie Yang teased.
A show-off was a show-off, no matter where he was.
Ling Han merely glanced at this fellow, and didnât pay any attention to him.
âHaha, you still donât know, right? Rui Yuanliang and the other two guys were extremely miserable.â Nie Yang changed the topic. âAfter the investigation, it turned out that they stole that Meridian Guiding Pill, and were severely reprimanded by their elders.
âRui Yuanliang was the most miserable one. He only managed to climb up the social ladder by captivating the young lady of the Qi Clan. He was never in Elder Qiâs good graces to begin with. Now that such a scandal had happened, Elder Qi hung him at the door, and he was thrashed for the entire afternoon.â
Nie Yang chuckled and gloated.
Ling Hanâs expression was calm, and didnât express much joy over the matter.
If he hadnât happened to refine the Meridian Guiding Fruit, he would have been the one unable to clean up the mess.
âIf it werenât for the young lady from the Qi Clan pleading for mercy, Rui Yuanliang would probably still be hanging there,â Nie Yang said leisurely, as if he was looking forward to it.
âYou donât get along with these people, do you?â Ling Han asked.
âOf course.â Nie Yang revealed a look of disdain. âThose guys only depended on their elders in the family and relied on many Meridian Guiding Fruits to achieve their current cultivation level. How much ability do they really have? And yet they act smug all day long and look down on everyone.
âPei, I really look down on them.â
Ling Han smiled faintly. Nie Yang was indeed a little different.
âHowever, Rui Yuanliang and the others will definitely blame this on you, so you have to be careful. Even if their cultivation levels come from accumulation, they are still Seven Meridians and Eight Meridians, so they still have abilities,â Nie Yang reminded.
Ling Han nodded. He was indeed not a match for a Seven Meridians yet, but in a month or two at most, his strength would definitely catch up.
âIf you really run into trouble, come find me. Iâll help you resolve it.â Nie Yang patted Ling Hanâs shoulder, appearing very loyal.
Ling Han thought to himself that it seemed that he indeed possessed a considerable amount of affinity, but this affinity seemed to have its limitations, which was that the people who liked him would like him even more, while the people who hated him would hate him even more.
âThatâs good, though. Wouldnât the path of cultivation be too boring without one pushing the limits?â
âŠ
The Ancient Dao Sect, meeting hall.
At the beginning of each month, Sun Jianfang would gather all the elders in the sect for a discussion on the sectâs matters.
Usually, there would be no major issues, and the participants would disperse after a brief meeting.
However, this time was different.
âSect Master, now that the outside world is in turmoil, itâs time for our sect to choose the Dao Child and focus our resources on one person to compete with other forces,â an elder suddenly said.
He was Lao Liyanâs grandfather, Lao Feng. His cultivation level was said to be of Eleven Meridians. However, his exact level was a secret which no one knew any details about.
Sun Jianfang frowned. What did Lao Feng mean?
âI also think that we need to settle the matter of the Dao Child as soon as possible.â Tan Jing seconded the motion.
âI think so too.â He Guan nodded in agreement.
Among the seven elders, three of them expressed the same opinion.
âWhat about you guys?â Sun Jianfang didnât say anything. He looked at the other four people.
âI agree.â Qi Wu nodded.
Nie Huayun, Gu Tang, and Zuo Xingbang remained unperturbed, as if they werenât too interested in this matter.
Sun Jianfang raised his white brows, and said, âThen, elders, do you have any suitable candidates?â
âNeedless to say, itâs definitely Li Changdan,â He Guan immediately said. He seemed to be an impatient person. âEver since that kid started cultivating, he has always displayed outstanding talent. Moreover, he has an outstanding magnanimity. All the disciples in the sect are convinced of his abilities and character. No one will have any objections if he becomes the Dao Child.â
âYes.â Qi Wu, Lao Feng, and Tan Jing nodded.
Nie Huayun wanted to say something, but hesitated. He suppressed the urge and continued to sit quietly.
Of course, he wanted to push out his grandson, Nie Yang, but it was obvious that Qi Wu and the other three had formed an alliance. How could he fight alone?
Therefore, it was better to let Sun Jianfang take the lead.
However, this matter was a little uncertain because Zuo Xingbang, Gu Tang, and Sun Jianfang didnât have any descendants. It could be said that no matter who became the Dao Child, it had nothing to do with them. Therefore, it was very likely that Sun Jianfang would accede for the sake of the sectâs unity.
Sun Jianfang pondered for a moment, and said, âHave you forgotten that the Divine Stone broke open and gave birth to a Divine Son?â
âSince heâs not of our race, he must have intentions that are different from us!â Qi Wu said disdainfully. âWho knows what kind of demon he is? If it was up to me, Iâd directly slash him to pieces to avoid any trouble in the future.â
This old man was really ruthless.
Sun Jianfang waved his hand. He had high expectations for Ling Han, so how could he listen to Qi Wu and kill him?
âIn the hands of the great elites of ancient times, it was clearly mentioned that the Divine Stone would nurture a spiritual being of heaven and earth. The future of our Ancient Dao Sect should rest on Ling Hanâs shoulders,â Sun Jianfang said. âEveryone, I hope that you all can set your sights on the long term.
âThis great era has just begun. I donât know how long the path of cultivation in the future will be. Weâre just one step ahead, and can be surpassed at any time.
âIf we choose the right person, under his leadership, we might all be able to charge towards a higher mountain top.â
He Guan laughed and said, âSect Master, I agree with you. We must choose the right candidate for the Dao Child! Therefore, I think highly of Li Changdan. We are already old, and may be trapped at Twelve Meridians forever, but Changdan is different. In the surging era, he should be able to overcome all kinds of obstacles and challenges, reaching a height that we can only look up to.â
âYes, I also have high hopes for Chang Dan.â Qi Wu nodded. âTherefore, now is the time to win over the hearts of the people. We have to firmly tie Chang Dan to our Ancient Dao Sectâs battle chariot.â
Sun Jianfang raised his brows again. Could it be that Li Changdan would betray the Ancient Dao Sect in the future?
Respecting oneâs teacher was the basic ethics that a person should have.
âWe have to be careful when choosing the Dao Child,â he said slowly. âNot only do they need to have standing, but they also need to possess great potential. Since thatâs the case, letâs use the Ancient Formation for the audition!â
[1] Reminder: just like in English, -ing and -in sound extremely similar.
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