9. Seeking a Mentor (I)

"Jun Lin, keep your composure in a moment," an elder urged.

"Do not worry, Uncle," Jun Lin replied, instinctively brushing the Qingxiao Sword strapped to his back.

The elder sighed, hoping he would stay alert—it would be disastrous if things got out of hand.

"Qianqian, do not let your emotions get the better of you," a beautiful matron advised with equal earnestness.

"Do not worry, Mother," Sun Qianqian replied, touching the hairpin in her hair—a tiny yellow sword.

The matron was already mentally preparing to increase the value of her congratulatory gift.

"The masters of the Qingxiao, Huangjue, Chifeng, Sülü, and Galactic Star swords... tsk tsk, they all seem to have quite a temper," a disciple in charge of reception whispered, unable to suppress his gossip.

"They all share the same point: they failed to become disciples of the Venerable Wu Zhan."

"Each of them has touched their sword hilt several times unconsciously."

"You can feel the killing intent from far away."

"Do you think that if they let their juniors mingle, they might use the excuse of a 'spar' to hold an unfair fight?"

"Need you ask? They will definitely compete. The Golden Sword is only ranked last among the Ten Great Famous Swords, and it is merely a 'Guardian Sword' at that."

"Otherwise, these arrogant geniuses wouldn't be satisfied."

"Ahem, the ceremony is about to begin." The Sect Leader, having overheard the entire exchange, could not help but interject.

"Yes, Sect Leader." The two disciples retreated dejectedly. They had been enjoying their conversation, but running into the big shots was truly stifling. They felt a bit aggrieved, unable to say anything more.

"Brother, this is the trouble you’ve stirred up," the Sect Leader said helplessly.

"What does it have to do with me?" Li Yun replied, completely indifferent.

"How can it not concern you? You intend to take only this one disciple, right? With their current attitude, if they don't beat your apprentice into a cripple, it’ll be because they went easy on her." The Sect Leader felt a surge of irritation. He was clearly the junior, so why was he the one worrying like an older brother? It was infuriating.

"Heh, we’ll see who beats whom. Let’s go, Junior Brother." Li Yun remained unbothered. He had already tested his apprentice's ability; at the same level, taking them all down would be a breeze.

"The apprenticeship ceremony begins."

As the herald's voice rang out, the crowd, curious about the Venerable Wu Zhan's disciple, watched as she slowly walked into the main hall. Every eye was like a searchlight, eager to see what exactly was so special about the person the Venerable had chosen as his direct disciple.

The moment Lin Jiuge entered, everyone had the same thought: she was so young! But then again, they hadn't been old when they sought masters either. She looked plain, her aura was ordinary—what on earth did the Venerable see in this girl? Rumor had it she even brought along a "dead weight."

"Disciple Lin Jiuge, I pay my respects—"

"Wait," Jun Lin shouted.

"Jun Lin, how insolent!" The elder was speechless; his nephew was far too impulsive.

"It is of no consequence." Li Yun waved his hand. Lin Jiuge calmly straightened her knees, which had been beginning to bend, and stood behind Li Yun. She looked at the person who had spoken. Who was this?

"Little Junior Sister, that is the master of the Qingxiao Sword, Jun Lin. He once tried to apprentice under our Martial Uncle but was rejected," Zhou Yan appeared out of nowhere, looking at Lin Jiuge with enthusiasm.

"Senior Brother, what was the reason the Master gave for rejecting him?" Lin Jiuge was slightly curious.

"Let me think... it seems it was something about their horoscopes clashing," Zhou Yan said, thinking seriously.

"?" One had to check horoscopes to take on an apprentice? Was hers compatible? Lin Jiuge was puzzled. The crowd of big shots heard every word of the juniors' conversation clearly.

Lin Jiuge looked at Jun Lin with pity. If his ability had been lacking, there would be something to say, but his horoscope? Did practitioners of the Dao really care about such things?

"That's right, Venerable Wu Zhan, you must let us lose with conviction," Sun Qianqian said, the Huangjue sword ornament in her hair instantly growing to its normal size.

"That is Sun Qianqian, master of the Huangjue Sword. I remember the reason she was rejected was that her hair was too long," Zhou Yan continued his introduction.

Hair too long? Lin Jiuge unconsciously touched her own small ponytail. Her hair should be fine, right?

"Ahem, if there is anyone else who wishes to spar, step forward together," Li Yun said, feeling embarrassed just listening to them.

Soon, more than a dozen people stepped out. More than half were female cultivators, and the way they looked at her was as if they wanted to kill her!

"Senior Brother, did they all fail to become his disciples?" Lin Jiuge asked, looking at Zhou Yan uncertainly.

"Ahem, Junior Sister, good luck." Zhou Yan felt a bit awkward and scurried back to his master's side in one stride.

"All of you, suppress your cultivation to the sixth level of the Mortal Enlightenment stage and attack together," Li Yun waved his hand.

"Venerable Wu Zhan, we do not wish to take advantage of you. Your disciple is only at the fifth level of Mortal Enlightenment, yet you want us to suppress our cultivation to the sixth?" The key was that he wanted them to attack together. Jun Lin’s face flushed red; he felt deeply humiliated.

"It is fine. Just go ahead. I will not hold it against you even if you cripple her," Li Yun said dismissively.

Lin Jiuge! Could she refuse to become a disciple now?

"To the practice arena," the Sect Leader ordered. Though his senior was unruly, he never acted without reason.

At the arena, the crowd gathered to watch the spectacle. No one intervened; they all wanted to witness the strength of the Venerable's disciple.

"Begin."

"Why do you not use the Golden Sword?" Jun Lin felt that Lin Jiuge was looking down on them. To use a peachwood sword—who was she looking down upon?

"Daoist Wu Zhan, my nephew is reckless," Jun Lin's uncle said, looking troubled.

"It is fine. My disciple has not seen the other famous swords. Taking this opportunity to see them is not a bad thing," Li Yun said, completely unbothered.

"Why must I use it? Is there a strict rule in the sparring regulations?" Lin Jiuge asked, confused.

"Heh," Sun Qianqian sneered. Don't blame her for using her status to bully the young.

Lin Jiuge tensed, ready for action. The big shots also wanted to see the "Guardian Sword," but with that posture, she had likely only learned the basics in the last month. She was still too young and inexperienced.

Lin Jiuge was unaware of the big shots' inner thoughts. She observed the group carefully, then formed a plan. First, she knocked all the non-sword-masters off the stage. The male cultivators watching couldn't bear to see it—they were all delicate beauties, and she was being far too rough!

"Is there something wrong with you people? This is my Little Junior Sister!" Zhou Yan sneered. So what if she didn't show tenderness to the fair sex?

"Besides, my Little Junior Sister is only a child."

Everyone looked at the small figure surrounded by the others. Very well, they had been so angry they had forgotten everything else!

Lin Jiuge blocked a strike, her eyes beginning to glow purple. She managed to parry the hit, but her peachwood sword shattered. Retiring to the side, she extended her left hand, and a golden, gleaming sword appeared.

"The Golden Sword!"

"A left-hander!"

"She's finally drawn her sword."

Once she held the Golden Sword, Lin Jiuge immediately entered a state of focus. Utilizing her height advantage, she maneuvered constantly. The other sword masters gradually calmed down. She was only at the fifth level of Mortal Enlightenment, yet even when they suppressed their cultivation to the sixth, they could not break through Lin Jiuge's defenses.

"We cannot go on like this," Jun Lin said, feeling anxious. They were already acting like bullies; if they lost here, they would lose both their face and their dignity.

"Something is wrong."