Chapter 529: What? A New Little Junior Sister?

Since Conch was just a young girl, he did not think it was appropriate to maintain a stern expression. Therefore, he mustered up what he thought was an acceptable smile.

Conch walked up to Mingshi Yin and said, “Greetings, Fourth Senior Brother.”

“Little Junior Sister, you must work hard in your cultivation. If you want to slash your lotus, you can look for me,” Mingshi Yin said with a smile.

“...” Conch immediately turned toward Zhao Yue and said, “Greetings, Fifth Senior Sister.”

Zhao Yue said, “I’ve only learned about this today so I didn’t have the time to get you a welcome present. I’ll get you a present in the future.”

“Thank you, senior sister.”

Conch went up to Zhu Honggong. “Greetings, Eighth Senior Brother.”

“You’re very polite, Little Junior Sister,” Zhu Honggong replied.

At last, Conch finally stood in front of Little Yuan’er.

Before Conch spoke, Little Yuan’er said, “From this day on, you’re my little junior sister... I’ll protect you.”

“Thank you, Ninth Senior Sister. You’re very nice,” Conch replied.

Shortly after, Conch greeted the four elders.

Lu Zhou nodded, pleased.

After the ceremony, Conch was officially a member of the Evil Sky Pavilion.

“Old Fourth, notify Old Seventh about this...”

“Yes, master.”

Fellow disciples should know about each other’s existence.

Lu Zhou continued, “The second matter I have to announce is that I’ll be cultivating in seclusion for five months. Throughout these five months, no Evil Sky Pavilion disciple is to venture out without due cause.”

The others looked confused. The pavilion master was already at the Nine-leaf stage, why would he need to cultivate in seclusion? Constant improvement? Yes, that must have been why. The pavilion master was constantly trying to improve himself.

“Yes, Pavilion Master.”

“Yes, master.”

Everyone bowed.

Lu Zhou stroked his beard and nodded. “The disciples will stay back. The others may leave.”

Apart from Lu Zhou’s disciples, the others left the Evil Sky Pavilion’s great hall.

Lu Zhou walked up the steps. He swept his gaze across his disciples and said, “All of you should work hard and cultivate while I’m in seclusion.”

“Yes, master.”

Naturally, this simple instruction was not enough. A strict teacher would produce fine students. In that case, he would need to have strict requirements of them.

“When I’m out of my seclusion, I’ll judge your cultivation bases. If I see that you’re slacking off, you’ll be severely punished.”

His disciples shuddered. The fear they once felt while being physically abused seemed to have returned to them! They kept their heads lowered and dared not move.

Lu Zhou said, “Conch is new here. All of you should guide her.”

Thud!

Zhu Honggong suddenly fell to his knees. His forehead touched the ground as he said, “Don’t worry, master, I’ll work hard and cultivate... Little Junior Sister is new to all this. As her senior, I’ll surely help her. You can rest assured, master!”

The other disciples were rendered speechless by this display.

Although Old Eighth was shameless, his antics were needed at such crucial moments.

Lu Zhou nodded and said, “Very well.”

“Master, why did you suddenly decide to cultivate in seclusion?” Zhu Honggong asked.

The others looked at Lu Zhou; they were curious as well.

Lu Zhou said, “Do I have to explain all my decisions to you from now on?”

Zhu Honggong immediately kowtowed. “I dare not, master! I was wrong!” He raised his hand and decisively slapped himself. The sound of the slap was loud and crisp.

The other disciples were still speechless.

“Bring me the Formation veins copied from the red coffin.”

“At once.”

Lu Zhou stood up and said, “If there’s nothing else, you’re dismissed.”

“Rest well, master.” The disciples bowed.

Lu Zhou did not return to the eastern pavilion this time. Instead, he went to the hidden chamber.

When he entered the hidden chamber, he surveyed it.

After the refurbishment, the hidden chamber was restored to its original appearance. Compared to before, it seemed sturdier now.

Lu Zhou walked up to the rush cushion and sat with his legs crossed.

Shortly after, Duanmu Sheng sent the Formation veins copied from the coffin over. Then, he left respectfully.

Lu Zhou spread the print out and examined it. “As I expected, it’s exactly the same as the ones on the armor.”

It was possible for these Formation veins to be purely drawn. Copying them by scrubbing in this manner was one of the ways. However, it would be extremely difficult to operate these many Formation veins. The precision of control over Primal Qi required for this would exceed what Eight-leaf elites were capable of.

“Why did this person come here?”

He remembered the advice on the last pages of the secret tome and sighed softly. Was the Nine-leaf stage unattainable? Until now, he was not certain.

Whether it was severing the lotus or the problem with the Golden Lotus he observed from Yun Tianluo’s experience, he could not be completely certain that the Nine-leaf stage existed. After all, he was not a real Nine-leaf cultivator.

Lu Zhou shook his head to clear away the distracting thoughts. It was useless to think about these things at the moment. He decided that it was more useful to meditate on the Heavenly Writing scrolls.

Lu Zhou called up the Heavenly Writing interface.

Then, he flipped his palm. “Upgrade Card.”

He looked at the System Upgrade Card and thought, ‘The Heavenly Writing scrolls won’t be closed, right?’

“Use.” He gave the order in his mind.

The upgrade card dissolved into spots of starlight and scattered on his body. They vanished in just a blink of an eye.

At this moment, Lu Zhou noticed that apart from the Heavenly Writing’s interface that was still active, the other interfaces were now gray.

A progress bar appeared at the side. It read: Increasing permission.

Finally, it was time to meditate on the Heavenly Writing scrolls.

He was confronted with messy runes. The first impression he had was that he could not understand them. They could not understand each other. Perhaps, it was due to his experience with the Human Scrolls, he merely took a deep breath before he memorized the runes regardless if he understood them or not. All he had to do was act as though he understood them.

A moment later, Lu Zhou entered a state that he could not explain. Just like the first time he meditated on the Human Scroll, his consciousness entered a void space. There were no sounds or sensations. Everything seemed to have frozen over. Before he knew it, his eyes were shut. Under this mystical state, blue spots of starlight appeared on his body.

...

The General’s Mansion in Liang Province.

Si Wuya brought the sheets of information he gathered from various places and walked into the hall. He seemed to be in a good mood.

Yu Zhenghai noticed Si Wuya’s expression and asked, “You look happy, wise brother. Do you bring good news?”

“Indeed, I do,” Si Wuya said, “The first good news is that the Taixu Academy’s Patriarch, Lin Xin, has been killed by Third Senior Brother with a single strike. It’s currently the hottest news in the cultivation world.”

“Is Third Junior Brother that bold and powerful?” Yu Zhenghai was slightly shocked.

Si Wuya told him about how the Crown Prince, Liu Zhi, had colluded with Lin Xin. Then, he offered his analysis by saying, “Master has broken the barriers of the Taixu Academy and Hengqu branch. That’s a good thing for the Nether Sect.”

Yu Zhenghai nodded. “You’ve got a point.”

“The third good news is... We have another Little Junior Sister now,” Si Wuya said.

Yu Zhenghai was taken aback. He said skeptically, “Another Little Junior Sister?”

“I didn’t believe it at first, but I had no choice but to believe what’s written in Fourth Senior Brother’s letter...” Si Wuya presented the letter to Yu Zhenghai and continued to say, “We don’t know this new Little Junior Sister’s real name. She’s going by the name Conch for now. She’s talented in tune, knows the tongue of the beasts, and most importantly, she directly advanced into the Mystic Enlightening realm. Five of her apertures are already connected, and she can easily condense Qi into energy... Eldest Senior Brother, don’t give me that look. That’s right, she’s the young lady on the heaven worship platform.”

“...” Yu Zhenghai was inwardly shocked by such a talented person. He sat down and read the letter before he said, “Does he have the energy to accept another disciple at his age?”

Si Wuya spread his arms and said, “Master has already attained the Nine-leaf stage. Perhaps, his life has been extended. Moreover, Old Fourth mentioned that master has ordered his disciples to work hard on their cultivation, and they’re not allowed to leave the Evil Sky Pavilion without due cause.”

Yu Zhenghai shuddered as though he had just recalled some unpleasant memories. “Heh, he likes to act like a teacher as he aged. Just as well... He’s a Nine-leaf cultivator, after all. Anything he says, goes. Conch... I hope that she’s as likable as Ninth Junior Sister.”

...

“Ding! Disciplined Yu Zhenghai. Reward: 200 merit points.”

Lu Zhou was in a state of chaos. He did not seem to have heard this notification, and it did not affect his meditation.

...

Si Wuya shook his head and said, “However, I can’t help but feel that the little girl is strange.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Not only is she gifted in tunes, but she also directly advanced into the Mystic Enlightening realm without cultivating. Do you believe it, Eldest Senior Brother?” Si Wuya asked.

“Indeed, it seems strange. What are your thoughts, wise brother?”

“I remember that when I returned to the Evil Sky Pavilion, I went into master’s room once... There was a poem hanging on the wall. The bright moon shines over the sea; from far away we share this moment together.” Si Wuya beckoned a nearby subordinate over. “Bring me the four treasures of the study.”

The items were delivered shortly after.

Si Wuya picked up the brush and wrote the words on the paper. Then, he listed the names of his fellow disciples beside them.

“Eldest Senior Brother, take a look at this.”