The Supreme Beauty Fell in Love with Me

The short and stout old man, Wei Zhuang, counted his plump fingers and said, "The Second Elder is your second master, the Third Elder is your third master... the Sixth Elder is your sixth master, and the Seventh Elder is your seventh master."

Lin Chuan chuckled to himself. These people really thought of accepting him as their disciple. Haha, he'd truly fallen into a hornet's nest. What sort of people were these?

In this cruel world of hell, a short and stout elder with the lowest cultivation among a group of people had managed, due to his age, to become the Grand Elder, and he even wanted to take on a disciple whose realm was higher than his own. Speaking of which, it did seem quite crazy.

Lin Chuan said, "Kill me, or let me go."

His voice was calm, indifferent, carrying a hint of resolve and obstinacy. Though Lin Chuan was a simple-minded person, he was also very stubborn. One might say Lin Chuan himself was a contradiction, flexible yet headstrong, straightforward but occasionally violent.

Wei Zhuang widened his eyes and said, "You can't leave, and you can't die. Your only choice is to become our disciple. Moreover, being our disciple doesn't put you at a disadvantage. Do you know who I am? Go ask around in the cultivation world; who doesn't know the name Wei Zhuang? I am among the few King Rank Alchemists in the cultivation world, just one step away from breaking through to the Dao Rank Alchemist level."

"I, the Ghost Hand Eagle, am not someone insignificant either. You won't be at a loss as my disciple."

The hawk-nosed Second Elder strode in.

Behind him followed several other elders.

The Sect Master walked at the very end.

"Lin Chuan, you can follow me. I'm a Talisman Cultivator. Once you're with me, if anyone bullies you, I'll hand you a pile of talismans to blast them to bits," said the Third Elder, Ouyang Rui.

"Old Three, step aside. I, Old Si, haven't spoken yet. This lad is going to practice swordsmanship with me," the Fourth Elder, Sun Kuiyang, coldly hummed.

"Lin Chuan, come with me. I practice Body Cultivation, and I'll teach you to cultivate your body, okay," the Fifth Elder said flatteringly, his gentle voice not matching his vigorous physique.

"Don't fight, don't fight. Lin Chuan, learn Artifact Refining with me. It's way better than those other hodgepodge skills. If anyone bullies you, I'll give you a pile of artifacts; just throw them to self-destruct and blast your opponent to death."

The Sixth Elder, Mu Chen, stroked his beard leisurely: "Besides Artifact Refining, I can also teach you how to kill, invisibly. Are you willing?"

As he spoke, a dense aura of blood erupted from the Sixth Elder, Mu Chen, a bloody wave covering the sky and obscuring the waning sunset in the west.

"They are not meant to guide you. You should walk a true path, follow me, and devote yourself fully to comprehending the Dao. In a hundred years, you will transform into a different person," the youngest Seventh Elder spoke.

Different from the other six and the Sect Master, the Seventh Elder was the only one among them who wasn't an old man.

He appeared about fifty, with an ordinary face and an unremarkable voice, the kind easily forgotten by others. If he hadn't spoken himself, Lin Chuan might have completely ignored him.

"Young friend, I am their Sect Master. I can teach you anything, so perhaps you should choose me as your master," the last to speak was the Sect Master, Feng Yuan.

Lin Chuan looked surprised. This scene was a bit too shocking.

He gaped, astonished at the people in front of him, wondering how he suddenly became so popular.

"Esteemed seniors..." Lin Chuan said, forcing himself to speak, "Isn't this the Puppet Sect? Why is no one offering to teach me about puppetry..."

Before he could finish, with a wave of the Sect Master's sleeve, an antique bamboo slip was already in Lin Chuan's hand: "Hmm, this is the secret of the Puppet Sect and its only legacy. Now it's yours."

Holding the bamboo slip, Lin Chuan felt like he was cradling a hot potato.

His mind short-circuited; he couldn't discern what kind of situation this was.

Seeing his confusion, the Sect Master, Feng Yuan, said, "This was once the abandoned mountain gate of Sky Sword Mountain, but we did not usurp it. This place was originally the sect gate of the Puppet Sect a thousand years ago."

"However, the Puppet Sect encountered a catastrophe and fell overnight, putting the sect in peril. At that time, we were disciples of the Puppet Sect, but as the sect declined, we each went our separate ways."

Feng Yuan revealed the secret from back then: "Back then, hundreds of disciples within our sect vowed that as long as we lived, we would return to the Puppet Sect a thousand years later to rebuild the sect. And two hundred years ago, when the time came, I impatiently rushed to this place. Now only the eight of us remain from the disciples who once escaped, so we drove out the ones from 'Sky Sword Mountain' occupying this place and took over."

Lin Chuan was stunned as he listened to Feng Yuan explain the past events, finding it all too unbelievable.

A millennial promise, and at the time of its fulfillment, only eight returned. Had the others forgotten the Puppet Sect or already perished?

He was full of questions as he held the bamboo slip, feeling an inexplicable sense of responsibility.

"The eight of us have been cultivating diligently, all with the hope of one day rebuilding the Puppet Sect. However, despite us old folks being here for a century, we've managed to recruit only five disciples,"

Feng Yuan sighed deeply: "Although our cultivation levels are not insignificant, the sect's financial problems are indeed challenging to resolve, so this place has remained desolate as it is now. Still, due to our strength, no nearby forces dare to provoke us."

The other seven nodded in agreement.

Bright sparkles twinkled in Lin Chuan's eyes as he tentatively said, "You have Alchemists, Artifact Refiners, and Talisman creators. If you casually find an auction house to sell a pill, a talisman, or a weapon, perhaps it won't exchange for much Spirit Stone, but the sect wouldn't be as rundown as it is now."

"Damn it, I casually refine a pill and it's King Rank at the very least, how could I sell it? That's an insult to the Alchemy Dao."

"Hmph, even if my talisman is just stuck on the wall as a decoration, I wouldn't sell it. That's an insult to the talisman Dao."

"The artifacts I refine, regardless of their quality, all have souls. They can't be measured with money."

The three voices almost sounded at the same time, making Lin Chuan shiver immediately, thinking to himself that this group of people is really stubborn and obstinate.

"Ladies and gentlemen, your thinking is a bit too conservative, isn't it? Do you refine pills, talismans, and artifacts just for decoration?" Lin Chuan noticed that these people wouldn't do anything to him, so he relaxed.

If they wanted to kill him, they would have done so when he was unconscious earlier, rather than wait until now.

"You don't know squat. Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand," Wei Zhuang said calmly.

Lin Chuan frowned and asked, "Then how have you all lived these years?"

"What do you mean?" Wei Zhuang asked.

"You need Spirit Stones and pills for cultivation, don't you? You're all broke, so how do you cultivate?" Lin Chuan said.

"In our former sects, we were elder-level figures, and the cultivation resources were naturally provided by them. However, we have dignity, holding the title of elder, we can use their cultivation resources, but the money to build the sect, we have to earn ourselves and can't ask for it from others."

The Second Elder said solemnly.

Lin Chuan was speechless, knocked his own forehead twice, and thought, "What a bunch of stubborn old fools, these eight people are like eight marvels taking on the world. I've seen stubborn, but never so much stubbornness gathered together."

"Join the Puppet Sect, and then choose one of us eight to be your mentor," Feng Yuan said lightly.

Upon hearing this, Lin Chuan hurriedly shook his head like a rattle, "No, no, my dear seniors, shouldn't you first ask if I have a sect or a family or something?"

"If your sect doesn't agree to you joining us, I can wipe them out," Feng Yuan's tone was still as intangible as smoke, ethereal, clearly right in front of you, but the voice seemed to come from far away.

"That's right, the Sect Master is correct."

"I agree,"

"That's settled then."

The other few also emphatically nodded their heads, echoing Feng Yuan.

Lin Chuan only felt his scalp go numb, and goosebumps formed all over. He really hadn't experienced this kind of situation before. He had seen domineering people, but never this domineering.

"Now you are at the third layer of Refining God, already considered to have entered the ranks of masters. We won't force you to join, but I still hope you can consider it seriously."

Feng Yuan smiled faintly, and said, "You can move freely, we won't restrict your freedom, but you'd better not try to escape, because no matter where you run, we'll catch you back."

Lin Chuan smiled wryly, "Don't worry, I won't run. Even if I want to run, I'd have to be able to."

Everyone nodded satisfactorily and left one after another.

"Sigh, that boy Lin Chuan has good potential. And at such a young age, he's already comprehended the blood kill path, he has great potential for future development." After leaving Lin Chuan's hut, Feng Yuan murmured to himself.

Wei Zhuang also nodded, "He has the 'Heavenly Jade Bone' and his skeleton has already become jade-like, just with this, it's only a matter of time before he comprehends the ultimate path. Keeping this boy, we may not hope to understand the ultimate path ourselves, but if we train a disciple who becomes incredibly formidable, we'll have some face."

The other few nodded in agreement.

They spoke openly, yet Lin Chuan did not hear a single word.

...

The stars decorated the sky as the sun set and the moon rose.

The night deepened. During dinner, Wei Zhuang brought Lin Chuan his meal and spoke of many things.

From Wei Zhuang, Lin Chuan learned the names of the five disciples in the Puppet Sect. The chubby one was Wei Zhuang's grandson, named Wei Yanhong. The three female cultivators were named Shui Qing, Mu Jing, and Feng Rong'er.

As for the tall and skinny man, his name was quite unique, called "Gao Shou," he was originally an orphan and was picked up by the Third Elder at the foot of the mountain years ago and joined the Puppet Sect.

[PS: There was an issue with the updates before today for the two chapters, thanks for pointing it out. It's now fixed. If you can't see it, please delete the book and re-add it to the bookshelf, and you will definitely be able to see it.]