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    ===


    Xie Qing took a deep breath and exhaled, releasing a cloud of steam from his mouth. He stood up from his spot and turned his head. His eyes shone brightly as he saw two charming women in front of him.


    His beautiful long hair was tied into a neat ponytail that swayed slightly in the wind. There was a gentle and caring smile on his face, and with his handsome features, he looked stunning.


    Zhang Mei was stunned for a moment, lost in her world of dreams. She was amazed by his beauty and couldn''t help but feel envious of Xu Mei.


    "You''ve made another breakthrough. As expected of my disciple, you''re still so genius!" Xu Mei said with a satisfied smile.


    "Of course. The heavens have blessed me with such a perfect Master," Xie Qing said politely with a smile, and then politely greeted Zhang Mei: "Greetings, Sect Leader Zhang."


    "Greetings..."


    Zhang Mei''s voice was slightly subdued, as she was still in shock. The speed at which Xie Qing was developing could not be exined in words. He was like an anomaly in the cultivation world, and she didn''t know whether it was a good or bad thing.


    She turned her gaze to Xu Mei and asked, "Are you going to send him to the Ancestral Cave?"


    "Of course," she confidently dered, and with a smirk, she exined, "I''ve been insisting on this from the beginning, but many elders have called for choosing disciples from the main courtyard. I got so angry that I made them shut up and ept my position. Lian Lin also insisted on my choice, so everyone agreed."


    "Hm... Lian Lin is unlucky to have such a carefree Master," Zhang Mei said with a snort, curling her lips. She looked at Xie Qing, who was standing and watching them, and suddenly asked, "Boy, don''t you want to join my sect? I''ll immediately give you a ce in the main courtyard."


    "Eh?"


    "Hm?"


    Almost simultaneously, Xu Mei and Xie Qing made a strange sound and looked at Zhang Mei. The young man was puzzled, and Xu Mei was furious.


    "Hey! I didn''t introduce him to you so that you could try to recruit him to your sect, got it?!"


    "Hmph. Naturally, I have to try. He surpasses even you in talent, so I can''t give up without trying," Zhang Mei coldly replied, and resolutely looked at Xie Qing: "My sect will support you with resources, and in the end, you can even enter some rich family as the head of the family. What do you say?"


    Xie Qing became serious upon hearing such a tempting offer. Although it all sounded very beautiful and tempting, he could not agree to these terms.


    "I''m sorry, but I don''t want to change sects," he politely declined, not crossing the line and showing that he was showing enough respect to Zhang Mei.


    "I see. It''s a shame that I couldn''t recruit you, but I won''t insist," Zhang Mei said, waving her hand. Then she asked, "But I would still like you to visit my sect once. Although I don''t want to admit it, I would like to study the cultivation technique you received."


    "...I can''t promise."


    Xie Qing shook his head and sighed. He was a little worried that Zhang Mei might be offended, but he held a firm position.


    "Hmph."


    Zhang Mei was a little disappointed, but she didn''t insist. She looked at Xu Mei, who was smirking and snorting.


    "What''s the matter? Already happy? Why is your disciple so devoted?" she said disappointedly.


    "Hehe, because he knows that he won''t find anyone more genius than his Master. So he''s all mine, old witch," Xu Mei said with a smile, proudly puffing out her chest.


    "..."


    Zhang Mei narrowed her eyes, looking at the tworge hills, and involuntarilypared them with hers... and nodded. But her face did not reflect this.


    She just shrugged and started talking to Xie Qing. She mainly asked not the most personal questions, and it was clear that she was trying to probe Xie Qing''s personality.


    In the end, she nodded satisfactorily and thought,


    "It seems that Xie Qing is an exemry cultivator. He is not naive, not too kind, not too cruel. He has a good enough foundation instilled in him, and he knows how to behave in tense situations, and with his talent, he has an open road to a good future."


    The righteous path had long been in a lull. Although some incidents made cultivators anxious, it was mostly calm.


    And this worldcked noise. Too peaceful times give birth to weak cultivators, which Zhang Mei had long been convinced of.


    The threat of devilish cultivators had passed. They were locked up on the Southern Continent, and their movements were strictly monitored. Therefore, many cultivators grew up in greenhouse conditions, which was bad for personal strength.


    The world needed either danger or a bright light. Xie Qing could act as a bright light, which would cause a wave ofpetition. Although at first, it might be a little chaotic, the whole cultivation world would enter an era of development.


    "I will wait for your achievements, Xie Qing," Zhang Mei said with the same indifferent face, but her eyes were shining.


    ***


    Day by day, the Heavenly Sword Sect developed as it should. Considering that Zhang Mei came to the sect, the disciples became excited and even trained harder, so as not to shame themselves.


    Moreover, recently, the idea of creating a list of the best disciples in both the entire sect and in certain courtyards was put forward. This list was supposed to be based on contribution and cultivation level. A schrship was given for the first three ces.


    There was also such a thing in the inner courtyard. Xie Qing looked at his rating and saw that he was in 25th ce in terms of cultivation level and 100th ce in terms of contribution, which was the lowest score. But this was because he had only recently joined the sect.


    To get contribution points, you need toplete tasks. In each courtyard, there was its own Task Pavilion for convenience, and from there, missions could already be taken.


    Xie Qing decided to take on the tasks, and in his hands was a task from a disciple of the main courtyard.


    "A person with good drawing skills is needed. That''s what I need."


    Although it was not noticeable, in his youth, Xie Qing was fond of drawing, and most often he made portraits. He mainly drew servant girls or his mother, who kept all his works in a reliable safe, guarding them as a treasure, which was a little strange for young Xie Qing.


    The task was to draw several people. It was an ordinary portrait, and such tasks were amon sight in reality.


    At the Task Pavilion, the young man received a token. It was rhombus-shaped and had a red color with an engraving of a sword surrounded by clouds. This was a one-time pass to the main courtyard.


    "Well, it''s time to go," Xie Qing thought.


    He gathered everything he needed and headed to the gates of the main courtyard, where two elders stood motionless.


    Xie Qing approached them and, after greeting them, exined.


    "Hello, elders. I need to enter the main courtyard toplete tasks," Xie Qing said, and then showed the token.


    "Hm. The token is not fake, you can enter. I warn you, don''t cause any problems there and don''t stay until evening. Agreed?"


    "All right."


    Xie Qing nodded nonchntly. He had no reason to leave a nest there, as he had no acquaintances among the disciples of the main courtyard.


    On the way to the house indicated in the task, many disciples threw curious nces at him. It was clear that disciples of the inner courtyard were not amon sight here.


    And even though, ording to the cliche, there should have been two or three arrogant young masters, no one approached him, because every disciple understood - if an inner courtyard disciple was allowed to enter here, then he had permission.


    Simple and effective logic that saved Xie Qing from any problems. He approached the house numbered No. 16.


    Knock-knock. Xie Qing knocked.


    After a few seconds, footsteps were heard behind the door, and the door opened, revealing a carelessly dressed disciple who was tiredly rubbing her eyes. She looked sleepy.


    Seeing Xie Qing at the door, dressed in the clothes of an inner courtyard disciple, she asked without opening her eyes.


    The girl looked about twenty years old. She had short ck hair and green eyes, and there was a cute freckle on her nose. Her chest was small, and her body was slender.


    "What can I help you with, younger brother?"


    "Hello, Sister Fang Lan. I came toplete the task."


    "Hm?"


    Hearing this, Fang Lan opened her eyes and then froze in shock. Her face blushed a little as she looked at Xie Qing, and her heartbeat quickened. She was stunned by his beauty.


    "O-oh... uh... this... is it about the drawing task?"


    Fang Lan was a little nervous, as it was the first time she had met someone with such an appearance.


    After they exchanged a few words, Xie Qing entered inside, and Fang Lan closed the door behind him.


    The disciples who were nearby fell silent, turning their gaze to the man who looked grim.


    "B-Brother Bai Bai..."


    The other disciples looked as if they were about to cry. They had just been discussing that Fang Lan would be Bai Bai''s woman, and then Xie Qing appeared.