Lu Yi stepped out the door and saw Donggong Mingyue, dressed in a purple long dress, standing outside. She was rocking on her heels and craning her neck, looking around idly.


    Seeing Lu Yi come out, Donggong Mingyue broke into a cheerful smile and said, "Junior Brother, you’re finally out. Senior Sister Ningshuang has left seclusion. Let’s go see her first and then head to the Trial Tower together."


    "Senior Sister Liu Ningshuang is out of seclusion?" Lu Yi asked in surprise.


    "Yes, the Peak Master just informed me. She also said you should meet with Senior Sister Ningshuang."


    Lu Yi: "…"


    ''Why didn’t the Peak Master just tell me directly? Is it because I’ve been focused on cultivation lately?''


    Despite his thoughts, the idea of meeting Liu Ningshuang left Lu Yi slightly expectant. If he could quickly raise her favorability toward him and make her fall in love with him, the rewards would be incredible.


    Lu Yi snapped back to reality and smiled. "Alright, let’s go then."


    Donggong Mingyue nodded, and the two headed toward Liu Ningshuang’s cave dwelling.


    Liu Ningshuang’s cave dwelling wasn’t far from theirs. After a short walk, they arrived outside her residence.


    Donggong Mingyue called out at the door, "Senior Sister Ningshuang! The Peak Master asked us to call you for the Trial Tower test."


    Soon, the stone door of the cave opened, and a familiar cold and elegant figure appeared.


    Liu Ningshuang wore a white dress, exuding an icy aura. She still looked as unapproachable as ever.


    Donggong Mingyue skipped over cheerfully and said, "Senior Sister Ningshuang, you’re finally out!"


    Liu Ningshuang nodded slightly. Her cold face softened a little when facing Donggong Mingyue. "Mm."


    Then, she looked up at Lu Yi with a trace of curiosity on her face. "Junior Brother Lu? Why are you here?"


    Donggong Mingyue smiled and explained, "Senior Sister Ningshuang, Junior Brother joined Ling Luo Peak after the competition and has already been accepted as the Peak Master’s registered disciple."


    Lu Yi also nodded with a smile. "Senior Sister Liu, it’s been a while."


    Hearing this, Liu Ningshuang showed a hint of surprise. She looked at Lu Yi and, for the first time, a faint smile appeared on her cold face. "Junior Brother Lu, you really surprised me. I thought you might join Ling Luo Peak, but I didn’t expect you to become the Peak Master’s registered disciple."


    Lu Yi chuckled. "I have to thank Senior Sister Liu for your guidance last time and that bottle of top-grade Qi Condensation Pills. Without them, my strength wouldn’t have improved so quickly."


    Liu Ningshuang shook her head. "It’s because Junior Brother Lu is talented. I only played a minor supporting role."


    Lu Yi smiled. "Regardless, I will always remember Senior Sister’s kindness."


    Donggong Mingyue, standing to the side, scratched her head and said, "Senior Sister Ningshuang, Junior Brother, what’s the point of complimenting each other? Let’s go quickly! At the end of the month, the Trial Tower gets crowded. If we don’t hurry, we’ll have to wait a long time."If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Liu Ningshuang and Lu Yi exchanged a smile. Liu Ningshuang then said, "Let’s head out."


    She waved her hand, and a white jade boat appeared in front of them. It was a flying artifact.


    Lu Yi wasn’t surprised that Liu Ningshuang had a flying artifact. After all, she was one of the top geniuses on the Eastern Region’s Heavenly Pride Ranking. Among the younger generation in Green Province, she was practically unmatched.


    Moreover, with Ling Luo Peak’s Master as her teacher, getting a flying artifact was naturally easy.


    The jade boat was more than 20 meters long, spacious enough for the three of them.


    The trio boarded the jade boat, which lifted off and streaked across the sky toward the Trial Tower at the center of White Cloud City.


    The jade boat soon arrived at the Trial Tower area.


    The towering Trial Tower stood on a vast square. Surrounding it were four stone monuments, each engraved with golden letters at the top.


    They read: Qi Refining Trial Rankings, Foundation Establishment Trial Rankings, Golden Core Trial Rankings, and Nascent Soul Trial Rankings.


    The rankings displayed names alongside the floors they had reached in the tower.


    These were details Elder Dugu Fang had explained to them when they first joined.


    Disciples who made it onto the rankings received preferential resource allocations.


    After all, the sect’s resources weren’t infinite. Naturally, more resources were given to talented disciples.


    Back then, Elder Dugu Fang had advised them to do their best during the Trial Tower tests to secure more resources.


    However, this no longer concerned Lu Yi.


    As the Peak Master’s registered disciple, he wouldn’t lack resources.


    At this moment, the square was bustling with two to three thousand people, with even more flying in from all directions.


    The inner sect had tens of thousands of disciples, and most preferred testing at the end of the month.


    Although there was no mandatory time for the tests, resources were a major concern. Even a little more cultivation time could mean climbing one more floor in the Trial Tower. Thus, most disciples postponed their tests until the last day.


    When Liu Ningshuang’s jade boat appeared, almost everyone turned to look.


    "It’s Senior Sister Liu Ningshuang’s white jade boat! She’s here."


    "Sigh, I feel bad for the other core disciples. With Senior Sister Liu around, they’ll never be first."


    "Yeah, Senior Sister Liu is ranked among the top on the Eastern Region’s Heavenly Pride Ranking. The gap is too big. Good thing I’m not a core disciple, or I’d feel hopeless."


    "Hah! Don’t flatter yourself. Even if you wanted to be a core disciple, which elder or Peak Master would take you?"


    "That’s Junior Sister Donggong, right? I wonder when the Peak Master will formally accept her as a disciple?"


    "Should be soon. Junior Sister Donggong has a natural spirit body, just like Senior Sister Liu. Her talent is extraordinary."


    "Wait… who’s that guy?"


    "What?! No way! There’s a man on Senior Sister Liu’s jade boat? My heart is broken!"


    As the jade boat descended, the crowd erupted into chatter upon seeing Lu Yi. Many looked shocked and incredulous.


    Among the crowd, Nangong Moyu stood beside a strong, handsome man in white robes. The man stared at Lu Yi with a stiff expression before asking, "Brother Nangong, who is that guy?"


    Nangong Moyu glanced at him and smiled. "Brother Wang, don’t you know? That’s our Ling Luo Peak’s new junior disciple, Lu Yi. He’s extraordinarily talented, especially in comprehension. He’s already a registered disciple of the Peak Master."


    Hearing this, Wang Tianzun looked at Lu Yi in disbelief. "The Peak Master’s registered disciple? Does he really have such talent?"


    "Looks like you haven’t been paying attention," Nangong Moyu said with a chuckle. "Junior Brother Lu mastered Sword Intent at the Qi Refining Stage and learned a Qi Refining spell in just two minutes. What do you think of that talent?"


    Wang Tianzun fell silent.


    Nangong Moyu gave him a strange look and added, "Brother Wang, don’t tell me you have feelings for Senior Sister Liu? Take my advice—give up. Senior Sister Liu is like the sun in the sky. People like us shouldn’t even dream about it."


    Wang Tianzun snorted and retorted, "Haven’t you heard? Sincerity can move even the hardest hearts!"


    Nangong Moyu shook his head and said no more.


    Meanwhile, the disciples who learned about Lu Yi’s background looked at him with a mix of awe and curiosity.


    "So, he’s the Peak Master’s disciple!"


    "Wow… his talent must be terrifying."


    Some beautiful female disciples also took note.


    "He’s so handsome! And his talent matches his looks."


    "Hehe, I wonder if he already has a Dao companion?"


    "Let’s see how many floors he can clear in the Trial Tower. With his talent, he might make it into the top ten of the Qi Refining rankings!"