77: I took on a female apprentice

The steady and serious General Bian Hu, when facing Yan Ruyu, didn't have a shred of the Aura a powerhouse should possess, and hurriedly shook his head:

"No, no, you've misunderstood..."

The Garrison Commander and the others also hurriedly tried to mediate, but in their hearts, they were truly breaking a sweat for General Bian Hu.

Daring to go against her, wasn't that like the God of Longevity hanging himself—tired of living!

Only then did Yan Ruyu put away her longsword.

Xie Ning didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He said to Bian Hu, "Thank you for your kindness, General Bian Hu, but I had already decided to go to Lingnan Academy long before the College Entrance Examination. I'm truly sorry."

"It's fine, it's fine. I was too impulsive. Haha~" General Bian Hu laughed it off.

Yan Ruyu, standing to the side, gave a barely perceptible nod.

Afterward, as the highest-ranking official in the city and one of the strongest people present, the Garrison Commander presented the Flower City rewards to Xie Ning. In addition to a reward of ten million alliance coins, there was also a Level 2 Combat Merit Medal and 500 merit pointss.

Xie Ning didn't know what merit pointss were for, but the ten million alliance coins made him very satisfied.

Now he had even more funds for evolution.

After the report was finished and he had received his rewards, Xie Ning took his leave.

"Go on. There's someone waiting for you at the entrance," the Garrison Commander said with a smile.

Filled with doubt, Xie Ning left the conference room. As he approached the gates of the Garrison Headquarters, he indeed saw an elegant man in his thirties wearing rimless glasses standing there. The Soldiers nearby paid him no mind.

The elegant man had been standing as still as a tree stump, but upon seeing Xie Ning, he smiled slightly and walked over. With just a lift of his leg, in two steps, he crossed a distance of seventeen or eighteen meters and appeared right in front of him.

Xie Ning couldn't help but take a step back, asking warily, "Who are you?"

"Don't be nervous, I mean no harm. You can think of me as someone sent from above to assist in Flower City's defense. The Flower City Garrison Commander should have mentioned it to you." As the man spoke, he showed his identification.

"Then, is there something you need?"

Instead of answering, the elegant middle-aged man asked, "Student Xie Ning, do you know why the physical bodies of almost all Gold-rank Demon Tamers are very powerful?"

"...I don't know." Xie Ning shook his head.

Initially, he thought it was just Yan Ruyu who had a powerful Physical Body. But after seeing other Gold-rank Demon Tamers yesterday, he realized that none of them were weak themselves. This was very different from the common public perception that "Demon Tamers rely on their beasts."

"Because of Ancient Martial Arts," the elegant man paused, ignoring Xie Ning's surprise, and continued, "The world generally believes that Ancient Martial Arts are just gymnastics for fitness, but this is a grave mistake."

He raised his hand and pressed it lightly against a decorative rock in the courtyard, leaving an indentation deep enough to submerge his palm. Xie Ning's eyelid twitched at the sight.

"True Ancient Martial Arts are not just about practicing external Moves. They also require powerful Mental Energy to guide Spiritual Qi for Body Tempering, thereby achieving the effect of strengthening oneself. If practiced to the extreme, splitting mountains and parting seas is no problem at all."

Hearing this, Xie Ning suddenly understood and said, "So, saying 'Ancient Martial Arts are useless' is just a fallacy concluded by ordinary people in the past?"

The elegant middle-aged man nodded, confirming his statement.

Xie Ning asked again, "But why are you telling me this?"

The elegant middle-aged man continued to explain, "In China's past, there was a term called 'Guidance,' which means guiding someone who has never cultivated onto the path of cultivation. Right now, to you, I am like that 'Guidance'."

After speaking, a booklet with a black background and gold edges appeared in the elegant man's hand. He handed it to Xie Ning. "This is a Cultivation Technique for you."

"This..."

Seeing Xie Ning's hesitation, the elegant man smiled. "Don't think too much. This Cultivation Technique is given to you for free; you don't need to pay any price. In fact, it's not just you. Any student from the College Entrance Examination in the country who has a chance of reaching the Gold Rank will be gifted a Cultivation Technique to assist in their cultivation."

Xie Ning realized the situation and took the technique. "Then, thank you very much."

After the two chatted for a few more moments, Xie Ning left the Garrison Headquarters.

Watching Xie Ning's figure as he rode the white wolf and gradually moved further away, the elegant man's brow slowly furrowed.

Why give him this specific book?

Does he have something special about him?

This book is... forget it. After all, it was that person's request. It's better not to make wild guesses.

He looked up and nodded toward the Garrison Commander's direction, then his figure gradually vanished as if he had never appeared... After Xie Ning left the Garrison Headquarters, he first went to the Monster Taming Merchant Guild to buy some Materials before returning home.

When he returned to his front door, he saw two Girls waiting outside.

One was the elegantly poised Lu Bingyun, wearing a light-colored long dress. The other, dressed simply and appearing somewhat restrained as she looked around, was Ding Qiao.

"You're both quite early," Xie Ning said with a smile.

Lu Bingyun smiled. She was still waiting for Xie Ning to treat Ice Snow's injuries, so how could she dare not come early?

Ding Qiao was also excited to see Xie Ning and quickly ran forward. She wanted to greet him, but the words that came out were different: "How is that big sister doing now?"

"Don't worry, she's fine," Xie Ning opened the door and walked inside. "Come in first."

The two followed Xie Ning into the house. They hadn't walked for long when they heard the cheerful voices of women, causing a look of surprise to appear on Lu Bingyun's face.

Seeing this, Xie Ning laughed. "Don't get the wrong idea. The Mo Family Cultivation Shop was destroyed, and they have nowhere else to rest right now, so they're staying with me for the time being."

"I see," Lu Bingyun nodded.

When they reached the hall, the Mo Sisters were already awake and eating breakfast.

"Beautiful big sister, you're finally awake!" Seeing Mo Han, Ding Qiao was overjoyed and walked forward quickly.

Mo Han first gave Xie Ning a gentle smile, then looked at the jogging Ding Qiao and said gratefully, "Yes, thank you for saving me."

"Heehee~ Not at all. It was Brother Xie Ning who saved you," Ding Qiao said with a playful smile.

Lu Bingyun noticed the tenderness in Mo Han's eyes when she looked at Xie Ning. Her heart couldn't help but skip a beat—not for herself, but out of concern for Lan Yu.

After they chatted for a while, Mo Han pulled a bashful Mo Yu over under the puzzled gazes of the others.

Mo Yu looked at Mo Han with embarrassment but was met with a glare from her sister. Helplessly, under everyone's gaze, she fell to her knees with a 'thud'.

"What are you doing?!" Xie Ning was startled and quickly took a step back, then hurried forward to help Mo Yu up, but she refused to rise.

Helpless, Xie Ning looked at Mo Han.

Lu Bingyun and Ding Qiao also watched with surprised faces, not understanding what was going on.

Mo Han looked at Xie Ning and said, "I want Xiao Yu to take you as her Master."

"Take you as a Master? You're joking! We're both Intermediate rank. Besides, who has their own younger sister take someone else as a Master!" Xie Ning frowned and spoke loudly.

"It's true that such a thing hasn't been heard of since ancient times, but look, we're setting a precedent," Mo Han said with a soft smile.

"Why?" Xie Ning asked.

"Because I have to leave," Mo Han said, her tone sounding a bit downcast, but she quickly composed herself. "Next, I have to go to the Mili Country, and it's not convenient to take Xiao Yu with me."

Mo Han stroked Mo Yu's head. "She has her own studies to complete, so I can't take her along. I want to entrust her to your care for a while."

"But there's no need for a formal apprenticeship..." Xie Ning said with a wry smile.

To his surprise, Mo Han looked solemn. "It is necessary. Only after an apprenticeship can she learn cultivation knowledge from you."

Cultivation isn't just talk on paper. Every Breeder needs to go through a vast amount of learning and research to grow.

Her own breeding skills were partly inherited from her family and partly self-taught. Only she knew the hardships involved, so she didn't want Mo Yu to suffer the same way.

Another point was that these hardships made her respect knowledge even more; she hoped the breeding knowledge Mo Yu learned would be through proper and upright channels.

Now that there was a Breeder in front of her who was not inferior to her and was also reliable, she naturally didn't want to miss this opportunity.

"Don't worry, I won't let you teach her for nothing. Here is 4.2 million, including the 1.5 million you gave me. Consider it the fee for the period you'll be teaching Xiao Yu."

Facing Mo Han's persistence, Xie Ning was first stunned, then his expression became serious.

Ding Qiao and Lu Bingyun watched quietly.

Mo Han looked anxious but determined, while Mo Yu looked up, blinking her large eyes, curiously waiting for the result.

After a few seconds, the corners of Xie Ning's mouth curled up, and he said, "Then for now, I'll accept."

Mo Han let out a long breath, her serious expression relaxing slightly, a faint smile on her face.

"Ma... Master... Hehe, this title is so strange." After Mo Yu spoke, she stuck out her tongue with a playful look.

Xie Ning quickly helped her up, completing the simplest form of a Master-disciple ceremony.