"Mmm… Every time I come here, there is something new on the menu, and they always taste amazing. I am going to miss this place the most when I leave the sect." Yuan said after swallowing the last bite.
Hearing Yuan's words, Min Li didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He would be the only person in the sect who would say such a word.
At the end of their meal, right as they were about to leave, Min Li's communication jade slip suddenly trembled.
Min Li expected to hear a message from her elder brother, but to her surprise, it was her father who messaged her.
"What is your progress with recruiting Disciple Yuan? We have received information that the other families have already sent people to the Dragon Essence Temple to recruit him! We cannot waste any more time!"
Although it was a simple question, Min Li didn't dare to respond so casually.
"Greetings, esteemed father. I have just spoken with Disciple Yuan, and he has agreed to come to the Min Family for a meeting."
A moment later, her father responded.
"Just a meeting? Your mission is to recruit Disciple Yuan into our family! We don't need any less than that! Min Li, you are currently the least accomplished in the family, and we have given you this chance to redeem yourself! Do whatever you must to secure him, even if you have to use your body!"
"..."
Min Li bit her lips after hearing her father's words that essentially told her to sacrifice her body in order to secure Yuan. Even though she gave Yuan the same offer previously, it still felt bitter to hear it coming from her own parents.
"If you cannot even accomplish such a simple task, then you're worthless to us! We might as well give you to the other families at that point! At least you'll be worth something at that time!"
"I understand, esteemed father… I will speak with Disciple Yuan again…" Min Li said before sending the message back.
She then looked at Yuan, who was sitting beside her with a deep frown on his face, as he'd heard everything just now.
"And here I thought I had the worst parents in the world…" Yuan mumbled in a voice of disbelief.
"What should I do now, Disciple Yuan? My parents won't accept anything less than you joining the family…" she sighed.
"Well… Any chance of me joining your family just disappeared… no offense to you…" Yuan said to her.
"I don't blame you. Hell, I would leave this family if I could, but unfortunately, I don't think I have the capabilities to ascend to the Spirit Heaven without their help." Min Li sighed.
"That's nonsense!" Yuan suddenly said, and he continued, "You won't know that unless you try!"
"Thank you, Disciple Yuan." Min Li said with a bittersweet smile on her face.
Suddenly, Min Li's communication jade slip trembled again. However, she was not the only one, as it was happening to every disciple in the sect at this moment.
"All disciples in the sect will gather at the Summit Peak in 30minutes! Don't you dare be late!" Long Yijun's voice resounded from the jade slip.
"Let's continue this talk afterward," Yuan said to her.
"Okay." She nodded.
A few moments later, Yuan wore his mask and left the Dragon Pavilion with Min Li and Meixiu.
Of course, since the Sect Master commanded all disciples to be at the gathering, this included the disciples working at the Dragon Pavilion, which meant they had to close the place down temporarily.
In fact, every single building in the Dragon Essence Temple had to close its doors temporarily for this gathering.
Half an hour later, tens of thousands of disciples gathered at the Summit Peak.
"Thank you all for coming here. Although we already had a gathering three days ago, that was done without the participants who participated in the Mystic Realm. Today, we will have another gathering in honor of those three participants who helped our Dragon Essence Temple achieve first place!"
"Core Disciple Gao, Core Disciple Xue, and last but not least, Disciple Yuan, please come to the stage!"
Long Yijun called them out.
A few moments later, three people could be seen walking onto the stage before standing next to each other in a line.
The first was Gao Dongya, a handsome young man who was renowned for his crazy cultivation talents. The second was Xue Jiye, an up-and-coming beauty who was also famous for her talents.
The third person was Yuan, who was still wearing his mask. As for his clothing, he'd changed back into his Inner Court disciples' uniform.
"Why is he wearing a mask?" The disciples were puzzled by the mask on Yuan's face.
In the presence of so many people, it was only natural for Yuan to be wearing his mask. After all, there could be other players amongst this large crowd of disciples, and it would be disastrous if he revealed his face that could potentially reveal his identity in the future.
"Today, the Dragon Essence Temple will be rewarding these three young heroes for their achievements in the Mystic Realm!"
"Core Disciple Gao and Core Disciple Xue, step forward!" Long Yijun said to them.
Gao Dongya and Xue Jiye quickly took a step forward.
Long Yijun then stood in front of them and handed each of them a golden badge.
"The Dragon Essence Temple rewards both Core Disciple Gao and Core Disciple Xue the Golden Dragon Badge for their contributions in the Mystic Realm!"
"Thank you, Sect Master."
Both Gao Dongya and Xue Jiye accepted the badges, yet the smile on their faces was completely stiff, almost like they were forcing themselves to smile.
After all, neither of them believed they deserved any reward, as they barely did anything in the Mystic Realm.
However, since they were before so many people and the Sect Master, it was impossible for them to refuse the Golden Dragon Badge, so they accepted it with bitter smiles on their faces.
In their mind, the Golden Dragon Badge that is one of the most honorable rewards in the Dragon Essence Temple was nothing more than a participation trophy for them.