Zi Changhe started making the introductions, "Shaoyun, this is my master, Liu Xinji."
Xiang Shaoyun saluted Liu Xinji. "Greetings, Lord Liu."
Zi Changhe once wanted to accept Xiang Shaoyun as a disciple on behalf of his master. But he subsequently realized that Xiang Shaoyun had no such plans at all. Moreover, he had realized Xiang Shaoyun's extraordinary origin. Since then, he never mentioned the matter of taking Xiang Shaoyun as his master's disciple.
Liu Xinji had heard Zi Changhe speak of Xiang Shaoyun before, and now that he saw how talented Xiang Shaoyun was with his cultivation level of seventh-stage Transformation Realm, he thought gleefully, This talent of his is already comparable to the geniuses within the pavilion. He will definitely bring me glory if I can make him my disciple.
None of his excitement was shown on his face as he said indifferently, "Xiang Shaoyun? How did you end up here with Elder Long Hui?"
Xiang Shaoyun shrugged and said, "That was something unexpected for me as well. We are distant relatives, which is why he decided to bring me here."
Liu Xinji's heart thumped when he heard that, realizing that his plan might not come to fruition after all.
"I see. So Elder Long must have accepted you as his disciple then?" Liu Xinji asked.
Xiang Shaoyun answered, "He said that I am not qualified for that. The only thing I can be is his follower."
What? A seventh-stage Transformation Realm cultivator is not qualified to be his disciple? What bullshit is that? Even Zhuo Yi is only at the seventh-stage! Liu Xinji cursed inwardly before he looked at Xiang Shaoyun and offered, "How about this. Become my disciple. In any case, you and Changhe have been self-proclaimed apprentice brothers for a while. Our fate is already joined together. I believe Elder Long will not mind."
He had not personally come to see Xiang Shaoyun just for the sake of Zi Changhe. Rather, he had heard that, the day before, Xiang Shaoyun had beaten Wen Jinrui and Wang Jiaohua to the point they did not even dare to fight back. He also heard that the Zither Empress's disciple, Gong Qinyin, was also somewhat related to this Xiang Shaoyun. That was why he had decided to come meet this young man.
Whatever the reason, he was saying the truth when he offered to accept Xiang Shaoyun as his disciple. Xiang Shaoyun could sense his sincerity, but he had no intention of agreeing. He had no need of a master. After all, he was one who had rejected even the Saber Emperor Du Xuanhao. How would he agree to be the disciple of a King?
Nevertheless, Xiang Shaoyun still showed a grateful look as he replied, "Thank you for the offer, Lord Liu. But I think it is better if I let Elder Long decide on this."
"Sure. I'll go talk to Elder Long right away. I doubt he will mind," said Liu Xinji before leaving to find Long Hui.
Xiang Shaoyun was thus left alone with Zi Changhe.
"Nice one, kid. If you were still alive, why didn't you return to the Martial Hall Palace? Everyone was so worried over you!" rebuked Zi Changhe.
Xiang Shaoyun smiled helplessly. "It's not like I have any choices." He paused for a bit and added, "Is Elder Zhen Peng doing well?"
"He's doing well. Right now, he is focusing on cultivation and trying to grow even stronger. But he will frequently think about you. If you have the chance, try to pay him a visit," said Zi Changhe.
Xiang Shaoyun nodded. "When I have the time, I'll visit him."
"You are already at the Cloud Margin Pavilion, and with your talent, you will have great accomplishments here. But you have attracted huge trouble so soon after you arrived. That trouble is quite thorny to deal with," said Zi Changhe.
"You're talking about what happened yesterday?" Xiang Shaoyun asked.
"Yes. You probably don't know this. Although the Cloud Margin Pavilion is a massive academy of a city, there is an entire world within the pavilion acting as a stage for the battles between the young disciples. They would compete against each other to secure status and resources in the pavilion, and the two you had beaten yesterday were members of the Lightning Alliance, the strongest faction of the pavilion's younger generation," said Zi Changhe solemnly.
He proceeded to explain the power structure of the younger generation in the Cloud Margin Pavilion. It did not take Xiang Shaoyun long to understand that Zi Changhe was worried that the Lightning Alliance would come looking for trouble.
One noteworthy information he gained was that the older generation was prohibited from interfering in the competition between the members of the younger generation. The entire thing was akin to a selection process where the fittest advanced while the weak was eliminated.
"I'll face whatever they throw at me when the time comes. I have nothing to fear," said Xiang Shaoyun calmly.
Zi Changhe warned, "You still don't understand how powerful the Lightning Alliance is. Their leader, the Lightning Kid, is Young Lightning King's cousin. He is already a ninth-stage Transformation Realm cultivator, and it is also rumored that he is already strong enough to battle Kings and is nearly undefeated among his generation. Under him are two vice alliance leaders and four guardians, each of them possessing extraordinary combat prowess as well. Not even the Transformation Realm experts of the older generation are necessarily a match for them. Any one of them will be enough to cause you great trouble!"
"Senior brother, don't talk about those boring topics and ruin the mood of our reunion. Look, why don't you tell me about the good cultivation spots in the pavilion instead?" Xiang Shaoyun shifted the topic.
When Zi Changhe saw how little Xiang Shaoyun cared, he stopped harping on the topic and started telling Xiang Shaoyun more about the Cloud Margin Pavilion instead. He himself hadn't been here for long. Thus, he only knew the more widely available information. But what he knew was enough for the current Xiang Shaoyun.
In the Cloud Margin Pavilion, the best cultivation spot was a place called Cloud Pavilion. The Cloud Pavilion was built on the tallest peak in the area, and it was 49 stories high. It almost reached the sky and was the building nearest to the stars in the Cloud Margin Pavilion.
There, an Emperor had erected a large-scale formation capable of drawing in astral energy from the stars, allowing those cultivating inside to grow quickly. It was a dream cultivation spot for many disciples.
However, there were restrictions in place for entering the pavilion. One required contribution points that were similar in concept to Martial Hall Palace's point system. With contribution points, one would be able to buy time within the pavilion.
A large number of contribution points were required to cultivate there, and many disciples could only afford to cultivate a few days in the pavilion after accumulating points for more than half a year. Even if it was only a few days, one should never look down on it. The short few days benefited the disciples greatly.
One reason for that was because, in addition to faster cultivation speed, the pavilion also contained the comprehension of Kings. It was rumored that those capable of reaching the 49th floor would even be able to take a lesson from an Emperor, which was something many disciples longed for.
Of course, apart from the Cloud Pavilion, on the 15th day of each month, lessons would be conducted by King Realm elders at the pavilion's training grounds. Other avenues of cultivation also included accepting missions from the Mission Pavilion to temper oneself and training in Limit Rooms.
All these were cultivation resources not available anywhere else but in the Cloud Margin Pavilion.
Xiang Shaoyun's interest was piqued when he heard about the Cloud Pavilion and the Limit Rooms. As for the others, he did not care much for them.
Contribution points are needed for the Cloud Pavilion, whereas anyone can enter the Limit Rooms. But I'm afraid I'll attract too much attention challenging the Limit Rooms, Xiang Shaoyun pondered.
"Just stay here and cultivate obediently for a few years. With your talent, becoming a King is no problem at all," encouraged Zi Changhe.
Before Xiang Shaoyun could reply, someone radiating aggression arrived and interrupted their talk.