Staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling, Varian slowly sat up on his bed. A little strained he shook his head to get a grip and calm down.
-[Ah, you're up?]-
"Hmm"
[It's weird hearing my own voice in my head.]
-[Deal with it. Just hurry up and get the books, we don't know when you'll have to fight again.]-
"Alright, just shut up already. Ugh, there's already a lot of things that I have to do, don't rush me."
There was a slight scowl on Varian's face while he spoke. He was oddly irritated for some reason.
After cleaning himself up and wrapping the wound he got from his fight, he went straight outside towards the library. He received the same message from the librarian, allowing him four hours of time to flip throu books.
Despite coming so early he wasn't the only one inside the library at this time. There were a number of different colored robed disciples inside the library frantically searching for either cultivation techniques or martial techniques that suited them.
Paying no mind to them Varian went straight towards the place he was the day before and started flipping through body cultivation methods, while also occasionally flipping through some movement techniques.
[If I'm gonna have to fight I have to know when to run away too. At least that's if I'm not sure if I can win...]
-[These are pretty good, Black Tortoise defense, Mad Barbarian Strength Law. Adding the Cloud Stepping technique , Violet Sword technique and Illusory Palm along with others you took from yesterday, I'd be able to make a solid technique from these.]-
[...]
Unaware of the disturbance he caused, Varian left the library.
* * *
"Fuck, he's finally gone!" A disciple shouted
"So annoying, all he did was flip through books since I got here. I doubt he even actually read anything." Another disciple spoke.
"I guess he's desperate, after all, being seventeen and still at the Body Tempering realm isn't a good thing. Even if he doesn't get into trouble and lives a peaceful life he'll eventually die in 133 years." One disciple spoke in a mocking tone.
"Even the beggars on the road are stronger than him." Another laughed.
Aside from them was Jie Jian, who came looking for sword related Martial Techniques to help improve his own. After seeing Varian he had momentarily stopped reading the book in his hand and stared absent mindedly at the empty aisle he came out from.
[Just what is he doing?] He thought to himself.
He was still not happy with the outcome of his fight with Varian the day before. He felt that if they were similar in strength he would have lost devastatingly.
*Sigh*
[I'm still not strong enough yet.]
* * *
A couple hours after Varian left the library and went home, an announcement was made. It was one calling all outer sect disciples to gather at the testing site.
The reason being that they were to select their Master that would lead them to the starting line in cultivation.
After arriving at the site, Varian was greeted with the sight of hundreds of heads and seven figures all standing on a platform above the hundreds of disciples.
Among them were Wan Jian and Liming Long, both standing proud and giving off an oppressive aura that made the weak willed disciples cower.
-[ That'll be you one day. Although when you're strong enough to do that most if not all of them would be squashed like bugs. Hehehe.]-
[ Now you made me have a new goal. I've read enough Chinese novels to know that even without looking for it trouble would always come for you. Although I guess that only happens to the main character, in this case it's most likely Jie Jian.]
-[ And what about your goal?]-
[ To be strong enough to go around unprovoked.]
-[...]-
A few moments later, during all the murmuring of the new disciples, the senior disciple that oversaw the entrance exam appeared on the platform.
"Attention disciples. Today will be the day that you will be chosen or will choose an elder to serve as your master. The basis being that the elders themselves accept your request. Being deemed worthy of being taught is decided by the elders themselves, of course if an elder chooses you to be their disciple you also have tomhe right to decline. However please bear in mind that this ceremony won't happen again until a new batch of disciples enter the sect."
Once again the disciples began to murmur amongst themselves. Most of them were panicking due to their lack of talent or being outshined by others.
Consciously or unconsciously they started to remember the results of a certain test they took, they remembered an irregular individual who lacked talent... Varian even though most of them were aware that they wouldn't get chosen.
At the top of the platform overlooking the hundreds of disciples, Wan Jian scanned about until his eyes caught who he was looking for.
Jie Jian. During the examination he had asked him to become his disciple, however now the look he had was that of pure determination to not let him get snatched by someone else.
The other six elders looked at each other then at Wan Jian before sighing to themselves. The aura he was giving off was silently oppressive.
Seeing that they had no choice but to let him take what he wanted they all sighed and looked back into he crowd of disciples.
* * *
After ten minutes of the elders scouting disciples they had finally begun the recruitment process.
Meanwhile Varian quietly walked away without being noticed by anyone. At least, to q that was what he was aiming for.
Not long after moving out of sight, a beautiful woman dressed in a pink hanfu* appeared infront of Varian. She was one of the elders recruiting disciples at the ceremony.
She had modest breasts, a slim waist, cherry red lips and waist length pink hair. Her eyes were an interesting shade of red, almost pink in color.
The feeling she gave off was as that of a naive little child filled with curiosity.
"Why did you leave? Are you not confident in your own talent?" Her voice was soothing and somewhat playful.
"..."
"Why don't you accept a master?" She asked while titling her head a little to the side. She was filled with genuine curiosity towards Varian.
"Not interested." Despite his hidden initial surprise that she noticed him leaving the area, Varian replied in a nonchalant tone and walked past her without even waiting for her to introduce herself.
[Hmm... interesting, despite being so young he's not even affected by my external appearance nor my childlike personality... he might be good to pass my time with.]
* * *
*A hanfu is a type of traditional clothing for women worn by the Han Chinese. It comes in different variations.