"Master, I've brought back a brother!" Laughing cheerfully as he threw open the door to a small restaurant Ah Ruheng stormed inside with a wide smile while Wulin followed behind. The scent of food was overpowering, Wulin's stomach growling angrily.
"Ruheng! Stop bringing random—!" The older gentleman with a well built body, a well kept beard, and a sharp tongue stopped talking as soon as he laid eyes on Wulin. "Ruheng, you're the best disciple ever." Speaking warmly with narrowed eyes and a serious face the man made his way out from behind the counter and approached Wulin.
Lightly gripping Wulin's upper arm, wrist, and quite a few other places the man hummed thoughtfully, a pleased glint appearing in his eyes as his excitement grew with each gentle squeeze. It was uncomfortable but Wulin could feel that the man was getting an understanding of his body's structure which was inevitable if things went Wulin's way.
"Come with me, I'll make you the strongest talent in the Body Sect's history!" Proudly proclaiming as such the man was all smiles as he looked at Wulin amicably. That was exactly the kind of goal Wulin wanted but…
"I'm a student of Shrek." Wulin spoke bluntly, hope dimming in the man's eyes. Though it was foolish in Wulin's mind, Shrek and the Body Sect had been enemies for thousands of years without fail. The Body Sect may have fallen immensely in status but that animosity remained strong as ever.
"Teacher, don't you think it's time to—" Shutting up as soon as the man held up his hand Ah Ruheng looked at his teacher worriedly, his bald head scrunching up as he narrowed his eyes and watched the internal battle flicker in his teacher's eyes. Was it simple to discard a thousand year blood debt? No, not in a million years.
"Yes, it is time to move on. Though I can't accept Shrek, I can at least look past our differences for the sake of the future." The man spoke solemnly though his words amounted to him being alright with poaching Shrek's students.
"Thank you, teacher!" Beaming from ear to ear, Ah Ruheng embraced his teacher, the man's bulky body tiny in comparison to his students' absurdly large frame. Laughing boisterously Ah Ruheng would have lifted his teacher and spun him around if it weren't for the man himself stopping his student.
"However, there must be conditions. I can accept a student from Shrek but I cannot allow our sect's secrets to spread to them." Ultimately, Wulin had expected as much. An organization's secrets were as important as the future of the group. Just as Wulin wouldn't spread the knowledge of the Fruit the Body Sect wouldn't so freely allow their information to spread.
"What kind of vow should I make?" Raising a brow at the older man who Wulin still did not know the name of the Golden Dragon King was curious. There were plenty of types of vows ranging from those made thousands of years ago to some that are borderline jokes.
"Isn't it obvious? The vow of mentorship." Crossing his arms the man looked at Wulin challengingly, the glint in his eyes dangerous. The vow of mentorship was something around during his father's days and was quite simple really. A student would never betray their master and by taking the vow Wulin would become this man's student. It was entirely backed by hope.
"I, Tang Wulin, promise that I shall treat the Master of the Body Sect as my eternal teacher." It was an easy promise for Wulin to make considering that was what he had come out here to do from the start. It may be somewhat sleazy of him but Wulin was of the belief that you should use everything available to you and that included having multiple teachers.
"I, Mu Ye, accept Tang Wulin as my student. Should I fail to teach him the heavens may strike me down." Smirking proudly Mu Ye accepted his offer, the Body Sect gaining a second heir. It was a twist of fate but if letting Ah Ruheng run freely came with such good results Mu Ye would let him roam more often!
"Haha! I knew you'd become my younger brother!" Laughing once more Ah Ruheng smiled broadly with pride in his eyes as he rubbed beneath his nose. While he may have been first and dedicated his life to the Body Sect he didn't mind risking a battle for inheritance if it meant Wulin could stand beside him.
While Ah Ruheng was a body of diamonds slowly forged under immense pressure over a long time, Wulin was simply monstrous. Though his body showed clear signs of religious effort Wulin was born with a heavenly body, a divine physique of the highest order.
"So… now what?" Raising a brow at his newest teacher Wulin was curious just what kind of training he'd have to endure. The Body Sect was infamous for their hell like training so he was curious what kind of methods they'd have.
"Now you join me!" Smiling broadly, Ah Ruheng pressed a thumb to his chest in excitement. It didn't explain much but considering that they were here Wulin could make a few guesses of what they'd be doing.
"That's correct. In order to stimulate your martial soul Second Awakening you'll be joining Ah Ruheng on his trips to the bottom of the Eternal Sea." Nodding as though that explained everything Mu Ye didn't explain much else. Luckily, Wulin didn't need him too.
A martial soul's Second Awakening was drawing out the dormant potential within a Martial Soul that the body couldn't endure awakening during the initial ceremony. It was a fairly self explanatory name but that wasn't what Wulin was worried about.
[It's possible in theory but in reality, it may as well be impossible.] The answer of his father was nothing surprising though it was disheartening nevertheless. To stimulate a Second Awakening a situation of extreme danger where the user's life was in genuine danger was required but there were few things that could insight such a feeling from Wulin.
'What if I don't use my blood essence?' The question that left Wulin's metaphorical lips was something that Tang San had long since expected. By lowering the limit of his blood essence it was possible for him to weaken himself drastically which would let him purposefully put himself in danger.
[You'd die.] Revealing the fate of such an endeavor, Tang San's tone was grave.
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Hey there, hope you liked the chapter.
If Wulin were to limit his blood essence he'd be weakening himself immensely and considering he couldn't even move freely in the Middle Layer with his current strength that'd be equal to suicide. Of course, he is the main character so who knows what'll happen.
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