Standing in front of the courtyard door of Yuyan, Yino's heart was filled with apprehension.
Although he had gained the trust and support of Xinyao, as the seventh young master of the Grand Tutor's Mansion, now that he had returned home, Yino still had to visit Yuyan. It was the most basic etiquette for a guest.
"Things have come to this. I need to come up with a plan."
"I can't truly offend Yuyan, but I need to make everyone think that I offended her tonight."
Yino leaned against the door, lost in thought.
The plan Xinyao had devised was simply too reckless. She was the demon messenger left by his mother and strictly speaking, enjoyed diplomatic immunity.
But Yino was a local!
He was already at the bottom of the hierarchy in the mansion, a waste who spent his days in debauchery and didn't engage in proper pursuits. Now, the elders had finally sought an immortal opportunity for him, allowing him to go to the Wuji Sect to do something proper. But Yino casually said he "voluntarily gave up," and the matter was ruined?
The elders of the mansion would be so angry they'd faint!
They would give Yino twenty lashes and the next day, they would tie him up and carry him up Wuji Peak.
In the original story of The Fallen Immortal, this was how Yino was tied up and taken to the mountain.
It was like the elders saying it was for your own good, and then sending you to High School to be imprisoned, a common trope...
The family rules were strict. The Grand Tutor's Mansion didn't keep idle people.
This was also the downside of being born into a prestigious family.
Therefore, Yino had come up with the previous plan—
-"How much longer are you going to stand at the door?"-
Suddenly, at some point, the courtyard door opened.
Yino was leaning against the door, caught off guard, and stumbled into the courtyard. But a cold jade hand supported him from behind, preventing the young man from conveniently falling into the immortal's embrace.
Yuyan raised an eyebrow slightly, her immortal face showing limited patience.
A faint fragrance wafted from behind him with the immortal's breath, but to Yino, it felt like a countdown to death.
He quickly steadied his footing and took the initiative to maintain a gentlemanly distance from the immortal.
Having played the role of a prodigal son for so many years, tonight was the episode where Yino was the most virtuous.
"..."
Yuyan looked at Yino, who had fled far away, feeling somewhat bewildered.
However, she didn't care anymore.
"If your little aunt forced you to come, you can go back now."
"Tomorrow, I will personally tell the elders of the mansion that you are unwilling to join the Wuji Sect, and the matter of the sect master accepting a disciple will be temporarily put on hold."
Under the moonlight, the blue-robed immortal held a sword in her arms, her eyes cold and indifferent. There wasn't a hint of emotion on her flawless and peerlessly beautiful immortal face.
This was precisely the signature pose of the "Sword Maiden Senior Sister" in Yino's memory.
Yuyan liked to hold her sword in her arms, intending to establish an aura of authority. But that slender jade sword, nestled between the two towering peaks, instead highlighted the magnanimous capacity of her bosom in front of the world.
Yino had such a deep impression of her, and this signature pose of holding the sword against her chest played no small part.
And now, the Sword Maiden from his memory was standing in front of him, gazing at him. Yino also experienced more personally the icy oppressive aura emanating from Yuyan.
This couldn't be conveyed through a few lines of text in the game.
"Is it that I'm unwilling, or that your Wuji Sect simply looks down on me?"
Yino cleared his throat then said in a calm tone.
Although his heart was in turmoil, he couldn't lose face.
Judging from Yuyan's tone just now, she should have heard those words from Xinyao.
Since that was the case, Yino could only seize the moral high ground.
"I didn't expect the righteous Wuji Sect to easily believe rumors and gossip behind people's backs."
He waved his hand in front of him and said in frivolous tone, but from the corner of his eye, he also observed Yuyan's reaction while coldly laughing.
Putting pressure on Yuyan was fine, but the premise was not to truly anger her.
And obviously, Yuyan wasn't that petty.
Even when being mocked to her face, she only stared at Yino without changing her expression.
After a long silence.
Yuyan seemed to sigh helplessly and retracted the arrogance deep in her eyes.
"During the day, the disciples of my sect were indeed rude in their evaluation of you. It's also my fault for not promptly educating them."
"However..."
"If you feel that their words were wrong, I can uphold justice for you and provide you with an opportunity to prove yourself."
At this point, a smile also curved on the red lips of the white-robed immortal.
Her immortal face seemed to be smiling, but not quite. Yino couldn't tell if it was mockery or relief.
At the same time, Yuyan also re-examined the young master of the Grand Tutor's Mansion in front of her.
The young man had a clean and pretty face, with only a faint scent of tea on his body. He hadn't touched tobacco or alcohol, and his complexion wasn't sallow. He indeed didn't seem like a prodigal son who spent his nights in brothels before returning home late.
'At least, he looked quite confident...'
'Could it be that the rumors were false?'
'Did Yino truly have the aspiration to cultivate and wasn't depraved?'
'If that was the case, the resentment of his little aunt would make sense.'
Yuyan secretly raised her eyebrows, and a few hints of expectation involuntarily arose in her heart.
"How do you want me to prove myself?"
"It doesn't matter. Cultivation, talent... as long as it can make me see you in a new light."
The white-robed immortal held her sword in her arms, the smile in the corners of her eyes at ease.
Over the years, she had seen too many geniuses of the immortal sects. But in the end, how many of them didn't kneel under her sword and beg for mercy?
Genius was merely the threshold to see her.
But in front of the absolute pride of heaven, even geniuses ultimately brought humiliation upon themselves, let alone a prodigal young master relying on his family status and official authority.
As time passed, Yuyan's fingertips lightly tapped.
Yino seemed to make up his mind about something and finally lowered his voice, laughing coldly.
"If that's the case, why don't you have a bet with me, miss Immortal?"
"A bet...?"
His words were shocking, instantly causing Yuyan's eyebrows to furrow in confusion.
No matter how mentally prepared she was, she still couldn't keep up with his train of thought.
But at the very least, she could sense greed and challenge from the upturned corners of the young man's lips.
Yuyan had been cultivating in the Wuji Sect since she was young. After becoming a disciple under the sect master, she had been the senior sister of the sword dao for so many years. No mortal had ever dared to be so arrogant and negotiate terms with her.
Yino was the first.
"What do you want to bet on?"
The immortal's tone was clear and cold, with a hint of disdain, but she couldn't help but be curious about what trick he had up his sleeve.
"If I win, I ask that miss immortal dance for me to add to the elegance of this night."
"?_?"
With those words, the few expectation that Yuyan had rarely raised sank to the bottom once again.
Her expression was also completely filled with disappointment.
"Such audacious words."
"As expected, still the son of a prodigal."
She sighed, closed her eyes, and considered herself blind for actually having a glimmer of hope for Yino just now.
-Incorrigible-
Yuyan made a final judgment on the young man's image in her mind.
"So miss immortal is also afraid of losing?"
Yino wasn't in a hurry, only asking in a meaningful way.
Yuyan couldn't take it anymore. She opened her cold eyes and spoke with disdain:
"How dare you! What if you lose?"
"If I lose, I'll tell my father tomorrow that I offended miss immortal late at night and brought humiliation upon myself... So I voluntarily give up the opportunity to go to the Wuji Sect."
At this point, Yino finally revealed his true intentions.
From the very beginning, he never thought about winning this bet.
The condition of the immortal dancing for him if he won was just a casual provocation.
In any case, Yino definitely couldn't win against Yuyan. But if there was a betting process, it would make Yino's willingness to accept the outcome tomorrow much more reasonable.
"Actually, I know that no matter how I perform tonight, miss immortal will still look down on a waste like me, from the bottom of your heart."
"Taking me up the mountain to cultivate is not miss immortal's intention, but the order of the Wuji Sect Master. you also are forced to come to the Grand Tutor's Mansion to go through the motions."
"But if miss immortal is willing to have a bet with me, as long as you win the bet, I can help you come up with a reason to reject me. This way, you won't have to unilaterally go back on the sect master's promise and make the Wuji Sect lose face."
Yino spoke eloquently while also not forgetting to play the role of a gambler.
Yuyan stared at him. Her phoenix eyes, which had made a final judgment with disdain, once again flashed with surprise and suspicion.
Because Yino had guessed her thoughts.
The matter of accepting a disciple was actually an agreement between her master and the elders of the Grand Tutor's Mansion.
Yuyan was originally just going through the motions and didn't take it to heart.
But the problem was that the sect master had long known that Yino was a prodigal son. Accepting him as a disciple was just to have him nominally under his door, to do the Grand Tutor's Mansion a favor. In reality, even if Yino went up the mountain, he would still be under Yuyan's responsibility to teach.
This made Yuyan very resistant.
She herself was still a young disciple. Where would she have the time and energy to keep a wastrel young master by her side for her master?
She was the senior sister of sword cultivation, not a teacher at a reform school for problematic youths.
But after all, the sect master had already made a promise to the Grand Tutor's Mansion. Now, as a disciple, Yuyan couldn't directly refuse to accept a disciple, which was why she was still staying at the Grand Tutor's Mansion.
If... Yino was willing to help her resolve the situation and voluntarily take responsibility, then it would be much more convenient for Yuyan to refuse to accept a disciple!
Thinking of this, Yuyan's blocked mood instantly improved a lot.
"So, you've long known the ins and outs of accepting a disciple. Betting with me is just to use your opportunity to gamble for the slim hope of me dancing for you?"
"That's right."
"You want to see my dance that much?"
"I do."
"Is it worth it?"
"There probably isn't a man in the world worthy of having Immortal Mo dance for him, right? If I win, won't I be the only person in the world to enjoy miss immortal's enchanting dance? To appreciate an immortal dance, I would die without regret."
Yino affirmed three times in a row, his face not hiding his admiration and desire for the immortal's beauty.
Mo Yuyan's immortal face also showed disdain three times in a row.
Her mood tonight was like a roller coaster.
Every time she made a final judgment on Yino, he would overturn her stereotypical impression with his next outrageous statement...
Yuyan could no longer define Yino based on her past experience.
He wasn't a normal person at all.
He was much more abstract than ordinary lustful men.
Countless people in the world were clamoring to go to the immortal sects, let alone having the opportunity to be personally taken up the mountain by Yuyan.
As a result, Yino clearly knew Yuyan's weakness, but instead of cherishing this precious immortal opportunity, he made a bold gamble. He was willing to give up the opportunity just to bet on the one-in-a-thousand chance to admire Yuyan's enchanting dance.
If he really admired Yuyan so much that he would die without regret after seeing her dance, then he was somewhat of a lovesick fool. It was best to let him give up hope early.
"Alright, I accept your terms."
Yuyan finally closed her eyes in helplessness.
Her helplessness was due to the incorrigible extent of Yino.
After all, Yuyan couldn't possibly lose to a mortal. Even if Yino bet everything, he couldn't possibly enjoy the enchantment of an immortal dance.
"So, how do you want to bet?"
Yuyan opened her beautiful eyes again, calmly gazing at the scheming young man in front of her.
Considering that Yino had been unpredictable, she coldly added:
"The premise is that it must be reasonable and not nonsense."
"Sword duel. You'll definitely agree to this."
The young man smiled with confidence.