"What's your purpose of appearing to our clan?" The clan leader asked.
Vincent cracked his neck and got lost in thought with the question.
He had been locked in the dungeon for almost a century before he had a chance to step out of the pit and look at the beauty of the nature he missed.
Felix, the greatest wizard in his world, his friend before they became enemies, was the one who teleported him.
If he say this, the question might appear why was he prisoned in the dungeon and why was he sent here.
But his tale was so long, it might take a week to be completed. And Vincent could sense the clan leader was not happy with his arrival.
Therefore he relaxed his face and replied, "The purpose of my visit is to serve your clan, I believe."
White lie.
The clan leader gave him a doubtful look before turning his head to Jing Nuan, "I grant you 3 months to train him. If he harms a member or proves himself unworthy to be part of our clan, he will be kicked out."
Jing Nuan bowed and kicked Vincent's leg to make him kneel and bow.
One by one, the pavilion emptied, leaving the Jing Nuan and Vincent alone.
"My name is Vincent, not Wenzhi. I am a vampire, not a mosquito!" Vincent said, finding her alone in the room.
"Every of my students have a nickname," Jing Nuan replied and walked ahead to leave.
Vincent answer was followed by a silence before he went and walked beside her.
"What is Golden Bond?" Vincent asked with curiousity, "Why do I have a Golden Bond with you?"
"Wait until I teach you in my lesson or library is always open."
"Can't you reply now?"
"No, I am not in a mood of teaching."
"So what's in your mood now?"
"To drink."
"..."
"Want to join?"
"..."
Vincent had no choice, he didn't know where to go. And he had numerous questions in his mind which clouded one above another.
While it was obvious that this woman won't be answering anything.
****
Vincent spit out the drink, as almost immediately as it went in.
His eyes saw a flash of light while his tongue danced in agony.
"Drink," Jing Nuan stated after gulping the entire glass of the herbal medicine like milk before looking at him with her pensive eyes.
"I can't, it tastes absolutely horrible." Vincent said as he kept the glass away and reflexive gag came out of his mouth.
"Your qi is unstable, if you want to develop your strength and overcome the stages in cultivation, get used to these bitter drinks." Jing Nuan stood up from her seat and walked towards the medicine selves.
"I don't want to overcome stages in cultivation nor do I want to become your dog or mosquito who just drinks blood. In my continent, we are well respected..."
"I would have let you go without the Golden Bond, but this isn't how I work. If you came to me, the destiny must wants to meet us." Vincent sentence was cut mid-off as the woman turned her head and walked ahead to look for the required material in other selves.
"Even your people doesn't wants me, that bastard beheaded by head. But thanks to your mana and my immortality I was healed immediately." Vincent said in defeat as his eyes followed her movement, while he laid flat on the wooden floor, hands behind his head and a leg above another.
"Prove your worth, they will love you."
"Why must I do it? Why do I need to be worthy, when I can be just free?"
"That's how the universe works, if anybody is useless, they are just a burden to the world. Even sickness and disease provide employment to physician." Jing Nuan replied as she took out a small white porcelain jar from the cabinet.
"Then I can be a vagabond, create chaos in the village while fulfilling my hunger and create employment for those fatass mayor's to work on mysterious murder cases." Picking his nose with his pinky finger, he flicked the booger away and sat upright, amused by his own idea.
"Weren't you vagabond all this years? You don't have survival skill, nor combat skill, nor you look like a descendant of noble family." She asked while handing him the drink.
Vincent didn't spare a glance at the glass before replying, "I was everything. A warrior, a nobleman and a vagabond too. If you tell me to choose again, I would still like to go in the route of being a vagabond."
"Why?"
"Just because."
"I asked why."
"I replied just because."
Vincent sat stubbornly, like a child, avoiding the herbal drink and the conversation at the same time.
"Fine. Drink it and you are dismissed."
"I don't want to drink. Well, I am not alive for this pitiful herbal medicine to work on me. My medicine is human blood."
"The herbs are very expensive. I would have stored it if you hadn't spitted on it."
"You are disgusting."
"I know. My money is hard earned." Jing Nuan placed the crushed herbs into a metallic cylindrical jar before placing a thread at the centre and thrusted it into the herbs, leaving few strands atop.
She took a nearby candle and burnt the thread.
Vincent observed her keenly, as on his other hand, he quietly drained the medicinal drink from the gaps between the planks into the earth below.
But he almost panicked when she immediately turned around, brows tensed up and eyes big shot, "Great Tortorise, do you have money?"
"No, I don't. How can I have money when..."
"Do you know handicrafts or any craftsman related work?"
"No, I don't. How would I know such works when..."
"Do you know how to control vengeful spirit?"
"No I don't. How would I..."
This time Jing Nuan cut him earlier before he could have said one fourth of his sentence, "Holy dragon, you are in great trouble."
"Why?"
"And I shall prepare the incense for my funeral."