Heavenly Peak, rear cliff.
Pale moonlight spilled down, illuminating Ye Ling as he sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion.
Dressed in a simple blue robe and holding an ancient tome that radiated a heavy, timeworn presence, he looked like an exiled immortal descended from the heavens, sacred and untouchable.
Even from a distance, Ai Yueli had to admit that among all she had seen in her life, Ye Ling's appearance ranked among the best.
But what use was good looks?
For cultivators, strength was what truly mattered.
Compared to appearance, Ai Yueli valued strength far more.
That said, with this kid's cultivation talent, strength was only a matter of time.
Then… then it must be his character.
If a cultivator's heart went bad, even ascending to immortality would only lead them into the demonic path.
Yet the curse on the Heaven-Ordained Battle Robe hadn't been triggered, and Ye Ling didn't seem to have a bad disposition either. At the very least, he showed no intention of harming the Sect Master.
So…
After thinking it over for a long time, Ai Yueli found herself increasingly convinced that Ye Ling was a suitable choice.
Still, this wasn't something that could be decided so hastily. It would be better to wait until her senior and junior sisters returned and discuss it together.
Setting those worries aside for now, Ai Yueli walked toward Ye Ling.
"Disciple, how is your comprehension coming along?"
She wasn't as doting as Bai Yiyi and couldn't bring herself to use a term like "dear disciple."
"Fourth Master is here."
Hearing Ai Yueli's pleasant voice, Ye Ling quickly stood up from the meditation cushion, holding the ancient tome as he turned to face her.
As he moved, the sleeves of his blue robe fluttered lightly, adding a touch of ethereal grace to his bearing.
"Mm."
Ai Yueli nodded slightly, her golden eyes sweeping over Ye Ling from head to toe.
Before, she had never thought of Ye Ling in terms of being a man, so she hadn't paid much attention to his looks.
But now that Ye Ling was tied to Bai Yiyi's future happiness, the way she looked at him naturally changed.
Seeing him from this new angle, she unexpectedly felt a bit like a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law. The more she looked, the more pleasing he seemed.
That was only natural. Even if she assumed Ye Ling was "guilty" to begin with, she still couldn't find any real fault with him.
That alone already put him above the vast majority of men she had encountered.
Ye Ling, of course, couldn't read minds and had no idea what Ai Yueli was thinking. Still, the way she was looking at him made his scalp tingle.
Did I do something wrong?
No, she's blinking quickly. That should mean she's in a good mood.
Then why does her expression look more and more serious?
Ye Ling was puzzled, but his expression remained calm as he replied, "Fourth Master, I've already gone through the ancient text once. As for its deeper meanings, I think I'll need some more time to comprehend them."
He wasn't lying. This amount of time had only been enough for him to skim through the entire book. He hadn't yet formed any solid framework of understanding.
But that wasn't a big deal. Once the task was completed, the knowledge contained in the ancient text would be transmitted directly into his mind anyway. So he wasn't particularly anxious and was simply reading to get a basic grasp of it.
"Is there anything you don't understand?"
Ai Yueli kept a serious expression. Her calm tone carried the authority she had accumulated over many years.
If she had been a homeroom teacher before, she now felt more like a strict dean.
"Not for now."
Ye Ling shook his head. He didn't know what Ai Yueli had just been through, but he decided to lie low for the moment.
Besides, if she really was the dean type, not actually teaching anything was pretty normal.
Of course, his mind still couldn't help but throw out a few irrelevant internal complaints.
"Don't be afraid. I really am here to check your progress, but you've only just started. It's normal to have things you don't understand."
Ai Yueli was momentarily taken aback and quickly softened her tone, afraid she might have scared him.
Nothing he doesn't understand?
Are you kidding me with this cultivation nonsense?
She didn't believe Ye Ling's words at all.
Back when she had first started studying this ancient text, she hadn't understood a single thing. In the end, she had only managed to get started with the help of the Nine Heavens Immortal Maiden. Otherwise, there would even have been a risk of injury.
That had nothing to do with talent in talismans. It was mainly about how to use the ancient text itself and one's understanding of the Dao.
Ai Yueli had no doubt about Ye Ling's talent when it came to comprehending the Dao. But she didn't believe he could grasp the use of this ancient text so easily.
That was exactly why she had come in the first place. She wanted to see if Ye Ling had any questions, and conveniently take the chance to reinforce her authority as his Master.
She hadn't come to prove anything. She simply wanted to tell Ye Ling, "Even if you're a genius, it's impossible to be good at everything. There has to be something you're bad at."
Helping a disciple recognize their own shortcomings was precisely a Master's responsibility.
So she truly wasn't trying to see Ye Ling's handsome face fall apart just to vent her pent-up frustration. This was all for Ye Ling's bright future.
Unfortunately, Ai Yueli had no idea that Ye Ling possessed a System.
His understanding of the Dao might not be particularly deep yet, but when it came to artifacts and tools, with the System's help, using them posed no difficulty at all.
On top of that, he was reading with nothing more than a mindset of getting familiar with the material. Naturally, there was nothing he didn't understand.
If he were asked to truly dive deep into the combinations of characters, he would definitely run into headaches. But just a surface-level understanding? That was trivial.
Seriously? Seriously?
Who on earth would fail to understand even the simplest character combinations?
So from Ye Ling's perspective, Ai Yueli was clearly trying to bait him.
This was a classic trick used by homeroom teachers and disciplinary directors alike—
"It's fine. Even if you really don't understand this point, I won't blame you."
Paired with a gentle tone, it dealt critical emotional damage to struggling students, instantly breaking their mental defenses.
But the moment a struggling student admitted they didn't know—
"Didn't I explain this in class? You don't even understand this?"
"Why are you looking at me? Look at the book!"
"Why are you looking at the book? Look at the blackboard!"
"Why are you looking at the blackboard? Look at me!"
A full "what are you looking at" combo, straight into a mental breakdown.
As an orphan, Ye Ling had studied hard since childhood. He wasn't a prodigy. He had simply used the time others spent gaming to read books instead. That was how he'd avoided suffering through things like that.
Still, he'd seen it happen often enough and believed he wouldn't fall for it so easily.
So with a confident expression, he said to Ai Yueli, "I've made Fourth Master worry for nothing. This is just the most basic introductory knowledge. If I couldn't even understand this much, I wouldn't be qualified to be a disciple of the Heavenly Gate Sect."
At times like this, all you had to do was smile.
He knew that the more critical the moment, the less you could show hesitation. You had to face it head-on.
And if a flaw really was pointed out, you'd immediately thank the teacher for helping you identify a blind spot in your learning.
Once that high hat was firmly placed, even if the teacher wanted to say more, they'd swallow it back down.
But—
Ai Yueli wasn't a homeroom teacher, let alone a disciplinary director.
You actually said there was nothing you didn't understand?
Then she was definitely going to test him.