Seeing her hesitate to answer, Lin Qingfeng pulled a soft measuring tape and a small scale from who-knows-where and stuffed them into her hands.
"Don't be suspicious, Junior Sister. This is just so the sect can issue uniforms for everyone. We have them tailored to fit. Come on, hurry up and take your measurements."
After Su Ling'er indignantly reported two numbers, the next question immediately followed: "Are you married? Do you have a beloved?"
'Ugh, what does any of this have to do with Cultivation?'
'Why on earth are they asking this?'
'These evil ways are too vicious! They must be investigating my karmic ties. Are they planning to sever all my worldly connections before turning me into a human cauldron?'
"This is mainly to promote harmony among disciples and show concern for everyone's personal lives," Lin Qingfeng said, laughing it off to smooth things over. 'High-level idiot NPC, you'd better believe what I'm telling you!'
Su Ling'er then forced a few words from her lips: "Unmarried, with no attachments."
Finally, the deacon's pen tip fell upon the last column of the form: Detailed Personal Assets.
'Here it comes! The dagger is out!'
'This must be a list they're preparing for when they plunder my belongings later!'
'They're trying to trick me into writing down everything I own. That way, my weaknesses, my attachments, all my possessions—they'll all become leverage to control me!'
Seeing that his junior sister's expression was getting worse and worse, Lin Qingfeng came over to explain again:
"Junior Sister, don't misunderstand. This is just to assess whether new disciples need support from the sect."
"It's great if you come from a wealthy background, of course. But if you're all alone in the world, we'll still make sure you can cultivate with peace of mind, free from worldly concerns."
Finally, after what felt like a trial of a thousand tribulations, Su Ling'er had answered nearly all the questions. Only one remained.
Life's Ambition.
Su Ling'er raised her head to meet Qian Buyu's eyes, which seemed to burn with a resolute flame. She answered, word by word:
"My ambition is... is to seek the path of immortality and ascend!"
"To become a peerless Sword Immortal, roaming the world with my sword!"
Qian Buyu expressionlessly had her press her fingerprint into the vermilion ink paste.
Meanwhile, she made a blood oath in her heart:
'All of this pretense is for the path to Foundation Establishment promised by the Sect Leader! It's for the sake of upholding justice, for all the people of the world!'
Nearby, Lin Qingfeng watched his little junior sister and shook his head.
'With her level of talent, becoming a Sword Immortal is probably out of the question. Maybe I should have her go find the folks at the Artifact Refining Pavilion and try the Sword Refining Skill?'
'Even if she can't become a great Sword Immortal, she has great potential to become an Immortal Sword in the future!'
The moment Su Ling'er pressed her fingerprint, a sect notification sound chimed for Lin Qingfeng:
[Sect Mission "Guide" Complete!]
[Mission Rewards: Sect Contribution Points +100, Sect Reputation +10, Cultivation +500]
Looking at the rewards panel, Lin Qingfeng let out a long sigh of relief. "Done. Finally tricked you into joining."
Su Ling'er: !!!!
To her, those words were nothing less than the arrogant declaration of a villain whose scheme had succeeded.
'I knew it! This is an Evil Cultivator sect!'
'Otherwise, why would Eldest Senior Brother say he "tricked" me into joining?'
'If he were truly honorable, if this sect were truly so outstanding, why would they need to resort to such tricks?'
'Their evil is simply monstrous!'
However, something even more shocking happened next.
She watched as Lin Qingfeng just stood there, his entire aura suddenly surging with a single breath!
'What's going on? Did Eldest Senior Brother have a breakthrough?'
'Why now of all times? Why did his Cultivation have a breakthrough the moment after I finished registering?!'
'Could it be... that this is actually an incredibly vicious Demonic Contract!'
'It was disguised as a registration form, tricking me into signing away and sacrificing everything I have without my knowledge!'
'After signing it, my fortune and my very essence are being siphoned away without me even realizing it...'
'All those things I've read about in storybooks... now it all makes sense!'
'So that's how it is! No wonder the other disciples were so excited to see me join. Every new disciple is a walking tonic, a resource for their own Cultivation growth!'
At this thought, a huge wave of grief, indignation, and injustice washed over Su Ling'er.
'Sect Leader! For the sake of upholding justice, your disciple has fallen into a den of demons today!'
'By signing this indenture contract, I have made such a great sacrifice for the righteous path. You must save me when the time comes, Sect Leader!'
Just as Su Ling'er was wallowing in her sorrowful and heroic sacrifice, Lin Qingfeng received a follow-up mission.
[Follow-up Sect Mission Triggered: Guide the new disciple to familiarize herself with the sect environment.]
[Mission Description: Guide new disciple Su Ling'er to familiarize herself with the sect environment and gain a preliminary understanding of the sect you have built.]
[Mission Locations: Hundred Herbs Valley (0/1), Artifact Refining Pavilion (0/1), Elixir Furnace Pavilion (0/1), Transmission Hall (0/1), Dining Pavilion (0/1)...]
[Mission Rewards: Sect Contribution Points +1000, Sect Reputation +10, Cultivation +1800]
'Of course, there's a follow-up!'
Lin Qingfeng considered where to take his little junior sister. Seeing that it was getting late, 'Why not get a meal first?'
'I'll help her collect her novice gear while I'm at it. Let her experience the sect's benefits and build up her sense of belonging!'
So, he spoke enthusiastically:
"Junior Sister, you must be tired after such a long walk. Come on, I'll take you to get your identity Token and sect uniform first."
"I noticed you're wearing all red, so I had your sect uniform made in red too. Then we can go to the Dining Pavilion for dinner."
Su Ling'er was startled by his words.
'Identity Token? Sect uniform?'
'He just said the measurements were for tailoring the clothes, and now they're already done?'
She asked in a small voice:
"Eldest Senior Brother... didn't you just say the measurements were for... for tailoring? It's only been the blink of an eye, and they're... already tailored?"
Lin Qingfeng looked a bit awkward upon hearing this, but he quickly adopted a forceful tone and said:
"Junior Sister! Are the methods of immortals something you can fathom with mere mortal logic? Stop asking questions! If you keep asking, your Dao heart will become unstable! Keep up!"
Seeing his expression and his response, Su Ling'er had already come to her own conclusions, but she still answered meekly, "Yes... yes, Eldest Senior Brother is right..."
'He really was just fooling me before! This liar hasn't spoken a single word of truth from the very beginning!'
She was now even more certain that what she had just signed was an indenture contract.
The strange thing was, when she inspected her body internally, she couldn't feel any loss of Spiritual Power or vital energy... and that was the most terrifying part!
'This means they're plundering something even more fundamental, more profound and mysterious than Spiritual Power or fortune!'
'For example... my fate! Or my future!'
'As expected of ancient Evil Cultivators. For their methods to be so sophisticated!'