Chapter 104: Ten Signatures

The sunset glowed across the western sky, vivid as dragons born from clouds.

Xu Xiaoshou stepped out of Lingcang Pavilion and was startled by the vast, desolate emptiness before him.

What on earth?

Where had the lush, overgrown lawn gone?

Had someone just cleared it all away?

This was incredibly efficient—they'd made it spotlessly clean!

After carefully figuring out his bearings, he didn't head toward the outer court but instead walked slowly deeper into the inner court.

His trip to Lingcang Pavilion had been a determined one, driven by the "three articles of agreement." If he hadn't gone, the consequences could have been severe.

Yet, none of the anticipated difficulties arose. Sang Lao had become much gentler, even unbothered by the fact that he'd been made to bleed. This was beyond Xu Xiaoshou's wildest imagination.

"The difference between outsiders and one's own people..."

He felt a bit confused, but he was certain that after becoming his disciple, Sang Lao had grown much closer to him.

Well, it was more like a complete transformation!

"People really are such strange creatures..."

Xu Xiaoshou reflected on this for a moment and decided not to dwell on it further.

The fact that Sang Lao was no longer tormenting him was a good thing. It meant he could temporarily set aside his thoughts of escaping from Linggong Palace.

If things changed in the future...

Well, he'd deal with that later!

For now, at least, this old man's personality was strikingly clear—simply put, he was "obsessive"!

Whether it was ignoring others or fiercely protecting his own, he took both to the extreme.

When they weren't familiar, the old man had nearly killed him, but now that they were master and disciple...

Xu Xiaoshou touched his ring, thinking of the thirty-six seventh-grade Yuan Court Dans, the complete version of "Ten Section Sword Finger," the spot at Tianxuan Gate, and a ring full of medicinal herbs...

He never dreamed that risking his life to meet this old man today would end like this.

It was completely different from what he'd expected!

"Uh, and that eighth-grade small bathtub." Xu Xiaoshou tallied his gains.

Though it was half the size of that three-legged big bathtub, it could still fit four or five people for a bath, which was several times larger than a standard Dan Ding.

"Eighth-grade, huh..."

Xu Xiaoshou drew out his "Zang Ku," which was only ninth-grade.

"Not good, little guy, you're falling behind my pace."

He stroked the black sword, and it trembled slightly, as if letting out a choked sound.

What was going on?

Could it really be trying to gain sentience?

Xu Xiaoshou was stunned—this was the first time he'd seen "Zang Ku" show such an emotional side, aside from its usual devouring nature.

But then he thought of "Mu Ming Cheng Xue," and he sighed. After all, without comparison, there'd be no pain.

"A ninth-grade weapon probably can't develop sentience..."

Without much emotion, he tucked it into his ring and pulled out Sang Lao's token instead—this was the real priority.

With it, he could choose a spiritual site here, just like the inner court disciples.

The spiritual energy in the inner court was much denser than in the outer court. Bathing in it regularly would help him get familiar with the innate-level "breathing method" faster, allowing for passive cultivation while relaxing.

Yes, even when walking in the inner court, he had to keep all his pores tightly sealed.

One slip, and his body would convulse just from walking.

"And this token came at just the right time..."

He thought of that rundown courtyard in the outer court with only one guest room left. With this token, he could finally abandon it.

No more repair costs—perfect!

"Where should I pick a site?" Xu Xiaoshou pondered.

The inner court was vast, not much smaller than the outer court, but it had far fewer people—about ten times fewer than the outer court disciples.

Theoretically, each person had a huge amount of land.

However, aside from those designated spiritual sites protected by barriers, you couldn't cultivate anywhere else. This was a big difference from the outer court.

At the innate level, it was all about comprehending the heavenly dao, so there was no more of that casual cultivation near someone else's doorstep.

One wrong move, and while you're in a moment of enlightenment, so is someone else nearby. You could end up interfering with each other, and both would be ruined.

That would be a massive blow to one's opportunities!

Xu Xiaoshou casually chose a quiet path and headed inward. For his own courtyard, he preferred something secluded.

The guest room in the outer court had been in a great spot—rarely disturbed.

...

After walking for a long time, Xu Xiaoshou didn't see a single soul and couldn't help but marvel at how sparsely populated the inner court was...

He passed a few spiritual sites, but none were empty—all were claimed and marked.

At the end of the small path, Xu Xiaoshou stopped.

The environment here was extremely secluded, which matched his preferences perfectly for a spiritual site.

But this particular site seemed to have been struck by a powerful sword strike, splitting it in half and shattering even the protective barrier.

"This..." Xu Xiaoshou was speechless.

This had to be from a private fight!

Sure, the inner court allowed life-and-death battles, but they were supposed to happen on the arena, right?

How could someone just casually slash a spiritual site in two?

The inner court was intimidating...

This strengthened Xu Xiaoshou's resolve to keep a low profile and develop quietly. He quickly chose another direction and slipped away.

This place had bad feng shui—it wouldn't do as a spiritual site.

...

Not far ahead, the path opened to another bright, flower-filled spot—an idyllic spiritual site.

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes lit up because he saw a woman in blue standing there, bending slightly.

"Great, finally someone I can ask for directions. Relying on that old man's vague comments, I'd probably be searching until tomorrow morning."

He felt incredibly lucky. After being in the inner court for so long, he'd finally met a normal person—and an attractive one at that.

The woman wore a light, sheer veil, her bare shoulders like jade. She raised her delicate hands high, arching her back in a stretch that outlined her graceful curves.

Xu Xiaoshou stepped forward to greet her, but she didn't seem to notice and turned away directly. Then, halfway through, she paused for a second before whipping back around.

Does she know me?

Xu Xiaoshou was taken aback—this was clearly the reaction of someone spotting a familiar face.

"Xu Xiaoshou?"

Sure enough, a surprised voice rang out, soft and tingling, like an electric current through his ears.

Xu Xiaoshou raised an eyebrow and stepped closer. "You know me?"

The woman curved her red lips into a smile. "The famous 'Stormy Showdown' champion—who doesn't know you?"

Xu Xiaoshou felt a bit embarrassed. He hadn't expected to have fans in the inner court, and such a beautiful young woman at that.

"Low-key, low-key."

The woman eyed him up and down with her beautiful eyes, a flash of killing intent crossing her gaze. "As an outer court disciple trespassing in the inner court, I have every right to take you down and hand you over to the Enforcement Pavilion, you know?"

Xu Xiaoshou found it amusing. Inner court fans were something else—she must have taken down quite a few people!

Even a joke like that sounded convincing.

That subtle killing intent was spot-on!

"This isn't important." Xu Xiaoshou waved it off casually. "Miss, do you know of any good spiritual sites around here? I've been searching forever, but I'm not familiar with the place and can't find anything suitable."

"Oh? You're looking for a spiritual site here?" The woman chuckled.

Xu Xiaoshou nodded, noticing her amused expression, and added, "Don't worry, I won't shortchange you."

"Autographs or something—I can give you ten!"