I courted death and then tried to escape, so the whole sect wants to get rid of me.

The Seventh Elder craned his neck and shouted, "Study hard, and remember to buy steamed buns when you have time!!"

Song Yao nodded to him, then glanced back at Zhu Zhao.

That's really rare.

She and her second senior sister were actually able to sit together quietly like this.

However, my second senior sister seems to have lost a little weight compared to before.

She glanced at it once and turned back, clutching the black bird's feathers tightly.

She has no spiritual power now, and even sitting on the bird's back is difficult for her.

The wind was strong, blowing my hair wildly, and a few strands landed on my face, making it itchy.

Song Yaoteng reached out to push it away, but it was blown back by the wind.

After trying several times, she finally gave up, but then a hand suddenly reached out from the side.

That hand was fair and slender, with distinct knuckles, and the fingertips were slightly cool. It gently brushed aside the messy hair on her face and tucked a few unruly strands behind her ear.

The movements were very gentle.

soon.

Before Song Yao could react, her hand had already been withdrawn.

Song Yao froze for a moment, then blinked lightly.

It seems that Second Senior Sister isn't so irritable with everyone.

She's quite gentle with her junior classmates.

All they can do is shout for her to be killed.

She looked up and smiled at Zhu Zhao: "Thank you, Second Senior Sister."

-

Arriving on a black bird was quite a grand gesture.

But Zhu Zhao just left her behind, causing all the curious and gossipy eyes to be fixed precisely on Song Yao.

"That's... a black bird? Why is a black bird so ugly?"

"Shh, do you have a death wish? Don't let Second Senior Sister hear you, she's very protective of her own!"

"How come this person has such a big reputation that his second senior sister would personally deliver it to him?"

"And they were so late."

"You forgot, this is a Heavenly-level spiritual root."

"No one's giving away other Heavenly-grade spiritual roots either."

"......"

Whispers arose, and Song Yao sighed softly.

She clearly wanted to keep a low profile.

Why are they getting more and more high-profile these past two days?

The head instructor didn't care who brought the person; his face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and he slammed his ruler down with a loud crack: "I've repeatedly warned you not to be late! Not to be late! Did you just ignore me?!"

Song Yao sincerely admitted her mistake: "I'm sorry."

"Sorry is all you need? Look at the time! The class rules lesson is almost over and you're only just arriving!"

The instructor elder sneered, "The first rule of the Nine Saints Hall is to be punctual and not to be late or leave early. You, on the very first day, have broken it."

He took a deep breath, pulled a thick booklet from his sleeve, and slapped it into Song Yao's arms: "You are to copy the entire set of rules once and hand it in to me in three days."

Song Yao: "......"

Why doesn't she just run away tonight?

"What are you standing there for? Go back and sit down, and catch up on what you missed today."

Holding the booklet, Song Yao silently walked to the back of the crowd.

Ning Zhou beckoned to her and whispered, "Come on, I saved a seat for you."

The two started whispering to each other as soon as they sat down: "That instructor elder is really fierce. He's yelled at everyone in the hall! He's not targeting you specifically!"

"It's nothing, I didn't take it to heart."

Although he has no spiritual power, he has learned quite a few crooked and evil methods in the past.

For Song Yao, copying the entire set of rules by simply using a trick was nothing.

Ning Zhou scoffed: "Really? Two disciples were just scolded to tears. I thought you were going to cry too. This elder is terrifying."

"What's so scary about it?"

Song Yao whispered in his ear, "The reason he has such a bad temper is because he's bald. No medicine works on him. The balder he is, the more irritable he becomes, and the more irritable he becomes, the faster his hair falls out. So people should try to avoid getting angry, otherwise..."

Ning Zhou was shocked: "Really...?"

Before he could finish speaking, a ruler struck the stone tablet hard, making the entire Fuguangtai tremble.

The instructor pointed to the back corner and roared, "What are you two whispering about! Stand up and let everyone hear what you're saying!"

Song Yaoning was startled and stood up abruptly, hanging her head and remaining silent.

The platform was so quiet you could hear someone breathing.

The disciples in the front row craned their necks, their eyes shining, eager to see what would happen.

The instructor elder strode up to the two, his gaze sweeping over them before finally settling on Ning Zhou's face: "Tell me, what did she just say to you?"

Ning Zhou opened his mouth, his face turning red, but he couldn't utter a single word.

"explain!"

Another ruler was slammed on the table.

Ning Zhou shuddered in fright. Before his mind could process what was happening, his mouth had already moved: "A person... a person can't be bald!"

The sound was loud and clear, echoing three times above the altar.

The platform was silent for a moment.

then.

"puff--"

Someone couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.

The elder instructor's wig trembled, his face changed from black to red, then to purple, before he slammed down the ruler and roared, "You two, get out there and copy the book!!"

-

Song Yao didn't know why things had developed to this point.

She clearly only wanted to save up 5,600 spirit stones and then leave the Nine Saints Hall to live the life of an ordinary person.

Now I feel like I'm going back to my old ways and becoming a villain again.

I should have known better than to reveal the Elder's secret.

I should have known better than to talk to Ning Zhou about hair.

Do not live by committing sins.

She lay on her back amidst the piles of books in the library, resignedly making a hand seal.

Two calligraphy brushes rose up out of thin air, their tips dipped in ink, and hovered above the unfolded scroll of paper, automatically scribbling away.

It was written at an extremely fast pace, with neat handwriting, page after page, making it dazzling to read.

Ning Zhou's pen froze in mid-air, his mouth agape enough to swallow an egg: "You, how do you know this kind of magic?"

Song Yao rested her head on her arm and casually made up a story: "When I was a kid, I was a wanderer and I learned how to copy books for others."

Ning Zhou looked at him with sympathy: "It seems you, like me, have a tragic past. But why were you in a grave back then?"

"They were probably buried alive."

"Oh, how terrible."

Ning Zhou felt more and more sorry for her as he looked at her, and moved closer. "But it's alright, as long as we stay in the Nine Saints Hall and cultivate diligently, we will definitely be able to live a good life..."

After saying that, he added, "You arrived late this morning. The elders taught us how to meditate and absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Since I happen to have some free time right now, shall I teach you?"

Song Yao was not in the mood.

Do you need to meditate to absorb spiritual energy?

She inexplicably felt like she was back in the starting village doing beginner quests.

But after thinking about it, she didn't refuse and sat up: "Okay."

The two shifted their positions and sat cross-legged.

Ning Zhou closed his eyes and said in a serious tone, "To cultivate, one must first feel the flow of the five elements in heaven and earth."

"The five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—are the foundation of heaven and earth and the root of all things. Metal governs destruction, wood governs life, water governs nourishment, and fire governs harmony. The five elements generate and restrain each other, flowing endlessly."

"For us cultivators, the first step is to open our spiritual apertures and sense the laws governing the operation of the five elements in heaven and earth. You must calm your mind, empty your thoughts, and sense the mysterious..."

As Ning Zhou was speaking, he suddenly felt something was wrong beside him.

He stopped talking, opened his eyes, and then froze.