Chapter 53: Are You Willing to Take Me as Your Master?

Once you reach the Spirit Void stage, I will be able to emerge from the Celestial Polar Compass. At that time, with your Spirit Void cultivation, you will be able to use a divine spell to bypass the cycle of life and death and directly send my remnant soul into the womb of a woman less than three months pregnant. Afterward, you must protect me until I am reborn, gradually unlock my sealed memories, and once my cultivation is restored, I will take you away from the Earthly Spirit Star to cultivate in higher realms.

“Spirit Void stage? What kind of cultivation is that?” Qiu Han asked in confusion.

“I know you have many questions right now, but don’t worry. I will tell you what you need to do. The Spirit Void stage is a realm after the Nascent Soul stage. Although your talent is far inferior to what I possessed in my youth, it is still decent. With my guidance, reaching the Spirit Void stage will not be a problem at all.”

With these words, the middle-aged man offered an explanation, looking at Qiu Han with a hint of disdain, as if the cultivation talent Qiu Han was so proud of was hardly worth mentioning in his eyes.

“I am a cultivator who no longer belongs to the cycle of life and death. I can circumvent it and be reborn with my soul and memories intact. But remember, the woman must be less than three months pregnant. Otherwise, if the fetus has developed its own soul, my remnant soul would have to compete for the body, which could harm me.”

As he spoke, the middle-aged man’s tone became especially grave, as if to ensure Qiu Han took this instruction to heart.

Qiu Han nodded respectfully and said, “Rest assured, senior. If I reach the Spirit Void stage, I will do as you ask: I will place your soul in a pregnant woman and protect you until your cultivation is restored. However… cultivating to the Spirit Void stage is no simple task. I have never even heard of such a realm before. Even the legendary founder of my sect, who traveled the world, had only reached the Nascent Soul stage when he left… I cannot guarantee I’ll reach Spirit Void.”

Qiu Han voiced his concerns honestly, then fell silent, awaiting the man’s response.

“Hmph, the Spirit Void stage is nothing. With my guidance, and with your talent—which, though not extraordinary, is good enough—unless you are particularly dull or extremely unlucky and get killed along the way, reaching the Spirit Void stage should be a trivial matter.”

The middle-aged man spoke with utter disdain, then shifted back to his lofty, senior demeanor, cleared his throat, and addressed Qiu Han, “Qiu Han, let’s do this. Although your talent is somewhat lacking, for the sake of my early release, I’ll reluctantly take you as my disciple. Well? Do you accept?”

His gaze was full of reluctance as he looked at Qiu Han.

“Become your disciple? I… I already have a master. I appreciate your kindness, but I must decline.”

Qiu Han replied nervously.

“What did you say? I want to take you as my disciple, and you refuse? Do you realize what kind of opportunity this is? I don’t take disciples lightly. In fact, this would be my first time. So, think carefully.”

The man looked at Qiu Han in surprise and continued, “Don’t be so quick to refuse. Becoming my disciple would bring you unimaginable benefits. I’ve cultivated for thousands of years and created nine unique immortal techniques. Wouldn’t you like to learn them? If you reach a bottleneck in cultivation, I can guide you so you don’t waste time. With my help, it’s not impossible for you to reach the peak of my former power. Wouldn’t you want that? As my disciple, you’d also inherit my insights into the Void Shattering realm. Do you want that?”

“You possess the mysterious Celestial Polar Compass, which I can help you unlock. Wouldn’t you want that? As for the ancient immortal treasure, I may not know exactly what it is, but I can guess that it’s an inheritance of some kind. If you wish, I can help you discover how to use it. Do you want that? Once my cultivation is restored, I could take you away from this cultivation star to other realms, to seek higher immortal arts and powerful treasures. All this—do you want it?”

He finished in one breath, looking at Qiu Han with pride.

“My apologies, senior. I already have a master. I truly appreciate your kindness, but I must decline.”

Qiu Han took a deep breath, his expression calm, and bowed respectfully.

“Hmph, you really don’t know what’s good for you. Your master’s cultivation is nothing compared to mine. I only considered taking you on in order to gain my freedom sooner. Otherwise, with your talent, you wouldn’t even qualify to be my disciple.”

The man’s tone grew angrier at Qiu Han’s repeated refusals, and his previous immortal bearing vanished without a trace.

“In my day, countless Nascent Soul cultivators fought to become my disciples, even some female cultivators who would have done anything for the chance. Who would have thought that now, after reluctantly offering to take on a mere Qi Refining novice, I’d be refused repeatedly? So be it. Since you have a master, I won’t waste my breath.”

With that, the man simply turned away and returned to the inner space, apparently deciding to ignore Qiu Han altogether.

“So, what will you do next, boy? I can see that within a thousand miles there are beasts that could threaten you. Be careful not to get yourself killed! Otherwise, who knows how long I’ll have to wait for the next person capable of freeing me.”

The disdainful voice echoed in Qiu Han’s mind from within the inner space.

Qiu Han smiled faintly, shook his head without replying, and cast his divine sense into the distance. After a moment, he seemed to find his direction, flashed into the air, and flew toward the Misty Marsh.

The sky gradually filled with dark clouds, and dusk slowly descended. Before long, thunder rumbled and a torrential rain poured down. In the southwest of the Ten Thousand Mountains, all that could be heard was the sound of rain. Even the birds and beasts seemed to stop their foraging in the face of the downpour.

“It’s raining. Looks like I’ll have to slow my pace, but there’s no rush.”

Qiu Han had already been flying for nearly an hour. Though the rain lashed down in sheets, not a drop touched him; the rain curved away as it drew near, falling harmlessly to either side. Any mortal witnessing this would have been stunned.

On closer inspection, one would see Qiu Han’s body shrouded in a glowing barrier that shielded him from the rain, allowing him to travel through the storm without so much as getting wet.