Chapter 61: Ran off With the Disciple?

“Alright, what brings you to me?” Ye Wenxin suppressed her amusement and resumed a serious expression.

“Well, it’s like this, Miss Wenxin, do you still need followers?” Gu Aotian asked somewhat awkwardly, apparently having heard rumors from Fatty about Ye Wenxin recruiting followers.

Not only did Ye Wenxin recruit followers, but she also gave them pills and even helped them with treatment. And now, Gu Aotian lacked a master and access to resources, which led him to come to Ye Wenxin for help.

“Nope.”

“Huh?” Gu Aotian was taken aback. He thought that given his relationship with Ye Wenxin, he should be able to become one of her followers, but now he was mercilessly rejected by Ye Wenxin.

“With your current capabilities, you can absolutely participate in the Alchemy Workshop’s upcoming recruitment. Wouldn’t it be better to refine pills on your own?” Ye Wenxin calmly analyzed, preparing to give Gu Aotian an opportunity.

Ling Jue was probably one of Gu Aotian’s love interests as well. Although she was somewhat reluctant to let go of Ling Jue, this gentle Big Sister, Gu Aotian should be able to do something to change her situation. Ye Wenxin had to guide Gu Aotian onto the path of an alchemist; she could not provide him with any resources.

“You’re right, I misspoke.” Gu Aotian was momentarily stunned, before quickly regaining his composure, realizing that he had been overly dependent on Ye Wenxin, much like Fatty and the others.

“But I can lend you some pills in advance. You can repay me when you’ve refined some yourself,” Ye Wenxin tempted Gu Aotian with pills once again.

“No need, I’ll rely on my own efforts. Thank you for reminding me of something I’ve been neglecting lately.” Gu Aotian had fully calmed down. In the past month, he had been completely disheartened by Fairy Fengya’s indifference, almost losing his fighting spirit. However, Ye Wenxin’s refusal made him rekindle his original intention. After thanking Ye Wenxin, he quickly left.

Ye Wenxin stood there, gazing towards the Alchemy Workshop in the distance.

Despite the distance not being far, Ling Jue had not come to see her since the day she dressed as a woman. Though Ye Wenxin wanted to find Ling Jue, as an outer disciple, she could not enter the Alchemy Workshop in the inner sect.

Fortunately, the Alchemy Workshop’s new recruitment drive was about to begin. Unlike before, this time all disciples could participate.

It seemed that the Azure Wings Sect was in a hurry to raise an alchemy teacher before Ling Jue left. Otherwise, considering the sect’s nature, they would not have opened it to all disciples.

This news caused a stir throughout the sect, with everyone eager to compete for one of the one hundred spots.

Perhaps it was because of this matter that Ling Jue had not had time to see her, or maybe she was still angry and deliberately avoiding her. Regardless, Ye Wenxin could not be bothered to think too much about it as she continued forward, only to encounter some unfriendly outer sect senior brothers ahead.

“Pretty junior sister, where are you heading?”

“Oh, to teach my grandson?”

“Grandson? Teach?” The unfamiliar senior brother looked puzzled, and then saw Ye Wenxin take out a silver needle from her bag of holding.

“Ah!” A scream echoed through the skies, becoming a common occurrence among the outer disciples of the Azure Wings Sect lately.

“Big Sister, don’t you think they’ve been avoiding us lately?” Inside the dining hall, a large area cleared out amidst the crowded space. While this was a common area for outer disciples, a large circle had formed around Ye Wenxin.

The senior brothers and sisters who knew Ye Wenxin and her fearless followers said nothing, while those who had not been bullied by Ye Wenxin spread rumors and gossip about her and those followers.

The descriptions coming from those male disciples were unbearable, and some even intentionally raised their voices to catch Ye Wenxin’s attention.

Ye Wenxin’s eyes swept over the scene and landed on Baili Mu, who was sitting near that group. Seeing her furrowed brows, Ye Wenxin guessed that she had once again misunderstood her relationship with this group of little brothers.

“Let’s teach these people a lesson too,” Ye Wenxin pointed to the loudest one, commanding Fatty.

“Big Sister, we can’t mess with those few.” Fatty looked towards the individuals Ye Wenxin had pointed at and realized they had strong backing in the inner sect, even ranking in the top ten of the inner sect’s list.

Even if Fatty and the others were beaten, they definitely would not dare provoke these few notorious troublemakers.

“I see. No wonder they’re so audacious. Then you guys just redouble your efforts and get into the inner sect as soon as possible.” Ye Wenxin did not inquire further, continuing to eat her meal as if she heard nothing of the gossip.

However, seeing Ye Wenxin’s silence, those people became more and more audacious. The little brothers gritted their teeth in frustration, wishing they could fight those rich and powerful disciples.

“You guys can’t defeat them now. Stop being huffy, eat a little more then beat more people.”

Yet, Ye Wenxin remained calm. Despite her attempts to pacify them, the little brothers still felt uneasy but obediently complied.

Just when everyone thought the matter was settled, Baili Mu walked over to the men with a hint of annoyance on her face.

“Could you guys please shut up and eat properly!”

“What’s the matter, Baili Mu? Are we disturbing you by talking?” The rich disciples were first stunned, but when they saw it was Baili Mu, they burst into laughter.

“Shut up!” Baili Mu grew even more furious and tried to pick a fight with the man who was leading the group.

However, Baili Mu was only at the Qi Refining stage and stood no chance against a Foundation Establishment cultivator. The man effortlessly dodged her attacks, mocking Baili Mu.

In this world of survival of the fittest, strength was the only language.

“Hahaha, Junior Sister Baili, do you want to experience the taste of a man too?” Seeing Baili Mu’s face flushed with anger, the man laughed even harder, getting closer to Baili Mu as if trying to take advantage of her.

Baili Mu immediately reacted and took three steps back to avoid the assault.

While everyone else turned a blind eye to this act of bullying, Fatty looked anxious. “Boss, Baili Mu is no match for that guy.” Yet in those three steps back, Ye Wenxin sensed something unusual.

Baili Mu was hiding her true strength; her cultivation level was definitely more than just at the Qi Refining stage.

“It’s fine, she won’t die,” Ye Wenxin reassured Fatty, who still seemed worried. “But Baili Mu got into this because of you. Now that so many of them are attacking her alone, Big Sister, shouldn’t you…” Ye Wenxin made a hushing gesture, her gaze still fixed on the two in the fight.

Baili Mu appeared to be in a difficult situation, but each time she cleverly avoided all of the man’s attacks. There were rumors about the Baili clan being knowledgeable in various fields, from astronomy to geography. It was unclear if the Baili Mu before her had any connection to that prestigious clan.

Ye Wenxin continued to observe. Unlike the others who were nervous, she seemed to be watching a performance.

In this theatrical spectacle, the man appeared disheveled, while Baili Mu’s eyes held a hint of contempt as she toyed with him, watching him fall to the ground in a sorry state, bloodied and defeated.

If it were not for Baili Mu’s bad temper, she might have been considered a worthy candidate for cultivation.

Ye Wenxin silently assessed her, and after Baili Mu finished teaching the man a lesson, she brushed off the dust from her clothes and glanced at Ye Wenxin, her disdain apparent in her eyes.

“Big sister, the way she looks at you is like she’s looking at a foe.” Fatty trembled involuntarily, seemingly unable to understand why Ye Wenxin and Baili Mu had such a poor relationship.

Ye Wenxin was even more perplexed, but considering Baili Mu’s uptight personality, she probably hated people like Ye Wenxin, so Ye Wenxin did not dwell on it. With her little brothers surrounding her, she headed back along the path.

Unexpectedly, she had not walked a few steps before she saw Huang Hanyan, whom she had not seen in a long time.

Compared to over a month ago, Huang Hanyan appeared thinner but had reached eighth-stage Qi Refining in her cultivation. She seemed to be in a hurry and did not even notice Ye Wenxin.

Ye Wenxin was about to greet her when she saw a man following behind Huang Hanyan.

“Hanyan, listen to me…” The man was naturally Wen Yiming, Huang Hanyan’s fiancé arranged by her family. He anxiously followed at Huang Hanyan’s heels, his eyes filled with urgency.

Huang Hanyan’s expression was cold, and she completely ignored Wen Yiming’s plea. Probably due to being pestered by Wen Yiming, this was the first time in a month that Ye Wenxin had seen Huang Hanyan.

“You guys block Wen Yiming. I’ll have a word with that senior sister,” Ye Wenxin muttered to Fatty. Without further ado, they started beating up Wen Yiming.

Taking advantage of the situation, Ye Wenxin grabbed Huang Hanyan and ran off. Both of them were panting heavily, only stopping when they were about to reach the path to the backwoods.

Huang Hanyan was still catching her breath, but there was a hint of a smile on her lovely face, unable to contain her excitement.

To avoid Wen Yiming, Huang Hanyan had been in closed door training during this time and only came out today. However, she did not expect Wen Yiming to wait for her at the door, making it difficult for her to shake him off.

It was on their way to the dining hall that she unexpectedly ran into Ye Wenxin.

Thinking of Ye Wenxin’s kindness to her, Huang Hanyan’s smile became even brighter, like the radiant sun on a winter’s day, momentarily mesmerizing.

“Wenxin, long time no see.”

“Yeah, it’s been a while. Looks like you’ve made quite some progress,” Ye Wenxin was genuinely surprised. The last time they met, Huang Hanyan was only at sixth-stage Qi Refining. In just a month’s time, she had advanced to the eighth stage.

“Yeah, thanks to the pills you gave me, I’ve progressed so rapidly.” Huang Hanyan was quite embarrassed, holding Ye Wenxin’s hand as she expressed her gratitude.

“It’s nothing. You’re going repay me double in the future anyway, there’s no need to thank me too much.” Ye Wenxin immediately shook her head, intending to wipe the sweat from her forehead but realizing she had not brought a handkerchief with her.

After a moment of thought, she decided to leave it. Just then, she noticed that Huang Hanyan had already taken out a handkerchief and was helping her wipe away the sweat. Feeling a bit embarrassed at the touch of the handkerchief against her cheek, Ye Wenxin hesitated.

However, Huang Hanyan seemed oblivious to the intimacy of her actions and earnestly helped Ye Wenxin wipe away the sweat. With her clear and delicate features, her smile was particularly bright, revealing her excellent mood.

Once finished, Huang Hanyan started wiping her own forehead with the same handkerchief, completely unconcerned that it had just been used on Ye Wenxin. Ye Wenxin was a bit bewildered but seeing that Huang Hanyan did not mind, she said nothing about it.