Chapter 92: Seeking Mentorship

Lin Xiao watched Chen Lingxin standing before him, his mind clouded with confusion.

Throughout their meal, Chen Lingxin had maintained a steadfast silence, keeping her gaze lowered and never exchanging a word or a glance with him. But now, curiously enough, she had run after him.

Chen Lingxin stood before Lin Xiao, her chest rising and falling beneath her training uniform. A flicker of hesitation crossed her face, quickly replaced by a look of steely determination.

“Where are you heading?” she asked him.

“Home, of course,” Lin Xiao said, his eyebrows knitting together in a frown. “Do you need something? If not, I’ll be on my way.”

He waved dismissively, prepared to leave. Though he didn’t particularly dislike Chen Lingxin, he had made her cry before, and this sudden confrontation was bewildering. Unsure of her motive, but certain that it couldn’t be anything good, he decided it would be best to avoid potential complications and leave.

“Hold on a moment, let me give you a ride home.”

Chen Lingxin grabbed Lin Xiao’s wrist, attempting to pull him back without any explanation, but he didn’t budge an inch.

Her palm was cool and tinged with a hint of chilliness. Even though it was a woman’s hand, it wasn’t soft; on the contrary, it was somewhat coarse. It was evidence of countless grueling hours of training.

“There’s no need. I prefer walking,” Lin Xiao said, easily slipping his wrist out of Chen Lingxin’s grasp.

Chen Lingxin’s face fell. She seemed ready to erupt in anger, but then recalled she was no match for him. Her frustration deflated somewhat, and she murmured, “I have a few questions to ask you.”

“Is that how you ask someone for guidance?” Lin Xiao cast her a sidelong glance. “If you’re looking for help, shouldn’t you at least try showing a bit of respect?”

Chen Lingxin inwardly clenched her teeth, suppressing her rising annoyance. “I apologize, I was overly anxious earlier. I have several questions that I’d like your advice on if you’d be kind enough to answer them,” she said with forced patience.

Seeing Chen Lingxin suppressing her anger, Lin Xiao felt a hint of satisfaction.

“Go ahead, ask your question. But if it’s inappropriate, I won’t answer.”

Chen Lingxin looked up, her gaze meeting his. “Are you really unaffiliated with any martial arts hall or sect?”

“I am,” Lin Xiao said with a nod. “I don’t belong to any school.”

She hesitated for a moment, then continued, “When I reached the Clear Energy stage, I sparred with my grandfather. I didn’t lose that easily. I don’t understand… why it was so quick with you.”

Lin Xiao didn’t reveal that his cultivation far surpassed her grandfather’s. Instead, he replied plainly, “You’re confused because you haven’t accepted the gap between us. My cultivation is higher, yes, but even if it weren’t, you’d still have lost. Your technique and combat sense are both lacking.”

Each of his words landed like a blow against her pride.

Chen Lingxin’s face turned pale. She looked at Lin Xiao with a touch of defiance in her eyes. She accepted that her cultivation level was not as high as Lin Xiao’s, but she took great pride in her combat skills.

She had once defeated several opponents who had slightly higher cultivation levels by relying on her combat skills alone. Hence, she couldn’t accept that her combat skills were inferior to Lin Xiao’s.

“You seem unconvinced? Well, I’ll make sure you’re completely convinced.”

Seeing the defiance in Chen Lingxin’s eyes, Lin Xiao raised his hand and said, “Watch my hand.”

Chen Lingxin focused her gaze on Lin Xiao’s hand.

Suddenly, Lin Xiao’s palm lunged out.

Chen Lingxin felt her body shudder, her eyes unable to track Lin Xiao’s swift movement. Her body couldn’t react in time. All she experienced was a brief blur, followed by a pain on her head, and then Lin Xiao’s palm was back where it started.

Dangling between his fingers was a single strand of her hair.

Chen Lingxin’s eyes appeared somewhat dazed as she looked at the hair in Lin Xiao’s hand. She had been standing two meters away from Lin Xiao. In the blink of an eye, he had closed the distance, plucked a hair from her head, and returned to his original position, all too quickly for her to react.

What kind of speed was this? What tremendous skill was required to exhibit such acceleration?

More notably, according to her perception, Lin Xiao hadn’t used much of his qi. Instead, he had used a cultivation level akin to hers.

Lin Xiao blew gently, letting the strand of hair in his hand float down. He softly said, “Have you accepted defeat now? I only utilized a level of cultivation similar to yours, yet you couldn’t react. If this were a real battle, do you think you could stand a chance?”

Chen Lingxin fell silent.

Learning of Lin Xiao’s cultivation had been a blow. Now, having her combat skills so thoroughly dismissed—without effort—dealt another. Her pride had taken a beating.

But she was quick to recover.

She had always been competitive, and it was that very drive that had brought her to the Clear Energy stage at such a young age. Defeat only fueled her determination.

Her eyes lit up with something new—earnestness.

“What martial arts do you practice?” she asked, meeting Lin Xiao’s gaze. “Would you be willing to teach me?”

She hesitated for only a breath, then added firmly, “I know how things work in the ancient martial world. If you’re willing to teach me, I’m willing to acknowledge you as my master.”

“…”

Lin Xiao was momentarily dumbstruck. He looked at Chen Lingxin’s eager and excited eyes. Suddenly, he felt as if he’d invited some big trouble onto himself.

Chen Lingxin’s expression was utterly serious. She wasn’t joking.

Trusting his instincts as he always did, he said nothing. He simply turned around and walked away, leaving Chen Lingxin behind in an instant.

“Hey, wait for me!”

Chen Lingxin darted after him, but to no avail. Lin Xiao was simply too fast for her to catch.

As she rounded a corner, Lin Xiao’s figure had already vanished, leaving her to gnash her teeth at the deserted street before her.

“He sure knows how to run, but I won’t give up that easily,” Chen Lingxin mumbled with a steadfast look on her face.

Then she left the scene.

Only after Chen Lingxin had left did Lin Xiao emerge from his hiding spot, his gaze held mixed emotions. He had never envisaged a day when someone would request to be his disciple.

Even setting aside the fact that Lin Xiao had no interest in taking on disciples, the Thunderbolt Decree itself—though incomplete—was far more profound than any ancient martial arts manual he had ever come across.