Elder Ma slowly walked to Pan Ju, picked him up then patted his shoulder lightly, but he didn't say anything. He walked to Zhu Furong and stood in front of him with his hands crossed behind his back. He stared at Zhu Furong waiting for his decision.

Elder Ma has said everything he wanted to say and done everything he wanted to do in order to accept a new personal disciple. Now all that's left is for Zhu Furong to accept him as his master. He waited.

Zhu Furong looked at Elder Ma for a while then slightly bent down while cupping his hands.

Still bowing his head, he spoke with a slight stutter, showing some fear. "I apologize if I offend the Elder, but I-I am unable to accept a-anyone a-as my master." He raised his head and looked at Elder Ma apologetically. "Please forgive me Elder, disciple has his reasons."

"Impudent!." Elder Ma yelled angrily.

He pointed at Zhu Furong. "You-you, who do you take me for? Just a ten year old kid and dare to be so disrespectful to me. Time and time you decline my offer with some sort of excuse. You give me no face!" " Is my sincerity not enough? Or am 'I' not good enough to be your teacher?" Elder Ma asked with his chest heaving up and down with rage.

"No no, Elder, how can the disciple be disrespectful to you. Its-Its just that..." Zhu Furong shook his hands in front of his chest in denial.

"You, you still want to argue with me? Not kowtowing to pay respect to your teacher?" Elder Ma turned furious and raised his hand to slap Zhu Furong.

Zhu Furong stepped back, showing fear.

"Elder Ma, calm down." From behind a sweet and clam voice reverberated through the hall. It's Fan Xin.

Elder Ma halted in his action. He spoke without turning back. "Please don't stop me, Pavilion Master, let me teach this rascal a lesson. He looks down on our sect. I asked him to be my personal disciple so many times. At the day of his admission into the sect it can be said that it was his first time in our sect, so he can't decide something so important. But during these two months in the sect, I have taken care of all the time, even sending my brother's personal disciple Hao Bo to look after him. I have shown enough sincerity, but this rascal doesn't give me any face! He thinks I am a pushover." Elder Ma took a step forward towards Zhu Furong. "Today, the Pavilion Master went out of her way to help me get a new disciple, but this bastard doesn't even give 'you' any face. He thinks he is some big shot. Let me break his limbs to make him realize how much of a big shot he is." Saying this Elder Ma rushed to Zhu Furong and held his hand tightly lifting him off the ground.

During this whole time, Zhu Furong couldn't do anything but curse Elder Ma in his mind. He really hit the axe on his own foot. He doesn't know how to get out of this tough situation. He may be good enough to fight against a peak Foundation Establishment rank Cultivator, but here it's of no use.

"Elder Ma!" Fan Xin shouted from behind.

"Pavilion Master, please don't stop me." Elder Ma replied back. He raised his other hand to hit Zhu Furong.

Zhu Furong couldn't do anything but grit his teeth and receive the attack.

With the movement of Elder Ma's hand, striking down on Zhu Furong's arm, Zhu Furong closed his eyes.

A gust of wind hit Zhu Furong's face and then there was silence.

Zhu Furong slowly opened his eyes to see Fan Xin holding Elder Ma's hand and glaring at him. Elder Ma is looking back at her with fear in his eyes and beads of sweat on his forehead.

"To ignore the orders of your superior, are you rebelling?" Fan Xin asked in a dominant tone.

"This-this... No, No." Elder Ma shook his head vigorously.

Fan Xin let go of his hand. Elder Ma let go of Zhu Furong and took a few steps back. He bowed down with his hands cupped in salute. "Please forgive me Pavilion Master, I couldn't hold back my rage."

"Humph! Elder of Sunlight Sect losing his demeanor for such petty reasons, such a shame." Fan Xin jeered.

"Er... Pavilion Master, you can't say this. You don't know how much I sacrificed to get my hands on this disciple." Elder Ma retorted.

"I can guess you must have bribed the other Elders to stay away from this disciple but it has nothing to do with me and it has nothing to do with this disciple." Fan Xin spoke calmly.

"Also, did you ask the disciple if he wants to take you as his master before going through all these efforts?" Fan Xin asked.

Elder Ma looked at Fan Xin with dissatisfaction.

Fan Xin ignored him.

"What's there to ask? It would be his fortune to become a direct disciple of the Sunlight Sect. Who in their right mind declines such an opportunity?" Elder Ma murmured.

"What?" Fan Xin looked at Elder Ma asking him to speak louder.

"Nothing." Elder Ma turned his head away.

"Humph!" Fan Xin didn't bother to ask any further. She slowly walked back to her luohan bed and took a seat.

Chu Dongmei boiled some tea and served her master.

Elder Ma and Zhu Furong stood at their places with Zhu Furong trying his best to ignore the piercing gaze of Elder Ma who probably wants to bite his flesh off.

"Well, I don't understand why you are giving up such a good opportunity to have an Elder of the Sunlight Sect as your master, you don't like Elder Ma in particular or you don't want to take any one as your master?" Fan Xin spoke after sipping some tea.

Zhu Furong looked at Elder Ma, thinking if he would allow him to speak or would he rush to break his teeth if he uttered any sound.

"Humph!" Elder Ma stomped his feet once then walked back to a chair on the side to sit.

Zhu Furong wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve then gave a respectful bow to Fan Xin.

"Answering to the Pavilion Master, the disciple doesn't have any problem with Elder Ma. It's just that the disciple is unable to accept anyone as his master." Zhu Furong answered meekly.

"Why so?" Fan Xin frowned.

"That... It's a family issue." Zhu Furong replied.

"Explain. If the reason doesn't satisfy me, I will have to punish you for your improper behavior." Fan Xin warned.

"This..." Zhu Furong swept his gaze around the room for a second.

Fan Xin got the hint. She ordered. "The other disciples wait outside. Elder Ma will stay."

Chu Dongmei and Pan Ju silently left the room.

Fan Xin took out a talisman from her Space Ring. With the injection of her Essence Qi, the talisman activated forming a soundproofing array in the room.

"You may speak now. Elder Ma has the right to listen to why his proposal was rejected." Fan Xin indicated.

"Yes, you may speak, hehe..." Zhu Xingzuo took pleasure in Zhu Furong's misery.

"Humph! Ever heard of 'jack of all trades'? Let me show you the skills of a storyteller." Zhu Furong sneered at Zhu Xingzuo.

Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

"Oh ho ho, let's see how good my Big Brother is at telling stories. If it's good I would love to request some bedtime stories, hehe." Zhu Xingzuo teased Zhu Furong.

Zhu Furong rolled his eyes and ignored the rotten egg. He racked his brain to come up with a story on the go.

"Ahem." Zhu Furong cleared his throat.

He bowed. "First, the disciple will ask for forgiveness. The Disciples used a fake name to get in the sect. I hope you will understand after hearing me out."

Zhu Furong relaxed his posture. He doesn't want to give away the fact that he is making up things. It's hard to fool people if your expressions and behavior are stiff.

Cultivators have numerous ways to find out if someone is lying or not, but most of these skills require Divine Sense. The two masters present here, not having any Divine Sense, makes things for Zhu Furong easy.

Zhu Furong continued. "As you may have heard, the disciple's home is in Dafan city. But it's not my hometown."

"The ancestry of my family can be traced back to 500 years ago. Our hometown is far north. Hmm... The family head said it's somewhere in the Kunshe continent. There are still some members of our family living there." He spoke while tapping his chin with his index finger in the act of recollecting from memory.

"It may sound ridiculous, but our ancestors were really strong Cultivators. Our family used to be a large clan. There were many who ascended to the upper realm." Zhu Furong said with some mixed amazement in his tone.

"Humph! Speaking rubbish. If your family was so great how didn't I hear anything about your Zuo family? Don't make things up. There is not even a single mention of Zuo in any of the history records." Elder Ma accused.

"Just say you don't want to honor me as your master. Just accept you look down on our sect." Elder Ma remarked.

"B-But..." Zhu Furong said meekly. He showed a helpless look that he was speaking the truth.

"Get straight to the point. I am not interested in hearing your family history." Fan Xin impatiently called.

"Also, Elder Ma, listen carefully. He just said he is using a fake name, how can you find a record of a fake family?" Fan Xin remarked.

"Ah yes yes. Please forgive my carelessness." Elder Ma quickly bowed to show respect.

Zhu Furong held the posture of someone collecting his thoughts. He stood silent.

He spoke after a minute or two. "Our family excels in Body Cultivation rather than Qi Cultivation. So the disciple is practicing Body Cultivation techniques passed down from generation to generation in our family."

He continued. "The goal of my family is to restore the glory of the past, and it should be done via Body Cultivation, so we do not invest much into learning Qi Cultivation techniques or arts." Zhu Furong looked apologetic.

"Then what are you doing here? We at Sunlight Sect don't teach Body Cultivation techniques, everyone knows this." Elder Ma asked.

Fan Xin also looked at Zhu Furong with inquiry. She has the same question.

"This..." Zhu Furong scratched his head showing embarrassment.

"The Cultivation techniques have gone through such a long flow of time, the family has gone through many tough situations, some part of the Cultivation techniques has been lost and it has become imperfect." "The younger generation of the family are sent out in different directions to search for a solution and to accumulate some life experience in the process." Zhu Furong answered.

"So you are saying that you entered our sect to gain life experience and not to learn our techniques?" Fan Xin raised her brow.

"Yes. Ah I mean, No. Ah..." Zhu Furong scratched his head.

Fan Xin frowned, looking dissatisfied.

Zhu Furong quickly racked his brain to bring the situation to his favor.

He cupped his hands in salute and bowed with respect. "Though my family doesn't have any interest in Qi Cultivation, I am different. In my opinion, it's not good to stick to the past and adapt to the present and look into the future. Unlike my family, I want to learn Qi Cultivation techniques, as I can't let my family know about this. I had no other options but to use a fake name and enter the Sunlight Sect. I apologize for my reckless behavior."

Zhu Furong stood up straight and continued. "Also, I have entered the sect as a disciple so I will carry out my duty of serving the sect. Even after I leave the sect in the future, the fact will remain that I am indebted to the Sunlight Sect. If the sect ever calls for me, I won't step back and do the best under my capabilities."

"What if your family doesn't want you to have any connections with our sect? You didn't tell us about the real identity of your family? How can I trust you?" Fan Xin asked.

"Er... You don't have to worry about this. Even though the Cultivation techniques of our family are incomplete, it won't hinder me. I aim for the peak of Martial Arts and Cultivation. And I will surely find my way up there one day. I am a Cultivator. And for a Cultivator the most important thing is having a Clear Conscience, isn't it? Without a Clear Conscience, no matter how hard one tries, no matter how much one seeks, they can't achieve the peak of Cultivation." Zhu Furong spoke with confidence and assurance.

Fan Xin's eyes opened wide for a second. "You speak some wise words for your age." "There are so many genius people out there, so many talents, many people with high Cultivation rank, but how many of them have Clear Conscience?" Her eyes strayed to Elder Ma for a second. "How many people can say they have Clear Conscience?" "And they blame their luck and fate when they fail in Cultivation. They curse the heavens for being unfair." Fan Xin shook her head.

After hearing the last few words of Zhu Furong, Fan Xin's view of him changed quite a bit. She is impressed. For a young boy around the age of ten to have such profound thoughts and strong mentality, it's quite rare to see. It can only be acquired through experience.

'Just how has this boy lived his life until now? Just how did his family train him to be so mature at such a young age?' Fan Xin couldn't help but wonder.

"I agree with Sister Fan." Elder Ma nodded his head.

Instantly Fan Xin gave a murderous look to Elder Ma, making him having goosebumps.

Elder Ma quickly corrected himself. "I agree with Pavilion Master Fan, but I still don't see the reason for this kid to not accept any master here." He pointed at Zhu Furong with an angry look.

"That's also true." Fan Xin nodded with agreement.

She looked at Zhu Furong. "Didn't you say you want to learn Qi Cultivation techniques? Then why are you denying to accept a master? I think it's to your merit to have a master guide you, you can also seek help with your Body Cultivation technique. It's never wrong to have someone experienced give you pointers." Fan Xin questioned.

"Though, disciple have some interest in Qi Cultivation, I still prefer to master Body Cultivation. Also, serving a master as their disciple means I have to follow their way and teachings. My Master's skills will show in my skills. The name of my master will attach to my fame." "Since I am not sure how long I can stay in the sect, and I may be called back to my family anytime, so it is not suitable for me to worship a master." He bowed to Elder Ma. "I hope you understand."

Elder Ma made a disgruntled face. He stood up. "Pavilion Master, since it looks like I won't be able to replace my personal disciple, please allow me to take my leave. I have matters to take care of." He slightly bowed to Fan Xin, then walked towards the door without even waiting for Fan Xin's reply. Elder Ma is really pissed.

Looking at Elder Ma leave, Zhu Furong took a sigh of relief.

'That god the story worked.' Zhu Furong rejoiced.

"Since no one is here now, you can tell me your real name can't you?" Fan Xin suddenly asked when Zhu Furong was savoring his success.

Zhu Furong doesn't know what to do. He just hung his head contemplating.

"You can't? Then leave it. I don't care much anyways. But I do care about your sincerity towards the sect. As Cultivators, you should know that empty promises don't have any value. Make an oath." Fan Xin ordered.

"Oath?" Zhu Furong is taken aback.

"Yes, oath, vow. I want you to make a verbal oath as a Cultivator, that you will respect your duties to the Sunlight Sect and will help the sect in its peril.

'What the fuck? I have to take an oath just for this? Can't you believe my words? Do I look like someone who will go back on his words?... Well I was going to, but I guess now I can't. Sigh.' Zhu Furong lamented. He thought things would be easy. But now he has to make an oath. An oath in the world of Martial Arts is quite serious. It can have major consequences.

"Just a verbal oath right?" Zhu Furong asked.

"Just a verbal oath will do. I have faith in you. Someone who can speak of Clear Conscience wouldn't break his promise right? Or were you just making up those words?" Fan Xin mocked.

Zhu Furong rolled his eyes.

He raised his right hand, closed his fingers and let the three middle fingers out. "I vow on my Cultivation, that I will follow my duties as the disciple of Sunlight Sect and support the sect in any tough situations till the day I leave this planet. If I go back on my oath, may my Cultivation be demolished and my progress be halted."

The oath is completed. As it's just a verbal oath the repercussion won't be fatal. But both Zhu Furong and Fan Xin know that for someone like Zhu Furong who seeks to have a Clear Conscience, this oath will be quite detrimental. Failing to keep this oath will give birth to heart demons and as a result will lead to qigong deviation.

"Till the day you leave this planet?" Fan Xin raised one brow in amusement. She is shocked by Zhu Furong's self-confidence. He shows absolute certainty that he will ascend to the upper realm.

Who in this world can say that they can certainly ascend to the upper realm? Everybody wants to and dreams to, but how many can keep up with their dreams? The two ancestors of the Sunlight Sect are still waiting for their opportunities to come. They have grown old and growing older day by day.

"You are quite amusing." Fan Xin praised with a beautiful smile.

"Hehe. You overpraise me." Zhu Furong shamelessly accepted the praise while tucking his hair behind his ear in a coquettish manner.

Fan Xin couldn't help but chuckle.

"Well, I have my doubts about what you said today and I am sure Elder Ma does too, but it doesn't matter after your oath. I accept you as the disciple of the Sunlight Sect. It doesn't matter where you are from and what you are here for." Fan Xin affirmed in a calm manner.

'As I thought, It's really not easy to fool these experts who have amassed a diversity of experiences throughout their lives, roaming through the world as a Cultivator.' Zhu Furong's back got wet with cold sweat as he thought this.

"Then, I can take my leave now?" Zhu Furong asked with a 'want to run away' body language.

"Not yet." Fan Xin answered.

Zhu Furong looked confused.

'What else is left?' Zhu Furong thought hard but couldn't guess.

"First go out and call my disciple in." Fan Xin ordered, then she laid down lazily on the bed.