"Okay, then Mother, you must hurry and come find me," Cong Er said. He missed his father dearly, even though he couldn't remember what his father looked like.
He knew from his mother how much his father loved him.
"I will," his mother replied. Looking at her sensible child, she was determined not to let him become an orphan.
After Lin Yan and her group entered, they separated. When all their communication devices failed, Lin Yan gave up and ventured further in alone.
Before long, Lin Yan encountered a puppet. It was also at the early stage of Golden Core and was a sword cultivator.
The puppet drew its sword and challenged Lin Yan. Lin Yan understood its intention and also drew her own sword to engage it.
In the first round, Lin Yan lost.
The puppet not only had the same cultivation level as her but also the same sword techniques and moves. However, the puppet's swordsmanship was superior.
Lin Yan's current cultivation was merely from memory; many techniques had not yet become muscle memory. Thus, she was quickly defeated in her fight with the puppet.
After reflecting on her recent failure, Lin Yan challenged the puppet a second time.
In the second round, Lin Yan lasted longer but was still defeated.
This time, Lin Yan did not rush to challenge for a third time. She recalled her sword moves and techniques, then replicated those used by the puppet, pondering the differences. Only then did she initiate her third challenge.
Yet, Lin Yan failed again in this third attempt. However, she persisted for a longer duration and employed more sword moves.
This time, Lin Yan did not ponder further and challenged once more.
Challenge, defeat, challenge again, defeat again.
Lin Yan challenged repeatedly and failed repeatedly. But through these failures, her understanding of sword techniques deepened.
Lin Yan was unaware of what the others were experiencing, but she was captivated by the exquisite nature of these sword moves.
It wasn't until her final challenge that Lin Yan won with ease.
After her victory, Lin Yan sheathed her sword and bowed to the puppet.
Once Lin Yan had bowed, the puppet moved.
It performed a set of sword techniques, and fearing that Lin Yan might not have fully memorized them, it demonstrated them a second time.
Lin Yan understood its intention and memorized the sword techniques. She then practiced them once for the puppet to see.
Seeing that Lin Yan had learned them, the puppet moved aside, clearing a path for Lin Yan to enter the next room.
Upon entering the next room, Lin Yan saw another puppet. However, this puppet was at the mid-stage of Golden Core.
Lin Yan once again repeated the process, losing to the puppet time and again.
Wang You waited outside for several days, but none of them emerged. Instead, cultivators from another team began to come out.
The individuals who emerged were in a daze, similar to the ordinary villagers. People were waiting outside to attend to the unconscious cultivators and brought them back.
Wang You felt a slight sense of relief upon seeing that the cultivator was only at the Foundation Establishment stage and appeared unharmed.
When Madam Yang arrived with Cong Er before Wang You, he had just finished refining a batch of pills.
Madam Yang knew that this person had come with Fairy Wang Shu. Therefore, she brought her son over without waiting for Fairy Wang Shu to emerge.
"You are Madam Yang, aren't you?" Wang You seemed to know who she was, as he detected a familiar medicinal scent on her.
"I dare not accept such a title from an immortal," Madam Yang immediately demurred.
"It's merely a form of address. Are you here to find Junior Sister Wang Shu?"
"Yes, Fairy Wang Shu promised to take my son as a disciple and would bring us mother and son away when she leaves. I have matters to attend to now and cannot wait for Fairy Wang Shu to emerge. Therefore, I wish to entrust Cong Er to you, immortal. I hope you can hand my son over to Fairy Wang Shu."
As she spoke, Madam Yang pushed her son forward.
"Junior Sister Wang Shu is accepting a disciple?" Wang You looked at Cong Er and could tell that the child possessed spiritual roots. "Very well, you can leave the child with me."
"Thank you kindly, immortal," Madam Yang bowed.
"Thank you, immortal!" Cong Er also cupped his hands in a bow.
"Alright, little one, don't be so formal. Come over here and have a seat." Although this was Wang You's first time meeting Cong Er, he found the child to be very sensible and well-behaved.
"Then I shall take my leave," Madam Yang said, preparing to depart.
"Take this, Madam Yang," Wang You tossed a pouch to her.
"Bind it with your blood. It contains some medicine. Since you are the mother of Junior Sister Wang Shu's disciple, I cannot let you leave empty-handed."
Although he often acted carelessly, he knew that the situation requiring her to leave without waiting even a few days must be very dangerous.
Therefore, he gave her something for protection. He couldn't bear for this child to lose his mother at such a young age.
"Thank you, immortal!" Madam Yang caught the pouch and bowed deeply to Wang You. She cast a reluctant glance at her son before turning and leaving.
"Mother!" Cong Er was reluctant to part with his mother, and tears welled up in his eyes, but he remained strong and said nothing.
He sat quietly in the spot Wang You had indicated, not wanting to burden Wang You.
"Little fellow, your name is Cong Er?" Wang You became somewhat interested in the child at this point.
"Yes, I am Cong Er."
"Do you know what your mother is going to do?"
"Mother is going to bring Father back." Cong Er knew that the immortal before him was trustworthy, so he answered truthfully.
Looking at his obedient demeanor, Wang You thought that perhaps he wouldn't mind taking such a disciple.
Lin Yan finally emerged from the rooms. Thinking of the rewards stored in her storage ring, she felt that this trip had been truly worthwhile.
However, this place would not exist for long. Such an opportunity had allowed her strength to increase so much; she began to consider intercepting the male protagonist's fortuitous encounters.
All treasures under heaven belong to those who are fated. Perhaps she should try and see if she could obtain them.
When Lin Yan emerged from the trial grounds, she was not unconscious. Upon exiting, she found that everyone else seemed to be waiting for her outside.
"I apologize for keeping all my senior brothers and sisters waiting," Lin Yan said apologetically.
"We also only came out not long ago. However, Junior Sister Wang Shu must have gained quite a lot this time," Qing Shuang said to Lin Yan with a smile.
"Yes, if I go into seclusion now, I should be able to break through to the mid-stage of Golden Core," Lin Yan nodded. "How about you, Senior Sister?"
"I can attempt to break through to the late stage," Qing Shuang said casually.
"Congratulations, Senior Sister! And how about everyone else, senior brothers and sisters?"
"We've also made some progress," Qing Yu said with a smile, but her smile indicated to Lin Yan that the word "some" was likely an understatement.
"Oh, right, your young disciple. His mother entrusted him to me to hand over to you," Wang You remembered Cong Er, who was waiting in his room.
"Young disciple? Is it Cong Er? Has his mother already left?" Lin Yan paused for a moment before realizing who Wang You was referring to.