During his month in this forest, his injuries had mostly healed, but the dantian is the most crucial part of a martial artist’s cultivation. If the dantian is destroyed, it basically means a martial artist’s lifetime of cultivation is ruined. Such an injury can only possibly be healed with the aid of spiritual medicine; relying solely on ordinary recuperation, who knows how long it would take to recover.

“Sir.”

Seeing that Ethan Clark seemed about to leave, David Harris, who had been waiting nearby, hesitated for a long time before finally gritting his teeth and stepping forward to salute.

“Hmm? You haven’t left yet?”

“Well… sir, may I be so bold as to ask, were you just now planning to make a deal with Miss Lily Carter?”

“You overheard our conversation?”

“No, no, I was just speculating…”

Ethan Clark nodded, not feeling that this was anything shameful.

“Sir, are you seeking to trade with Miss Lily Carter because you need Alliance Coins?”

“That’s right.”

“Well… if you trust me, I would be willing to purchase your items myself…”

Ethan Clark, who had not yet exchanged his resources and materials for Alliance Coins, had been a bit disappointed, but upon hearing David Harris’s words, he couldn’t help but be surprised: “You mean, you’re willing to trade with me? I must make it clear, what I want is Alliance Coins.”

“Of course. If you don’t trust me, just give me your account number and I can transfer you ten thousand Alliance Coins right now as a deposit.”

The items in Ethan Clark’s possession were worth about thirty thousand Alliance Coins; ten thousand was about a third of their total value, more than enough to show David Harris’s sincerity.

However…

Ethan Clark sized up David Harris for a moment, then said frankly, “Tell me your purpose.”

Hearing Ethan Clark’s words, David Harris’s heart surged, but he forced himself to control his excitement, straightened his attire, and bowed respectfully to Ethan Clark: “I wish to take you as my master, and earnestly beg you to accept me as your disciple.”

Chapter 8: Registered Disciple

“Apprenticeship?”

“Senior brother!”

David Harris’s decision surprised both Ethan Clark and Julia Baker.

Ethan Clark was less surprised; although virtual residents maintained their pride, taking a master was not unheard of. Back when he was Gu Fang, there had been no shortage of cultivators who wanted to become his disciples.

But it was different for Julia Baker.

She was just a native resident, and to her, David Harris’s action was almost tantamount to betraying his sect. Her eyes were full of confusion and disbelief, and her tone, tinged with grief, became stern: “Senior brother, how could you do this? Master has treated you with the utmost kindness, practically grooming you as the next leader of the Sanluo Sword Sect, giving you every sword technique, cultivation method, resource, and treasure you wanted. Over the years, he’s poured so much effort into you, and yet you…”

“Junior sister, I’m not trying to leave the Sanluo Sword Sect. I just hope to take this gentleman as my master and receive his guidance.”

“This…”

While Julia Baker hesitated, David Harris stepped forward again, came to Ethan Clark’s side, and bowed deeply, his expression earnest: “I sincerely hope you will accept me as your disciple. I will serve you loyally, handle all trivial matters for you, and fulfill all the duties a disciple should.”

Ethan Clark sized up David Harris for a moment, then glanced at Julia Baker. After a while, he said, “I’m curious. You truly wish to become my disciple, but as fellow residents of the virtual world, our statuses are equal. Yet here in the True Profound World, you’re willing to humble yourself so much to take me as your master… I’ve never seen this before. After all, the True Profound World is still the True Profound World… In the past, it was precisely because virtual world residents were constantly bullied by the natives that so many of them left the True Profound World. Your humble attitude now… is quite unusual.”

David Harris gave a wry smile. “That was before.”

“Before?”

David Harris looked at Ethan Clark, a bit surprised. “Sir, you don’t know?”

“Know what?”

David Harris carefully examined Ethan Clark, and seeing that he didn’t seem to be pretending, quickly said, “Forgive me, sir. I thought you were a master secretly cultivated by one of the great families, so…”

“Tell me, what should I know?”

“Well…”

David Harris hesitated for a moment, then finally, as if making a big decision, stepped forward a few more steps and whispered so that only Julia Baker could not hear: “May I ask, sir, are you not a master cultivated by one of the great families of the Yanhuang Star Domain?”

Ethan Clark shook his head.

“What does this have to do with the so-called great families of the Yanhuang Star Domain?”

“Uh… not much, really. It’s just that these things are already common knowledge among the great and small families of the Yanhuang Star Domain, not much of a secret anymore. I’m afraid that in less than half a year, no matter how much they try to suppress it, this news will be made public.”

“What secret is it, exactly?”