The Emei disciple who brought the meal was named Leonard Shaw. He was tall and imposing, with a fierce appearance that made him look like a brute, but in reality, he was both scholarly and skilled in martial arts. He came from a family of scholars—his grandfather had served as an official in one of the Six Ministries, and his father was also a highly respected scholar. If not for troubles at home, he would certainly have been studying behind closed doors, preparing for the imperial exams, rather than seeking immortality and learning the Dao here.

It was precisely because Leonard Shaw was also a scholar that he hit it off immediately with “Jason Turner,” who was also well-versed in poetry and literature. They became good friends, often discussing the past and present and studying essays together.

Leonard Shaw laughed and said, “So what can we do? The elders won’t let you move about freely with William York, but if they didn’t arrange for someone to bring you meals, wouldn’t that be starving you all to death? Our Emei Sect would never do such a thing.”

Richard King took the opportunity to say, “I wonder if I’ll ever have the chance to join the Emei Sect and study advanced Daoist arts like you, Brother Shaw.”

With that said!

Richard King sighed lightly and took the food box brought by Leonard Shaw.

Chapter One: Apprenticeship at Mount Emei (Part Five)

Leonard Shaw was helpless as well. He had only recently become a disciple himself and hadn’t even been taught the Emei Sect’s Daoist arts yet—he’d only learned some basic martial arts to strengthen his body. He could only offer comforting words: “You and William York are both talented, and your backgrounds are pitiable. Although you apprenticed under an evil sect, it was forced upon you and not your true intention, and you haven’t done anything bad. I heard from Junior Sister Lillian Moore that when she was captured by your evil master, it was thanks to your repeated persuasion that she wasn’t killed immediately. So, you’ve actually done a lot of good deeds. The elders will surely see that.”

Richard King gave a dry laugh, thinking to himself, “The Emei Sect has strict views on good and evil. If it weren’t for the current hardships of the Five Spirits Immortal Abode, there wouldn’t even be any debate—they’d have sent us down the mountain long ago, maybe even erased our memories and stripped our powers to prevent us from causing trouble in the mortal world.” But these things, he would never say to Leonard Shaw.

Richard King chatted idly with Leonard Shaw for a while, then carried the food box back to his stone cave.

The Emei Sect’s diet was rather light. Although meat wasn’t forbidden, there were only one or two pieces of lean meat, steamed without any oil, making it refreshing but scant in quantity. The rest was just vegetables and fruit.

Richard King quickly finished all the food, knowing that he’d have to wait until the afternoon for Leonard Shaw to bring the next meal and take away the food box. He then sat cross-legged and began cultivating the Yuanyang Sword Technique.

In the Emei Sect, there were only two meals a day—breakfast and dinner. Noon was considered the best time for cultivation, so there was no meal then.

After a whole afternoon of hard cultivation, Richard King managed to convert a bit more Yuanyang true qi and even opened up his Yanglao acupoint. The Yuanyang true qi now flowed more actively through his various acupoints.

After dinner, Richard King intended to cultivate a bit more, but unexpectedly, William York barged in with a boy of about seven or eight years old, without even announcing himself outside the cave—quite reckless and rude.

After coming in, he first made faces at Richard King, then introduced, “This is Lillian Moore Senior Sister’s younger brother, Thomas Moore. He’s found a really fun place to play. How about we go check it out together?”

Richard King declined, saying, “Being allowed to stay at the Five Spirits Immortal Abode for a few days is already a great blessing. Since we’re not allowed to wander around, why break the rules of the immortals? Besides, even if there’s something exciting, it’s not worth offending the immortals over.”

William York laughed, “It’s not like we’re sneaking off—Tommy is leading the way! Besides, the immortals are all generous; they won’t mind. Let’s go, let’s go, just don’t let anyone find out.”

Richard King rather looked down on William York. Back when they were under the tutelage of the Smoke Daoist, he already knew this guy was a schemer, but also extremely childish—never able to accomplish anything, only good at messing things up. He thought to himself, “Even if I don’t go with them, if William York causes trouble, I’ll probably still get dragged into it. I’d better find a way to dissuade him. Once I master the Yuanyang Sword Technique and gain the recognition of the Yuanyang Sword, whether I succeed in joining the Emei Sect or leave quietly with the sword, the world will be wide open to me—why should I care what happens to him?”

Thinking this, Richard King pretended to hesitate, but Thomas Moore couldn’t hold back and said, “If you don’t want to go, I won’t take you. This fun place—if it weren’t for Senior York’s sake, I wouldn’t have agreed. Otherwise, you wouldn’t even have a chance.”

Only then did Richard King pretend to be forced and reluctantly agreed, “Fine, I’ll go with you.”

As the three of them walked out, William York deliberately lagged half a step behind to walk alongside Richard King, lowering his voice to say, “I have a huge benefit in store. If it weren’t for the fact that we’re fellow disciples, I wouldn’t bring you along. Just do as I say when the time comes.”

Richard King glanced at Thomas Moore striding ahead, completely unaware, and couldn’t help but sigh softly.

Thomas Moore wasn’t actually an Emei disciple yet; his sister was only a registered disciple and hadn’t formally joined the Emei Sect.

This boy, though only eight, was extremely arrogant. After he and his sister were rescued and brought to the Five Spirits Immortal Abode, they acted as if they belonged to the Emei Sect, bossing around both Richard King and William York and looking down on them.

With such a personality, Thomas Moore was bound to cause trouble sooner or later. Although Richard King didn’t much like the boy, he knew that even if he tried to advise him, the boy probably wouldn’t listen—he might even resent it more. So he couldn’t be bothered to waste the effort.