He turned over and sat up, only to see a face as beautiful as a fairy’s, which startled him so much that he quickly scooted to the side, but accidentally bumped into the headboard and immediately cried out again, “That hurts so much I could die.”

Irene Key saw his flustered behavior and couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh, saying, “Alright! It’s all fine now.”

Irene Key was one of the four great disciples of the third generation of Emei, naturally gifted and pure, with a noble spirit. She rarely smiled in daily life, resembling the fairies described in ancient books—graceful as ice and snow, with an aura that made her hard to approach.

Richard King had seen Irene Key a few times before, but this was the first time he had seen this Emei female disciple’s smile.

Chapter One: Becoming a Disciple at Mount Emei (11)

Richard King wiped his face—this was intentional on his part. Originally, his face and orifices were all stained with blood, and with one wipe, he looked even more pitiful.

This act of playing the victim worked quite well. Jason Turner’s background was already quite pitiable, and he was still so young. Seeing him like this, Irene Key couldn’t help but feel some compassion and gently said, “You just need to tell the truth. If this wasn’t your doing, my Emei Sect wouldn’t make things difficult for a child like you.”

Mr. Crane stepped into the stone cave, gave Richard King a slight smile, and asked, “I have a few questions for you. How did you get these injuries?”

Richard King knew the Mirror of Returning Immortals could trace the past, and Mr. Crane’s power was far greater than Grace Lewis’s. Even if he was reluctant to expend his energy, tracing back a few days would be easy. He could only hope that the Heavenly Pearl could help him cover things up.

He stammered, “Since entering the Immortal Mansion, I have always behaved myself and dared not overstep! I know all the immortal masters dislike the power I cultivated from an evil master, and think this power can only harm, not help. Some time ago, I happened to receive a set of martial arts from Senior Brother David Hill. Thinking that the evil techniques I learned were not good, I destroyed them all, and even shattered the dagger I used before, so I could start over.”

Mr. Crane listened to Richard King’s explanation and couldn’t help but be a little surprised, secretly thinking, “This child truly admires the righteous path!”

If Richard King could become a disciple of Emei, destroying his evil powers would be inevitable. How could an Emei disciple have a foundation in evil techniques? He might even have to temper his body and refine his energy for several years, only being allowed to start learning orthodox methods once all evil energy was gone. But for the Emei Sect to force him to abandon his powers and for Richard King to do it on his own were two very different things—especially since Richard King even destroyed his only magical weapon. Even if he joined Emei, their strict rules meant he wouldn’t be granted a magical weapon for over a decade, at most some talismans.

Just this alone not only won Richard King the approval of Mr. Crane, but also the favor of the other Emei disciples. Several third-generation disciples watching all praised the boy.

David Hill knew Richard King did this because he had received the Dragon-Subduing Vajra Hand technique. Though it wasn’t his fault, he still felt a bit hot inside and thought, “In the future, I must look after this child more.”

James Young thought to himself, “This person was willing to give up the evil power he worked so hard to cultivate, just because he didn’t want to harm others. Such a heart is rare, and his devotion to the Dao is quite firm. If I get the chance, I’ll definitely recommend him to the elders. Even if his talent isn’t outstanding, with this kind of heart, he won’t go astray.”

Mr. Crane asked Richard King a few more questions, and to be cautious, activated the Mirror of Returning Immortals to check what happened.

Richard King’s heart was in his throat, but he felt a slight coolness between his brows as the Heavenly Pearl quietly appeared.

The Mirror of Returning Immortals emitted a beam of clear light, and in the time it traced back, it only showed “Jason Turner” shattering his dagger, destroying his evil powers, and spitting blood.

When Jason Turner shattered his dagger, the crude sword even let out a wailing sound—weak and frail, each note mournful…

Mr. Crane confirmed that Richard King hadn’t lied, and since it was just a “false alarm,” he gave Richard King a few words of advice and left. The other Emei disciples also dispersed.

Once everyone was gone, Richard King broke out in a cold sweat. Just now, his life had hung by a thread—one misstep and the Emei disciples would have beheaded him with their flying swords.

He raised his wrist and glanced at the Yuanyang Sword, now transformed into a crimson bracelet. Shaking his head, he sighed, not wanting to say anything more, and collapsed onto the bed, falling into a deep sleep.

Richard King had escaped a disaster, and in the days that followed, he became even more cautious in his words and actions.

He didn’t dare to practice the Yuanyang Sword Technique anymore, fearing something else might happen and someone would discover his secret, so he could only patiently wait for the Emei elders to return.

But these idle days didn’t last long!

One day, while Richard King was cultivating in the stone cave, there was suddenly a tremor outside like a mountain collapsing and the earth cracking, followed by the roaring sounds of wind, thunder, water, and fire.

Startled, the young man walked out of the cave and looked up, only to see the summit of Mount Emei covered by a dome of multicolored light, enveloping the entire Five Spirits Immortal Mansion. Outside the dome of five-colored light, endless flames formed a sea of fire, and within the sea of fire, thunder and fire exploded. Each strike against the multicolored dome sounded like the sky was collapsing and the earth was splitting.

“Is this... the part of the story about the Dutian Inferno refining the Immortal Mansion?”