Chen Xuan did not wait for Chi Yao to respond to his offer.

Before she had the chance to agree or object, he pulled out a disciple token and tossed it to her.

"This is enough to establish your identity as my disciple. I’ll have Su Ying register you as a Yin Yang Peak disciple later."

"Alright. I won’t keep you any longer. Take some time to recover from the shock and acclimate to your new Physique."

Before even finishing his sentence, Chen Xuan turned around and hurried out of the room.

Chi Yao was left alone on the bed, staring at the red mark on her forehead and the token that had just smacked her in the face with an odd expression.

--

Huo Ling’er and Su Ying were waiting anxiously outside.

Seeing Chen Xuan step out, they finally breathed a sigh of relief, their tense bodies relaxing.

His sudden decision to dismiss them earlier had come out of nowhere, making them fear for the worst.

Thankfully, nothing happened, and he emerged entirely unharmed.

"Master, did something happen to Chi Yao?" Huo Ling’er asked, her gaze drifting toward the closed room.

"No, everything is fine." Chen Xuan replied, shaking his head, "Su Ying’s earlier assessment was correct. Chi Yao has indeed awakened a latent Physique."

"It seems to be a Spirit Body. Perhaps even a High-Grade one."

With that, his eyes brightened as he looked at Huo Ling’er.

"I’ve noticed you’ve been rather lonely since joining the sect. Although I am your Master, I have my own duties and cannot accompany you all the time."

"Therefore, I have decided to accept another disciple. From today onward, Chi Yao will be your Junior Sister. I hope you will take good care of her," Chen Xuan said, patting her shoulder gently.

Seeing her eyes narrow and her body tremble with "excitement", he felt assured that he had made the right choice.

"My previous seclusion was interrupted, so I will return to it for a few more days."

"Take this time to get acquainted with Chi Yao. Once I’m done, I will summon you both and offer some guidance."

As he finished speaking, Chen Xuan sensed Huo Ling’er’s aura fluctuate wildly as her face flushed red.

’Is she really so excited to finally have a friend? Right, she’s still just a young girl. It’s my fault for not considering this matter sooner,’ he thought, shaking his head and feeling as though he had neglected his duties as a Master.

With a soft exhale, he gave a few more quick instructions and hurriedly departed. He had several pressing matters to tend to.

For example, he needed to examine the three treasures Mu Xuanyin left behind.

For another, he had to claim his long-awaited System rewards!

--

Back in the quiet of his room, Chen Xuan couldn’t help but rub his hands together in anticipation.

Excitedly, he summoned the System and pulled up the pending notifications.

...

[Congratulations! It has been detected that the Host has accepted an 8.5-Star Talent as their disciple!]

[Congratulations on receiving the following rewards:]

...

Chen Xuan had been somewhat surprised when this prompt first popped up, considering Chi Yao hadn’t explicitly agreed to the arrangement.

But on second thought, the logic became clear. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

’Although there may be some trickery involved, my words were accurate. Without powerful backing, Chi Yao will eventually be hunted down by the entire world.’

’Accepting me as her Master might be a reluctant choice for her, but it’s clearly superior to the alternative.’

Chi Yao had already demonstrated a terrifying ability to adapt, given how quickly she had played the role of a frightened girl.

Accepting his offer perfectly matched this behavior.

Ultimately, the details didn’t matter. At least, Chen Xuan was not in the mood to overthink it.

He was finding it increasingly difficult to maintain his composure.

After such a long wait and tens of thousands of attempts, he had finally found someone who met the System’s strict requirements!

Though this new disciple was... unusual, to say the least, he couldn’t care less as long as she triggered the System’s rewards.

’Last time I took in Huo Ling’er, I obtained a Great Origin Dao and a large number of other rewards. Let’s see what accepting Chi Yao brings...’

With a thought, the rewards list unfolded, filling his field of vision.

...

[1x Core Forging Elixir]

[1x Heaven-Swallowing Scripture]

[1x Myriad Demons Art]

[1x Demon Emperor’s Cloak]

[2x Yin-Yang Talisman]

[...]

...

There was a large number of rewards, reminiscent of the last time he took in a disciple.

However, Chen Xuan noticed an obvious pattern right away.

’Are the rewards related to the nature of the disciple who triggers them? Everything I received in the past consisted of normal, righteous items. These, on the other hand...’

Even without reading their descriptions, their names alone were enough to reveal their demonic nature.

But he realized it made sense upon further thought.

It would have been incredibly ironic if recruiting the Demon Empress as his disciple had granted him righteous objects.

Regardless, he felt no dissatisfaction whatsoever.

His earlier speech wasn’t just a trick to deceive Chi Yao.

He harbored no inherent prejudice against those who walked the demonic path, a fact proven by his close relationship with Luan Yi.

’Let’s take a look...’ he thought, focusing on the items to bring up their description.

...

[Core Forging Elixir—A High-Grade Earth Pill that can assist a Late Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator in achieving a breakthrough.]

...

[Heaven-Swallowing Scripture—The Supreme Demonic Scripture created by the infamous Heaven Swallowing Empress. Its practitioner can continuously devour resources and other Physiques to forcibly forge a Chaotic Body!]

...

[Myriad Demons Art—A comprehensive collection of all kinds of spells specifically suitable for demonic cultivators.]

...

[Demon Emperor’s Cloak—Ultimate-Grade Spirit Weapon. It can conceal the user’s identity, empower their demonic spells, and possesses several unique functions.]

...

Just as expected, every single item belonged to the demonic path.

Despite this, Chen Xuan’s lips curved into a smile.

The Earth Pill was of no use to someone of his level, but both the demonic inheritances and the Ultimate-Grade Spirit Weapon were more than enough to make his eyes light up.

The moment he finished reading their descriptions, Chen Xuan was already prepared to cultivate these arts.

His determination only grew even further when his eyes landed on the term "Chaotic Body".

To be honest, he had no idea what a Chaotic Body actually meant.

But judging by the name alone and the System’s description, it was clearly a Physique that likely surpassed even a Holy Body.

This directly solved his most pressing worry.

He had been unable to upgrade his Yin-Yang Spirit Body since it reached the Middle-Grade.

He knew that it would require a miracle to upgrade it any further, such as finding a true Yin-Yang Holy Body and depriving them of their Blood Essence.

Fortunately, he no longer had to pin his hopes on such a far-fetched opportunity.

’I can clearly feel that my cultivation has dramatically slowed down since my last breakthrough. A Spirit Body is not a Holy Body, after all. It has its own limits.’

’Only when I upgrade my Physique even further will my cultivation speed soar again!’

Chen Xuan fought down the sudden urge to take out the technique right then and there. He still had another batch of "rewards" to inspect.

Leaving the system rewards in his inventory for the time being, his divine sense dove into his spatial ring and produced several items.

A blue, leather-bound manual, a dark saber, and a miniature tower—the legacy left behind by Mu Xuanyin.