Elder Hu
"Young man, what's your name?" The elder said to him with his comforting smile.
That smile might be comforting to others however to Li Wei it is not comforting at all. He has seen that smile plenty of times when someone is planning something either good or bad.
"My name is Li Wei" Li Wei replied to the elder in front of him with his eyebrows going into an arched shape.
"You are very talented with the use of the swords. If you are truly lucky or talented you might even have enlightenment and create your own Dao, your own Dao, the way of the swords" The elder replied to him casually with its smile becoming even brighter and brighter.
Hearing the compliment of the elder in front of him Li Wei didn't choose to reply since this elder still has a lot more to say.
"You know when I was just a young cultivator I used to always have problems in cultivation since I have no teacher. No one can guide me since I'm not talented enough or so they say." He said while signaling Li Wei to follow him, in the direction of the forest entrance.
Li Wei sheathed his sword and followed the elder while listening. He just stayed being quiet since he doesn't want to interrupt him.
"If I'm not lucky then I wouldn't be even able to break through the Nascent Soul Realm. I don't have the talent, after all, I just managed to find a thing that helped me overcome the tribulations that heaven sent me"
"Even though I managed to break through however this is going to be my peak since I can no longer push my cultivation level. Guess it might have taken all the luck I have to be able to achieve this level"
"I'm strong too, I don't just rely on my cultivation level. It's just that I have no one to pass my legacy and sooner or later I will die. I'm already old and 995 years old this year"
"Meaning I only have around 5 years to continue living but I still have my granddaughter to take care of. Her parents are already dead, my son is a great man, he died protecting his family"
"It's saddening that I can take revenge for them however life is flowing like an endless river, it wouldn't stop and it has to continue going. My granddaughter is the most valuable to me however I can't protect her after the next 5 years" The elder said with a melancholic smile and he stopped talking suddenly.
The mood got worsen by this time now so Li Wei chooses to speak.
"You're so shameless that you want me to marry your granddaughter? No way I will do that" Li Wei already knew the intention of the old man after he mentioned his granddaughter.
"You! Who would want to marry you! My granddaughter is the pride beauty of our sect so it will be your luck to even be able to see her!" The old man said to him in an exaggerated manner.
"Yeah, I get that she is beautiful but I don't care about that. I'm still young and I can find a partner whenever I wanted." Li Wei replied in a nonchalant manner which made the old man in front of him speechless.
"Are you gay? Could it be that you are not interested in women rather than men?" The elder said to him mockingly.
"What if I am? Being gay doesn't mean a bad thing at all" Li Wei said in a mocking manner too.
Hearing the reply of Li Wei the old man can't help but feel as if he is going to fail in finding a suitable partner for hir granddaughter again. He knew that Li Wei is just joking about being gay because of his mocking remark.
"Anyway enough about that, I just wanted to offer you to be my disciple and in return I want you to protect my only family left," He said to Li Wei with a serious expression.
"Do you even trust me in the first place that I can protect her? I can be a bad guy and do harm to your granddaughter when you are already gone you know" Li Wei replied to the old man.
"If you really have that kind of thought then you will die earlier. This world is cruel enough however if you are even crueler then you can expect to wake the next day with your head sliced off and fed to the beasts" The old man said to him to which Li Wei gives a nod.
"The idea of being your disciple let me think for a moment, I don't know you so do you mind if you introduce yourself first? I'm not trying to be rude or whatsoever" Li Wei asked the old man.
"My name is Yin Hu, an elder of the Valley of Delights. I'm famous around this area too" He said while boasting.
"You know I've defeated at least those cultivators from other sects of my own level fairly. I even did it while protecting the disciples of our sects, many people know me as the Tiger because I'm fast and that's like the aura of my qi."
"Aura of the qi? What is that?" Li Wei replied, feigning ignorance about the matters.
"It's just like something that will represent your personality, It doesn't truly mean anything and it wouldn't give you any power boost. It's just good for intimidation I guess" He said to him and there they reach the forest entrance and saw that many people are looking at him.
Not just the participants but also the last two elders that manage the test. Seeing this he knew that the elders knew what must have happened and as for other participants they are just probably curious since due to the Beast Tide they have to leave the place and he is the last one to return back.
With the blood of different beasts in him, he sure looks scary though so after seeing his condition they quickly averted their gaze.
"What a poor guy, he probably has to fight the beast tide without someone helping him"
"Tsk, what poor guy. Look at him, look at how lucky he is that an elder even help him survive the ordeal"
"Yeah he is kinda lucky that the elder save him from the beast tide though"
"We too are lucky that we managed to leave the area fast or else we will suffer heavy injuries"
"Yeah, fighting one demonic beast here is already stressful enough compare to the places that are not a demonic forest but we also have to deal with their huge numbers"
"I think it's also his fault that he didn't manage to escape the beast tide because he probably goes deeper and deeper"
"Lucky for us that the sect elders have mercy that they pacify the beast tide quickly"
Li Wei hears many people talking about him and them sharing their own experiences. He didn't mind the attention though since being in the spotlight now is a good thing anyway.
He currently doesn't know the ranking results since it stopped trying to place ranks in others the moment the beast tide occurs however he doesn't care about that anymore since he has already accomplished his goals.
Ranking 1st in the test will not mean anything if a sect elder isn't even interested in you anyway. It's just a way to sort out the good and the bad or simply to sort out those people who grew on pills and others through arduous training.
"You don't need to listen to them. An ant is still an ant, in this world, they are just in the lower existences" The elder said to him.
"I don't mind though since I think I like the attention they are giving to me" Li Wei replied with a grin, being famous is another power in this world after all.
"Are you like an attention digger? or something like that?" Elder Hu replied to him with his eyebrows raised.
"Don't make it sound like I am a gold digger, surely I don't have that kind of intention. It's just that being famous is a good thing you know, people will not try to mess with you" Li Wei replied to the obvious attack of the old man in front of him again.
"Btw, what kind of benefits do I get if I became your disciple?" Li Wei said, changing the topic.
"I can teach you cultivation techniques and give you any access that a direct disciple of an elder has like access to the library without restrictions and allowance per month."
"We will also give you a good place that has an abundance of qi in it to make your cultivation even faster"
"You will at least not live like a broke, the only thing you need to ensure is to grow stronger and don't even try to laze or others might catch up to you"
"How is it? Do you like it? Wanna be my disciple now? Lucky for you that I have no other disciple aside from my granddaughter so resources will be guaranteed to you" Elder Hu said to him in a smile to which Li Wei acknowledged with a nod.