Zhao Ming's Departure

"Master... What will you do after our training is over?"

Li Tianyan's voice broke the silence, his figure half-submerged in the inky black medicinal pool. Hours had passed in complete quiet, yet his tone carried a mix of curiosity and mischief.

Zhao Ming didn't respond at all, her form was still as a statue before the altar. Her silvery hair shimmered faintly in the dim light and her serene expression remained unchanging. It was as if his words had been carried off by the wind, never reaching her ears.

Li Tianyan, however, wasn't one to give up so easily. "Sigh... Master's splendor truly leaves me breathless. How could I bear to part from someone so divine? If I did, the heavens themselves might strike me down for forsaking such a celestial beauty!"

A slight twitch of her brow betrayed the fact that she had heard him, but Zhao Ming remained silent and maintained her calm demeanor.

Li Tianyan grinned, undeterred by her lack of reaction.

Their relationship wasn't exactly typical for a master and disciple. After she had effortlessly defeated him with a mere flick of her finger, he had pestered her relentlessly to take him under her wing. Zhao Ming had refused without hesitation, explaining that as a Candidate Protector, it was inappropriate for her to take him as a disciple. While he might currently be a pathetically weak mortal, his potential to become a full-fledged Protector in the future made things... complicated.

Yet, persistence was one of Tianyan's greatest virtues—or perhaps flaws. He eventually convinced her to teach him under a less formal arrangement, though he continued to call her "Master" as if she had formally accepted him. No matter how much she protested, he refused to address her as anything else. On the flip side, Tianyan adamantly rejected the title of "Young Master," forcing Zhao Ming to settle on calling him "disciple," though she often muttered it with a resigned sigh.

Through the years, Zhao Ming had encountered countless people, but she had to admit that this one... This one was truly in a league of his own. She often found herself marveling at how someone could be so annoyingly persistent, shameless, and yet strangely endearing.

Finally, Zhao Ming opened her eyes, a faint hint of exasperation flickering within her otherwise calm gaze. "If you have time to waste on such frivolous talk, then perhaps the medicinal pool isn't hot enough. Shall I increase its intensity?"

Li Tianyan's grin faltered slightly. "Ah, no need, Master. The temperature is just right. I was merely making conversation, you know, to liven the atmosphere. Surely even someone as ethereal as you enjoys a bit of praise now and then?"

She rolled her eyes and resumed her meditative pose, muttering under her breath, "Heaven help me..."

Tianyan chuckled, leaning back in the pool. In his eyes, her subtle reactions were small victories worth savoring.

A while had passed in silence when Zhao Ming suddenly spoke. "After you are done healing I will impart the remaining parts of Nine Realms of Chaos to you, this is a top technique of my esteemed sect you must not share the contents with a single soul, even if it costs you your life."

Li Tianyan body shook lightly, he had never seen Zhao Ming this serious since he met her, as she observed his expression closely, he felt that if he had even the faintest trace of reluctance or hesitation... He would die instantly!

"I will do as you have said." Li Tianyan naturally would not pass up on an opportunity to obtain an immortal level technique and naturally would not consider betraying this person before him who had allowed him to enjoy a tremendous amount of opportunities.

Zhao Ming nodded her head in approval seeing Li Tianyan quickly agree to her condition. She hesitated for a little but still eventually said, "Although your physique is extremely weak, it's... Let's just say it has a high affinity with a technique I just happen to carry around with me."

Li Tianyan's mouth widened slightly and his eyes bulged, he had spent a full 21 days with this lady before him and he knew her character to a certain extent. She was very aloof and prideful and almost didn't hold anything in her eyes at all, the fact that she actually held a body tempering technique in such high regards that she had even carried it on her person in itself was enough proof of how extraordinary it was.

"Are... You... F-for me?" Li Tianyan was at a loss for words and only managed to utter this jumbled mess.

Seeing his current expression was extremely satisfying to Zhao Ming, "What? Has your sharp tongue gotten dull all of a sudden?" A smirk appeared on the corners of her lips

"True Sun God Body!" Zhao Ming declared with great pride.

Li Tianyan's expression however didn't meat her expectations at all, he hesitated and didn't flush with excitement as she had hoped for. "Huh? Whats the matter?"

"I do not wish to be limited to a single element." Li Tianyan had a rare expression on his face, he spoke these words with great pride. How could he, Li Tianyan, successor of the great Ancestor Li Tianyan, heir to the position of Li Clan Patriarch, a figure who was now part of an immortal sect and chosen to protect an entity considered to be a threat to the balance of heaven itself, how could he Li Tianyan, sole inheritor of the Eye of Heaven ever be willing to be confined to one element?

Unknowingly, some of Zhao Ming's pride and aloofness had rubbed off on him.

Zhao Ming was stunned for a while before shaking her head helplessly, "In that case..." She stopped what she was about to say and asked a question instead. "How determined are you?"

Li Tianyan "No matter the cost I will pay it, as long as what happened to my mother doesn't repeat itself... As long as I can restore the Li Clans former glory and repay masters kindness... I, Li Tianyan vow to pay any price."

"The Primordial Chaos Tempering Art is a secret technique the sect leader had come across in an ancient ruin... Since the birth of the Imperial Xuanhu Sect, no one had ever been able to cultivate this technique... Even the most heaven defying genius of the clan didn't dare to attempt it

Because, not only is it extremely hard and painful to learn, if one where to fail after starting, they would face total destruction—body and soul alike." Zhao Ming's voice grew colder, as if to emphasize the gravity of her words. "This is no ordinary body-tempering technique. To cultivate the Primordial Chaos Tempering Art is to gamble everything you are. Your body will be broken and reforged countless times in chaotic energy, each moment teetering on the edge of life and death. Failure means annihilation, and even the heavens themselves won't be able to piece you back together."

Li Tianyan's hands trembled beneath the surface of the medicinal pool, the weight of her words pressing down on him like a mountain. But his trembling wasn't out of fear—it was excitement. A technique so dangerous that even the greatest geniuses didn't dare attempt it? To Li Tianyan, this was not a reason to hesitate but a challenge worthy of his ambition.

"Master, you have seen my resolve," he said, his voice steady and determined. "I, Li Tianyan, am not afraid of destruction. If my body must be torn apart and reforged a thousand times, so be it. If the heavens would deny me this path, I shall defy them until they break."

Zhao Ming regarded him silently, her eyes unreadable. Finally, a faint smirk played on her lips. "Very well, disciple. Your arrogance might even rival the heavens themselves." She stood and extended a single finger, pointing directly at his head. A wave of pressure surged through the room and a bright light instantly penetrated the space between his brows.

"From this moment forward, you will begin cultivating the Primordial Chaos Tempering Art. But I must warn you: the pain will make you wish for death. If you cannot endure even the first stage, you will be reduced to nothing but ash."

Li Tianyan's grin returned, sharper and bolder than ever. "Master, I would rather face obliteration than mediocrity."

"Arrogant! You may not be able to comprehend the first portion of this technique even after a few years not to talk of cultivating it, you may not even have the qualifications to die in the hands of this tyrannical technique." Zhao Ming said in an attempt to crush his baseless pride.

"I have heard masters words, however this one might give master a huge shock when next we meet." Li Tianyan said with determination.

Zhao Ming didn't respond, she stood up from her original position and spoke. "I will return to my sect now, Leave and don't come here in the future."

Standing outside the cave, Zhao Ming sent Li Tianyan away with her eyes, "Sigh... If master knew I imparted that technique to this youngling I would be in a lot of trouble."

She waved her hand lightly and the cave she and Li Tianyan had been living in turned to dust and dispersed in the wind... It was almost as if it never existed, along with Zhao Ming, they both vanished from this world.