Chapter 1649: Accepting Jiang Feifei as a Disciple

"Contact the ancestor of the Witch Soul?"

Zhang Xuan was utterly confused.

This fellow was truly a descendant of the ancient sage Ziyuan, so... the Diviner Guild might not have betrayed them either, and the same for the Master Teacher Pavilion, but... why would a powerhouse of the Hundred Schools of Philosophers be together with the Otherworldly Demons?

And crucially, there was also an ancient sage of the Otherworldly Demons?

No matter how he thought about it, he couldn't make sense of it. He asked a few more questions and found out that this Jiang Fangyou didn't know what the other party was doing; he only passed messages according to their requests. As for the content of the messages, he wasn't qualified to see them, so naturally, he didn't know.

"Our ancestors sacrificed so much for the human race. How could their descendants tarnish their spirits? Moreover, in the tens of thousands of years since our Jiang family was established, countless powerhouses have fallen in the underground caverns. Even if the descendants are unworthy, they would never forget their roots and betray their ancestors!"

Seeing Zhang Xuan's suspicion that they had betrayed humanity, Jiang Fangyou cupped his fists, his expression solemn.

"I'm sorry, I was too rash!" Zhang Xuan quickly stood up.

The other party's ancestors had given so much for humanity, yet he had doubted their descendants—this was already a great disrespect.

"A Witch Soul Master, bearing a bad reputation, it's normal to have such thoughts..."

Shaking his head, Jiang Fangyou looked at him again, then recalling something, suddenly understood: "Could it be that Teacher Zhang suspected we might have defected to the Otherworldly Demons, and that's why you emptied the treasure vault?"

"Yes..." Zhang Xuan's face flushed red.

"Indeed, when dealing with the Otherworldly Demons, there's no need to adhere to the etiquette and rules of master teachers..." Jiang Fangyou finally realized.

Their ancestors had infiltrated the Otherworldly Demons, enduring humiliation and bearing heavy burdens. From this alone, it was clear they didn't value rules much.

If they truly encountered a major force that had betrayed humanity, stealing all their treasures and cutting off their supplies would indeed be the best choice.

"I'll return your treasures shortly..." Zhang Xuan hurriedly said.

Knowing that the other party had not betrayed humanity but was instead a great contributor to the human race, Zhang Xuan, no matter how thick-skinned, felt embarrassed to keep the treasures for himself.

Seeing his expression, Jiang Fangyou laughed.

Although this Zhang Xuan didn't follow the rules in his actions, he often achieved remarkable results. Today, if their family had truly betrayed humanity, just this one Saint Domain Ninth Layer powerhouse would likely have given them a massive headache and thrown them into chaos.

With everything clarified, the rest became simple. Zhang Xuan agreed to temporarily act as the patriarch of the Jiang family.

Before the Witch Soul Masters were exonerated, he couldn't be openly linked to the Jiang family; otherwise, he wouldn't take on this role and would definitely let Lu Chong take it.

This student of his had found the ancestral land of the Witch Soul and obtained its inheritance. In the future, he would surely be the most pinnacle leader of the Witch Soul Master lineage.

Speaking of this ancestral land of the Witch Soul, he finally understood.

Earlier, he had wondered how the ancestral land could have survived when the Witch Soul Masters were uprooted. Now it seemed that Kong Shi had deliberately hidden it to preserve a legacy, or had shown mercy.

Otherwise, with the capabilities of the Master Teacher Pavilion, if they truly wanted to annihilate them, nothing would have been left.

The succession ceremony ended late into the night. Calling Jiang Feifei to him, Zhang Xuan handed her a book.

"This contains my understanding of the True Interpretation of the Soul. Study according to this, and you should be able to comprehend it quickly, without needing to view the Jiang family's jade wall."

Returning the Jiang family's treasures, keeping only some items that provided spiritual energy, Zhang Xuan handed over a manual he had just written.

"Your understanding?"

Full of doubt, Jiang Feifei opened the book and quickly scanned through it. Then her beautiful eyes widened in disbelief.

The soul was ethereal and the hardest to cultivate. Despite her exceptional talent, she had no confidence in truly comprehending the True Interpretation, and even felt she might never achieve it in her lifetime.

But now, the manual given by this new patriarch concretized the soul, simplified cultivation, progressed from shallow to deep, and pointed directly to the essence... According to his understanding, with diligent study, she might comprehend the True Interpretation within a month.

Comprehending it in a month—something countless ancestors had failed to do...

"This, this... is too precious!"

Her delicate body trembling, Jiang Feifei bit her lip. After a moment, as if making a decision, she clenched her fists: "You've given me such a precious manual, and I have nothing to repay... If necessary, I'll agree to the marriage alliance..."

Although she didn't like him, she knew he was too important to the Jiang family. If a marriage alliance could bind him, that would be best.

At worst, she would make a sacrifice.

He said he already had someone he liked; if necessary, she could be a concubine.

She believed that with her looks and status, he wouldn't refuse.

"Marriage alliance? You're overthinking. Although this technique is simple to cultivate, without my guidance, you could easily go astray and fall into deviation..."

Seeing her self-righteousness, Zhang Xuan smiled and shook his head: "How about this: I'll accept you as a nominal disciple and guide you in cultivating the technique."

"Disciple?"

Jiang Feifei was stunned.

She had thought that giving such a great benefit was to move her and make her give herself to him; she never dreamed it was to accept her as a student...

Being a concubine would be better—she could even warm his bed...

"Why aren't you kowtowing quickly? The patriarch personally teaching, even as a nominal student, is enough to make you famous throughout the world!"

Seeing her daze, Jiang Fangyou couldn't help but shout.

Their patriarch was not only the head of the Zhang family, the Luo family, and the Saint Son Hall, but his several students were the War Son of the War Master Hall, the princess of the Icefield Palace, the president of the Awakening Master Guild, the head of the Yuan family... each one was extraordinary.

If his daughter could become a disciple, even if only nominal, she would surely benefit immensely and surpass him in no time.

"Yes!"

Hearing her father's words, Jiang Feifei was startled, then came to her senses.

She had always seen him as the young genius who challenged her at the Saint Son Hall, but she hadn't realized that in less than a month, he had already stood at the pinnacle of the continent, with a status vastly different from hers.

Not to mention his other identities, just being Senior Yang's senior brother—if one were to be precise, calling him 'grandfather' wouldn't be an exaggeration.

"Disciple Jiang Feifei pays respects to Teacher!"

Her knees went weak, and without further hesitation, Jiang Feifei knelt down.

"Rise!"

Zhang Xuan smiled slightly.

As the girl knelt, another Heavenly Dao Volume appeared in his mind, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

He had known before that this item was immensely powerful. He had thought it could only kill Saint Domain First or Second Layer, maybe Third or Fourth Layer at best, but he never expected that even an ancient sage couldn't withstand it.

With this item, his means of survival were greatly increased. Even if an ancient sage came, it wouldn't be a big deal.

"If necessary, I'll accept a few more students... Hmm, Senior Yang's student, Feng Ziyi, is also good. No, how about discussing with Old Yang to transfer her to me?"

Chin in hand, Zhang Xuan pondered.

With his current status, he needed to accept good students to match his position, but where could he find good students?

Not everyone was like him—so excellent, kind, upright, and great...