I will eventually become a divine being through accumulating constantly

He paused, and Li Qi continued,

"Alright, although I do not know how you managed to create this membrane, it should generally be a good thing... Compared to Alien Implants that cannot grow, if your membrane can continue to strengthen, perhaps this old man might truly witness the legendary 'Skin Bursting Like Glazed Glass'."

He moved his wheelchair, came to the desk, and picked up a spread-out, elegant scroll from the surface.

Written in beautiful, traditional characters with vigorous brushstrokes, were five words — a Great Teacher Produces a Great Student.

The calligraphy was strong and sharp, and although Xue Jing did not understand calligraphy, at a glance, he could feel that the writing was really beautiful.

Li Qi blew on the ink that had now mostly dried and rolled up the scroll, handing it to Xue Jing.

"In three days, it will be Zong Jinkui's, the Old Dojo Master of Tiger Soul Dojo, seventieth birthday, and it's also the day he retires. He will have a birthday banquet in his own dojo, and you should deliver this to him then."

Xue Jing accepted it without speaking, waiting for Li Qi's further instructions.

"Zong Jinkui is advanced in years, even a few years older than I am. We martial artists, due to our practice, theoretically have a higher life expectancy than ordinary people, but in reality, the average age of a martial artist does not exceed forty."

"Martial artists are hot-blooded and quick-tempered, living lives of constant fighting and killing. Most of them get killed in their prime... Living up to seventy is quite an exceptional thing," Li Qi said with some emotion.

"Zong Jinkui has a good disciple who has established himself in Inner Ring Yuan City. Now that his inheritance is settled, he can retire in peace."

"He plans to close down the Tiger Soul Dojo here in Qingcheng and sell the place to me."

Li Qi tapped the armrest of his wheelchair with his fingers.

"That's a large venue... The location is good too, with excellent equipment and layout, we could move there directly, even without much renovation."

"Zong Jinkui and I are on decent terms, so he only asked for a 'friendly price'... Things were going well, but then a problem arose."

"He has a granddaughter whom he adores, named Zong Shichan, twelve years old this year... Although she is still a child, Zong Jinkui has cultivated her carefully since she was little, her Root Bone is also excellent, hence her martial arts are quite impressive, even many adult disciples in their dojo cannot match her."

"This little girl does not want the Tiger Soul Dojo to be sold. She claims she doesn't want to go to the Inner Ring and wishes to stay in Qingcheng to inherit the Tiger Soul Dojo and become the new Arena Master."

"Zong Jinkui, doting on his granddaughter, also apologised to me, saying the sale would not happen... Normally, that would have been the end of the matter, regrettable but unavoidable."

At this point, Li Qi stroked his chin, sizing up Xue Jing a few times, his murky old eyes revealing an enigmatic smile.

"But there was a turn of events a few days ago."

"The little girl saw your competition on TV."

"She now idolises you, even considering you as her role model... she even declared she would not practice Tiger Soul style but wanted to learn your Hidden Dragon School, which irritated Zong Jinkui tremendously."

"That clever little child, two days ago, approached me with a proposal, saying that as long as she can become your disciple, she would allow the Tiger Soul Dojo to be sold to me."

Xue Jing's mouth twitched.

Li Qi said with a smile, "Little Jing..."

Xue Jing quickly shook his head, "There's no need to say more, I refuse."

He didn't have the free time to teach a disciple; he hadn't even figured out his own practice yet.

Li Qi waved his hand dismissively, "Don't be so hasty."

"Saying it's to take on a disciple is just a formality. You'd just take her in, you won't actually need to teach her on a daily basis, it won't be much trouble."

"Consider it a minor sacrifice for your master, how about it?"
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Xue Jing: "..."

"Don't worry, I won't truly force you. Just go and meet with her, and if you really don't want to, you can refuse. It's not a big deal."

Li Qi patted his shoulder.

What else could Xue Jing say? Seeing things had come to this, he nodded in agreement.

If it's just a matter of formality, there was no harm.

However, if the other party was an unbearable brat, he was not even willing to give that much.

He'd deal with it when the time came.

...

Around noon, Xue Jing left the Hidden Dragon Dojo, hailed a taxi, and returned to the neighborhood of his home. After purchasing some groceries and daily necessities from the supermarket, he went back to his place.

Just as he entered, he saw Xue Wan sitting on the sofa, hugging her knees, biting her thumb, looking resentfully at Nan Jiayu, who was sitting opposite her on the couch.

Miao Miao was lying leisurely on Nan Jiayu's plump thigh, with a humanlike contentment on its feline face, tail flicking idly, enjoying Nan Jiayu's gentle strokes.

Seeing this, Xue Jing couldn't help but show a smile.

Miao Miao had found herself a great big mountain of support; as long as she clung to her mother, Nan Jiayu, she didn't have to worry about falling into the so-called loving hell that was Xue Wan.

"Mom~~ let me pet Little Feng Wan for a bit, it loves it when I pet it..."

Xue Wan couldn't help but say.

Nan Jiayu slapped away her hand reaching for Miao Miao, leisurely stating:

"Little Feng Wan likes me, not you, don't flatter yourself."

Xue Wan's mouth instantly puckered.

Turning her head, she saw Xue Jing, who had finished putting his things away, stand up from the couch and walk over to her, hugging him like a koala while coquettishly saying:

"Jing, Little Feng Wan is your cat, who do you say should pet it?"

Xue Jing said dispassionately, "I listen to Mom."

Nan Jiayu coughed, her youthful and pretty face brimming with smugness.

Xue Wan complained, "Can't you make up your own mind? Are you a mama's boy?"

Xue Jing embraced her and then heartlessly dumped her onto the couch, stating indifferently, "Let Mom pet it."

Nan Jiayu beamed with joy, "That's my son, decisive and filial."

Xue Wan covered her face and looked skyward, "Oh my god!!"

"Is there really no place for me in this house anymore? Can someone please take my side? Dad, why aren't you back yet? Your daughter is about to be bullied to death!"

Xue Jing stroked his chin, "Fun fact, Dad listens to Mom here, too."

Facing Nan Jiayu's smiling face, Xue Wan desperately buried her head in the couch.

"Dead, don't mourn."

Xue Jing smiled.

At that moment, his phone in his pocket began to vibrate with an incoming call.

He picked it up to see an unexpected caller on the display.

Ning Yuantai.

A second-generation member of The Sixth Agency's special forces unit—Cease-Blades.

He came from a significant background, one of the Thirteen Great Families of Zhuxia.

After considering, Xue Jing entered his room and then pressed the answer button.

"Hello?"

From the receiver, Ning Yuantai's respectful voice came through:

"Xue, it's me."

Xue Jing made a sound of acknowledgment, smiling as he said, "Yuantai, is there something you need?"

"There is a commission here at Cease-Blades… Initially, I wasn't planning to trouble you, but I think you might be interested in this case," Ning Yuantai explained.

Xue Jing asked curiously, "Oh? Tell me more."

It was then he remembered that he had seemed to accept Ning Yuantai's invitation to be an 'external staff' for Cease-Blades, similar in nature to his arrangement with White Crow.

"For a few months now, there have been sporadic cases of murder and skinning across different cities in the Outer Ring of the Seventh Metropolitan Circle."

Ning Yuantai said.

"The skin of all the victims has been completely peeled off, with expert technique, not damaging even a single extra piece of muscle or membrane."

"According to our investigation, the killer, codenamed 'The Skin-Peeler', is an adept Martial Artist, which is why the case was entrusted to us at 'Cease-Blades'."

"A few days ago, for some unknown reason, 'The Skin-Peeler' was traced to Qingcheng..."

"Based on our probe, a likely reason for 'The Skin-Peeler' committing these acts is due to—Divine Relics!"

Xue Jing felt a stir of interest:

"Oh? Go on."

"[GOD-1291·Little Girl's Matches]..."

Ning Yuantai said somberly.

...