Meanwhile, Zhou Qingruo, who was left in the room, snapped out of her daze, turned around, and said, "Xu Sheng, Duanmu Lian, we..."
But when her gaze fell upon the empty space behind her, her face creased with confusion and she said, "Huh? Where are they?"
...
Xu Sheng and Duanmu Lian, on their way to the Scripture Vault, instantly caught the attention of many Duanmu Clan disciples!
They saw Xu Sheng and another chatting and laughing amiably, both possessing a certain charm and beauty, which inevitably started a buzz of gossip...
The male disciples glared at Xu Sheng, remarking, "Look! That man is so close to Elder Lian, could he be her partner?"
"Hiss! Elder Lian's power has reached the terrifying Immortal Monarch Realm, how could an ordinary person approach her? This man is so young, could he be the former's disciple?!"
"Even though Elder Lian has lived almost tens of thousands of years, her looks haven't aged a bit. Even the youngest and most beautiful female disciples of our Duanmu Clan pale in comparison to her!"
"Damn it! That's the goddess I've always dreamed of—and she's been spirited away by someone from another clan!!"
The female disciples, upon seeing Xu Sheng's handsome face, had their cheeks turn a rosy red...
"What a handsome man, how exactly did Elder Lian meet him? Could it be that she kidnapped him?"
"Impossible, Elder Lian has lived for tens of thousands of years after all, she wouldn't do something like that. But this man really is handsome! I feel like I'm about to fall for him!"
"Exactly, compared to the male disciples of our Duanmu Clan, this man is on a totally different level! I'm so envious that Elder Lian could be with someone like him!"
Upon hearing this, the male disciples' faces suddenly darkened...
They retorted without missing a beat, "You've got some nerve saying that, looking so unusual at such a young age, you don't hold a candle to Elder Lian!"
"Exactly, exactly, the ugly envy the beautiful! You're not great beauties like Elder Lian, yet you dare to covet such a man?"
"Tch, even if I were blind, I wouldn't fancy any of you female disciples. It's better to admire Elder Lian from a distance than to deal with you lot!"
Listening to these noisy Duanmu Family disciples, Xu Sheng laughed teasingly and said, "Miss Lian, it seems the male disciples of the Duanmu Clan have a good impression of you! They regard you as a goddess!"
Duanmu Lian blinked her beautiful eyes and replied nonchalantly, "Likewise, Xu Sheng, you're quite popular with these female disciples too! Wouldn't Qingruo be quite jealous if she saw this?"
Xu Sheng paused, stroking his chin as he said, "Qingruo shouldn't have those kinds of feelings for me. We only did what we did to break her seal!"
He genuinely hadn't sensed any affection from Zhou Qingruo, surely she must have seen their encounter as a reluctant necessity!
Hearing his earnest words, Duanmu Lian pursed her lips slightly and said, "Is that so? You two really are strange!"
Was it possible that only she could sense the love they had for each other?
Or was it her own misconception, her heart fluttering upon seeing a fine man like Xu Sheng?
Thinking this, Duanmu Lian merely shook her head and cast aside these thoughts...
She feared she might win herself over by indulging such musings! She and Xu Sheng had known each other for less than ten hours, how could there be any romantic feelings?
Amidst their intermittent conversation, the two finally arrived at the Duanmu Clan's Scripture Vault!
Contrary to its simple name, the size of the Scripture Vault was astonishingly large, its vast area impossible to fully take in at a glance!
Even with a rough estimate in mind, one could imagine the astounding quantity of martial techniques held within!
Duanmu Lian pointed at the Scripture Vault before them and said, "This is the Scripture Vault. You are free to practice most of the martial techniques inside, however..."
She paused at this point...
Xu Sheng was quite curious as he asked, "But what? Elder Lian, please speak, there's no harm in it."
Duanmu Lian's gaze fixated on Xu Sheng's ink-colored eyes, explaining earnestly, "However, the person guarding the Scripture Vault is actually the Elder Family Head of our Duanmu Clan! His strength is extremely terrifying! You must be cautious!"
The Elder Family Head's strength, even if he hasn't fully stepped into that realm, he has at least one foot in already!
His true strength is considerably different from the Immortal Monarch Realm!
Hearing this, Xu Sheng narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself, "The Elder Family Head? Is that the strongest of the Duanmu Clan?"
Indeed, I should be cautious; after all, the extent of his strength is unknown!
With this thought, the level of vigilance in his heart increased significantly…
Yet on the surface, he still wore a faint smile, "Thank you for the reminder, Miss Lian, I will be careful!"
Duanmu Lian nodded slightly, "Mhmm! Then go and look for martial techniques to practice. I will go see how Qingruo is doing; she must be in a lot of pain now!"
There were no disciples guarding the exterior of the Scripture Vault, so there was no need to worry about him being stopped…
With those words, she turned and left…
After she had gone, Xu Sheng's gaze returned to the excessively wide doorway before him…
Taking a deep breath, he slowly pushed it open…
"Creak…" The grating sound of the door echoed…
Upon fully opening, the first thing that Xu Sheng saw was an immensely dark space, but he could vaguely make out numerous racks within…
The items on the racks need no further explanation; they were various martial techniques, and perhaps due to being a major family, there was basically no sight of martial techniques below Earth Rank!
He praised inwardly, "Worthy of being a great family in the Cultivation World! Such profound heritage!"
Just then, from a dark area not far ahead, a hoarse voice emerged…
"Is the visitor someone from an outside tribe?"
Xu Sheng's ink-colored eyes focused as he replied, "Yes, senior!"
The term 'senior' was naturally just a polite address; in the entire Cultivation World, there likely wasn't anyone who could be his senior!
"Who gave you permission to enter the Scripture Vault on your own? If you cannot give a reason, you'll die!"
These calm words were spoken as if killing Xu Sheng would be an extremely simple matter!
Xu Sheng's eyes narrowed as he replied composedly, "Elder Lian sent me here to practice martial techniques. If I have been presumptuous, I hope the senior will not take offense!"
After this statement, the entire Scripture Vault fell silent…
A moment later, the hoarse voice spoke again…
"Did Lian girl say so? Very well, proceed with cultivating on your own…"
Subsequently, there were no more sounds within the Scripture Vault…
Xu Sheng breathed a sigh of relief and used his spiritual power to fully illuminate the Scripture Vault…
He immediately picked up the martial technique closest to him and started perusing it…
…