I Fabricated the Techniques, but my disciple really mastered them?

"Senior, this is my apprenticeship gift!"

The youth placed three purple sandalwood boxes respectfully in front of Li Xuan.

"You've misunderstood; I'm not some reclusive master, and I don't take disciples. Take them back,"

Li Xuan said, with an evident headache.

The youth's name was Xu Yan, a rich scion from Prefecture City. His family background made Li Xuan, the transmigrator to this world, quite envious. However, the other party was a bit dim-witted, mistaking him for a hidden expert and was insistent on taking him as a master.

Having transmigrated to this world, it had been over ten years. There was no system, no cheat, and he couldn't even leave a small mountain village. Worse still, now in the village, he was the only person left.

The small mountain village was surrounded by steep cliffs on all sides, with only a narrow path about a yard wide leading in and out. It was an excellent place for secluded living; its ancestors had moved here to escape the chaos of war.

Nowadays, with no wars outside, the younger generation in the village was not content to lead a mundane life here and began to leave the village to venture out.

The village was a hundred li away from the nearest town, with a dangerous journey, especially the need to pass through a dense forest where ferocious tigers and beasts often roamed.

Over the years, the population of the village gradually dwindled until, by the time Li Xuan transmigrated there, only a dozen or so families lived in the village, most of whom were elderly people left behind.

Including Li Xuan, there were only five young and able-bodied men in the village, all of whom were unwilling to stay and yearned to leave for the city to make a living—Li Xuan felt the same way.

However, the road was dangerous, especially the thirty li of the Malevolent Spirit Forest that one had to pass through, inhabited by ferocious tigers and beasts. Several strong young men from the village had died there.

One day, ten years ago, a villager who had once ventured out returned. He wanted to take his mother to live in the city and claimed to have learned the technique to kill tigers, fearing not the tigers in the Malevolent Spirit Forest.

So Li Xuan and a few young men from the village set out with him.

Through the thirty li of Malevolent Spirit Forest, despite the presence of ferocious tigers and beasts, if one was lucky, they could pass through safely without encountering any.

Li Xuan and his group were not very lucky.

A Splendid Ferocious Tiger appeared.

The man who claimed to have learned the art of killing tigers immediately grasped his dagger, roared, and charged forward with a sliding tackle...

Only Li Xuan managed to escape in a sorry state and return to the small mountain village. He always believed that the reason he had escaped with his life was because, seeing the man's sliding tackle, he decisively turned and fled first.

This method of killing tigers was utterly unreliable; it was like throwing oneself into the tiger's mouth!

After that, only Li Xuan, a young and able-bodied man, remained in the village. The elderly, having lost their loved ones, passed away one after another in the following ten years. Half a month ago, Li Xuan had seen off the last old person in the village.

Looking at the empty mountain village, with only himself left, Li Xuan felt both sad and angry. Other transmigrators either rose against the odds or had extraordinary backgrounds.

And what about him?

He couldn't even leave the small mountain village!

No system, no cheats; he might end up dying alone in this small mountain village.

"Sigh, I originally thought that I could become like those in web novels, who with a single sword could traverse millions of li, slay demons, rule between heaven and earth, attain sainthood, and stand proud throughout the ages. I really thought too much,"

Li Xuan sighed in his heart, mocking himself, "Can't even get out of a small mountain village, yet dreaming of traversing millions of li with a single sword? Ha!"

Just because of this self-mockery, Xu Yan, who somehow arrived at the small mountain village and heard the latter part of "traverse millions of li with a single sword," mistook him for a hidden expert, and immediately knelt down, insisting on becoming his disciple.

"Senior, I have finally found you. Please take me as your disciple and teach me peerless divine skills!"

"What?!"

Li Xuan got a start, his eyes widened as he looked at the teenager, around sixteen or seventeen, dressed in fine clothes and wearing a Longsword at his waist. He was somewhat puzzled.

"Young master Xu Yan of East River Prefecture, from a young age, I aspired to seek the true Martial Arts. Today, by chance, I have met the senior and am thrice blessed. I hope the senior will take me as a disciple. I will dedicate myself to diligent cultivation and will not let down the senior's legacy!"

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Watching the teenager with frenetic eyes respectfully kowtow, Li Xuan was flabbergasted, with one thought in his mind: This kid's got a screw loose!

No matter how Li Xuan refused or denied being a reclusive master, Xu Yan wouldn't believe it and insisted on becoming a disciple. This zealous demeanor gave Li Xuan an endless headache.

"I'm not a reclusive master, nor do I know the Martial Arts Cultivation Methods. You've got the wrong person; I too am looking for someone to teach me Martial Arts Cultivation Methods!"

"Impossible!"

Xu Yan's gaze was resolute as he said, "Senior, do not deceive me anymore. You must be a hidden expert!"

"Look at this place, cliffs on all sides, a pleasing view. It's clearly a retreat for those seeking solitude. If Senior isn't a hidden expert, then why do you live here all alone?"

"Senior, please take me as your disciple. I will not fail to honor your legacy!"

Xu Yan continued to kowtow, his eyes fervent, his gaze steadfast.

"I am not a hidden expert. I don't know the methods of cultivation. I won't take disciples. You've really got the wrong person..."

Li Xuan looked on helplessly; this kid was so stubborn. How did he even manage to traverse the evil forest and reach this small village?

Had he damaged his brain in his search for a hidden expert?

"I understand!"

Xu Yan suddenly stood up, an expression of realization on his face.

"Becoming a disciple is a major matter, how could it be treated lightly? I shall return and prepare a suitable gift for my master!"

As Li Xuan stood there dumbfounded, Xu Yan ran off and quickly disappeared from sight.

Half a month blinked by.

During this half month, Li Xuan was annoyed he hadn't taken the opportunity to learn more about the outside world from Xu Yan or even see if there was a chance to leave the small mountain village.

Unexpectedly, Xu Yan came back.

And he brought gifts to offer as tribute for becoming a disciple!

Determined to take him as his teacher!

No matter how much he denied it, Xu Yan firmly believed he was a hidden expert.

Li Xuan didn't want to deceive anyone, particularly not someone from a distinguished background. He didn't have any special powers or systems; if his true nature was found out, the consequences could be dire.

So he kept refusing, denying it over and over, but to no avail; Xu Yan was as stubborn as a mule, utterly convinced Li Xuan was a hidden expert.

"Senior, this is three hundred taels of gold. I know such mundane things do not enter your esteemed vision, but a token of respectable intent cannot be absent when taking a teacher, and this is a token of my sincerity!"

Xu Yan opened one of the boxes, inside of which were thirty neatly arranged gold ingots.

Li Xuan looked at the gold ingots, swallowed, feeling slightly tempted, but ultimately clenched his teeth firmly and said, "I do not take disciples! Nor am I a hidden expert. Please take it back, I'm only a few years older than you!"

"Although Senior appears young, you must have attained great cultivation to maintain such youth!"

Xu Yan still firmly believed he was a hidden expert, and opened the second box.

"This is the thousand-year-old ginseng treasured by my Xu Family. It is my second offering to you, Senior. I hope you will accept it!"

Li Xuan swallowed as he looked at the centuries-old ginseng in the box, its roots intact and shaped like a person. The scent wafted into his nostrils, revitalizing his spirit.

A thousand-year-old ginseng was undoubtedly a rare treasure. The elders in the village had said that a hundred-year-old ginseng could extend the life of those on the brink of death by three days, enhancing vitality and prolonging life.

If a hundred-year ginseng possessed such miraculous effects, then a thousand-year ginseng would be even more potent.

Li Xuan's heart wavered, but he resolved and continued, "Take it back, I'm truly not a hidden expert, and I don't know the methods of cultivation!"

Xu Yan opened the third box: "Senior, this is the Nine-leaf Ganoderma, my third offering for accepting me as your disciple!"

Nine-leaf Ganoderma!

Li Xuan found it difficult to look away. The village elders had mentioned that in legends passed down by ancestors, the Ganoderma of the world, when having nine leaves, was supreme. Consuming a Nine-leaf Ganoderma could prevent all ailments, ensure tireless mental capacity, prevent hair from graying, and extend life by twenty years!

A treasure that was difficult to find in the world!

Li Xuan gazed at the pale white, mushroom-like Ganoderma with nine purple leaves on its stem in the box. He took a deep breath, struggling to pull his gaze away, and with a pretense of profoundness, he sighed deeply.

"Enough! It's destiny that you've come here. As your teacher, I will accept you!"

Xu Yan simply offered too much, and he found it too hard to refuse!