Chapter 17

The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, his expression somewhat strange.

Taking a disciple?

Taking a... black snake as a disciple?

This... this is simply too shocking and unconventional, isn't it?

He, Huang Yaoshi, though arrogant in his belief that his talents were vast, mastering music, chess, calligraphy, painting, the Five Elements, and the Eight Trigrams, with martial arts cultivation base surpassing all in the current age.

Yet, when teaching disciples, he has always looked at aptitude and character.

But teaching a snake... how could he possibly begin?

Should he teach it how to breathe and refine Qi? Or teach it how to practice Palm Techniques and Sword Techniques?

Just imagining a huge black snake twisting its body, mimicking human moves... that scene was truly hard to imagine.

A sense of absurdity inevitably rose in Huang Yaoshi's heart.

Hearing this, Ning Chuan also shook his head inwardly.

Becoming Huang Yaoshi's disciple?

He had no such plan.

Admittedly, Huang Yaoshi's martial arts cultivation base was unfathomable, making him a top-tier grandmaster of the current age.

But Ning Chuan possessed heaven-defying comprehension; he was confident that given enough time, surpassing Huang Yaoshi, or even reaching a Higher realm, was merely a matter of time.

Having an extra Master above him for no reason, subjecting him to control, was something he was unwilling to accept.

His goal was never simply to learn a single martial art, but to draw from the strengths of all, integrate them, and ultimately forge a path of demon cultivation unique to himself!

What he wanted were the vast as the sea martial arts classics on Taohuadao, those Daoist scriptures and Secret Techniques that crystallized human wisdom.

Only these things could truly nourish his heaven-defying comprehension, allowing him to accumulate strength and strike suddenly, creating cultivation methods truly suitable for the demon race.

So, he first gently shook his huge snake head towards Huang Rong, indicating negation.

Immediately after, he swayed his thick snake tail, pointing towards the distant Taohuadao, then gently rubbed his snake head against Huang Rong's arm, emitting a low hiss.

Huang Rong, being as intelligent as ice and snow, understood Ning Chuan's meaning almost instantly.

She widened her eyes in surprise, looking at Ning Chuan, then at her own father's somewhat strange expression, and tentatively asked:

"Big Black Snake, do you mean... you want to stay on Taohuadao, but... you do not wish to become my father's disciple?"

Upon hearing these words, Huang Yaoshi's face immediately darkened further.

He, the mighty Eastern Heretic Huang Yaoshi, how many people sharpened their heads trying to enter his school, yet he barely bothered to pay them any mind.

Now, he had taken the initiative to ask what reward the other party wanted, yet the other party actually... despised him?

This inevitably caused a faint... displeasure to rise in his heart.

However, thinking again, the other party was after all the benefactor who saved his beloved daughter's life, and moreover, a supernatural beast of extraordinary spirit, whose actions and thoughts differed from humans, so it was understandable.

Besides, taking a snake as a disciple was indeed somewhat... improper.

Huang Yaoshi let out a light snort, implicitly accepting Huang Rong's interpretation.

He looked at Ning Chuan, pondered for a moment, and finally nodded, agreeing to the arrangement.

"Very well."

Huang Yaoshi said lightly, his tone carrying a hint of a grandmaster's pride and magnanimity:

"Since you do not wish to become a disciple, I, an old man, will not force you."

"You saved Rong'er, so you are a benefactor of Taohuadao."

"From today on, you may roam freely on Taohuadao. Except for a few forbidden areas, you may go anywhere else on the island."

He paused, his tone becoming somewhat more serious, carrying a hint of warning:

"But you must remember: do not harm others arbitrarily, and do not disturb the secluded cultivation of the island's disciples. Otherwise, do not blame me for not considering past feelings!"

Having finished speaking, Huang Yaoshi said no more; his figure swayed, his robes fluttering, and like an immortal banished from heaven, he stepped upon the waves, leaping several times before disappearing into the depths of Taohuadao.

That powerful pressure also vanished without a trace.

Ning Chuan watched Huang Yaoshi's departing back and let out a long sigh of relief in his heart.

Finally... it succeeded!

Although the process had some twists and turns, the result was good.

He had finally obtained the right to move freely on Taohuadao!

This meant he finally had the opportunity to access the human martial arts classics he had dreamed of!

With his heaven-defying comprehension combined with the crystallized wisdom of thousands of years of human accumulation, his future was limitless!

An indescribable excitement surged within his heart.

"Great! Big Black Snake, you can stay on Taohuadao from now on!"

Huang Rong also smiled happily, patting Ning Chuan's head, her eyes curving with joy.

Although she was loved by her father on the island, playmates of her own age were extremely scarce.

Now, having such a magical and human-understanding "Big Black Snake" friend, she was naturally overjoyed.

She could not wait to take her new friend to meet the others on the island.

"Big Black Snake, let's go! I'll take you to meet my six senior brothers and sisters!"

Huang Rong pulled on Ning Chuan's scales, saying with great enthusiasm.

Hearing this, Ning Chuan's heart stirred slightly.

Six senior brothers and sisters?

He remembered that among Huang Yaoshi's disciples, the most famous were Qu Lingfeng, Chen Xuanfeng, Mei Chaofeng, Lu Chengfeng, Wu Mianfeng, and Feng Mofeng.

Later, Chen Xuanfeng and Mei Chaofeng, having stolen the Nine Yin Manual, defected from Taohuadao, causing Huang Yaoshi to take his anger out on the remaining disciples, breaking their leg bones and expelling them from the sect.

Judging by Huang Rong's tone, it seemed these six disciples were still on the island.

"It seems the plot has not yet reached the stage where Chen Xuanfeng and Mei Chaofeng steal the Nine Yin Manual."

Ning Chuan suddenly understood in his heart.

For him, this was undoubtedly good news.

This meant he might... have a chance to come into contact with that legendary martial arts treasure—the Nine Yin Manual!

This might be the starting point for his transformation from a serpent into a dragon!

PS: In the Comprehensive Martial Arts World, it is normal for plot details to differ from the original; do not nitpick! Begging for data!!