Chapter 9 The Apprenticeship

......

A grave atmosphere hung over the audience hall of Nan Clan.

Nick, the master of Nan Clan, sat on his high seat, veins in his hands standing out violently, as if he were trying to crush the armrests in his hands. And standing right beside him was Gilbert. The bandages wrapped around his body could not conceal the man's fiendish face at all.

The Elders and Deacons of Nan Clan were also all in a gloomy mood, dread in their hearts.

Today on the city square of the Stone City, their clan was completely disgraced. Not only did the Dominant Top Elder take a pounding, but also a disciple was killed. It was all due to a little shit without spiritual meridian.

What irritated them more was that this little shit was once a genius disciple of Nan Clan.

"I beg you to let me have Lawrence, Master Nick." After a while, Gilbert was the first to break the silence. "Show him we still have Lawrence in our hand! Then how could the bastard be still so arrogant?" he asked Nick.

"The bastard is now a disciple of Snow Sect and gotten accolades from the Lady in Black. You know, if we threaten her with Lawrence and then piss her off, we'd be doomed,"

Nick said slowly. Ricky's words and determined look still burned in his heart. But more importantly, he was fearful of the might of the mysterious Lady in Black.

"Nate's a disciple of innate spirit now. Why be afraid of her?" Gilbert growled impatiently. A black seed grew within him, which had bloomed with the desire to kill the Lady in Black.

"That woman is not more than 22 years old, but her power is absolutely at the intermediate or even advanced stage of Bone Reinforcement. She is at least a core disciple of the Snow Sect, Gilbert." "One is a core disciple, and the other is only a nominal disciple of innate spirit. As a Dominant Top Elder, you must know which one is more important to the Snow Sect," Nick said.

"So are you saying we should just let the bastard go?" Gilbert asked with viciousness.

"Of course not! I have left word with Wade. My disciples will sneak into the Snow Sect and wait for a chance to kill the waste of blood," Nick said. He was inflamed with a desire to see that bastard pay. "Also, with Nate there, do you think he'll be able to get away with much?

What's more, for a crap student without spiritual meridian, the fifth grade of Skin Refinement should be his upper limit. And why did the woman help the doggyknobber? She likes his perseverance and nothing else.

But perseverance is neither a spiritual meridian nor a talent, and not power either."

"Now that that's settled, I'd like to leave now," Gilbert said coldly. Nick was never willing to give Lawrence to him, and this was such a time. So he left.

Crack! After Gilbert left, Nick just splintered his armrest in one of his hands.

Suddenly, all elders and deacons in the hall were frightened out of their wits.

"Remember to imprison Lawrence secretly, but don't hurt him. And don't let Gilbert know where he is." Nick's tone was thick with menace as he addressed the elders and deacons, with a beam of cold light glittering in his terrible eyes.

......

After a two-day flight on the back of the Snow Vulture, Ricky and the other disciples arrived at the temple of the Snow Sect.

It was a land of icebound mountains, on which huge palaces and shabby bungalows stood. On the foremost mountain, there was a huge gate carved of ice, with the two words "Snow Sect" carved on it.

The two Snow Vultures landed on a small square on the mountainside.

"According to our sect rules, you disciples will be registered under us, the core disciples of the Snow Sect, so there will be no elders here accepting you as nominal disciple," The Lady in Black said as she dismounted the Snow Vulture.

"Hahaha, Hazel! Grace! You came back late this time!" The moment the Lady in Black finished her words, a sonorous sound arose, then five Snow Vultures flew overhead and then landed, and thirteen figures dismounted.

One could feel the raw power emanating from these thirteen people.

But everyone had sussed out that the thirteen were core disciples of the Snow Sect.

"I can't understand why our sect chief wanted us to accept these guys as disciples," a young man said, looking at Ricky and the other boys with dull expressions.

"Maybe it meant to be a toughening exercise for us!" A girl laughed and said.

"Now that you took them here, I'd like first pick." A dark shadowy youth stepped forward and laughed.

"Alright, then you first, Sean." The charming girl called Hazel smiled and nodded.

Later, Sean selected four healthy-looking disciples casually, then he focused his attention on Ricky.

Sean was about to pick him, too, but one of the other disciples talked to him suddenly, "Master, his name is Ricky and he has no spiritual meridian."

Ricky knew that this disciple, Scott, was also from Nan Clan.

"Oh!? No spiritual meridian? Sean doubted this after hearing it. So he jumped down beside Ricky and soon verified the words to be true.

Then Sean asked to the Charming Girl and the Lady in Black, "How could this be? We are the Snow Sect, not those ordinary schools open for everyone. How could he be one of us?"

After he said that, all the disciples from Nan Clan sneered. And of course, many other disciples sneered too.

After all, even though Ricky performed so stunningly, he was still a crap disciple without spiritual meridians and a lesser young man in their eyes.

"Looking down on me again?" Ricky said resentfully, glaring at Sean.

But he didn't betray his emotions at all. He knew he would repay the sarcasm and the sneers a thousandfold. They'd all pay.

"He has a token from the Dominant Top Elder, Sean," the Lady in Black said.

"Boy, if I were you, I'd turn tail and run. You can't be a part of the Snow Sect just by waving around that token," Sean said, sneering at Ricky.

Passing on Ricky, Sean selected another disciple and led them all away. Before he left, he decided to scowl at Ricky one final time. He didn't say another word to him.

Then the other core disciples selected their nominal disciples one after the other.

As for Ricky, they either glowered at him or even ignored him. However, Ricky just mentally made a list of people he'd have to prove wrong.

In the realm of martial arts, a person without spiritual meridian could only be ordinary. For an ordinary person to go up against one with great spiritual power was courting death.

After the Charming Girl made her picks and led her disciples away, only Ricky and the Lady in Black were left. The whole square was deserted but for those two.

"My name is Grace. You are my nominal disciple from now on. But you must leave the Snow Sect if you don't qualify for the Sects Competition. You have three months to prove that you're worthy," Grace said to Ricky, with all seriousness.

"Thank you, Master Grace!" Ricky was delighted at her words, and didn't even try to hide it.

"I hope we're still master and student after the three months is up," she continued.

"Definitely, Master Grace!" Ricky said firmly.

"Well then, follow me!"