Most of the scrolls on the shelves were Sky Rank techniques, which were indeed suitable for Core Disciples. Inner Court disciples would likely drool over Sky Rank techniques, but Wang Ming remained unimpressed. He did raise an eyebrow when he spotted a few Heaven Rank techniquesâthough all of them were combat-oriented.
For most Core Disciples, these would be considered treasures. Heaven Rank techniques were extremely rare in the Black Bamboo Kingdom. However, Wang Ming wasnât interested. All the combat techniques available here were beneath his standardsâhe would only spare a glance at those above Heaven Rank, as most of his current combat techniques were at the Ancient Rank.
He might have shown interest in a Heaven Rank technique if it had unique utilityâlike his Soul Eyesâbut otherwise, it simply wasnât worth his attention.
"Letâs go upstairs. Donât pick any techniques from this floorâthe next one will have much better ones," Wang Ming said as he looked at the girls. They nodded in agreement and placed the scrolls back on the shelves.
Wang Ming raised an eyebrow when he noticed the other Core Disciples walking toward them. However, sensing no negative intent from them, he decided to wait and see why they were approaching.
"Excuse me," someone said, just as Wang Ming and the girls were about to go upstairs. They turned to see a beautiful female Core Disciple smiling at them.
"Yes?" Wang Ming asked.
"Iâve never seen you before. Are you newly promoted Core Disciples?" the young lady asked, tilting her head slightly, her eyes darting across the group.
"Yes, we are newly promoted Core Disciples," Bai Lingxi replied politely. Since the Core Disciple was treating them with courtesy, it was only natural to respond in kind. Moreover, after encountering so many unreasonable and arrogant disciples, it was refreshing to meet someone pleasant. If they hadnât seen this, they might have believed every disciple in the sect was rude and conceited.
"I see. No wonder we didnât recognize you," said another disciple, speaking with excitement.
"We just came over to say congratulations. You must have spent many years as Inner Court Disciples and worked hard to earn your promotion," the female disciple added with a warm smile.
âSo polite,â even Wang Ming was surprised by the refreshing behavior.
"Thank you, but we were never Inner Court Disciplesâwe were Outer Court Disciples before this," Wang Ming said casually.
The Core Disciples fell silent for a moment before their eyes widened in shock.
"You were Outer Court Disciples?!" one of them exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand.
"Indeed, they were Outer Court disciples who had just recently entered the sect along with those from the nonâDual Cultivation department," Luo Li, a former Inner Court disciple, replied to the girls.
The Core Disciples who heard her words were even more dumbfounded.
âSigh, the disparity in talent is so unfair, they thought,â Many of them felt a tinge of jealousy. They had joined the sect as regular disciples, worked tirelessly to reach the Inner Court, and then dedicated years of sweat, blood, and tears to become Core Disciples. Meanwhile, this group had achieved it all in a matter of weeks, simply due to their talent.
"Wait a minute... I just remembered something!" one of the female disciples suddenly said as a realization struck her. She looked at Wang Ming and the girls with wide eyes.
"Are you the people who recently appeared on the Rankings List?" she asked nervously and curiously.
"Your guess is correct," Wang Ming replied.
"Heavens! Youâre even more monstrously talented than we thought," said another Core Disciple, still in a daze.
"So who among you has entered the rankings?" another disciple asked curiously, and the rest looked at them expectantly.
"It was me and him," Bai Lingxi said, pointing at Wang Ming.
"Heavens! Do you know how much of a commotion you caused?" one of the female Core Disciples asked, making Wang Ming and Bai Lingxi raise their eyebrows slightly.
"No, we donât. Care to enlighten us?" Bai Lingxi asked with a slight arch of her brow.
"You have to understand, becoming a Core Disciple is already rare, but someone entering the rankingsâand not just that, but at such a high rankâsent shockwaves through the sect," one disciple explained. In her years in the sect no one has achieved this kind of feat in the sect, and this was probably the first time someone did something shocking.
"Yes! Many rushed to the Serpent Building to recruit you so they could gain favor from their respective Peak Masters before anyone else, but none of us could find you," added another female disciple.
"I see. Thatâs probably because the Sect Master removed our VR capsules from the building," Wang Ming said calmly.
"Ahh, that makes sense," another female disciple replied with a nod. The Sect Master must have known what commotion it would cause, so in her view he removed the capsules for their safety as not everyone has good intentions.
"Haha! You know, they all still think it was an Inner Court disciple. I canât wait to see the look on their faces when they learn it was Outer Court disciples all along!" another Core Disciple said with a laugh, imagining the faces of those proud disciples.
"Yeah, thatâs going to cause another major shock," added one of the others with a grin.
"By the way, which Peak have you all joined?" one of the disciples asked curiously. She was 100% sure that the Peak Masters had been present alongside the Sect Master during the recruitment ceremony and had already recruited them. She also noticed how close the girls were to Wang Ming and could easily guess they were his Dao Companionsâso naturally, they would follow him to whichever Peak he chose. In her mind, he must have joined one of the top Peaks.
"Oh, we joined Jade Peak," Shi Yu replied in a cheerful tone, completely ignoring the expressions of the girls, which had frozen the moment they heard her answer.