When Qin Yan saw that even the typically composed Elder Hua could barely contain his eagerness, his own resolve finally wavered.
Though he had caught the dismissive note in Han Li's tone regarding this immortal master, the man was still a genuine Cultivator willing to take disciples!
As for whether this master's cultivation was high or low, Qin Yan could no longer afford to be picky.
It wasn't as though he hadn't considered having his descendants study under Han Li, but during their time together he had come to understand that the man had absolutely no intention of taking students — it simply couldn't be forced.
Come to think of it, back when his father had still been alive, he had told Qin Yan about a visit from the immortal master Li Huayuan, who had come to the Qin estate to see if any of the younger generation possessed the Spirit Root and an affinity for the Dao. Unfortunately, not a single one did, and Li Huayuan had left disappointed.
After that, whenever Master Li visited the Qin household, he never again raised the topic of taking a disciple. In his words, the Qin family's immortal fate had been limited to a single generation — none of the Qin descendants were destined to become his students.
Now that another chance at immortal cultivation had appeared before him, of course he had to try.
Having made up his mind, Qin Yan called out to several of the younger family members and headed over as well.
Han Li watched this scene with cool detachment and said nothing.
He had already warned Qin Yan. If the man was still determined to go and offer his family as disciples, Han Li had no intention of meddling.
Truthfully, Han Li had never bothered to check whether the Qin estate's young masters and ladies actually possessed a Spirit Root. But among ordinary mortals, those with a Spirit Root were fewer than one in ten thousand — pitifully rare.
Han Li was still mulling this over when he suddenly noticed that one or two of the Qin family youths who had followed Qin Yan toward Immortal Wu had turned back to shoot him mocking glances, their faces smug with self-satisfaction, as though they were gloating at his expense.
Han Li blinked in mild surprise, then couldn't help but chuckle inwardly.
Clearly, these young men had seen that Qin Yan hadn't invited Han Li to come along and have his fate tested, and they took it as proof that the old man favored them above all others — hence their triumphant expressions.
After shaking his head silently, Han Li stopped paying them any attention and instead let his gaze drift around the great hall.
By now, very few people remained in their seats — only six or seven in total. Most of these were lonely figures who had come without bringing any nephews or nieces along, and they wore expressions of profound regret.
What truly caught Han Li's interest, however, was an old man and a young person seated at a corner table.
The elder was a man of sixty-some years in a green robe, his hair streaked with grey. He sampled the tea in his cup with an air of perfect calm, as though the immortal opportunity before him meant nothing at all. The younger was a fine-featured youth with delicate, fair skin, though every so often, when glancing toward Immortal Wu, a flicker of contempt crossed his face.
Though the pair appeared perfectly at ease, Han Li felt a small smile tug at the corners of his mouth when he looked their way.
These two were Cultivators as well, and their cultivation wasn't bad. The green-robed elder was roughly at the ninth layer of his technique, while the youth was around the fifth — no worse than that Immortal Wu.
What surprised Han Li was that he couldn't tell what technique they practiced, but it allowed them to conceal their spiritual energy until it was barely perceptible. Had Han Li's cultivation not been so far above theirs, he might never have detected their true identities.
As for Immortal Wu, he naturally had no chance of noticing anything unusual about the pair.
A concealment technique capable of deceiving fellow cultivators of the same level immediately sparked Han Li's interest.
If he could learn such a method, wouldn't it give him an enormous advantage in any battle against cultivators of comparable strength?
With that thought, Han Li studied the two of them more closely.
This time, he noticed something peculiar.
The fine-featured youth had two tiny piercings in the soft earlobes — it was a girl disguised in male clothing.
Han Li was still processing this when the disguised girl happened to glance his way and caught him staring blankly at her. Her cheeks flushed crimson, and she shot him a fierce glare.
Her reaction drew the old man's attention. He furrowed his brow slightly and turned to look at Han Li with a completely expressionless face.
Han Li responded with a smile.
The green-robed elder was quite taken aback.
He had assumed some frivolous young master had seen through the girl's disguise and was leering at her. He had not expected to find an unremarkable-looking young man staring back at him with absolutely no trace of fear.
A flicker of irritation crossed the elder's mind. After a brief pause, he gently closed his eyes.
This action gave Han Li a moment's pause, and he found himself wondering…