Teacher by day, Farmer by passion

Ace arrived shortly after, with Shan Yifeng trailing behind him.

Ahead, Liu Mei and Icehart were locked in a heated argument, their voices sharp. But the moment Liu Mei turned and saw Ace, her demeanor changed in an instant.

"Master!" she cried, her earlier smugness vanishing as she rushed toward him, arms outstretched.

Ace caught her effortlessly, lifting her up before pulling her into a hug.

"Liu Mei, who's this? Your friend?" he asked, glancing at Icehart.

"What?!" Liu Mei recoiled in horror, as if the very suggestion was an insult. "I'm friends with no monkey!"

Ace nearly choked. What the heck? He barely stopped himself from saying it out loud.

On the other side, Icehart stiffened, his eyes flickering to his escort for support. The imposing figure of Elder Lukas stepped forward, his expression calm but his presence heavy.

With a warm yet subtly chilling smile, he addressed Ace.

"Young man, your disciple has just insulted the young master of the White Ice Sect. I assume you have an explanation before I demand an apology?"

Though his tone remained even and calm, Ace could sense the underlying bloodlust behind his words.

Ace remained unfazed, turning to Zhao Mei instead.

"Little Mei, thanks for looking after my little puppy these past few days."

A stunned silence followed.

Lukas blinked. Did… did he really just ignored me?

And Zhao Mei nearly stumbled. Little Mei? Since when was I your Little Mei?

But the most dramatic reaction came from the girl in Ace's arms.

"Ahh! Master!" Liu Mei shrieked, her face turning bright red. "How dare you call me a puppy! I hate you! I hate you!"

She pummeled his chest with her tiny fists, but her hits were light, her embarrassment evident.

Lukas cleared his throat sharply, trying to reclaim the conversation. "Ahem. Young man."

Ace turned back lazily.

"Oh, right. My bad, my bad," he said with an exaggerated wave of his hand. "I forgot you were still here. It's common courtesy to introduce one's name before asking a question.I'll start, my name is 'Your Majesty Ace'. And yours?"

Lukas' face darkened. The audacity! The sheer disrespect! He had met countless arrogant individuals in his lifetime, but this? Does this fool not know the difference between heaven and earth?

His gaze sharpened as he assessed Ace's strength. Gold Rank? That's it?

Yet he didn't rushed into conflict... something didn't add up. His two disciples were clearly stronger than him—both barely ten years old but already exuding formidable energy, major gold ranks?

Could he really be just a Gold Rank? Lukas hesitated, sweat forming at his brow. This young man infront of him was the master of the two.

Clearly it doesn't make sense for the master to be of a lower rank than their disciples. Especially when the person in front of him didn't even felt any pain from the constant hits of his disciple who's also a gold rank.

He gulped, That little girl is already in major gold too.

One is fine, the junior has talents. But what if there's two? And what if those two are the only disciple he's teaching?

And next he also recalled a few important key notes. There are techniques that could conceal one's true aura… What if this man is far beyond what I perceive? What if he was a tiger in sheep clothing?

Sensing the hesitation, Ace pushed further. His lips curled into a smirk.

"Just so you know," he said, voice casual yet laced with meaning, "there exist techniques to hide one's aura. If you're so eager, why don't you make a move?"

Lukas' body tensed. The logic was sound—if Ace could raise such monstrous disciples, what did that say about him?

Gritting his teeth, Lukas scoffed. "Hmph. I may let this slide for now, but our sect master won't be as forgiving if your disciple continues on with this behavior."

Seeing that his bluff had worked, Ace decided to push the game one step further.

"Hahahaha, sure, sure," he said, his laughter full of amusement. "I don't mind disciplining a few more ignorant juniors even more."

Lukas' jaw clenched. This was clearly undermining his sect master and the sect he came from, but he had no choice but to retreat. Without another word, he turned on his heel and walked away, his mind already scheming.

I need to do a background check on that bastard. His eyes burned with cold fury. Once I confirm what I need to, I'll personally come back and kill you. No one who crosses the White Ice Sect will ever remain alive—not even a Legend Rank.

Zhao Mei glanced at Ace, her expression a mix of concern and exasperation.

"Master Zhi… was that really necessary?" she asked hesitantly.

Ace waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine, I'll be able to save my neck." Hopefully, he added inwardly.

Shifting topics, he asked, "What happened to Zhao Yun?"

She had grown on him over time that if she ever asked him to take her in as his disciple, he might probably accept—though he suspected she would end up more of a nanny than anything. Ahem.

Zhao Mei gave him a knowing look. "Younger Sister Yun is on a sect mission. She's missed out on a lot because she was too busy babysitting a certain someone's disciple."

Ace coughed. "Oh… oh, right. That's… good. Good for her."

After a brief exchange, Ace and his disciples didn't linger any longer.

Zhao Mei bid them farewell, and they soon resumed their journey.

_____

As they walked, Shan Yifeng hesitated before speaking up. "Master, what will you do about the princess?"

Ace raised an eyebrow. "What princess are you talking about?"

Shan Yifeng looked at him like he had just asked whether the sky was blue.

"Soho Verilith, Master! She's not letting me cultivate at all. She comes every day to disturb me!"

Liu Mei, walking beside him, giggled. "Isn't that a good thing, Junior Brother? She's beautiful."

"No, no! How is that a good thing?!" Shan Yifeng wailed. "I can't get stronger if this keeps happening! Master, help me… Please do something!"

Ace hummed, rubbing his chin. It seems the princess is more of a problem than I thought.

"Alright, alright," he finally said. "I've already made preparations. We're moving to the capital soon."

Shan Yifeng blinked. "Wait… what why?"

Liu Mei, on the other hand, looked uneasy. "Master… but we're not going by boat again, are we?"

Ace frowned. "Huh? Why do you ask?"

Liu Mei puffed up her cheeks. "Did you already forget? Sarah?"

"Who's Sarah, master?" Shan Yifeng asked from the side.