"Thank you for accepting Wanwan as your student, Teacher Lin Feng!"
The moment they stepped back into Classroom 101, Su Wanwan halted in her tracks and bowed deeply.
Her movements were a little clumsy, but her sincerity was unmistakable.
She held the bow longer than necessary, as if afraid that standing up too soon would make everything feel unreal.
"Wanwan will do her very best," she said earnestly, her voice trembling with emotion. "Wanwan will not fail your expectations!"
Lin Feng paused, then turned to look at her properly.
The little girl before him stood straight despite her shaking hands, her eyes filled with gratitude and nervous anticipation.
A faint smile curved his lips.
"I'm happy to guide you this year, Wanwan," Lin Feng said calmly. "Learning is a long journey. What matters is effort and sincerity. Now tell me are you excited to learn?"
"Yes, Teacher!" Su Wanwan replied without hesitation, her voice ringing clearly through the room.
Lin Feng nodded slightly, clearly satisfied.
The gentle look he gave her made Su Wanwan subconsciously straighten her back even more.
For the first time in a long while, she did not feel small or inadequate.
In that instant, the difference between Lin Feng and her previous teacher, Wu Haoxuan, became painfully clear to her.
Under Wu Haoxuan, she had always felt like a mistake… someone who should never have been there in the first place. Every lesson felt like a trial, every glance like silent condemnation.
But with Lin Feng, she felt warmth.
Her chest tightened, and her eyes burned.
She quickly lowered her head, afraid that if she looked up any longer, tears would spill out again.
Teacher Lin Feng was kind, patient, and willing to believe in her.
That other person… was cold, dismissive, and incapable of seeing anything beyond surface talent.
Su Wanwan clenched her fists quietly at her sides.
A resolve she had never known before slowly took shape in her heart.
Wanwan must not fail Teacher Lin Feng.
Even if she was slow. Even if she stumbled more than others.
She would work harder than anyone else.
She would practice longer, endure more pain, and never complain.
Because this time, someone had chosen her.
And she would spend every day proving that his choice had been worth it.
Meanwhile, Lin Feng was examining Su Wanwan's stats.
After a long moment, he pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a gentle sigh.
***
Name: Su Wanwan
Cultivation Base: Mortal (very mortal)
Strengths:
Pure of heart (so pure it squeaks)
Rock-hard determination (refuses to quit even when the heavens say "please stop")
Weaknesses:
Nothing particularly outstanding
No special bloodline
No physical gifts to speak of
No spirit root
Even a wildflower growing by the roadside had better versatility, and that thing mostly just gets stepped on
***
Lin Feng stared at the panel for several seconds.
"Interesting. This will be a challenging seed." Lin Feng murmured to himself, his lips twitching faintly.
Despite the self-mockery in his tone, there was not a trace of concern in his heart.
To others, Su Wanwan's lack of talent would have been an insurmountable flaw.
To him, it was little more than an inconvenience… one easily corrected.
In his hands, even a pile of worthless cow dung could be refined into shining gold.
What mattered was not aptitude, but will. And this girl had will in abundance.
Lin Feng lifted his gaze and met Su Wanwan's expectant eyes.
She stood there nervously, shoulders tense, as if afraid that a single wrong move might cause him to change his mind.
"Before we truly begin," Lin Feng said slowly, his voice calm yet carrying weight, "there is something you must understand, Wanwan."
"The path to strength and power is cruel. It does not care whether you are kind, weak, or innocent. It will test you again and again."
His expression grew more serious.
"You will cry. You will suffer. You will experience pain that makes you question your own choices. And you will be forced to face your own limits repeatedly… all in order to improve."
As he spoke, his eyes drifted down to Su Wanwan's hands.
Small, pale, and rougher than they should have been, they bore faint calluses and tiny scars and even fresh wounds.
They were silent proof of countless hours spent practicing the sword.
A weapon too heavy, too aggressive, and too ill-suited for someone of her nature.
Lin Feng already knew the answer to his question.
Still, he asked.
"Are you prepared for that?"
Su Wanwan's fingers slowly curled into tight little fists.
Her knuckles turned white as she straightened her back, lifting her chin despite the tremor in her legs.
"Wanwan is ready and willing to suffer, Teacher!" she declared with all the courage she could muster. "Wanwan will do her very bestest!"
The earnestness in her voice made Lin Feng pause for a heartbeat.
Then he nodded, a trace of approval flashing in his eyes.
"Very good," he said. "I expected nothing less from my student."
The tension in the room eased slightly as Lin Feng's tone softened once more.
He took a step closer, no longer radiating pressure but calm reassurance.
"Now," he continued, "I have one more question for you."
"Other than the sword, what else do you want to learn? What is it that you truly enjoy? What are you passionate about?"
Su Wanwan blinked, clearly startled by the question.
No teacher had ever asked her something like that before.
Training, to her, had always been orders to follow and standards she could never reach.
Desire had never been part of the equation.
Meanwhile, Lin Feng waited patiently.
To Su Wanwan, he was simply a gentle teacher guiding her forward.
But in truth, Lin Feng was a true immortal… one who stood above time, fate, and causality itself.
He was the master of countless paths, the ruler of an entire multiverse.
There existed no Dao he had not comprehended, no technique he had not perfected.
Even the endless and aloof Grand Dao had now since bent the knee, reduced to nothing more than a silent servant awaiting his command.
If Su Wanwan wished to wield a sword, he could reshape the sword Dao itself to suit her.
If she wished to cultivate through art, music, cooking, or even something as trivial as sweeping floors, he could elevate it into a supreme path.
In Lin Feng's hands, impossibility was merely a matter of perspective.
Now, all that remained was to see what this determined little girl would choose.
"Wanwan… really loves to draw, Teacher."
Su Wanwan's voice was soft, almost hesitant.
As the words left her mouth, a faint blush crept up her cheeks, and she lowered her head, staring at her toes as if afraid she had said something foolish.
This was a secret she rarely shared with anyone.
Drawing was something she did only when no one was watching… late at night or in quiet corners because she knew most people would laugh at her for it.
To her, drawing was simply a small escape. A place where she could breathe.
She clasped her hands together nervously. "Wanwan likes drawing flowers… clouds… and sometimes people," she added timidly, as though trying to justify herself. "When Wanwan draws, it feels… calm."
For a moment, there was silence.
Su Wanwan's heart pounded.
She was already bracing herself to be told that it was useless, that cultivation had nothing to do with childish hobbies.
Then she heard a soft chuckle.
"Drawing, huh?"
Su Wanwan looked up in surprise.
Lin Feng was smiling… not a forced smile, but a genuinely thoughtful one, as though she had just given him a very interesting answer.
"I guess we could start with that," Lin Feng said lightly.
But behind his relaxed tone, his mind was already racing.
To him, a brush was no different from a blade, and a sheet of paper no less profound than the heavens.
He had seen entire worlds born from a single stroke.
If Su Wanwan's heart resonated with drawing, then forcing her down the path of the sword had been nothing short of cruelty.
Instead, he would guide her toward a Dao that suited her nature… a Dao of ink, form, and quiet perseverance.
Lin Feng's smile deepened slightly.
"Then we'll walk this path together," he said calmly. "And we'll make it yours."
Su Wanwan didn't fully understand his words, but something warm bloomed in her chest.
For the first time, the future no longer felt heavy or frightening.
She nodded firmly, her eyes shining.
"Wanwan will work hard, Teacher!"