Master, What Dao Do You Cultivate?-Chapter 21: Disciple Knows Their Mistake

A rookie girl wanted to participate in the Cultivation Tournament, and with only two months to prepare—this decision was explosive, even in all of Bangkok.
Seeing this stunning beauty practically walking to her death—and for the sake of her useless Master, no less—Ji Congliang couldn't understand it but still reminded her:
"Yu Ye, you do realize that the disciples participating in the Cultivation Tournament are all senior brothers and sisters who entered years before us? Some of them have even reached the upper Qi Refining Realm, and there are even experts in the lower Core Formation Realm."
Foundation Stabilization, Qi Refining, Core Formation, Golden Core, Nascent Soul—trying to pit a Foundation Stabilization Realm cultivator against a Core Formation Realm cultivator in just two months? What kind of joke was that?
Lei Qiong raised his hand to stop Ji Congliang, then looked at Yu Ye with a face full of appreciation and asked:
"You hear that? Still dare to participate?"
But Yu Ye's face showed no fear whatsoever.
"Disciple knows there's a gap, but losing and surrendering are two different things."
Hearing such bold words, Ji Qinglin couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.
Was she provoked today? This little one didn’t seem like such an active person yesterday. Even if there was another reason behind it, at the very least, her argument for his sake was quite solid. Who would have thought—she really had her Master in her heart.
As for Lei Qiong, hearing this, he was deeply moved.
Seeing his own Master about to be stripped of his territory, yet his Disciple, who hadn’t even begun cultivation, stood up to argue for him—even willing to bet on an impossible Cultivation Tournament just to fight for an opportunity for her Master.
Lei Qiong had built everything from scratch in his youth, and now, entering middle age, he found himself more sentimental than before. Seeing Yu Ye's determination today truly struck a chord.
No matter the era, the growth of the young was always too dazzling to ignore.
Lei Qiong laughed heartily.
"Good! Very good!"
Ji Qinglin couldn't quite grasp Lei Qiong's thoughts, so he stood up and apologized:
"President, my Disciple was rude. Please don't take offense."
"Why would I? I genuinely admire this kid."
Saying this, Lei Qiong poured himself a drink and downed it in one go. He let out a long sigh and said:
"As one gets older, even boundless ambition starts to wear down. Qinglin, you know I’ve always despised those manipulative tactics in organizations. Before calling you here today, I wasn’t even sure what exactly had been bothering me all this time. But your Disciple’s words just made it clear for me. She’s right—this is exactly how Xindong Street should be. No need for scheming, just let the Cultivation Tournament decide the real outcome."
Hearing this, Yu Ye bowed in gratitude.
"Thank you, President, for granting this opportunity."
Ji Congliang still wanted to dissuade him.
"President, but if she loses—"
"So what if she loses? If she loses, she just comes back and trains again. Who in this world is undefeated forever? As long as every Xindong Street disciple has such ambition, what does a single loss matter?"
Ji Qinglin took the chance to flatter him.
"President, your vision is truly insightful!"
"If you need any support for cultivation, whether from the Commerce Guild or myself, we will provide it."
Yu Ye was thrilled.
"Many thanks, President!"
"Have you eaten yet, Yu Ye? Join us for a meal?"
"President, that wouldn’t be appropriate, right?"
"Sit down, there aren’t so many formalities here. Besides, I’m in a good mood today. Congliang, come."
Hearing this, Ji Congliang was overjoyed, but just as he was about to sit down, Lei Qiong continued:
"Pour wine for Yu Ye."
"???"
The three clinked their cups together—just like a family of three, plus a servant.
Lei Qiong, worried that Ji Qinglin lacked experience in teaching Disciples, continuously offered pointers to Yu Ye on her upcoming cultivation training.
Yu Ye, for her part, put on the look of a wide-eyed, inexperienced girl, carefully absorbing the President’s guidance.
Ji Qinglin didn't expect Yu Ye to achieve any significant ranking, but with the Commerce Guild’s support, she could install valuable cultivation modules without any cost.
However, realizing that Yu Ye was about to officially begin cultivation, Ji Qinglin knew his time to search for suitable training methods was running out.
Just before they left, Lei Qiong patted Ji Qinglin on the shoulder.
"Qinglin, you’ve taken in a good Disciple."
As Master and Disciple prepared to leave, a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy in red rushed in. Dressed in a red leather jacket with styled hair and goggles on his head, he had the look of a rebellious, wild street racer. However, upon seeing Ji Qinglin, he greeted him with enthusiasm.
"Hey! Qinglin-ge! What brings you here?"
"Zhenghao, we were just talking about you. Where have you been running off to this time?"
This was Lei Zhenghao, President Lei Qiong’s youngest son. Previously, in order to explore some...
exotic reproductive experiences
with a few women in virtual space, he had purchased a Neural Server for Virtual Species Platform.
But whether it was due to a faulty product or someone sabotaging him, the server overloaded upon connection, trapping several people’s consciousness inside. No one dared to forcefully shut it down for fear of turning them into vegetables, so they had to find another way to make the system shut down safely.
Luckily, Ji Qinglin used his phone’s security lock function to temporarily disable the server, rescuing the trapped individuals.
Because of this, the Lei family was deeply grateful to Ji Qinglin and maintained a strong relationship with him.
"I was out racing with some friends. Who’s this beauty? Qinglin’s wife?"
"Watch what you say, this is my Disciple."
"Ohhh, still a Disciple for now."
"You brat!"
"Hey, hey, hey, Qinglin-ge, my bad, my bad!"
Lei Qiong called Lei Zhenghao to a stop.
"Such disrespect! Running around all day. Can’t you pay more attention to the Commerce Guild?"
"You’re still in great shape, I’m not worried. Besides, isn’t my sister taking care of it?"
"Hmph, no ambition at all!"
"Haven’t you heard? Ambitious rich kids go bankrupt the fastest."
—————
That night, as Master and Disciple left Leiming Manor, they had walked two blocks when Ji Qinglin suddenly spoke in a sarcastic tone.
"Good Disciple, train hard. Your Master and the Coal Boss are counting on you now."
Yu Ye chuckled.
"Master, you don’t have to keep up the act when President Lei isn’t around. With your skills last night, even in ten years, I might not be able to match you."
"You can already make decisions for the Ji Family General Store, shouldn’t I be preparing for retirement?"
Mad Ye:
Your Master is so petty.
"Master, don’t be mad! I only spoke up earlier to help us keep the General Store."
Hearing this, Ji Qinglin suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Yu Ye.
"Oh? Was it for the General Store, or for your own cultivation?"
Yu Ye had a whole explanation prepared, but faced with her usually smiling Master’s rare serious gaze—those starry eyes staring straight into hers—she actually found herself speechless. Her cheeks flushed red in panic.
"Cultivation... isn't cultivation also for the General Store?"
Ji Qinglin thought to himself:
This little one clearly has her own plans.
But he didn’t press further, and simply said coldly—
"Master leads the way, but cultivation depends on the individual. Do as you please."
After saying that, he walked ahead on his own.
Yu Ye:
He’s actually mad?
"Master, with my comprehension, what kind of ranking do you think I could achieve in the Cultivation Tournament after installing an A-rank Cultivation Meridian Set?"
"The number of participants is your ranking."
"Master, you must be joking?"
Ji Qinglin turned back and said seriously,
"Joking? Have you ever seen someone completely abandon their flesh and install a full mechanical prosthetic? Have you seen those who use nanotechnology to resurrect even after being blown to pieces? Have you seen those who have refined their Soul to the point that a single glance can paralyze your prosthetic? Installing meridians is just the foundation—it doesn’t mean you’ll have great strength. And that’s not even considering combat experience and intelligence gathering. You dare to sign up for the Debates and Wish-Granting Battles before even starting cultivation? Are you not afraid of spilling your blood on the battlefield?"
Hearing this, and thinking back to how Master's only condition was to keep her as a Disciple, Yu Ye understood how much Ji Qinglin cared about her. She lowered her head, stuck out her tongue, and said pitifully,
"Disciple knows their mistake."
Ji Qinglin thought,
You call that knowing your mistake?
But considering that this little one had stood up for him, his heart softened.
"Forget it. At least your courage is commendable. I will make arrangements for the Cultivation Tournament, but remember—you must never act like this again in the future."
"Yes."