That day, An Zhengzheng was practicing her sword when she suddenly received a message from Master Wushang.

Because An Zhengzheng did not use a jade slip, Master Wushang waited a long time without receiving a reply, and finally used a thousand paper cranes to send a message.

"Zhengzheng, the An family has sent out invitations. Are you getting married?"

Master Wushang had a headache.

I originally thought that only female cultivators from other sects would run off to get married halfway through their cultivation.

Why is the Ruthless Path pulling this stunt?

"Master, I cultivate the Path of Ruthlessness, how could I possibly get married?"

An Zhengzheng frowned, her voice filled with doubt as she sent the message, "Are you sure it's me?"

There are more than just that family with the surname An!

She had clearly explained the situation to her father.

A message came from Master Wushang: "Yes."

If you seek enlightenment from various sects, you become their disciple and are protected by them, so you naturally have to follow their rules.

Once married, it is considered a marriage between disciples of the sect, and they need to report to the sect, such as whether they have abandoned the sect or not, so as to facilitate the distribution of resources and the adjustment of residences within the sect.

For inner disciples like An Zhengzheng, once they become disciples, they consider him a father for life.

His opinion is an essential part of the discussion on marriage between the two ethnic groups.

So he, this socially awkward guy, has to discuss marriage with the Zhou family and the An family, two families he's never even met before!

For a disciple I've never even met!

Wu Shang Zhenren really wanted to bang his head against a wall.

He said helplessly, "Come quickly to the sect leader."

Without saying a word, An Zhengzheng opened the navigation system on the jade slip and rushed over as quickly as possible.

The cave was completely silent at this moment.

The people sitting on the left are members of the An family, with Old Madam An at the head.

The people sitting on the right are members of the Zhou family, with Zhou Rongsheng at the head.

Sitting in the main seat was an old man with snow-white hair and beard, dressed in a blue Taoist robe, and with long, white eyebrows.

This is a real person who has lived for over a thousand years; the whisk in his hand is as steady as Mount Tai.

His cultivation level was the highest among them, already at the Nascent Soul stage, and he noticed An Zhengzheng's movements early on.

"Zhengzheng, you've come."

When An Zhengzheng entered the room and saw these familiar faces, her face darkened.

She suppressed her temper and went up to pay her respects to the real person.

"Greetings, Master Qingxu." The master said that he was socially awkward, so Master Qingxu would handle this matter.

Master Qingxu smiled faintly and nodded slightly.

He remained calm about the fact that the top-scoring student he recruited with a high reward might get married in less than a year.

His voice was old, yet steady and gentle: "You should greet your elders and discuss matters with them."

An Zhengzheng clenched his fists and greeted his grandmother and the others. When he got to An Mao, his expression was very unnatural.

That's a sign of a guilty conscience.

He kept his head down, not daring to look at An Zhengzheng.

Master Qingxu said, "Zhengzheng, your parents have arranged a marriage for you, and now they need the sect to release you. Do you agree?"

An Zhengzheng didn't even turn her head: "This disciple disagrees."

"What right do you have to disagree?"

Madam An immediately stood up. She had long disliked this rebellious granddaughter. "Such a fine girl chose to cultivate the Path of Heartlessness, and now a good marriage is offered to her, yet she insists on refusing!"

If the Zhou family hadn't taken a liking to her, this girl wouldn't have had this good fortune.

An Zhengzheng ignored her.

This is a difference in values; she had long since given up on communicating with her grandmother.

It was Zhou Rongsheng who spoke first. His gaze swept over An Zhengzheng and then landed on Old Madam An's face.

He stood up and said, "Madam, please don't upset yourself. She's a young girl, and there are some things she needs our guidance as elders."

An Zhengzheng sneered and looked at Zhou Xu behind Zhou Rongsheng, who didn't even dare to look up.

“Master Qingxu, I am devoted to the Dao and have no intention of marrying.”

As An Zhengzheng spoke, her eyes fell on the magical artifacts on the stone table.

The Zhou and An families have already pressed their fingerprints, and they are just waiting for Siyue Gate to release the people and read out the marriage contract, at which point the marriage will be considered settled.

The seven major sects uphold the will of Heaven, which is why they are respected.

"No intention of marrying?" Old Madam An's face darkened, her eyes filled with disappointment. "Grandmother asks you, during the annual assessment, did you have intimate relations with the eldest son of the Zhou family?"

How could Madam An know about the annual performance review?

An Zhengzheng's face was full of anger as she stared coldly at Zhou Xu.

Zhou Xu sensed the hostile gaze.

But what could he do?

Having accepted the engagement, he no longer needed to practice the technique to sever ties with his love, which made things much easier for him.

One day, once she's accepted into the family, he'll make it up to An Zhengzheng.

An Zhengzheng said coldly, "I didn't! Everything I experienced during the assessment was just an illusion."

“In the illusion, everything I did was to save him. But even if we had that kind of contact in real life, I would not marry him.”

The cultivation world doesn't place much importance on the separation of men and women, but Zhou Xu's bare upper body and An Zhengzheng's inner garments for warmth in the illusion have already crossed the line.

But so what?

An Zhengzheng was saving lives, and she has a clear conscience.

The old lady pointed at her, her voice trembling, and scolded, "Shameless! How could the An family produce a daughter like you!"

"Mother, please don't say anymore." Anmao subconsciously didn't want anyone to mention her daughter's annual performance review.

He turned to Master Qingxu and asked, "We came here today only to ask that you read the contract and release the girl. Zhengzheng is a young girl, and she can't understand the plans we made for her yet, but that doesn't matter... Sigh, why did you have to call her here!"

Master Qingxu remained calm, his eyes undisturbed.

For some reason, his tone wavered slightly.

"Times have changed. In the cultivation world a thousand years ago, marriage was easy. But things are different now... If my disciples don't agree, the Siyue Sect will never approve this contract."

After Jian Lin entered the magic array, the cultivation world became tainted with too many worldly desires, and even marriage was no longer as simple as a cultivator finding a partner.

He asked An Zhengzheng again, "Zhengzheng, are you sure you don't want to get married?"

An Zhengzheng immediately nodded: "This disciple is single-minded in seeking the Dao and has no other intentions."

“Since that’s the case…” Master Qingxu was not surprised. “Then please have both families take this marriage contract back. Siyue Sect won’t release them.”

An Zhengzheng became a disciple of the Siyue Sect, practicing their techniques and absorbing their spiritual energy.

If the Siyue Gate refuses to release the person, the contract is invalid, and Heaven will not recognize it.

Old Madam An was anxious, and the other clansmen were also somewhat worried, but the Zhou family remained calm.

Zhou Rongsheng glanced at An Mao indifferently; in any case, the Zhou family wasn't in a hurry.

As expected, An Mao hardened his heart and said, "Zhengzheng, don't be ridiculous!"

"What kind of behavior is it for a woman to say such things!"