Secret of the Feather Transformation Sect

As Lu Bei descended the rope, the light grew dimmer. He scanned his surroundings, and a conspicuous indentation caught his attention.

It was about the size of a palm, wide and long, and looked quite familiar.

Lu Bei thought for a moment, then took out the Feather Transformation Sect Master's Token from his Qiankun Bag and tried it. It fit perfectly.

A ripple of watery light spread out, and a passage large enough for one person appeared in the damp, slippery well wall. A notification appeared, indicating Lu Bei had triggered a quest.

[You have triggered the quest: Secret of the Feather Transformation Sect]

[Quest Description: Feather Transformation Sect on Sanqing Peak, an obscure little sect. The former Sect Master, Mo Buxiu, was a rather mysterious cultivator, and little is known about him. Do you want to uncover the secrets of the Feather Transformation Sect? Go forth, search, Mo Buxiu has hidden everything in the underground palace.]

[Main Quest: Unravel the mystery, Reward: 30,000 Experience]

[Side Quest: Not triggered]

[Accept?]

[Yes] [No]

"Just as I thought, it's a new map."

Lu Bei accepted the quest. Comparing it to the experience gained from the previous ruin exploration quest, the underground palace in the ancient well was his first dungeon.

He stepped into the opening, wary of Mo Buxiu's tricks. He used his Formation Breaking Compass to guide his way and soon discovered another familiar object.

The Everlasting Lamp.

It was identical in style to the one from the ruin exploration quest.

Lu Bei's mouth twitched. He followed the stone staircase downwards, hit two dead ends, and finally reached the end of a passage.

The cave, covered in mud, was a hundred meters long. Stalactites and stalagmites had joined together, compressing most of the cave's space. Illuminated by the Everlasting Lamp, the light and shadow shifted, creating a somewhat eerie atmosphere.

The Formation Breaking Compass trembled slightly, alerting Lu Bei to an offensive formation ahead. He drew his Black Gold Straight Saber and, following the compass's guidance, strode forward.

In less than a moment, Lu Bei found the formation core beneath a stalagmite.

It was powered by spirit crystals and rather crudely set up.

A spark ignited in Lu Bei's mind. He tossed a Qi Ling Pill, which landed in the mud, triggering the formation to activate and defend against intruders.

Clumps of mud gathered and rose, forming stout, fat mudmen that blindly paced back and forth in the passages blocked by stalactites and stalagmites.

[Side Quest: Defeat the Mudman Formation, Reward: 10,000 Experience]

Lu Bei's eyebrows shot up. Driven by the prospect of experience, he charged into the formation with his saber, dispatching the mudmen into piles of mud in a flash.

The formation core remained intact, and the mud on the ground quickly regrouped. Clumps rose high, their heavy, slow movements encircling Lu Bei.

Lu Bei's eyes gleamed. After swatting away the mud once more, he removed the spirit crystal from the formation core.

Without its energy source, the mud could no longer reform, and the cave fell silent.

"A good formation, Master put his heart into it!"

Lu Bei clenched the spirit crystal in his hand, thinking that becoming his disciple was indeed worthwhile. Although Mo Buxiu himself had never guided him, he had clearly put a lot of effort into his development.

This was evident from the Mudman Formation.

For Lu Bei, who was at the Foundation Establishment stage and level 20, the Mudman Formation posed almost no threat. However, it might have been different for him during his beginner phase.

Every player, upon leaving the newbie village, would always encounter one or two guides – perhaps the village chief, the blacksmith, or the village chief's beautiful daughter, or the pretty widow whose husband had died. They would tell the player that the outside world was dangerous and that it would be best to level up near the mass grave under the village tree before leaving.

The mudmen, with their slow movement and negligible damage, were perfect for training newcomers, serving the same purpose as the mass grave under the village tree.

Lu Bei put away the spirit crystal, passed through the cave, hit two more dead ends, and finally arrived at the end of a stone slab pathway.

[Side Quest: Defeat the Strawman Formation, Reward: 20,000 Experience]

Outside the Feather Transformation Sect, a sloping stone staircase descended, hidden beneath the shade of old trees.

A figure in black ascended the stairs and arrived before the Feather Transformation Sect. He raised his hand to knock, then paused mid-air, tidying his appearance.

The man was in his late twenties, with a handsome face and deep-set eyes. He should have been a promising pretty boy like Lu Bei, but his unkempt stubble was too jarring, and his lazy demeanor made him look more than ten years older, significantly diminishing his appeal.

Even so, he was a man who could easily support himself with his looks.

Knock, knock, knock!

He knocked on the door. After a moment, the door creaked open, and a red head peeked out, curiously looking up at the stranger.

The man in black was taken aback. Seeing the little fox's bright eyes, he knew it had gained sentience and could understand him. He politely said, "I'm looking for Lu Bei of the Feather Transformation Sect. Could you please inform him?"

As he finished speaking, three more red heads popped out, forming a vertical line along the doorframe. Four pairs of eyes scrutinized the man in black.

"Uh, is Sect Leader Lu not home?"

"Squeak."

"You can nod or shake your head."

"Squeak."

"..."

Just as the man in black was at a loss, the little fox demon Hu Jiao shooed away the four troublesome little foxes. She shook her head, indicating Lu Bei was not home, and then used her paw to write a line of text, asking the man in black to visit another day.

"Alright then."

The fox blocked the way, preventing entry. The man in black didn't force his way in, closing his eyes to sense the surroundings. After a moment's induction, his entire demeanor changed drastically. His eyes became sharp, and all traces of laziness and fatigue vanished. He was like a sharp sword piercing the heavens, startling Hu Jiao into quickly shutting the main gate.

"I know Junior Disciple Lu is within the sect's gates right now. Tell him, Senior Disciple Brother from Lingxiao Sword Sect is waiting for him at the deep pool behind the mountain," the man in black said, leaving behind his words before soaring into the sky, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

At the deep pool behind the mountain, the place where Bai Jin was teaching Lu Bei cultivation to help him 'Open Apertures,' the man in black descended from the sky. His eyes, like lightning, pierced directly into the depths of the pool, his sharp gaze so substantial it seemed capable of cleaving the cold water in two.

After a while, his hands and feet began to tremble involuntarily. He covered his face and burst into laughter, "Hahaha, to have it is my destiny, to have it is my fortune. Junior Disciple Lu, since you've left this treasure mountain empty-handed, don't blame this Senior Disciple Brother for being rude!"

His laughter ceased. The man in black waved his hand, taking out a fishing rod and bait. He settled onto a small stool, cast his line after preparing the spot, and immediately cast his rod.

"There must be plenty of big fish in this deep pool. I wouldn't be able to sleep if I didn't cast a line."

Immovable as a mountain.JPG

Meanwhile, on Lu Bei's end, after passing the Mudman Formation, there were still the Strawman, Wooden Man, and Stone Man formations, as well as a dead end that couldn't be avoided no matter what.

All three formations triggered side quests for him, with the difficulty of clearing them increasing step by step. The final Stone Man Formation's attack and defense were no less than the zombies he had encountered before, rewarding him with 50,000 experience points.

Since he had jumped maps and then cleared them, the experience was easily obtained, feeling like he had just picked it up for free.

Arriving at the stone chamber at the very bottom, Lu Bei used the Sect Master's Seal to activate the mechanism and obtained a Qiankun Bag from the groove.

There weren't many items in the bag. Lu Bei first took out an envelope with 'For My Disciple's Eyes Only' written on it and began to read it word by word.

My disciple, knowledge for the second generation disciples of the Feather Transformation Sect...

After several lines of parental concern and warnings for their juniors, the tone suddenly shifted, quickly getting to the main point.

Your master became a disciple of the Lingxiao Sword Sect from a young age. My own master was like a father to me, with deep expectations. He bestowed upon me the name 'Buxiu,' meaning 'to cultivate oneself and reflect,' but I was always unrestrained since childhood, causing much trouble and failing to live up to my master's deep affection. I rarely took the time to cultivate myself and reflect.

For the first ten years of my Dao cultivation, my talent surpassed my peers, and my cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds. In the following ten years, my practice was fraught with difficulties and setbacks. I developed doubts that I couldn't resolve, fell into demonic cultivation, and my power greatly decreased. After that, I was lost, not knowing where to go, and my cultivation hit a bottleneck, unable to break through, gradually becoming ordinary.

One day, I traveled far and wide, searching for ancient ruins. I gathered secret techniques from the Dao, Demonic, Monster, and Buddhist schools. From the minute details, I glimpsed the workings of fate.

Heaven's will has changed. Dao cultivation is a dead end. Buddhist cultivation is but withered bones in a tomb. Demonic cultivation is merely a fleeting moment. For these three, even if a cultivator possesses astonishing talent, they cannot defy heaven's will to seek the immortal realm and eternal life.

Only Monster Cultivation still holds a sliver of hope!

Therefore, I established the Feather Transformation Sect, turned to Monster Cultivation, and sought eternal life.

Lu Bei: (¬_¬)

Was it really okay to tell him, a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator, such an important secret? What if one day he fought a powerful enemy and lost, and the truth was discovered by some demoness, witch, or fairy?