Upon hearing the red-faced elder's words, everyone immediately showed strange expressions. They looked at one another, yet none said a word, as if no one wanted to offend this man.
The blue-robed elder looked at their expressions and understood what they were thinking. After a moment's consideration, he chuckled and said, "Since Junior Brother Fei has taken a liking to this person, let him go with Junior Brother Fei."
The man cupped his hands toward everyone, walked up to Qin Fengming, reached out, and pulled him up by the left hand. Then he strode out of the main hall, not even allowing Qin Fengming to bid the Sect Master farewell.
When they reached the foot of Cloudwatch Peak, the man summoned a ruler-shaped artifact. The two of them flew toward a distant mountain peak.
They landed atop a mountain peak, where a two- or three-zhang-tall pavilion appeared before them. Without the slightest hesitation, the red-faced elder led Qin Fengming straight inside and said, "Take a set of entry-level disciple supplies."
There was a young man inside the pavilion. When he saw the elder, a respectful expression immediately appeared on his face. "I didn't know Martial Uncle Fei was coming. Please forgive me. Please wait a moment." As he spoke, he went into the inner room, brought out a bundle, and placed it on the table before them.
The elder surnamed Fei gestured for Qin Fengming to pick up the bundle. He then turned and left the mountain peak with Qin Fengming.
During the flight, the elder surnamed Fei saw Qin Fengming holding the bundle in his arms the entire time. He could not help but chuckle twice, yet said nothing. Seeing the elder's expression, Qin Fengming was utterly baffled and had no idea what he was laughing about.
Standing atop the ruler-shaped artifact, the elder turned back and said indifferently, "Once you enter the middle phase of the Qi Gathering stage, you can come here to receive a mid-grade magic artifact. When you reach the late phase, you can receive a high-grade magic artifact." After saying this, he fell silent.
The elder led Qin Fengming onward. When they passed a valley, he turned back and said to Qin Fengming:
"Starting tomorrow, you won't need to do miscellaneous chores for the first forty days. You can first go to this valley and find Nephew-Disciple Su to learn the basics of cultivation, or find some books to read and learn about the Cultivation World. After forty days, you will have to follow my instructions."
Qin Fengming silently committed this to memory. He was now completely in the dark about the Cultivation World and knew nothing at all. There was truly much he needed to ask others about.
After flying over the valley and continuing north for another twenty or thirty li, they stopped atop a mountain peak. There was a roughly ten-zhang-tall main hall on the peak, with the three characters "Artifact Refining Hall" written in the center. Beside the hall, several houses were scattered deep within the dense woods.
The elder surnamed Fei pointed to one of the houses. "You will live here from now on. For meals, go behind the main hall. There is a kitchen there, with someone specifically in charge of it."
After speaking, he tossed Qin Fengming a jade token and turned to enter the main hall. Qin Fengming saw the character "artifact" carved onto it, and the jade token emitted a faint, extremely soothing fluctuation. He knew that this jade token was no ordinary item.
Qin Fengming went to the house and saw that it had been built entirely of stone. The interior was fairly dry and clean. There was a bed with bedding, a wooden chair, a table, and a pine-oil lamp.
He opened the bundle. Inside was a set of gray robes, exceptionally soft and clearly not made of ordinary cloth; a short sword no bigger than an infant's palm, entirely jade-green but seemingly not very sharp; and a pitch-black ring.
When he saw the ring, Qin Fengming was suddenly startled. It looked somewhat like the ring he had obtained after killing the second young master of the Zhang Family. He stroked the ring, but had no idea how to use it.
Besides these, there was a small booklet bearing the words "Beginner Five Elements Cultivation Method"; two ores he had seen before, glowing with a gentle red light; and several yellow talismans of unknown origin.
He picked up the ring and examined it carefully, then took out the other ring from the cloth pouch he carried with him. Comparing the two, he found that apart from some differences in style, they seemed to be made of the same material and were also similar in weight.
After fiddling with it for quite some time, he still could not figure out what was remarkable about it or how to use it. He had no choice but to put it away, intending to go to that valley tomorrow and ask Senior Brother Su how it was used.
Early the next morning, Qin Fengming changed into the gray robes he had received the previous day and immediately left the mountain peak where the Artifact Refining Hall stood, heading straight for the valley they had passed through the day before.
Using his lightness skill, Qin Fengming reached the valley in less than half an hour.
On the way, he encountered several disciples dressed in gray robes. When they saw him using martial arts from the mortal world, they laughed and pointed at him. Qin Fengming naturally paid it no heed.
There was a main hall in the valley, a good five or six zhang tall. A plaque hung in the center, bearing the words "Merit Transfer Hall." Seeing this, Qin Fengming understood that it was like the Hundred Refinements Hall in Luoxia Valley, a place for imparting basic cultivation methods to newly initiated disciples.
Qin Fengming entered the main hall and saw more than a dozen youths in gray robes already inside. The older ones were about the same age as Qin Fengming, while the youngest were only six or seven. They sat scattered on meditation cushions throughout the hall, with familiar companions chatting among them.
"I heard that the boy surnamed Lin who entered the sect alongside us took only five months to cultivate from the third layer to the sixth. He's truly a cultivation genius."
"Who can blame him? He has dual spiritual roots. How can we compare? We only have four spiritual roots, so cultivation is worlds apart."
"I heard that the girl from the Yue Family possesses heavenly spiritual roots. I wonder if it's true."
"I heard Grand-Uncle-Master Li brought back a five-year-old child from Taihu Prefecture and accepted him as a Direct Disciple. That child was born with the Heavenly Eye and can already see through ordinary illusions. I heard that if he cultivates to mastery, he can see through every illusory formation in the world."
"I heard Senior Brother Su has already reached the tenth layer of the Qi Gathering stage and has unique insights into the Beginner Five Elements Cultivation Method. I happen to have some things I don't understand about cultivation and need to ask Senior Brother Su."
"This junior brother looks unfamiliar. How should I address you, and under which Martial Uncle do you cultivate?" A youth who appeared to be fifteen or sixteen looked toward Qin Fengming and asked, his face filled with confusion.
"My name is Qin Fengming. I only entered the sect yesterday and was assigned to Martial Uncle Fei. May I ask how I should address senior brother?" Qin Fengming replied with a smile.
"So you're following Martial Uncle Fei. My apologies for my disrespect." The youth cupped his hands. "My surname is Wang, and I follow Uncle-Master Lu in refining pills. I'll surely have to trouble Junior Disciple Brother Qin in the future, so please don't refuse when the time comes." As he spoke, his face was full of ingratiation.
Qin Fengming did not understand why the other party's attitude had changed so drastically upon hearing that he was under Martial Uncle Fei. Though puzzled, he said, "Not at all. If senior brother needs anything, just give the order."
When the others heard that he followed Martial Uncle Fei, they came over one after another to greet him and strike up conversations, all of them exceptionally warm.
Less than half an hour later, a middle-aged man in gray robes entered the main hall. When Qin Fengming saw everyone rise and address him as "Senior Brother Su," he rose as well.
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