Literature Enthusiast

Senior Brother Song Yu piloted a small flying boat, carrying the eight people from White Cloud City as it raced through the clouds toward the Immortal Dust Sect.

Perhaps Senior Brother Song Yu had not expected White Cloud City to produce eight people with Spiritual Apertures, so he had not prepared a larger flying boat. With nine people standing on this small flying boat, it was truly a little cramped.

Especially with the broad and burly Pang Yuanfu among them. He alone took up the space of two and a half people.

Senior Brother Song Yu stood alone at the very front of the flying boat, while the eight people from White Cloud City stood behind him, packed tightly together, chest against back.

The reason they were pressed so tightly together was not merely because of the cramped space, but also because they were afraid of falling.

Senior Brother Song Yu flew both fast and high. Just glancing down made Li Xiuchang's legs go weak, to say nothing of the howling gale blowing straight into his face.

Even Li Xiuchang's closed eyelids were forcibly blown open a slit.

Even if this flying boat did not have railings, it should at least have a windshield... It was only because he was not yet familiar with Senior Brother Song Yu that Li Xiuchang did not give him a few suggestions, one way or another.

There was glass in this world. Supposedly, cultivators had tinkered with it accidentally while refining artifacts, then passed the method of firing it on to the common people.

Just as Li Xiuchang was praying for this heart-pounding journey to end soon, a scream came from beside him:

"Ah! Where did this water come from? I'm soaked!"

The speaker was the middle-grade Spiritual Aperture girl standing beside Li Xiuchang, named Chi Hui.

Although the gale swallowed most of her voice, its pitch was so high and piercing that everyone on the flying boat still heard her clearly.

Li Xiuchang turned his head and looked. Sure enough, her clothes were covered in large patches of speckled water stains.

It wasn't raining today. Could someone have been scared into wetting themselves?

Li Xiuchang was not the only one who thought this. The others were thinking the same thing, because they were all holding it in too.

But standing in front of Li Xiuchang and Chi Hui were only Senior Brother Song Yu and Pang Yuanfu. Senior Brother Song Yu surely couldn't have done it, so that left only Pang Yuanfu.

Pang Yuanfu seemed to have thought of something too. He hurriedly turned around to prove his innocence. He absolutely could not have his reputation ruined before even reaching the Immortal Dust Sect.

"Tears! Those are tears! Sorry, I couldn't control them. I'll compensate you for these clothes once we reach the sect."

Pang Yuanfu's eyes were brimming with tears, his face was streaked with tears, and his chest was stained with tears. He had already cried himself into a complete tear-soaked wreck.

"Brother Pang, did you think of something sad?" Li Xiuchang asked with concern, tilting his head slightly and dodging the beads of tears blown his way without leaving a trace.

"It's nothing. It's an old problem. Whenever the wind blows, I can't stop my tears."

So it was wind-induced tearing. No, with the amount of water you're letting out, this should be called wind-induced flood discharge... Li Xiuchang muttered inwardly.

He had discovered another shortcoming of this flying boat: it was not waterproof!

Even if Pang Yuanfu did not have this problem, what if it rained? Wouldn't all of them be drenched like drowned rats?

Once I learn artifact refinement, I absolutely have to design a small flying boat that can block both wind and rain while remaining safe and comfortable, Li Xiuchang secretly resolved.

Senior Brother Song Yu turned around and saw everyone huddled together, some with faces covered in tears and others with deathly pale complexions. He could not help shaking his head and laughing.

"We'll arrive in another quarter of an hour. Bear with it a little longer."

A quarter of an hour later.

The flying boat stopped in midair. Senior Brother Song Yu pointed below and said:

"Up ahead is my Immortal Dust Sect. In a moment, I'll take you to the reception point. After that, you'll have to walk the rest of the way yourselves."

After a pause, he continued, "After all, I was the one who brought you into the sect, so we share some connection. If you encounter any troublesome matters in the future, you may come to the inner sect and find me."

"Thank you, Senior Brother." Li Xiuchang and the others hurriedly expressed their thanks.

Li Xiuchang leaned forward slightly and looked down. One glance was enough to shock him. The Immortal Dust Sect was far larger than he had imagined—it could rival several White Cloud Cities!

The Immortal Dust Sect was not like the cultivation sects in his stereotypical impression, built within some famous mountain or grand river. A few mountains could vaguely be seen inside the sect, but most of the area was flat.

At first glance, the entire sect looked much like a mortal city, only larger and cleaner, with everything more orderly.

The area at the center of the Immortal Dust Sect seemed to be shrouded in a formation, hazy and impossible to see clearly. What surprised Li Xiuchang most was that the very outskirts of the Immortal Dust Sect were actually extremely lively.

There were quite a few mortal villages around the Immortal Dust Sect. It was early morning, and the sky was still faintly bright. Vendors and peddlers, carriage drivers and sellers of rice gruel all went about their own business, bustling to and fro and adding a touch of earthly vitality to this sect of immortals.

The flying boat slowly descended. Li Xiuchang and the others could not wait to disembark. The feeling of having their feet firmly on the ground had never been so wonderful.

However, they looked around and saw no sign of where the Immortal Dust Sect's mountain gate was.

Senior Brother Song Yu smiled and explained, "This is the outer area of my Immortal Dust Sect. Strictly speaking, you haven't truly entered the sect's inner grounds yet. The outer area is mainly for Registered Disciples to live in, and outsiders are not barred from entering. Although a grand formation has been established, it is not normally activated.

"Also, my Immortal Dust Sect's marketplace is located in the outer area. This is the largest marketplace north of Immortal Shade. You can visit it if you get the chance."

So that was how it was... Several of them suddenly understood, though the few Registered Disciples inevitably felt somewhat dejected.

Registered Disciples—that meant they were not yet considered formal disciples. Naturally, they could not live inside the Immortal Dust Sect and could only cultivate and reside in the outer area.

"You mustn't lose heart. Every year, Registered Disciples advance to become Outer Sect Disciples. The road lies beneath your feet. How far you walk depends on yourselves."

Senior Brother Song Yu offered a word of comfort. He then handed the five Registered Disciples over to the reception disciples stationed in the outer area, while he took Li Xiuchang and the other two back onto the flying boat and continued flying forward.

Before long, Li Xiuchang and the others saw the imposing mountain gate of the Immortal Dust Sect. On the plaque were the three vigorous and powerful characters "Immortal Dust Sect," their strokes still fresh despite their age, as though the ink had yet to dry. One could almost faintly smell the fragrance of ink.

"Uncle-Master Zhao, your calligraphy has improved again. Congratulations, congratulations!" Senior Brother Song Yu greeted a middle-aged man with a long beard, smiling.

Only then did Li Xiuchang notice the long-bearded man beside the mountain gate, holding a writing brush and flying in midair.

Ink was still dripping from the tip of the brush.

So the three characters "Immortal Dust Sect" had really just been written...

Uncle-Master Zhao, the long-bearded man, was in a good mood. He nodded with a smile and said, "I've been studying the Confucian Sage's authentic work recently and gained some insights."

Song Yu introduced him to Li Xiuchang and the other two: "This is Elder Zhao Yuansi of the Outer Sect."

"Elder Zhao." Li Xiuchang and the other two hurriedly saluted.

The Outer Sect even had elders?

Li Xiuchang had originally thought that the Outer Sect was merely a level below the Inner Sect. Now, however, it seemed that was not the case. The Outer Sect appeared to have its own independent path of advancement.

Elder Zhao clearly had no intention of speaking much with the three new disciples. He waved his hand and had Song Yu take them away.

Once they passed through the mountain gate, they were considered to have officially entered the Immortal Dust Sect's inner grounds. A grand formation protected this place, and disciples guarded every entrance and exit. Entry was strictly controlled.

After Li Xiuchang followed Senior Brother Song Yu into the formation, he could occasionally see figures streaking through the air. The Immortal Dust Sect was simply too large; traveling on foot was too slow, so many people used flying boats or flying swords to get around inside the sect as well.

Only after entering the formation did Pang Yuanfu ask in a low voice, "Senior Brother Song, isn't our Immortal Dust Sect the orthodox Daoist Sect? Why does Elder Zhao study the Confucian Classics?"

Song Yu's lips curled upward. "Elder Zhao merely admires Confucian culture and enjoys studying poetry, lyrics, songs, odes, and calligraphy. He isn't comprehending the methods of Confucian cultivation. Confucian cultivators have long since declined, and the orthodox Confucian cultivation inheritance has been severed."

Li Xiuchang had learned about this as well. The three great branches of the Righteous Path were the Daoist Sect, the Confucian Sect, and the Buddhist Sect. Now, Confucian cultivators had vanished, Buddhist Cultivators had withered, and only immortal cultivation remained evergreen.

The world he had transmigrated to was called the Immortal Shade Realm.

The name came from a vast shadowed region in the central part of this world, known as Immortal Shade.

There was nothing covering the sky above Immortal Shade, yet sunlight could not enter, and moonlight could not shine through.

There was a legend among the common people about the origin of Immortal Shade. It was said that a Sky-Piercing Immortal Tree had once grown there.

Until one day, the immortal tree suddenly collapsed and vanished without a trace. Yet the shade cast by the tree remained forever, becoming the "Immortal Shade" of today.

As for the Immortal Dust Sect, it was said to be the most flourishing cultivation sect north of Immortal Shade.

That was also why Li Xiuchang had given up on the small sects near his hometown, traveled thousands of miles to White Cloud City, and waited there for half a year just to join the Immortal Dust Sect.

Just look at that Sky-Piercing Immortal Tree. Even after the tree itself was gone, it could still leave behind a vast patch of shade. From this, one could understand a principle—when you stood beneath a great tree, you would have shade!