Joining the Sect

In a courtyard stood a handsome youth in a sky-blue robe, a jade pendant hanging from his waist.

He was leafing through a book titled Travels and Notes on Yuanzhou Landscapes.

It told of a traveler who loved roaming mountains and rivers, recounting the magnificent landscapes he had seen across Yuanzhou and the strange tales and bizarre events he had encountered.

"Young Master, Young Master! Immortals have come to the city!"

A servant boy rushed into the courtyard.

"Immortals? Who told you that?"

"Three immortals rode flying swords in from outside the city and landed at the City Lord's Mansion. Lots of people saw them."

"Mm. Go on, then. Inform me immediately if there's any new news."

"Yes, Young Master."

The youth fell into silent thought. "After searching for so long, they actually appeared in this way."

The youth was named Fang Xiao. That was right—he was a transmigrator from Blue Star.

Before transmigrating, Fang Xiao had pulled an all-nighter with several university roommates. In the latter half of the night, he had become too sleepy and decided to rest his head on the computer desk for a while. When he woke up, he was already here.

Unlike most who transmigrated by having their souls possess another body, Fang Xiao had gone through birth all over again. Nothing particularly strange had happened.

His father, Fang Yuan, had fittingly named him Fang Xiao. Good heavens, Father, are you sure your surname is only Fang? Mother Fang, meanwhile, had passed away when he was three after an old illness flared up again.

In Golden Jade City, Fang Xiao's father was merely a merchant with modest means. Ever since Fang Xiao displayed unusual intelligence at a young age, Father Fang had arranged for tutors to teach him at home. Fang Xiao had lived up to expectations, becoming a young prodigy in the eyes of outsiders—recognizing a thousand characters at one, composing poetry at three, and reading and comprehending ancient texts fluently by five.

When he grew older, he gave Father Fang a few clever modern business ideas. Though they were not rich enough to rival a nation, they now possessed a fortune of ten thousand gold in Golden Jade City.

Later, Fang Xiao learned that cultivators existed in this world. He began making inquiries everywhere and collecting books on the subject, hoping to find a way onto the path of immortality.

Who would have thought that after wearing out iron shoes in fruitless search, what he sought would come without the slightest effort?

The curious were given no chance to investigate. Every notable person in the city was invited to the City Lord's Mansion for a discussion. Later that day, Father Fang returned from the mansion.

"Father, did immortals come to the City Lord's Mansion?"

"They did. Those people called themselves cultivators and said they were here to recruit disciples from the city."

"Can everyone go?"

"You brat, I knew you'd want to go. I'd originally planned to have you carry on the Fang family line, but now this old man will have to work hard again."

"Hehe."

"Still, those Immortal Masters said they would test aptitudes in the central square three days from now. Not everyone can cultivate. The age limit is twelve, and you still have a chance. But if you don't make it, come back obediently and wait to sow some seeds. This old man still wants to hold his grandson soon."

"So that's how it is." Fang Xiao rubbed his chin thoughtfully. As expected, one needed spiritual roots. He wondered what his own aptitude would be like.

Time flew by, and three days passed in the blink of an eye.

The square in the city center was a sea of people. Every child under twelve had been brought there, from City Lord Zheng's son Zheng Daoxing and children like Fang Xiao to orphans and beggars.

To ordinary commoners, this was a chance to become immortal. If one was chosen, it would bring glory to one's ancestors.

For orphans and beggars who could barely afford a meal, it could be called a chance to defy heaven and change their fate.

To maintain order, aside from those guarding the city gates, every remaining member of the city guard was present.

Soon, the youths were arranged into a long line, waiting for the Immortal Masters to arrive.

Before long, three Immortal Masters drifted gracefully into the square. Two men and one woman, all in their early twenties, wore similar clothing and had two or three brownish-gray bags hanging from their waists.

After landing, the female Immortal Master closed her eyes to rest, while another male Immortal Master simply tilted his head up at the sky. Both wore expressions of complete indifference.

The City Lord hurried over to the Immortal Masters, bowing and scraping. The one in the middle appeared to be in charge. After giving a few instructions, he began the proceedings.

The city guards led the youths one by one before the Immortal Masters. The Immortal Masters first examined their bones to determine their bone age, then brought a jade ring before their foreheads.

Yet more than ten people passed by without any reaction at all.

Then, the jade ring emitted red and green light.

"Wood-Fire Dual Spiritual Root! A natural alchemist."

The female Immortal Master opened her eyes as well, delight flashing across her face.

"Not bad. Stand behind us."

The youth and his parents were overjoyed. The boy glanced back at his parents, then hurried behind the three cultivators at their urging and stood there.

The testing continued in an orderly fashion for more than an hour. Two more people with spiritual roots appeared: one with Four Spiritual Roots and one with Five Spiritual Roots.

After seeing enough, everyone understood that it depended on luck. After all, immortal fortune was not something everyone could possess.

Zheng Daoxing exchanged a glance with the City Lord, nodded, and strode to the front of the line to prepare for his aptitude test.

Fang Xiao followed closely behind. Although they were all around the same age, he had always felt unable to blend in with this group of little brats and had barely interacted with them.

Then it was Zheng Daoxing's turn. The jade ring shone with three colors before him: Water-Earth-Wood Tri-Spiritual Root.

"Not bad. Come over here."

City Lord Zheng was beside himself with joy, and Zheng Daoxing stood behind the three Immortal Masters with a pleased expression.

Fang Xiao took a deep breath and stepped before the Immortal Masters. First came the bone examination.

"Eh? He seems to possess some kind of special physique. Let's see what his spiritual roots are like."

Yellow and white light appeared, the white radiance dazzling and several times stronger than the yellow.

"Excellent. Not only does he have Dual Spirit Root, but they are Earth-Metal Mutually Generating Spiritual Root. His Metal Spiritual Root is only a few degrees weaker than a Heavenly Spiritual Root, and he also has some kind of special physique. This mission has exceeded expectations. Come here."

All three Immortal Masters smiled and nodded at Fang Xiao, their expressions full of goodwill.

Standing behind the Immortal Masters, Fang Xiao looked at his father, who was waggling his eyebrows at him. Fang Xiao rolled his eyes and lowered his head to count ants.

Over the next two hours, several more boys and girls with spiritual root aptitudes were found, but they were all ordinary. The Immortal Masters showed little interest.

Once every youth had been tested, there were only fifteen people with spiritual roots. Two had Dual Spirit Root, two had Three Spiritual Roots, four had Four Spiritual Roots, and seven had Five Spiritual Roots. The proportion was frighteningly small.

It seemed his aptitude was rather good. Fang Xiao had already begun imagining his future cultivation life—moving mountains and overturning seas, soaring into the azure heavens, and roaming freely between heaven and earth.

"Alright, go bid farewell to your families."

Fang Xiao acknowledged the order and jogged over to his father.

"Hahaha! As expected of my son. Since you have immortal fortune, go without worry. You don't need to concern yourself with the family."

Fang Yuan slapped a large hand onto his shoulder, nearly knocking him over.

"Alright, Father. You should take care as well. Once my cultivation succeeds, I'll return home as soon as possible."

"Mm. It's just a pity that from now on, I'll have to toil day and night again."

Fang Xiao rolled his eyes. As if things had been any different before. Father, where will an Immortal Venerable's dignity go if you act like this?

After giving him a few more instructions, Fang Xiao was the last one to return to the Immortal Masters.

"Is everyone ready? Then let's depart."

The Immortal Master in charge slapped his Storage Bag, and a flying boat rapidly expanded before appearing in front of them.

"Everyone, board the Spirit Boat. Once you enter the sect, you will address each other as fellow disciples. My surname is Huo, so you may call me Senior Brother Huo. These two are Junior Brother Wang and Junior Sister Tian."

"Yes, Senior Brother Huo. Greetings, Senior Brother Wang and Senior Sister Tian."

Everyone answered and quickly boarded the flying boat. Senior Brother Huo formed hand seals to activate it, and the boat rose swiftly into the air, flying toward the horizon.

The youths were only a little over ten years old, after all. On the flying boat, they were both cautious and excited.

By the next day, people had begun gathering in twos and threes, showing signs of forming cliques. The two youths with Three Spiritual Roots became the core of their groups, while Fang Xiao and another youth named Xiao Yan, who also had Dual Spirit Root, remained apart.

After all, when Heavenly Spiritual Roots did not appear, variant spiritual roots and Dual Spirit Root were supreme.

Moreover, one was a natural alchemist, while the other possessed spiritual roots nearly comparable to a Heavenly Spiritual Root and a special physique. Naturally, they were not of the common run.

"Since you have not begun cultivating, you cannot use Jade Slips. This book contains a brief introduction to the Cultivation World, as well as basic knowledge related to cultivation. Pass it around and read it," Senior Sister Tian said.

Seeing that no one stepped forward, Fang Xiao took the initiative to accept the booklet and thanked her.

Senior Sister Tian's eyes showed approval, and she nodded.

Relying on his excellent reading speed and memory, he quickly memorized the book's contents before passing it to Xiao Yan and lowering his head in thought.

So this world was the Cultivation World of the Taichang Realm. It consisted of the Central Lands, Eastern Domain, Western Desert, Northern Plains, Southern Wilderness, and the various overseas cultivation regions.

The Eastern Domain belonged to the territory of righteous cultivation forces, with the Four Deity Transformation Sacred Lands and many Nascent Soul Sects.

The sect Fang Xiao had joined was Tianlan Sect, one of the Four Sacred Lands. However, disciples who had just entered the sect and had not yet cultivated, as well as those in the Qi Condensation Stage, all had to cultivate in the Eight Outer Courts under Tianlan Sect's jurisdiction.

There was no difference among the Outer Courts. The Outer Court they were heading to was called Mingxuan, and they would all become disciples of Mingxuan Outer Court—that was, outer disciples.

If an outer disciple encountered a fortuitous opportunity and successfully reached Foundation Establishment, they could apply to become an Inner Disciple and learn the sect's Inheritance.

The cultivation realms were Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and Spirit Transformation. Each realm was divided into early, middle, and late stages, while the Qi Condensation Stage was further divided into nine levels.

The attributes of cultivation techniques generally corresponded to the Five Elements Spiritual Root, though there were also techniques for variant spiritual roots such as ice, wind, and lightning.

Everyone was shaken. They all felt like frogs at the bottom of a well. Sure enough, ordinary mortals had no understanding of the world beyond.

"Senior Brother Huo, since you have a magical flying boat, why did you choose to travel by sword to Golden Jade City that day, which consumes more spiritual power?" Fang Xiao voiced his question.

Senior Brother Huo smiled faintly.

"We traveled by sword to save time. It should be today. Just wait a little longer."

An hour later, someone with sharp eyes spotted a black dot on the horizon. In only a few dozen breaths, everyone saw what it was.

A colossal flying boat, half the size of Golden Jade City, hovered before them, leaving them utterly stunned.

Senior Brother Cui took out a command token and activated it, steering their tiny flying boat upward.

It passed through a layer of light membrane without obstruction and landed on the deck.

The deck was filled with youths much like themselves, presumably disciples recruited from other places. Senior Brother Cui led them forward and reported to a cultivator who looked even younger than he did.

"Martial Uncle Lin, we disciples have returned after completing our mission. There are fifteen newly recruited disciples. Their backgrounds, aptitudes, and preliminary assessments of their temperaments have all been compiled into this Jade Slip." Senior Brother Cui handed over a Jade Slip.

Martial Uncle Lin drew the Jade Slip over through the air, glanced over it, and swept his gaze across the group with interest.

"Mm, well done. You were responsible for the farthest region, and only you were left. Return to the sect."

The scenery around them began to rush backward. In only two breaths, it became blurred in the youths' eyes. The speed was so fast that they could see nothing clearly to either side, yet the journey was incomparably smooth. They could not feel the sensation of high-speed flight at all.

Each of them had their own thoughts. Some were full of longing, some of excitement, and naturally, those with poor temperaments felt lost and worried. All of it was recorded.

Fang Xiao had expectations of his own as well. His road ahead was already smoother than most people's. With such an opportunity before him, he naturally had to give everything he had to climb to the summit and see the scenery beyond that peak.