At Last, Someone Has Joined Our Sect!

Lin Qingfeng walked in front, with Su Ling'er following behind.

She always kept exactly five steps between them.

This distance let her see the road ahead clearly while ensuring he had no chance to make another move on her.

It was a safe distance she had unilaterally decided upon.

The deeper they went, the stronger the scent of grass and trees became.

Along with the vitality surrounding them came some strange noises.

Whoosh—!

A piercing sound cut through the air, followed by a dull thud of something heavy hitting the ground, mixed with a pained cry.

Su Ling'er paused and looked toward the sound.

Yet Lin Qingfeng, walking ahead of her, seemed not to have heard a thing and continued at a steady pace.

"Junior Sister, there's no need to make such a fuss. It's only a few senior brothers having their usual sparring session. They're just making a bit too much noise."

Sparring?

That was sparring?

A trace of doubt rose in Su Ling'er's heart, but she still followed him, half convinced and half doubtful.

When they rounded a wall, the sight before her left her frozen once more.

It was a bluestone plaza, with dozens of Gui Xi Sect disciples scattered throughout it.

Su Ling'er could not understand what they were doing, but she was thoroughly shocked by it.

They ignored the flat bluestone paths, while several people instead leaped rapidly across the rooftops of the halls on both sides. They moved so quickly that only afterimages remained.

Not far away, a disciple needed to travel merely a dozen or so steps, yet he insisted on summoning an immortal sword.

He muttered an incantation, then rode the sword a few inches above the ground, slowly floating over.

The immortal sword looked exceedingly ornate, with dazzling visual effects.

As he summoned it, countless disciples turned their heads to look, crying out in surprise.

"Isn't that the Spirit Offering Sword from the last event's rewards?!

Its stats might not be great, but it sure looks gorgeous.

I want one of those flying swords too!

I heard he spent quite a lot during the last event to get it!"

"Ever since then, whenever he walks two or three steps, he takes that flying sword out to show it off!"

"What a show-off! I want to show off too!

Why can't I be the one showing off?

I'm so jealous! I'm eating lemons!"

What Su Ling'er understood even less was that one disciple was riding a demonic beast wreathed in flames.

It was a wolf.

The flames were licking at his butt, yet his clothes showed no sign of being set alight.

Had he used spiritual power to block the flames?

He even made the demonic beast's entire body burn while riding it. Was he tempering his body without pause?

The other disciples walking on the ground also turned to look at the beast.

"Isn't that the 'Flame Wolf' mount?"

"He probably saw how flashy that guy with the flying sword was, got annoyed, and rode out on his demonic beast to show off too!"

The disciple riding the flaming wolf arrived at the entrance of the Transmission Hall and flipped down from its back.

The instant he landed, the massive demonic wolf vanished.

Su Ling'er was stunned.

Moreover, the behavior of these disciples was unimaginable in her Qing Xu Temple.

Disciples were required to walk with calm, measured steps.

Outer disciples could only move a little faster in deserted places when they were doing chores and cleaning Qing Xu Temple.

But once they encountered inner disciples, direct disciples, or elders, they had to slow down and walk with proper decorum.

Within the sect, sword flight was forbidden unless there was an emergency.

Running across eaves and scaling walls was an even greater taboo. If a steward caught them, their monthly spirit stones would be deducted.

Everything emphasized propriety and order.

But the people here had no rules at all. Their conduct was utterly unrestrained!

At first, she was confused. Then, a thought rose uncontrollably in her mind.

No...

Perhaps this was not fooling around at all...

This was cultivation!

Grueling cultivation carried out at every moment!

She understood now!

They treated moving across rooftops as part of their daily body tempering!

Through this most direct method, they honed their movement techniques, reactions, and courage!

They immediately got back up after falling, not because their bodies were tough, but because it tempered both their flesh and their will!

They used sword flight even for a dozen steps in order to familiarize themselves with the subtle changes of spiritual power circulating through their meridians!

It was to pursue the most precise control over their power!

And those seemingly foolish collisions were probably... simulations of their ability to handle sudden situations in actual combat!

As for that demonic wolf that had vanished into thin air...

Su Ling'er sucked in a sharp breath.

That had to be some legendary spatial divine ability!

The Sumeru Mustard Seed Technique?

Or perhaps the divine ability known as the Sleeve Universe Technique?!

Or some storage artifact she had never even heard of!

It could actually store and release such a massive living creature at will!

After figuring all this out, Su Ling'er did not relax. Instead, she fell into even deeper fear.

She remembered how, when she had once practiced her movement technique by repeatedly jumping around in a secluded area behind the mountain, a patrolling senior brother had discovered her and harshly reprimanded her for being impetuous and violating sect rules!

Evil Cultivators had already taken a shortcut by plundering life force. Though their foundations were unstable, their progress was extremely fast.

Yet now, before her very eyes, they were even more diligent than disciples of the Righteous Path!

They used every minute and every second of their lives for cultivation!

Those who had taken shortcuts were still working this hard. If this continued...

What could the Righteous Path possibly use to fight them?

Before she could think further, the two show-offs had already confronted each other because neither could stand the other.

"Are you sick in the head or something?

You have to pull out that lousy sword of yours even to walk two steps?

You're afraid people won't know you got a reward from the last event, aren't you?"

"That's still better than certain people who nearly set themselves on fire riding a mount, yet still insist on pretending they're impressive!"

Their dispute quickly turned into the sort of real-life fight over which was stronger, a lion or a tiger.

Since this was a game, they became even more reckless.

"What did you say? My Flame Wolf isn't stronger than that lousy piece of iron of yours? It's just a piece of scrap with some flashy effects!"

"Bullshit! My Spirit Offering Sword is overflowing with immortal elegance. How could it possibly be compared to your fire-breathing stray dog? What the hell is that thing!"

"Looking for a beating!"

"Come on, then!"

Before the words had even faded, the two immediately began fighting.

The disciple riding the Flame Wolf let out a furious roar, and the flaming giant wolf lunged at his opponent with a howl;

The disciple controlling the sword activated the ornate Spirit Offering Sword, causing it to blaze with light as countless sharp sword lights surged forth to meet the attack!

Treasured artifacts flashed with deadly brilliance, sword qi crisscrossed the air; flames roiled, and the demonic beast howled!

The entire scene became incredibly dangerous, making Su Ling'er's heart pound.

Those two were actually attacking with lethal moves, showing not the slightest bit of fellowship toward their fellow disciples!

Was this the Demonic Sect's daily life?

Of course. It was a demonic sect, after all. Internal strife was probably common, and they likely fought to the death at the slightest disagreement.

Suddenly, an out-of-control spell wrapped in sword qi and flames shot toward her and Lin Qingfeng!

Su Ling'er's mind went blank. In her panic, her legs actually went weak.

What do I do? What do I do?

Am I going to die right after joining the sect?

Is there no justice left in this world?

Can this Undercover Mission still be completed properly?

Senior Disciple Brother... wasn't Senior Disciple Brother right in front of me?

Where did he go?

In that instant, Su Ling'er discovered in horror that Lin Qingfeng had somehow vanished.

Then, a figure darted out from behind her and once again stood in front of her.

Senior Disciple Brother?

When did you run behind me?

Sure enough, you took advantage of my inattention to molest me earlier!

It seems my previous thoughts were absolutely right!

Lin Qingfeng was also speechless.

When he saw the danger, he instinctively moved the person he was protecting in front of himself.

Only afterward did he remember that this was the quest target!

This was the only NPC!

Nothing could happen to her!

So he hurriedly moved Su Ling'er behind himself again.

Then Lin Qingfeng brought two fingers together like a sword and lightly flicked them toward the incoming sword qi and flames.

Ding!

With a soft ring, the sword qi and blazing fire that were powerful enough to split mountains and shatter rocks broke apart inch by inch at his fingertips, vanishing into nothingness.

A gust of sword wind swept past Su Ling'er's cheek and cut off a strand of her hair, but she was completely unharmed.

Huff... huff...

I... I almost died...

That scared me to death!

Senior Disciple Brother, if you were going to make a move, you could've done it sooner! Why did you have to scare me half to death first?!

Lin Qingfeng's expression also darkened.

Those two idiots had nearly hurt the NPC he had worked so hard to lure in!

He glanced at the terrified junior sister, then at the two still fighting, and snapped his fingers.

Snap!

An invisible force field enveloped the entire area.

All spells and movements of the two disciples who had been fighting so enthusiastically came to an abrupt halt.

Then, as if struck down by an invisible hand, both were pressed to the ground. Their health bars were instantly emptied, and they disappeared as two streaks of white light.

At the same time, a message popped up in the Sect Channel:

Lin Qingfeng: If you want to fight, go fight at the Martial Arts Arena! You two nearly made it impossible for us to complete future sect quests, understand?

Lin Qingfeng: I took screenshots of you two and reported you to the Enforcement Hall. Go reflect at Reflection Cliff, both of you!

[System Notification]: Player [Flame Wolf Is Handsome] has been muted for one hour.

[System Notification]: Player [Spirit Offering Sword Is Handsome] has been muted for one hour.

However, in Su Ling'er's eyes, everything looked entirely different:

Lin Qingfeng had not even made an extra movement. With a single snap of his fingers, he had slain two fellow disciples who were fighting among themselves!

As expected of a cruel and dangerous demonic sect—they slaughtered fellow disciples at the slightest disagreement!

This... this was a demonic sect?

She had finally witnessed it today. It was even more terrifying than the storybooks described!

When Lin Qingfeng turned around, he saw that the new junior sister once again looked as though the sky were about to fall.

She seemed to be muttering something under her breath, looking as if her connection was lagging and her character model was about to disconnect.

No!

He had not received the quest reward yet. He could not let her run away!

She must have been frightened by those two idiots!

Lin Qingfeng immediately put on that gentle yet encouraging smile of a senior brother, quickened his pace, and came to Su Ling'er's side.

"Junior Sister, were you startled by your senior brothers' actions?"

Su Ling'er abruptly raised her head and looked at him blankly.

After thinking for a moment, Lin Qingfeng straightened his back and spoke with considerable pride:

"You saw it. This is the foundation of our Gui Xi Sect—diligence!"

"We never let go of a single opportunity to improve ourselves!"

"Walking is cultivation, breathing is cultivation, and battles between fellow disciples are even more cultivation!"

"Within the sect, the greatest taboo is allowing laziness to take root. The moment one relaxes, inner demons will seize the opportunity, and one's Dao foundation will be utterly destroyed!"

"From now on, you must observe your senior brothers' conduct more closely, comprehend the true meaning within it, and integrate into this torrent of cultivation that advances at every moment as soon as possible."

"Only then can you seek that sliver of survival in this Cultivation World where all contend for the Great Dao, and glimpse a thread of immortality!"

Although their sect had actually never left the mountain gates and had no idea what this Cultivation World was really like, that did not stop him from making things up on the spot.

His words shattered Su Ling'er's last shred of wishful thinking.

Sure enough... just as I thought.

Seeing her standing there blankly, Lin Qingfeng assumed the lines he had copied from the forum had worked, and quietly made a decision.

To make himself look more like an enlightened cultivation master, he needed to study more pretentious quotations!

Meanwhile, news that he had brought back a local NPC capable of helping the sect advance had already spread through the Sect Channel.

"Damn it, those two nearly ruined our future of exploring the Cultivation World!"

"If they had delayed the Demon Suppressing Ceremony, that would have been an unforgivable crime deserving death!"

"Hurry up and confiscate their 'Flame Wolf' and 'Spirit Offering Sword'! I've been sick of seeing them ride those two things around every day!"

"That's right! Confiscate them and give them to me! I want them too—I'm so jealous!"

At that moment, Su Ling'er was surrounded by the envious gazes of disciples who had come over after hearing the news.

"There! That's the newcomer Senior Disciple Brother brought back!"

"Where? Where?"

"Let me take a look!"

"Good thing she wasn't hurt by those two idiots!"

"Haha! Our sect finally has someone new!"

"Our Gui Xi Sect can finally rise to prominence! Hehehehehe!"

Every sentence rang clearly in Su Ling'er's ears.

Why are you all staring at me?

Two people just died!

Didn't you see?

They were reduced to ashes!

What do you mean... the sect finally has someone new?

Does that mean no one has come here in a long time?

Then how did you recruit disciples before?