On the other side, after asking around along the way, Zhao Huaian soon arrived in front of an exceptionally luxurious restaurant.
Zhao Huaian looked up and studied it for a moment.
A vermilion plaque hung high above the entrance, with the three characters Autumn Wind Tower written across it in bold, sweeping strokes.
At first glance, those three characters seemed to radiate a faint pressure.
Clearly, they had not been written by an ordinary person.
"Welcome, sir! What would you like to eat or drink? Our Autumn Wind Tower has everything you could ask for. If you're lucky, you might even meet an Immortal Master from Greenwood Sect here."
A smiling waiter came over to greet him.
Zhao Huaian shook his head, took a small silver ingot from his clothes, and tossed it to the waiter. "I have an appointment. I've come specifically to pay my respects to Immortal Master Lei."
"Immortal Master Lei?"
The waiter took a closer look at Zhao Huaian. Seeing his wealthy, distinguished appearance, he immediately grew much more respectful.
"So you've come to see Immortal Master Lei, sir. Please, this way. Immortal Master Lei is resting in the Heavenly Character Number One Guest Room."
After pocketing the silver ingot, the waiter led Zhao Huaian through Autumn Wind Tower with practiced ease.
Autumn Wind Tower had four floors. The first was a grand hall, while the rooms on the upper floors were ranked by the Heavenly, Earthly, and Human grades.
"Sir, remember to be respectful when you meet Immortal Master Lei. Give him what he deserves, and don't be stingy. Plenty of people have come by these past few days, and those who were generous got what they wanted.
"But the ones who pinched pennies, wasted Immortal Master Lei's time, and made a poor impression were even struck down on the spot."
When they reached the fourth floor of Autumn Wind Tower, the waiter cautiously offered Zhao Huaian this advice, mindful of the silver ingot he'd received.
"Thank you for the trouble."
Zhao Huaian nodded, his expression growing more solemn.
He knew that whether he could step onto the path of immortality and become a cultivator depended on the man's attitude today.
The waiter nodded and cautiously knocked on the door of the Heavenly Character Number One Guest Room. "Immortal Master Lei, someone's here to see you. He seems to be the young master of a wealthy family."
"Let him in."
A deep voice came from inside the room.
"I hope everything goes smoothly for you, young master!"
The waiter stepped aside.
Zhao Huaian nodded, then carefully pushed open the door and entered the room.
The room was spacious, and a pale mist drifted through the air. Just one breath of it left a person refreshed, with a clear mind.
Behind a screen in the middle of the room sat a red-haired, burly man. An incense burner stood before him, steadily releasing pale wisps of smoke.
"This junior is Zhao Huaian, from Golden Sand Island. I've come especially to pay my respects to Immortal Master Lei!"
Zhao Huaian hurried forward, then bowed respectfully before Lei Yangwen.
"Hmm. What have you brought? I don't take in trash!"
Lei Yangwen glanced up and looked Zhao Huaian over.
He'd dealt with this sort of thing plenty of times. In the mere three days since he'd arrived at Autumn Wind Tower, many wealthy young men from ordinary families had come to see him, and each time he'd collected quite a few valuable things, especially medicinal herbs that had matured for many years.
Of course, some people didn't know the rules.
As for them, they'd dared to waste his time, so he'd naturally struck them down on the spot.
"Please have a look, Immortal Master Lei."
Respectfully, Zhao Huaian took a Wooden Box from his clothes and offered it with both hands.
Lei Yangwen opened the Wooden Box and glanced inside. When he saw the 300-year-old Ice Grass, his eyes lit up, and delight spread across his face.
"Good, good, good! You've put real thought into this. Just for this Ice Grass, even if you had no Spiritual Roots, I could still take you in as my servant disciple."
After praising him three times, Lei Yangwen happily put the Wooden Box into his Storage Bag.
He was so pleased for two reasons. First, this 300-year-old Ice Grass was worth more than a hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones.
Second, he was a fire-attribute cultivator. A few years ago, a cultivation mishap had left him suffering from Fire Toxin Backlash, which he often had to suppress with Extreme Cold Items.
This 300-year-old Ice Grass happened to be an Extreme Cold Item, and it could help suppress his Fire Toxin Backlash considerably. That made it all the more precious.
After all, though he held an illustrious position in the eyes of outsiders, within Greenwood Sect he was little more than an Outer Sect Mission Hall disciple with slightly better status and cultivation.
Now that he'd obtained such a precious item, he was naturally overjoyed.
"It's this junior's honor to offer Immortal Master Lei something he likes."
Zhao Huaian smiled faintly, his heart easing as well.
It seemed he was getting closer and closer to setting foot on the path of cultivation.
"You're a smooth talker, young man. By the way, what was your name again?"
Lei Yangwen laughed. He hadn't paid Zhao Huaian any attention earlier, so he'd naturally forgotten his introduction.
"This junior's name is Zhao Huaian," Zhao Huaian replied respectfully.
"Zhao Huaian, is it? A fine name!"
Lei Yangwen nodded with satisfaction and took a compass out of his Storage Bag. "Come, put your hand on this and let me test whether you have Spiritual Roots."
"Yes. Sorry for the trouble, Immortal Master Lei."
Zhao Huaian's heart leaped. Nervous and hopeful, he extended one hand and gently placed it on the compass.
As Spiritual Energy surged through it, the compass instantly glowed green, red, and yellow. The three colors shone brightly.
"Wood Fire Earth Three Spiritual Roots?"
Looking at the three colors, Lei Yangwen first froze, then burst out laughing. "Hahaha! I never expected you to have Three Spiritual Roots, Junior Brother Zhao. Not bad, not bad. You'll be a little prodigy among our Outer Sect disciples."
When he realized that Zhao Huaian had Three Spiritual Roots, Lei Yangwen's smile grew even broader. He even changed how he addressed him, calling him Junior Brother Zhao.
To embark on the path of cultivation, one had to have Spiritual Roots, for only Spiritual Roots could cultivate Spiritual Energy.
Spiritual Roots came in five attributes: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
Most cultivators had Spiritual Roots made up of one or more of these five attributes combined.
The fewer Spiritual Roots one had, the faster one naturally cultivated, and the easier it was to break through to later realms.
After all, one Spiritual Root absorbing Spiritual Energy was naturally different from five Spiritual Roots dividing it among themselves.
The worst were Five Spiritual Roots, also known as Mixed Spiritual Roots. Cultivation with this aptitude was painfully slow, yielding half the results for twice the effort. Most people remained stuck in the Qi Refining Realm their entire lives, and unless fortune smiled on them, they had no hope of advancing to the Foundation Establishment Realm.
The best, of course, was a Single Spiritual Root with just one attribute. Cultivation was extraordinarily fast, yielding twice the results for half the effort.
These Spiritual Roots were also called Heavenly Spiritual Roots, known as the favored children of heaven.
Of course, besides the five attributes of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, there were other special Spiritual Root attributes.
For example, the special mutated Spiritual Roots of wind, lightning, and ice.
Although the youth before him, Zhao Huaian, had only Three Spiritual Roots, among the numerous Four Spiritual Roots and Five Spiritual Roots in Greenwood Sect's Outer Sect, he could still be considered a little prodigy.
If he worked hard at his cultivation and had access to some resources, he'd generally have no trouble breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.
Lei Yangwen was very pleased with this.
Leaving aside the Ice Grass Zhao Huaian had given him, simply based on his Spiritual Root aptitude, recruiting him into Greenwood Sect would also allow him to build a connection in advance.
"Three Spiritual Roots? Thank you, Senior Brother Lei. Zhao Huaian will never forget your kindness in testing me."
Hearing that he had Three Spiritual Roots, Zhao Huaian felt a surge of joy and let out a long breath of relief.
Ever adept at handling people, he immediately seized the opening and began addressing Lei Yangwen as Senior Brother.
Lei Yangwen was naturally pleased by Zhao Huaian's words. He patted Zhao Huaian's shoulder warmly. "Not bad. Once we're in Greenwood Sect, we'll be fellow disciples. If there's anything you don't understand there, feel free to come ask me."
"Of course. I'll never forget your kindness in taking me under your wing, Senior Brother Lei. Once I enter Greenwood Sect, I'll follow your lead."
Zhao Huaian lowered his head respectfully.
As for following his lead, that was just polite talk.
After all, he hadn't entered Greenwood Sect yet and had no cultivation at all. For now, the most important thing was to curry favor with Lei Yangwen.
As for the future...
That would depend on his cultivation and standing when the time came.
Before you continue