Immortal Treasure

As a core disciple of the Hengyun Sect, Xu Shouyi knew a great deal about the Chu Jiang Empire, which had once ruled the sect.

When Xu Shouyi was young, the Chu Jiang Empire had not yet completely collapsed.

Therefore!

The moment he saw the words "Chu Jiang" on one side of the token, Xu Shouyi recognized it as the legendary Chu Jiang Token.

Could it be fake? Naturally, that was possible!

As far as Xu Shouyi knew, over the years there had been reports of the Chu Jiang Token in Chu Province, Jiang Province, and even Yuan Province. Some had stirred up enormous commotion.

"Still, if it was enough to drive Yang Long to massacre a village, and to draw Beast Mountain Hammer Ming Lie and that mysterious expert here, then there's a good chance it's real." Xu Shouyi thought to himself. "I wonder if Jiang Dongque has found anything out."

The Chu Jiang Token was no trivial matter. If the sect learned of it, they would certainly send experts to investigate.

Once its authenticity was confirmed!

If the Chu Jiang Token was obtained in the future, Xu Shouyi, as the first to report it, would naturally have rendered a great service.

"I wonder where that mysterious spear-wielder fled. No matter what, this is my chance." Xu Shouyi thought to himself.

With that in mind,

he dared not delay any longer. He immediately picked up his brush and swiftly wrote a secret report, then bundled it together with the two drawings.

"Go. Send it to the Sect Headquarters at once, by way of the sect's relay stations, and have it delivered overnight as an urgent dispatch." Xu Shouyi summoned his personal guard. "Tell them to hurry! It must be fast!"

"Yes." Sensing his general's urgency, the guard quickly departed.

"Old Xu, let's go!"

Xu Shouyi straightened his clothes and stepped outside. "Take me to see those two witnesses. I want to question them again."

"General, it's already very late." Steward Xu was taken aback.

"No matter!"

Since the assassination attempt in the dead of night, Wu Yuan had not left the alleys around the Wu Household. He had not even ventured far from home.

In the blink of an eye, several days passed.

That day, Wu Yuan was practicing his boxing slowly in his small courtyard, as if doing the gentle exercises of an old man.

But a closer look would have revealed that the muscles and bones throughout his body were trembling rapidly, though only slightly.

Ordinary martial artists needed high-intensity, wide-ranging training to practice Strength Training!

But for a Martial Dao Grandmaster with near-perfect control over his body, a slight tremor, guided through his bones, muscles, and every limb, could produce excellent training results!

"Hmm?" Wu Yuan, ever alert to his surroundings, narrowed his eyes.

He withdrew his fists and stopped.

The pores that had been tightly closed opened, and sweat poured from his body. A faint sheen of moisture even covered his skin.

Someone was here!

Strength Training and Environment Control did not conflict, so long as one's spirit was strong enough to focus on both at once.

"Wu Yuan, are you home?" A pleasant voice rang out.

Huan Xinyan? Wu Yuan's thoughts stirred.

"I am." Wu Yuan strode forward and opened the courtyard gate.

On the lane not far from the courtyard stood Huan Xinyan, dressed in a loose purple robe, a hint of a smile on her face.

She looked spirited and dashing.

"Were you training?" Huan Xinyan's gaze swept over Wu Yuan.

As a Proficient Expert, she could tell from the sweat on Wu Yuan that he had just finished an intense workout.

"Yes, I just finished!" Wu Yuan wiped the sweat from his body and smiled. "Please come in, Master Huan."

"No need to come in." Huan Xinyan smiled. "Why haven't you been to the Martial Academy these past few days?"

"I wanted to spend more time with my family." Wu Yuan gave a simple answer.

"Mm." Huan Xinyan nodded. "All right. You can probably guess why I came. Protector Gao Yu has returned from Nanmeng Prefecture City."

"The sect has given preliminary approval to your special admission request. Come with me to the Martial Academy now," Huan Xinyan said.

"It's been approved?" Wu Yuan's eyes seemed to brighten.

He was about to step outside, but pulled his foot back.

"Master Huan, please wait a moment. I'll change into clean clothes." Wu Yuan dashed straight into his room.

Huan Xinyan waited patiently, in no hurry.

After changing,

the two of them left the Wu Household's alley and boarded a carriage that had been waiting on the main road. The carriage was rather luxurious.

It headed straight for the Martial Academy.

Inside the carriage.

"Wu Yuan, Protector Gao Yu went to great lengths for your sake this time. He specifically went to petition the Hall Master, and it cost him quite a bit," Huan Xinyan said.

"The Hall Master?" Wu Yuan was slightly surprised.

He did not know much about the Hengyun Sect's organizational structure.

But based on what little he knew of the sect's "Five Halls,"

there was no doubt that a Hall Master was one of the Hengyun Sect's highest-ranking figures. Even the sect master would surely treat one with great respect.

In just five days, Gao Yu had actually gone to meet the Hall Master of the Finance and Engineering Hall?

"I'm telling you this not because I expect you to do anything. I just want you to remember this kindness," Huan Xinyan said softly. "It also shows how much the sect values you and what it expects of you."

Wu Yuan nodded slightly.

The carriage moved quickly, entered the Martial Academy, and arrived at a secluded courtyard deep within its grounds.

This was an area Wu Yuan had rarely visited before.

As he stepped down from the carriage,

Wu Yuan glanced around and saw that the doors to the main hall nearby stood open. Gao Yu was seated in the place of honor.

In a guest seat beside him sat a middle-aged man in hemp clothes. His head was lowered and his eyes downcast; he seemed utterly unremarkable.

"Who could sit there and still seem so ordinary?" Wu Yuan wondered.

He could tell there was something unusual about the middle-aged man in hemp clothes.

"Come in." Huan Xinyan led Wu Yuan inside.

As soon as he entered the hall, Wu Yuan caught a faint, delicate fragrance. He felt himself relax despite himself.

"Senior," Wu Yuan greeted him.

"Sit." Gao Yu smiled and gestured toward a table and chairs nearby.

"Yes." Wu Yuan cupped his hands in salute, then sat down beside Huan Xinyan.

"Wu Yuan, I've already discussed your admission with the Hall Master. Your special admission has been approved," Gao Yu said softly. "We've drawn up a training plan for you. It's on the table at your side. Take a look first."

"A training plan?" Wu Yuan's interest stirred.

There was indeed a neat stack of papers on the tea table. The paper was of excellent quality. Wu Yuan picked it up and opened to the first page.

It was covered in densely packed lines of writing.

Though the Hengyun Sect had been established for three hundred years,

for most of that time it had nominally been subordinate to the Chu Jiang Empire, joining the empire in governing its subordinate prefectures.

Only in the past thirty years had it taken full control of all local affairs.

In practice, it had largely continued to uphold the Chu Jiang Empire's laws!

Though ordinary people were subjects of the sect, they usually only had to pay taxes and obey the law. Nothing more was expected of them.

The very first thing this training plan mentioned, however, was "responsibility."

"The Basic Martial Academy and Intermediate Martial Academy charge a certain amount in tuition. Their disciples aren't true 'members of the sect.' But every disciple of the Advanced Martial Academy and Cloud Martial Hall is a genuine disciple of the sect!" Wu Yuan thought to himself.

Cloud Martial Hall disciples did not need their families to pay any expenses.

On the contrary!

The sect invested abundant resources in Cloud Martial Hall every year, ensuring that each disciple had plenty of resources for cultivation.

As sect disciples, they enjoyed the sect's resources.

Therefore, whenever the sect called upon them, they had to obey its orders unconditionally and fight and kill for the sect!

In short, live as a person of the sect, die as a ghost of the sect.

This was absolute subordination!

Wu Yuan, however, did not care. The so-called obligation to obey the sect's commands might seem like a constraint.

But if he continued to grow stronger and eventually took control of most of the sect's power, he would naturally be able to direct the sect's resources in turn.

The relationship went both ways!

"Every Cloud Martial Hall disciple is allocated roughly five thousand sect contribution points' worth of cultivation resources each year?" Wu Yuan read. "And I'll receive resources worth fifty thousand sect contribution points every year?"

Ten times as much as an ordinary disciple!

"By rendering meritorious service to the sect, one can earn contribution points and exchange them for all kinds of resources. For some young disciples, though, the sect simply gives them resources directly," Huan Xinyan explained. "Normally, one contribution point is worth about one tael of silver."

"However, contribution points can be exchanged within the sect for precious resources that are difficult to buy elsewhere."

Wu Yuan nodded slightly.

In his view, contribution points were the Hengyun Sect's "internal currency," allowing it to manage the distribution of resources more effectively.

Wu Yuan quickly read through the rest.

The later sections described various cultivation resources in detail, such as the types of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, cultivation manuals, training environments, and instruction from teachers.

It was very thorough.

After reading through it once, Wu Yuan had to admit that, as befitted a great sect with a legacy stretching back centuries, the plan was very detailed and well thought out on paper... though he would hardly need most of it!

He set the stack of papers down.

"Wu Yuan, what do you think? Are you satisfied?" Gao Yu asked.

"Very much so." Wu Yuan nodded.

"For Cloud Martial Hall disciples, in addition to their various annual allotments of basic contribution points, there are many trial missions and ranking matches. As long as you improve quickly enough and work hard enough, you'll receive even more resources," Gao Yu said. "Furthermore, as a promise from my Finance and Engineering Hall, if you become a First-class Expert before the age of twenty, our hall will spare no resources to help you grow."

"Mm." Wu Yuan nodded.

A promise like this was basically empty talk; it meant very little.

If someone really had that kind of talent, the Hengyun Sect would support them wholeheartedly, unless it was a fool.

"You'll learn the finer details once you join the sect." Gao Yu smiled. "There's one other thing today: I've prepared a gift to welcome you."

As he spoke,

Gao Yu rose and walked over to Wu Yuan, handing him a brand-new book with gilded lettering.

"Your Martial Arts Technique has reached the Force Extreme level. This book, Cloud Martial Extreme Strength Nineteen Forms, was compiled over hundreds of years by generations of our sect's predecessors. It will help you train your internal force more effectively." Gao Yu's tone was quite solemn.

"Thank you, Senior." Wu Yuan seemed delighted as he accepted the book.

"The second gift is twenty Supreme-grade Body Tempering Pills to aid your body-tempering cultivation." Gao Yu produced a purple jade bottle.

"Supreme-grade Body Tempering Pills?"

Wu Yuan asked, puzzled, "I only know of High-grade Body Tempering Pills and Mid-grade Body Tempering Pills."

"Haha, the fewer impurities a Body Tempering Pill contains, the higher its grade. High-grade Body Tempering Pills still contain quite a few impurities, so martial artists can't take them in large quantities," Huan Xinyan explained. "Supreme-grade Body Tempering Pills are specially refined by the sect's Pill Dao masters. They contain almost no impurities, and even if you have the silver, they're hard to find outside the sect."

"So precious? Pill Dao masters?" Wu Yuan seemed quite surprised.

He put away the purple jade bottle.

"There are three gifts in all. The first two are customary and not particularly rare," Gao Yu said. "Only the third is extraordinarily precious—and something the sect cannot produce itself."

"It can be called an 'Immortal Treasure,' the kind of treasure worth its weight in gold. It was brought back from an Immortal's Ruins by two of the sect's patriarchs, and the Hall Master has specially bestowed it upon you this time!"

"It's called a Spirit Condensing Pill!" Gao Yu took out a white jade bottle.