Early morning.
The sky had yet to brighten.
Within Qingzhou.
Qingyun Dao Sect.
This was an unranked sect.
It did not even possess a grade, one of those sects that could vanish at any moment.
And today, within the main hall.
The Qingyun Dao Sect's only seven disciples were each visibly nervous and excited.
Because three days ago, the Sect Leader had sent them a letter, informing them that Qingyun Dao Sect was about to welcome its eighth disciple.
That was right—they were about to welcome a new junior brother.
Perhaps for other sects, taking in a new disciple was an utterly ordinary matter.
But for Qingyun Dao Sect, gaining a new disciple was harder than climbing to the heavens.
Sects were much like the powers of the mortal world. When most cultivators sought to join a sect, their first thought was to find a decent sect to serve as their backing.
Setting aside the various resource benefits, even without resources, the stronger the sect, the safer one was.
If disciples of small sects went out and were bullied, they could only grit their teeth and endure it.
If disciples of major sects went out and were bullied, they still had their sect to back them up.
For precisely this reason, many newly initiated cultivators chose stronger sects.
And those great sects never looked down on newly initiated cultivators. On the contrary, they even gave them extra care.
No one was a fool, nor would any sect be so arrogant as to think it did not need new disciples.
Thus, the strong sects grew stronger, while the weak sects grew weaker.
For a sect like Qingyun Dao Sect, a new disciple might not come along even once in several years.
Now that they had heard another new disciple was coming, how could everyone in the sect not be excited?
How could they not be happy?
Inside Qingyun Dao Sect's main hall.
Seven figures sat within the hall.
Five men and two women, the men seated to the left and the women to the right.
At this moment, all seven wore expressions of nervous excitement.
However, just then, the first man on the left spoke first, breaking the silence in the hall.
"Junior brothers and sisters, while Master is away this time, he has recruited another new disciple for Qingyun Dao Sect. This is a momentous occasion."
"However, considering what happened the previous few times, Master repeatedly instructed us in his letter not to be too enthusiastic. We must not let this junior brother think we are trash, nor let him think our sect is short on people."
"So we must remain calm, and we must also put on the bearing of lofty experts. Hold steady as much as possible. As long as this junior brother stays in our sect for a full year, we can submit the review dossier for a Third-rank Sect."
The man seated first on the left spoke in this manner.
He was not very old, around twenty-seven or twenty-eight. With sword-like brows and starry eyes, despite wearing a plain robe, his features alone gave others an indescribable impression, as though he were an unparalleled swordsman.
This was Su Changyu.
Qingyun Dao Sect's eldest senior brother.
As his voice fell.
The disciples all nodded.
"We understand."
Their voices rang out together, their answers exceedingly earnest.
Yet after saying that, they sank into silence once more.
But after a short while.
Another voice rose, breaking the quiet.
"Eldest Senior Brother, I can remain calm, but how are we supposed to deceive him? With our level of cultivation, I fear we will be exposed very easily."
The man speaking was around twenty-four or twenty-five, with delicate features. At this moment, he frowned as he asked.
This was the sect's second senior brother, Xu Luochen.
Xu Luochen looked rather troubled.
He could remain calm. At worst, he could simply say nothing. But asking him to deceive someone—he truly did not know how.
Once he said this, the other junior brothers also revealed troubled expressions.
They were still young. Though they had entered the world, their natures remained relatively simple. They could pull a prank on someone, but outright deception was rather awkward for them.
The disciples fell silent.
After a moment, Eldest Senior Brother Su Changyu slowly spoke.
"Actually, junior brothers, you may have misunderstood. This so-called deception is not truly deception. It is merely creating the bearing of lofty experts. Master explained in his letter that our newly arrived junior brother is a complete novice who knows absolutely nothing about cultivation."
"We only need to exaggerate a little within the fields we excel at. For example, I excel in the sword path, so I can have him comprehend a sword path that he fundamentally cannot comprehend. Junior Brother Luo Chen, you excel at alchemy, so teach him alchemical arts that are fundamentally impossible to achieve."
"Though we will be discovered sooner or later, dragging it out for a year should not be a problem. After a year, Qingyun Dao Sect will qualify to submit the dossier. Once our Dao Sect advances to the third rank, the good days will come."
Eldest Senior Brother Su Changyu spoke thus. When he mentioned advancing to the third rank, the smile on his face became impossible to conceal.
"Senior Brother, now that you put it that way, we understand. We are only deceiving him for one year. If, after a year, he discovers the truth and cannot accept it, we can let him leave on his own."
"If he is willing to accept it, then Qingyun Dao Sect will have had good fortune. Once we advance to the third rank, he will be able to enjoy the benefits as well. No matter what, we will not have wronged him."
Xu Luochen spoke in this manner, his expression rather resolute.
This was self-consolation. After all, at the end of the day, they were still deceiving someone.
But there was no helping it. Qingyun Dao Sect was simply too poor. For the sect's livelihood, they could only do this.
"Senior brothers and sisters, do not worry either. What if this junior brother is an unparalleled genius of the ages? What if he can learn whatever we teach him? If that is the case, then we have even less reason to say we have wronged him, right?"
The youngest junior sister spoke.
She comforted everyone, lest they feel guilty.
Yet her words made everyone smile involuntarily.
An unparalleled genius?
To be honest, what sort of genius could possibly join Qingyun Dao Sect?
Would a true genius ever end up at Qingyun Dao Sect?
Forget the entire immortal cultivation world. Qingzhou alone had quite a few major sects. Not only did these great sects hold Ascension Conventions every year to select disciples, they also dispatched many sect disciples to seek out those with immortal affinity.
In other words, they wanted the good ones, and they wanted the bad ones too. They would bring them into the sect and give them a try. Trying cost nothing, and they did not need to provide many resources either. Freeloader gains brought them joy—what was there to lose?
Thus, the odds of a small sect recruiting a genius were practically zero.
Even if a phoenix emerged from a chicken coop, so what?
The moment other immortal sects learned the news, they would immediately rush over to win them over in every possible way—first smashing them with resources, then pressuring them with power, and even sending some beautiful female disciples from their sect to seduce them in the end.
Honestly, who could withstand that?
Therefore, the possibility of Qingyun Dao Sect recruiting a genius was zero.
Unless a miracle occurred.
"Enough. If nothing unexpected happens, our junior brother will arrive at noon tomorrow. Let me remind you all one last time."
"Stay calm! Stay calm! You must stay calm! At every moment, you must act utterly indifferent. The more you act that way, the more he will believe it. And no matter what actions or behavior he displays, you must belittle him. Even if he truly has some talent, you must disparage it until it is worthless."
"Also, none of us are to take the initiative to seek out this junior brother. We must make him come to us. So for the time being, everyone should carry on with whatever they need to do. Understood?"
Su Changyu emphasized once again.
"We understand."
No one raised any objections, and they all nodded.
Thus, the seven gradually left the main hall.
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