The Beginning of the Immortal Path

The next morning, Wei Yuan finished his morning ablutions early and headed to the plaza by the mountain gate.

Taichu Palace's immortal boat was parked in the center of the plaza. It was twenty zhang long, pale cyan in color, with several folded masts along its sides. This immortal boat would ferry all the new disciples from this location to the main sect.

Wei Yuan boarded the immortal boat with Zhang Sheng. The boat had three decks: the lower deck for cargo and luggage, the middle deck for servants and attendants, and the upper deck furnished with six tables.

Zhang Sheng casually chose a seat on the upper deck. Before long, Sun Yu and Daoist Fu Feng also boarded the boat and sat at Wei Yuan's table.

As departure time neared, more people began boarding. The first to come up were two youths, each accompanied by an elder. They each took a table, while their several attendants went to the lower deck. Wei Yuan vaguely recognized these two youths; they had stood beside Li Zhi and Bao Yun, respectively.

Following them was a group whose attire was peculiar, extremely ornate yet revealing large patches of skin. These individuals had dark complexions, with large patches of scales on their necks and wrists. A common trait was their pair of amber eyes. Among the four, there was a youth who was the young master from the Yan Family of the East Sea, the one who had arrived on the nine-colored deer for the assessment.

The Yan Family members chose the rearmost seat, the only one not by a window, for themselves. Zhang Sheng found it somewhat strange that the usually ostentatious Yan Family was being so low-key.

Just then, two more groups boarded, each escorting a boy and a girl. Seeing these two, Wei Yuan's heart skipped a beat. He slowly turned his head and looked out the window, admiring the scenery.

Wei Yuan recognized both the boy and the girl. The girl was Bao Yun, and the boy was Xiao Yu, who had attacked Wei Yuan hundreds of times with his sword and nearly injured him.

During the Martial Assessment, Wei Yuan had been under the influence of Heaven and Earth Madman and possessed an aura that looked down upon the world, so he hadn't held back. Now that he had returned to his normal self, Wei Yuan felt that his actions back then had been rather ruthless, especially the finishing blow he delivered to Bao Yun. He felt quite embarrassed recalling it.

By this time, all six tables on the upper deck were occupied, and everyone had arrived. Immediately, screens rose from the floor, dividing the cabin into six separate compartments. The screens then lit up with a faint glow, not only blocking sound but also spiritual sense.

After the screens were raised, Zhang Sheng finally asked, "Why are they accepting six people this year? I thought it would be four at most."

Sun Yu said, "The matter of accepting disciples this time is a bit complicated..."

Sun Yu glanced at Daoist Fu Feng and continued, "Specifically, it's like this: originally, the Yan Family of the East Sea put in a great deal of effort and paid a considerable price to have Senior Brother Fu Feng strongly support their son for third place. Daoist Fu Feng did his best, and after the Dao Assessment and Literary Assessment, the Yan Family's young master was indeed third. However, during the Martial Assessment, Yuan'er swept through everything and took first place without question. This was not part of the plan and pushed the Yan Family's child out."

Zhang Sheng asked curiously, "Then why is he still on the boat?"

"The Yan Family of the East Sea and the Lu Family from Xuzhou, who was originally fourth, were not willing to accept this. After the assessment, they both sought out connections and managed to secure an extra spot. So, the sect gave out five spots in total for this unified assessment. But last night, another change occurred. The eldest daughter of the Bao Family was originally going to the Great Precious Flower Pure Land, where a Dharma Idol was waiting for her to inherit. But for some reason, she suddenly came to Taichu Palace, which in turn pushed the Yan Family of the East Sea out again."

Wei Yuan listened with some confusion. If ranked by order, it should have been the Lu Family that was pushed out. Zhang Sheng had the same question.

Sun Yu continued to explain, "The standard for this unified assessment was five points. The Yan Family's child was only two points higher than the Young Master of the Lu Family. The Lu Family exerted far more effort than the Yan Family to secure their spot, so in the end, it was the Yan Family that was pushed out. As for why the Yan Family is still on this boat, it's because they made further arrangements. However, the sect really couldn't provide a sixth spot, so it turned out like this: Yan Ming is actually entering the Cave Heaven below, but he will be auditing and studying at Taichu Palace."

Zhang Sheng was shocked. "It can be like this?"

Sun Yu lowered his voice and said, "I heard that the Yan Family will be making significant contributions to the sect every year from now on."

"This, this... This is outrageous! Isn't this turning into a place where anyone with money can get in?"

Sun Yu said meaningfully, "It's not that anyone with money can get in, it's that you need a lot, a lot of money to get in."

Zhang Sheng fell silent for a moment.

The appointed time arrived. The immortal boat gave a slight tremor and slowly ascended. The plaza and mountain gate below rapidly shrank. Then, the immortal boat passed through an invisible boundary, and the scenery below suddenly changed. The immortal mountains and green trees disappeared, replaced by a small green mountain embedded in an endless yellow land.

The immortal boat continued upwards until it pierced through the clouds, floating above a sea of clouds. Only then did it unfurl its masts on the sides and raise sails like fish fins.

Sunlight shone down, dyeing the entire sea of clouds golden. Wherever the immortal boat passed, the clouds parted to the sides, as if cutting through waves on a golden ocean, an indescribably magnificent and beautiful sight.

The immortal boat's speed gradually increased, and it ascended further, leaving the golden sea of clouds. The scenery outside the window blurred, the sea of clouds turning into golden lines. Despite such high speed, the immortal boat was extremely stable; if one didn't look out the window, they wouldn't even feel like they were moving.

This was Wei Yuan's first time witnessing such a celestial scene, and he was naturally awestruck, constantly gazing out the window.

Day turned to night, and night turned to day.

A day later, an immortal mountain suddenly appeared in the sea of clouds ahead of the immortal boat. From afar, it was merely a precipitous peak, but as they approached, the peak suddenly transformed, revealing a majestic immortal gate.

The immortal boat passed through the gate, and the surroundings immediately changed.

The immortal boat landed on a circular plaza paved with white jade. A bluestone path led straight to a cluster of majestic palaces in the distance. On either side of the path were gentle grasslands, lush and green, stretching out far into the distance, dotted with wildflowers of various colors.

The white jade plaza was largely suspended in the air. Looking down from the edge was a vast sea of clouds, the bottom nowhere in sight. This plaza, hundreds of zhang in area, resembled a giant jade disc, half-placed on the mountainside, with no visible supports or suspension.

Gazing out from the plaza, beyond the palaces, lay undulating mountains. Several verdant peaks pierced the clouds, with pavilions and towers occasionally appearing amidst waterfalls and pine forests. Further in the distance, several mountain peaks actually floated above the sea of clouds.

Occasionally, one or two giant beasts and immortal birds, whose names couldn't be identified, would emerge from the sea of clouds. Some flew towards a mountain peak, while others soared straight up, disappearing into the distant sky above.

Wei Yuan walked out of the cabin and stood on the deck, gazing into the distance. The sights before him were something he had never even seen in his dreams. Even the most ordinary grassland felt like a soft, vibrant thick carpet, stretching for a hundred miles. Even the small flowers dotting the grass were unusual upon closer inspection; each flower was different, constantly emitting wisps of mist.

As someone from a farming family, Wei Yuan immediately recognized the grassland as unprecedentedly fertile land. If grains were planted here, he wondered if each mu could yield a thousand shi? However, having witnessed the splendor of the immortal realm, Wei Yuan felt that perhaps he was simply too uncultured. With the methods of the immortals, perhaps a yield of twelve hundred shi per mu was also possible.

Wei Yuan followed the grassland with his eyes, looking further and further. This vibrant grassland, just by looking at it, made one feel more spirited. As he looked, Wei Yuan's field of vision approached the edge of the grassland when suddenly his vision went black, and he almost fell.

Zhang Sheng placed a hand on his back, and Wei Yuan's body immediately felt revitalized. All the emptiness and fatigue vanished instantly.

Zhang Sheng said, "Don't look too far before you've cultivated. You don't have Dao Power yet, so you're depleting your primordial spirit."

Sun Yu's eyes lit up. "To be able to deplete your primordial spirit in one go, I'm a little envious of this disciple of yours."

Zhang Sheng ignored Sun Yu and pointed forward, saying to Wei Yuan, "This is Empty Valley Hanging Green, one of the three great mountain gates of our Taichu Palace. What do you think of it?"

Wei Yuan looked at the white jade plaza used solely for parking immortal boats, at the smooth, mirror-like bluestone path, at the majestic palaces in the distance, at the ten thousand zhang verdant peaks with their evident immortal aura, and finally his gaze fell upon the jade-green grassland.

He suddenly said, "The immortal path is so wondrous, why do so many people still starve to death in the mortal world?"

Sun Yu and Zhang Sheng were both taken aback.

Suddenly, a deep, resonant voice sounded from behind them, "Well asked!"