I'll Take On Two More

Immortals had their share of worldly appetites, and Zui Feng Lou was famous among the lower-tier disciples. Wei Yuan had heard of it, but had never imagined he'd get to eat there. As soon as he entered Zui Feng Lou, a server led him to a secluded courtyard. Bao Yun's celebration banquet was being held there.

There were three large tables in the room, and Wei Yuan was led straight to the main one. His cultivation progress was currently the worst in his class. How could he possibly feel comfortable sitting at the main table? He turned to find a seat at one of the side tables, but the moment Bao Yun saw him, her eyes lit up. She hurried over, took him by the hand, and pressed him into the seat beside her, leaving even Cui Yu one seat away.

There were ten people at the main table. Five of them had received the Ancestor's boon; the other five either had extraordinary cultivation talent or came from illustrious families.

Wei Yuan had already figured out that coming from an illustrious family meant having first-rate cultivation talent.

Once everyone had arrived, Bao Yun rose and said, "Senior brothers and sisters, I'm delighted you could all come. I'll drink first!"

Everyone hurried to their feet and drained their cups. With this Visualization Diagram, Bao Yun was all but guaranteed to reach Heaven Tier, with an Immortal Foundation within reach. The Bao family was a top-tier aristocratic house, and Bao Yun was so gifted. Everyone had awakened their wits early. If they didn't cling to her now, when would they? A few years later, they might not get the chance.

Wei Yuan tilted his head back and drained his cup too. A line of fire plunged into his belly, and then vast spiritual energy burst within him. The Visualization Diagram appeared in his sea of consciousness, and a fine rain fell once more. The ground visibly spread outward.

Wei Yuan was stunned. One cup of wine could replace thirty days of hard cultivation! If he downed a whole bottle, wouldn't it be worth a year's effort?

Wei Yuan could hardly believe it. He looked at the dishes on the table. He didn't recognize a single one. He only knew they were exquisitely beautiful, with wisps of spiritual energy continuously rising from them. Just smelling them would benefit his cultivation, never mind eating them.

After the toast, Bao Yun continued, "I invited everyone here for a small gathering mainly because of the sect's minor examination three years from now. I've already received word: this time, we'll be competing against the disciples of the Zhi Gu Sect. We all know they outnumber us several times over, and I've heard they already consider victory in the examination theirs for the taking. They're even discussing how to divide up the sect's rewards! They also say they'll post the results on a public notice board for the whole sect to see."

Everyone was young and fearless. The Zhi Gu Sect's obvious contempt infuriated many of them at once.

Seeing their expressions, Bao Yun went on, "They've already sent someone to talk to me. They said that if we surrender, they'll make sure we don't lose too badly—and they won't post the rankings."

Cui Yu immediately flew into a rage. He slammed the table and cursed, "How brazen!"

Xiao Yu remained cool and aloof. "Who said that?"

Bao Yun sighed. "Xu Yin'an."

A thread of killing intent suddenly appeared around Xiao Yu.

Cui Yu was curious. "What's the story with this Xu fellow?"

Xiao Yu said nothing, his face cold. Bao Yun explained, "He also came here after passing the examination in Fengyuan Commandery, but he didn't attend the group lessons with us. There's something else, too: his family has been trying to arrange a marriage between him and me."

Cui Yu understood at once and angrily said, "What a fool! So that's why he came all the way to speak to Senior Sister like that. He wants to use us to make a name for himself! Hmph, if he wants to climb over us, he'd better have the ability to back it up!"

Xiao Yu said nothing, but nodded firmly.

Bao Yun sighed again. "Though my father already turned him down once, Xu Yin'an is talented, and his family isn't so bad. If they really win this time, perhaps Father will think more highly of him?"

"He won't win!" Xiao Yu said.

Cui Yu added, "I remember who he is now! The Xu family is one of the Seven Surnames, but they've always been at the bottom. They're only there to make up the numbers. How can they compare to our families? If your Xu family brother were some peerless prodigy, that'd be one thing, but his talent seems mediocre to me—far worse than mine. And he dares to ask for your hand? If I don't beat him until he's scattered like falling flowers and flowing water in this examination, I, Cui Yu, might as well quit!"

Someone beside him quietly reminded him, "I think there are four people from the Cui family on the Zhi Gu Sect's side."

Cui Yu replied evenly, "No need to worry! Only one of them is from the direct line of the main branch, and even he's a concubine-born son. His talent is inferior to mine. If you run into them, beat them as hard as you like. I'll take responsibility!"

Bao Yun let everyone argue for a while, then cleared her throat. When they quieted down, she said, "This is really a personal matter of mine. Even if we lose, I won't agree to marry him. At worst, he'll gossip about me behind my back."

Cui Yu said gravely, "We're fellow students here to learn. Insulting you is insulting every one of us! Besides, they plan to post the rankings, so they also intend to use us as stepping stones! So what if we're outnumbered? We can't tolerate this. We'll fight them to the end!"

"Fight!" Xiao Yu said, sparing no extra words.

At their age, their blood was only just beginning to boil. They'd rather die standing than live on their knees. How could they surrender without a fight?

A smile finally appeared on Bao Yun's face. "Since everyone is determined to fight, let's work out a plan. We need to start preparing now. Since this is a contest between two sides and we have fewer people, every one of us matters. Some of our fellow students don't have much in the way of resources, though, and that may hold back their cultivation. So I'd like to set up a common fund. Those who can afford it can put some Immortal Silver into the fund. If other students need resources but don't have enough Immortal Silver, they can borrow from it."

"Of course, the Immortal Silver in the fund will be loans, not gifts. You can borrow however much you need and repay it within ten years."

Bao Yun's idea was almost unthinkable, but more than half the students, including Wei Yuan, were deeply moved. The scions of great clans were few; most came from ordinary aristocratic families. Supporting even the basic cultivation of a Taichu Palace disciple was already a heavy burden for a small family. For most people, there was never enough Immortal Silver, and their cultivation progress inevitably suffered.

Within ten years, the vast majority of Taichu Palace disciples could establish a Dao Foundation. Even the weakest, a Human Tier Dao Foundation, would let them take on basic sect missions. Their ability to earn money would be nothing like it had been at the Body Forging stage. So Bao Yun's offer of ten years to repay the loans was extraordinarily generous.

Seeing how eagerly everyone was looking at her, Bao Yun said, "Since I suggested it, I'll go first. I'll put in thirty thousand taels of Immortal Silver!"

Thirty thousand?! Wei Yuan nearly slid off his chair.

With one move, the young lady of the Bao family had put up more than two hundred years of his monthly allowance—sixty times the pocket money True Person Fen Hai had given him.

Cui Yu, not to be outdone, said, "I'll put in thirty thousand too!"

Xiao Yu said, "Same."

Then several other scions of great families each put in ten thousand, bringing the total to one hundred thousand taels.

Wei Yuan was already a little numb. It was as if these people weren't even talking about Immortal Silver. Even if they were grains of rice, one hundred thousand of them would still be a lot.

Bao Yun was delighted. "Let's keep the fund with Senior Brother Cui. He, Xiao Yu, and I can manage it together. How does that sound?"

Xiao Yu waved a hand. "I'm not managing it."

Cui Yu laughed. "Junior Brother Xiao only cares about cultivation. Fine, I'll take care of these chores."

Bao Yun continued, "The other side has twenty-one people who received the Ancestor's boon. Naturally, those of us who received it should take them on. The rest of you can deal with the ones who didn't."

Cui Yu nodded. "They have twenty-one, and there are five of us. We just have to take on four each."

"Easy," Xiao Yu said.

Seeing that Wei Yuan had stayed quiet the whole time, Bao Yun asked, "Is something the matter, Junior Brother Wei?"

Wei Yuan hesitated. "My cultivation progress is a little slow. I'm worried I'll hold everyone back."

Cui Yu wasn't from Fengyuan Commandery and hadn't taken the Martial Assessment, either. Hearing Wei Yuan say that, he immediately replied, "Don't worry! If Junior Brother can't beat them, I'll take on two more!"