Survival Rules

"You've got a death wish, still standing there gawking at birds? Get in here, now."

The voice was frantic. Seeing the white fog about to spread over from all around, along with the towering iron-pagoda-like figures within it, Xu Yuan recalled how that group had fled as if avoiding the plague. He did not dare hesitate any longer and hurriedly pulled Bi Qiong toward it.

The gap was not large, but it was more than spacious enough for one person. The two nimbly squeezed inside, and moments later, the thick fog completely engulfed the long street.

"You two are lucky you ran into me. What's happening out there is the Ghost Soldiers' Patrol, something only seen once a year, along with a Double Moon in the Sky. If you'd stayed on the street, even if you didn't die, you'd have been stripped of a layer of skin."

The voice from before rang out again. Xu Yuan turned to look and saw a man lying not far away, his face covered in pockmarks.

Interestingly, he was not the only one here. From what Xu Yuan could see, there were no fewer than ten figures.

"Quit looking. Nobody here can afford to rent a room, so we're just making do here for the night."

The man spoke, then gestured at the two of them. "New arrivals? It's not disciple recruitment season lately. Which route are you from?"

"The mining district." After hesitating for a moment, Xu Yuan answered, while also thanking him.

"Huh." His answer surprised the man, and the others in this cramped space turned to look as well.

"You've got some skills, to have crawled out of that hellhole."

The man gave a meaningful sigh before introducing himself.

Chen Shouguang, twenty-seven years old, also an outer disciple of the Hidden Moon Sect. He had been here for seven years, yet his cultivation was still at the third layer of Qi Refining.

In fact, it was not just him. Everyone hiding in this godforsaken place was at the third layer of Qi Refining. Otherwise, they would not be spending all their spirit crystals every month and still having to shelter here.

Xu Yuan nodded, taking the chance to ask, "Brother Chen, what's with the fog outside, and this Double Moon in the Sky you mentioned?"

"You mean that?" Chen Shouguang cleared his throat before speaking.

"This fog is naturally the patrol of our Hidden Moon Sect's mountain-inspecting ghost soldiers. They are specifically responsible for investigating demons and evil spirits, mainly to stop Demonic Beasts from the mountains from sneaking in. If they encounter cultivators, they'll question them too. But the ghost fog is bitterly cold, and ordinary early Qi Refining cultivators will inevitably harm themselves if they stay inside too long, so people generally don't like entering the fog."

As he spoke, the fog around them suddenly cleared. Then cold moonlight poured down. Xu Yuan, lying on the ground, rubbed his eyes and made sure he was not seeing things. Why were there two moons in the sky?

"Heh, and then there's this Double Moon in the Sky. One of those moons is the true body of the Supreme Yin, while the other is an illusion formed during our Sect Master's cultivation. The light it casts down is mixed with a great deal of the Sect Master's insights from cultivation. If little nobodies like us hear or see it, we'll either go mad or turn stupid."

"Oh." Xu Yuan nodded in understanding and thanked him again.

"Anyway, there are plenty of things in the Hidden Moon Sect that little nobodies like us cannot hear, cannot see, and certainly cannot touch. This moonlight and ghost fog are only two of them."

"Then what about the others—"

Just as Xu Yuan was about to ask, Chen Shouguang suddenly pulled out a booklet from somewhere. "As for the others, they're all written in this Outer Disciple Survival Manual. It not only lists the sect's ten greatest dangers, but also ways for newly arrived outer disciples to make a living. Just thirty spirit crystals."

How much? Xu Yuan's eyes abruptly widened. Thirty spirit crystals were enough for him to work in the mine tunnels below for three months—of course, that was at the efficiency he had before obtaining his entries.

Still, considering that he had only just arrived and had no guide, Xu Yuan turned to Bi Qiong beside him and said awkwardly, "Fellow Daoist Bi Qiong, lend me some spirit crystals for now. I'll return them in a few days."

Bi Qiong readily handed over thirty spirit crystals, then said, "Just return fifteen. I need this manual too."

After handing the spirit crystals to the man, Xu Yuan first passed the manual to Bi Qiong, then casually probed, "Brother Chen, when we came here earlier, we saw all sorts of people here, young and old. Are they all disciples of the Hidden Moon Sect?"

"Not all of them." Having received Xu Yuan's spirit crystals, the man clearly became much more talkative.

It turned out that after more than a hundred years of development, the settlement for the Hidden Moon Sect's outer disciples had long become vastly different from what it once was.

Aside from the Hidden Moon Sect's outer disciples, there were also many descendants of disciples from the previous generation and the generation before that, who had received the sect's permission to remain here.

In addition, fifty years ago, the outside force Earthsand Fort, along with many small cultivation families, applied for the Hidden Moon Sect's protection and were all thrown onto the outer mountain as well.

Though the largest group on the outer mountain was theoretically still the Hidden Moon Sect's outer mountain disciples, various forces of all sizes permitted to live here, along with descendants of disciples, all lived intermingled here, forming circles large and small.

In short, this place was a great hodgepodge where you could fish up a little bit of anything. Yet under the pressure of the Hidden Moon Sect's name, all sides remained at peace, working together as happy beasts of burden and the oppressed.

After that, Chen Shouguang spoke with Xu Yuan about many other matters, some concerning the Hidden Moon Sect and some concerning other immortal sects.

They continued until a streak of white appeared on the horizon.

"Alright, time to go. Otherwise, when the shop owner comes to open up later and sees that we borrowed his treasured spot, he'll charge us lodging fees."

Chen Shouguang called to Xu Yuan, then squeezed out first, with Xu Yuan and Bi Qiong following close behind.

"We had a good chat tonight. If fate wills it, we'll meet again."

Chen Shouguang cupped his hands, pointed out the way for Xu Yuan, then headed off in another direction.

"Let's go too."

Xu Yuan gestured to Bi Qiong, and the two headed toward the Merit Hall and the Dharma Repository.

Around the time the sky had fully brightened, they arrived before two tall buildings.

The Dharma Repository was a grayish-white building with four floors in total. Outer mountain nobodies like Xu Yuan were only permitted to enter the first floor. Moreover, since they had entered using their identity plaques, they did not even have the right to choose. A cold-faced man guarding the entrance glanced at them a few times, then casually tossed over two identical cultivation manuals.

Moon-Gazing Breathing Technique.

The two caught them without saying anything. They had received far more contempt in the mining district; how could they care about something like this?

When they arrived at the Merit Hall, the people there had somewhat better attitudes. An elderly man about Tu Fang's age handed them each a set of clothes along with a small cloth pouch.

The two did not accept them right away. Bi Qiong felt around in her sleeve and handed over ten spirit crystals. The man took them without betraying a trace, then took back the items meant for the two of them and handed over another set instead.

Looking at the noticeably newer Daoist robes, Xu Yuan could not help sneering inwardly. Damn it, there really wasn't a good person left in this sect.

After changing into their new Daoist robes, the two left the place.

Back at the entrance, Xu Yuan suddenly smiled. Tugging at his sleeve, he gave Bi Qiong a formal salute.

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist."

Bi Qiong was taken aback at first. Then, seeing his appearance, she smiled and returned the salute. "Greetings to you as well, Fellow Daoist."