The flying sword sliced through the sky with a howling rush of wind. Standing at the very back, Su Shi'er peered down curiously and watched the village beneath his feet rapidly shrink into a tiny black dot.
As far as his eyes could see, the land rose in great swells, mountain ranges crisscrossed the earth, and countless rivers converged. It was a magnificent sight.
Su Shi'er's pupils contracted. Only now did he realize how vast the world truly was. Thinking of the Man in Black whose name he did not know, his heart filled with anger, mingled with uncertainty about the future.
At the front of the flying sword, Han Yu held his head high and his chest out, looking mature and composed. His tightly clenched fists, however, betrayed his lingering nervousness.
The other three fared far worse by comparison. They crouched on the flying sword, huddled up and trembling all over. They were only children, after all. Flying at such a height, even the wind howling past their ears was enough to terrify them.
Seeing this, the young woman smiled and began telling everyone about the Yun Ge Sect to ease their anxiety.
From her explanation, they learned that the sect they were joining was the Yun Ge Sect, a cultivation sect on the outskirts of the Cangshan Mountain Range.
The Yun Ge Sect consisted of seven peaks: Tianshu, Tianhua, Tianyin, Yuntai, Chaoyang, Luoyan, and Luofu. To outsiders, the Yun Ge Sect was a single entity; internally, it was divided into seven factions centered around those peaks. Each peak had its own Peak Master, who managed it independently.
Of these, Tianshu Peak was the main peak and rarely accepted disciples. The other six peaks, however, went into the mortal world every three to five years to recruit disciples with spiritual roots.
The old man before them was named Lu Mingshi, the Peak Master of Luofu Peak in the Yun Ge Sect. Once they entered the sect, they would become his disciples. As for the young woman, her name was Xiao Yue, and she was Lu Mingshi's granddaughter. She was also their senior martial sister.
The children, the oldest of whom was only twelve, understood only bits and pieces of Xiao Yue's explanation. Even so, they had visibly calmed down.
Su Shi'er pricked up his ears and silently committed everything Xiao Yue said to memory. He knew full well that his talent was poor, so he could only work harder and apply himself more diligently than others.
What puzzled him was that Xiao Yue and Lu Mingshi had different surnames despite being grandfather and granddaughter.
Could it be... that they weren't actually related?
With his limited knowledge, Su Shi'er could only make wild guesses to himself!
Time flew, and the flying sword carried them through the sky for two full days.
Early in the morning three days later, the flying sword passed through a bank of thick mist and brought them back to the Yun Ge Sect.
Gazing into the distance, they saw a majestic sea of mountains below, with towering peaks stretching in winding chains as far as the eye could see.
Peak after peak lay hidden in the thin mist, flickering in and out of view. The tallest among them were seven peaks, arranged like the seven stars of the Dipper.
Atop each of these seven peaks stood a grand, imposing building. An unknown energy flowed among them, occasionally giving off dazzling bursts of light.
The sight set everyone's hearts surging, washing away the sorrow of parting in an instant.
Su Shi'er studied everything without blinking. He immediately realized that these must be the main peaks of the Seven Peaks Xiao Yue had mentioned. For now, however, he had no way of knowing which name belonged to which peak.
On the flying sword, Lu Mingshi and Xiao Yue visibly relaxed, smiles appearing on their faces. Although they had been recruiting disciples for years, every trip beyond the mountains inevitably brought some worry.
The world of cultivation was far from peaceful.
With a smile on his face, Lu Mingshi steered the flying sword toward the most distant peak.
Just then-
"Senior martial sister, what's that?" Su Shi'er
</di>
pointed at a black speck in the distance and quickly asked.
The moment his words fell, the black speck rapidly approached. In the blink of an eye, a hundred-meter-long Crimson Great Ship came hurtling through the sky.
At the bow stood a lean man in crimson robes with a piercing gaze. Behind him, the deck was visibly packed with bobbing heads-all children around the same age as Su Shi'er and the others.
There were over a hundred of them!!!
Before Xiao Yue could answer, the figure at the bow addressed Lu Mingshi.
"Martial Brother, it's not as though I eat people. Why are you running so fast at the sight of your junior martial brother?"
"I'm running at the sight of you? Fu Boren, who do you think you are? Could you please have a little shame?" Lu Mingshi said, pursing his lips.
As he spoke, his gaze swiftly swept over the hundred-odd figures aboard the flying ship, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
Fu Boren was the Peak Master of Tianhua Peak, and Tianhua Peak had always been at odds with Luofu Peak. Now that the other man had recruited so many disciples in one go, Lu Mingshi might not have said anything, but his heart fairly seethed with envy, jealousy, and resentment.
For a cultivation sect, disciples were the foundation of growth. A faction with many disciples would inevitably grow far stronger as the years accumulated.
"Heh, of course I still care about my reputation. As for whether you're deliberately avoiding me, Martial Brother, I think you know the answer perfectly well."
Fu Boren chuckled and swept a quick glance over the flying sword.
"But, Martial Brother, your Luofu Peak really is getting worse year after year! How did you only recruit five people this year? At this rate, I'd say that within a hundred years, the incense of your Luofu Peak's lineage may well go out!"
Lu Mingshi's expression darkened, and he snapped, "Bah! No ivory ever comes out of a dog's mouth like yours. In cultivating and seeking the Dao, quality matters more than quantity. With the crooked melons and split dates you've recruited, even another five hundred would be useless."
Lu Mingshi had a fiery temper himself. How could he swallow words like those? He fired straight back.
For all these years, the Luofu Peak he led had always been the weakest faction. In the past, he would have lacked confidence when making such a claim.
This time, however, with Han Yu-a genius possessing a supreme dual spiritual root-joining them, Lu Mingshi was brimming with confidence.
"Quality matters more than quantity-well said! So your Luofu Peak must be full of confidence about the Newcomer Trial Assembly five years from now, Martial Brother!" Fu Boren looked Lu Mingshi over with a broad grin.
Lu Mingshi retorted, "Hah! We were just going easy on you before, understand?!"
Given Luofu Peak's circumstances, even with a peerless genius like Han Yu joining them, Lu Mingshi did not hold out much hope for the Newcomer Trial Assembly.
Still, no matter what, he could not let his rival outdo him in spirit! Besides, if he nurtured this peerless genius well, the boy would be more than enough to bring him honor.
"Oh? It sounds as though you've recruited a promising seedling this year, Martial Brother. Why not tell me about them and broaden your junior martial brother's horizons?" Hearing the pride beneath Lu Mingshi's words, Fu Boren lowered his voice, his shifty eyes roaming over Su Shi'er and the others.
"Broaden your horizons? In your dreams! Fu Boren, don't think I don't know what you're plotting. Trying to poach my disciples? Not a chance!"
Lu Mingshi rolled his eyes. With that, he steered the flying sword into a streak of light and shot toward the most distant peak.
At the bow of the flying ship, Fu Boren stared at the sword's fading silhouette in the sky, a thoughtful glint in his eyes.
Then the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and he steered the flying ship toward the second peak with a smile. The flying sword sliced through the sky with a howling rush of wind. Standing at the very back, Su Shi'er peered down curiously and watched the village beneath his feet rapidly shrink into a tiny black dot.
Then the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and he steered the flying ship toward the second peak with a smile.
Before you continue