[Before reading: This book is a traditional cultivation story with a slow buildup and no romance. All supporting characters are there to advance the plot and help the protagonist grow. Please don't act like an idiot in the comments or reviews.]
Jing Kingdom, Sunken Jade Valley.
It was where the Jade Spring Sect, one of Jing Kingdom's five immortal sects, had its mountain gate.
Spiritual charm arose there of its own accord. Vast and secluded, far from the mortal world, with sunlight drawing mist into the air, it had all the grandeur of a grotto-heaven and blessed land.
There was also a Dao song passed down in its praise:
A slit of light cleaves cliffs a thousand zhang high; a jade sash rises and falls amid pines that roar like the tide.
At the pill furnace, rosy clouds gather and steam into crane-shaped seal script; on the stone board, falling pieces settle patterns of stars.
Then, from the empty valley, bells and pitch pipes sound; only then do I know I stand in the White Jade Capital.
Though only a few lines long, every word was a pearl, revealing the mysteries of this blessed land.
Below the mountains, amid a lush forest.
A dozen or so carriages had stopped on the bluestone road outside the valley.
Young men and women stepped out of them, some in brocade and silks, others in faded blue robes, some looking calm, others glancing all around.
Among these youths from all over Jing Kingdom stood Chen Shuangbai.
His expression was calm, and the outer edges of his black eyes seemed faintly blue, like frost flowers in winter.
Chen Shuangbai turned to the older man beside him and said, "This is far enough, Uncle Li."
"Please tell Grandpa when you get back that I'll come down the mountain in five years."
"The main Household is overbearing, and the Meng Household is treacherous. Whatever they want to do, let them do it, and don't worry too much about the Lineage's holdings. Uncle Li, please make sure you look after Grandpa. Once I come down the mountain, everything will become clear."
Chen Shuangbai was sixteen.
He was from the White Water Chen Household in Jade Province, Jing Kingdom.
Not long ago, a Lineage test had revealed that he had the aptitude to cultivate: a Spirit Root.
He was subsequently sent to Sunken Jade Valley, hoping to join the Jade Spring Sect.
The middle-aged man called Uncle Li already had white at his temples and had been an old friend of Chen Shuangbai's late parents.
To repay them for saving his life, he had brought his only son to join the White Water Chen Household and become Chen Shuangbai's personal guard.
Li Ji nodded slightly. Rather than say anything sentimental, he carefully handed Chen Shuangbai his bundle and gave him a few brief reminders before heading down the mountain with the others who had come to see the youths off.
After those people had gone down the mountain.
A wind rose from the flat forest floor, kicking up a cloud of dust that left the youths unable to open their eyes.
When they recovered their senses, three people had appeared before them-
One was a thin old man in a moon-white Daoist robe, with patterns of rippling water and white clouds faintly visible on his sleeves. He had an unworldly bearing and a peaceful gaze.
Behind him followed a young man and a young woman, both outstanding in looks and bearing.
The old man swept his gaze over the thirty-six boys and girls below him and said, "Up the mountain."
The old man led the way, while the young man and woman guarded the rear of the group as they headed deeper into the valley.
Though Sunken Jade Valley was called a river valley, it also contained a vast expanse of lush mountains and forest.
Few people ever came here, making it a particularly tranquil place.
The youths, who had seen little of the world, were soon captivated by the scenery along the way. Before they knew it, they had arrived outside the Jade Spring Sect.
At the sight of the buildings nestled among the peaks in an orderly arrangement, the youths couldn't help crying out in amazement.
A tall, white mountain gate archway with the texture of jade stood at the end of the bluestone road. Like a white crane crouching among the mountains, it gazed at the mountains and valleys that had remained unchanged for centuries.
The young man stepped forward and clapped his hands, signaling for silence.
Only then did the old man slowly begin to speak.
"This old Daoist is an outer-sect deacon of the Jade Spring Sect. My surname is Tian. You may call me Deacon Tian."
None of those who could make it here were greenhorns-or rather, greenhorns could never have made it this far.
Soon.
The youths all called out to Deacon Tian in their shrillest voices, each louder than the last, afraid he wouldn't notice them.
Deacon Tian was quite pleased.
Looking at these future pillars of the sect, who were like the rising sun, he stepped aside and revealed the mountain gate behind him.
"Since you've made it here, you must all be fine seedlings, one in ten thousand in your respective hometowns."
"This is the mountain gate. A spirit-testing formation is engraved on it, and to prevent any deception, each of you must walk under it so that your Spirit Root aptitude can be confirmed again."
At this, even Deacon Tian's peaceful face grew solemn. He looked around at everyone and said, stressing each word, "If I discover anyone has resorted to deception, heh heh..."
Though he didn't spell out the rest, anyone could hear the chill in his words.
Guided by the deacon, the dozens of youths filed through the white jade mountain gate, where the spirit-testing formation engraved on it tested each of them again.
Halos lit up around the frame, mostly white and cyan, with the occasional red or orange.
When Chen Shuangbai's turn came and he walked through, the white jade gate suddenly lit up.
He felt a sudden chill beneath his feet, and the gate frame hummed as a rare frostlight, like icy mist, rose over it. It resembled snow covering green bamboo, prompting Deacon Tian to take a couple of extra looks.
"Dual water and wood attributes, leaning toward cold. Middle grade of the second rank. Pass."
He wasn't among the chosen of heaven, but he was still a fine talent, one of the best ten in a hundred.
After passing through the gate, Chen Shuangbai came to a table at the side.
The young woman sat steadily behind the table. She looked up at him, then handed him a bamboo-green waist token.
The token felt cool to the touch. The two characters for Jade Spring were carved on it in vigorous, powerful strokes, unmistakably marking it as a symbol of a disciple's identity within the sect.
After everyone had been tested, not one was found to have cheated, and Deacon Tian's expression eased somewhat.
"Very good. It seems none of you resorted to deception."
The entire spirit-testing process hadn't taken long. After all, those who could make it here were geniuses to begin with, and naturally there were far fewer of them.
The Jade Spring Sect occupied the whole of Sunken Jade Valley, so it was naturally very large.
According to Deacon Tian, the sect was divided into three halls and nine subordinate halls according to their different duties.
They were the Jade Guarding Hall, Evil Hunting Hall, and Artifact Forging Hall under the Abyss Suppression Hall; the Scripture Pavilion Hall, Jade Dew Hall, and Scripture Transmission Hall under the Dao Transmission Hall; and the Registration Hall, Expenditure Hall, and Hundred Crafts Hall under the Myriad Phenomena Hall.
The Jade Spring Sect accepted disciples once every ten years, and its disciples came from all over Jing Kingdom. But no matter how distinguished their status in the mortal world, once they arrived here they had only one identity-
That of a registered disciple of the Jade Spring Sect.
"Yes, that's right, only a registered disciple."
No one knew what method Deacon Tian used. Though he made no move to shout, every word reached the ears of all the registered disciples clearly and without a single syllable lost.
He swept his gaze around and continued.
"Our Jade Spring Sect is an immortal sect of the righteous path, but that doesn't mean just any cat or dog can get in."
"New disciples in every generation have all started out as registered disciples."
"If you haven't developed a sense of Qi within three months, you'll go down the mountain."
"If you can't reach the Third Layer of Qi Refinement within a year, you'll also go down the mountain."
"If you can make it through, then you'll naturally become formal disciples of the Jade Spring Sect, with your names entered in its records. Whatever you do when you go out in the future, you can use the sect's name to get it done. I trust you understand the benefits."
Of course he understood.
Chen Shuangbai thought to himself: The Jade Spring Sect was one of the five great immortal sects in Jing Kingdom. Its sect master, Ling Qingque, was a genuine Golden Core True Person, a major figure who could stamp his foot and make provinces across Jing Kingdom tremble three times.
As disciples of an immortal sect guarded by a Golden Core True Person, their status among mortals placed them above others.
Even with nothing more than the status of a registered disciple, wherever you went in Jing Kingdom, a crowd of people would rush to curry favor with you.
Deacon Tian went over many matters that needed attention in the sect, speaking until the youths were growing somewhat irritated by the end.
But Chen Shuangbai showed no impatience.
He listened attentively from beginning to end, silently repeating many of the important points several times to commit them to memory.
These were the rules that would allow him to survive well within the mountain gate in the future.