.
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---
/Scribble…/
"Another day… Total maintenance cost… Seventeen Grade 1 Spirit Stones. How many do we have left?"
A young man with long blond hair sat down before a floating blue lamp, writing down a piece of parchment as he made multiple calculations with a beautiful red feather pen.
He took a large scroll from underneath his table, and to no one's surprise…
"Great… Less than half for another month… So I have another week at most before everything crashes down… Shit."
He sighed out loud as he put his parchment and pen down, unwilling to continue with his notes.
"If I knew life would end up like this again, I'd rather choose to remain on Earth…"
'It's been twenty-two years since I was reincarnated in this world. And all things considered, I'm exactly at the same point I was before I died… It makes me remember how I got here in the first place.'
'It was just another night of me returning from the night shift when I saw it… A crack in space. Like those seen in fantasy and movies…'
'At first, I was horrified. Trying to run away from it rather than interact with it… But I wasn't given a choice. Before I knew… Everything went dark.'
'That was when I met "it". The "God" beyond the crack.'
'A being of immense power stood beyond the confines of space and time, and I had been caught up in one of its experiments. Or better put, transformation.'
'The creature was appalled at this scenario. Saying it was almost impossible for it to occur, but it did… Even so, it thanked me for me death meant it would move on, and that meant that from a certain perspective, even if stretching. I had saved its life.'
'As a reward, it gave me a wish, saying it could do anything I desired, including sending me back to Earth as if nothing had happened. Albeit it wouldn't be the same body I had before but a new one, for regardless of how strong it was, my previous body had been erased from existence.'
'I may end up being completely similar to my previous one, but in the end, I would be someone else, even if the creature copied my past DNA…'
'However, for everything I could receive on Earth, I earned something more… Adventure. So I made a wish… And it complied.'
'Life on Earth wasn't that great anyway. It made my adjusting to this world all that simpler. Not that it made a difference in the end.'
'I was born in the Continent of Xuamami in the "Endless World". As a newborn, my mother cast me aside at the doors of the "Fingers of Heaven" Sect, a massive clan focused solely on martial achievements and enlightenment.'
'What would seem like a monk temple on Earth, in this world, is the very basis of their politics and power infrastructure. For here, people can gather the essence of Heaven and Earth to achieve greater understanding and ascend beyond mortal coils. The search for longevity, Cultivation.'
'To aid me, the creature gave me several rewards but never told me what they were. It merely said that I would be satisfied with my new life. And at first… I was.'
'The Sect took me in without much conflict. And soon enough, I was under the tutelage of one of the masters of the Sect, who essentially adopted me.'
'The Fingers of Heaven Sect operates like a country with several Mountains, and each mountain has its own Pavilions. With mountains being like states and Pavilions like localized governments, albeit in this case, each mountain specializes in an aspect of the sect, and the Pavilions handle everything like multiple administrative sectors.'
'The one who took me in was the Master of the Ritual Mountain. The peak of tradition and legend, focused solely on scholarly pursuit and the preservation of knowledge. Which is quite essential in a world where individuals can live and maintain their youth far longer than ordinary people, which can lead to quite a few issues… Someone needs to make sure there are none.'
'At first, life was good. With an adult's mind in a child's body, I was able to learn and master difficult concepts far earlier than most, and by the age of ten, while most were still learning how to take in the essence of Heaven, I had already begun learning how to cultivate and breakthrough my shell.'
'Once hailed the genius of the Ritual Mountain, it was a good life… That was, until master died of old age and the Sect Master gave his position away to a younger, more promising youth.'
'My mater dying did little to affect the peak. There were several to take his place. The issue came from the newest sect master.'
'Young and eager to prove himself, despite his prowess and "wysdom", he cemented the idea of "competition" and "friendly conflict" within the sect, believing that before everything else, strength was necessary to maintain the status quo.'
'Radical thoughts, but I couldn't blame him. The Sect had been pressured by its competitors for centuries and recently, things had heated up quite considerably.'
'War was on the horizon, and the Sect Master, despite his talent, was still far from his peak. Which was exactly why the previous Sect Master choose to step down, likely predicting what was to come.'
'The previous Sect Master likely stepped down to try and cultivate as much as possible for the coming way, for someone his level were to advance, it would be comparable to entire armies. So he left everything to his trustworthy disciple, who despite not being fully ready for the role, took it with confidence.'
'I'd say the current Sect Master is quite capable… But War has distorted his views. He tries too much but his gaze is quite narrow. Which led to him neglecting far too many things for the sake of the future. But when that future comes, he'll come to realize that rot has seeped onto our foundations.'
'By favoring combat power, talent, ability, and the like. it was obvious what became of the Ritual Peak which focused solely on scholarly pursuit.'
'Saying we were neglected would be an understatement. The peak is about to vanish.'
'The peak never had many disciples and workers, but once master died, from the few we had, many departed… They weren't fools. Every talented scouted onto the peak was quite intelligent in their own right. It didn't take much to realize what would happen next.'
'Master's direct disciple took his place. But not even half a year after taking post, the sect master gave his position away and with it, he left on a mission assigned by the Sect, never to return.'
'The Ritual Peak was never meant to go on dangerous missions due to our lacking power, it has always been like that… But with the Sect's restructuring, the newest lord did not exempt us, treating us like everyone else.'
'Some may call it fair. I call it stupidity…'
'As the months passed and Master's Disciple did not return, it was evident that this would be the fate of the Ritual Peak… Desolation. So all began to pack their things and leave.'
'For a while, I thought about doing the same. I was only twelve, after all. But that was when it all came crashing down…'
'The Sect Leader nominated me as the stand-in Master of the Ritual Peak, which only accelerated the drainage of personnel.'
'And worst of all is that I never even saw him! He just sent a messenger to deliver the message, as if it didn't take a few minutes for him to fly from the center of the Sect here!'
'His reasoning was quite bureaucratic… Since the Master died abruptly and so did his disciple, given that the latter had none of his own, the matter of succession fell to the highest ranking member of the Peak.'
'And given all other higher ranks left since they were only here due to master, the few that remained left soon after his disciple failed to return, leaving me as the highest member due to being his adoptive son!'
'The issue is that I'm not! Master never attested to me being his son exactly to leave me off bureaucracy as he already had a disciple who he was going to hand down everything to! But no one listened to me… Likely because everyone who was left was incompetent.'
'Worst of all was that I couldn't pass on my position. Because of my age, I wasn't in the right to assume leadership and so, coudn't pass the position on to anybody.'
'It was a complete mess. Within a year, before I even turned thirteen, I was left alone in the peak.'
'At first, no one blamed me for not keeping up with the requirements of the Sect Lord due to my age and circumstances. I believe they still had some compassion for me during this time, but it all went away once I turned seventeen, which is already considered to be an adult.'
'From that point on, hell befell me as half a decade of expectations came crashing down.'
'I could go on forever about all the struggles I had trying to maintain the peak and its facilities afloat. But no matter how great my ideas were, as a child, I was never given the chance to implement any of them. And years later, once I became more "trustworthy," I was now known as a failure by many.'
'Such an unfair world… Either way, I reaped some benefits out of this.'
'Since I was alone, I managed to spend all my time to my scholarly pursuits and Cultivation. And while I was by no means the greatest genius on the Sect, I rose to a somewhat decent grade befitting someone of my Status… That is, if this was an ordinary Peak.'
'I'm not comparable to a Peak Master, and despite this lofty Title, it means nothing. Te significance of being the Master of the Ritual Peak has been long gone in this age. A decade is more then enough to make most forget as the generations shift.'
'I tried to keep up and revitalize the Peak while also adhering to the Sect's policies, but failed miserably for we do not possess any grandiose art of secret technique. The most we have are notes and reflections on the Sect's martial arts which may help a Cultivator who practices them. And while I succeed in selling copies to the other peaks, it was only enough to sustain me a little longer.'
"Now here I am, poor and quite weak. And once I reveal this to the Sect Lord, one of two things will happen…"
'I'll either be executed for failing to keep up to the expectations, or I'll be banished… Both can be considered equaly bad.'
'In this world, honor means quite a lot, and losing mine for such a ridiculous reason doesn't bore me well but no one cares. I'd be scorned and shunned everywhere as long as someone digged my past.'
"My only hope were the gifts given to me by the strange being. But so far, none have awakened. All things considered… I'm done."
'I'm lost in what to do. I'm even considering fleeing from the Sect and finding a good place to lay down and live an ordinary life… Which would just go against my reason of coming here.'
'I could've just chosen to be some sort of half immortal being back on Earth and I would've been able to enjoy a lot of things, specially if I was given money to kickstart things… But that's the past. I'm here now.'
"If I broke through, I might've beenable to make an appeal, even if it signifies the shut down of the Peak, but I'm far from that as well."
'Cultivation is a fairly complex but straightforward process depending on how you see it. Aside from a few chosen ones, all start as mortals.'
'You first begin to feel the essence within Heaven and Earth, once you managed to absorb it ever so slightly, you enter what is called the Qi Absorption stage.'
'Once you go through the nine revolutions, you must break into the Foundation Establishment stage. Which is the realm I'm currently at.'
'The 7th revolution. Not high at all, one may even say its low.'
'In the Sect, most ordinary disciples are either at the pinnacle of the first stage or in the second stage like me. Meanwhile, most Peak Masters are at the middle stages to the pinnacle of the third stage, with the Council members and Sect Lord being at the fourth.'
'The Council is kind of a the high managers that supervise the entire Sect but not as directly as a Peak Master would. The territory of the Sect is quite large and it has many Peaks and land in between.'
'That's why the existence of the Ritual Peak is inconsequential to its existence and why I'm not that important in the grand scheme of things.'
'If I could break through the Heavenly Core stage, I might've been able to have a say, but with my talent, it seems things would take a little longer then expected.'
'If the Peak Master had never died and the previous sect master had remained, I would've likely been a Heavenly Core Cultivator by now.'
"... If I'm not wrong, soon enough will be the disciple sorting ceremony."
'Every year the sect opens its gate for students. And about 1000 disciples join in per sector. However, of those thousand, only about two hundred matter as the other eight hundred will likely become menial disciples, working their assess off to maintain the sect.'
'I've tried recruiting disciples for years but everytime I do manage to acquire someone, they leave soon after. Such a drag… But I never tried to keep them here either.'
'Mostly because every disciple I did manage to poach were… Untalented to say the least. For me to pass on the mantle of Peak Master to someone else, the disciple needs to be at least off the same Cultivation stage as me or a Heavenly Core cultivator… Which isn't hard to find.'
"Might as well gamble once again. I never missed a recruitment but who knows…"
'It's either this or giving up for real.'
With a tired expression, the young cultivator descended his mountain, walking toward a large city in the distance…
…
/Chatter…/
At the peak's foot was Gangau Town, one of the many Sect Cities with the sole purpuse of housing disciples, training them, and developing their abilities.
If one looked around at the many mountains surrounding the city, they would see multiple peaks just as tall as Ritual Mountain. Each of those peaks were overseen by a Master like him. For the smaller ones, they were usually given to outstanding members of the sect for housing or specific facilities.
Today, the city was quite full given it was the long awaited recruitment week.
/Chatter…/
"... then… Hm? Oh! Wuizi! To think you finally descended from your peak! Come over, the tests are about to end!"
"Peak Master Ruji."
After walking through the busy streets, Wuizi arrived ar a large squarish camp made of stone with multiple rows of benches overlooking it like an arena.
This was where the final part of the admission exams took place. A clash between disciples before all.
Wuizi approached a large stand elevated from the ground where multiple individuals could be seen discussing in a low tone as they watched the fights unfold. Those were the masters of the nearby peaks observing the disciples and taking their picks.
While it was true that disciples chose which peak they would join. Few would decline an offer from a Peak Master directly. Those that did were either fools, or knew exactly what they wanted.
Wuizi approached them and bowed respectfully before sitting down at the cornermost chair.
None of them seemed bothered by his presence. But few acknowledged him either. But Wuizi was happy either way for things could be far worse.
"Are you finally going to take on a disciple?" Ruji asked as he stroked his beard
Ruji was like an ascetic monk, wearing full white, he had a head full of white hair and a long beard. He resembled his master and not without reason for they were connected by blood, albeit their last connection came all the way from their Third-Order Great-Grandfather…
"It's not up to me if they wish to join or not. I'll try my best to poach someone. As always."
'And hopefully have them stay…'
"Things haven't been easy for you since that old man passed away… Sigh… But things may be different this time around."
"The reason?"
"You really haven't heard? This recruitment is substantially bigger then the previous ones. Over five thousand disciples are going to join!"
"That's quite a lot…"
'This means the Sect Lord has dropped all pretention. Now everyone will know he is preparing for war.'
"We had over one hundred thousand apply. Over twenty times the usual. And that is just in this sector… It makes me wonder how they're doing in the North and West."
"We really overdid it this time…"
As he said that, an old lady to his right added:
"The recruitment has been going for over a week, child. You really came at the nick of the time since we're now seeing the most outstanding ones duel."
"Over fifteen thousand have made it here. But only five thousand will move on… We've been preparing for this for quite some time. How come you forgot about it?"
"I… Was quite busy…"
"I can see that. You broke through the 5th Revolution to the seventh in a year. You really locked yourself inside that old place."
"With these numbers, even if you don't want to, you'll have to accept a disciple. Otherwise we'll get overwhelmed…" Ruji said as he sighed
"That's not quite true. The Sect Lord has determined that each Peak will be limited to a certain number of disciples depending on their size. The others will remain as 'loose' disciples."
"Loose disciples?"
The old lady focused as she looked at the fights in the arena, saying:
"It means they belong nowhere but are essentially akin to ordinary disciples. They are allowed to make use of facilities in all Peaks as long as they are given permission, but above all, with the renewed credit system, they can now take commissions for those points and exchange them for resources."
"If any of the Peaks take an interest in them, they can make a formal request to add them to their line of disciples. That is, if their quota hasn't been reached it. Otherwise they can just formally accept them without need."
"A little overly complicated…"
"I thought so too, but its the Lord's request."
"... Anyhow. Anyone interesting this time around?"
'I better not talk about the War out loud.'
Ruji touched his beard with light smile, saying:
"Of course there is. Since the Lord increased the maximum and minimum ages for disciples to join, we've had many children from distant places joining in."
"Aside from the children from affluent households, most of those who made it this far are around the second to third revolutions of the second stage."
"That's quite high. A little higher then the yearly average." Wuizi said with some surprise
"Ho! I thought so too. But it seems everyone realized the sect Lord is pushing things quite intently. He's not sparring anything at all to increase our forces…"
"I could probably ramble on about one hundred candidates but that would take too long, so I'll just focus on some of the favorites…"
"There's the eldest son of the Fronteire Merchant City. He's recently broken through the 8th revolution, but his foundation is quite shaky due to the numerous elixirs he's taken. However, if he's given some time to purify his Qi and medidate, he'll likely break through Golden Core."
"There's also the children of the three great families who oversee the Blue Plains, they're all extremely talented. And given their connection to one another, they come as a package since they also need their servants for some reason."
"There's also the Sect Lord's nephew…"
"The Sect Lord has a Nephew old enough to be here?"
"Barely… His younger brother is thirty three and his son is fourteen… If not for the minimum age increase, then he would have to wait for the next recruitment season. But since we won't have another for the next few years, he'd have to join in through recommendation."
"I see…"
'It could be a stretch but maybe the Sect Lord increased the minimum age just so he could join… Participating in the competition is a good way to show your abilities and build an image.'
"That said, there are quite a few more interesting individuals. I'm particularly focused on the daughter of the Jadlite Palace. She has a rare twin moon constitution and I heard it was also a rare variant, the Red Moon mark. She'd be perfect for the secret arts of my Peak."
"Isn't it just because she's pretty?" The old lady asked as she gave Ruji the side eye
"Ahem! I'm far too old for that! Can you imagine how my granddaughter would look at me if she heard you? Humph!"
"..."
'These old people sure have energy…'
"That said, have you seen anyone interesting today?"
"Me?... I don't think I have the honor of being picky…"
"Ha! You can't be like that! A man has to be confident!"
"I am confident. I just know where my limits are, and in this case, the limits of my circumstances…"
/BOOOOOOM!/
""?!""
The arena suddenly shook, lifting a large cloud of smoke up in the sky.
/SWOOSH!/
One of the elders raised their hand, and the cloud was immediately dispelled.
"Hoo… This is surprising."
Below, only a few remained standing, but those didn't matter. Only two did.
A shirtless man with long black hair holding a large sword, and a cloaked man holding a pair of daggers.
Immense aura radiated from them both, shocking Wuizi…
"Are they both…"
"No. They're at the peak of Foundation Establishment. Albeit the black haired boy has a stronger foundation."
"..."
'Every day I'm reminded of what I could've been if I hadn't been overworked… Now I'm being surpassed by these kids… It's quite… Unfair… But who am I to complain about that?'
/BOOOOM!/
They clashed again, shaking the whole arena, forcing the other contestants to leave their posts.
"Are you sure they aren't Heavenly Core Cultivators?"
"They are exceptionally strong but their attacks barely reach the minimum of a Heavenly Core. If they were like that the whole testing area would've been destroyed."
"Even so, I'm interested in them." The old lady added as she focused on the cloaked man
/CLANG!/
/BOOOM!/
"... Cough. There's dust flying here… Should we let them keep fighting? At this rate there won't be much of the arena left…"
"Hm… Wuizi is right. Let's stop this here. There's no point in letting them break everything for a mere demonstration."
"I'll handle this."
One of the Elders, a more muscular man jumped from his seat, landing on the arena.
Soon enough, the commotion died down and the matches resumed.
Wuizi watched in silence as he saw multiple talented children rise and fall. And eventually, the time came for the disciple to be sorted.
Since this sorting was different from the usual, each Peak would call the names of those chosen, if they refused to join the Peak, they could name which Peak they would like to join before seeing if that Peak was interested in taking them in.
As for everyone else, they would be made loose disciples as per the Sect Lord's orders.
Time passed just like that…
…
"... Guan Feixue of Silverwood! The Violet Petal Peak summons you!"
After the disciples had been chose, five thousand individuals stood in multiple rolls before a large stage where the masters of each Peak stood.
Before them, one of the Inner disciples held a long list, calling forth the disciples chosen by each master.
"..."
'That's the boy who made all that commotion with his opponent. One of the few disciples at the pinnacle of the Foundation Establishment. A guy like this will likely grow to become a Peak Master and maybe even a Council Member.'
"Child, I'm willing to take you in as my personal disciple? Do you accept?"
/Chattering…/
"Silence! Disciple! Do you accept the invitation? Kneel down and perform the rites!"
/Step…/
The disciple walked to the stage, but rather than bowing to the Violet Petal Peak Master, he moved to another person… Wuizi.
"???"
'Me?!'
"I'm deeply thankful for the offer, but I have a mission to fullfill! Please, I'd like to join the Ritual Peak! Accept my rites!"
""...""
/Silence…/
/Chatter!/
Chaos ensued, but soon enough, it was brought down.
"Silence! The disciple has stated his wishes. Ritual Peak master, do you accept his rites?"
"I… I do."
'Holy shit…'
Just like that, Wuizi got himself one of the best disciples of this batch.
…
/Later that day…/
Wuizi led his newest disciple to the mountaintop, still pensive from this absurd change of events.
While it was true he had always wanted a capable disciple to join. It didn't mean he could take care of one… Especially one whose cultivation was higher than his…
Worse, after he opted to join, others tried to join in as well, but he was forced to refuse them all. Not because he didn't want to but because he didn't have any resources!
"It's quite empty. Pardon my rudeness, master!" Guan said as he looked around in interest
"It is. The Ritual Peak has always been a quiet place with few disciples due to its nature, although things have taken a turn for the worse in recent times…"
"Disciple. I don't understand why you chose me, but I'll be frank: our circumstances aren't good. So for now, I'll let you remain in this peak as an ordinary disciple, but once enough time has passed, you should pursue a place that will truly give you the means to rise."
'If he still chooses to remain, that will be the perfect time to pass on this burdensome position. Once I can leave this Sect, I can start figuring out the abilities that being gave me… But I'm not too confident on that part.'
"You don't have to worry about that Master. Thank you for accepting me despite everything. But I have a reason for doing this and I will repay you for this generosity."
"Hm… You should look out for yourself out there. Others won't take kindly to you being in this peak. People will find you an easy target."
'The problem with accepting this guy is that I've made myself a target for the people of the Violet Petal Peak. They've always been a little full of themselves and now they have a reason to come bother me. Especially their master.'
'Just what I needed, issues… Let's hope the Peak master doesn't get too offended for being a little "humiliated"... If he does, I'd rather have him focus his wrath on this dude than me.'
"Here we are, the Ritual Peak."
"The area is divided into two zones, the inner and outer zone. The outer zone is mostly abandoned but if you wish you can take residence there. Meanwhile, in the Inner zone you'll find the Grand Office where I work and live, the three-layered pagoda where our records are, and the Disciple residence where our higher ranked disciples used to live and perform their daily tasks at."
"We don't have many Cultivation techniques and arts but we have a massive collection of reflections, recollections, and other bits of inspiration from tens of thousands of Cultivators. While it may be hard to select the one that suits you best, you'll definitely find something of use to you in it, just be sure not to bring any of the records outside the library."
"Understood!"
"Then… That's about it. We have no schedule to follow. But make sure to warn me whenever you leave the Peak. If you have any other questions regarding the Sect and its infrastructure, I'm here to assist you with it."
"All that said, I'll return to my room now."
"Have a nice rest, Master."
"Uhum…"
Wuizi left the area with his arms on his back. However, while he tried to maintain appearances, inside, he was on the verge of passing out.
…
/THUD!/
"URG! What is this headache?! It's been getting stronger ever since the selection… I feel as if my head is about to burst!!"
'A curse? Is someone using a Spell or Secret Art on me?! Come on! I'm just a measly Foundation Establishment snob! There's no need for such absurd procedures!'
/Sheen…/
[Condition fulfilled]
"What?... Wait. This voice…"
[Congratulations on taking in a disciple, may you two reach the end of your path]
"Wait! Explain to me what's going on!"
However, the voice did not return, being replaced by a series of golden words floating in the air:
[This is my gift to you whose life burned so mine could shine]
[A gift I made with my renewed abilities based on what I felt would fit best for you and that would aid you the most in your path. Shaped by your culture and experiences]
[If you wish to accept it or not, it's up to you…]
A small spark of light shone on his right palm, forming a strange rune akin to the symbol of infinity but not quite the same…
[It's up to you to call it whatever you wish, but if I were to name it anything within your understanding, it would be… The Rune of Return]
"The Rune… Of Return?"
[From the moment you link the rune with someone, everything that composes their being will be displayed to you in a manner you can understand]
[Depending on your connection with them, you can even acquire portions of their being and add them to yours without side effects for both parties, unless that which you replicate has an intrinsic negative effect]
[Whenever the marked individual achieves any kind of enlightenment or gains something new, it'll be repeated to you in a manner you can absorb and comprehend]
[The rune can only be linked with those who possess some degree of trust in you. And the more significant this trust becomes, the greater effects the rune will possess, and more of its intrinsic abilities will be unlocked]
[There is a limit to how many individuals the rune can be linked to, but those marked by it can be cleared of it whenever you wish]
[A single individual has been detected that fits with the requirements to use the Rune of Return, would you like to link it?]
"... I…"
'I don't know what this will do to me, but it's my sole chance of crawling back from this whole fate has thrown me into.'
"Do it!"
[Searching… Linking… Displaying information]
/Sheen!/
The rune on his palm shone with light, and a golden translucent window manifested itself before him:
[Nulan Xuexi - 18
Cultivation Stage - Foundation Establishment 8th Revolution
Affinity: 4
(Information Locked - Low Affinity)
]
"Oh… This is interesting… Wait a moment."
'Nulan Xuexi? This isn't the disciple I just took. Besides, that's a feminine name. The Cultivation Stage is also not equal to the one the other Elders described.'
'Something's wrong. Could it be there's someone else suitable?'
/Sheen…/
The rune shone with light, displaying a tiny marble within its many inscriptions. Wuizi immediately realized why, it was telling how many disciples he could take.
Given the number of empty spaces, he could take at most two more disciples, which was quite a lot even if he didn't have this ability.
Although faint, he could sense the distance between him and the one he marked.
'It can't be… It's nearby but… Oh shit…'
'Guan Feixue isn't a man… But a girl… Shit… I've been dragged into one of those scenarios…'
'There's only a few cases where someone would this, in the Cultivation world, its something usually done by large Clans, especially those that pass down their position to males rather than females, so if she's here, she's likely the eldest daughter of someone who wants to protect her.'
'Either that or she's trying to hide from someone. There's no such thing as an identity card here to prove her background…'
'She must have something on her to hide both her gender and cultivation from even the Elders… Likely something made by an even higher ranked Cultivator or someone specialized in creating such artifacts.'
'But… Regardless of the issues that pursue her… This is an opportunity for me.'
"Thank you for this gift. I'll make good use of it."
'Given the way the Rune of the Return works, then I just need to pour my resources onto her. I don't know how talented she is, but given her age and Cultivation, if she's given space, she'll break through Golden Core, and even if her breakthrough isn't enough for me, I'll likely rise to the peak of Foundation Establishment.'
'If I raise her affinity, more options will be unlocked for me. There's no need to hold back.'
"It's great I'm prepared. I've gathered a few resources over the years, although they were meant as a last resort in case everything went down the drain… This may be my sole chance to maintain my current position without being tarnished by the Sect."
Wuizi walked to the side of his room, pulling a few old planks from the ground underneath an old wardrobe, revealing a hidden space underneath.
There, he took a small wooden box. Upon opening it, it revealed a series of things.
'A few pills to aid me in breaking through to the peak of Foundation Establishment, it was truly a pain in the ass to get them…'
'In truth, I only managed to reach this Level of Cultivation because I messed with the entire array surrounding the mountain.'
An array is a kind of circuit that uses the essence of Heaven to perform a task. In this case, it was meant to gather more Qi and raise the density of it within an area.
By condensing it all of the mountain's Qi within this area, Wuizi managed to raise the density several fold, allowing him to Cultivate faster but at the cost of heightened costs in maintenance.
He only managed to do such a feat thanks to his many extra years of study due to being an adult inside the body of a todler. Even so, he was barely qualified to manage it.
If he had the right ability, he would've been able to do the same without needing to overcharge the array, retaining its previous maintenance costs.
'It's also against the rules of the Sect. However, given I was completely alone, no one ever batted an eye since no one ever came here. My goal was to change things once I eventually became Golden Core, but the chance never came.'
'If not for the Qi, these pills would've gone bad even with all the precautions I took.'
'Aside from the pills, there's a few Grade 1, 2, and even 3 Spirit Stones, including a small shard of a Grade 4 Spirit Stone.'
'Our peak had our own resources, but much of it was taken away as the disciples left either by them or the Sect itself. They pillaged everything they thought valuable… And I predicted that. So I hoarded whatever resources I could while also modifying the ledger of the Peak.'
'Being a toddler with intelligence made it really easy to memorize many secrets of my Master.'
'Then, there's also some bank notes from my Master and his Disciple Bank accounts. I've been waiting for an opportunity to extract those, but it hasn't come out yet.'
'My fear is that since they're officially dead, the bank has terminated their accounts, but I know that as long as I have strength and backing, if I go there and request to take their accounts back, they'll have to give me something even if it means taking it from someone back.'
'And lastly, there's the secret manuals of the Ritual Peak I copied a few years before master died… Mostly out of curiosity. But who knew those actions of mine allowed me to preserve its legacy?'
"It's not all though…"
'Master had a secret none aside from his disciple knew. Something he kept secret from everyone… A tombstone.'
'Master had been working on something for many years before I was even born, and he was planning on leaving those things to his disciple once he died in the form of a "secret realm".'
'It was merely a place where he hid most of his wealth. I meant to gather it but couldn't leave the sect due to my circumstances… Not anymore.'
Wuizi gathered some of the pills and a few Grade 1 and 2 Spirit stones before leaving his room.
'This should be enough, Grade 3 Spirit stones are meant for Heavenly Core masters to cultivate with. Maybe once she's near the pinnacle of her realm, I'll give one to her.'
'Once we grow a little closer, I can also give her some of the old manuals to help her, but I doubt she'd need those. Our techniques weren't anything to go by anyway…'
'Hopefully this will be enough to have her trust me a little bit more, I'd like to see what this rune can really do.'
…
/Knock knock…/
Wuizi stopped before the abandoned disciple's quarters, knocking on one of the doors as soon as he felt his connection with his disciple through the rune of return.
/Creak…/
"Master? What brings you here?"
"I apologize for disturbing you, this won't happen frequently."
"While it's true that our Peak's condition is declining, I must still maintain some degree of dignity… So here are your resources."
"I…"
"Don't reject it, there are about three of our Sect's standard Foundation Establishment Pills. Together with five Grade 1 and two Grade 2 Spirit Stones."
"Even if you don't remain here for long, if you breakthrough while in my care, it would already be beneficial to me, so don't get yourself worked up."
"... Alright. I'll accept them all, Master."
[Nulan Xuexi's affinity has slightly increased]
[Nulan Xuexi's profile has been updated]
"... I'll take my leave now. If you need anything, you know where to find me."
/Nod…/
She bowed gently and quickly as Wuizi turned around, satisfied.
He had successfully accomplished his goal and confirmed that others couldn't see his gift. Everything went as expected.
'Let's see…'
[Nulan Xuexi - 18
Cultivation Stage - Foundation Establishment 8th Revolution
Affinity: 7
Mood: Tense-2, Relieved-4
(Information Locked - Low Affinity)
]
"Hm…"
'A mood option? Interesting. This could help.'
/Shaa…/
"!"
A slow but constant stream of energy slowly entered his body from his palm.
'It works! She must've taken one of the pills or has begun cultivating!'
'What a fast rate! Whatever cultivation art she's using, it's incredible! At this rate, I may break through within a few weeks if not earlier, if I cultivate as well.'
'What a weird feeling… My body is gathering energy while I'm moving. It's usually impossible to cultivate while moving, but here I am.'
'Excellent. I think I know what to do. My goal should be to look for other talented disciples. The issue is convincing them to join me… Wait, how do I even keep her here?...'
'Even if the rune keeps working even when she's gone, it would be hard to keep increasing my affinity with her if she leaves. There must be another way… I need to find something to keep her here.'
With those thoughts, Wuizi returned home, locking himself in his room as he thought of a solution for this hurdle.
But soon enough, fate would give him his path…
…
/The next day…/
/Inhale… Exhale…/
"Haaa… Almost there."
Back in her room, Nulan finished her meditation, opening her eyes to the bright sun.
"Did I Cultivate throughout the night?"
/Sniff…/
A sweet smell reached her nose, it was faint, but it was quite attractive…
She put on her clothes and disguised herself before removing the restrictions in her room, once finished, she stepped out with a sharp expression.
After turning around the dormitory, she saw Wuizi sitting before the Grand Office.
He was cooking food with a grill…
"Master? What are you doing?..."
"Cooking food? It's about time for my breakfast. Did I wake you up?"
/Shake…/
Nulan shook her head as she approached him, interested in his food.
Wuizi smiled as he pointed at the meat on the grill:
"Would you like some? I'm making a simple sandwich with some meat and eggs."
"S-Sandwich?"
Nulan was interested, and above all, hungry.
"Never heard of it? I expected as much. I invented it after all."
"Sit down, I'll grill some meat for you."
"Thank you."
Nulan sat down opposite to him, looking at him as he cooked his food leisurely.
"Master."
"Yes?"
"Do you live like this every day?"
"Is there something wrong with this? If you're uncomfortable, I can make some changes."
"No! I was just a little surprised… You…"
"I don't like a Peak Master like those other old farts?"
"..."
"I'm a little different from them. I told you before how the situation of our Peak is a little odd. Since we have the time, let me tell you how I became the Peak Master…"
Wuizi began sharing his tale with her, changing a few details to make the story a little cooler.
Once he was done, he gave her a sandwich and some juice he bought in the city in the early morning, saying:
"... that's about it. Now you're here."
"... You've had it rough."
"It's nothing, there are many out there in worse conditions than me. I can't change their fate but I won't give up either. Keep pushing forward, crawling one step at a time."
"..."
/Chomp…/
"So? How was it?"
/Chomp…/
"Heh, I'll take it that you liked it."
"!"
Realizing what she had done, Nulan looked away in embarrassment as she kept eating her food.
[Nulan Xuexi's affinity has slightly increased]
[Nulan Xuexi's profile has been updated]
[Nulan Xuexi - 18
Cultivation Stage - Foundation Establishment 8th Revolution
Affinity: 10
Mood: Tense-1, Relieved-5, Hungry-1, Satisfied-1
Cultivation Techniques:
>Sutra of the Grand Moon - ???
>Three Season Skipping Blade - ???
>Jade Eye Tempering Art - ???
>38 Maneuvers of the Dancing Lion - ???
(Information Locked - Low Affinity)
]
"..."
'Interesting. It seems some of her techniques have been revealed now.'
'I don't recognize any of them, but I do recognize the Dancing Lion… It's the symbol of a famous Clan from the far North… But she can't be the daughter of that clan… Can her?...'
'If she belongs there, then it means… She's a fucking time bomb. That clan isn't as big as the Sect, but it can be named within the same sentence, which is quite alarming.'
'But… No one knows who she is yet, and as long as it remains like that, it'll be fine…'
[By the Law of Return, you received initial enlightenment on the Jade Eye Tempering Art]
"?!"
Suddenly, the world got dark.
Inside this dark void, thousands of images flashed before him.
It was the life of a man with unusually bright eyes and the many hardships he went through during it.
However, the more he saw, the more incomplete his life became, and at its end, Wuizi was left with more questions then answers…
As his eyes flashed with faint pale light, he was startled away by the crackling of the bonfire.
"... Master?"
"Hm? My apologies, I grew a little distracted. Is something wrong?"
"Not at all… I just wanted to say this was delicious."
"Thank you… Are you leaving? Quite soon."
"I'd like to take a walk around the city if you'd allow it."
Although he was still a little confused, Wuizi smiled lightly.
"Go on, don't hold back. If you find navigating hard, go to the Seven Floor Pagoda. There's only one in the city, and its where the commission house is located."
"Although you can't get any commission right now… What matters is that the Comission House is at the city's heart so it shouldn't be hard to find your footing if you're over there."
"Thank you, I shall."
With a gentle bow, Nulan left him alone with the burning bonfire and his thoughts…
[Nulan Xuexi's affinity has slightly increased]
"... Huff… What was that?"
'Did I just experience her memories? No, that can't be… Then… Did I receive the memories of the creator of the technique? Is this what it meant by "suitable method"?'
'It's a little ridiculous, isn't it?!'
'Either way… I think I understand it now. This ability is incredibly powerfull.'
'As long as I have a strong connection with a disciple, everything they do will be passed to me… I can grow stronger without the need to do anything at all.'
'I can just gather resources and gift them to my disciples, as long as I do that everything will be fine!'
"That said, I shouldn't be sitting here. I should go back and reflect on the memories."
'Whoever that was, he was an incredibly powerful man. Someone born with an unique constitution which was eventually partially transcribed into a technique…'
'An ancient cultivator from an era long gone. I can't let these memories scape me. And above all, if I can help her achieve some enlightenment with these, I would also benefit from her understanding!'
'My path is getting clearer!'
...
.
.
.
Notes