I flew them over most of the valley and into my ‘Sect Headquarters.’ The place was nothing more than a massive maze-like complex, but that was sort of the point. It wasn’t supposed to be a home or a resting place, but rather a museum of wealth and power. I had chosen the highest mountain with the best view of the area down below. The mountains were long, tall, and unscalable. It was impossible for mortals to climb it and it was just as hard for any cultivator below the second stage. A thin mist full of qi and morning dew secluded its peak from view, and only those with flying techniques could truly venture their way to the top.
The guests were all impressed, or at least they acted like it. Immortals were as mythical to them as cultivators were to mortals, and that left me with some assumed roles to fit into. They would most likely be spending the night here in this complex. They had all traveled from all of their individual sects to the Flowering Sword Sect, and from there to the Great Desert Strip. It wasn’t taxing for them by any means, but it was common courtesy to let a guest settle down after they traveled such a long way to see you.
A few minutes into the greeting, I quickly realized just how lazy I had gotten in recent years. Talking was tiring and politics was a chore. I think they must have complimented me about fifty times within the first two hours, and for each compliment, I had to say something back to not appear rude. It was a lot of empty compliments and a competition of one cultivator trying to kiss my ass harder than the other.
It was hours later now, and we were in a ceremonial tea room. Gauntlet stood in one corner carrying a pot of hot tea, and the five sect representatives sat kneeling on soft silk pads around the table. On the table was a small open flame at its center. Occasionally, when the tea ran out, Gauntlet would walk over to the table to make a new batch.
"This is a beautiful place to cultivate, Honored Daoist Bill," Gai Lu said.
The old monk scanned the mountain ranges, his scar-covered hands folded up neatly around his cup.
"Truly beautiful. The sight must never age here for you to have settled down for so long," the man commented.
Ahh, here it started. What he was really saying was, ‘How long have you lived here?’
A lot of cultivators danced around topics instead of outright saying them in fear of accidental insults. Face meant the world to these people and because of that, they had learned to tread very carefully around the pride of those stronger than them. Even if they had obviously come here in search of information, they wouldn’t risk being blatant and insulting me during the process. No, better to leave open-ended statements that could be glossed over without regard.
"I’ve been here for nine hundred years now and the sight still amazes me every time I look at it," I answered with a smile.
"To be far removed from the chatterings of man and cultivator alike," An Fong nodded "This Daoist understands the beauty of silence."
Another roundabout query. What he really wanted to say was, ‘Why were you here so long without announcing your presence?’
"Mhm, I’ve no taste for the troubles of the outside world," I said with a sage-like nod.
"Ah yes, I imagine it can all be the same at your age Honored Daoist. Seeing the same fights play out over and over again," An Fong replied with a nod.
"An old cripple like me truly has nothing better to do. This Dao of mine has broken so all I can do is sit here and watch the world go by," I replied with a feigned sad smile.
Their eyes lit up in surprise at that statement. For most cultivators, a Dao was a necessary thing. If qi was the thing that would prevent the body from aging then Dao was the thing that kept the mind and soul safe and sane through eternity. It was needed to cultivate and you couldn’t hope to cultivate or push forward without a Dao to morph and change your soul from that of a mortal to that of an immortal.
Regardless of the stage, having a broken Dao was equivalent to being a cripple, stuck in stagnation, and unable to move forward.
"We all reach a bottleneck, Senior Daoist. The best thing we can do with our troubles is to use them to nurture the next generation." Lai Xin said.
All of them nodded in solemn comfort as if this news didn’t cause them joy. In their mind, I was already stronger than them. But the fifth ranks did still have a small chance of catching up to me if not outright surpassing me sometime in the future. Or if they deemed it necessary, they could collectively pool together their total resources and hire some immortal assassin to take care of me. They had no reason to, of course. But I was still an unknown, and it was a small comfort for them to know that I was already at my limit.
I couldn’t help but be irritated at that thought. All of these people would trample me in an instant if they could. They found comfort in my limits and sought to exploit me the best they could. To them, I was a possible tool or a possible threat.
And yet here they were, sighing and drinking tea while pretending to comfort my pain. If someone were to look in from the outside, they would think this was a gathering of wise and virtuous people. Maybe we would even look like old friends. But that couldn’t be further from the truth, everyone here had blood on their hands, including me, but here we all were pretending to be saints.
I sipped my tea. It wasn’t really the evil that bothered me. In the greater realms, you didn’t exist as long as I did without seeing your fair share of horrors. I’d seen true evil, and I’d seen paragons of justice that fought them back just the same.
No, it was the hypocrisy of cultivators that I couldn’t stand. It was the need and desire these people felt to dress up and wander around preaching ideas they would never practice, and for whose sake? Their own? The mortals they couldn’t care less about?
"Master Bill," Lai Xin said. "May our juniors make their introductions."
"Ah yes, these juniors need to make a proper introduction to the newly honored master of The Great Desert Strip."
I sipped my tea, acting all masterly and whatnot. Then I gave a gentle nod.
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
"Yes, let us head to the courtyard," I said.
I stood up and led the group through the intricate manor. The manor itself was nothing more than a peacock of a building. I had made it to show off. That was important to cultivators. The most important form of power was your cultivation rank but the second most important was wealth.
Wealth meant resources and resources drew eager eyes. There was nothing here that would tempt a being of seventh rank, or even one at the sixth to be sure, but that was sort of the point. One of these people would probably report me to whatever empire ruled over the region and what they witnessed here would make up the brunt of that report. I wanted to appear classy and capable to the people of this region but also poor and useless to whatever higher power they reported to.
Finally, after a few minutes of guiding them through the place, we ended up in the courtyard. It was a big wide space with trimmed trees and carefully placed stones. I found the rest of their respective entourage standing there, most of them talking amongst themselves, some talking to the delegations of the other sects.
Ah, politics. It infected even the youth. I had Gauntlet guide them to their respective rooms earlier, and while most of them stayed in those rooms some had gone out exploring. Those of the Hidden Vipper Sect had all left their rooms and inspected the premises while I was serving the guests. And some of the Raging River had released some techniques to measure the natural qi levels of the area. The Flowering Sword had all gone directly into meditation to test what Daos presented themselves within the place. And the Hollow Echo’s people were busy using some sound-sensing techniques to map the building out.
All in all, a very well-put-together line of approach. My finances, resources, techniques, chosen Dao, and even the building itself was being investigated. Each sect would gather information to find out everything they could about me.
All of the juniors bowed in our direction as soon as we entered the courtyard, Cai amongst them. He looked more tired than anything, his newfound value within his sect must have been quite a lot to deal with. I could relate.
Aside from the five that trailed behind me, there were twelve other fifth ranks and they sat in their groups, each removed from the lesser-ranked individuals. It was all very organized, except for the monks of the Bloody Fist Sect, they mingled with each other and meditated out in the open.
"Ah, Master Lu," one of the monks said, bowing in Gai Lu’s direction.
"Honored Masters," he acknowledged the rest of us.
"We were wondering if the village-"
"Shin!" Gai Lu yelled, striking the boy fiercely on the head.
"Show some respect before this Honored Master of the Great Desert Strip you idiot child!"
The monk clutched his head bowed.
"This one greets the Honored Master of the Great Desert Strip! Forgive my insolence!"
"I apologize Honored Master Bill. This Shin Le is my student and it seems like the Dao has taken his mind in return for his talent. He is ignorant but he meant no offense," Gai Lu said with a bow.
"It’s no problem," I replied. "I’m not one to fuss over face."
The boy, still clutching the now noticeably sized lump on his head, looked up. There were visible tears swelling in his and I could see clear liquid starting to seep out of his nose. He turned to look at me.
"Ho- Honored Master. The village down below has no priesthood or monks and I was wondering if it was possible for us to go down there to establish one."
"Why would you do that?" I asked.
"To protect against any demonic threats, Honored Master. Everyone must be diligent, even if the last known demonic threat happened over a thousand years ago, you can not allow yourself to get lazy and igno-"
This time Gai Lu struck the boy even harder.
"I truly apologize for this brazenly stupid disciple I have brought here," Gai Lu said. "Surely I will educate him."
"Don’t worry yourself, Daoist Lu. I’ve met my fair share of similar people, it's of no issue."
"I am thankful for your benevolence," Gai Lu said with a bow.
The other four stood there, their expressions unchanged. But it was still easy to see the subsequent shock in their aura. The only one amongst them who had decent control over her aura was Lai Xin, but the shock was still evident. But the most interesting reaction came from Gai Lu himself, it was a mixture of surprise and disappointment.
Maybe he had been hoping that I would get rid of this kid for him. Or maybe it was something else. I turned to the child and spoke.
"Don’t worry yourself, little monk, there is no demonic energy within the valley. I have been watching it thoroughly for the last millennium and I myself make sure to thoroughly check the place with my disciple. If something were to arise, it would be my duty as the owner of this land to take care of it."
The boy looked at me inquisitively.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
I nodded with a smile. Then the kid put his hands to his fist and gave a deep bow.
"Thank you Honored Master of the Great Desert Strip for doing this diligent duty. May your Dao be true and your strength be righteous."
I could sense all five of the Daoists tense at his statement. It was a common way of saying goodbye, but saying it to a man with a broken Dao gave it a different meaning. It was like telling a blind man that he has a bright future ahead of him. Kind words on the surface but easily interpreted as insults as well.
I bowed back to the kid.
"Of course, and to you as well, little monk," I replied.
The boy nodded and returned to his group with a smile.
The introductions went by pretty fast. There was a lot of bowing and ceremonious greetings, but only the fifth ranks introduced themselves thoroughly, the younger ones had mostly bowed their heads and said their names.
After which, we all went over to a grand hall to discuss the matter of declaring this region to be a sect. This was the boring part. There were hours of discussion, mostly amongst the sect leaders and juniors. There were all types of minor concerns.
Though the Great Desert Strip wasn’t important to any of the sects, there were a lot of small-time merchant clans that fed off of trade and a lot of them traveled exclusively on foot, crossing the strip daily. Then there was the matter of management and all other types of information.
Overall, it was boring, tedious work, but necessary for the sake of the act. These people cared about their borders and powers, and I as the new big kid on the playground had to assure them that I would not be trying to steal their toys.
There were also a lot of implicit offers made. The Hidden Vipper bragged of their beauties, implying that I could have my pick of any. The Flowering Sword did the same with their chefs and gardeners. The Raging River had a number of plants and reagents to give me while the Hollow Echo merely offered themselves as mercenaries.
I rejected them all of course. I didn’t need it, but more than that I didn’t want to start political relations with any of them. Favors, offers, services, all of those would just weave a complex web of commerce and wealth between us, and slowly but surely, I would be dragged into their shenanigans.
They could do business with the mortals of the village but I made it very clear that the people were not objects to be claimed. I had stressed that last part so heavily that some of the weaker cultivators had fainted.
"Honored master, now that the agreements have been made, we should hold a formal feast. And tomorrow we can have a celebratory spar of juniors underneath your watchful eyes," Gai Lu said.
I looked at Gai. There was something wrong with this man. He seemed to be more genuine than the rest. Monks often were. Virtue was what they sought and all although it could corrupt them, monks on average were much more trustworthy than your normal cultivators.
So it surprised me that this one seemed to like courting death.