For the last day of a brief winter, it was a cold one. The sun was hiding with the excuse of winter's presence while the trees shed dead leaves, shaking their branches along with the bone-chilling cold wind.
Light presence of snow could be seen on the far mountaintops.
Several large groups of people were walking steadily on a particular road which cut through a foggy valley between two gargantuan mountains. Their pace was not slow despite the chilling blades of the winter's wind.
At the front of the crowd walked a group with a small number of people, mostly teenagers and elderly; their gait revealing nobility and grace, attire rich in color and style, faces relaxed, and conduct exuding dominance over those following behind.
Behind them was a faction of people who comparatively had a large population. But they seemed quite anxious and showed a somewhat subservient attitude towards the first group. The people in this group were of all ages and most of them were clustered, as if belonging to different families. They showed animosity towards each other and contempt towards the third group.
The third group was the largest, having people of different standings in society. Their clothes were shabby, their bodies bore signs of labor, and their demeanor was nervous yet more easygoing and friendly. They walked while maintaining a fair distance from the first and second groups.
In any of these groups, there were very few who were alone. Han Xuhan was one of these oddities.
His clothes resembled a peasant's. He had a small bag on his back. While walking, he stuck close to a group of armed men wearing combat attire. This tiny group was there to escort an old man with an ambiguous identity, he had discovered at some point.
Han Xuhan chatted with these soldiers frequently out of curiosity. The stories they discussed among themselves were wild.
"Brother Shen, what's the situation in the fifth region now? Are the attacks of the spirited beasts lessening at all? I heard the emperor invited experts from every sect to deal with those beasts once and for all."
The fierce-looking leader of the soldiers, Shen Hai shook his head and replied, " it's not as simple as you think, little brother. There are beasts with unbelievable strength hiding among normal beasts in the recent invasions.
Almost every sect has lost a few experts and core disciples because of them. In a recent news, I heard about a Devilshadow Eagle with the strength of a ninth-layer Soul Reformation realm expert attacking a convoy with thousands of people. Even in the mid-level sects of our Seven Regions, experts like that are treasured by the sect masters."
Han Xuhan sucked in a breath as he tried to imagine the strength of somebody who had reached the second great realm of cultivation, the Soul Reformation realm. But he really had no idea how to do so since he had never seen a proper and decent cultivator that powerful.
"Brother Shen, have you ever seen a cultivator of that level? Their strength has to be unimaginable!" He couldn't help but ask.
"If you pass the entrance test, you will get a chance to cultivate to that level too, as long as you are willing to work hard and have the necessary talent."
Shen Hai looked wistful as if fantasizing about being a cultivator himself. For soldiers like him, strength was the most important factor in life.
He hadn't answered the question, Han Xuhan realized.
At this moment, a shout from the front of the groups alerted everyone.
"Look! You can see the gate! There are so many tents outside in the plains!"
The whole group fell silent as they walked at a faster pace. All of them eventually found the valley widening ahead, their road leading them to an open expanse. By the side of the river encircling the mountains beyond the plain, countless people could be seen moving about outside colorful tents.
As they approached the huge, intimidating gate at the foot of the mountains, a man wearing red robes came out to greet them.
"Welcome to the Crimson Snow Sect. The entrance examination will be held in the designated areas at noon. Those with 3rd-level invitations, please follow me to your personal tents, and those with 1st and 2nd-level invitations, please explore the plateau where you will find the public tents," the man declared, pointing at the tents outside the gates.
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The small groups at the front paid no heed to the man and strode inside the gate while chatting among themselves in a relaxed manner.
The man seemed to be used to this and followed behind without a single glance at the rest of the people. A few old men in the second group looked incensed but they didn't raise a ruckus.
Han Xuhan took out his invitation and inspected it carefully again. It didn't contain much information.
[ First Level
The bearer of this invitation card has been permitted to take part in the entrance examination of the illustrious Crimson Snow Sect. Please follow the map and attend the examination, which will be held within four weeks.
Attendance is mandatory. ]
Under those sentences was the badge of the sect showing a crimson-colored snowflake and a small, basic map of the hilly territory at the edge of their region. The position of the sect was marked there, inside an area surrounded by dozens of large mountains. The journey to this place had not been easy.
He had gotten this invitation from an influential backer of the orphanage he lived in. Apparently, the backer had noted that Xuhan was suitable for cultivation after examining him with the help of a native cultivator from a small sect.
The invitation was something he had received a few days back and he gladly gave it to Xuhan, telling him that if he managed to become a cultivator, their orphanage would have much more resources and influence than before.
Touched from receiving such a precious opportunity, Han Xuhan had thanked him profusely and immediately started his preparation for this year's test. Of course, as an ordinary mortal, there was hardly anything he could use to give himself an advantage in the world of cultivation, but he had made sure to keep himself in top shape since that day.
Han Xuhan walked with the soldiers to the public tents. The old man they were guarding looked tired from the journey. It had taken them a whole day and another morning to reach the sect from the fifth region's borders.
"Little Xuhan, it's time we separated. I have some business to take care of. Go and rest for a bit. The examination will start soon," the old man said suddenly to Han Xuhan.
He smiled at the grandpa and continued walking forward. The old man nodded at the soldiers and walked off in another direction.
"Old master, you should have taken the demon chariot. Every time you pass through the spatial intersections, your injury keeps worsening," Shen Hai reprimanded the old man lightly.
"Eh, but crossing the intersections of space is the most fun part of the journey, kid." The old man laughed.
"What did you think of the youngster, master?" Shen Hai asked the old man as they glanced back at the boy.
"He has the aptitude. But nothing special," the old man replied absent-mindedly.
"Do you think he will pass? Boy looked pretty passionate about cultivating, haha!"
"Depends. But I don't think it matters."
"Why not?"
"Shen Hai, you must keep in mind that not everything that appears simple is simple in essence. That boy appears harmless, but I suspect he is not so innocent inside.
"There is an aura of heavenly calamity shrouding his existence. And you know very well which type of people suffers that sort of punishment. If my conjecture is right, he's about to face many, many perils soon, continuously at that too. I don't think he will survive the calamity."
"Heavenly punishment?!" The soldiers halted, heads turning swiftly once more, sight locking in on the distant figure of the unsuspecting youth.
"...Should we inform the sect master?" Shen Hai said in a low voice.
The old man waved his hand. "Don't. Interfering in the neutral territories will get all of us implicated. As the representative from the home solar system, I'll only face nominal penalties. But you...you'll become another example for those who'll have to replace you. I'm sure you can recall what happened to Inspector Xie just a few days ago, right? The news should have spread fast."
Shen Hai sucked in a shallow breath and nodded.
"Thanks for the advice, master Ming."
"Ahaha, no need for the formalities, little Hai. I appreciate the amount of effort you've given in protecting the future disciples of this sect. It hasn't been easy on you! It's no simple task to deter those disasters without people noticing."
"We could've done better, had the information about this region been correctly reported. So many natural disasters striking so frequently...nobody told us how sensitive the Heavenly Laws in this place is." Shen Hai's expression was sour.
"Could it have been because of the boy?!" One soldier from behind suggested doubtfully.
The tension in the air became almost palpable instantly. Had that innocent-looking companion of theirs been the source of their suffering this whole time?
Old man Ming Zi shook his head.
"Injured as I am right now, I could've still sensed it if the boy was the real source of the calamities. It's something else...this planet is too close to the rift, after all. Such anomalies aren't rare at all, I'm certain.
"Whatever, these are no longer our concern. Come, all of us could use some rest. Accommodation befitting my status will surely do you good!"
Followed by the soldiers, the old man entered through the gate uninterrupted by the sentries. Anyone who saw him moved out of the way, standing by the side of the road with their heads bowed until he had left.