The old man, who I assumed was a sect elder, flew above our heads for a few more seconds before touching down on the ground. He had a Dumbledore-esque beard, and was tall and slim, kind of like a reed. I could see a sword-sheath hanging at his waist from my position, tucked into a belt. His eyes once again swept over all the trial participants, and this time they did not stop on me. Maybe I was being paranoid previously. Once he had finished surveying everyone, he once again spoke in a voice that directly seemed to enter my ears.

“Now that you have all passed the trial, you are now disciples of the Path of the Night Sect. In a few moments, your Senior Brothers and Sisters will hand out your medallions and provisions for the next few days. Anything else that you need must be procured by yourself.”

As soon as his voice faded, several disciples sprang into view. They were wearing the same kind of robes that the elder was wearing, just a little less sophisticated. One look at their faces and you could tell that they were hardened warriors. They swiftly started distributing the medallions to the new disciples. As they were going through about the 500 disciples that had passed the trial, the elder continued speaking.

“These medallions represent your identity as disciples as Path of the Night. Lose your medallion, and you lose your status as a disciple. You will be treated as an intruder of the sect if you are caught without your medallion. It records the sect points that you earn in various ways, and they also function communication tools in times of emergency.”

By now, I had recovered from my exhaustion slightly and was able to sit up on the ground. A senior disciple eventually reached my, and tossed a medallion in my lap. “Drip a drop of your blood on it to bind it to you,” he said. “That way no one can imitate you using it.” I bowed my head slightly, and he nodded imperceptibly before moving away.

I looked around and it seemed I was the last person to be given a medallion. A few of the other disciples seemed to have imitated me and were sitting on the ground, probably from exhaustion too. Others were still standing straight, trying to look tough. Only one person looked truly at ease. He was standing closest to the elder, in robes that were barely stained with any dirt from the trial grounds. Hs eyes caught mine and his mouth curled up in what I was sure was disgust.

Of course the guy who killed Original Huo Kai would be still alive. It’s not like the universe would have done me a favor and arranged for his death somehow. Well, it was whatever. The MC needs a suitable stepping stone to display his strength after all. It was just a matter of time before I killed him.

Kill him? Wait, that was not me. Why would I ever think about killing someone so casually? Shit, looks like some of Original Huo Kai’s personality was bleeding into mine with the memories. I needed to think of a way to control these thoughts, if I wanted to retain my personality.

The senior disciples moved to stand behind the elder in five rows of ten. They were like a well-trained army with how orderly they were. The elder, once everyone was done moving, spoke with a bit of steel in his eyes, “Now that everyone has received their medallions, it is time to decide the rankings of those who passed. Disciples who arrived two hours before the sun set will be inner disciples of the sect, and those who crossed the sect gates less than two hours before nightfall will be outer disciples.”

At his words, about fifty of the five hundred disciples I could see stood up a little straighter, pride evident in their eyes. The rest of the disciples just gave a collective sigh of relief on being afforded a position in the sect at all.

“But there is one among you who was even more exceptional than the rest,” the elder said, turning towards the scumbag who had killed this body’s previous owner, may he rest in peace. “Gong Huan not only reached the sect five hours before sunset, effectively setting a new record, he did so without a single injury.” His eyes flicked towards me before going back to Gong Huan. I was sure by now that the elder had some kind of bone to pick with me.

Looking down at that rat in those insufferably clean robes, the elder asked him, “Would you be willing to accept me as your master, Gong Huan? In the past fifty years, there have been only a few who had reached Qi Condensation before joining the sect, and even among them, you are the best. I fear your talents will be wasted as an ordinary disciple of the sect, and thus want to take you as my disciple.”

Gong Huan just smirked as if this were expected, and bowed low at his waist, speaking in a loud voice, “Disciple greets Master. But this disciple wishes to speak. This disciple does not wish to spread negativity on this joyous occasion, but there is a matter that must be addressed.”

The elder’s eyebrows raised slightly. “Oh, and what is this thing that cannot wait for later?”

Having gotten permission to speak his mind, Gong Huan straightened and turned towards me with a sneer so perfect I might have believed if someone said it was his resting face. “You see Master, there is someone here who does not belong in this sect,” he said with barely disguised glee in his voice. “Huo Kai is someone who would have failed the trial if not for the miracle of him flying face-first into the sect. The sect gates would have closed long before he had reached them. So this disciple was just wondering whether he deserved to be here.”

The elder looked deeply at Gong Huan for a few seconds before turning to me. “You are the one called Huo Kai?” he asked me. I just stared at him for a few seconds before remembering I was in a world where I was required to respect my seniors. I scrambled to my feet and bowed at my waist, speaking in a military voice, “Disciple greets Elder.”

I was staring at the ground, but I could feel the elder’s eyes at the scanning me. If I got kicked out of the sect, there was no way I would even survive a month in this world. It was too risky going to Huo Kai’s family, as I did not have his complete memories. And going rogue was just a death sentence at my cultivation. I prayed to whatever gods existed in this world to help me. Eventually, I heard the elder say, “Stand up straight.”

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I straightened my spine and looked straight into his eyes. They were grey, like the clouds that herald the coming of a storm. A formless pressure started weighing on my mind, and my head started aching. Our eyes continued to face off, my headache growing worse, until he broke contact, his lips twitching slightly.

Turning back towards Gong Huan, he said, “You may be correct in your assertions, but there is nothing I can do. It was the Sect Leader who put these rules in place, and not even I, Gong Men, dare to go against the Sect Leader’s orders.”

Without waiting to give Gong Huan a chance to reply, he turned towards the rest of the disciples. “You will find accommodations some ways east of here,” he said, waving his arm towards his right. “I expect everyone to gather here at first light tomorrow for further instructions. And one last thing. Try not to kill each other before the night is over.”

With that sinister warning, he grabbed Gong Huan’s shoulder and disappeared into the sky. The senior disciples behind him also dispersed, leaving us newcomers to find our own way to the accommodations.

***

I trailed in the midst of the other new disciples, lost in thought. So, the elder’s name was Gong Men. That meant he was part of the same family as Gong Huan. Explained why he seemed to have a chip on the shoulder when it came to me. I should probably offer a prayer to the Sect Leader once I settled in, I decided. I would probably have been kicked out if not for whatever he did to gain his tyranny.

“But right now the biggest problem is that the Original Huo Kai’s personality is mixing with mine,” I thought. “If I don't find a solution to this quickly, I may end up changed in ways I do not want.” I debated with myself whether to continue perusing the rest of Huo Kai’s memories, but then ultimately decided that it would be too risky not to do so. There was vital information that I was missing, like why Gong Huan had killed Huo Kai, or what kind of support I had in this world.

As we continued walking, I went over the rest of the memory packet. My legs were moving mechanically like a robot, so I didn’t notice when the disciple in front of me stopped moving. I bumped into them, leading to the both of us almost falling down. I caught them in my arms reflexively, idly noting that their skin was very soft.

The girl in my arms was surprised for a few seconds before she righted herself and gave me a nasty glare. I opened my mouth to apologize, but she turned away with a huff before I could do so.

I looked past her and saw that all the other disciples had stopped in their tracks too. The disciple at the front went over to some king of large sign which had words written on it. He read in a loud, brash voice, “The cottages here are the accommodations provided to new disciples. The lower the number on the cottage door, the better Qi-Gathering Array and formations it has. The owner of a cottage may be challenged thrice a month for their place. If they lose, they have to exchange cottages with the winner.”

As he finished reading, a competitive gleam entered in the eyes of everyone gathered, and I suddenly understood what Elder Gong meant when he told us to not kill each other. There was calm for a few seconds, and then a stampede broke out as everyone scrambled towards the lowest numbered cottages.

I stood still, trying to decide if I should compete for those cottages too. Shaking my head slightly at the buffoons exhausting themselves in the free for all, I walked towards one of the cottages in the middle of all the numbers. I opened the door of the cottage numbered 138 and looked inside. It was very plain, a lot like the dorm room I had when I was in college. I waited to see whether anyone was following me before going inside and closing the door. Fire immediately sprang up in the torches that were on the walls, filling the room with light. Looked like some sort of sensory system. I made a mental note to learn more about that later.

Before I could even sit down on the bed, someone started pounding loudly on my door. I sighed, and chided myself. I should have realized something like this was coming. I walked to the door and opened it, revealing a slightly chubby guy. He looked to be around my age, but had a sneer worthy of Gong Huan on his face. Now that I looked at it closely, it was exactly like his sneer, just a bit less refined.

Looks like the lackeys are already after me, I thought. Mustering the most innocent look I could on my face, I asked him in an inquisitive voice, “Yes? Can I help you?”

The guy’s face immediately twisted at my tone. Looks like he had a short temper. I looked over him, and he seemed bruised in many places, His thigh was also bleeding slightly. Spittle flying in my face, he shouted at me, “Get out of there Huo Kai. That cottage is not worthy for the likes of you.”

A crowd was starting to gather by now. The girl I had bumped into in the crowd came out of the cottage beside mine. Seems like we were going to be neighbours. Looking at the antagonistic faces gathering around me, I decided I had to finish this quickly. In a mocking voice, I asked Lackey #1, “Oh? And why is that so?”

Murder flashing in his eyes, he said, “You were the last of us to enter the gate, that too purely by luck. Trash like you belongs on the street, not even in the highest numbered cottage.”

Oh, so like we were taking this route. Quickly formulating an idea in my mind, I replied, “Listen here. I know Gong Huan put you up to this, and if it were any other day, I would beat you up till your mother couldn’t recognize you. But it just so happens that I am a bit tired and do not want to waste energy on the likes of you.”

They did not know this, but I was taking a very big gamble here. I had not yet figured out how to use the skills that were shown on my status, so I had no fighting capability at all. The only way I could get out of this situation was by giving them a threat that was bigger than the fear of Gong Huan.

“My two elder brothers are already in Foundation Establishment and are inner disciples. Gong Huan may be the personal disciple of an elder, but even he would have to take care if they want to take action against him. Also, Lackey #1,” his face contorted with rage at the nickname, “I have already occupied this cottage. And according to the rules, I can only be challenged three times this month.”

Looking over their battered bodies, I smiled slightly and said, “I’m pretty sure I could beat three of you guys before you have to leave me alone for the month. If you go ahead will violence, you will gain nothing and only suffer more injuries. So choose wisely.” At this, I grinned at them like a predator. It was an expression I had practiced a lot in law school, and worked great at intimidating opponents.

Lackey #1 now looked nervous, and I could see the gears turning in his slow head. Eventually he shouted at me, “Don’t think this is over just yet Huo Kai. I’m letting you free due to the fact I’m injured.” And before I could get even a word in, he stormed away, with the crowd hot on his tails.

I waited until they were all gone, then turned to go back inside. I caught the eyes of my neighbour, and gave her a polite nod. She looked at me with naked contempt and went back inside her own cottage, slamming her door behind her.

Sighing in exasperation, I shut my own door and immediately went to lie down on my bed, completely exhausted. As I stared up at the ceiling, a loud chime came from inside my head. I jumped so high that I almost fell of my bed. Before I could get over my shock, a panel popped open in front of my eyes.

*Ding* Congratulations. You have earned Gaslight Points.