You could say the next year was a slow one for Pef, as his Holy Son duties delayed his cultivation progress, and he only reached Sky Realm at the old age of 8, by some coincidence matching the day with his own mother's ascension to Sky Realm.

Or perhaps, the blonde boy just waited for his mother to catch up. Either way, the first new recruits began to gather at the gates of the Icefire Sect, thousands upon thousands of willing applicants, some more outstanding than others.

There were poor boys and rich silkpants youngsters, pretty maidens in sedan chairs with big escorts or beggar women with loose and dirty clothes on their backs.

There were hunters and warriors, artisans and blacksmiths, even a few doctors.

No matter their station in the mortal world, it meant nothing to an Immortal Sect. After all, riches and ranks could not buy you immortality, and a strong cultivator could wipe out a city or an army with barely any effort.

Pef stood beside his loyal follower Herald, on a tall stage overlooking the Sect's gates, as a stream of people were interrogated by the Outer Court disciples and then directed towards an Outer Court Elder to be tested, both for cultivation roots and elemental affinity. But this time, the Outer Sect Elders were instructed to allow any affinities, by the Holy Son himself.

"Will you be able to create cultivation methods for any element?" the Sky Herald wondered as he noticed a Wood essence cultivator get admitted as well.

"I guess so. Anyways, there isn't any rush for more methods right now. They have a long way to reach Spirit Realm, and lots of other hurdles as well, most importantly their own resistance to change." Pef disclosed with a light shrug.

"It's not that ..." the man began to speak when the stage began to tremble and then sink into the ground, while stone jaws raised to snap onto our beloved Holy Son.

'An attack?' Pef wondered inward as he floated higher in mid-air, by curtesy of his new Sky Realm.

"Who dares!" an Outer Sect Elder shouted and flared his Ice mana in a powerful wave, spreading outwards and forcing the examinees to prostrate onto the ground.

The ice wave shattered as it reached a silky sedan chair, revealing a Domain bubble covering that group.

"Is that your precious Holy Son? Today he must die!" a grave voice answered as a spear of stone sprang from the ground towards little Pef.

'Do you need help, little one?' Pef heard the Saint ask him with a qi transmission.

Pef just frowned as a small flame appeared in his palm. "Icefire, smash!" Pef urged his companion with a devilishly grin. He didn't need a Saint just for this nuisance, not when he had Icefire ready.

The air around the Sect gate wobbled and the incoming stone spear froze, while the tiny flame descended from Pef's hand as if moving in slow motion.

As it made contact with the Domain covering the sedan chair, the Domain exploded into shards and chunks, and a pitiful scream emerged from the person inside.

"Not a pretty maiden, after all." Pef commented out loud as the silk screen around the chair disintegrated and an old man wearing a black robe was revealed inside, clutching as his chest in obvious pain.

"He looks a lot like that Xia Elder that attacked you before, Holy Son. Only he is much stronger." the Sky Herald observed as he flew up beside Pef.

"Allow me, Holy Son!" Pef heard a gruff voice as the Resource Hall Elder flashed by and grabbed the attacker by the neck, while his own Domain forced the others in the attacker's group onto the ground.

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"Whatever. Perhaps we can use that for a test subject." Pef said a bit sad, mostly about the fine stage that got ruined.

The little Icefire jumped onto the black-robe head and then returned into Pef's palm, while the old man fainted.

'Brother. Revenge.' Icefire disclosed as it sank back into Pef's core.

'Yeah, I figured something like that already.' the blonde boy whispered inward as he scanned below for more worthy disciples.

In a large column lead by a fat man, a pair of red-headed siblings stared at the flying cultivators with ardent eyes, while holding hands.

"Did you see that, sister? That boy just crushed the old man with a tiny fire spell. No wonder their Sect is called Icefire." the red headed boy whispered to his sister.

"That's not it, little brother. See all those disciples around? Not even one got scared or hid during the attack. Many of them even ignored that black-robe and only watched the boy, as if curious how long it takes to crush the idiot." the elder sister explained with a knowing voice.

"Well, it would be nice if you can fly and shoot fire spells. I wonder how old that boy is..." the brother spoke grandly, then faltered as the Holy Son himself descended in front of them.

Catching opportunity by the leg, the fat overseer knelt in front of Pef and his bodyguard. "Immortal One, I have delivered a thousand probationary disciples, as commanded by the Resource Hall. They all have experience working with earth, in our spirit mine." the overseer pleaded as he raised his eyes toward the Sky Herald, obviously the more important one.

"Seems you have some work to do, fly guy. I only want these two." Pef said with an ironic tone, as he gestured at the two red-haired siblings to follow him.

The Sky Herald glanced along the long line of hopeful examinees, then down towards the fat overseer. "Do not disrespect the Holy Son again, Overseer. Since he ignored it this time, you may keep your life. Now scram!" Songtie uttered in a cold voice, then kicked the man like a ball, punting him far into the forest.

Seeing the happy faces among the new recruits, Songtie suspected the overseer escaped much too easy.

However, there was another young man terrified at he news of the attack, especially as he recognized the black-robe man being cuffed and sealed by the Criminal Hall Elders.

"You are certain this is him?" the Punishment Elder asked with a deep frown.

"Yes, Elder. This man is a Grand Elder in the Xia Clan, called Old Man Jiu. His brother, Elder Jia used to be my bodyguard, when I was free. He attacked...and the Holy Son killed him, with a single cut." the Xia heir admitted with a despondent glance at the unconscious man in black robes.

"...Well. There are worse ways to suicide, I guess." the Punishment Elder concluded with a shrug, then began disrobing and disarming the Xia Elder of hidden weapons, storage rings and any other tools. The new prisoner wouldn't need such things in the dungeons, after all.

"I shall write a new letter to my clan, and bring it for review..." the Xia scion muttered in a low voice as he turned away.

"Just...consult with the Holy Son first. He may want another sincerity gift for this horrible trauma." the Punishment Elder advised the Young Master before he went out the Criminal Hall.

'My clan will go bankrupt before I even return home. Damn imbeciles! That blonde devil is the horrible trauma.' the sad teenager mused inside as he shuffled back towards the Inner Court.