One day Old man Shi summoned all oh his adopted sons outside his chambers.
“Come in.” old man Shi gently called to them.
“Yes.” came Sanfeng’s reply from outside.
Quickly, ten people followed Sanfeng into the room. Six of them were in their forties and fifties. The other four were much younger, around the ages of thirty or early forties.
“Father,” all of them bowed in unison.
“Sit down” old man Shi softly said.
“Yes,” they immediately sat down.
“As of now, have each of you reached the 10th rank of Hou Tian?” old man Shi asked.
“Yes, father.” they all replied.
Only one of the younger men spoke in surprise: “I just reached the 10th rank ten days ago. I had originally wanted to surprise you with the news, but didn’t realize that you had already known.”
“Shi Han, to have reached the top rank of Hou Tian at the age of thirty-two is already quite a surprise.” old man Shi looked at the Shi Han with a faint smile. This son was also the one he favoured the most after Sanfeng
“Father, your words are too kind.” Shi Han immediately replied with embarrassment.
“Do you know why I’ve summoned you all today?” old man Shi asked.
“We don’t.” they all shook their heads. They all curiously looked at their father, wondering about the reason for their summons.
“In a few months, the Dragon Hall Tournament will begin. All of you will come with me to the tournament.” old man Shi gently told them.
“Dragon Hall Tournament? Father, do you know where the tournament is going to be held? Only the four great houses and the imperial family know of its location.” Shi Han immediately shouted in excitement.
At the same time, the other sons looked up with excitement at old man Zhong.
“Indeed, I will be taking all of you to the Dragon Hall Tournament. The best fighters from every country will be there. All of whom have reached the top rank of Hou Tian and even some strong practitioners of Xian Tian. When you come with me, show your strength in the tournament so that one of the Immortal Schools will take you in as a disciple. After which you will be able to learn the supreme secret of immortality.” old man Shi spoke with anticipation.
“Yes, father.” everyone responded cheerfully.
“I am taking all of you to the Dragon Hall Tournament. On one hand I hope that you can give up your worldly desires and enter one of the Immortal Schools, but on the other hand, I also hope that you will be able to do me a favour.” old man Zhong’s eyes suddenly shone as he spoke.
“Father, tell us and I will try to accomplish if I am able.” Shi Han responded immediately.
“It isn’t difficult. As long as you can enter one of the Immortal Schools, merely ask one of the masters or elders of the school for a Potian Pellet for me.” old man Shi asked with some excitement.
“Yes.” his sons nodded.
“Father, what is a Potian Pellet?” only Sanfeng asked uncertainly.
“A Potian Pellet, amongst the Immortal Schools, isn’t a particularly special item. It’s only used to help a person break the limits of Hou Tian, but only those who have risen above the Golden Core stage have the ability to concoct such a pellet. Once you have reached the Immortal Schools, you wouldn’t have a need for this pellet at all. Thus such an item is rare. Many years ago, I tried to trade all of my possessions with a Daoist for this pellet, but he ignored me in disdain. To these people, any worldly items were worth the same to them as a passing cloud.” old man Shi sighed.
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After hearing this story, the others in the room also sighed in agreement. Each of these sons was interested in their family fortune, but in the face of immortality what worth was that fortune? Nothing at all.
“Father, do you intend to use this Potian Pellet to reach Xian Tian?” Sanfeng immediately asked.
“You are all my sons and I will not conceal my intentions. I will indeed use it. I began training late and though I spent much of my wealth to acquire elixirs, I was only able to reach the same level as each of you here. I could no longer progress any further. I am eighty years old. There is no hope that I can have a breakthrough now. The Dragon Hall Tournament is held once every fifty years. This is my only chance. I hope that you will not disappoint me.” old man Shi spoke to his sons.
“Don’t worry father. As long as I am selected by one of the immortal masters, I will ask for the pill even if it’s at the cost of being barred from entering the school.” Shi Han said immediately.
“Father, I,” Sanfeng spoke with some hesitation, after all, he had never cultivated in his life.
Having an idea for the reason for his hesitation, Shi Shan smiled and said “All of you go and prepare yourselves. We will begin travelling there in three days time. Sanfeng, you come with me too. I won’t be comfortable if you’re not by my side to assist me.”
“Yes.” they quickly responded. Even Sanfeng was excited. Though he knew that he would never be selected as a disciple, the fact that he could witness the Dragon Hall Tournament was amazing.
Afterwards, everyone left the chamber in high spirits.
After his sons had left, old man Shi slowly stood and shuffled towards one of the courtyards near the back.
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Three days later at the Shi residence, in a hall at the rear of the compound, old man Shi watched his excited sons as he stood with a cane that had a dragon head handle.
“Is everything taken care of?” asked old man Shi.
“Yes, father.” they nodded excitedly.
“Everything in the household has already been planned and will be carried out in an orderly fashion. Don’t worry father”, said Sanfeng.
They set off by carriage. Two months later, they reached a villa at the foot of a mountain range.
“This is at the foot of Heng Mountain, this villa is my personal property. Rest for two days. I want you all to be at your best. After these two days, we will go to Dragon Gorge and enter the tournament.” said old man Shi.
“Yes,” everyone replied.
They then walked out of the hall and with their own eyes confirmed that it was indeed a large villa. There was a multitude of servants who all bowed to old man Shi as he passed by. After he gave his instructions, his sons were taken by a housekeeper to their own guest rooms.
Two days later, outside the villa, old man Zhong led the way and followed by his eight adopted sons. The direction they were heading was the big mountain range north of the villa. It was very rugged, with no trail at all. If they weren’t martial arts masters, they wouldn’t have been able to climb the mountains. Along the way, there were poisonous grasses and bugs everywhere. If it were not because of old man Shi’s decades of experience, they probably would have gotten infected. Five days later, they finally climbed over the last of the many mountains and reached the edge of a valley. Inside the valley, there was a large amphitheatre. It was so large, that it’s diameter reached over a thousand meters just like a huge stadium from Sanfeng's previous life. The bottom of the valley was very wide and clean, with the surrounding area covered with gravel.
Old man Shi stopped Sanfeng at the entrance of the valley, "You don't need to see this. Wait for me here."
Even though Sanfeng was disappointed that he could not personally witness the tournament, he knew how protective Shi Jiu was of him so he did not insist. He chose to wait under the shade of a tree. The rest of the Shi family went inside.
Sanfeng waited for hours as he watched people entering and leaving the valley. 2 hours after sundown, he saw an unfamiliar young man walking towards him carrying 4 dead bodies. Upon closer look, the young man looked exactly like some of the paintings of Old man Shi in his younger days. Sanfeng approached him and asked, "Father?"
With a wan smile, Shi Jiu nodded to him. Without saying anything, he laid the 4 bodies of his sons on the ground and started digging. Sanfeng assisted him ONly after burying them and paying proper respects did Shi Jiu turned towards Sanfeng.
"Father, congratulations on breaking into the Xian Tian, now you are one step closer to your life's goals"
"Yes, but the price was too steep" Shi Jiu replied with a melancholic voice as glanced towards the grave of his adopted sons. Then he turned a tender gaze towards Sanfeng, " You came to me 10 years ago as a broken child. Watching you grow to be a strong and virtuous man has been one of my greatest pleasures in life. Now 6 of your brothers and I begin on the path of cultivation. Even though it is a perilous path, I have forcibly kept you from pursuing it. I apologize for that and thank you for going with my selfishness. Now I want you to make the last request. Live your life freely. Use all the skills that you learnt in the last decade to carve a name for yourself. You can also pursue cultivation if that is your life's calling. If fate makes it so, then we will meet again under different circumstances. Farewell! "
After saying his lines, Shi Jiu disappeared, leaving behind a flabbergasted Sanfeng. Soon he realised that the life of Shi Sanfeng is over and he was back to being the orphan Zhang Sanfeng. Having mixed feelings about being abruptly abandoned, he found himself blank about his plans for the future. All he had was a couple of gold coins in his pockets and the clothes on his back as Zhang Sanfeng began a new path once again.