Ning and the group were led by the two elders to the inner sect. It didn't take long for the group to reach the inner sect.

"As expected, the density of spiritual energy present is far higher than in the outer sect."

Since it was the first time for the outer sect disciples to come to the inner sect area, they quickly realized the difference in the air. The spiritual energy here was much more abundant than in the outer sect region, by almost 20%. Just this improved environment was worth the trouble to enter the inner sect.

At this moment, Elder Ze Xuan had already brought the group to the centermost region of the sect. The inner sect region and outer sect region were divided by a wall. In a world of cultivators, a wall may not be of any use to hinder intruders, but it was the formations carved into the wall that mattered.

"Show your identification."

It was not a human voice that resounded, but something else altogether.

Beside the marbled jade door, the only entryway toward the inner sect, there were two statues.

On the left, there was a large two-headed dog with spikes growing on its body.

On the right, there was a huge serpent with wings and razor-sharp fangs; it exuded a cruel aura.

The two statues were lifelike. They had black jewels for eyes and seemed to have a breath of life in them.

When Elder Ze Xuan walked in front of the statues, the serpent on the right spoke in a parched voice. With each opening and closing of its mouth, dust from the stone fell to the floor.

"Enough! Serp, don't you recognize me?" Elder Ze Xuan had a look of annoyance on his face.

Right after Elder Ze Xuan spoke, the serpent and the huge dog both guffawed. The voices brought a strong wind, flipping the robes of the disciples present.

"Fascinating," Ning was quite interested in the working mechanism of these stone statues. "The pressure they exude is less than that of Elder Ze Xuan and is kind of similar to that of Elder Hu. Both of these statues must be at least in the late stage of Qi condensation."

To be honest, Ning was impressed. The lackluster security had given him an impression that the sect was not well-off and organized, but it seems that was only limited to the outer sect. It was no wonder it was said that only after entering the inner sect would they be considered true disciples of the sect.

"Okay, okay. Look at this." Elder Ze Xuan produced a jade medallion with golden lines.

"You can enter." With that, both statues let them pass.

Ning and the others entered with the two elders. Ning was looking around, absorbing as much information as possible. He didn't want to get lost this time, so he made a mental map of the place.

Along the way, Elder Ze Xuan began to explain about the sect.

"Our Pure Qi Sect was established in the Bronze Year 666; it has almost been three hundred years since then. The one who established our sect was the famous Nascent Soul Patriarch Li Changsou..."

"All of you must have noticed the increasing spiritual energy in the air. It is because our sect is built upon the spiritual vein the Patriarch Li Changsou found in this land. The closer to the spiritual vein, the higher the concentration of spiritual energy."

Ning nodded to the information from time to time. He had already collected quite a lot of information about the sect, but knowing more never hurt. Especially, tales of Patriarch Li Changsou were one of his main topics of interest.

The reason was simple; this was the sect where the protagonist resided.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Ning would be stupid to think that there was not something special about the sect. From his own research, he found that Patriarch Li Changsou was not from this domain at all but arrived from a faraway land and later established this sect. It was said that he had left his legacy in the sect, but that's just a rumor.

"The inner sect is divided into several large areas: courtyards, gardening areas, trading posts, mission areas, and such. All of you will have your own small courtyard assigned to you."

No caves from now on then? Lucky me...

Ning almost teared up at the thought. It's not that he hated his cave, but it was, you know, a cave. It was cold and damp most of the time, and sometimes some bugs would crawl in.

"As your elder, let me give you a small piece of advice: the lower the number of the courtyard you are in, the closer you will be to the spiritual veins."

Ning narrowed his eyes at that advice. He could see the protagonist and his dear rival also immediately understanding the implication of this.

Soon, everyone arrived at a building. Like all the buildings Ning had seen so far, it resembled a Chinese pagoda, the only difference being that there was a large board on the top of the pagoda saying "Registration Hall."

"All of you wait first." Elder Ze Xuan walked inside the hall first, leaving the new inner sect disciples outside.

A total silence fell upon the group; the reason was simple. It was because Hu Chen was glaring at Xiao Fan and Qi Tian the entire time. He did not say anything or take any action, but his murderous intention was clear.

"Our dear protagonist will probably not have an easy time in the inner sect," Ning concluded quickly. While Hu Chen may not be a full-fledged inner sect elder, he probably had a connection to the various inner sect disciples. So, it would not be hard to pressure Xiao Fan later on.

Ning almost felt pity for the protagonist, almost.

After a few minutes, Elder Ze Xuan appeared again and instructed in a loud voice, "Everyone form a line according to your placement in the Outer Sect Competition and enter one by one."

Everyone followed the instructions, and Xiao Fan was the first to go in. After a few minutes, he came back, his outer sect robe nowhere to be seen. Instead, he was wearing the signature black inner sect robe.

Xiao Fan seemed to be in thought after coming out of the registration hall. Something should have happened inside...

Well, it was not his business to poke, so Ning waited for his turn patiently. After a while, it was his turn.

Walking inside the Registration Hall, Ning came face to face with a long white-bearded elder.

Ning cupped his fists and saluted, "Disciple Ji Ning pays his respect to the Elder."

This world was one where people respected strength and Ning always followed the etiquette meeting these superpowered people. After all, who knows if some of them are sticklers for such things?

Don't wanna offend op dudes just because you can't act a bit polite.

The white-bearded elder nodded and spoke, "Good! So, you are Ji Ning. You seem to be from the most recent batch of recruited disciples, but you have already reached the fifth rank of the outer sect in just a few short months. This time, we are getting quite a lot of talented disciples. Very good!"

In front of the elder was Ning's form that he had first filled out after coming to the sect. Scanning the form, the elder praised Ning.

"It's thanks to the teaching of the sect," Ning replied humbly.

"Is that so? You are very polite; you can't see well-mannered disciples these days." The elder lamented before suddenly saying, "You can call me Elder Xu. You possess the dual attributes of Fire and Wood, right?"

Ning was bewildered by the sudden question, but he quickly nodded.

"You are in luck. Elder Ling seems to have already booked you." Elder Xu continued, "After this, you'll go directly to meet Elder Ling."

Ning spoke, dumbfounded by the sudden turn of events, "Booked? I request the elder to explain to this foolish disciple."

Ning had a clue of what was going on, but it was still better to know the full picture.

Seeing how the calm disciple seemed to have become flustered, Elder Xu spoke with a teasing smile, "I don't want to ruin the fun. You will know about it in a few minutes anyway."

"I-I see." Ning took a deep breath to suppress something.

Damn! Ning hated these riddled type characters. First, they pique someone's interest with some interesting information but stop midway and say nothing, acting all mysterious. He knew these guys were also another type of cliche, but they were one of those annoying ones. Such behaviour was like an itch that could not be scratched. Too uncomfortable.

In the end, Ning knew he couldn't push any further and stopped asking.

"Well, here are the things you will need in the inner sect. Check it." Elder Xu handed a sack to Ning.

Ning could see the black inner sect robe and jade with black lines within.

"The jade is your identification token and also the key to your courtyard. I seem to have forgotten to mention it earlier, but you are the new owner of the 69th courtyard in the inner sect. Are you excited?"

Ning's lips twitched upon hearing those words.

69. He seemed to have gotten a funny-numbered courtyard.

But Ning still had a single question, "Elder Xu, how should I meet Elder Ling then?"

"About that, hand me your jade." Elder Xu said a small incantation, and the jade glowed briefly. "Insert Qi into the jade, then follow the spiritual line that appears afterward. You will reach your destination."

"Thank you, elder." After saying his thanks, Ning walked out, now a fully-fledged inner sect disciple.