Sect Selection Trial Grounds
The five meet up after their Selections. Zhang Xin eventually chose Crane Mountain Dao Sect when she heard Lady Jin and Yu Ming had selected it.
"I heard that Yu Ming, Li Wei, and Cousin Xin are staying at Azure Cloud Inn. What about you, Lady Jin? "
"I am staying at Azure Cloud Inn as well. "
"That decides it. I don't want to return to Clan today. Can I stay with you for today, Cousin Xin? "
Yu Ming stops Li Wei, "I know that Sister Yue wanted to enter Eternal Blossom Palace but what about you? "
"I joined Dragon Ascension Sect. It is a long story. I will explain after we take a rest. "
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Azure Cloud Inn
Jin Ya looks over everyone, "We can talk about everything in detail tonight while we celebrate. My treat."
Li Wei and Yu Ming hit the bed quickly, deciding to meet Qian Hai and Chen Li later.
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Night time, Golden Sky Restaurant
The six of them, Jin Ya, Yu Ming, Li Wei, Qian Hai, and Zhang sisters climb up to the 3rd floor of the opulent gold-made restaurant as Zhang Xin explains Chen Li's disappearance,
"Sister Li wrote a note saying she is returning to the village and is already out of Kaiqi City. The fact that she had no root was a hard pill for her to swallow. "
"Hey, I have 5 Element Qi Root and I am not complaining!"
Zhang Yue rolls her eyes at Qian Hai, "Stop whining! All the regular Sects accept 5 Element Roots just fine. You will just need to work as hard as I did once you are in them. "
"Really !? " "Yes. I will give you some information on nearby ones so you can make it there. Now stop whining already, today's a celebration. "
Zhang Yue slaps Qian Hai's back irritatedly.
Yu Ming automatically filters their ongoing banter while wondering when Zhang Yue and Qian Hai grew so close.
Jin Ya occupies a table near the window and orders,
"Give us a set of six of the most expensive. " causing Yu Ming to look at her in fear.
Yu Ming tries to whisper once the server is out of earshot, "Big Sister Jin...I don't have that kind of money..."
"Ming, shut up. I am going to pay for everyone. " Jin Ya snorts in annoyance as Yu Ming smiles sheepishly.
Li Wei stops playing with the utensils to ask as Qian Hai and Yu Ming also stare at Jin Ya curiously,
"I have been meaning to ask this, are you from a wealthy clan, Lady Jin ?"
"Let me explain. Clans can be divided into Minor and Major Clans. While Zhang Clan is called a Major Clan, it is among the weakest. We have been a Major Clan for only 26 years when my 3rd Uncle broke through. The Jin Clan is a strong Major Clan famous for being wealthy and has existed for nearly 400 years. Do you get how amazing Jin Ya is ?"
This was new to Zhang Xin as well, as she, along with others looked at Jin Ya in a different light now.
Jin Ya coughed unnaturally, "Well, we will all be parts of Sects now. There are no Clans that can rival the Sects. "
The topic of Sects reminded Yu Ming of a particular matter,
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"Li Wei, you had an interesting tale for us regarding your selection? "
Zhang Xin also wonders, "True, I never thought you would choose Dragon Ascension Sect. I was thinking more of Vajra Heart Temple. "
"Oh, you won't believe it. Remember the Daoist we met on our first day here? He was the elder of the Dragon Ascension Sect! He accepted me as his disciple. " Li Wei starts excited and ends extremely proud.
Jin Ya looks quite surprised, "He accepted you as a disciple? "
"Is it that amazing, Big Sister Jin? "
"... It's beyond amazing. All of these elders have achieved [Core Formation]! They could start a Major Clan on their own if they settled down. "
Everyone looks at Li Wei with amazement, "Is [Core Formation] after [Qi Gathering] ?"
"Yes, it is much later. You don't need to know it till you need it, Ming. "
"I guess that's a good reason to join the Dragon Ascension Sect... ? " Qian Hai asks hesitantly.
"Oh, that's more than good enough. Compared to that, I will need to join Wars to progress and prove myself. "
Yu Ming just looks questioningly at Jin Ya to explain what Zhang Yue is talking about.
"Eternal Blossom Palace is expanding into two new territories. Each one has an alliance of regular Sects defending against the Palace so the Palace heavily rewards anyone who joins the war efforts against them voluntarily. "
"Cousin Yue, Lady Jin, are these Wars common? " Zhang Xin feels her heart sink as she is met with silence.
"Sect Wars are not common though some Sects are known to get into frequent wars like Eternal Blossom Palace and Vajra Heart Temple. "
Jin Ya gives even more details, bringing Li Wei down from his high horses,
"What she has said is true. Vajra Heart Temple has been fighting 2 Unorthodox Great Sects for nearly 60 years now. I don't know the exact relation between Dragon Ascension Sect and Soaring Dragon Peak though I heard they regularly undermine each other. "
Zhang Yue quickly assures Zhang Xin, "But Crane Mountain Dao Sect is not at war as far as I know, Cousin Xin. You don't need to worry. You can cultivate in peace. "
The six finish their meals, return to the Inn and fix their loose ends.
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Azure Cloud Inn
Li Wei and Yu Ming send back letters to their families, asking them not to worry and giving them a summary of the entire event.
Once they seal it and give it to Qian Hai to deliver, they ask about, checking if any among their town mates have been accepted in a Sect.
Li Wei finds that Wang Jiandong has entered Sword Burial Mountain.
Looking at Li Wei's sour expression, Yu Ming remembers their interactions in the carriage, "Why do you not like Wang Jiandong? "
Li Wei turns red at that, before grumbling something about having to meet some Young Master and escapes, leaving Yu Ming behind.
Back in the room, Yu Ming decides that now would be a good time to start with Qi Cultivation, seeing that there is nothing to do in the next three days.
Referring to the book he had, Yu Ming sits down in meditation before closing his eyes.
Trying to sense the mystical Qi, nothing happens for nearly 20 minutes before Yu Ming feels a wisp of Qi around his body.
Invigorated by success, Yu Ming takes another 15 minutes to finally sense enough Qi around his body to start cultivation.
Opening his mouth, Yu Ming sucks in a single wisp of Qi and guides it clumsily toward his Lower Dantian.
Yu Ming feels that guiding the Qi feels very unnatural and increasingly painful until it reaches his Lower Dantian.
As the wisp of Qi enters Yu Ming's Lower Dantian, Yu Ming feels his mind go white in a burst of intense pain.
Before Yu Ming can shout out due to the immense pain, the intense pain gives way to an equally intense pleasure.
As Yu Ming groans in a mixture of pain and pleasure, his pores open wide and allow a pungent-smelling black liquid to secrete out.
The entire process goes on for a few minutes before Yu Ming finally recovers enough to feel inside his body.
Around his abdomen, his Lower Dantian has opened. A single wisp of Qi floats lazily as Yu Ming clenches his fists hard before screaming.
"I am finally a cultivator!! I am a [Qi Gathering] cultivator! "
Yu Ming would likely have kept celebrating if he did not take a whiff of his body.
Taking a small breath, Yu Ming makes a straight rush for a bath, making sure to scrub everything out of him.
Looking at himself in the mirror, Yu Ming notices that his skin is more natural and softer while his black hair has become an ink-like color. Feeling that his vision is cleaner and his hearing is better, Yu Ming loves this feeling as he smiles widely,
"I am a 1st Layer [Qi Gathering] cultivator now."