Chapter 11: Becoming A Disciple And Learning Skills
At the summit of Heaven’s Gate Peak, Lu Yang sat upright in the Innate Hall, waiting respectfully for his master to arrive.
The hall was desolate and quiet, with not a speck of dust to be seen. Wisps of incense smoke spiraled upwards, calming one’s heart.
Lu Yang noticed three plaques enshrined in the hall, dedicated to the Innate Daoist Priest, the Primordial Heavenly Sovereign, and the Vast Sea Daoist Lord respectively.
He knew all three of them; they held special meaning to the Dao-Seeking Sect.
120,000 years ago, the Innate Daoist Priest left his Daoist temple and founded his own sect—the Dao-Seeking Sect. At that time, he was just a nondescript cultivator among tens of thousands other cultivators on the Central Continent. As such, the Dao-Seeking Sect was only a small sect at its inception.
100,000 years ago, the world was plunged into chaos, and an extraordinary genius emerged from the Dao-Seeking Sect. Although his talent couldn’t be classified as the top fifty, he had the brains, network, spirit of loyalty, and also a mysterious luck. He rose to the top during this turbulent time, standing at the forefront of this era with unmatched cultivation. His honorific title was the “Primordial Heavenly Sovereign.”
Under the Primordial Heavenly Sovereign’s leadership, the Dao-Seeking Sect flourished, becoming one of the largest sects. During the sect’s twenty-thousandth anniversary, many friends came to celebrate. He then took this opportunity to establish the title of the “Five Great Immortal Sects” along with four other top-notch cultivators, earning recognition from the masses.
Nothing lasts forever; there is no eternal glory. Another fifty thousand years passed, and the Dao-Seeking Sect had weakened. The seniors in the sect were either approaching the end of their lives or had met untimely deaths, leaving few to manage the sect. They also lacked promising disciples, falling into an awkward situation where they could not make ends meet, and there were even rumors that the Dao-Seeking Sect would lose its status as one of the Five Great Immortal Sects.
Perhaps there was really a mysterious luck blessing the Dao-Seeking Sect. One day, when a senior was out slaying demons, they rescued a child from the ruins and brought the child back to the sect, only to discover that the child was actually a rare cultivation genius. The child did not disappoint, rapidly advancing in cultivation. In several years, the child had already become the strongest Transcendent Tribulation cultivator of that time.
This child’s title was the “Vast Sea Daoist Lord,” and the child was later addressed as the Dao-Seeking Sect’s Resurgence Ancestor for extending the sect’s glory for another fifty thousand years until today.
“Big Senior Sister, where is our shifu?” Lu Yang had waited for half a day but had yet to see someone else apart from Yun Zhi.
“Shifu is still in seclusion and has reached a critical juncture, so he can’t leave. I will take you in as a disciple on his behalf and guide you in the ways of cultivation.
“Before you officially start cultivating, let me briefly introduce our sect to you. Shifu has very few rules; as long as you don’t go overboard, violate ethical norms, or cause public outrage, he wouldn’t care.
“But I have slightly stricter standards. What he doesn’t care about, I will.
“There are a total of four disciples under Shifu. Apart from you and me, you have a senior brother and a senior sister. They are in the Buddhist Kingdom in the west and the Demon Region in the south respectively. They hardly return to the sect, so it’ll be hard to meet them.
“When you have progressed in your cultivation and have the chance to travel around, you may have the chance to meet them. As for now…” Yun Zhi paused and took out three ink paintings, revealing Lu Yang’s master, second senior brother, and third senior sister, all whom he had never met before.
The three people were smiling extremely brightly in the paintings.
Lu Yang’s master had white hair, but his gaze wasn’t clouded like most other elderly. Instead, he seemed more like an otherworldly expert who liked to frolic around in the mundane world.
His second senior brother bore a gentle and kind demeanor with sword-like eyes and starry eyes.
His third senior sister was charming from angles, a beauty capable of causing the downfall of a nation.
“Including you, there are altogether five people in our house. As there are only two of us during your initiation ceremony, it will be too lonely, so Shifu had specifically instructed to have all three of their paintings prepared to represent their presence.”
Lu Yang looked at Yun Zhi, then glanced at the surrounding life-like black-and-white paintings that seemed to be staring right into his soul. An inexplicable chill ran down his spine.
It’s as if our whole sect has sacrificed themselves for the greater good, leaving only me and Big Senior Sister behind.
Three spirit incense sticks suddenly appeared before Lu Yang, handed to him by Yun Zhi. “These are message incense. They can convey your thoughts. Light three incense for Shifu and it will pass on your feelings of gratitude and respect.”
The three spirit incense were lit and inserted in a small censer before their master’s painting. “Ancestors, please bear witness. Shifu above us, please accept a bow from your disciple.”
The uncanny resemblance is stronger now.
After the initiation ceremony was over, Lu Yang hesitatingly asked, “Big Senior Sister, it may be disrespectful of me to ask, but Shifu is indeed still alive, right?”
Lu Yang was afraid that Yun Zhi would laugh grimly and tell him that he had stumbled across a highly confidential secret about the sect leader’s passing and he would be silenced.
On the other hand, Yun Zhi was bewildered by Lu Yang’s question.
“Of course, he’s still alive.”
“I have seen your exam results on Impartation Peak. You remembered the positions of the acupoints and meridians very accurately, and you could also recite the basic inner cultivation methods from memory. Such dedication is commendable.
“Now, we will officially begin with your cultivation.”
Lu Yang beamed with excitement and listened even more intently.
I can finally start cultivating!
Before starting, Yun Zhi said, “It’s my first time teaching a disciple, and it’s your first time being one; both of us can adapt accordingly.
“That said, you don’t have to be too worried. I have made ample preparations for today.”
Yun Zhi laid out various small medicinal jars in a row, each labeled with the names of pills Lu Yang had heard of before.
White Bone Pill: Pills capable of reviving a person and regenerating flesh even when they have turned into white bones.
Seven-Storey Pagoda Pills: Part of the live-saving pill series the Buddhist Kingdom had invented for accumulating merits. Every person who took a Seven-Storey Pagoda Pill would allow the Buddhist Kingdom to gain an instance of merit.
Nine-Round Reincarnation Pills: There was a saying in the cultivation world that nine rounds of reincarnation can be exchanged for one life.
With these pills, it would be hard even if Lu Yang wanted to die.
“Qi Training starts with tempering the body. Since you have not been exposed to body-refining training, we’ll start from zero.”
Yun Zhi casually tore through space with a wave of her hand and took out two large vats of water from her storage space. Hearing a dull thud as the vats hit the ground, Lu Yang felt his heart skip a bit as an ominous feeling washed over him.
“A sword cultivator is particular about sword intent and arm strength, so an important goal from your body refinement is to train your arm strength. I’ll only demonstrate once. Watch closely.”
Yun Zhi stepped on the edges of both vats as if she was standing on flat ground. With one of her hands grasping the edge of one vat, she effortlessly lifted it up and let go. Before the vat fell to the ground, she used her other hand to grab the vat’s edge again. She kept repeating this so seamlessly that it was a feast for the eyes.
Ignoring the strain on the arms, this method can indeed train one’s arm strength.
“This is all you have to do,” Yun Zhi nonchalantly said as she put down the vat.
Lu Yang gulped his saliva in fear. I don’t need to carry it to know that this vat is half a person’s height and is more than enough to stuff me inside, fill sand on top of me, and have me buried in the ground.
Playing with such big vats is akin to playing with my life.
Lu Yang strode forward, took in a deep breath of air, and lifted a vat with a single hand, all his actions fluid.
It didn't budge.
He tried again with both hands, exerting all his strength. Only then did the vat reluctantly rock a little, signifying that Lu Yang was really trying his best.
Rakumon's ThoughtsYep, Lu Yang is safe in Yun Zhi's hands, at least his life is :D
As they say, “no pain, no gain”
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