Xiao Cui paced up and down in her house, throwing occasional glances at the doorway. Her master had been gone for almost a week, when he promised it would only be a few days.

  She knew he’d gone to complete some important jobs for their sect and for her own growth, but she couldn’t help but grow impatient. Even worse was the fact that he’d left her with that devil Wang Ren.

  The man was utterly merciless. Even though there was no guarantee that she would be able to cultivate now, he had forced her to join physical conditioning training along with Teng Sheng every morning and evening.

  He even made her spar with the boy. He held back, clearly afraid of hurting her, but even so it was impossible to land even a single hit.

  “It’s great that you’re a talented herbalist,” Wang Ren had sighed one day at the end of a sparring session.

  “Why is that?” she’d asked.

  “Because you’re absolutely hopeless when it comes to fighting,” he’d replied and then burst into raucous laughter.

  Teng Sheng had also laughed along but a fierce glare from her silenced the boy. Even though he was stronger than her, he was still rather submissive in her presence.

  That was no good… If he wanted to grow up and become a warrior of the Grasping Life Sect he needed to build some confidence.

  She guessed that was why Wang Ren was so harsh when it came time for Teng Sheng to spar with him instead, but despite his vicious beatings it didn’t really do much for the boy’s confidence.

  They were in the middle of a conditioning session, running their eighth lap around the mountain peak, when Xiao Cui heard a commotion by the small gate that marked the entrance to the peak. Rushing back, she saw Yu Chun and Wang Ren talking with a group of three people.

  The group consisted of two boys and one girl, all dressed in dirty clothes that marked them out as village kids. The two boys had toned bodies and a tan, indicating that they spent a lot of time working outdoors.

  In contrast, the girl had pale skin and her robes were clearly higher quality than the boy’s. She carried a small pack and had strange stains at the end of her fingers.

  As she approached, she was able to make out some of the conversation between the strangers and the two members of her sect. She wasn’t used to calling Wang Ren the prime guardian or elder yet, nor Yu Chun junior sister.

  It felt wrong, given that she was the younger of the two women, but according to the hierarchy in the sect she was the most senior apart from Wang Ren and her master, given that she was the first disciple Zhao Dan had taken. She hoped it wouldn’t take long to adapt, although her master didn’t seem to mind that much.

  Wang Ren on the other hand was an evil stickler. Any time she didn’t use the proper titles he would slap the back of her hands, leaving them red and raw.

  “So what do you have to offer? Why do you think we will take you in and give you homes and food simply because you request it. This is a sect, not a charity,” Yu Chun harrumphed, shooing the three people away.

  Wang Ren threw her a venomous glare and she shrunk back. “Miss Yu speaks out of turn, but she does have a point. If you are talented we will happily take you into the sect, but if you have nothing to offer then it is difficult for us to accept you,” he explained.

  That seemed to make the three people upset. The two boys shared a look and lowered their heads, but the girl wasn’t dissuaded.

  She stepped up and with a raised head she stared into Wang Ren’s eyes. Xiao Cui envied her sharp jaw and confident posture. Then again, perhaps the girl was only able to face the demon Wang like that because she didn’t know how scary he was.

  “We aren’t useless,” she declared. “I know basic herbalism and how to treat sick people. I heard this is a healing sect. I want to learn from a master of the healing arts. I’ve never heard of one existing before. I even have enough spirit roots to cultivate, but I wasn’t able to join the Soaring Sword Sect because I had to look after my sick mother.”

  Yu Chun seemed surprised, but she didn’t say anything. Wang Ren was the most senior here and the decision would land on him while Zhao Dan was absent.

  Before he could reply however, the girl spoke up again. “The boys are strong. They already reached one-star Body Tempering without any formal teaching. They’ve never been tested by a cultivator before, but I’m sure they have the talent!” she asserted.

  Wang Ren let out an exasperated sigh. “You’re quite a forceful girl. Good! A disciple of the Grasping Life Sect should be confident. I can’t give you a definite answer until we verify the truth of your words, but for now you can stay on the mountain. The Sect Leader should return in a few days and then your fate will be decided.”

  Xiao Cui frowned. Master would definitely want to take that girl as a disciple if she was talented at healing. She would need to work harder or he might forget her.

  With a determined expression, she returned to running laps around the mountain peak. Nothing would stop her from keeping up with her master. She was certain she would be able to cultivate, all that was left was proving it.

  ****

  I had been able to see Million Flowers Celestial Peak for quite a while, but it was wonderful to stand in front of the gates once more. I briefly glanced at the carvings I’d made before walking up the path to the peak.

  The Li Clan’s Second Elder hastily followed me. I noticed that his eyes widened a little when he saw the carving, which made me smile.

  They hadn’t provided me with a storage ring to carry the manuals on formations they offered, but that was fine. I’d simply stuffed them into the ring along with all the books from the Golden Leaf Consortium.

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  “The mountain truly lives up to its name. The flowers are endless. This is a natural formation, if I’m not mistaken?” the second elder remarked, looking around in wonder.

  “Indeed. I was not the one who created it, but the man who originally owned the mountain and transferred it to me. Perhaps with your instructions I might one day be talented enough to create a similar formation on my own,” I quipped, throwing the man a smile.

  He was still suspicious of me and we’d barely talked the entire journey from North Peak Town back to Million Flowers Celestial Peak. It didn’t bother me, but if he was this unfriendly all the time, how was he supposed to teach the members of my sect?

  Wang Ren was waiting for us at the smaller gate that led into the sect itself. He had a beaming grin on his face, which faltered for a moment when he saw the man walking behind me, though I don’t think Second Elder Li noticed.

  “You’ve returned, Sect Leader. With a guest, no less! It is a pleasure to see you again, Second Elder Li,” he said as the man caught up to me.

  “You! Arrogant brat. If I don’t teach you a lesson today, then I no longer belong to the Li Clan!” he exclaimed, rolling up his sleeves and storming forwards.

  I raised an eyebrow, watching the scene unfold with a mix of confusion and amusement. Wang Ren only had an amused smirk on his face, not bothered by the man’s accusations and intention to fight.

  The second elder raised his arm to slap Wang Ren, then suddenly seemed to remember where he was. Lowering his arms he coughed and clasped his hands behind his back.

  He turned to face me and offered a shallow bow. “Apologies, Sect Leader Zhao. This… fellow caused quite a bit of mischief in North Peak Town and I vowed to discipline him. However, as he is a member of your sect then I shall leave his judgment in your hands.”

  Devious old bastard… That was basically forcing me to punish Wang Ren for whatever he was supposed to have done.

  “What mischief is he talking about, Prime Guardian Wang?” I asked, eyebrow still raised.

  “I have no idea what the second elder is talking about. All I did in North Peak was have some friendly spars with a few of the Li Clan’s younger generations. We may have grown a little excited, but there was no lasting harm done, I assure you,” he answered with a smirk and a glint in his eye.

  Knowing my friend he had given those Li Clan brats a savage beating and likely destroyed some property, but I trusted him to be honest. If he said there was no harm done, then I’m sure the kids were fine.

  I hadn’t noticed that any part of the city or estate were destroyed when I visited either, so the second elder was probably overreacting. With that said, I turned to the elder and coughed once.

  “Well, since Prime Guardian Wang says so, I believe his assessment. I don’t think I need to discipline him, especially not on the orders of an outsider,” I said, my tone firm and unyielding.

  The second elder scoffed but didn’t pursue the matter further. This wasn’t getting off to a great start…

  In order to shift the topic of conversation, I explained why the second elder was here. “Basically, we need to teach the sect members all aspects of cultivation and neither of us know anything about formations. The elder was generous enough to offer his services as a teacher. I also got plenty of manuals on other professions from the Golden Leaf Consortium, as well as a talent stone.”

  “It seems your trip was extremely fruitful, then. Speaking of new additions to the mountain, three kids arrived while you were gone. They asked to join the sect, but I wasn’t sure whether to accept them or not until we could test their spirit roots. Now that you’re back, we can go and meet them together,” Wang Ren said, rubbing his palms together.

  That was great news. I was wondering when we might start getting new recruits. I had worried that the two big sects in the area would harvest all the talented kids, but perhaps they’d missed one or two.

  “Lead the way,” I replied, a skip in my step as I followed after him. “You can come too,” I added, waving at the second elder.

  ****

  Feng Mei paced up and down the long hall. Her gaze wandered over the ornate carvings across the walls, remarking at the precision and beauty of them.

  It wasn’t a particularly gaudy building but the construction was done with care, showing off the quality of the materials and technique of the person who built it. She was second guessing her decision to bring the boys with her.

  They had heard about a new sect appearing in the area and wanted to try their chances. Her mother had passed a few years ago, but she was too old to try and enter the Soaring Sword Sect again.

  The boys had never been tested as they were needed by their mother to work on the farm. Without them the elderly woman wouldn’t have been able to support their family.

  Given that it was a new sect, they’d imagined the requirements for entry might be less strict. However, she was still shaking from facing that terrifying man at the gates.

  Even walking up the massive mountain had tired them to the point of collapse. The inscription at the base gates was impressive though and she’d even felt a tremble in her abdomen while reading it.

  It had been a few hours of nothing but waiting in this damned hall. She was growing impatient, but she didn’t dare complain.

  Yu Jin and Yu Bao were sitting on the ground, staring into space like morons. They weren’t the sharpest blades, but they were hardworking and she believed they had talent, given that they managed to somehow cultivate the first stage of Body Tempering without instruction or techniques.

  That had been a crazy day in the village. The boys were twins and somehow while working in the fields one day they randomly started expelling black goo and from that moment on they were much stronger than the other men in the village.

  Once the elder inspected them, he explained that they had somehow cultivated without realising it. The old man suggested it had something to do with their technique while farming, but he mostly threw long words and riddles around to confuse the villagers.

  Feng Mei had seen through his act, but she didn’t have better answers, so there had been no point in calling him out. Now they were at a real sect, however, she was nervous. What if they weren’t that talented and it was just a fluke?

  She didn’t want to be left alone on this mountain with a load of strangers. However, with her mother dead there wasn’t much of a future left for her in the village.

  Joining a sect—especially one where she might be able to learn healing arts from a true master—was her best hope of making something of her life. As for the boys, their mother had died a few months ago and they’d become depressed with nothing to do.

  Bringing them along only made sense. Perhaps with a new goal in front of them they would forget their sorrows and find new purpose.

  “Aah! This is infuriating. I’ve had it. I’m going to find that scary bastard and complain,” Feng Mei suddenly exclaimed, startling the two boys.

  They stared at her with wide eyes and fell back onto their hands. “What’s wrong with you two?” she asked.

  Both boys pointed behind her in unison. She gulped and slowly turned around, coming face to face with said scary bastard.

  “I’m not that scary, am I?” he said, looking genuinely hurt while talking to a man that she didn’t recognise.

  There were two new men in fact, but one of them was older and stood behind the first two. He’d glanced at her and the twins once and then away with a scoff.

  “Well, if I hadn’t met you and I didn’t know that you were a big softie, I’d probably be terrified of that face. You look like a spirit beast,” the strange man chuckled, nudging the scary man with an elbow.

  “You too, Sect Leader?” he said, looking to the ground and wiping an invisible tear from his eye.

  Sect Leader!? So that man is here to test us, Feng Mei realised, suddenly aware of every inch of her body and the room. He seems nice, so let’s hope things go well.