The young cultivator's eye twitched involuntarily. A spot in an immortal sect that everyone was fighting tooth and nail over had been secured just like that, in the span of a breath?
The elderly man added, "However, the master said that this quota came at no small price. Once your name is written down, it cannot be changed."
"Even Father thinks the price wasn't small? What was the cost?" Bao Yun asked, somewhat curious.
The elderly man said, "The master said that the child from the Eastern Sea's Yan clan had originally been bumped out, and then their family used every means at their disposal to secure another spot. But since you suddenly decided to go to the Palace of Grand Beginning, the master had no choice but to negotiate with others and squeeze the Yan clan out yet again. The master said there must be a limit to your willfulness. If you truly write your name down, there will be no changing it."
Bao Yun gave a sweet smile and said, "I won't change it. Don't you all always say I lack tempering? Isn't there a ready-made whetstone right there in the Palace of Grand Beginning?"
The young cultivator hesitated, wanting to speak, but in the end could only sigh. Only the Bao family would consider Bao Yun's behavior merely "a little willful."
***
Inside another grand hall, the elderly scholar Liu Sigu was lecturing eight examinees. Three stood in the front row, with Li Zhi in the center; all three were earmarked disciples of the Four Sages Academy. There were five examinees in the back row who were actually bound for a grotto-heaven subordinate to the Four Sages Academy. The old scholar had gathered them together as well to preach the sages' principles.
The old scholar spoke at great length, beginning from the sages journeying across the world and continuing in an uninterrupted flow. The middle-aged scholar knew this lecture wouldn't end for at least the better part of an hour, and feeling stifled in his chest, he stepped out of the hall to clear his mind. Though the Red Tide Sect was not large, it had spared no expense for this unified examination. Its mountain gate had been arranged with quite a few sights worth seeing, which proved rather pleasing to the eyes even by the middle-aged scholar's discerning standards.
After walking only a few steps, the middle-aged scholar saw Sun Yu standing quietly in the shadows.
The middle-aged scholar had hardly formed any impression of this young cultivator from the Palace of Grand Beginning. He only knew that the man had been put in charge of all the miscellaneous chores for the examination. To put it bluntly, the post was merely that of a head servant, with nothing worth remembering. Holding himself in high regard, the middle-aged scholar had not spoken more than three sentences to Sun Yu in total.
Yet standing in the dim shadows now, Sun Yu no longer looked harmless to men and beasts. He gave the middle-aged scholar an inexplicable sense of danger, as though he were facing a primordial beast.
Still, they were inside the Red Tide Sect's mountain gate, and Sun Yu was very young, with a cultivation time far shorter than the middle-aged scholar's. Thus, even knowing the man had not come with good intentions, the middle-aged scholar felt not the slightest fear. He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, looking at Sun Yu with calm composure.
Sun Yu asked, "Where is Old Liu?"
"He is inside the hall instructing the new disciples."
Sun Yu replied, "Then telling you is the same. During this unified examination, you two gentlemen took such exceptional care of Wei Yuan. Junior Brother Zhang is magnanimous and may not take it to heart afterward, but I, Sun Yu, have etched it into my memory. You two gentlemen and your disciples had best be exceedingly careful when walking the world in the future. The mountains are high and the waters swift; it would be quite unfortunate if some mishap were to occur."
The middle-aged scholar flew into a rage. "Are you threatening me?!"
To his surprise, Sun Yu replied without the slightest hesitation, "Indeed I am!"
The middle-aged scholar's robes fluttered without any wind, and he felt the urge to strike. Yet his expression wavered between darkness and light, and his robes gradually settled back down. He then said, "One eats the lord's grain and serves the lord's cause. We were merely handling matters on another's behalf. If Junior Brother feels indignant, you ought to seek out the principal, not make trouble for us."
Sun Yu said, "Before striking a dog, one must look at the master. I cannot afford to provoke the master, but I can certainly beat the dog. Besides, now that the business is done, you two are useless—nothing more than a pair of stray dogs. Striking you is just striking you."
The middle-aged scholar was furious, his robes billowing once more. Yet he truly could not see through the depths of Sun Yu's foundation. Weighing his options, he ultimately did not dare make a move. But though he held back, Sun Yu moved. Sun Yu suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a thin, pale thread of fire, shooting it straight at the middle-aged scholar's chest!
The middle-aged scholar snorted, and a massive character for "Seal" materialized before him, blocking the thread of fire. Traced with strokes like silver hooks and iron rods, the character gleamed brilliantly, exceptionally striking against the dark night. Judged purely by imposing aura, it surpassed Sun Yu's thin thread of fire by countless times.
Yet the moment the character touched the fiery thread, it instantly burst into fierce flames. The middle-aged scholar felt his dharmic powers draining like a river breaching its dikes, unable to hold on in the span of a breath. At the same time, a strange medicinal fragrance drifted into his nostrils, sending a wave of dizziness through his mind.
Shocked and infuriated, the middle-aged scholar cried out, "Alchemical fire?!"
The fiery thread and the character stalemated for only a few breaths before more than half of the seal was incinerated. Seeing that the middle-aged scholar was about to collapse, Sun Yu reeled back the fiery thread and sneered, "The immortal path is long. You two had best watch yourselves. Immortal silver is not so easily earned."
With that, without waiting for the middle-aged scholar to reply, Sun Yu drifted away.
The middle-aged scholar stood where he was, his face an unsettled mask. Sun Yu appeared unremarkable, yet that wisp of alchemical fire was of an extraordinarily high grade. In just those few moments of stalemate, it had already singed his Dao Foundation; he could forget about recovering without two years of quiet convalescence. In truth, he had suffered a hidden loss. Nor had he expected Sun Yu to dare make a move within the Red Tide Sect's mountain gate. Beside his shock, he felt deeply aggrieved. He and the old scholar had merely been carrying out orders for others and accepting a few treasures and some immortal silver. Why turn it into a personal grudge? These youngsters from the Palace of Grand Beginning were truly far too unprincipled.
Remembering that Sun Yu had cultivated ten years fewer than himself, a pall of gloom fell over the middle-aged scholar's heart. Dejected, he turned back toward the grand hall, no longer in the mood for the scenery.
***
Inside another quiet and secluded courtyard, a table of first-rate wine and delicacies was laid out, featuring many ingredients that a small sect like the Red Tide Sect would never see. Only two people sat at the table: Daoist Fufeng sat at the head, with the young cultivator who had served alongside him as an evaluator keeping him company.
Daoist Fufeng did not touch his chopsticks. Instead, he said, "Brother Lu, one should not accept a reward without merit. Whatever is on your mind, it is best to speak of it first."
The young cultivator replied, "Daoist Brother helped my young mistress during the evaluation, which I, Lu Xuan, have etched into my memory. That is the first matter. The second is a minor favor I would like to trouble Brother with."
"Speak freely."
"Could Daoist Brother tell me about Zhang Sheng's past deeds?"
Daoist Fufeng glanced at Lu Xuan and asked, "And why do you ask this?"
Lu Xuan said, "To be frank with Daoist Brother, my young mistress has already decided to switch to the Palace of Grand Beginning. She takes her defeat in the martial test deeply to heart. As a cousin on her mother's side, I may well have to spar with Wei Yuan's master, Zhang Sheng, in the future. I know I am no match for him right now, so I wanted to learn about his past deeds to see if there is still a chance to close the gap."
Daoist Fufeng's expression turned somewhat peculiar. He said, "Junior Brother Zhang went down the mountain for worldly tempering seven years ago. Before that, he was indeed somewhat famous within the Palace of Grand Beginning. To put it concretely, it was mainly for acting entirely without scruple."
Lu Xuan breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "That is fine, then. I was worried I would hear something like an invincible Dao Foundation. Today in the Evaluation Hall, that sword qi was indeed difficult to rival. It seems he must have had no small fortuitous encounters during these past seven years!"
Daoist Fufeng said, "In his very first year after descending the mountain, Junior Brother Zhang met with a calamity, and his Dao power was sealed for six full years. It was only unsealed yesterday. Therefore, during the seven years he spent down the mountain for worldly tempering, he did not advance an inch."
Lu Xuan had been raising a cup of wine, but hearing this, his cup froze midair.
Stroking his beard, Daoist Fufeng added, "Furthermore, the Dao Foundation Junior Brother Zhang cultivated consists of three immortal swords. Thus, an invincible Dao Foundation is simply something everyone takes for granted; he was never famous for that. Of course, this so-called invincibility applies only within our Palace of Grand Beginning. The world out there is vast, so it is hard to say."
Lu Xuan's voice turned rather dry. "Three... immortal swords?"
Chapter 25