Apprenticeship

At the summit of Tianmen Peak, within the Hall of Innate Nature, Lu Yang sat with proper posture, respectfully awaiting his master's arrival. Inside the hall, it was cool, quiet, and spotless. Wreaths of fragrant incense curled upward, bringing a serene calm to the mind. Lu Yang noticed three memorial tablets enshrined in the hall: Daoist Xiantian, Heavenly Venerable Guiyuan, and Daoist Lord Hanhai. Lu Yang recognized all three. They held extraordinary significance in the Dao Seeking Sect: One hundred and twenty thousand years ago, Daoist Xiantian walked out of a Daoist temple and established his own mountain gate, founding the Dao Seeking Sect. Back then, Daoist Xiantian was merely an ordinary cultivator; across the Central Continent, there were easily eight to ten thousand cultivators of his caliber. Consequently, in its infancy, the Dao Seeking Sect was just a minor sect. One hundred thousand years ago, chaos engulfed the world, and an extraordinary genius emerged from the Dao Seeking Sect. In terms of raw talent for cultivation, he could not even make the top fifty of his era, yet he possessed a sharp mind, loved making friends, held loyalty in high esteem, and enjoyed the subtle favor of providence. Rising amidst the turbulent times and riding the crest of the era's tide, he stood at the absolute forefront, basking in peerless glory. His cultivation reached heights few could rival, and his revered title was Heavenly Venerable Guiyuan. Under Heavenly Venerable Guiyuan's stewardship, the Dao Seeking Sect flourished, leaping to become one of the foremost great sects of the day. At the sect's twenty-thousand-year anniversary celebration, countless close friends arrived to offer their congratulations. Taking advantage of the occasion, he and four other pinnacle cultivators of the era jointly established the designation of the Five Great Immortal Sects, which earned the recognition of the entire world. Nothing in this world lasts forever, nor does any glory endure eternally. Another fifty thousand years passed, and the Dao Seeking Sect's fortunes waned. The sect's elders either approached the end of their lifespans or died untimely deaths; barely anyone was left capable of holding up the sect, and none of the disciples showed much promise. Caught in an embarrassing generational drought, rumors even began to spread that they might fall out of the Five Great Immortal Sects. Perhaps the Dao Seeking Sect truly enjoyed the blessing of providence: one day, an elder went out to slay demons and rescued a child from some ruins. Bringing him back to the sect, they were astonished to discover that this child was an exceedingly rare cultivation genius. The child lived up to expectations, his cultivation advancing by leaps and bounds, and within a few short years, he became the strongest Tribulation Transcendence cultivator of his time. That child took the Daoist title Lord Hanhai and was hailed by later generations as the Ancestor of the Dao Seeking Sect's Revival, extending the sect's glory for another fifty thousand years down to the present day. "Eldest Senior Sister, where is our master?" Lu Yang pulled back his gaze. After waiting in the hall for half the day, not a single person had appeared besides Eldest Senior Sister. "Master is currently in seclusion at a critical juncture in his cultivation and cannot step away. I will accept you as a disciple on his behalf and guide your training." "Before we begin your formal cultivation, let me briefly introduce our lineage. Master has very few rules. As long as you don't go too far, violate fundamental ethics and morality, or provoke public outrage, he won't interfere." "However, my standards are somewhat higher than his. What he won't police, I will." "Master has four disciples in total. Aside from you and me, you have a senior brother and a senior sister above you. One is in the western Buddhist Kingdom, and the other is in the southern Demon Domain. They rarely return to the sect, so meeting them in person is difficult." "Once you achieve success in your cultivation and have the chance to travel the world, you might run into them. As for right now..." Yun Zhi paused, then produced three ink portraits and laid them out side by side. They depicted the master, Second Senior Brother, and Third Senior Sister whom Lu Yang had never met. The three people in the paintings were smiling with utmost joy. Master had a head of white hair, but his eyes were not clouded like those of an ordinary old man; he looked like an otherworldly master fond of amusement, wandering cheerfully through the mortal realm. Second Senior Brother wore a gentle smile, with sword-like brows, starry eyes, and a demeanor as warm and refined as jade. Third Senior Sister was captivatingly charming—a devastating beauty capable of toppling kingdoms. "Master specifically instructed that, counting you, there are five people in our lineage. Having only the two of us for your apprenticeship ceremony would feel far too lonely, so Master specifically prepared portraits of the three of them to stand in their stead." Lu Yang looked at Eldest Senior Sister, then at the lifelike black-and-white portraits arranged around him that seemed to gaze right back at him, feeling an inexplicable chill run down his spine. It felt just as though their entire sect were loyal martyrs, leaving only Eldest Senior Sister and him behind. Three sticks of spirit incense appeared before Lu Yang, handed over by Yun Zhi. "This is message incense, capable of transmitting your inner thoughts outward. Offering three sticks to Master will convey your gratitude and respect." The three sticks were lit and placed into a small incense burner in front of Master's portrait. "With the ancestral masters as witness, and Master above, please accept this disciple's bow." Now it felt even more like a memorial. With the ceremony concluded, Lu Yang asked hesitantly, "Eldest Senior Sister, while it might sound a bit disrespectful... Master is definitely still alive, right?" Lu Yang half-feared Yun Zhi would sneer and say something like, *"Master has fallen, and the sect leadership has hushed it up. Since you've learned such a secret, you cannot be allowed to live."* Yun Zhi was completely baffled, not understanding why Lu Yang would ask such a thing. "Of course he is alive." "I reviewed your exam results from Preaching Peak. You memorized the locations of the human acupoints and meridians very accurately, and you can recite and write out the basic cultivation mental methods by heart. It is quite good; such enthusiasm for learning deserves praise." "Next, we begin your formal cultivation." Hearing this, an excited smile broke across Lu Yang's face, and he listened with even greater attentiveness. He could finally begin cultivating. As formal cultivation began, Eldest Senior Sister opened with: "This is my first time teaching a disciple, and it is your first time being a disciple. Let us bear with each other." "Still, you need not worry too much. I have made ample preparations for today." Yun Zhi lined up a row of small medicine jars labeled with pill names that Lu Yang had heard of before: The White Bone Pill, capable of bringing the dead back to life and growing flesh on bare bone. The Seven-Tier Pagoda Pill—one of the merit-accumulating creations invented by the Buddhist Kingdom based on the principle that saving a life is better than building a seven-tiered pagoda. Whenever someone ingested a Seven-Tier Pagoda Pill, the Buddhist Kingdom gained a portion of merit. The Nine Revolutions Samsara Pill, about which the cultivation world held the saying: *nine deaths and cycles of rebirth exchanged for a single chance at life.* With these pills on hand, it would be difficult for Lu Yang to die even if he wanted to. "Before Qi Refinement comes Body Tempering. Since you have never undergone body tempering training, we shall start from scratch." With a casual gesture, Yun Zhi tore open space and produced two massive water vats from her storage dimension. Hearing the dull thud when the vats hit the ground, Lu Yang's heart skipped a beat, seized by an ominous premonition. "Sword cultivators emphasize sword intent and arm strength. Therefore, the first priority in Body Tempering is training your arms. I will demonstrate only once, so watch closely." Yun Zhi stood on the rim of one water vat as if on level ground. Then, gripping the rim of the other vat with one hand, she gave it a light upward lift and released it; before the vat could hit the ground, she switched hands and gripped the rim again. Repeating this over and over, her movements flowed like drifting clouds and flowing water, utterly pleasing to the eye. Disregarding how one's arms might feel, this method could indeed build arm strength. "Reaching this level will be sufficient." Yun Zhi set down the water vat, speaking with nonchalant ease. Lu Yang swallowed hard in fear. Even without trying to lift it, he could tell this water vat was half a person tall. Stuffing him inside, filling it with sand and dirt, and burying it in the ground would leave plenty of room to spare. Juggling a vat this huge like a toy—this was practically suicidal! Lu Yang strode forward, held his breath, and went to hoist the water vat with one hand, completing the entire motion in one fluid go. It didn't budge. He applied force with both hands, straining with every ounce of strength he had ever possessed. Only then did the water vat wobble grudgingly, acknowledging that Lu Yang had indeed tried his hardest.