Zixiao Mountain.
Outside Zixiao Mountain, the Zixiao Sect had set up a barrier array, and a powerful protective shield of flowing light guarded the entire sect.
Looking down from the sky, both inner and outer sect disciples were training in the square.
The elder of the Spirit Spring Cave did not need to go to the main sect because he single-handedly guarded the main vein of the Spirit Spring River.
Previously, an old Demon Sect monster of the Demon Race had tried to destroy the Celestial Prison array and rescue his younger brother, Xiushashu, but failed. Harboring a deep grudge, he had destroyed a medicinal herb field in the back mountain.
Sect Leader Li Qinghe flew into a rage, ordering the disciples to guard the Celestial Prison and strengthen the subduing-demon array.
On a dark and windy night, a dozen or so Zixiao Sect disciples, led by Feng Qing, built a fire on the ground. As they ate roasted wild chicken, they chatted about how to go up the mountain to find the lightning-attracting person. They knew very well that if they happened to encounter someone undergoing Tribulation Transcendence, the lowest possible strength of such a person would far exceed the late Foundation Establishment stage, and at the highest, they could even be a peak late Nascent Soul stage powerhouse. Just thinking about it was terrifying. These guys must have had nothing better to do; if all dozen or so of them combined were to face such a person, they would be beaten to smithereens, with not a single one able to put up any resistance.
After a bolt of heavenly lightning entered his body, Han Lin felt like a completely different person after his rebirth. Every day he went out to the fields to chase bugs and various insects, and at night, several fireflies followed right behind his rear. Up close, it was actually him meditating, with a blue flame appearing in his left hand, a blue-and-yellow flame in his left hand, and a green-and-red flame in his right hand. This was likely what the cultivation world called Strange Fire.
Han Lin pondered: What could Strange Fire be used for? He certainly couldn't show it off casually, so whenever anyone asked, he said nothing, since no one had ever seen it before.
The Monster Beasts in these mountains, such as the grass-tailed snakes, were enough to give these guys a hard time. After all, it took someone at the Qi Condensation stage 1st Layer just to defeat a 1st-rank Monster Beast.
Erhu and Goudan were the most cowardly among the outer sect disciples. Every night when it was time to sleep, they would cuddle right up against the chief disciple, Ding Yi, until dawn. With such cowards, how could they ever protect the girls they loved?
Han Lin, having slept the whole night, was woken up by the morning birdsong. But then he thought that yesterday's medicinal herb field had already been tended to, and there was nothing left to do. Reluctant to get up, he climbed back onto the bed and fell fast asleep. The flying bugs in the medicinal field had also been burned to death by his Heavenly Thunder Strange Fire; otherwise, it would have been bad if the bugs had eaten the spiritual herbs.
Before long, the sun was shining high in the sky. Looking out, Zixiao Mountain was enveloped by the spiritual power in the sky, and a gentle breeze accompanied by spiritual qi slowly blew across every inch of mountains, rivers, and seas. All things bathed within it, as if endowed with the purest pulse of life. The sky was sometimes deep blue and vast—truly a fairyland on earth. Every inch of the mountain range's terrain was like an ocean of spiritual power, and the clouds seemed to weave lightly back and forth through the warp and woof spun by spiritual power. As the saying goes, "Purple qi coming from the east portends good things to happen."
Inside the room, a half-asleep Han Lin had his feet pointing up at the sky while his head was tilted toward the ground, showing no intention of waking up. Han Longsheng walked into the room, took one look, and was about to vent his anger on this good-for-nothing son. Seeing that his son's health had just fully recovered, he instead scolded him in a loud voice, "Lazy pig, get up! The sun is already baking your backside. If you don't get up now, family punishment awaits you!" Hearing his father's scolding, Han Lin felt a sense of impending doom, immediately leaped up, grabbed his clothes, and ran outside the door to put them on. Ever since he was a child, he had always been afraid of this father. Though he was frequently punished, he had never actually been beaten on the bottom. Seeing that his father was not going to punish him after all, the kid was happier than words could describe in the courtyard, humming that little tune: "Wander as you may, a hundred flowers are fragrant, my beloved girl, where are you..."
At that moment, a few bees flew back and forth through the courtyard, as if also breathing in the spiritual power of heaven and earth. His father said, "These flew over from our back mountain medicinal herb field." Hearing this, Han Lin held boundless admiration for his father. With such strength and such bearing, there was hope for him to cultivate and raise his cultivation realm in the future.
According to his father, ever since corpses and Monster Beasts began appearing on the mountain, several cultivator families living nearby had moved away to Ziyun Town. Without the strength of the Qi Condensation stage, one had to master the ability to run away.
Han Longsheng said to a dazed Han Lin, "Your cousin will come to see you later, so you better put on a good show and don't make me lose face!" Right after lunch, a young maiden arrived at the house. She wore red ancient-style garments, the lapels of which were edged with delicate silver threads, and the hem of her skirt was trimmed with patterns carved from spirit jade. Her hair and jade belt drifted in the wind, carrying an ethereal, celestial aura. Her features were somewhat cold and aloof, and within that aloofness sparkled a pair of peerless eyes. The cousin entered the room, saw his father, and asked with a smile, "Uncle, how has your health been recently?" His father immediately replied, "My health is very good. The reason I had you come this time is to see if my Han Lin has any talent for cultivation."
Ye Hong had been abandoned by her parents since childhood, and she didn't even know who they were. It was Han Longsheng who had helped raise and care for her.
At the age of fifteen, she was sent into the Zixiao Sect to cultivate.
Han Lin had fallen ill a few days ago, and Han Longsheng knew the real reason well enough, but he didn't dare say it was because he had been "struck by lightning," fearing it would leak out and make him a laughingstock who lost face. Han Lin currently looked a bit haggard, yet still possessed a certain handsome and dashing air. Ye Hong's appearance was truly stunning, and Han Lin hurriedly poured a cup of honey-spirit juice tea, slowly handing it over to his cousin with enthusiastic hospitality as he said, "Cousin, please have some tea. This is the Han family's special fine tea." It was only brought out to entertain important guests. The cousin took the tea with a hint of bashfulness, maintaining a refined, elegant, and easygoing composure. She knew that this cousin of hers looked graceful and poised, and even somewhat well-read and courteous. At that moment, through her gaze, she seemed to guess at my cultivation realm, though in her heart she clearly knew that I hadn't even reached the Qi Condensation stage and possessed miscellaneous spirit roots, unable to face the powerful and confident cousin before me. But so what if she guessed it? Qi Condensation sounds simple, but I just can't break through!
"Cousin, can you teach me cultivation this time? I want to become strong," Han Lin said sincerely. Han Lin knew that the cultivation world was full of powerhouses, and a cousin with such innate talent and a once-in-a-century cultivation genius was a rare find. Today, he had to seize the opportunity to beg his cousin to impart cultivation techniques. There was no shame in this; in the future, if he happened to encounter powerhouses at the Qi Condensation or even Foundation Establishment stages and above, not only would he lose face, but he would also get his face slapped. He certainly didn't want to become a rogue cultivator—this young master simply didn't have the fate to figure things out entirely on his own!
After a moment of silence, his cousin said, "You have just stepped into the cultivation world, and for now, your cultivation is still shallow." However, if you go to our Zixiao Sect and enter the sect as a disciple, your trash spirit roots can be repaired with divine elixirs, and raising your cultivation realm through cultivation techniques will be a walk in the park. Hearing about the Zixiao Sect, Han Lin felt immensely joyful and extremely curious. This Zixiao Sect was the head of the seven major sects in the Xingyun Continent, while the other six sects were the Thunder Sect, Yunlan Sect, Lingyun Sect, Longyin Sect, Shuiyue Palace, and Kongmo Sect.
In fact, these six sects were quietly cultivating all the time; the more Qi Condensation stage disciples that emerged from each sect, the better they could revive the sect later on.
"The sect leaders of these sects are not to be trifled with; I hear they have already reached the Core Formation stage or even the Deity Transformation stage," Ye Hong said. If you remain a rogue cultivator, you probably won't have any chance to enjoy the introductory perks of the Zixiao Sect. Once you enter the Zixiao Sect, you can receive ninety Spirit Stones a year. As the circulating currency of the cultivation world, Spirit Stones can be used to buy cultivation techniques and exchange for pills. Such a good deal is nowhere else to be found.
"In the cultivation world, you don't know anyone, nor can you tell good people from bad. If you follow your cousin, I can't guarantee you'll enjoy supreme wealth and honor, but I won't let you starve either," Ye Hong said. However, the Zixiao Sect also had sect rules: "You are not allowed to go out on missions on your own to earn Spirit Stones, unless a mission is dispatched from the sect mission board." By completing mission points, you could obtain the corresponding Spirit Stones. Cousin Ye Hong admonished him repeatedly, precisely fearing that once he went to the Zixiao Sect, he would be a stranger in a strange place among a multitude of disciples.
Zixiao Sect Leader Li Qinghe was very fond of his son Li Chao's money-making ideas. Later on, when they had money, they could open a pawnshop in Ziyun Town, and then open an auction house. However, the premise was that Li Chao lived in the town and required a massive amount of Spirit Stones, so having such an idea was acceptable after all.
Han Lin thought to himself: I don't have any backing, so I'll just take it one step at a time! I'll go check out the Zixiao Sect first.