chsdbacks Chapter 255: First Arrival at the Sect
Chapter 255: First Arrival at the Sect
Along the mountain path of Bobo Mountain, plump Bobo birds perched on a crooked branch, cooing softly, their two round, dark eyes fixed intently on the slowly approaching procession below.
The mountain path paved with bluestone bricks was spotless, without even a single weed to be found. A light drizzle had just fallen, and the air after the rain was crisp and clear, mixed with the dampness of grass, trees, and earth, making even the surrounding mountain scenery appear exceptionally vibrant and clear.
The mountain path was flanked by dense grass and bushes, and every now and then a furry little head would peek out, its round eyes wide open, curiously observing the female cultivators marching by. Most of these girls were still young, and many were young ladies from nearby cultivation families. They had been carefully cared for by their families since childhood and had never seen the dangers of the outside world. In their daily lives, besides cultivation, they loved to play with flowers, birds, insects, and fish, and many of them had kept spirit pets.
"Wow, what an adorable little bunny!"
A surprised gasp suddenly rang out from the group. A girl saw a snow-white rabbit dart out from the roadside. She immediately rushed forward, caught the little creature that hadn't managed to escape, and gently rubbed it against her chest. The rabbit kicked its hind legs, desperately trying to escape from this "gentle clutches," but to no avail.
Jiang Qingya watched this scene, her eyes flickering slightly. She thought to herself, "The wild animals in these mountains aren't afraid of strangers; the people of the Yin-Yang Sword Sect must be kind-hearted." Of course, this was just a rough guess; she would have to see for herself to draw a conclusion.
At the head of the group, Dongfang Shuyi and Lu Rou led the way, while Wu Tianyu, along with several familiar new disciples, brought up the rear, patiently answering their various questions about the sect. The air after the rain was crisp and refreshing, and the girls' steps became much lighter. After walking up the winding mountain path for a short while, the majestic mountain gate suddenly appeared before them.
"Coo coo— Coo coo—"
Two massive, pure white stone gates, seemingly cast from marble, stood majestically. The four large characters "Yin Yang Sword Sect" on the stone surface were written in a vigorous and powerful style. At the top of the massive stone gates, two rows of plump Bobo birds stood in neat rows. As soon as they saw Dongfang Shuyi and his group approaching, they immediately flapped their wings and flew down in unison. They landed on the ground and waddled towards the group with their short, thin legs.
"Little Bobo!"
Lu Rou's eyes lit up, and she immediately pulled out a small cloth bag filled with spirit rice from her bosom, grabbed a handful of spirit rice, and scattered it on the ground. The Bobo birds instantly swarmed around her, chirping incessantly, creating a lively and joyful scene.
Seeing this, Dongfang Shuyi smiled gently and turned to the new disciples, saying loudly, "Fellow junior sisters, the sect is newly established. Except for the sect leader's main hall on the mountaintop, which requires prior notification, you are free to visit all other places. Please explore on your own while I report back to the sect leader about my return from accepting disciples."
"Okay, Senior Sister!"
"Senior Sister, feel free to go. We'll just follow Second Sister and see the sights!"
"We're waiting for our senior sister to come back!"
The girls responded in a lively chatter, their voices clear and cheerful. Dongfang Shuyi nodded, turned, and transformed into a light shadow, darting towards the mountaintop. The remaining female cultivators also dispersed in twos and threes. Many charming and innocent girls surrounded Lu Rou, asking for some spirit rice and feeding the Bobo birds with her; others walked in groups to Wu Tianyu, respectfully requesting her to take them to visit the sect's library, which was advertised during the apprenticeship recruitment.
At the mountaintop, the main hall of the sect.
In the bright study bathed in warm white light, Zhang Ping, dressed in a floor-length black robe, was frowning as he wrote something at his desk.
"The six-winged iron bird does not possess the legendary ancient bloodline; it is merely an ordinary evolved demon beast with no value for refining."
He held the brush and found the name "Six-Winged Iron Bird" in the densely packed list of monsters on the paper. He then drew a heavy cross on it with the red brush.
Zhang Ping looked down at the paper in front of him, which recorded over a hundred kinds of demonic beasts. Each one was detailed with its characteristics, talents, and habitat. At this moment, more than half of the demonic beasts' names had a glaring red cross next to them. These were all options that he had eliminated after checking them one by one.
Looking at the paper covered in red crosses, Zhang Ping remained silent for a long time before finally letting out a heavy sigh.
"I thought that once I arrived at Penglai Plain and settled down, my strength would steadily improve, but I never expected to be defeated by my lack of talent in monsters."
The Penglai Plain, and indeed the entire Taihu Lake region, is a sacred place for cultivation. The level of development of cultivation civilization here far surpasses that of the former Wei and Zhao territories where he previously resided. However, precisely because of this, the demonic beasts of the Taihu Lake region have been hunted to near extinction by cultivators. Any demonic beast with even a modicum of refining value or outstanding talent has long been forced to hide in remote, untouched mountains and forests, disappearing without a trace. Many pill formulas have even become lost recipes, unable to be refined, because the demonic beast ingredients they require have completely vanished.
In the entire Taihu Lake region, only the area around the Mermaid Sea and the treacherous depths of the abyss still harbor a large number of demon beast clans. However, those places are hundreds of thousands of miles away from the Penglai Plain, and the demon beast materials that can be transported there are extremely scarce. Even if they were, they would never reach remote areas like Qianshan.
However, even if he had chosen to stay in Penglai Immortal City, it would still have been difficult for him to reliably obtain these demon beast materials.
Wherever there are people, there are social classes, let alone the strictly hierarchical group of cultivators. Every corner of Penglai Immortal City had long been divided up by the major top families; even the humble business of emptying chamber pots was impossible to get involved in without connections. He might not find it difficult to acquire one or two rare materials in the Immortal City, but to make a long-term, stable purchase was simply a pipe dream.
Thinking of Haiyuan, Zhang Ping's thoughts suddenly drifted away, recalling Zhang Shuai, whom he had met by chance on the flying boat, and Yue Shan, who possessed the Mountain Body. Back then, when the ancient ruins erupted and a behemoth of the Overlord Body Realm appeared out of nowhere, everyone was terrified and fled in all directions, creating chaos. He wondered if those two people had survived in the end.
And An Ruxue, that woman of extraordinary beauty, and the hundreds of young ladies and wives of Luhua City—I wonder how they are doing now.
And Madam, Sister Rou, and that shrew Nangong Feiyan... Are they thinking of me now?
Zhang Ping's thoughts drifted further and further away, and one by one, the people and events of the past came flooding into his mind.
Before long, he shook his head, bringing his chaotic thoughts back to reality.
"There's no use thinking about this now. Sister Rou and the others have been cultivating with me for a long time, and their innate talents have been completely transformed. There are no more bottlenecks for them to break through to the Divine Harmony Realm. That woman Nangong Feiyan was already exceptionally talented, and after cultivating with me, she's even more powerful. In addition to her original cultivation foundation, I estimate that it won't be long before she can reach the threshold of the Divine Harmony Realm."
"I don't know if they've come to the Taihu Lake Region yet. Even if they haven't, they're probably still in the Sunset Marshland. Once I've spread the reputation of the Yin-Yang Sword Sect throughout the entire Taihu Lake Region, I'll naturally be able to find them."
He put down his brush, stood up, stretched, and his black robe fell down, sweeping across the Xuan paper on the ground.
"Alright, let's go check on my eight hundred new disciples first."