《The Forgotten Ancient》


 Chapter 1 - Awakening

    In the Veiled Mist Forest, a young boy practiced his martial arts. At twelve years old, a faint aura radiatedfrom his body.


    ¡°Li Jian! How deep did you go into the forest?! You know it¡¯s forbidden to go past the river! I almost thought a beast had eaten you..¡± This voice belonged to his cousin Li Mu.


    ¡°I was just cultivating! The people in the village are too noisy and prevent me from focusing.¡±


    Li Jian was in the 1st level of the Mortal realm and had been stuck for almost two years. His talent and cultivation were too low and he would often be looked down upon and played around with by his fellow clansmen.


    ¡°When you reach the 3rd level, they¡¯ll shut up forever and you can make them kowtow before you, hmph! Come on Li Jian, we have to get home right now or else my father will punish us.¡±


    In this Strong Winds Continent, mortals were able to step into the martial world by progressing throughthe realms of cultivation: Mortal realm, Spirit realm, and Martial realm. Each realm contained nine ranks, and with each ascension of a rank or realm their strength would increase immensely. Strength meant power, and power meant everything.


    The two sprinted towards Falling Leaf Village; home of the Li Clan. Li Jian had lived with his uncle and cousin his whole life. He had no parents, and when Li Jian had asked his uncle about them, he was told his parents were dead and to never bring them up again.


    Upon reaching their small wooden house, a bulky man stood with his arms crossed. This was Li Chen: blood uncle of Li Jian and father of Li Mu. He was in the 5th level of the Mortal realm, which wasn¡¯t too high nor too low. For comparison, Clan Master Li had a cultivation in the 9th level of the Mortal realm, but that was due to him being a prodigy when he was younger. Elders usually peaked at the 7th level of the Mortal realm.


    ¡°Uncle Chen, I can feel myself moving closer and closer to the 2nd level of the Mortal realm.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good Jian¡¯er, continue to strengthen yourself and maybe one day you¡¯ll surpass even me hahaha. Now, I have great news for the both of you! In a months time, the Jade Moon Sect will be holding a recruitment exam for young cultivators in Jade Moon City. They are only allowing applicants who are twelve to fourteen years of age. I overheard the Elders speaking and Clan Master Li said that he will be having all of the children, who are qualified, go and participate.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve never been to Jade Moon City, but they say any child accepted into the Jade Moon Sect will have a bright and amazing future. Jian¡¯er, Mu¡¯er, the other children and several Elders will be leaving tomorrow. The trip to Jade Moon City will be long and arduous, so sleep well tonight.¡±


    The boys walked to their room and laid in bed shaking with excitement. Li Jian stared out the window into the starry sky and couldn¡¯t stop thinking about Jade Moon City.


    ¡°Li Jian, when we get to Jade Moon City we will both pass the exam, so don¡¯t even think about failing. We¡¯ll become Jade Moon disciples and work our way to become inner disciples. Maybe even become a core disciple!¡±


    Li Mu had always looked out for Li Jian because the latter was weak and constantly bullied. Although they were the same age, Li Mu acted as the elder brother.


    It was already very late, and the two started to fall asleep.


    ''...We will definitely pass, Li Mu.''


    ¡ª Next Day ¡ª


    Waking up before dawn, many children lined up outside the main entrance of the village. There were ten carriages and ten Elders.


    An old figure walked out of the first carriage and faced the crowd.


    ¡°Members of the Li Clan, we will only be taking children who are twelve to fourteen years of age. According to the Jade Moon Sect, participants must also be at least in the 2nd level of the Mortal realm. This trip will take up to a month travelling around the Veiled Mist Forest. Wewill arrive in Jade Moon City a day before the exam is held. Please form a line in front of Elder Xu and do not make any trouble because we are scheduled to leave in two hours.¡±


    Hearing this, Uncle Chen¡¯s face fell as he looked at his nephew. Li Jian was stillin the 1st level of the Mortal realm and had been stuck for a long time. All the children who were at least twelve had already broken through to the 2nd or 3rd level.


    ¡°Jian¡¯er..¡±


    ¡°I know Uncle, don¡¯t worry about me. My talents are low and it would have been a miracle for me to even pass the exam. This opportunity belongs to Li Mu since he is alreadyin the 3rd level.¡±You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    ¡°Li Jian.."


    Li Mu was frustrated and angry.


    With a smile on his face, Li Jian turned around and walked back towards the village.


    Uncle Chen¡¯s heart hurt while watching him leave because Li Jian was like another son to him.


    While walking back home, Li Jian didn¡¯t want to accept this reality, but there was nothing that could be done. It was his own weakness that allowed this opportunity to slip by.


    Currently, Li Jian¡¯s main goal was to become stronger.


    ''Power is everything and can change anything..''


    Arriving back at home, as he headed towards the door, he paused and looked around.


    ¡°Strange.. I thought I heard something, but I guess it was just the wind..¡± He stared at the Veiled Mist Forest for a moment before entering his home.


    A few days later while training in the forest, Li Jian miraculously broke throughand was now in the 2nd level of the Mortal realm.


    ''I¡¯ve finally broken through.. I wonder how Li Mu is doing right now.'' Although Li Jian now met the qualifications, he would not be able to make it to Jade Moon City in time for the exam. He also didn¡¯t have a carriage or a protector.


    Sighing, Li Jian sat down and began meditating. When one broke through to the next rank or realm, they had to consolidate their cultivation or else the instability would backlash and potentially hurt their cultivation permanently.


    A few hours laters..


    ''My body feels lighter and stronger. Let¡¯s test out my strength now.''


    In front of Li Jian was a thin tree that had been worn down in the center. It had been used as a training dummy for Li Jian to practice martial arts on. He didn¡¯t know anything but the Four Palm Strike. This art allowed the practitioner to strike four times consecutively and accurately. It was a very basic skill that had been taught to him by Uncle Chen.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    The firststrike landed on the tree and broke through a couple layers. After the second, third, and fourth, a hole tore through the center, splitting the tree apart. The difference between one rank had been drastic. His usual Four Palm Strike could only wear down the tree little by little, but this time it had actually punctured the tree and split it.


    Looking up at the sky, Li Jian didn¡¯t realize it had already become so dark!


    ''Uncle is going to kill me!''


    But when Li Jian had gotten home, Uncle Chen was gone; there was only a letter. Reading the letter, it stated that Uncle Chen would be gone for a week because he was going with the merchants to a few villages nearby to protect them and their cargo.


    ''Uncle usually goes on these missions from the clan, but to think the day I breakthrough Uncle is gone...''


    ¡ª Next Day ¡ª


    Li Jian woke up early and decided to go into the forest again to continue training.


    ''Now that I¡¯m stronger, I¡¯m confident I¡¯ll be able to survive a little deeper into the forest. I¡¯ll ride this wave of luck and maybe get closer to the 3rd level.''


    After swimming across the river, Li Jiancaught sight of a beast. This beast was a Spotted Bronze Deer who had both high agility and high defense. It didn¡¯t really have much other abilities so it was safer to fight than a more offensive-type beast.


    Magical beasts were classified into three tiers to represent their strengths: Earthly, Spiritual, Divine.


    The Spotted Bronze Deer was a beastin the 2nd level of the Earthly realm.


    Li Jian pounced at the deer and began exchanging blows. Feeling stronger than ever, Li Jian defeated the beast and went off to find more. Since these deer would run in herds it wouldn''t be much longer until he found some. However, after slaying three more, Li Jianmet eyes with a deer who had iron horns. Blazing with fury, the deer charged at him.


    ''Amutated deer!'' The Iron Horned Deer was enraged because of how many of its herd Li Jian had killed in his territory. This Iron Horned Deer was a beast in the 4th level of the Earthly realm .


    Sensing the danger he was in, Li Jian ran deeper into the forest because the Iron Horned Deer was closing in on him.


    ''Shit! If I can¡¯t turn back, I¡¯m only going to run into stronger beasts!''


    Running away as fast as he could, Li Jian sprinteddeeper into the forest.


    This deer not only had a higher speed and defense, but also had iron horns: its offensive capabilities weren¡¯t to be laughed at.


    Catching up to Li Jian, the deerknocked him into the aircausing him to cough up a mouthful of blood. Without wasting a breath, Li Jian stood up and kept running.


    The area became more and more congested and soon a thick mist began to blanket the area. In a matter of minutes, Li Jian couldn¡¯t see anything but the mist.


    ''This is dangerous... I can''t see a thing!''


    Li Jian started to slow down because he couldn¡¯t find his sense of direction anymore. The mist was too thick, so he chose to turn around, but as he took his next step, he fell off a cliff.


    As he was falling, Li Jianmaintained a calm expression.


    ''I guess this is it. I¡¯m going to die.''


    ¡°Thank you Uncle for taking care of me, and thank you Li Mu for always being there for me."


    ''Now that that¡¯s settled, I can die peacefully...''


    Awaiting his inevitable death, Li Jianfinally reached the end of his fall, however, rather than hitting ground he hit water.At the point of contact,he lost consciousness and passed out.


    While unconscious, Li Jian was lost in his dreams. In this dream of his, he stood at the peak of the martial world. Behind himstood an onyx panther with crystal white eyes and by his side was the most beautiful woman in existence. Before the dream ended, he and the woman made a promise to each other before disappearing.


    ''Xiu¡¯er..''


    Was this truly a dream? Was it the future? Was it a memory? Li Jian couldn¡¯t tell.. He couldn¡¯t even remember what the promise was.


    Li Jian floatedsoundly onto the shore, and within his dantian a small white crystal awakened.

 Chapter 2 - Jade Moon City

    With the blazing heat of the sun shining on Li Jian, he slowly opened his eyes and gained consciousness.


    ¡®Am I dead..?¡¯


    Looking around, he saw an old man fishing.


    ¡°So you¡¯re finally awake kid.¡±


    Glancing at Li Jian, the old man turned back to the lake and closed his eyes.


    ¡°Your leg is sprained, and your cultivation is a mess. Start stabilizing your dantian before you do anything else.¡±


    ¡®So I¡¯m still alive..¡¯


    Closing his eyes, Li Jian looked into his dantian and saw that there was a disturbance in his spiritual energy. After a few hours, Li Jian had stabilized himself and turned towards the old man.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    ¡°Just an old man with nothing but time hahaha.¡±


    With a carefree smile, the old man got up and reeled in his line.


    ¡°No fish again today, oh well.¡±


    Li Jian was still on guard towards this old man because he was too mysterious. This old man was in the middle of the Veiled Mist Forest fishing with a carefree attitude. Li Jian couldn¡¯t even see through his cultivation, so it should at least be in the Spirit realm.


    Pulling out a deep-blue colored pill, the old mantossed it to Li Jian.


    ¡°After consuming this, your leg shouldn¡¯t bother you anymore.¡±


    Holding this pill, Li Jian sensed incredible spiritual energy flowing within the pill. After inspecting it for a little while longer, Li Jian popped the pill into his mouth and his leg had healed almost instantaneously.


    ¡®This pill is amazing! To have casually given it to me, a stranger, means this old man has an incredible background. Who is he exactly?¡¯


    ¡°My name is Li Jian, and I thank you for this pill. I will not forget your kindness.¡±


    Li Jian gave this senior a slight bow and showed great respect.


    ¡°May I ask what senior¡¯s name is?¡±


    The old man looked at the child in front of him and let out a laugh.


    ¡°Hahaha, that was just a common low-grade pill. You can call me Ling.¡±


    ¡°Many thanks Senior Ling. I will repay you for the help you¡¯ve given me today.¡±


    To Li Jian, anybody who showed him kindness would be repaid with kindness: this was a form of karma he believed in. Where good karma existed, bad karma would also exist: treat one with disrespect, one shall pay you back in full.


    ¡°Senior, do you know how far Falling Leaf Village is from here?¡±


    ¡°For someone of your cultivation, it would take about a month to get to that village. Of course, that depends on if you survive the trip because all the beasts around here are near the Spiritual realm.¡±


    ''Spiritual realm?!? The Iron Horned Deer that was chasing me was still in the mid-stages of the Earthly realm! How the hell did I get so deep into the forest?''


    Seeingthe child¡¯s confusion, Senior Ling could understand what was going on through his mind.


    ¡°Right now we¡¯re in the northern part of the forest. If you¡¯re from Falling Leaf Village, you must¡¯ve fallen into the Calm Root River: this river branches out like a tree allthroughout the forest. If you go just a few meters deep, a mist shrouds the area completely. The powers of the mist are unknown and its origins are also unknown.¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re trying to get back to Falling Leaf Village, it¡¯d be safer to go to Jade Moon City and travel around the forest. Your cultivation is too low to be able to survive the trip through the forest. I¡¯m headed towards the city anyways, so I¡¯ll walk with you.¡±


    ¡°I will have to trouble Senior yet again.¡±


    ¡®If I head to Jade Moon City, I¡¯ll be able to take the exam!.. Wait.. How long was I unconscious for?¡¯


    ¡°Senior.. How long have I been unconscious for..?¡±


    ¡°Two weeks since I pulled you out of the lake. You look troubled.¡±


    ''TWO WEEKS?!''


    Li Jian almost coughed up blood after hearing this.


    ¡°Do you know how long until the Jade Moon Sect holds their disciple entry exam?!¡±


    ¡°The Jade Moon Sect? It should begin in about 3 days or so. Hahaha are you planning on taking it?¡±


    ¡°I probably won¡¯t make it in time..¡± Sighing, Li Jian was once again dispirited.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry kid, if we leave now we¡¯ll be in the city just in time. Didn¡¯t I already tell you it¡¯d be faster to go to Jade Moon City?¡±


    Senior Ling then raised his right arm with his palm facing forward.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°Summon!¡±


    A white haired fox that was bigger than Li Jian appeared out of nowhere!


    Shocked, Li Jian¡¯s mouth was gaping as he tried to comprehend what just happened.


    ¡°You¡¯ve never seen a familiar have you? Hahaha, you¡¯re too green for this world kid. You can form a bond with a magical beast if the beast is willing. Maybe one day when you¡¯re stronger you¡¯ll have some of your own familiars.¡±


    ¡°Hop on Little Yue¡¯s back and we¡¯ll head for Jade Moon City.¡±


    Little Yue stared at Li Jian before lowering its body for him to climb up.


    -- 2 days later --


    An old man and a boy riding a white fox exited the Veiled Mist Forest.


    A large cityemerged over the horizonwith many white-stone buildings with jade-green roofs. Bordering the edges of the city was a large wall as tall as the sky. This impenetrable city looked like a giant fortress!


    ¡°Looks like we made it earlier than expected. The entrance gate is right ahead of us, but we¡¯ll be parting ways from here on out.¡±


    Senior Ling smiled and gave Li Jian a jade medallion with a moon carved on it.


    ¡°This¡¯ll help you enter the city with no problems. Good luck on the exam kid.¡±


    With that, Senior Ling and Little Yue departed.


    ¡®I am indebted to youSenior Ling.¡¯


    Facing the huge city, Li Jian walked towards the city entrance. This entrance had a jade dragon on each side of the gate, coiling around the pillars and meeting at the top. In between these two jade dragons was a large moon.


    ¡°Halt. 10 gold entrance fee.¡±


    A guard standing outside the gate looked at Li Jian like he was some country bumpkin.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have any gold..¡±


    ¡°Then turn back around. This is no place for a beggar.¡±


    Trying to think of a way to sneak in, Li Jian remembered something.


    ¡°Will this allow me to enter..?¡±


    Pulling out his jade medallion, the guard began to sweat profusely.


    ¡°Forgive me, this one does not know his place! You may enter immediately!¡±


    ¡®I guess this medallion really is what Senior Ling said it was! But to react like that? Is this not some ordinary entry medallion?''


    Li Jian thought for awhile but decided to not think about it too hard. He continued and walked through the gates and into the city.


    After closing the gate, the guard let out a breath.


    ¡°To think I almost offended a jade medallion holder..!¡±


    Putting away his medallion, Li Jian saw many people crowding the city¡¯s streets. Compared to Falling Leaf Village, this city was at least ten times larger.


    ¡®The first thing I need to do is find out where the exam is being held.¡¯


    Walking around, Li Jian headed towards a tall and thin building with a red moon above the door.


    ¡°Excuse me sister, do you mind telling me where the Jade Moon Sect is having their exam?¡±


    The woman at the counter looked at Li Jian and raised an eyebrow looking intrigued. What was a child doing travelling by himself in this part of the city?


    ¡°It¡¯s being held inside of the Jade Moon Sect.¡±


    ¡°Many thanks..¡± With a slight smile, Li Jian asked another question.


    ¡°Where exactly is the Jade Moon Sect..?¡±


    ¡°In the center of the city.. Don¡¯t you know anything?¡±


    ¡°Haha.. Many thanks beautiful sister!¡±


    After thanking the woman, Li Jian turned around and headed for the heart of the city.


    ¡°He must be stupid to come into a brothel and ask for directions..¡±


    An hour later, Li Jian finally made it to the Jade Moon Sect and saw a large crowd in front of the main building.


    With a voice that rumbled like thunder, the crowd turned their attention towards him..


    ¡°If you are participating in the Disciple Recruitment Exam, please step inside and pick up an entry medallion!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s Huang Fang! The eighteen year old prodigy that¡¯s already in the early stages of the Spirit realm!¡±


    The crowd became excited seeing that a genius was overseeing the exam. Many girls were screaming because Huang Fang was also very handsome.


    Li Jian didn¡¯t know who he was, but realized this man in front of him had accomplished so much already at a young age. Back at Falling Leaf Village, the ¡°prodigy¡± of his generation was Li Xiao, who had reached the 4th level of the Mortal realm. Many called him the next Clan Master Li. But this Huang Fang was in the Spirit realm at 18 years old, only a few years older than Li Jian and Li Xiao!


    Li Jian walked forward excitedly, grabbed a medallion and saw a moon with the number 336 glistening on it.


    ¡°Listen carefully! This is a three part exam and if you deemed as a failure at any point, you will be disqualified. When you are disqualified, you will be teleported out of the building. When you pass one part of the exam, you¡¯ll also be teleported, but you¡¯ll be teleported to the next part. Most importantly, the sect is only accepting the top 100 new disciples. The exam will continue for three hours.¡±


    With that, Huang Fang left.


    ¡®Three hours?¡¯


    Looking around, many of the children here were allin the 2nd or 3rd level of the Mortal realm. There were some who were in the 4th level. Nobody in the 5th level could be seen, but because there was no time limit, someone in the 5th level might come late and breeze through the exam.


    Next to Li Jian was a pair of twins talking amongst themselves who looked to be in the 3rd level of the Mortal realm.


    ¡°Damn, did ya hear that bro, he said we¡¯ll be teleported!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, there must be a powerful array setup within this building.¡±


    ¡°Jade Moon Sect is too amazing! I can¡¯t wait for us to become disciples haha!¡±


    Feeling like they were being watched, the two turned towards Li Jian.


    ¡°Do you need anything?¡±


    ¡°Whatcha think ya looking at punk?¡±


    Li Jian forced a smile because these twins were too different. Although looking exactly alike, one was well-mannered while the other was.. different. Theonly visible difference was that the well-mannered one had his hair swept to the side while the other had a more wild appearance. He didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry in this situation.


    ¡°Haha sorry.. I was just interested by this ¡°array¡± you were talking about.¡±


    ¡°Hmm..? You don¡¯t know about arrays?¡±


    ¡°Hmm..? Ya don¡¯t know about arrays, punk?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re spiritual formations set up by powerful array specialists. They¡¯re extremely hard to set up and must be done carefully and precisely, otherwise they could explode.¡±


    ¡°Sounds ¡®bout right.¡±


    ¡°Interesting, thank you brother twins for enlightening me.¡±


    ¡°My name is Meng Zhao.¡±


    ¡°The name¡¯s Meng Jiao, punk.¡±


    ¡°Pleased to meet you both, my name is Li Jian.¡±


    ¡°Li Jian, have you heard about the rewards for passing?¡±


    ¡°Rewards? I haven¡¯t really heard of anything about the exam aside from becoming a disciple of the sect for passing.¡±


    ¡°Ya don¡¯t even know ¡®bout the rewards? There¡¯s a ranking list for the top 100. Better rank obviously means better rewards, punk.¡±


    ¡°Our father told us we could even become inner disciples or even core disciples if we hit the top rankings!¡±


    Li Jian¡¯s blood boiled and became even more excited at this opportunity.


    ¡®Li Mu, I¡¯llmeet you inside the sect.¡¯

 Chapter 3 - Disciple 100

    Breaking the silence, the children once again became lively and talkedloudly with eachother.


    Moments later, participants disappeared one after the other.


    ¡°What¡¯s happening??¡±


    ¡°Why are people being teleported out?¡±


    ¡°Did they fail?!¡±


    ¡°No! Did the exam start already??!¡±


    ¡°The exam started already?! He didn¡¯t even say anything!!¡±


    The crowd became even more nervous when more and more people started disappearing.


    Li Jian stood there next to the Meng brothers, as calm as water, observing the situation.


    ¡®The participants who moved onto the second stage must have noticed something, but what? Huang Fang didn¡¯t hint at anything when he explained the exam.. Or did he?¡¯


    ¡°Meng Zhao.Meng Jiao.¡±


    ¡°Did you discover something?¡±


    The three huddled together andwhispered amongst each other.


    ¡°There¡¯s an array inscribed into your medallion. I believe this is how to move onto the next part.¡±


    ¡°How did ya figure that one out?¡±


    ¡°Meng Jiao, quickly, use your spiritual energy to open the array and let¡¯s move on. Thank you, Li Jian. Good luck on the exam, we¡¯ll be seeing you at the end.¡±


    When Huang Fang was explaining the exam, he said that those who passed or failed would be teleported. This introduced arrays to Li Jian. With that small hint, he wondered if there was also an array on the medallion. Usinghis spiritual energy, Li Jian looked at his medallion and had, indeed, found one.


    The Meng brothers both teleported out.


    Li Jian immediately imbued some of his spiritual energy into the medallion and an image of a man formed in Li Jian¡¯s mind.


    ¡°The first part of the exam is to test one¡¯s perception and knowledge of spiritual energy. Spiritual energy can be used for a multitude of things, and one of those is creating arrays.¡±


    When the man finished speaking, Li Jian was teleported.


    Opening his eyes, Li Jian was in a different room. This room was not as large as the previous room and was made out of pure white stone. There were no windows or doors, and nobody else in sight.


    ¡®So this is the second part of the test?¡¯


    After a few seconds, a giant turtle spawned in front of Li Jian and charged at him.


    ¡®A 2nd level Earthly realm Black Clawed Turtle?¡¯


    This was a fast turtle that would run towards its prey. Gaining more and more momentum, the turtle would deal increasing amounts of damage.


    Without wasting any time, Li Jian rushed forward and dashed to the side of the turtle.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    The first palm landed on the side of the hard shell, followed by three more palm strikes. When the last one landed, the turtle¡¯s shell broke and screamed in paineventually disappearing.


    In one move, Li Jian defeated the turtle.


    Many people mistake the shell for being the Black Clawed Turtle¡¯s strongest trait, but it is, however, the weakest. By revealing its large and sharp black claws, attention is drawn away from the shell. Along with the turtle¡¯s claws, its speed also misdirects attention.


    When the Black Clawed Turtle disappeared, another one took its place.


    Li Jian lunged forward, spun to the side and unleashed another Four Palm Strike. When the Black Clawed Turtle disappeared, another one spawned!


    ¡®How many do I have to kill?? There must be a trick to this part of the exam.¡¯


    After a minute, Li Jian had already slain24 Black Clawed Turtles and was getting exhausted. Sprinting towards the 25th turtle, Li Jian felt his spiritual energy running low. As he was about to spin to the side, Li Jian made a mistake in his footwork and was instead headbutted into the wall.


    Li Jian, steadying himself, wiped the blood from his mouth.


    ¡®There¡¯s no end to this, and it¡¯s obvious there¡¯s an array spawning these turtles. I don¡¯t have the strength to keep going on..¡¯


    The turtle turned towards Li Jian and charged him once again.


    Focusing his spiritual energy, he looked at the array in the center of the room. It was on the floor where the turtle kept spawning in from.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.


    ''I won¡¯t fail here.''


    Li Jian stood up and madly dashed towards the turtle. At this speed, the two neared each other at the center of the room. Just before collision, Li Jian spun to the side successfully, only this time he jumped up.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    Li Jian aimed at the top of the turtle¡¯s shell and slammed the turtle heavily into the ground on top of the array. With the momentum, the array cracked.


    Immediately after the turtle disappeared,Li Jian focused all of his energy into his palms and unleashed yet another Four Palm Strike onto the array.


    Deep within his dantian, the small white crystal glowed slightly, releasing a small amount of condensed spiritual energy.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    This Four Palm Strike radiated power that was unseen. With only the first palm strike, the array had been broken. The second, third, and fourth palm strike cracked the floor.


    With the array destroyed, Li Jianwas teleported once again.


    ¡°Participant 336, Rank 100, Disciple 100.¡±


    Standing inthe room, Li Jian faced a bald headed man in a jade-green robe.


    ¡°Congratulations 336, I am Elder Luo. I welcome you to the Jade Moon Sect. Because you are last to pass, you will not be reaping any of the top ranking rewards.¡±


    ¡®Last place..I guess that was to be expected. I spent too much time in the second part of the exam.. Although rank 1 would have been nice.¡¯


    "Wasn''t there a time limit before deciding the disciples?"


    "The rest of the participants were disqualified for their lack of understanding in part one and their performance in part two.Now, 500 contribution points will be awarded to you due to special circumstances for your performance. When you and the rest of the accepted disciples head over to the main building after the exam, you¡¯ll be given an introduction of everything about the Jade Moon Sect. Do you have any immediate questions?¡±


    ¡°Thank you Elder Luo, but before the exam began, Huang Fang said there were three parts to this exam?¡±


    ¡°There are indeed three parts, but the 3rd stage is only for disciples who have passed the 2nd stage.¡±


    ¡°May I ask what the purpose of the second part of the exam was?¡±


    ¡°The second part challenges your strength. Any other questions?¡±


    ¡°How does one successfully complete that stage?¡±


    ¡°It is dependent on the individual. If you have no more questions, please follow me. The other 99 disciples are waiting.¡±


    Elder Luo quickly walked through a door and Li Jian followed suit.


    -- Main Building --


    Back at the main building of the Jade Moon Sect, many participants were still confused and struggling. After Li Jian had passed the exam as the last disciple to be accepted, the remaining participants were teleported out.


    ¡°What the hell? Why are we all outside?!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going on Huang Fang!!¡±


    ¡°You have all failed and are dismissed. The 100 open spots for new disciples has been fulfilled. Leave!¡±


    It was Huang Fang¡¯s thunderous voice that was telling them to leave.Even though the children were angry and upset, they had no choice but to leave. Exiting the sect, their entry medallions crumbled.


    Inside the sect, Li Jian was escorted to a room with the other 99 disciples. In this room, the disciples were all seated in accordance to their ranking. At the front of the room was a table with an orb on top of it. Behind the table was a beautiful woman who had a pair of breasts the size of melons. She wore the same jade-green robe as Elder Luo, but it was very tight on her, especially around her chest. This woman looked to be only twenty with a cultivation most likely at the Spirit realm. She laid back in her chair and wasquite carefree.


    Looking at the frontmost disciples, Li Jian saw a kid in the first seat with a cultivation in the 6th level of the Mortal realm! In the second seat was a tranquil girl with long, azure-colored hair who was in the 5th level of the Mortal realm! In the third seat was a fierce girl with scarlet red-colored hair that was also in the 5th level. After these three, the disciples following had cultivations in the 4th level, in the 3rd level, and then to Li Jian, in the 2nd level.


    Li Jian went to his seat and sat down. At the same time, Elder Luo walked up to the woman behind the table and whispered something to her. After listening to Elder Luo, she looked up and glanced at Li Jian before looking away.


    Elder Luo then faced the 100 disciples.


    ¡°Now that all one hundred of you are here, let me formally welcome you to the sect.¡±


    After some clapping and cheering, Elder Luo clapped his hands and it was silent again.


    ¡°We will be starting the 3rd stage of this exam immediately. This stage will only test your affinity with the elements. With this test, we will be able to see where your strength truly lies. The orb will radiate a certain color and will dictate which of the elements you are suited for. Red is fire, blue is water, green is wind, yellow is earth, purple is lightning. When I call your rank, walk up to this table and insert some of your spiritual energy into this orb.¡±


    ¡°Without anymore delays, Rank 1.¡±


    The boy in the first seat stood up and walked towards the orb gracefully carrying with him an air of nobility. He placed his hand over the orb and a fewseconds later, a purple aura radiated.


    Looking at the outcome, the children and Elder Luo were shocked and ecstatic. To have an affinity with lightning was one in ten thousand. It was a very rare affinity to have! But to the woman behind the table, she couldn¡¯t care less and looked like she just wanted to leave.


    ¡®Lightning is that rare? I wonder what would happen if I were to have an affinity with lightning.¡±


    Regaining his composure, Elder Luo then directed the boy to a door and took his entry medallion.


    ¡°Rank 2.¡±


    The girl with azure hair went up to the orb and immediately the orb radiated a blue aura, meaning her affinity was water. She left through the same door and also passed her entry medallion to Elder Luo.


    ¡°Rank 3.¡±


    The girl with scarlet-red hair did the same and a red aura radiated, indicating a fire affinity.


    The ranks continued to be called.


    ¡°Rank 56.¡±


    It was Meng Zhao and the orb radiated blue for water.


    ¡°Rank 57.¡±


    Following Meng Zhao, was Meng Jiao. His orb had radiated yellow for earth.


    ¡°Rank 58..62..78.¡±


    Once rank 78 was called, a boy with a dim expression walked up to the orb. This was Li Mu! Li Jian noticed right away and was overcome with happiness. However,Li Mu''s expression worried Li Jian. Li Mu placed his hand over the orbwhen a green aura radiated; wind.


    When 99 disciples left, rank 100 was finally called. Li Jian was stunned because only Li Mu from the Li Clan had passed the exam. How did the clans prodigy Li Xiao fail?


    Li Jian walked up and placed his hand over the orb. When the light radiated from the orb, the woman behind the table shot up from her seat. She stood staring at the orb like she couldn¡¯t believe it. Elder Luo stared at theorb with an even greaterexpression than when rank 1 had shown his lightning affinity.


    ¡°This!..¡±

 Chapter 4 -

    ¡°This!..¡±


    The orb radiated red.. Then blue.. Green.. Yellow.. Purple.. Yellow.. Green.. Blue.. Red.. Then after a few seconds, all of the colors appeared and separated and then disappeared.


    Elder Luo couldn¡¯t help but suck in cold air.


    ¡°This is too abnormal.. Princess Bai, what does this mean??¡±


    Princess Bai, the woman, turned her attention towards Li Jian.


    ¡°Dong Luo, speak of this to anyone and I will make sure you suffer pain worse than death. Go get myfather.¡±


    Elder Luo took those words to heart and left immediately.


    When Elder Luo left, Princess Bai looked at Li Jian.


    ¡°What is this little brother¡¯s name?¡±


    Princess Bai smiled andturned towards Li Jian. Being this close, he could feel her warmth and even smell a sweet flowery fragrance. Looking closely, she had a beautifully sculpted face that was complemented by her dark green hair that hung behind her alluring body.


    ¡°Li Jian greets Princess Bai.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to call me Princess, Little Jian.¡±


    Li Jian lightly smiled and took his attention away from her body.


    ¡°Elder Sister Bai.. About my affinity..¡±


    ¡°Stop. Don¡¯t speak any further.¡±


    The door opened and a young, dignified man walked in.


    ¡°Father..¡±


    Elder Sister Bai bowed her head gently.


    ¡®This must be Patriarch Shui of the Jade Moon Sect!¡¯


    Li Jian looked at the man and couldn¡¯t help but gaze in awe. Many participants in the first stage of the exam had glorified Patriarch Shui and viewed him as the most powerful being. One time, Patriarch Shui took on a whole army by himself! After that battle, people began calling him "The Jade Dragon¡±.


    ¡°Bai¡¯er, set up an array.¡±


    Raising her two arms, hand over hand, palm facing out, a spiritual array formed and covered the whole room instantly. With perfect control of her spiritual energy, she had easily created a vast and intricate array in less than one second. This array made it so that anybody outside wouldn¡¯t be able to eavesdrop or see what was happening on the inside.


    ¡°What happened Bai¡¯er.¡±


    After explaining the abnormality of the Affinity Orb, Patriarch Shui closed his eyes and let out a breath.


    ¡°Li Jian.¡±


    Hearing his own name, Li Jian stood up straight, clasped his hands and bowed.


    ¡°Yes, Patriarch?¡±


    ¡°What I tell you now, you must never reveal this information to anyone. This could endanger your life.¡±


    ¡®Endanger my life? What exactly is happening?¡¯


    Seeing his concerned look, Patriarch Shui closed his eyes again.


    ¡°For your own good, I will not be telling you what your affinity is. You must have the strength to find out for yourself. After you leave this room, you will show others that you have no affinity with any element.¡±


    ¡°If that is what Patriarch believes is best, I will not go against you.¡±


    Breaking the tense atmosphere, Patriarch Shui opened his eyes and smiled.


    ¡°Li Jian, I had the opportunity of watching your performance in the recruitment exam. Can you tell me why you decided to destroy the array?¡±


    Li Jian looked up at the Patriarch with an embarrassed look.


    ¡°Well.. I was getting tired and just wanted the turtle to stop spawning.. It felt reasonable to destroy the source..¡±


    ¡°Hahaha, that¡¯s your reasoning? That array was set up by Bai¡¯er herself! Ordinary cultivators in the Spirit realm would have a hard time breaking it, and yet you who is onlyin the 2nd level of the Mortal realm succeeded. That was a stage set up to test your battle strength and see how many you can kill before being defeated. Although scoring lowest, you surprised us by destroying the array. Since it¡¯s over now, I hope you¡¯ll dedicate yourself to your training. I await your future endeavors Li Jian.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Patriarch, I will not let you down.¡±


    ¡°Li Jian, you may leave now. Elder Luo is waiting outside. I hope you don¡¯t forget what I said about your affinity.¡±


    Li Jian bowed once again and left through the door. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    Elder Luo had been waiting outside the whole time and the moment Li Jian exited through the door, he looked at Li Jian trying to figure out who this 2nd level Mortal realm child was to be able to make the Affinity Orb have such a bizarre reaction.


    ¡°It¡¯s getting pretty late, so I¡¯ll show you to your room. Because your ranking was low, you¡¯re only an outer disciple of the sect. Tomorrow morning, you¡¯ll be given a proper introduction.¡±


    ¡°What ranking did I need to become an inner disciple, Elder Luo?¡±


    ¡°Top 3 became inner disciples due to their ranking and cultivation.¡±


    Following Elder Luo through many large courtyards, Li Jian couldn¡¯t wait to see what his house would look like! These houses were not only bigger than the old, wooden house Li Jian had lived in by at leastten times, but were also too luxurious. The jade-green accents that accompanied the sleek, white marble of the building made it seem like these houses were built for royalty.


    Walking farther and farther away, the quality of the buildings and landscape decreased..


    ¡°Here we are, your new home. Your sect uniform is inside. Tomorrow morning, I¡¯ll send over someone to guide you. The other disciples have already been given their introduction and are already settled in.¡±


    Elder Luo stood in front of a small, wooden home that was comparable to the house Li Jian had lived in at Falling Leaf Village.


    ¡®Nothing¡¯s changed but the location..¡¯


    Looking at his house in contempt, Li Jian thanked Elder Luo for guiding him and then walked into his new home.


    Creaking loudly, the door opened. Inside of this ¡°house¡± was a room with a dusty, old bed that looked to have been feasted on by moths.


    ¡®This is fine.. Not like the luxurious buildings near the main building. To be accepted as a disciple into the Jade Moon Sect is already a great accomplishment, so I shouldn¡¯t get picky about what my house looks like..¡¯


    Li Jian sighed and then laid down on his bed. He had drained quite a bit of his spiritual energy since the beginning of the exam and had no time to rest. He closed his eyes and cleared his mind.


    Focusing on his dantian and spiritual energy..


    ¡®My understanding of spiritual energy has definitely expanded. It looks like my cultivation is nearing the 3rd level too. I¡¯ve made incredible gains through this exam!¡¯


    Smiling happily, Li Jian knocked out and fell asleep. His spiritual energy was too low and he needed to rest.


    Hidden within Li Jian¡¯s dantian,the small white crystal pulsed for a split second.


    Back at the Affinity Orb room, Patriarch Shui was lost in his thoughts.


    ¡°Father, why didn¡¯t you tell him what affinity he had?¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t confident in my answer, but I do have something in mind.. Either way, it¡¯s too risky for anybody to know about Li Jian¡¯s affinity because he is too weak to protect himself from any danger. Go home and rest Bai¡¯er, and also look out for Li Jian, but don¡¯t make it obvious.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d normally hate doing these small things for the sect, but you can definitely entrust him to me!¡±


    Princess Bai left leaving only Patriarch Shui within the array. He stayed a little bit longer thinking about the weird changes of the orb.


    ¡®I need to confirm something..¡¯


    The array disappeared along with Patriarch Shui.


    Sleeping comfortably, Li Jian had fallen asleep and was dreaming.


    In the middle of a warzone, Li Jian glanced at a man before disappearing. He then reappeared behind the man and unleashed a devastating skill. The only thing that was visible was the body of the man being crushed into the ground, creating a crater with a diameter of 1500 meters. After a few breaths, an army rushed towards Li Jian hoping to avenge their dead commander. Under a heavy barrage of skills, Li Jian slowly waved his hands at the oncoming attacks and easily deflected them like he was pushing them aside.


    At the sound of yelling and loud banging, Li Jian¡¯s dream was interrupted.


    ¡°WAKE UP IDIOT OR ELSE I¡¯M GOING TO LEAVE AND YOU WON¡¯T BE ABLE TO SURVIVE IN THE SECT.¡±


    Li Jian rubbed his eyesto adjust to the bright morning sunlight that had snuck through the cracks of the wall.


    ¡®That dream just now was different. These last couple nights I¡¯ve had the same dream of making a promise with a beautiful girl, but what was that battle this time..? It felt so familiar...¡¯


    ¡°I. AM. LEAVING!"


    Li Jian got out of bed and changed into his new grayish-green robes.


    Walking out the door, he was welcomed with the sight of a chubby boy staring at him angrily.


    ¡°Finally!! I missed breakfast and my mid-morning meal because of YOU. Elder Luo told me to be your guide today and that I had to help you. Of course I¡¯m getting some contribution points, but still!¡±


    ¡°Haha.. Sorry you missed your breakfast and mid-morning meal..¡±


    ¡°The name¡¯s Lee Gang.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for being so patient Lee Gang.¡±


    ¡°Follow me, I¡¯ll show you around the outer sect.¡±


    Lee Gang, stomping his feet with each step, was clearly a bit mad.


    ¡°First things first, contribution points are the currency in the sect. You can use your contribution points at the Outer Sect Shop to buy pretty much anything like cultivation resources, medicine, weapons, skills, and most importantly, food! But all the good stuff is limited in stock..¡±


    ¡°You can gain contribution points by carrying out tasks from the Elders or successfully completing missions. The missions are posted on the mission board right in front of the Outer Sect Hall.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re in the residential district at the moment, but we¡¯ll soon reach the hall. The shop is also inside of the hall, so it¡¯s very convenient.¡±


    ¡°Oh, since you¡¯re new, you¡¯ll have to take classes until the teacher passes you.¡±


    ¡°How do I pass?¡±


    ¡°Learn the material and perform well, obviously. By the way, what affinity do you have? Mine¡¯s wind. They say people with wind affinity are more agile and swift than others.¡±


    Lee Gang puffed his chest out as if he was proud, but while puffing his chest out, his belly pushed out, stretching hisrobe to its limits.


    ¡®I can¡¯t see this fatty being as swift as wind..¡¯


    ¡°I have no affinity.¡±


    Lee Gang stopped abruptly causing Li Jian to walk into him.


    ¡°You have no affinity? I¡¯ve never heard of someone with no affinity.. Good luck with that, the classes here only teach you based on what type of affinity you have.¡±


    Dropping the matter, Lee Gang pulled a rice cake out of his pocket and took a tiny bite.


    ¡®How did he become so fat if he eats like this?!¡¯


    ¡°Stop staring at me while I eat. I get nervous.. Oh! You must be wondering why I¡¯m taking such tiny bites huh.¡±


    ¡°No.. I...¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m on a diet. Apparently, Hwa Qing likes muscular men. Wait until she sees what¡¯s under this belly hahaha.¡±


    With nothing to say, Li Jian just followed this Lee Gang unable to say anything.


    In an old library, two men, one old, one young, stared down at a dusty, tattered book.


    The old man pointed at some words on a page with a solemn expression.


    The young man, shocked to the core couldn¡¯t believe what he read.


    He mouthed the words:


    ¡°Spatial Affinity.¡±

 Chapter 5 - A Friend

    ¡°Spatial affinity.. An element that hasn¡¯t been seen since the ancient era..¡±


    The old man spoke while sitting himself down to rest.


    ¡°To think a child in the 2nd level of the Mortal realm would have a spatial affinity..¡±


    The young man still reading the description of the spatial element was Patriarch Shui.


    ------------------------------------------------------


    With the heat of the sun intense as ever, Li Jian and Lee Gang made their way to the Outer Sect Hall.


    ¡°Here we are!¡±


    Out of breath and sweating, Lee Gang dropped to the ground to take a break.


    Li Jian saw many disciples gathered around the mission board. There were all sorts of missions ranging from item requests, escorting, bounties, and even things like delivery. The mission rewards were varying amounts of contribution points.


    Lee Gang, seeing Li Jian studying the mission board, crossed his legs and faced the mission board as well.


    ¡°There are many missions you can choose from, and there is no requirement, so you can accept any of them. Be careful though, some missions can reward a lot of contribution points, but can be way too risky and you might die. I remember I accepted a mission where I had to find a Serpent Fire herb. Who knew a big Infernal Serpent was there guarding it. It was even at the peak of the Earthly realm! I¡¯m only in the 2nd level of the Mortal realm! I turned back around and dropped that mission haha.¡±


    ¡°What are those letters on the mission requests?¡±


    ¡°Missions have different difficulties which are determined by the sect. Hardest is A-level difficulty, where E is the easiest. I¡¯ve heard of S-level missions, but it might just be a rumor.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I think that¡¯s enough time for rest. Li Jian, you¡¯ll have to talk to Elder Ma inside of the Hall and he¡¯ll tell you all about your classes. I¡¯ll wait outside and then show you around some more.¡±


    ¡°Thanks Lee Gang.¡±


    With that, Li Jian walked into the Hall.


    The Outer Sect Hall was a large, curved, white building that looked like a crescent moon on its side. Inside of the hall was a giant guardian lion statue with its left paw clutching the moon. To the left of the statue was a large store, which was the Outer Sect Shop. To the right was a closed off area with an old white haired man seated behind a table.


    Li Jian walked towards the old man.


    ¡°Greetings Elder Ma.¡±


    Raising one eyebrow, the old man looked up, placed his book down, andexamined this child in front of him.


    ¡°So you¡¯re Li Jian: the only new face I haven¡¯t seen yet. The Patriarch already told me about you and your lack of affinity. I¡¯d usually place disciples into a class that matches their affinity, as well as a battle training class, but for you I¡¯ve been instructed to only have you participate in the latter. While other students are learning more about their element, and using that knowledge in battle training, you won¡¯t have that advantage.¡±


    ¡°Your class is instructed by Master Yun in the north training grounds. Here is an outer sect medallion. This medallion not only acts as your identity within the sect, but is also used for your class. Classes are held once a week and your medallion will notify you a day before Master Yun begins class. If you have any other questions, I¡¯m always here.¡±


    Elder Ma smiled andresumed reading his book.


    ¡°Thank you Elder Ma. I¡¯ll be off then.¡±


    Putting away the medallion, Li Jian bowed and turned around. Instead of walking towards the exit, he headed towards the shop.


    ¡®I have 500 contribution points, so let¡¯s see what I can get with that.¡¯


    There were many disciples here grabbing all sorts of items; pills, herbs, tools, weapons, etc.


    ¡®Looking at the prices, there doesn¡¯t seem to be anything that I can¡¯t buy.. I shouldn¡¯t spend impulsively. I¡¯ll come back later, Lee Gang is probably getting impatient.¡¯


    While exiting the hall, Li Jian noticed Lee Gang was talking with a couple of other disciples. One disciple had a piercing in his nose, the other had a rather long neck like a giraffes, and the last looked like a sloth. Walking closer to Lee Gang, Li Jiannoticed Lee Gang waslooking down with a slight frown.


    ¡°Look at this pig standing up on two legs acting like he¡¯s human, hahaha dumb pig.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s so fat too! He actually thought Hwa Qing would want to be his? Quit dreaming!¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    ¡°Maybe all that fat isweighing your cultivation down at the 2nd level hahaha.¡±


    Lee Gang was getting bullied! While these three were making fun of Lee Gang, the surrounding disciples were either watching in silence or laughing.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you three ugly pieces of shit shut up.¡±


    Like glass shattering, everyone¡¯s attention turned towards Li Jian.


    ¡°Who the fuck are you kid.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s in the 2nd level of the Mortal realm like this pig hahaha, do you want to die an early death?¡±


    ¡°2nd level? I could beat you with my eyes closed hahaha.¡±


    The disciples who were watching couldn¡¯t wait to see a fight, but were disappointed when they saw that the kid was only in the 2nd level (it would be over in an instant).


    Lee Gang stared straight at Li Jian.


    ¡°Li Jian, what are you doing!! These guys are students of Elder Lu, the Head of Punishment! You can¡¯t offend them like that! And by yourself, you can¡¯t take on three people in the 3rd level of the Mortal realm..¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t stand by and watch you get bullied. Friends don¡¯t do that.¡±


    Hearing this, Lee Gang almost bursted into tears. Always bullied for being fat, Lee Gang didn¡¯t really have many friends. He had always holed himself in his home, except one day where he confessed his love to Hwa Qing. Being rejected, he lost the remaining bit of his confidence.


    ¡°Friends don¡¯t do that wahh. Shut up trash. Jia Xi, He Ra, show these two what we do with trash. They¡¯re an eyesore.¡±


    This was the ¡°leader¡± of the three, Lu Bao. He was the son of Elder Lu, the Head of Punishment.


    Gazing at them with a cold look, Li Jian readiedhimself for a battle.


    Before anything could even happen, a woman¡¯s voice rang loudly before a figure showed up.


    ¡°Stop. Lu Bao, Jia Xi, He Ra, what do you think you¡¯re doing picking on disciples with lower cultivation than you guys? Did you also forget that it¡¯s against the rules to fight inside of the sect? Your master is Elder Fong, yet you forget this simple rule?¡±


    ¡°Princess Bai!¡±


    Everyone immediately fell to their knees and bowed. She not only had a high position in the sect, but was also the daughter of the Patriarch. On top of that, her cultivation towered above the disciples of the sect.


    Li Jian stood there wondering why someone like the Princess was in the Outer Sect at this time.


    ¡°Anyways, break it up.¡±


    Princess Bai sighed before leaving.


    ¡®So much for being lowkey, forgive me father..¡¯


    When she left, all the disciples screamed in excitement. This was their first time seeing her in person.


    ¡°She¡¯s so beautiful! I wish she would notice me.¡±


    Lu Bao gave Li Jian and Lee Gang a death stare.


    ¡°We¡¯ll settle this soon. Jia Xi, He Ra let¡¯s go.¡±


    With the three leaving, Lee Gang let out a breath relaxing himself.


    ¡°Brother Lee, don¡¯t ever let them bully you like that again. Be strong!¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t.. I¡¯m fat, weak, and a loser.¡±


    ¡°Stop thinking like that. If you get stronger nobody will mess with you again. Show others who you truly are.¡±


    ¡°Thanks Brother Li. I¡¯ve never had anyone stand up for me like that..¡±


    Sniffling, tears streaked down Lee Gang¡¯s face.


    ¡°Well, we¡¯re stuck together now since Lu Bao wants us dead haha.. Anyways, is there anywhere else you need to show me?¡±


    Wiping his face, Lee Gang smiled once more and led the way.


    The two visited many more buildings and locations before taking a small break.


    ¡°There¡¯s only one more place: the Jade Moon Trial. This trial is open to all sect disciples and is a trial by fire. It tests how far you can travel before reaching your limits. There¡¯s even a ranking system, but only for the top 1000. You¡¯re looking at rank 993!¡±


    ¡°The spiritual energy inside of the cave is insanely abundant, making it a good training place. But it¡¯s too dangerous, so don¡¯t even think about going in. I only went in last time because I was depressed Hwa Qing rejected me..¡±


    ¡°What rank are those three monkeys from before?¡±


    ¡°Lu Bao is rank 711, Jia Xi is 712, He Ra is 713. And you know who holds rank 1? Huang Fang!¡±


    ¡°Those who are in the top rankings receive crazy amounts of resources as rewards! I bet if we ever reached those ranks we''dbe able to become inner disciples!¡±


    The two boys walked towards a mountain where a cave entrancewas seen: this was the Jade Moon Trial. Besides the cave entrance was a massive board with a thousand names. This wasn¡¯t an ordinary board because the names and ranks were glowing with spiritual energy. Some ranks and names were constantlyshifting becauseof the disciples inside the trial.


    There were many disciples watching the rankings while others were entering the trial. Those who couldn¡¯t last any longer inside of the trial were teleported out in front of the entrance.


    ¡°That completes the tour Brother Li! Come on, I¡¯ll treat you to some dumplings to celebrate your first day and to thank you for earlier.¡±


    Li Jian stood there looking at the mouth of the cave before turning around and following Lee Gang.


    The sun set andthe two sat on a bench, snacking on some dumplings.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t these the best dumplings ever? I could eat a million of these and never get sick of them!¡±


    Taking a bite, Li Jian was shocked. Heswallowed his dumplings and then wiped his mouth.


    ¡°This is too good!¡±


    ¡°Hahaha didn¡¯t I tell you?!¡±


    Stars shining, and the moon illuminating the sky, the two walked back home.


    ¡°GoodnightBrother Li! I can¡¯t come by tomorrow because of my classes, but I live on the corner farther down, so come by whenever!¡±


    ¡°Goodnight Brother Lee.¡±


    Parting ways, Li Jian entered his home.


    ¡®I¡¯ve already made enemies on my first day in the sect.. Although unlucky, I¡¯ve also made a friend.¡¯


    Li Jian sat on his bed and closed his eyes. He thought about all of the events that happened earlier in the day and then remembered his dream.


    ¡®I wonder what kind of skills those were to be so powerful?¡¯


    Thinking about his own set of skills, he only had one: Four Palm Strike.


    Sighing, Li Jian thought, ¡®Even if I reach the 3rd level I won¡¯t be able to fight those three idiots with only my Four Palm Strike..¡¯

 Chapter 6 - Shopping

    Dawn of the next morning.


    ¡°Li Jian, are you there?!¡±


    ¡°Li Jian, wake up and come outalready would ya!¡±


    Continuous banging on the door, Li Jian woke up annoyed.


    ¡®I hope waking me up in the morning like this doesn¡¯t become a routine..¡¯


    Li Jian walked out of his house and instead of Lee Gang staring at him angrily, it was the Meng twins. One who was calm, and the other who was rowdy.


    ¡°Good morning, Li Jian!¡±


    ¡°¡®Bout time you¡¯re awake.¡±


    ¡°Hello Meng brothers, I¡¯m glad we all made it into the sect, but how about knocking a little more gently in the morning.¡±


    With guilty expressions, the Meng brothers looked to the side and gave a helpless shrug.


    ¡°We were looking for you yesterday, but you weren¡¯t home!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I was being given a tour of the outer sect.¡±


    ¡°We heard about what happened with you and Lu Bao?¡±


    ¡°He wanna fight, we¡¯ll give him a fight.¡±


    ¡°Haha.. Thank you for worrying about me, but I won¡¯t have you two involved in my own affairs.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re in this together Li Jian. If it weren¡¯t for you we probably wouldn¡¯t have figured out the first stage of the exam. We owe you our gratitude.¡±


    ¡°Much appreciated Li Jian. If anyone messes with ya, we¡¯ll be right there by your side.¡±


    ¡°Many thanks, brothers.¡±


    Smiling, Li Jian couldn¡¯t help but feel thankful for how true and passionate these two were. These were the type of people he would protect and fight with.


    ¡°By the way, do you guys know if there is a library around here?¡±


    ¡°Of course, we checked out a lot of the facilities yesterday. Come on, it¡¯s this way! We don¡¯t really have anything to do today since our classes are tomorrow.¡±


    Walking along the path through the morning fog, Meng Zhao spoke about their day yesterday and how they entered the Jade Moon Trial. But Li Jianwas already lost in his thoughts..


    ¡®I wonder how Li Mu is doing? He looked different that night.. I should ask him about what happened to the rest of the members of the Li clan.¡¯


    ¡°This is it. Looks really old, but it has all the books for whatever you need. You¡¯re not allowed to take the books out due to a protective array, but you can read whatever you want inside.¡±


    Grumbling noises interrupted the conversation, and with an embarrassed look, the twins grabbed their stomachs.


    ¡°We¡¯re gonna go grab a snack, we¡¯ll meet ya back here in a bit.¡±


    ¡°Oh, by the way, have you spent your monthly allowance yet? Don¡¯t blow it all on resources.¡±


    Ears twitching, Li Jian looked at Meng Zhao, squinting his eyes.


    ¡°Monthly allowance?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know..? Outer sect disciples receive 20 contribution points monthly. Jiao¡¯er and I will probably spend this on food for the month. We¡¯re thinking of taking on a mission after our classes, you should come with!¡±


    ¡®20 contribution points.. Was that little or was the 500 I received excessive?¡¯


    ¡°Didn¡¯t know we were given an allowance, that¡¯s good to know! I don¡¯t know when my class is, but I¡¯m definitely looking forward to taking on a mission.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ll wait for ya and then take it together.¡±


    At this point, the twin¡¯s bellies had been roaring.


    ¡°Uhh, so we¡¯re going to go eat some breakfast. I¡¯ll bring you back some dumplings.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, take your time. I¡¯ll be in here for awhile.¡±


    Li Jian walked into the small, old building. It looked like it hadn¡¯t been maintained for awhile now due to the vines that hadgrown along the sides. Compared to the rest of the buildings in the sect, this building looked way too out of place.


    Within the library, there was only one other person: a small, petite girl with long, black hair that covered her eyes and most of her face. When Li Jian walked in, she glanced at him before burying her face into the book she was currently reading.


    Without paying attention to her any longer, Li Jian walked around examining all of the books. Brimming with excitement, Li Jian chose a few to study. Back in the Falling Leaf Village, there weren¡¯t that many resources available to him besides Uncle Chen¡¯s limited knowledge. This library was a trove of treasures to Li Jian, because he had always wondered about the world outside of Falling Leaf Village.


    [History of the Strong Winds Continent]


    [Jade Moon Sect]


    [Book of Affinity]


    Opening the first book about the continent, Li Jian flipped through the pages withoutskipping a single word.


    ¡®The Strong Winds Continent is made up of seven sects: Jade Moon, Iron Dragon, FrostFox, Sacred Phoenix, Azure Ocean, Heaven¡¯s Lightning, Nether Phantom. These sects are dubbed ¡°The Seven Sects¡±¡¯A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    Continuing to read and study, Li Jian consumed all of this information easily.


    As he moved onto the next book about the Jade Moon Sect, Li Jian read many tales of Patriarch Shui and how he brought the sect to its recognition amongst the seven sects.


    ¡®The Dragons of Jade Moon Sect.. So it¡¯s not just Patriarch Shui who is known as the Jade Dragon..?¡¯


    Putting aside the history books, Li Jian grabbed the Book of Affinity book.Looking through the contents, he realized there was only information regarding the five basic elements.


    ¡®A cultivator with a fire affinity will have difficulty comprehending another element and may hurt their own cultivation.¡¯


    With a wry smile, Li Jian closed the book and returned the three to their original shelves. It had already been a few hours since he entered the library, but looking around, the only people in the library was Li Jian and the girl reading her book.


    ¡®I guess not that many disciples of the sect are interested in books.¡¯


    When Li Jian went to reach for another book, the door swung open.


    ¡°Li Jian, we¡¯ve been waiting for hours! How much longer will you be? Your dumplings are cold already..¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re gonna go to the mountain and train in the trial. Why don¡¯t ya come with? Your cultivation is a little lackin¡¯¡±


    ¡°You guys go on without me, I have another matter to attend to.¡±


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll see you later then.¡±


    ¡°See ya.¡±


    Watching the two leave, Li Jian turned around and grabbed one last book.


    [Martial Skills]


    ¡®Martial Skills are classified into three different subclasses: Offensive, Defensive, Movement. Having a balance of all three is important, neglecting one would be disadvantageous in combat. Skills are also classified into different grades A-E, where A is the best and E is the worst.¡¯


    Li Jian, after reading a little bit more, stood up and walked towards the exit.


    The girl in the library watched Li Jian leave and when he opened the door, a warm breeze entered brushing the hairs of the girl aside slightly revealing a pair of beautiful, violet colored eyes.


    Closing the doors to the library, Li Jian stretched his body and breathed in.


    ¡®Let¡¯s go see what I can buy at the shop.¡¯


    Retracing his steps from the day before, Li Jian headed towards the hall.


    Entering the same crescent-shaped building, Li Jian passed by the guardian lion statue and made his way into the shop.


    Skimming through theskills available, many were E grade skills. With a limited supply of resources available, outer sect disciples knew the sect would focus a majority of its resources into inner sect disciples. Jealousy, envy, and motivation drove these disciples into working hard to maybe one day become inner sect disciples themselves.


    ¡®..Flame Blast.. Water Barrier.. Stone Armor.. Air Slice.. So many skills tailored to the elements, it¡¯s a shame I don¡¯t have an affinity with any of these.¡¯


    Sighing, Li Jian continued to search for skills that didn¡¯t require any element-affinity.


    ¡®Four Palm Strike is considered an offensive type skill, so I should focus on defensive or movement.¡¯


    ¡®Concentrated Fist.. Tiger Skin.. Nimble Step..¡¯


    These skills were displayed with a parchment that had a small description of the skill. Presenting the parchment to the check-out table, a worker would then grab a copy of the skill book in exchange for the necessary contribution points to purchase.


    [50CP: Tiger Skin [E]: Hardens the skin to be as durable as a tiger''s.]


    [30CP: Nimble Step [E]: Lightens the feet to make each step substantially more agile.]


    ¡®Ehh.. 20CP difference.. I¡¯ll settle with Nimble Step.. If I¡¯m fast, my opponent won¡¯t ever touch me so I shouldn¡¯t need to worry about my defense for now..¡¯


    Li Jian grabbed the Nimble Step parchment and walked towards the cultivation resources.


    ¡®..Is there anything that can help increase my cultivation¡­¡¯


    Examining all themedicinal resources, Li Jian caught sight of a pill and an herb.


    [200CP: Fox Soul Pill: Condensed spiritual energy of a Midnight Fox¡¯s soul. Helps greatly in cultivation, but can also damage one¡¯s soul if too weak.]


    [70CP: Spirit Grass: Increases cultivation slightly.]


    ¡®Cultivation resources are so expensive! If I can breakthrough with this Spirit Grass, I can try and use the Fox Soul Pill to climb into the 4th level.. But the pill isn¡¯t only expensive, it can even hurt my cultivation..¡¯


    Already having a target on his back, Li Jian reluctantly grabbed the parchment for Fox Soul Pill and Spirit Grass. With three parchments in hand, Li Jian walked to the check-out table where a middle-aged man sat. Li Jian handed him the three parchments.


    ¡°Nimble Step, 30CP. One Spirit Grass, 70CP. One Fox..¡±


    The man raised an eyebrow and looked at Li Jian.


    ¡°One Fox Soul Pill, 200CP.. Are you sure about this choice? Why don¡¯t you settle for some more Spirit Grass..? This pill might be too dangerous for you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you senior, but I¡¯ve already made my choice.¡±


    Hearing the word Fox Soul Pill, some of the nearby disciples turned their gazes towards Li Jian.


    ¡°A 2nd level is purchasing Fox Soul Pill? He¡¯s insane¡±


    ¡°Cocky idiot. Rushing cultivation at that level is a waste.¡±


    ¡°Kids should know their limits.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t he the one who offended Lu Bao? He must be desperate.¡±


    With a disapproving look, the man totalled the items and grabbed the items.


    ¡°Your total is 300 contribution points. Hand me your Outer Sect medallion and I¡¯ll deduct the according points for you.¡±


    Taking out his Outer Sect medallion, the man checked Li Jian¡¯s CP and deducted 300 and then handed it back along with his purchased items.


    ¡®This kid has 520 contribution points? I¡¯m pretty sure this kid¡¯s a new disciple..?¡¯


    ¡°Disciple, don¡¯trely on shortcutsfor cultivation.¡±


    ¡°I understand senior.¡±


    Li Jian bowed and placed his items in his bag.


    Exiting the hall, Li Jian sensed his medallion buzzing.


    ¡®Looks like my class will be tomorrow. Time to head home and eat this grass..¡¯


    Arriving at his home, Li Jian quickly entered and placed his things down. He took out the Spirit Grass and threw it into his mouth.


    With a sudden burst of spiritual energy, Li Jian sat down and closed his eyes as he absorbedthe energy.


    A few hours later, the moon rose lighting up the night sky.


    Li Jian opened his eyes and radiated an aura of the 3rd level of the Mortal realm.


    ¡®That was too easy! Cultivation resources truly change everything! I wonder what kind of resources inner sect disciples receive...¡¯


    Li Jian pulled his bag over to him and took out a skill book.


    [Nimble Step]


    Reading the skill book carefully, Li Jian was able to comprehend it quickly. Following the patterns and body movements, he focused his spiritual energy into his feet and stood up. He felt the weight of his feet disappear gradually.


    ¡®Incredible! I feel like I can walk on water!¡¯


    Li Jian walked out of his home and activated Nimble Step. Leaving behind after-images of himself, Li Jian reappeared with a shocked expression.


    ¡®Simply too incredible! For an E grade movement skill, this was well worth the contribution points.¡¯


    Already sweating, Li Jian had run out of breath and noticed the toll the skill had on his body. His spiritual energy had been depleted tremendously.


    ¡®I¡¯ll need to train more before I can fully utilize it in battle. The spiritual energy consumption is too great for me at my current level.¡¯


    Li Jian walked back into his home and sat down. Closing his eyes, he began to stabilize his cultivation since he had just recently broken through and had expended most of his spiritual energy.


    ¡®Lu Bao, if you dare to fight me, you will regret it.¡¯

 Chapter 7 - Concede

    Darkness... endless darkness.


    Li Jian looked around only to find himself surrounded by emptiness.


    ¡®What¡¯s going on? Where am I?¡¯


    Attempting to stay calm, Li Jian¡¯s nervousness drenched the back of his shirtas cold sweat dripped down his body. Shifting his gaze, hesensed something in the distance.


    He walked towards this feeling and soon saw the girl from his dreams lying on the ground.


    Slowly moving closer and closer to her, he stopped. As if lightning had struck him and time had stopped, he froze staring wide eyed.


    Li Jian struggled to continue as he whispered the name of the girl.


    ¡°Xiu¡¯er..¡±


    She was dead.


    Across her body was a deep wound caused by a sharp weapon.


    Li Jian took a step and felt a sharp object pierce through his body. He looked down at his abdomen and saw a sword dripping fresh blood.


    ¡°Forgive me Brother Li.¡±


    Li Jian opened his eyes and reached over to his stomach.


    No wound, no blood... Nothing.


    ¡®That was just a dream, but it felt so real..?¡¯


    Li Jian tried to comprehend what had happened in his dream, but realized it was already afternoon.


    ¡®Class begins soon! Elder Ma said my class is in the north training grounds. I should make my way there right now before I¡¯m late. Wouldn¡¯t want Master Yun to have a bad impression of me on my first day!¡¯


    Putting aside the events of his dream, Li Jian got out of bed and changed out of his sweat-soaked clothes.


    The training grounds was a good distance from the residential district and was split into four divisions: north, east, south, and west. Within these divisions were multiple domes where classes would be held.


    Li Jian walked around the north training ground until he found a dome with Master Yun¡¯s name on it.


    These domes were large, white and layered with multiple arrays with one singular door. Above the door was a name, indicating the teacher and class of the building.


    Li Jian opened the door and was welcomed by a man seated on the ground with his arms crossed. This man had an unkempt beard and long white hair. He had a well-defined body and was quite muscular. Even though he had white hair, he looked young!


    ¡°Welcome to combat training, Li Jian.¡±


    Li Jian bowed clasping his fist and palm.


    ¡°Li Jian greets Master Yun.¡±


    ¡®Am I early? Where the hell is everyone else..?¡¯


    ¡°Concede.¡±


    Li Jian, confused, looked at Master Yun.


    A wall of fire blazed, surrounding the edges of the dome and covered the door.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Decimating Flames!¡±


    In an instant, Li Jian was surrounded by multiple balls of fire heading straight for him!


    ¡®What the fuck! Is he trying to kill me?!¡¯


    With no time to say anything, Li Jian activated Nimble Step and dodged.


    ¡°Too slow. I can see your movements even with my eyes closed.¡±


    Master Yun punched the ground with his palm.


    ¡°Volcanic Explosion!¡±


    The dome shook violently and fire began shooting out from the ground like an erupting volcano.


    ¡®I can¡¯t keep using Nimble Step to dodge, I¡¯m expending way too much spiritual energy!¡¯


    Li Jian looked at Master Yun anddashed straight for him.


    ¡°So you want to fight me head on? A foolish mistake.¡±


    With one hand behind the other, fire blew out from Master Yun¡¯s palm.


    Li Jian jumped to the side and dodged.


    However, a splitsecond later, he felt himself being constricted and was then slammed into the ground.


    Li Jian, struggling to breathe, had the wind knocked out of him.


    The flames extinguished and Master Yun walked up to Li Jian with a grin on his face.


    ¡°You did well, except you disregarded my Flame Whip.¡±


    Still confused, Li Jian looked up at Master Yun trying to say something, but was paralyzed from being slammed into the ground.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    ¡°Try again next time hahaha.¡±


    Master Yun exited the dome and left.


    ¡®What the fuck??¡¯


    After a couple minutes, Li Jian relaxed and slowly stumbled home to rest.


    During the next week, Li Jian had continued to train his Nimble Step and was not only able to use it longer, but was able to move faster than before.


    Li Jian entered Master Yun¡¯s dome and was again welcomed with him seated with his arms crossed.


    ¡°It¡¯s only your second class, but looks like you¡¯re eager for another beating! Shall I give you a handicap this time?¡±


    Li Jian went through this ¡®combat training¡¯ class and everytime, he would lose and be beaten horribly. He would have to stay home and recuperate as he had many injuries that would barely heal in time before the next class would start.


    Five weeks had already passed and it was time for Li Jian¡¯sfifth class. Over the five weeks, Li Jian learned that he was the only student to Master Yun''s class. The other students had dropped out and transferred to different combat training classes. Some students had even been crippled!


    ¡°Master Yun, what must I do to pass??¡±


    ¡°Beat me of course! Something you won¡¯t be able to do at your current level hahaha.¡±


    Focusing his spiritual energy and activating Nimble Step, Li Jian prepared for battle.


    ¡°But today is different Li Jian, I will not be giving you lessons today.¡±


    ¡®Giving me lessons? You¡¯ve been beating me up every week! How are those lessons??¡¯


    ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving for a couple weeks, but when I¡¯m back I hope you¡¯ve progressed just a little bit hahah.¡±


    ¡°When you come back, I won¡¯t hold back!¡±


    Li Jian gritted his teeth and left.


    ¡®Damn Master Yun. Whatever! I won¡¯t waste this opportunity. It¡¯s been awhile since I¡¯ve seen any of my friends.¡¯


    Li Jian left the training grounds and went straight to Lee Gang¡¯s home.


    ¡°Brother Lee, come with me.¡±


    ¡°What are we eating?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not going to go eat right now.. Just come.¡±


    Lee Gang looked depressed and then sighed.


    ¡°Okay.. But you owe me. I can¡¯t even eat my third breakfast now.¡±


    ¡°Third breakfast? How many breakfasts are you going to eat when it¡¯s already lunch?¡±


    Lee Gang pounded his chest with his fist giving Li Jian a proud expression.


    ¡°16 meals a day is my family¡¯s motto! How can I go against my family!¡±


    ¡°Okay.. Forget it.¡±


    The two walked up the road and entered another house.


    ¡°Who¡¯s this punk?¡±


    ¡°My name is Lee Gang, and I am not a punk, punk!¡±


    ¡°Meng brothers, this is my friend Lee Gang.¡±


    ¡°Hello Brother Lee. My name is Meng Zhao and this is my brother Jiao¡¯er. A friend ofBrotherJian is a friend of ours.¡±


    ¡°Hahaha Brother Lee¡¯s got balls to call me a punk.¡±


    ¡°Alright, now that we¡¯re done with the greetings, let¡¯s get down to business. We¡¯re all in the 3rd level of the Mortal realm right now and Iwon''t be having classes for awhile. I think it¡¯s time we take on a mission!¡±


    ¡°¡®Bout time Brother Li! We been waitin¡¯ to go on a mission!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m excited! We¡¯ve been waiting for some time now, and our contribution points are running a little low..¡±


    ¡°Wait, I¡¯m still in the 2nd level though?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re at the peak Brother Lee, you¡¯ll break through soon enough.¡±


    ¡°Here Brother Lee, snack on some Spirit Grass. This should help you break through.¡±


    Meng Zhao took out some Spirit Grass from his bag and handed it to Lee Gang.


    ¡°Thank you Brother Zhao! I¡¯ll eat this later at home with my dinner!¡±


    ¡°No worries. Anything to increase our chances of succeeding."


    ¡°Brother Zhao, how did you get enough contribution points for Spirit Grass?¡±


    ¡°Jiao¡¯er and I helped out an Elder a week ago and was rewarded Spirit Grass! The spiritual energy it provides isn¡¯t that great after the 3rd level so might as well help out Brother Lee.¡±


    Li Jian couldn¡¯t help but feel happy that these three were his friends.


    ¡°Let¡¯s gocheck the mission board and pick out a mission.¡±


    The squad of four left the house and hurried over to the mission board.


    There were many groups hovering around the mission board, talking amongst each other and discussing different missions.


    Weavingthrough the crowd, Li Jian and the group looked through the listings.


    ¡°Brother Li, that one rewards 100 contribution points! We just need to kill a Fanged Tiger and bring back its fur. We can even keep the meat and fangs!!¡±


    ¡°Ooh, there should be some White Fanged Tigers in the Veiled Mist Forest nearby. This is perfect for us. They¡¯re usually in the 2nd level of the Earthly realm. Let¡¯s do it Brother Li.¡±


    ¡°This is gonna be an easy 100 contribution points.¡±


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll split the contribution points evenly among us.¡±


    Lee Gang grabbed the mission and took it to the Elder nearby to accept it. With the Elder¡¯s approval the four had finally received their first mission together.


    ¡°Dinner¡¯s on me tonight brothers!¡±


    ¡°Free dinner, Brother Li?!¡±


    Lee Gang¡¯s eyes teared up as if he was staring at a god.


    ¡°We¡¯ll leave for the mission when Lee Gang breaks through to the 3rd level.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me! I¡¯ll break through tonight with this Spirit Grass. Let¡¯s leave tomorrow morning!¡±


    ¡°If you aren¡¯t in the 3rd level by tomorrow morning, we¡¯re not going. Don''t rush cultivation and make sure it''s stabilized.¡±


    Hearing this, Lee Gang didn¡¯t want to let the three in front of him down. He bit his lip and shed a tear as he forced himself to say what he thought he would never say in his life.


    ¡°Okay... I¡¯ll be skipping dinner.. I¡¯m going home to try and break through..¡±


    Stunned, Li Jian looked at Lee Gang thinking if he was joking or not.


    ¡®Skipping dinner?? This can¡¯t be the real Lee Gang!¡¯


    Lee Gang had turned around and went home. Going on a mission with friends was more important to him than having a free dinner.


    The threeremaining went to goeat some dumplings. They called it a day and went home to prepare for their mission.


    Back at the mission board, Jia Xi could be seen talking with the Elder.


    ¡°So they¡¯re headed for the Veiled Mist Forest.. Lu Bao will enjoy this..¡±


    Night fell and Li Jian had fallen asleep rather quickly.


    The white crystal within Li Jian¡¯s dantian faintly glowed.


    Li Jian experienced the same nightmarish dream: he saw Xiu¡¯ers dead body and was stabbed in the back.


    Waking up in his sweat again, Li Jian sighed.


    Loud banging noises came from his door before being forced open.


    ¡°Brother Li! What''reyou doing!?I¡¯m in the 3rd level!! Let¡¯s get going! The Meng brothers are outside waiting for you!¡±


    ¡°Congratulations on reaching the 3rd level.. Now get out so I can change!¡±


    ¡®It¡¯s progressed from waking me up by banging on my door to barging in..¡¯


    Li Jian changed into a new pair ofrobes and grabbed his bag.


    ¡°Good morning brothers, let¡¯s head for the Veiled Mist Forest!¡±


    The four moved through Jade Moon City and out of the walls towards the vast forest.


    Following behind the group were three other disciples: Lu Bao, Jia Xi, He Ra.

 Chapter 8 - Fanged Tigers

    ¡°So... how do we find these White Fanged Tigers?¡±


    Meng Zhao shrugged.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. They go wherever they want. What I do know is, they like to sleep all day so we should be able to get the first move on them!¡±


    ¡°Coooool, looks like we¡¯ll be out for awhile. I don¡¯t think I brought enough snacks though...¡±


    Lee Gang was carrying an unusually large bag, and if it were all filled with food.. one could only question how it wasn¡¯t enough¡­


    ¡°Fatty Lee¡­¡±


    The three decided not to say anything else and continued to venture towards the forest.


    The land outside of Jade Moon City was flourishing with trees and flowers. The grass was long and soft to step on. There weren¡¯t many beasts out in the open as they had chosen to reside in the forest away from civilization.


    The walk towards the Veiled Mist Forest was short and the group soon found themselves in front of the large forest. Trees that towered above them blocked most of the sky and what lay beyond.


    ¡°Before we enter, all of you must be on guard. This forest is riddled with beasts of all strengths and kinds.¡±


    ¡°What BrotherLi said is correct; watch out for anything. We aren¡¯t only heading into the forest, we¡¯re trespassing onto many beasts¡¯ territories. The beasts this time of year are even more territorial because it¡¯s mating season.¡±


    ¡°If we meet any life threatening danger, I want you all to turn around and abandon the mission as soon as possible.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Brother Li, if you think this lunch bag will slow me down, it won¡¯t! I¡¯ll eat everything in onesecond if I have to.¡±


    With a serious and determined look, Lee Gang swore to his friends before taking out another snack.


    ¡°Ya want me to help ya eat some of that?¡±


    Lee Gang turned his head towards Meng Jiao at superhuman speed and replied with one simple word that carried the will of the heavens.


    ¡°No!¡±


    The group burst out into laughter and entered the forest.


    As they continued their journey, they came across many non-threatening beasts.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised thesebeasts are able to survive in this kind of environment?¡±


    ¡°This is only the outer area of the forest so there aren¡¯t that many aggressive magic beasts nearby which is perfect for these beasts! Kind of like how a sect is; the deeper you go the stronger thedisciples are¡­¡±


    ¡°Zhao¡¯er, ya just called all of the outer sect disciples weak¡­ Includin¡¯ us!¡±


    ¡°Haha, although its got some truth to it, we¡¯ll make it into the inner sect sooner or later.¡±


    ¡°When I become an inner sect disciple, Hwa Qing will beg to be my girlfriend!¡±


    Rustling sounds coming from behind a bush interrupted the peaceful banter.


    Li Jian whispered and raised his arm signalling the rest to hold positions.


    ¡°There¡¯s something there, be careful.¡±


    Tenseconds passed by before a roar echoed out. Before the roar could end, a giant bear jumped out of the bush thrashing its claws.


    ¡°Watch outBrother Li!¡±


    Sidestepping the oncoming attacks, Li Jian punched the bear unconscious.


    ¡°Just ameasly 2nd level Forest Bear. Nothing to worry about.¡±


    The bush that the bear had jumped out of had continued to rustle.


    ¡°Another bear??¡±


    ¡°No..¡±


    Three cubs rolled out of the bush and stared at Li Jian and the group.


    ¡°Leave them. Let¡¯s continue our mission.¡±


    ¡°That must have been their mother. Good thing you didn¡¯t kill her, Brother Li!¡±


    Lee Gang stuck a tongue out at the cubs before following after Li Jian.


    ¡°I never liked bear meat anyways.¡±


    The day went by and night had begun to descend. The forest¡¯s darkness was counteracted by the illuminating insects creating a breathtaking scene.


    ¡°It¡¯s getting pretty late. Let¡¯s rest here for the night.¡±Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    ¡°That¡¯s a very good idea Brother Li, I been waitin¡¯ for ya to say that the moment the sun disappeared.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m exhausted. We¡¯ve walked so deep into the forest, but there¡¯s still so manyweak beasts around.¡±


    ¡°We have to finish this mission fast. I¡¯m almost out of food!!¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll find the tiger soon and end this mission, don¡¯t worry haha. Rest up guys, tomorrow¡¯s a new day.¡±


    The next morning, the group continued their search for the White Fanged Tiger. After a few hours, they started seeing more stronger magic beasts and began to circulate their spiritual energy readying themselves for battle.


    Coming across a river, a white-furred beast was laying on a rock sleeping; its white furwas desired by many hunters and merchants due to its softness and defensive capabilities. This was the White Fanged Tiger.


    Hiding behind a tree, the four discussed their plan of action.


    ¡°The tiger is a 2nd level Earthly realm beast just as predicted. Brother Jiao, you¡¯ll attract its attention after Fatty Leeand I attack the beast. Brother Zhao, you¡¯ll support us. When it¡¯s been weakened, we''ll all attack together.¡±


    ¡°My earth skills ain¡¯t that bad, so don¡¯t worry ¡®bout me not grabbing its attention.¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t mastered my Water Barrier yet, but it should be good enough to fight this one tiger.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting to try out my Air Slice ever since I entered the 3rd level!¡±


    ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll surround this beast first, so get in position and remember, focus its legs. We want to immobilize it so it¡¯s more vulnerable.¡±


    Li Jian moved towards the north side of the tiger, Meng Jiao south, Meng Zhao west, and Lee Gang to the east. When the four surrounded the sleeping tiger, Li Jian signalled Lee Gang to attack.


    ¡°Air Slice!¡±


    Slashing the air with his hand, a sharp wind propelled itself towards the tiger¡¯s hind legs.


    Roaring in anguish, the tiger woke up angrily staring at the source of its disturbance; Lee Gang.


    Seeing the tiger preparing to pounce on Lee Gang, Meng Jiao intercepted and jumped up landing in front of the tiger.


    ¡°Stone Armor!¡±


    The earth around Meng Jiao gravitated onto his body forming a suit of earthen armor, a shield, and a blade.


    ¡°I ain¡¯t just good for defense!¡±


    Meng Jiao swung his blade down at the tiger cutting open a wound, causing blood to gush out coating the grass below.


    The tiger bellowed out even louder as it lunged towards Meng Jiao, baring its fangs.


    Meng Jiao held his shield up bracing himself.


    ¡°Water Barrier!¡±


    Water rushed out, forming a bubble around Meng Jiao which soondissapatedafter being destroyed by the White Fanged Tiger¡¯s ferocious bite.


    Li Jian activated his Nimble Step and appeared behind the tiger almost instantaneously.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    Each strike was focused on the tiger¡¯s bleeding leg. When all four strikes connected, the leg broke causing the tiger to collapse.


    The tiger continued to roar out its cries.


    ¡°Attack together! Let¡¯s end this!¡±


    At the final moments, three skills were shouted out.


    ¡°Blazing Spear!¡±


    ¡°Tornado Blast!¡±


    ¡°Boulder Crush!¡±


    Before Li Jian and the group could end the tiger¡¯s life, three elemental attacks came out of nowhere!


    A spear made of fire, araging tornado, and a large boulder came flying at Li Jian.


    Using Nimble Step, Li Jian had barely dodged.


    Turning around, Li Jian laid eyes on a familiar face.


    ¡°Lu Bao!¡±


    Behind Lu Bao was Jia Xi and He Ra.


    Li Jian''s killing intent roseuntil he sensed Lu Bao¡¯s cultivation.


    ¡®4th level! Not good!¡¯


    ¡°RETREAT!¡±


    Hearing Li Jian yell retreat, the three then noticed Lu Bao¡¯s current cultivation.


    With Lu Bao a whole level ahead of all of them, the difference was too great. A four versus one could potentially give them a fighting chance, but alongside Lu Bao were two other people in the 3rd level! The situation was not looking good at all.


    The Meng brothers retreated west and Lee Gang had ran east.


    ¡°He Ra, Jia Xi, take care of Lee Gang. I¡¯ll dispose of this Li Jian.¡±


    While Li Jian stared at Lu Bao, he began formulating multiple plans of escape.


    ¡®Run north deeper into the forest? Get through Lu Bao and run for the city? What''s the best course of action...¡¯


    ¡°Li Jian, I¡¯ll give you one chance for forgiveness. Kowtow before me and kiss the dirt I walk on, then maybe, just maybe, I¡¯ll cripple you and let you live a life full of regrets.¡±


    ¡°Fuck you.¡±


    ¡°Learn to give your daddy some face, you fucking rat. Prepare to die!¡±


    Li Jian activated Nimble Step but then froze¡­


    A deafening roar shook the ground causing the wounded White Fanged Tiger to cry out louder.


    Half a second later, a blood colored tiger appeared next to the White Fanged Tiger.


    ¡®4th level Earthly realm!¡¯


    ¡°Blood Fanged Tiger!?¡±


    The moment Lu Bao saw this tiger appear, he turned around and ran as fast as he could. Even though this tiger was the same level as Lu Bao, this was a Blood Fanged Tiger; the strongest of the tiger species within the forest!


    The Blood Fanged Tiger couldn¡¯t care less about Lu Bao and turned his attention towards Li Jian: the one orchestrating the attacks. The White Fanged Tiger roared, staring at Li Jian causing the Blood Fanged Tiger¡¯s killing intent to rise even more.


    ¡®Fuck! That¡¯s her mate!¡¯


    Li Jian didn¡¯t waste any time and used Nimble Step to escape north.


    While running away, Li Jian turned his head to see if the Blood Fanged Tiger was chasing after him, but he noticed the tiger hadn¡¯t moved at all.


    ¡®He¡¯s not coming..?¡¯


    The Blood Fanged Tiger stood there snarling. Two slits opened on the back of its body where a pair of blood wings formed.


    ¡®Are you KIDDING me?! A mutated Blood Fanged Tiger?!?!¡¯


    With the wings fully formed, the tiger flapped its giant blood wings and shot straight at Li Jian. The tiger swiped itsclaws and knocked Li Jian flying into a tree. The impact caused the giant tree to break.


    Li Jian spit out a mouthful of blood as he forced himself up.


    ¡®My left arm is broken and I¡¯m internally bleeding badly... This is not looking good..¡¯


    The Blood Fanged Tiger slowly crept closer to Li Jian.


    Breathing heavily, Li Jian¡¯s mind raced as he looked for any opportunity for survival.


    Li Jian closed his eyes for a moment and took in a deep breath before reaching inside of his bag.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have come after me.¡±


    Li Jian pulled out a purple colored pill and threw it into his mouth.

 Chapter 9 - Special Reward

    Consuming the Midnight Fox Pill he had previously bought from the Outer Sect Shop, erratic and chaotic spiritual energy spread throughout Li Jian¡¯s body and dantian.


    Spitting out more blood, Li Jian collapsed onto the ground unable to stand any longer.


    Li Jian clenched his body while his cultivation broke through into the 4th level. Power filling his veins, the spiritual energy continued to barrage his body and organs.


    The white crystal glowed vibrantly and began rotating, stabilizing the energy.


    Li Jian gazed at the Blood Fanged Tiger with a glint of light radiating from his eyes.


    ¡®I¡¯ve broken through and I¡¯m still alive!¡¯


    The Blood Fanged Tiger flew towards Li Jian and opened its mouth readying to rip him into pieces.


    Li Jian stood up and gathered all of his spiritual energy into his right hand with the air around his hand distorting.


    As the tiger closed in, Li Jian swung his fist.


    The moment his fist connected, immeasurable power destroyed the tiger¡¯s signature fangs and exploded through to its skull.


    The area around the impact sent waves of pressure outward in a spherical shape creating a crater in the ground.


    Li Jian looked down at his fist before he dropped back to the ground falling unconscious.


    ¡°...I will avenge you¡­¡±


    ¡°...There will come a day¡­¡±


    ¡°...reincarnation¡­¡±


    ¡°...I will find you¡­¡±


    ¡°...Those who¡¯ve forgotten about me...¡±


    ¡°...Those who¡¯ve betrayed me¡­¡±


    ¡°...will all perish.¡±


    Li Jian slowly woke up and was unable to move. Withno strength left in his body, he tried looking around.


    ¡°Where am I¡­¡±


    ¡°Brother Li¡±


    Lee Gang, crying, yelled out hurrying to Li Jian¡¯s side.


    ¡°Brother Li, we¡¯ve been worried about you! We thought you were dead!¡±


    The two twins looked at Li Jian wiping their tears from their eyes.


    They were still situated in the Veiled Mist Forest, and Li Jian was badly wounded laying against a tree.


    ¡°Li Jian, eat this! I spent most of my contribution points to prepare these in advance. I hoped we wouldn¡¯t need them, but I¡¯m glad.¡±


    Lee Gang, who was still sniffling, took out some light blue herbs feeding them to the weak Li Jian.


    After an hour, Li Jian gained some strength and his complexion looked a little better.


    ¡°Thank you brothers¡­ What happened to Lu Bao and the other two?¡±


    ¡°I was being chased by Jia Xi and He Ra, but the Meng brothers came just in time to turn the fight back at them!¡±


    ¡°We chased them off and came back to the river, but couldn¡¯t find the White Fanged Tiger anywhere. We heard a loud explosion and figured it was you and Lu Bao fighting, but all we found was you lying there on the ground half dead next to this Blood Fanged Tiger corpse¡­¡±


    ¡°What happened after we all separated Brother Li?!¡±


    Li Jian told the story of the Blood Fanged Tiger''s appearance and Lu Bao¡¯s retreat. From beginning to end, the boys couldn¡¯t stop shaking from excitement, amazement, and awe.


    ¡°To think you fought and killed this mutated Blood Fanged Tiger all by yourself?!¡±


    ¡°Ya even broke through to the 4th level! You¡¯re a monster!¡±


    ¡°Big Brother Li, I will follow you anywhere!¡±


    ¡°Settle down Fatty Lee, hahaha.¡±


    ¡°In any case, let¡¯s just skin this Blood Fanged Tiger and complete the mission. I think it¡¯s best for us to get to the sect as soon as possible for our own safety.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll carry ya Brother Li, you¡¯re too weak right now to travel.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, I can endure a little longer.¡±


    When Li Jian tried to stand up, the pain from consuming the Midnight Fox Pill still lingered causing him to fall over.


    ¡°Brother Li! Let us help you!¡±


    ¡°Okay, if there¡¯s any danger along the way just leave me be.¡±


    ¡°We will not be leaving you.¡±


    ¡°We ain¡¯t leavin¡¯ ya.¡±


    ¡°I told you already; I¡¯m going to follow you anywhere!¡±


    ¡°Thank you brothers. Let¡¯s get going. It''s too dangerous here.¡±Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    With a face of gratitude, Li Jian hooked his arms around Meng Jiao and Meng Zhao as the two supported him.


    The group travelled back towards the city taking a different path as a precaution against Lu Bao since he had followed them on their journey unnoticed. With Li Jian injured, they didn¡¯t want to take anymore risks.


    Although moving along a new path, the group was not met with any new dangers and was able to make it back into the city and sect in three days.


    The sun had just set and it was already night time.


    During their travels, Li Jian was able to stabilize his cultivation and had stopped his internal bleeding.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to stop by the infirmary to see if they can fix my broken arm. I¡¯ll meet you guys at the mission board tomorrow afternoon.¡±


    ¡°You can turn it in without us Brother Li; we all have classes tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll see you guys next time. Have a good night brothers!¡±


    The four split and Li Jian followed the path towards the infirmary.


    The full moon was peeking out behind dark clouds, surrounded by perfectly scattered, glittering stars. There was a faint wind that was swaying the leaves of the nearby trees.


    Turning the corner was a large cherry blossom tree drooping over the side of the road. Atop the main, long branch of the tree was a small girl staring out at the night sky.


    When Li Jian walked along the road passing by the tree, he glanced at the girl.


    ¡®It¡¯s the girl from the library...¡¯


    The girl, the night sky, the cherry blossom tree, the full moon, the stars, and the slight breeze had all created a beautiful scene in Li Jian¡¯s mind that he would never forget.


    Noticing a pair of eyes staring at her, the girlglanced at Li Jian before looking back at the sky. Although her hair had covered most of her face, Li Jian knew she had the most beautiful face.


    Without breaking the tranquility of the silent night, Li Jian continued on and entered the infirmary where he was given a cast for his broken arm.


    The nurse had rubbed some spiritual medicine onto his arm before placing the cast on him.


    ¡°Your arm should heal in a few days or less.Be more careful.¡±


    ¡°Thank you nurse.¡±


    Li Jian left promptly and followed the road back. As he came upon the cherry blossom tree once again, he looked up but found no girl.


    Although slightly dissatisfied, Li Jian didn¡¯t stay any longer and walked back to his house. After arriving back home, he jumped onto his bed, releasing all of the stress and tension from the last few days.


    ¡®Vengeance and reincarnation... Betrayedand forgotten¡­¡¯


    As Li Jian pondered these words, a wave of tiredness and exhaustion knocked Li Jian to sleep.


    The next morning when Li Jian woke up, his injuries had all healed earlier than expected.


    ¡®Didn¡¯t think my arm would heal with one nights rest..¡¯


    Li Jian removed the cast, stretching his arms and muscles before walking out the door.


    When Li Jian exited his home, a particular figure was standing there in a jade-green robe.


    ¡°Mu''er?¡±


    ¡°Jian''er, I was just about to knock.¡±


    Li Mu¡¯s whole character had dulled with a lifeless expression, yet seemingly dark. Rather than the usual smile and upbeat attitude, this Li Mu seemed different.


    ¡°I¡¯ve tried looking for you Mu''er¡­ Where have you been??¡±


    ¡°Training. I just came to say hello. I had no idea you even passed the recruitment exam, but I started hearing your name recently. I¡¯m going back into closed-door training, so be safe¡­¡±


    Before Li Jian could even speak another word, Li Mu had already left and disappeared leaving behind a lingering aura of the 6th level of the Mortal realm.


    Li Jian had been stunned silent. Li Mu was only in the 3rd level before being accepted into the sect. What benefits had Li Mu earned? He had clearly become an inner sect disciple with the obvious jade-green robes on.


    ¡®This isn¡¯t the Li Mu I know¡­¡¯


    Shaking his head, Li Jian decided to not worry about it until he had his own affairs in order.


    ¡®For now I¡¯ll go and turn in the requested fur for the mission.¡¯


    Li Jian walked towards the mission board with a large backpack.


    Next to the mission board was a small building with a man sitting behind a table. This was the man handling all of the missions and rewards.


    ¡°Greetings senior, my name is Li Jian and I am part of a squad of four that accepted the Fanged Tiger fur request. I am here to turn in the requested item.¡±


    The man behind the counter rummaged through some files until he pulled out a piece of parchment.


    ¡°Lee Gang, Meng Jiao, Meng Zhao, Li Jian - Fanged Tiger Fur: 100 contribution points - D grade mission. Okay, let me see the fur.¡±


    ¡°We failed in bringing in the White Fanged Tiger fur, but I hope this will do?¡±


    ¡°The request specifically stated a Fanged Tiger¡¯s fur. If you don¡¯t have it, then you¡¯ve failed and will not be receiving the reward.¡±


    At that instant, Li Jian unveiled fur that was blood-colored from his backpack attracting many gazes of the disciples nearby.


    ¡°Hey¡­ is that a Blood Fanged Tiger¡¯s fur¡­?¡±


    ¡°This guy¡¯s only at the 4th level, there¡¯s no way he killed something like that!¡±


    When the fur was brought out, the man closed his mouth and couldn¡¯t say a single word. After a few seconds, Li Jian looked around wondering what the man was doing¡­


    ¡°Uhh¡­ So will this do or not..?¡±


    Being woken up by Li Jian¡¯s words, the man regained his composure and laughed.


    ¡°Hahaha, of course this will do! To think you went out and found a Blood Fanged Tiger. The request definitely doesn¡¯t specify what kind of Fanged Tiger fur, but because it was a D grade mission, white fur would have been sufficient. Give me one moment before I reward you.¡±


    The man brought forth a jade slip and became silent for a couple minutes.


    ¡°Okay, Disciple Li Jian. I¡¯ve gotten permission to give you a special reward: 800 contribution points.¡±


    800 contribution points! The disciples who were watching couldn¡¯t help but boil in jealousy and envy.


    ¡®So if we split it evenly, that¡¯s 200 to each of us¡­ Not bad! Even if I disregard the fact that my life was on the line for this, this is quite the reward!¡¯


    ¡°The reward will be split amongst my squad evenly.¡±


    ¡°No problem, just have them drop by any time and I will present them with their rewards accordingly.¡±


    ¡°Thank you senior.¡±


    Li Jian turned and left, making his way out of the sea of jealousy currently surrounding him. Within this sea of disciples, there was a certain lackey watching Li Jian; Jia Xi.


    ¡®He¡¯s still alive! And he¡¯s in the 4th level?!¡¯


    Li Jian walked casually, not towards his home, but towards a particular mountain.


    ¡®I should rest a little more, butthere''s this lingering feeling like I don''t have much time to waste.¡¯


    ¡®Lee Gang warned me not to take on the Jade Moon Trial when I was in the 2nd level, but things are different now. I¡¯m already at the 4th level, I think the time is now.¡¯


    ----------Near the residential district----------


    Jia Xi ran as fast as he could to Lu Bao¡¯s home. When he arrived, he knelt down onto his knees in front of Lu Bao as he spoke.


    ¡°Boss Lu! Li Jian is still alive!! And that¡¯s not the only thing... He¡¯s even broken through to the 4th level!¡±


    Hearing the name Li Jian, Lu Bao smashed the table next to him with all of his anger.


    "So the rat is still alive?!"


    ¡®Master Lu already told me he¡¯ll ignore my affairs and protect me. Hmph, the sect won¡¯t care about a single outer sect disciple dying anyways.¡¯


    ¡°Where is he?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s headed for the Jade Moon Trial.¡±


    ¡®The heavens are blessing me with such an opportunity. Princess Bai won¡¯t be here to save him this time.¡¯


    With a wicked and malicious smile on Lu Bao¡¯s face, he exited his house and headed towards the Jade Moon Trial.

 Chapter 10 - Jade Moon Trial

    ¡®It¡¯s been awhile since I¡¯ve left home¡­ Uncle¡¯s probably worried like crazy. I¡¯ll send a letter after I try out the trial.¡¯


    Li Jianwalked towards the mountain casually, enjoying the walk.


    The dirt road ran straight through to the mountain and was surrounded by a path of trees. Many disciples of the sect would clutter this road every day. Both outer and inner sect disciples walked the same road to take part in the trials.


    Li Jian couldn¡¯t help but overhear two disciples in front of him talking about the trial.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t get that far last time, but this time for sure!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you work on that. I¡¯m gonna look for treasure!¡±


    ¡°Treasure? What treasure?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but my older brother found a medium grade spirit weapon last time!¡±


    ¡°Medium grade?! What the hell! The shop only sells low grade!¡±


    ¡°Exactly! Maybe I¡¯ll find a high grade weapon haha.¡±


    ¡°Well shit! I¡¯m going to look for treasure too then!¡±


    ¡®Interesting¡­ So this trial also has hidden treasures? Maybe I¡¯ll look for some too.¡¯


    A loud explosion shook the trees and the road.


    Li Jian turned his head towards the direction of the explosion and looked passed the trees to his left.


    ¡®A fire?¡¯


    Creeping closer, Li Jian peeked behind a tree and saw a fight going on between a girl with jade-green robes and a group of outer disciples.


    This girl had azure colored hair, the same girl who had ranked 2nd in the recruitment exam.


    Surrounding the girl, the gang of outer disciples began preparing to unleash another attack.


    ¡®She¡¯s a 5th level and these guys are in the 3rd level¡­ Are they stupid?¡¯


    The girl¡¯s robe had been damaged slightly, but she looked as if she hadn¡¯t been troubled at all.


    ¡°Flame Barrage!¡±


    ¡°Boulder Punch!¡±


    ¡°Fierce Wind!¡±


    The three skills had supported and fused with each other causing the boulders to envelope in flames while flying towards the girl at extreme speed.


    ¡°You can¡¯t beat our three family synergy you slut!¡±


    The girl who had seemed calm slightly twitched.


    ¡°You dare call me, Yu Yan, a slut?¡±


    Her calmness and tranquility had snapped.


    ¡°Water Geyser!¡±


    Multiple geysers exploded out from underneath destroying the boulders that had come towards her. More geyers had also gushed out, hitting the three outer disciples, wiping them out unconscious.


    ¡°Hmph!¡±


    Without wasting any more time, Yu Yan walked towards the road.


    ¡°You can come out from behind the tree now.¡±


    Li Jian had been spotted and was now in an awkward position.


    ¡®This girl is crazy.¡¯


    Li Jian put on a smile and walked out.


    ¡°Greetings sister, I just happened to be walking by¡­¡±


    ¡°I remember you. You¡¯re the disciple with no affinity.¡±


    Scratching his head with a dumb smile, Li Jian just laughed.


    ¡°Haha.. Yeah that¡¯s me, Li Jian¡­¡±


    ¡°If you don¡¯t want to end up like these idiots, you better watch your mouth.¡±


    ¡°Um¡­ I didn¡¯t say anything though¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be leaving then.¡±


    Yu Yan walked passed Li Jian and left towards the trial. Her azure hair flowed gently through the wind.


    ¡®She¡¯s strong, beautiful, but crazy¡­ Her personality doesn¡¯t match her appearance at all. I¡¯ll have to be careful around her.¡¯


    Li Jian stood there for a moment before turning around and continuing on the road.


    The walk didn¡¯t take any longer and Li Jian was standing in front of the cave; the entrance to the Jade Moon Trial.


    Looking up at the rankings, the names and ranks were still changing, except the top 100. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡®This trial by fire ranks you based on how deep you can go within this mountain.Guess I shouldn¡¯t waste any more time!¡¯


    Li Jian walked forward and as he stepped into the cave, his badge had lit up for a second.


    A wave of heavy spiritual energy permeated the cave, bombarding Li Jian.


    ¡®So much spiritual energy!¡¯


    The cave had an abundant amount of spiritual energy, and was very dark. Li Jian could only see a few meters around him before being unable to see any farther.


    ¡®I could probably just cultivate here for awhile and I¡¯ll have already gained a lot from just entering!¡¯


    Before being able to settle down, Li Jian heard some scuttling nearby.


    ¡®What was that? Disciples?¡¯


    Looking in the general direction of the sound, Li Jian squinted his eyes trying to focus.


    A small, rocky creature was crawling around. It had made eye contact with Li Jian before burrowing into the ground. The hole that the creature created, closed instantly.


    ¡®I think that was a Rock Lizard? 3rd level Spirit realm beasts nesting by the entrance. No wonder Lee Gang thought it was dangerous. I guess I can¡¯t really sit down and cultivate. I almost forgot about the ¡®dangers¡¯ of the trial.¡¯


    Li Jian decided to not idle around any longer and moved on. Some Rock Lizards would jump out from below and lunge at him, but would all be defeated in one strike.


    The mountain wasn¡¯t too big, but Li Jian had already been walking around for about two hours.


    ¡®I think I¡¯m going in circles¡­ I¡¯ve walked around the whole cave already and I haven¡¯t seen any other disciples¡­ Where the hell am I supposed to go.¡¯


    Li Jian sat on the ground brainstorming, trying to figure out a way.


    ¡®Lee Gang said this was a trial by fire¡­ He also said it tests how far I can travel¡­¡¯


    Another Rock Lizard was scuttling around Li Jian before burrowing into the ground.


    Li Jian tilted his head and wondered¡­


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    Li Jian striked the ground and created a large hole. Peering inside the hole, Li Jian just saw endless darkness and deepness.


    ¡®It can¡¯t be¡­¡¯


    The hole closed and Li Jian striked it again with another Four Palm Strike.


    ¡®I hope I¡¯m not wrong.¡¯


    Li Jian jumped into the newly created hole.


    A flash of light wrapped around Li Jian and in half a breath, Li Jian was teleported into a new part of the trial. This area was scattered with many cyan-glowing rocks, illuminating the cave brightly.


    Surveying his surroundings, Li Jian saw a couple of other disciples wandering around.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    Li Jian punched the ground below, but no hole was made.


    ¡°Must be his first time in the trial.¡±


    ¡°What a monkey haha.¡±


    Li Jian, feeling a little embarrassed, looked around and moved towards a path more quickly than usual.


    ¡®I won¡¯t be doing that again...¡¯


    Navigating his way through the tunnels and different paths, Li Jian made a mental map in his mind of everywhere he had been.


    Li Jian went down a new path and continued to map out the area. However, ahead of him was a giant worm-like creature with rocky skin and sharp teeth.


    This worm was in combat with another outer sect disciple who was in the 4th level of the Mortal realm.


    The disciple was bleeding and struggling.


    ¡®Giant Rock Worm. A 4th level Earthly realm beast.¡¯


    The worm moved side to side while using its head to launch rocks and boulders at the disciple.


    Using Nimble Step, Li Jian moved through the attacks, weaving easily.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    A boulder shattered in front of Li Jian.


    Li Jian darted towards the worm. As he arrived into melee range, Li Jian gathered a large amount of spiritual energy into his fist.


    The air around his fist began distorting.


    Li Jian punched the worm right in its torso.


    However, the punch backfired and hurt Li Jian slightly.


    ¡®Damn it. This isn¡¯t how it felt back then. But I think I¡¯ve grasped how it works¡­¡¯


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    With each strike, the worm crumbled and died.


    ¡®Looks like a 4th level beast isn¡¯t much to me anymore. My proficiency in Nimble Step and Four Palm Strike are reaching higher mastery. Although I can¡¯t seem to figure out how to use that weird punch I used back then against the Blood Fanged Tiger¡­¡¯


    ¡°Thank you brother, my name is Wang Jia. I owe you one!¡±


    Wang Jia, bleeding, sat down and began relaxing and tended to his wounds.


    ¡°My name¡¯s Li Jian, you don¡¯t need to owe me anything. Just be more careful.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised you were able to take it down in one move though!¡±


    Wang Jia had been busy dodging the oncoming boulders and was only able to see Li Jian use his Four Palm Strike to defeat the worm.


    ¡°It was just luck. You weakened it allowing me to take it down easily!¡±


    ¡°I guess so haha. As a thank you, the entrance to the next area is up ahead. But you should be careful, the beasts there are considerably stronger so keep your badge in hand just in case you want to teleport out.¡±


    ¡°My badge?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, your sect badge. How else do you think we¡¯d be able to get out of the trial? Many disciples have died in here you know. The badge is also how the sect monitors your ranking.¡±


    ¡°Good to know. I¡¯ll be off then.Take care, Wang Jia.¡±


    Li Jian pulled out his badge from his bag and placed it in his pocket.


    Walking in the direction Wang Jia pointed out, Li Jian was able to find the entrance. It was another cave entrance on the side of a wall that led to a set of stairs.


    Li Jian went down the stairs and half an hour passed by.


    ¡®The next area is so far down. The first area had 3rd level beasts, the second had 4th level, so this next area should have beasts in the 5th level¡­¡¯


    ¡®I¡¯ll need to be extra careful.¡¯


    At the end of the stairs was an open area with a large lake in the center bordered by large jagged rocks. In the middle of the lake was a doorway leading to the next area.


    Around the edges of the lake were many disciples who were in the 5th and 6th level of the Mortal realm. They were all sitting down cultivating on their own respective rocks. All of the disciples in this area were wearing jade-green robes.


    Li Jian walked to the outer edges and examined the lake.


    ¡®There¡¯s probably beasts in the water. Weird how the 6th level cultivators aren¡¯t moving on¡­¡¯


    Li Jian was still in the 4th level of the Mortal realm and this area had a higher amount of spiritual energy compared to the areas before. He sat down and began absorbing the energy.


    The small white crystal inside of Li Jian¡¯s dantian glowed.


    Li Jian¡¯s rate of absorption instantly increased, funneling a large amount of energy towards him.


    The shift in energy shocked the disciples in the area and became confused.


    ¡°Is it me or is the energy behaving oddly?¡±


    ¡°I feel it too.¡±


    ¡°What the hell is going on?¡±


    Li Jian was slowly reaching the 5th level. Compared to the Midnight Fox Pill, the amount of energy in the area could not be looked down on.


    Without paying any attention to the commotion, Li Jian continued to concentrate.


    As time passed, a figure walked down the stairs from the previous area, followed by three more individuals.


    ¡°So this is where you¡¯ve been hiding.¡±

 Chapter 11

    ¡°Boss Lu, which one is he?¡±


    ¡°The 4th level over there sitting down on the rocks by himself. You three better make sure nobody sees. I¡¯ll handle this kid by myself.¡±


    ¡°You can count on us.¡±


    The three that had followed behind were students of the punishment department who had lower positions than Lu Bao. However, these three were all in the 5th level.


    The three separated and took positions on all three sides of Li Jian, leaving some distance for Lu Bao to be able to fight.


    Lu Bao stared at Li Jian as if he was a rat trapped in a corner. He then jumped forward unleashing an attack.


    ¡°Blazing Spear!¡±


    Right at the same time, the three 5th level disciples also used their skills.


    ¡°Earth Wall!¡±


    ¡°Earth Wall!¡±


    ¡°Earth Wall!¡±


    Li Jian broke out of his concentration and activated Nimble Step, dodging all of the fire spears that had made their way towards him.


    ¡°Lu Bao, we are within the sect. What do you think you¡¯re doing?¡±


    ¡°Finishing what I started.¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯ve come towelcome death. Then allow me to assist you.¡±


    Lu Bao ignored Li Jian¡¯s provocative words andused another skill.


    ¡°Fire Snakes!¡±


    A large group of fire snakes shot out forward, moving in multiple directions.


    As Li Jian dodged, the snakes persisted and kept pursuing.


    ¡®Annoying.¡¯


    ¡°BlazingSpear!¡±


    More flame spears rained down on Li Jian.


    ¡®So annoying! I¡¯m close to the 5th level and Lu Bao continues to pester me.¡¯


    Li Jian activated Nimble Step and disappeared.


    Lu Bao could only see the afterimages slowly trail behind the real Li Jian.


    ¡°Stop running you piece of shit!¡±


    ¡°Who said I was running?¡±


    Li Jian appeared behind Lu Bao causing the latter to break out ina cold sweat.


    ¡°Four Palm Strike!¡±


    With each strike, Li Jian could feel and hear the sounds of bones breaking.


    Lu Bao fell over and threw up blood. His left arm had been broken and crushed.


    Struggling to stay on his feet, Lu Bao jumped backwards.


    ¡°We¡¯re the same level¡­ How can you be this strong?! What dark arts are you cultivating!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re just weak and pathetic.¡±


    ¡°You! It¡¯s time to end this. ENTER!¡±


    The moment Lu Bao yelled out, the three 5th level disciples entered the walls.


    When the three walked in and saw Lu Bao¡¯s broken arm and broken state, they turned their attention towards Li Jian and prepared to attack.


    ¡°Three 5th level disciples and one useless 4th level. I see you¡¯ve come well prepared Lu Bao.¡±


    Lu Bao¡¯s anger had surged causing him to almost pass out.


    Outside of the walls were many confused disciples.


    ¡°The hell is going on over there?¡±


    ¡°Someone must be fighting.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go watch!¡±


    One of the disciples who was cultivating near the edges was Yu Yan.


    Yu Yan decided to continue cultivating and didn¡¯t bother.


    The crowd slowly moved to thetop of the walls and began watching.


    ¡°It¡¯s Lu Bao! And his arm is broken!¡±


    ¡°Hahaha, a fight between two little 4th levels!¡±


    ¡°They even have a couple 5th levels to gang up on one of the 4th levels! Hahaha!¡±


    ¡°This is too hilarious, I can¡¯t keep watching!¡±


    Unbeknownst to Li Jian, he and Lu Bao had become the center of attention.


    ¡°Stone Armor.¡±Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    ¡°Stone Armor.¡±


    ¡°Stone Armor.¡±


    The three 5th levels activated their Stone Armor ability and the ground below broke apart and formed a suit of armor and sword onto each one of them.


    After the armor formed, the three dashed forward.


    ¡°You interrupt me while I¡¯m cultivating, you come at me with killing intent, and most of all, you think you can defeat me? You¡¯ve made too many mistakes.¡±


    Li Jian took in a deep breath and exhaled.


    ¡®When I gather a large amount of spiritual energy into my fist, the space around my fist becomes densely compacted. I need to concentrate on this ¡®space¡¯ around my fist.¡¯


    Li Jiananalyzed the punch he had used on the Blood Fanged Tiger ever since he woke up from that battle. He had made slow progress, but was never able to execute it again. However, this was his chance because he had absorbed much of the dense spiritual energy within the area.


    Li Jian began to gather a large amount of spiritual energy into his fist causing the space around it to distort.


    The three disciples moved closer and noticed the odd disturbance around Li Jian¡¯s fist. But before they could react, Li Jian had already made his move.


    Li Jian jumpedtowards the three and unleashed his might.


    ¡°SPATIAL FIST!¡±


    The blast of energy crumbled the surrounding walls and had wiped out the three earth disciples. Lu Bao had held his sect badge in his hand, but was still too slow to activate his escape and was also hit by the destructive strength of Li Jian¡¯s Spatial Fist.


    ¡°What kind of skill was that?!"


    ¡°So powerful!¡±


    The disciples watching were baffled.


    ¡®I succeeded! I¡¯m finally starting to understand this power. Although it requires an immense amount of spiritual energy, its power is incredible!¡¯


    ¡°Li Jian!¡±


    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re not dead? That¡¯s great!¡±


    Li Jian walked nonchalantly towards Lu Bao who was on the ground, bleeding heavily. Along the way, Li Jian picked up one of the stone swords created by the Stone Armor skill.


    ¡°I¡­ will¡­ kill¡­ you!¡±


    Lu Bao continued to cough up blood as he forced himself to speak.


    ¡°You won¡¯t ever have the chance to.¡±


    As Li Jian spoke these words, he had bent down to Lu Bao and brought forth the sword.


    ¡°What¡­ are¡­ you¡­ planning?!¡±


    Li Jian smirked.


    ¡°Cutting the roots off of a weed.¡±


    Li Jian punctured Lu Bao¡¯s dantian draining him of all of his spiritual energy and inevitably destroying his cultivation.


    ¡°AHHHHHHHHHHHHhhh!¡±


    Lu Bao screamed out his agony as his cultivation was diminishing. He was becoming a mortal and would never again be able to enter the martial world. A life that was worse than death.


    The disciples who had been watching were mortified as they saw the events unfold.


    ¡°What¡¯s he doing?¡±


    ¡°Is he going to kill Lu Bao?!¡±


    The spectators couldn¡¯t speak another word. Fear had filled their hearts as they watched this 4th level outer disciple cripple another disciple.


    ¡°H-he took away his cultivation¡­¡±


    Li Jian walked back to the three earth disciples on the ground and made sure they weren¡¯t dead. He had calculated the strength of his newly created skill and believed their cultivation and Stone Armor would be enough to protect their lives.


    After checking those defeated, Li Jian sat down and began cultivating.


    ¡°He¡¯s going back to cultivating after all of that?!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with this kid??¡±


    Yu Yan was constantly hearing the laughter and clamor of those around her as she continued to train. However, everything changed when she heard a loud explosion followed by silence. She looked over at where the walls had been erected and saw the boy she had just met earlier that day; Li Jian.


    She had beared witness to the cruel antics of Li Jian, but felt he had justified himself after being attacked and ganged up on. She had heard the feud going on between Li Jian and Lu Bao, so she also believed it was the right choice in crippling Lu Bao since killing was forbidden within the sect.


    ¡®Li Jian¡­ I¡¯ll see you in the inner sect.¡¯


    Yu Yan smiled and then used her sect badge to exit the trial.


    Li Jian, who was absorbing the spiritual energy, was finally making his way towards the 5th level.


    After a few minutes, Li Jian broke through and felt his whole body become bathed in an overwhelming energy as his power rose rapidly.


    ¡®This is the 5th level! I¡¯m almost at the peak of the middle stages of the Mortal realm!¡¯


    Li Jian continued to sit there to stabilize his cultivation before leaving.


    ¡®This area¡¯s spiritual energy is almost depleted¡­ Training here won¡¯t be beneficial anymore.¡¯


    When Li Jian opened his eyes, he looked over and saw that the three disciples and Lu Bao were gone.


    Lu Bao had used his remaining spiritual energy to activate his sect badge and exit the trial before all of his energy had disappeared.


    ¡®Maybe I should move onto the next area¡­¡¯


    Li Jian stood up, walked over to the lake and peered down into the water.


    Focusing some spiritual energy into his eyes, he squinted and looked into the waters.


    Within the lake he could see reptile-like beasts that were in the 7th and 8th level of the Earth realm swimming about.


    ¡®What the hell?? The power gap from the previous area and here is too large! No wonder those inner disciples haven¡¯t moved on.¡¯


    ¡®Guess that means I¡¯m going back home¡­ Oh well, I¡¯ll give this place another shot next time.¡¯


    With that, Li Jian pulled out his sect badge and activated it, leaving the trial and teleporting right outside the mountain in front of the cave entrance.


    ¡®I should have the qualifications to enter the inner sect now.¡¯


    ¡°Outer sect disciple Li Jian.¡±


    Li Jian looked around and saw a large, rugged old man holding a jade-green battle axe with one hand and wearing the jade robes of an Elder.


    ¡°Yes, Elder?¡±


    ¡°You are to be taken into custody for acting against the sect.¡±


    ¡®This must be the punishment department¡­ Lu Bao, you annoying pest.¡±


    ¡°May I ask what I am being accused of?¡±


    ¡°You have injured three 5th level disciples, and have crippled Lu Bao. Is what I have stated false?¡±


    Li Jian looked coldly at the Elder.


    ¡°Everything you have said is true.¡±


    The disciples outside all sucked in cold air. This disciple had fought three 5th levels and had also crippled Lu Bao? To defeat others was one thing, but to cripple someone? That was going too far!


    ¡°This guy crippled Lu Bao?! Has he gone mad? Elder Lu will kill him!¡±


    ¡°I heard this Li Jian and Lu Bao had some bad blood.¡±


    ¡°Li Jian, you are to come with me to the detention building.¡±


    ¡°I have done nothing wrong. I acted in self-defense.¡±


    ¡°And your excuse for crippling a promising disciple?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ He kept stalking me and it became bothersome.¡±


    The disciples looked at Li Jian with dumbfounded expressions.


    ¡°Crippling Lu Bao because he was bothersome??¡±


    ¡°This Li Jian is too much!¡±


    ¡°You can explain yourself to the Head of the Punishment department. Until then, you will be held in a detention room to reflect on your actions.¡±


    Li Jian figured he would end up there one way or another so he unwillingly complied.


    The Elder took Li Jian to the detention building and placed him inside one of the rooms.


    The room looked more like a prison cell as it was cold, dark, and surrounded by prison bars. The room Li Jian was put into was small, empty, and devoid of light.


    ¡®Unreal¡­¡¯

 Chapter 12 - Ill Cripple You Too

    ¡®Now that i''ve crippled the son of the Head of the Punishment department, I¡¯m probably going to die¡­There has to be a way out of this.¡¯


    Rats scurrying around in the crevices and corners of the cell echoed.


    Li Jian calmed himself and began meditating.


    Outside the detention building, two Elders dashed towards the entrance, one of which who was wielding a jade battle axe.


    ¡°Head Elder, he¡¯s being held inside one of the holding cells.¡±


    ¡°This bastard actually crippled my son. MY SON!¡±


    ¡°What he has done is unforgivable. He is an enemy of the sect.¡±


    ¡°Bring him to me.¡±


    ¡°As you wish.¡±


    The Elder made his way towards Li Jian¡¯s cell immediately.When the Elder arrived, Li Jian looked up and knew that today would truly be his last.


    ¡°Come with me. Head Elder will determine your punishment.¡±


    Standing up, Li Jian walked out of the cell and began following the Elder.


    Li Jian walked through themidnight-green colored hallway and stairs as if he was headed towards his own execution.The two came to a stop in front of a large wooden double door with a drawing of a jade green dragon. The head of the dragon ran down the middle, splitting into two when opened.


    Opening the door, the Eldershoved Li Jian forward.


    ¡°I¡¯ve brought him, Head Elder Lu. This is him.¡±


    Elder Lu didn¡¯t speak nor make a sound. He simply stared at Li Jian with asinisterlook.


    After half a minute, Elder Lu walked closer to Li Jian.


    Looking down at the young boy, Elder Lu released some of his pressure.


    The pressure being released from a cultivator in the Spirit realm came crashing down on Li Jian causing him to almost pass out.


    ¡°You crippled my son. Do you know what this means? It means your life as a martial artist will end today.¡±


    Li Jian tried to withstand the pressure, but could not fight back with his low cultivation.


    Elder Lu saw Li Jian struggling to break free and his eyes slightly twitched.


    ¡°So you¡¯ve got some fight still in you even in these circumstances. Very well then, I will lessen the cruelty of your punishment. You may think you¡¯ve spared my son by allowing him to live, but the life of a mortal after living in the martial world is far worse than death. So I shall bless you with death.¡±


    Elder Lu prepared to strike Li Jian by raising his right arm and igniting it with flames.


    ¡°Say your last words.¡±


    Elder Lu removed his pressure allowing Li Jian to relax.


    Li Jian began breathing more rapidly as he tried to catch his breath.


    After a few seconds, Li Jian stood up tall and looked directly at Elder Lu.


    ¡°I¡¯ll cripple you too, just like I did with Lu Bao.¡±


    ¡°BASTARD!¡±


    The flames on Elder Lu¡¯s arm blazed more fiercely as he attacked.


    Li Jian gathered all of his spiritual energy into his fist.


    The small white crystal began glowing slightly.


    ¡°Head Elder, wait!"


    ¡°WHAT!¡±


    The jade battle axe wielding Elder interrupted Elder Lu just before Elder Lu¡¯s hand had reached the side of Li Jian¡¯s neck.


    The Elder had a face full of terror as he lifted up a certain object.


    In one hand he was holding up Li Jian¡¯s bag, and in the other was a jade medallion.


    When Elder Lu saw this medallion, his eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets and his whole body began shaking.


    ¡°W-Where¡­ d-did you get this?¡±


    ¡°I have no reason to answer you.¡±


    ¡°You answer me, or I¡¯ll kill you.¡±


    ¡°Weren¡¯t you going to kill me anyways?¡±


    At that moment, a loud bang swung open the doors to Elder Lu¡¯s room.


    Entering the room was a voluptuous woman.


    ¡°Princess Bai! What are you doing here?!¡±


    ¡°P-Princess!¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    ¡®Why¡¯s Princess Bai here?¡¯


    ¡°I¡¯m here to take Li Jian away from you before you end up killing him.¡±


    ¡°I was just carrying out his punishment! He crippled my son!¡±


    ¡°He will most definitely be punished for his actions, however, I will still listen to his side of the story before judgement, as you should too Elder Lu.¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course.¡±


    Elder Lu bowed his head, afraid of angering Princess Bai.


    ¡°Little Jian, I heard Lu Bao attacked you while out on a mission previously. Is that correct?¡±


    ¡®How the hell did she know?¡¯


    ¡°Yes, he and some other disciples followed my group and attacked us in the Veiled Mist Forest. He then proceeded to attack me within the Jade Moon Trial with three other 5th level disciples while I was still in the 4th level. I acted in self-defense and defeated the four. I carried out Lu Bao¡¯s punishment for his actions by taking away his cultivation.¡±


    Hearing Li Jian¡¯s last words, Elder Lu nearly exploded out in anger and hatred.


    ¡®I will kill this bastard no matter what.¡¯


    ¡°From your story, it looks like Lu Bao is clearly at fault. I will speak on behalf of my father and void any punishment regarding Lu Bao¡¯s actions of attacking you twice. However, for crippling Lu Bao, your punishment is that you cannot join the inner sect until next week.¡±


    Princess Bai smiled playfully and then turned towards the Elders with an annoyed look.


    ¡°As that is what my father says, you will have no say in the matter. I suggest you forget about the matter.¡±


    ¡°My son¡­¡±


    ¡°There may be a chance Lu Bao can be able to cultivate if he works hard, but the chances are astronomically low.¡±


    When hearing this, Elder Lu¡¯s spirits soared.


    ¡°Thank you Princess Bai! Thank you!¡±


    Elder Lu kowtowed repeatedly.


    ¡°Little Jian, let¡¯s get going.¡±


    Li Jian nodded before leaving with Princess Bai.


    When the two exited the building, Li Jian looked at Princess Bai.


    ¡°Is it true Lu Bao will be able to cultivate still?¡±


    ¡°No. That was just a lie. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have let you leave so easily. Be careful though, there¡¯s no telling what he¡¯ll do behind the shadows.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Princess.¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you to not call me that, Little Jian!¡±


    Princess Bai pouted before laughing cheerfully.


    ¡°I apologize, Elder Sister Bai.¡±


    ¡°And quit being so formal around me!¡±


    ¡°Hahasorry¡­ By the way, where are we going?¡±


    ¡°Your new home of course!¡±


    ¡°My new home? What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve entered the 5th level of the Mortal realm already, so you¡¯re now qualified to enter the inner sect.¡±


    ¡°But you said I had to wait a week?¡±


    ¡°You won¡¯t be receiving any of the benefits of the inner sect, but you can at least acclimate yourself to the new area!¡±


    Li Jian looked at Princess Bai in utter shock. She had given Elder Lu false hope and then proceeded to twist her own words to help Li Jian.


    ¡®Why is she helping me so much? Is it because of my unique affinity?¡¯


    With Li Jian deep in thought, Princess Bai exhaled and then stopped on the road.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Elder Sister Bai?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s also another matter that I need to talk about¡­ Where did you get that jade medallion?¡±


    ¡°This medallion? An old man gave it to me just before I entered Jade Moon City.¡±


    ¡°Do you know his name?¡±


    ¡°I call him Senior Ling. I don¡¯t know his full name.¡±


    When Princess Bai heard the word Ling, her eyebrows scrunched.


    ¡°Then I guess this matter is settled.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what is this medallion? Isn¡¯t it just an entry medallion?¡±


    Princess Bai looked at Li Jian as if he was joking.


    ¡°Hahaha, you thought this was an entry medallion? Well, I guess it can be used as one too, but no it is not an entry medallion. This is a unique medallion, recognized by all of the citizens of the city and sect. Only the Patriarch and his elder brother have the power to bestow these medallions to others.¡±


    ¡°The Patriarch¡¯s elder brother?¡±


    ¡°Yep, my Uncle, one of the twin Jade Dragons of the Jade Moon Sect.¡±


    Taken aback, Li Jian had newfound respect for the old man who saved his life and had bestowed a jade medallion to him.


    ¡®He not only saved my life, but had planned for me to live in the city and sect with no troubles¡­¡¯


    ¡°Anyways, if you have anything back in the outer sect you can go retrieve them before we head into the inner sect.¡±


    ¡°Everything I own is on me, but before we leave I want to know why you¡¯re helping me so much. You prevented Lu Bao and I from fighting back at the mission board. You also know that he had attacked me in the Veiled Mist Forest. And now you¡¯ve saved me from Elder Lu.¡±


    Princess Bai took a moment before answering Li Jian. She sized Li Jian yet again, looking at this mature 12 year old child.


    ¡°I was asked by my father to look after you ever since we parted after your affinity test. I¡¯ve tried to stay out of your way and observe from afar, but the circumstances were too much this time. Don¡¯t get used to it Li Jian. The moment you enter the inner sect, I will not be protecting you as I have been. Regardless of how special your affinity is, you must rely on your own strength.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve always been planning on using my own strength, Elder Sister.¡±


    ¡°You ought to smile more Little Jian. You¡¯re much too young to behave like an adult.¡±


    The Princess and Li Jian passed through the outer sect and moved deeper into the sect.


    Disciples saw the two walking side by side and questioned who this youth was to be able to walk with the beauty, Princess Bai.


    It didn¡¯t take long for the news about Li Jian¡¯s feats to reach the whole sect.


    ¡°Did you hear?! Li Jian defeated Lu Bao and three 5th level disciples! And not only that, Li Jian was only a 4th level!¡±


    ¡°Yeah I know! He even crippled Lu Bao!¡±


    ¡°Elder Xin took Li Jian away to the detention building. Elder Lu will probably kill him!¡±


    ¡°My friends saw Li Jian walking with PrincessBai earlier. They even said he¡¯s in the 5th level now!¡±


    The sect was in an uproar as this news had shocked many.


    Princess Bai stopped in front of a grand courtyard and turned towards Li Jian.


    ¡°Welcome to your new home, Inner Sect Disciple Li Jian! Congratulations!¡±


    ¡°Thank you Elder Sister Bai.¡±


    Li Jian bowed respectfully and walked into the courtyard.


    The space was open and large with a beautiful gardenand pond.


    The building itself was large, like the ones he had seen when he was being escorted by Elder Luo. The beautiful white marble and the jade complemented each other too well.


    In another part of the sect, Patriarch Shui stood in his room looking out the window.


    ¡°He¡¯s in the 5th level of the Mortal realm now. He was only in the 2nd level a little over a month ago¡­ His growth is astonishing, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°His spatial affinity isvery rare. If he grows too strong, it might endanger the sect.¡±


    Patriarch Shui was speaking with the same old man from the library he had been talking to.


    ¡°I know.¡±


    Knocking on the doors before getting too impatient, Princess Bai walked in.


    ¡°Father, I¡¯ve brought Li Jian to the inner sect and have shown him to his home.¡±


    ¡°Good! Anything else Bai¡¯er?¡±


    ¡°Apparently, Uncle Ling is back.¡±

 Chapter 13 - Inner Sect

    Li Jian had made himself comfortable in his new home; one that was much larger and grander than his previous.


    This house had multiple roomsthat were all bigger than the houses in the outer sect.


    There was a bedroom, bathroom, living room, kitchen, meditating room, guest rooms, and even a servant room.


    In front of the house was a large garden and pond, and enough open space to train and spar with others.


    Li Jian was not overwhelmed nor excited about his new home.


    He had taken care of one enemy, but had made an even more powerful enemy.


    The little display of power from Elder Lu showed how small Li Jian was and had truly opened his eyes.


    ¡®Just a little bit of pressure from Elder Lu and I couldn¡¯t even move.¡¯


    Li Jian sighed and went to his meditating room.


    Standing to the side of the hallway was a maid with her hands clasped in front of her.


    She awaited instructions patiently as Li Jian walkedover to her her, looking at her deeply.


    With Li Jian staring at her so intently, she blushed and averted her gaze downward.


    This girl was shorter than Li Jian and had short, black hair, which complemented her white and black maid outfit well.


    ¡°M-Master, would you like anything?¡±


    Li Jian tried to sense her cultivation level, but wasn¡¯t able to find a single trace of spiritual energy.


    ¡®She¡¯s just a mortal and is younger than me¡­¡¯


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°M-My name is Wang Bei¡­¡±


    ¡°OkayLittle Bei, just call me Li Jian from now on. Hearing Master sounds a little weird to me.¡±


    ¡°O-okay, Mas-big brother.¡±


    Li Jian smiled, patted her head and began moving towards the meditation room.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be needing anything for now, so you can go relax.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure, big brother?¡±


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯ll be all Little Bei.¡±


    Li Jian motioned her to leave as he had already opened the door to his meditation room.


    The room was lit up with multiple candles with an incense in the center creating a calming and soothing atmosphere.


    Li Jian sat down in the center and closed his eyes.


    As he slowly drifted away into deep meditation, Li Jian began devising his new goals.


    ¡®I¡¯m in the 5th level of the Mortal realm, yet I¡¯m still weak.¡¯


    ¡®If I¡¯m going to survive in this world, I¡¯ll need to get stronger more quickly.¡¯


    ¡®Elder Lu is in the Spirit realm...¡¯


    ----------------------------------


    The darkness and stillness of the night crept upon Jade Moon City.


    ¡°He¡¯s a 5th level¡­ the longer he lives, the more dangerous it becomes.¡±


    ¡°Don''t be rash.¡±


    ¡°I am not being rash! I am looking out for the good of the sect.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡±


    Patriarch Shui and the old man continued to watch Li Jian warily.


    A knock came from Patriarch Shui¡¯s door before being opened.


    ¡°Father, is something wrong?¡±


    ¡°No. How is Li Jian?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s in his new home in the inner sect.¡±


    ¡°Good. Well done, Bai¡¯er. Keep watching him, but don¡¯t intervene anymore.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t father¡­¡±


    Patriarch Shui looked at Princess Bai worryingly.


    ¡°What are you hesitating for, speak whatever is on your mind Bai¡¯er.¡±


    ¡°Father, there¡¯s been an increasing amount of reports of strange activity outside of the city.¡±The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Patriarch Shui raised an eyebrow.


    ¡°What are the reports saying?¡±


    ¡°Many people traveling on the roads near the city have been attacked or killed¡­¡±


    ¡°Raise the defenses of the city and post a new mission for the inner disciples regarding this matter to investigate and handle.¡±


    ¡°This is too dangerous for inner sect disciples¡­ These aren¡¯t just mortals, they¡¯re cultivators who¡¯ve been killed, father!¡±


    ¡°Cultivators cannot be kept within a safe bubble for their whole lives, Bai¡¯er. They¡¯ll soon see the true wrath of the real world.¡±


    ¡°I understand, father.¡±


    ¡°Post the mission. Rank it S if you believe it is as dangerous as you think. You may leave now, go and get some rest Bai¡¯er.¡±


    ¡°Good night, father.¡±


    Princess Bai walked out of the room and headed towards the inner sect mission board.


    ----------------------------------


    Li Jian had to wait a week before he was able to receive any of the inner sect benefits.


    During this time, he had told the twins and Lee Gang that he was now an inner sect disciple.


    ¡°Look at you and your jade robes, big bro!¡±


    ¡°Congratulations, Brother Li!¡±


    ¡°¡®Bout time Brother Li.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting here for you three haha. Anyways, I¡¯m going into closed door training for the next week, so if you run into any trouble you can stay at my house.¡±


    Lee Gang frowned in depression.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong Fatty Gang?¡±


    ¡°I bet the food here is amazing¡­ You even have your own maid!¡±


    The group facepalmed and sighed as they should have known Lee Gang would be thinking about the food.


    ¡°Also, did you guys receive your mission rewards?¡±


    ¡°Yes! We¡¯re rich in contribution points! Hahaha.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m going to spend mine on an amazing dinner!¡±


    ¡°We got amazin¡¯ rewards, yet we did nothin¡¯. We owe ya yet again Brother Li.¡±


    ¡°We all did our part, and we¡¯re brothers are we not?! We don¡¯t owe each other anything.¡±


    Meng Jiao punched Li Jian¡¯s shoulder playfully.


    ¡°We¡¯ll be off then.Don¡¯t forget about us Brother Li!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll come over everyday so you don¡¯t forget about me, big bro!¡±


    ¡°You guys are acting like I¡¯ll never see you again haha.¡±


    The group split and Li Jian went back to the meditation room.


    ¡®I¡¯ll reach the 6th level by the end of this week no matter what.¡¯


    During Li Jian¡¯s closed door training, another huge commotion swept the sect into chaos.


    An S rank mission had appeared and it belonged to the inner sect disciples.


    Multiple groups of disciples accepted the mission and made their way out of the sect to investigate the outbreak of attacks.


    By the end of the first day, the inner sect was empty.


    ----------------------------------


    The end of the week neared and Li Jian continued to gain enlightenment in his new Spatial Fist skill.


    He had broken through to the 6th level with monstrous speed.


    No resources were used to aid him in this feat.


    ¡®Spatial Fist¡­ It seems I¡¯ve named my skill properly at least.¡¯


    Li Jian exited the meditation room and called forLittle Bei.


    Little Bei rushed to Li Jian, scurrying as fast as she can.


    ¡°Y-Yes big brother?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll need you to gather Lee Gang, Meng Jiao, and Meng Zhao.¡±


    ¡°Yes, o-of course.¡±


    Little Bei¡¯s face reddened as she fumbled her words yet again.


    After a few hours, Lee Gang and the twins arrived.


    ¡°Big bro! Haven¡¯t seen you in forever! Thought you forgot about us¡­¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you that I was going into closed door training?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you did Brother Li. Fatty Gang probably didn¡¯t expect you¡¯d be training forthe whole week haha.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s been busy spendin¡¯ all his contribution points on food to notice anyway.¡±


    The twins shrugged and grinned at Lee Gang.


    Lee Gang looked at the ground and pouted his lips.


    ¡°It¡¯s true big bro¡­ I¡¯m almost out of contribution points¡­ Why must amazing food be expensive!¡±


    ¡°Wait, you''re almos-¡±


    Lee Gang, eyes wide, turned towards Li Jian.


    ¡°Big bro?! You¡¯re in the 6th level already??!¡±


    Lee Gang was still a 4th level along with the Meng twins.


    The twins jaws dropped and froze.


    The group could only think one thing:


    ¡®A prodigy.¡¯


    Li Jian¡¯s mouth tilted into a smile as he scratched his head.


    ¡°I just gained some enlightenment into my affinity is all¡­¡±


    Li Jian didn¡¯t hide anything from his brothers and they had known about his ¡®special¡¯ affinity, but had no idea what it was since Li Jian didn¡¯t know either.


    The group looked at Li Jian expectantly.


    ¡°Tell us, tell us! What is your affinity?!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s unique and doesn¡¯t involve fire, wind, earth, water, or lightning. Ibelieve it is aspatial affinity.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    The three children couldn¡¯t help but scrunch their faces.


    ¡°The hell is spatial?¡±


    ¡°It has to do with space, like the intangible. I don¡¯t know, I¡¯m still trying to figure it out.¡±


    ¡°I knew it was right to follow my big bro!¡±


    ¡°Amazing, Brother Li! You make the prodigy Huang Fang look insignificant!¡±


    ¡°Oh, by the way brother. You missed out on a lot while you were training. The sect has gone crazy.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°An S rank mission was released to the inner sect! An S rank!¡±


    ¡°An S rank? Fatty Gang, didn¡¯t you say those were myths or something?¡±


    Lee Gang avoided Li Jian¡¯s gaze.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about¡­ but anyways, most of the inner disciples have already taken on the mission. What about you?¡±


    ¡°Not sure, but I¡¯ll decide after I take a look around the inner sect.¡±


    ¡°Also, Brother Li¡­ the reward for the successful completion of the S rank mission¡­¡±


    Li Jian¡¯s ears perked as hisanticipation peaked.


    ¡°...the disciple who completes the mission will become a core disciple¡­¡±


    ¡°Yep, Brother Li, you gotta become a core disciple. There hasn¡¯t been one since Huang Fang the prodigy.¡±


    ¡®If I can become a core disciple I¡¯ll be able to receive aton of resources¡­¡¯


    ¡°With a standing like that, Elder Lu won¡¯t be able to touch you.¡±


    ¡°You crippling Lu Bao and fighting people above your level is the talk of the whole sect!¡±


    Li Jian tightened his fist when he was reminded of the strength of Elder Lu and how he had almost died. Anger and frustration welled up, but soon dissipated because Li Jian knew that his weakness was his own fault.


    The four boys enjoyed the rest of the day together eating, laughing and having fun.

 Chapter 14 - S Rank Mission

    After spending some time with Lee Gang, Meng Zhao, and Meng Jiao, Li Jianbade the three good night as they departed.


    Wang Bei began cleaning up while Li Jian walked towards his bedroom.


    ¡°Thank you Little Bei, I¡¯ll be going to sleep. I hope there isn¡¯t a lot to clean.¡±


    ¡°Not at all big brother, have a good night!¡±


    In reality, there wasn¡¯t that much of a mess. Only a few plates and cups that had to be washed.


    The group didn¡¯t want to burden Little Bei so late in the night, especially since she was just a mortal.


    Li Jian went to his bed, allowing the exhaustion from training to relax.


    The moment he went to lie down, hefell into a pit of darkness.


    With the shock of falling and confusion, Li Jian flailed his arms attempting to grab ahold of anything.


    He continuously fell, but after some time it felt like Li Jian was floating.


    Li Jian observed his surroundings trying to make sense of the situation.


    ¡®This shouldn¡¯t be a dream..? This is too real! What the hell is happening?¡¯


    A speck of light shined from the distance and Li Jian started to gravitate towards it.


    Li Jian¡¯s breathing and heart rate sped up as he moved closer and closer.


    After a few hours, Li Jian came up to a small, white crystal that was floating gently.


    ¡®A crystal..?¡¯


    Li Jian¡¯s hand reached out slowly, as if possessed.


    When his finger had touched the crystal, a wave of white light vibrated outwards.


    Li Jian¡¯s eyes glowed white while the intense vibrations coursed through his mind, body, and soul.


    When the vibrations stopped, the crystal faded and dimmed, revealing not a shed of light.


    Li Jian¡¯s eyes returned to the usual state after blinking.


    ¡®...¡¯


    Li Jian stood there in a daze.


    A tear of blood streaked down from his eye.


    ¡®Betrayal¡­ Wang Jing why?¡¯


    Li Jian screamed out his pain, suffering, and agony.


    When Li Jian was engulfed by the light, the crystal had poured out everything that was contained within itself into Li Jian.


    What was once sealed was now released; memories.


    An aged voice spoke into Li Jian¡¯s mind.


    ¡°...You and I are the same¡­¡±


    ¡°...the beginning of my reincarnation¡­¡±


    ¡°...these memories, our memories, will awaken you¡­¡±


    Time drifted backwards and Li Jian found himself in the Ancient era.


    A time that had been ruined by war and greed.


    Li Jian stood above all other martial cultivators as the most powerful being.


    He had been bathed in blood the moment he was born intothis war-ridden world.


    Battle after battle, Li Jian continued to fight and survive.


    He strived for peace, but learned the world would not change without force at a very young age.


    Thus began his conquest and legend.


    Li Jian gathered a group of his closest friends and conquered much of the grand world with unbearable strength.


    However, his legacy came to a halt when he was murdered and betrayed.


    Rumour had it that there was to be a marriage, but there was no news of it after the death of Li Jian.


    Time didn¡¯t wait for anyone and the era had reached its conclusion, shifting towards the next.


    Welcoming the new era, remnants and old memories of the Ancient era were wiped away for the new generation.


    Li Jian witnessed his whole past life from beginning to end and began connecting the bits of fragmented memories with his newly acquired.


    ¡®So my memories leaked into my dreams. It seems I¡¯m still too weak to comprehend much of my abilities from the past.¡¯


    Sifting through his memories, Li Jian wiped the sadness from his face, from which turned to anger and then gloom.


    One thing Li Jian learned, or was reminded of, was that the world functioned on the cycle of life, death, and reincarnation.


    The white crystal was a unique treasure from his past life believed to allow the holder to pass on memories.


    ¡®Xiu¡¯er¡­ I will find you in this life and keep our promise¡­¡¯If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    A warm sensation spread all over Li Jian¡¯s body, which soon radiated a bright light causing Li Jian to close his eyes.


    When the light disappeared, Li Jian found himself in bed with the morning sun sneaking through the curtains of the window.


    Groggy and slow, Li Jian sat up feeling like he had awoken from a long dream.


    He was still the same 12 year old Li Jian, but different. He now had access to a vast array of knowledge and experiences.


    He closed his eyes to peer into his dantian.


    The white crystal wasn¡¯t hidden anymore and was floating soundly.


    ¡®The crystal hasn¡¯t given me all of my memories yet..?¡¯


    *Knock, knock*


    ¡°Come in.¡±


    ¡°Big brother, I¡¯ve brought you your morning tea and breakfast.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Little Bei, set it to side. I have to get ready soon.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll be leaving?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll be gone for a little while¡­ By the way, have you thought of becoming a martial cultivator?¡±


    Wang Bei¡¯s hand began shaking slightly.


    ¡°I-I¡¯m content with my life as is, big brother¡­¡±


    ¡°Very well then, you may take your leave.¡±


    Li Jian accepted her answer even though he had seen clearly how she had reacted to the words martial cultivator.


    Li Jian drank his tea and ate his breakfast before changing into his jade robes.


    Exiting his home, Li Jian didn¡¯t care for any of the amenities the inner sect had to offer and instead went out to find the mission board.


    Asking some random disciples, Li Jian had found the mission board (which was quite close to his home).


    The mission board looked the same as it did in the outer sect, with the exception of the missions, rewards, and difficulty.


    However, looking at the large mission board, there was only one mission listed:


    ¡°S rank mission: 1. Investigate the recent killings outside of Jade Moon City¡±


    ¡®Recent killings¡­¡¯


    Li Jian¡¯s heart froze for a second as he thought back to when he had only seen his cousin Li Mu pass the Jade Moon disciple recruitment exam and none of the ¡®geniuses¡¯ of the Li clan.


    ¡®Li Mu¡¯s personality change, his huge boost in cultivation¡­ Something doesn¡¯t feel right.¡¯


    Li Jian immediately went to accept the mission.


    There was an inner sectshop like the one in the outer sect, but had a larger variety and better quality items.


    Li Jian chose not to visit the shop because to him, time was of the essence.


    ¡®Too many disciples have already accepted this mission. I¡¯ll need to begin and solve this investigation as soon as possible.¡¯


    Time was short and Li Jian had many things he needed to accomplish. One way to quicken the pace was to reap the benefits of free rewards.


    The man handling the inner sect missions looked at Li Jian and had already brought out a piece of parchment.


    ¡°I take it you¡¯d like to accept the S rank mission?¡±


    ¡°Yes sir.¡±


    ¡®Not like there was any other mission..¡¯


    ¡°Since you¡¯ve read the mission board post, the only task is to investigate the recent killings.¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    ¡°You must report your findings, if any, in one week.¡±


    The man looked downat Li Jian and noticed he was only in the 6th level.


    ¡°Just a fair bit of advice, many disciples have accepted this mission and not that many have returned. Watch yourself.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for the warning, senior.¡±


    Li Jian bowed and left.


    ---------------------------------


    Outside of Jade Moon City


    ---------------------------------


    Leaving the city, Li Jian carried doubts and suspicions.


    ¡®I¡¯ll start by travelling along the same path Li Mu had taken to get to the city.¡¯


    There was one main road that began at Jade Moon City and would split at the Veiled Mist forest.


    Li Jian walked towards the road that split towards Falling Leaf Village.


    He had a full seven days to travel and investigate.


    Looking around, there was not a single traveler or merchant.


    ¡®Looks like this threat is serious enough to scare off everyone..¡¯


    ---------------------------------


    6 hours later


    ---------------------------------


    ¡®I haven¡¯t seen a single person, not even another disciple¡­ Have I come to the wrong area?¡¯


    Time flew by and it had already become dark.


    Li Jian found himself a small, abandoned home thatshowed signs of deterioration.


    Pulling out a piece of bread and some water from his bag, Li Jian ate his meal and went to sleep.


    ---------------------------------


    Far off into the distance, a boy and a girl, both in jade green robes, were running desperately.


    ---------------------------------


    ¡°AHHHHHHHH¡­¡±


    A loud scream echoed out throughout the forest.


    With the alarming sound, Li Jian woke up instantly.


    Looking in the direction of the forest, Li Jian sprinted forwards.


    ¡®I don¡¯t like this¡­¡¯


    A few minutes later, Li Jian spotted a girl laying down.


    Her face couldn¡¯t be seen due to the bush, but the robes she was wearing was quite distinguishable.


    ¡®An inner sect disciple!¡¯


    Approaching cautiously, Li Jian moved towards the bush and laid eyes on a beheaded body of a girl.


    Li Jian focused spiritual energy into his fists as he surveyed the surrounding area.


    Sensing no danger, Li Jian calmed down.


    He looked down once more, staring at the detached head and was able to recognize her.


    This girl was the third rank disciple of the recruitment exam who had red hair.


    Her lifeless body emitted the strength of a 7th level.


    ¡®May your soul find its place in reincarnation.¡¯


    Pitying the girl, Li Jian moved deeper into the forest to find the culprit; since this was his first lead into his investigation.


    Within a few seconds, Li Jian slowed down as the air was permeated with a scent of death.


    ¡®Blood.¡¯


    Li Jian looked down and saw pools of blood.


    Beyond the pools were more headless bodies.


    These bodies were also wearing jade green robes.


    To Li Jian¡¯s surprise, he recognized another face: the rank one disciple from the recruitment exam. His body emitted the strength of a 7th level like the other girl.


    ¡®It hasn¡¯t even been a full day since I accepted this mission¡­¡¯


    Li Jian didn¡¯t spend anymore time in this area and began collecting the dead disciples'' sect badges.


    As he was doing so, a pair of cold, dark eyes fell upon Li Jian.


    Li Jian jumped backwardsavoidinga cloaked man walking out behind the trees.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    ¡°You do not need to worry about that, my child.¡±


    This man¡¯s cultivation couldn¡¯t be determined.


    ¡®A Spirit realm cultivator¡­ I need to get the hell out of here.¡¯


    The man crept closer, slowly pulling out two sickles.


    ¡°Come, my child. Come sacrifice yourself.¡±


    Rather than waiting to die, Li Jian turned around and sprinted as fast as he could.


    As he ran, he checked behind him constantly, but did not see the man chasing after.


    ¡®With his cultivation, he should be able to catch up to me? What¡¯s he planning¡­¡¯


    After reaching the halfway mark towards Jade Moon City, the man appeared in front of Li Jian.


    ¡®Fuck.¡¯


    ¡°You cannot escape from the Great Divine, my child.¡±

 Chapter 15 - Priceless

    ¡°Come, rejoice, you will become a part of the Great Divine¡¯s will.¡±


    The two sickles glistened in the night sky, reflecting the bright moonlight.


    The man laughed, cackling eerily, as he slowly walked towards Li Jian, knowing there was no escape.


    ¡°Sorry to disappoint you, but the only sacrifice here will be you.¡±


    ¡°A mere 6th level Mortal realm dares to defy the Great Divine? Kekeke.¡±


    ¡®If I was in the 9th level of the Mortal realm, I might be able to stand a chance¡­¡¯


    The man continued to laugh.


    ¡°I¡¯ve collected many things from these past few weeks of sacrifices.Do you know what the Great Divine is, my child?¡±


    Li Jian didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Hmph, so you won¡¯t entertain me even a little bit?There was once a sacrifice awaiting his end, but was blessed by the Great Divine. He aided me in the sacrificing of his own kin with no remorse. Come, my child, kneel before the Great Divine.¡±


    ¡°Fuck you and your trash divine.¡±


    ¡®There has to be a way for me to get the hell out of here.¡¯


    Li Jian closed his eyes as he began sifting through his collection of memories.


    A fewseconds later, Li Jian looked at the man and smirked.


    ¡°What''s so funny, my child?¡±


    ¡°Your existence.¡±


    Li Jian began focusing and gatheredmuch of his spiritual energy into his hands.


    Noticing the strange fluctuations of energy, the man hesitated for a moment.


    In an instant, Li Jian lunged forward.


    The man, sensing danger, braced himself by raising his sickles, waiting to counter Li Jian.


    When Li Jian got within a few meters of the man, he brought forth both arms and clapped his hands together.


    The collision of the energy created an impact causing a sonic boom.


    The man had no time to react and was thus knocked away, crashing through the trees.


    ¡®That should knock him unconscious for a little.¡¯


    Using this opportunity, Li Jian continued to sprint towards the city.


    After a few minutes, the man woke up in a berserk state of mind.


    ¡°Interesting¡­ A most peculiar child! You will regret your actions, my child.¡±


    The man spit out a mouthful of blood and disappeared into the forest.


    ---------------------------------


    Jade Moon Sect: Inner Sect


    ---------------------------------


    Night had already passed and the morning sun had begun to rise.


    A disciple caused a commotion as he sprinted towards the mission board.


    The Elder at the counter looked over and saw a familiar face.


    ¡°So you¡¯ve decided to resign from the mission I suppose?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve gathered some clues into the investigation.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, train hard and you¡­ What?¡±


    ¡°As I said¡­ I have come across some clues regarding the S rank mission.¡±


    The Elder, unable to process Li Jian¡¯s statement,was baffled.


    ¡°It¡¯s barely been a full day and you¡¯ve already found some clues?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I made my discovery last night. Now, who shall I speak to about this matter?¡±


    ¡°If what you present to me is valuable, then I will send it directly to the council.¡±


    Li Jian pulled out multiple sect badges and placed them on the counter.


    The Elder stared at the multiple badges in front of him and was baffled yet again.


    ¡°These are¡­¡±


    ¡°I picked these up from the disciples who were murdered near the Veiled Mist forest. I stayed hidden and was able to see the murderer. He wore a black cloak and wielded two sickles. This man was also going on about something called the Great Divine.¡±


    The Elder stood up immediately after hearing of the Great Divine.


    ¡°Disciple Li Jian, you will be rewarded for your contributions and the successful completion of the mission at a later date and time. For now, I must go report this matter to the council.¡±


    The Elder gave Li Jian a short congratulations before hastily leaving.


    Li Jian let out a sigh of relief and also left.Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    ---------------------------------


    Li Jian¡¯s home


    ---------------------------------


    ¡°Welcome home, big brother!¡±


    Li Jian nodded.


    ¡°Good morning,Little Bei.¡±


    ¡°How was your trip?¡±


    ¡°It was¡­ Fruitful I guess.¡±


    ¡°Would you like me to prepare breakfast?¡±


    ¡°No, that won¡¯t be necessary. I¡¯ll be in my meditation room, don¡¯t disturb me unless absolutely necessary.¡±


    ---------------------------------


    Meditation room


    ---------------------------------


    Li Jian sat there calmly, controlling his breathing.


    ¡®I must reach the Spirit realm as soon as possible¡­¡¯


    Luckily, Li Jian now had a vast library of knowledge at his disposal.


    ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ what can I do¡­¡¯


    ¡®Concealing Shadow¡­ that¡¯ll be useful, but not what I need right now¡­ Hmm...''


    ¡®...Spatial Awareness!¡¯


    ¡°Perfect!¡±


    ¡®If I¡¯m able to completely master the Spatial element again, my cultivation will surely rise again in no time!¡¯


    During the Ancient era, Li Jian had a peculiarly strong memory and was able to memorize everything with ease.


    ¡°Being aware of space and the intangible is an innate ability special to cultivators who do not have an affinity with the basic five elements. Compared to other elements, the spatial element demands perfect and precise control over spiritual energy in order to manipulate space.¡±


    ¡®I¡¯m surprised I was able to grasp control over spiritual energy already at such an early level¡­ It was only to a small degree, but I guess it¡¯s time to hit the basics again.¡¯


    Li Jian held out his hand, gathering spiritual energy.


    The area around his hand began distorting as the pressure continued to increase.


    After a short while, the energy became more chaotic and Li Jian wasn¡¯t able to control it any further.


    He released the energy and began panting.


    ¡®I can¡¯t believe it¡¯s this difficult to control spiritual energy for a prolonged period of time for me! I definitely need this practice.¡¯


    Minutes turned to hours¡­


    Li Jian continued to train, perfecting his control over space.


    A few days later, Li Jian exited his meditation room.


    ¡®My control isn¡¯t perfect yet, but it has improved by leaps and bounds.¡¯


    ¡®I¡¯ve even reached the 7th level of the Mortal realm.¡¯


    Li Jian, an inner sect disciple, was only twelve years old and had the cultivation of a 7th level in the Mortal realm.


    His achievements had already earned himself the title of a genius - one that would be destined for greatness.


    Many of the inner sect disciples were around the ages of fifteen to eighteen.


    Those disciples ranged from the 5th level to the 9th level.


    Breaking through a level within a realm was an easy feat compared to breaking through to a new realm.


    It was understandable if a cultivator was stuck at the peak of a realm for many years.


    ¡°Big brother, have you gained anything from training?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve gained a lot!¡±


    Li Jian smiled and looked at Wang Bei.


    ¡°Did I miss anything while I was in the meditation room?¡±


    ¡°Your friends came by, but I told them you were training. Also, an Elder came by and dropped off a letter.¡±


    ¡°A letter? Where is it?¡±


    Wang Bei brought out a letter and handed it to Li Jian.


    ¡°To Inner Sect Disciple Li Jian, we of the council reward you with 10,000 contribution points for your achievements of completing the S rank mission.¡±


    ¡®10,000!? Holy shit!¡¯


    ¡°Little Bei, I need to head out. I¡¯ll be back later.¡±


    ¡°Okay big brother.¡±


    Li Jian didn¡¯t waste any time and headed for the shop immediately.


    ---------------------------------


    ¡°Did you hear? Someone completed the S rank mission!¡±


    ¡°What?! Who!¡±


    ¡°A new inner sect disciple! Li Jian!¡±


    ¡°Li Jian? The one who crippled Lu Bao and fought off three disciples who were higher leveled than him??¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I mean there¡¯s really only one Li Jian in this sect, but anyways yeah him.¡±


    Li Jian once again became the talk of the whole sect, gaining more popularity and fame.


    Many disciples dubbed him the next genius of the era.


    ---------------------------------


    ¡°Li Jian, that bastard.¡±


    ¡°Head Elder, what should we do?¡±


    ¡°We can¡¯t do anything with PrincessBai and the Patriarch watching our every move.¡±


    ¡°Then it¡¯s hopeless¡­¡±


    ¡°No. Fetch me Xiao Xue.¡±


    ---------------------------------


    The Inner Sect Shop


    ---------------------------------


    ¡°Welcome young disciple.¡±


    ¡°Greetings, senior.¡±


    Li Jian bowed towards the inner sect shopkeeper and made his way to the available items.


    ¡®Let¡¯s see what this small shop has for me¡­¡¯


    Amongst the many shelveswere items that were all far more valuable than the ones displayed in the outer sect shop.


    High grade medicinal herbs, spiritual elixirs, skills, etc.


    ¡®Oh how interesting, they have Dwarved Phoenix Leaves in this era still¡­ Should have been extinct by now.¡¯


    ¡®Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t see anything too outstanding¡­ What?!¡¯


    Li Jian stopped in his tracks and shook in excitement.


    ¡®No way!¡¯


    [Cloak of Invisibility]


    Use it well.


    10,000 Contribution Points.


    ¡®To be selling an invisibility cloak to mere children of a sect¡­ Fools!¡¯


    ¡®Although it¡¯ll cost me all of the contribution points I just received, it¡¯s definitely a priceless treasure I must have.¡¯


    ¡°Senior, I¡¯ll be purchasing this item.¡±


    The Elder grabbed the cloak of invisibility and looked at Li Jian.


    ¡°Is there a problem, senior?¡±


    ¡°You best not be using this for any perverted reasons, young disciple.¡±


    The Elder gave Li Jian a look before finalizing the purchase.


    ¡°Many thanks.¡±


    Li Jian took his newly acquired cloak and put it on.


    It looked like a regular, black, travelling cloak, but once the cultivator weaved in some spiritual energy, they would become invisible.


    The effect would only be useful against people or enemies who were weaker than the cultivator.


    Someone with a higher cultivation would be able to see the disturbance of the invisibility cloak.


    ¡®Now that I have an invisibility cloak, I¡¯ll be able to escapemost life threatening dangers.Even better, once my control over my spiritual energy becomes more proficient, nobody in the Mortal or Spirit realm will be able to see or sense me.¡¯


    ---------------------------------


    ¡°Father, I¡¯ve sent multiple scouts out around the perimeter of the forest. I¡¯ve called back all of the disciples who took part in the mission as well.¡±


    ¡°Bai¡¯er, make sure none of the disciples or anybody in the city learns about the Great Divine.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°You may leave.¡±


    With a worried look, Princess Bai left.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I say he would bring disaster upon Jade Moon City?¡±


    ¡°Silence, I¡¯ll handle the matter with Li Jian later. What matters most right now is the damn Great Divine.¡±

 Chapter 16 - Challenger

    Li Jian, sat in his meditation room.


    He closed his eyes, and concentrated on his breathing.


    With each inhale, it felt like the world grew.


    And with each exhale, the world shrank back.


    Li Jian looked into his dantian and at the white crystal.


    ¡®I have to figure out how to unlock the rest of my memories¡­ But I guess I don¡¯t need to rush for now.¡¯


    So far,Li Jian''s memories were almost completely unlocked except for a few specific details that seemed hazy.


    Li Jian stood up, grabbed his cloak of invisibility, and then left.


    ---------------------------------


    When PrincessBai sent out an order to all of the inner sect disciples searching for clues to return back to the sect, many disciples were confused.


    Arriving back at the sect, the disciples soon learned the mission had already been completed.


    Many were jealous, and very few were impressed.


    To think a new inner sect disciple, one who had began in the outer sect, had triumphed.


    Questions began circling as disciples wondered what the S rank mission reward was, but this information was disclosed.


    However, rumors began spreading that he had received a sect treasure.


    ¡°Madness! An S rank award was a treasure of the sect?!¡±


    ¡°I know right?! I was so close to finding some clues too! It could have been mine!¡±


    ¡°Ugh, maybe this Li Jian will be willing to share it¡­¡±


    ¡°How strong is he?¡±


    ¡°If I recall, he¡¯s only a 6th level.¡±


    Greed suddenly clouded the eyes of many inner sect disciples who were in the 7th level.


    ---------------------------------


    Li Jian walked along the trail looking for a quiet place to relax.


    Finding himself a large,droopingtree, Li Jian sat beside it and closed his eyes to resume meditating.


    Lost in his consciousness, he began thinking of Xiu¡¯er.


    Her beauty and loveliness made him happy, yet depressed.


    The leaves of tree bristled as the wind breezed through.


    Li Jian continued to reminisce..


    ¡®I am alone in this world right now.. But I will find you, my Xiu¡¯er.¡¯


    The wind caressed Li Jian¡¯s face, as he wept silently.


    Time flowed by, and the sun had already sunk.


    ¡°Hey.¡±


    Being awoken to the sound of a girls voice, Li Jian opened his eyes.


    ¡°You¡¯re Li Jian right?¡±


    ¡°I am, and you are?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter who I am, but you¡¯re in my spot.¡±


    ¡°Huh? That¡¯s kind of rude to not introduce yourself, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    Adjusting his eyes to the dimly lit light of dusk, Li Jian looked at this girl standing in front of him.


    This was the girl who Li Jian had seen one night sitting atop a tree.


    The same girl who had also been at the library.


    ¡°Well I guess it doesn¡¯t matter who you are, but this spot doesn¡¯t belong to anybody.¡±


    ¡°It does - it belongs to me.¡±


    The girl stood strong, yet stubbornly, acting as if she wouldn¡¯t move until Li Jian left.


    ¡°As I recall, I saw you once at the library and sitting on top of a tree one night.¡±


    ¡°Are you stalking me?¡±


    The girls eyes grew wary as if she was looking at a potential predator.


    ¡°No¡­ it was just coincidence.¡±


    ¡°If you stalk me anymore I¡¯ll cripple your manhood.¡±This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    ¡°You know what, I¡¯m actually on my way out. You can have your spot!¡±


    ¡®This girl is weird! Better to not associate myself with her any longer.¡¯


    Li Jian began walking away from the tree and the girl.


    However, five shadows surrounded Li Jian instantly.


    ¡°Li Jian, hand over yourtreasure or suffer.¡±


    Looking closely, these were five inner sect disciples in the 7th level.


    ¡°Greetings fellow disciples, but tonight I¡¯m quite tired and will be going home now.¡±


    Li Jian smiled and attempted to walk away.


    The five disciples looked insulted.


    ¡°A mere 6th level chooses to act like this towards us?!¡±


    ¡°Attack!¡±


    Li Jian sighed.


    Activating a small amount of spiritual power into his fist, Li Jian jumped up aiming his fist at the ground.


    ¡°I truly don¡¯t feel like fighting today.¡±


    ¡°Spatial Fist.¡±


    Li Jian slammed his fist into the ground knocking down all five disciples.


    When the disciples were knocked down, Li Jian activated his cloak of invisibility and disappeared.


    ¡°He¡¯s in the 7th level! Who said he was 6th?!¡±


    ¡°We still have the advantage in numbers!¡±


    The five stood up and looked around, but Li Jian wasn¡¯t there!


    ¡°Where is he??!¡±


    ¡°He ran?! God damn coward!¡±


    ---------------------------------


    Sitting next to the tree, the girl watched the whole interaction.


    ¡°Spatial..?¡±


    ---------------------------------


    Li Jian walked home silently.


    He arrived home shortly and walked in after opening the door.


    From Little Bei¡¯s perspective, she had just witnessed a door open and close.


    Frightened, Little Bei screamed.


    After a quick second, Li Jian deactivated his cloak in front of Little Bei.


    Seeing Li Jian pop up in front of her out of thin air, Little Bei passed out.


    ¡®Oops.¡¯


    Li Jian carried Little Bei to her room and put her to bed.


    After doing so, he walked to his own room and went to sleep.


    ---------------------------------


    In the morning, Li Jian woke up to the sound of loud yelling.


    ¡°LI JIAN, COME OUT!¡±


    Slowly waking up, Li Jian and Little Bei both arrived at the door.


    ¡°Little Bei, go back to your room I¡¯ll deal with this.¡±


    Li Jian opened the door and saw a tall and muscular disciple.


    ¡°Li Jian, I, Song Shun, challenge you.¡±


    ¡°Challenge?¡±


    ¡°Since you¡¯re a new inner sect disciple, you don¡¯t know. All inner sect disciples are allowed to challenge others. The challenge cannot be denied.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so what is the purpose?..¡±


    ¡°I want whatever you received from the S rank mission.¡±


    ¡°But you don¡¯t even know what it is¡­ I could just say it was 100 contribution points, how would you know?¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t know, but if you¡¯re a respectable person you won¡¯t lie.¡±


    ¡®This guy¡¯s an idiot¡­¡¯


    ¡°Fine, what do I get if I win this challenge?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be putting forth my interspatial ring.¡±


    ¡®An interspatial ring!?¡¯


    ¡°You probably don¡¯t know what it is since you¡¯re new, but these rings can fit items within the space that it holds. Mine is currently a low-quality one, but it can still fit 10 backpacks worth of items!¡±


    ¡°How are we settling this challenge, Song Shun?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll be dueling tonight at the arena.¡±


    ¡°Tonight? Isn¡¯t that kind of soon?¡±


    ¡°I tried looking for you yesterday for this challenge, but you weren¡¯t home. I''ve already booked the arena...¡±


    ¡°You could have just left a note or told my maid??¡±


    Song Shun stood there with a puzzled look on his face.


    ¡°I guess I could have done that hahaha! Oh well, tonight we fight!¡±


    With that, Song Shun left.


    ¡®In this life, I won¡¯t be able to rest for even a day¡­¡¯


    ---------------------------------


    Word spread about Song Shun¡¯s challenge to Li Jian rather quickly.


    ¡°Song Shun is risking his interspatial ring!!¡±


    ¡°Such a rare and expensive item! There aren¡¯t even that many disciples here who have one!¡±


    ¡°Song Shun is at the peak of the 7th level, there¡¯s no way Li Jian will win.¡±


    ¡°I heard Li Jian¡¯s made it into the 7th level.¡±


    ¡°What?! Him reaching the 6th level was already crazy, but he¡¯s a 7th level now?!¡±


    The hype continued to grow, and many disciples looked forward to the fight.


    ---------------------------------


    ¡°Li Jian we¡¯ll be watching your fight!¡±


    The trio had rushed over to Li Jian¡¯s house the moment they heard of the fight.


    ¡°These inner sect disciples think they can just step on big bro like this! Wait until we¡¯re stronger.¡±


    ¡°Calm down brothers. I couldn¡¯t have asked for a better opportunity.¡±


    Li Jian smirked.


    The three looked at Li Jian with confusion.


    ¡°What do you mean by opportunity Brother Li?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll show all of the inner sect just who I am!¡±


    The trio looked at each other with lingering worries on their face.


    ¡°Song Shun is at the peak of the 7th level,Brother Li, you have to prepare well. There¡¯s only a few hours left!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about meand enjoy the duel!¡±


    ---------------------------------


    The arena was a giant colliseum with a single platform in the center for duels.


    Tonight was the night Song Shun and Li Jian would be fighting.


    Almost all of the seats had been filled to watch this spectacle.


    When the crowd settled into their seats, an elegant, but beautiful woman walked onto the stage.


    ¡°Good evening disciples, I will be bearing witness to tonight¡¯s challenge.¡±


    The moment this woman walked up, the whole crowd became riled up.


    ¡°It¡¯s Princess Bai!!¡±


    ¡°PrincessBai is here for this challenge?! The S rank reward must be incredible if she¡¯s here to supervise!!¡±


    ¡°The challenger, Song Shun, will be fighting Li Jian tonight.¡±


    At this moment, Song Shun walked up onto the arena.


    At the opposite end of the arena, Li Jian entered.


    ¡°Song Shun will be offering his interspatial ring.¡±


    ¡°Li Jian will be offering his S rank mission reward; 10,000 contribution points.¡±


    The crowd grew silent.


    ¡°Did she just say 10,000 contribution points?..¡±


    The jaws of all disciples dropped to the floor.


    ¡°10,000¡­¡±