Ren refused to believe this was a fateful encounter or a reward for following his dao. This must be the karmic chickens coming home to roost. That Cheng Fu, who finished his trial, must be a great sinner if it resulted in this calamity arriving at his doorstep two whole years before schedule!

  The same walking disaster was pouting at him, hands on hips, “How rude! I come to see you the first instant I can, and that’s all you can say to me?”

  Knowing better than to annoy this little sister too much, Ren acquiesced. “I’m sorry, Meimei, I was just surprised. Come, let’s talk inside.”

  He showed her in and put on a pot of his best tea. Xi Yuan looked around eagerly at his courtyard. Her eyes lingered on the plot containing his spirit herbs and the little tortoises. They were curious about the visitor and poked their heads out, leaving the assorted beast cores they had been gnawing on.

  “How come you’re at the sect early? Didn’t you have almost 2 years left before your parents intended to send you here?”

  “That was before Master found me. I’ve actually been here for almost half a year!”

  That shocked Ren even more! A little uncertain on if he should pry, he waited for her to offer an explanation.

  Xi Yuan obliged and provided more detail. “A few months after you left, we were visited by one of the elders of the sect. She saw me and thought I had talent. Before I even knew what happened, she said I passed her test and offered to accept me as an official disciple. I accepted and was brought here. But then Master said I could only go out once I broke through and restricted me to her mountain! Can you believe her? What a meanie! But I’m someone who can topple mountains and drain seas! I broke through in half a year!”

  Her nose was halfway to the sky, and Ren knew exactly the response she wanted to hear.

  Although what he really wanted to know was how she passed the elder’s test without even realizing it, instead he said, “That’s amazing! As expected from a heavenly genius! So what layer are you at now?”

  “I’m at the second layer. It would have been faster, but Master made me slow down. She’s very bossy, but I still like her. She’s kind and guides me well.”

  Ren was just thinking how half a year was a long time to only advance to the 2nd layer of the qi gathering realm when he remembered who he was talking to. A monstrous genius like her? There was no way she was slow! Almost afraid of the answer, he asked,

  “You mean the foundation establishment realm?”

  “Of course? That was Master’s condition. She said it was the least she could accept if I wanted to participate in the inheritance trial.”

  Ren let out a long sigh. He was less surprised about her cultivation and more about how early the elders knew and prepared their personal disciples for the trial.

  “Truly Little Sister is without compare! I’ll do my best to catch up soon.” He said without thinking. His reaction caught him by surprise. If it was him from before, he would have simply accepted her superiority and stepped aside. Feelings of wanting to reduce the distance were entirely foreign. It was a sign of how much his self-confidence had grown and how far he had come. He decided he liked this new self.

  Xi Yuan certainly liked it. “I’ll not wait, so you better work hard, big brother!” Her smile was vibrant.

  As he poured the tea, she asked about his life in the sect and how the past year had treated him. Glad to offer some light conversation, he talked about his experiences. His friends, his seniors and juniors, his lessons, and his adventures. He didn’t bother embellishing his accomplishments before her and only mentioned some amusing stories. She had already outpaced his cultivation in half the time. He didn’t need his face slapped any further.

  Xi Yuan listened along and chimed in with sounds of appreciation and enjoyment. She always did love his stories. She didn’t have many stories to offer, but she spoke of her master, the beauty of the mountain she lived on, and her fellow disciples. They all doted on her as the youngest and gave her the best items. Ren glanced over her refined outfit and saw what was surely a spatial pouch and a flying sword. He made no comment.

  Just then, he heard a knock at his gate. Bao Hua had come with a huge hunk of meat and two pots of wine.

  “Come try my new wine, brother! I made it from those iceheart fruits Mei Ling gave me. I promise it’ll be cool and refreshing! She should be here any moment too. Oh, and who’s this young miss? Am I interrupting?”

  Glad for the distraction, Ren quickly introduced them. “Xi Yuan, this is my brother. He’s accompanied me in the sect since the very beginning. Bao Hua, this is my childhood friend Xi Yuan. Treat her well!”

  “Ohoho! So this is young Miss Xi Yuan! You are welcome to join the feast!”

  Ren paused for a second and then realized what the feast really meant. "Brother, did you...?”

  “That’s right! I’ve finally caught up with you two and entered the 9th layer!”

  Ren felt a warmth in his chest. Even though he had never said it, Ren knew Bao Hua had always been worried about being left behind. This definitely deserved a celebration.

  He brought out his best ingredients and prepared a feast as Bao Hua started chatting with Xi Yuan. Initially awkward, they were soon laughing along together. While Zhao Ren, the young master, had long been used to excellent food, Ren, the cultivator, had to strive to appease his own tongue. Over time after countless failures, he was armed with a new understanding of qi and qi-rich ingredients. He felt he had finally reached a level where his meals weren’t an ordeal but a pleasure. Ignoring the occasional culinary disaster.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Soon enough, he was churning out side dishes even as the main course was roasting over the fire. While his forge wasn’t meant to be used this way, it did a great job sealing in the flavor and heating large hunks of meat quickly and evenly. The meat Bao Hua had brought should be from a lizard beast and of the lightning attribute, and Ren found the perfect pairings to enhance the taste. As always, the little tortoises gathered to bask in the warmth. The one Xi Yuan was holding on waggled its legs helplessly to escape, but she continued to pet it.

  Just as the wafting aroma started to fill the courtyard, Mei Ling arrived. She congratulated Bao Hua as she sat at the table. Unexpectedly, Xi Yuan treated her coldly, and instinctively responding to her behavior, Mei Ling did the same.

  Trying to head off problems before they arose, Ren quickly suggested they try Hua’s new wine. While they were all young and shouldn’t really be drinking, there was no one around to tell them otherwise. The wine did its part and smoothed over the conflict before it could start.

  “This tastes amazing, Brother Ren! I knew it was the right thing to bring the meat for you to prepare.”

  Everyone chimed in with compliments while savoring the meal. As they ate and drank, they talked, and more news was shared.

  Mei Ling said, “I heard from an inner sect disciple that the blood moon is caused by a comet. That’s how they can predict it so accurately.”

  Xi Yuan added on, “I heard about that too! My master said the comet was actually a drop of blood from an ancient immortal and carries mysterious powers. It crosses the skies once every 81 years, and in the year it passes in front of the moon, it causes unpredictable events.”

  They all paused to appreciate how powerful one must be that a single drop of their immortal essence was causing such terrifying events even after such a long time had passed. Bao Hua broke the silence eventually with news of the allied sects who would be arriving any day now.

  “I heard from a senior on the beast wave frontlines that there will be another sect participating along with our two allied sects. We will be completely outnumbered.”

  Ren added his piece, “A powerful dragon can’t suppress a local snake. So what if they outnumber us? That’s only possible if they all work together. Individually, our sect will surely have more disciples than each of the other sects.”

  “More importantly, I have news about the trial itself. Hu Yan and I have been searching for information on the moon elder, and he finally found some. It turns out the Moon Elder was a powerful cultivator of our sect who practiced something called the Moon Blade art. But one day he suddenly went crazy and began slaughtering entire cities. It’s said that he destroyed three whole kingdoms before he was stopped.”

  The others hunched and leaned forward on the edge of their seats as he spoke. Ren appreciated the attention, for he had indeed spent many hours searching through dusty scrolls in search of this information.

  “Defeating him at great cost, his final words were ravings about a blood moon. Because of that and for all the blood he spilled, he became known as the blood moon elder. It’s no wonder our sect wanted to forget this dark history. If this trial is linked to him, oceans of blood will be spilled before the end.”

  The cold wine and the chilling story caused a shiver to run down their spines despite the blazing fire. The tortoise Xi Yuan was holding let out a squeak as she unconsciously gripped it hard. It broke the strange atmosphere, and everyone relaxed.

  Soon the stories drifted to what would happen when one finally entered the inner sect.

  “I lived on Master’s mountain, but most disciples find their own cultivator caves in the sect’s mountains. If a mountain holds a spirit font, then it greatly increases the speed of cultivation. Master’s mountain is obviously better, and the qi from the spirit font is very pure.”

  That was thrilling to think about. An entire mountain to plant spirit plants and herbs on. Mountains already being natural attractors of qi, he wondered how well his crops would grow if he could plan a formation spanning an entire mountain. He’d never lack for money!

  When the gathering finally ended, and Ren lay down to sleep, he wondered if he would break through smoothly and what new abilities and benefits the new realm of cultivation would bring him.

  With only a month and a half left for the trial, the other sects were set to arrive soon. News had spread, and hundreds flocked to the gigantic square in front of the sect gates, which had the words "Cultivating Immortality" carved on them. Ren hadn’t seen them since he had first entered the sect and was amazed how the characters still made him dizzy.

  He could far better understand the strength it must have required for such a powerful sword intent to emit from the characters and marvelled. Cultivators who could apply their understanding of the world onto everyday objects and activities were usually incredibly powerful. It showed how far he still had to go. There are heavens beyond heavens. The sight of an enormous flying ship broke him out of his introspection.

  It was the Celestial Instruments Sect. Even at a distance he could tell it was a massive ship. It grew larger as it rapidly approached. As it neared, Ren could tell it had hundreds of formations carved into it, but they were hidden from view. When it landed, hundreds of men and women jumped out. Most of them were young, clearly talents to be nurtured. Their five elders were greeted by elders of the Heavenly Sword Sect. Ren was eager to see if the sect leader had made an appearance but he couldn’t tell from where he stood.

  Just then the sounds of rhythmic chanting were heard. Ren didn't know what it meant,appearance, but it had a soothing effect. Everyone turned to see a long procession of monks chanting scripture as they approached. At their front was a huge banner or a Buddhist flag being carried by a burly monk with a shaved head. Most of the elders that stepped forward looked like what Ren thought wise monks should look like. White-bearded and shrivelled, wearing beads. Their backs stooping with the weight of ages, yet a lively glint in their eyes. One of the elder monks completely defied the image. He was rotund and hairless, with a furious scowl on his face.

  They too were greeted by the Sect elders and the elders of the Celestial Instruments Sect. Just then someone pointed out the last arrival. It was a huge flying gourd! While he had heard about such magical treasures, it was still very surprising when a hundred or so disciples descended. This must be the Hidden Sea Sect, who had joined in at the last moment. He idly wondered what price they had paid to be allowed to participate.

  Once all the elders had gathered, Ren heard, for the first time, the voice of their sect leader.

  "Welcome, honored guests! Our sect is glad to host you all for this opportunity. I hope you make the most of it.”

  The voice was soft as though the one speaking were right beside him. Then, addressing the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect, he said,

  “Let us learn from each other what it means to be cultivators. Treat our guests with honor!”

  Everyone clasped hands and bowed to greet the guests. The time for the trial was almost upon them, and Ren had only one final thing left to do to complete his preparations. He needed to break through to the foundation establishment realm!