This was a renowned mountain in Luo State, shrouded in clouds and mist at all times, where occasionally tales had it that woodcutters and herb gatherers met immortals.
At the mountain’s base, nestled a tea house.
Each day, the owner, Mr. Wang, would ride his ox cart from the town laden with his livelihood, selling tea, snacks, wine, and meat to travelers along the road...
The only cook and helper in the shop were his spouse and son.
Life wasn’t great, but they managed to get by.
On this day, he saw a group of travelers dressed like chivalrous heroes galloping towards the tea house, with the leader issuing a boisterous voice, "The sun’s really strong today, let’s rest here for a bit."
They dismounted their horses and called out loudly, "Boy, bring us tea, and whatever good food you’ve got, just serve it up."
Mr. Wang replied enthusiastically, his feelings a mixture of joy and worry.
He was glad because these types of heroes from the martial arts world often spent generously.
But he was also concerned; there were those stingy ones who took advantage of their martial strength to eat without paying, or even worse, to beat people up. Encountering them meant nothing but bad luck.
Fortunately, after the lead caller shouted his orders, he tossed over a bright and shiny White Emperor Coin, making Mr. Wang’s smile so wide he couldn’t close his mouth. He quickly had his son slice up the spiced meat to serve, while he himself went to boil water.
Once seated, one of the young men among them let out a sigh, "We’ve been searching for so long and still haven’t found Su Immortal Master... He must be tired of me."
That youth was none other than Xu Shaoling from Xuanyu City.
That day, when Su Daoshi revealed his identity and unleashed his divine prowess with a slap, he left Qingmu half-dead.
After his serious injury, Qingmu was overwhelmed with shame and also afraid that the authorities would hassle him, so he ran off into the night!
Xu Shaoling’s and the other families’ children’s aspiration for a master had once again found no resolution.
Worried about his son’s future, Xu Hanlin brought him around on a search. One aim was to find that Su Immortal Master, and the second to chance upon other opportunities.
"Most court Daoist officials are proud, but they have a reputation. They don’t practice evil skills or cheat and swindle..."
Xu Hanlin sighed, "Su Immortal Master is fated with you, and later even helped our Xu Family. Morally and rationally, a face-to-face thanks is owed... This opportunity you must seize."
The martial arts of the officialdom progressed slowly, in fact they were ethereal and extremely difficult to master.
Thus, those with a little bit of influence didn’t consider it a true path.
At the very least, they had to take shelter under a court cultivator as master to consider their footing secure.
Otherwise, children of a humble family entering official martial arts typically ended up as cannon fodder, or led mediocre lives without accomplishment.
Zhong Shenxiu also relied on a few opportunities, and with the support of Feng Xixi, set up great achievements to climb to a proper eighth rank, enduring countless disdain and glass ceilings.
Such hardships were not worth mentioning to others.
"Immortal fate, immortal fate... sigh..."
Xu Shaoling sighed once more.
Xu Wen duo then comforted him, "The path to entering Dao is extraordinary and highly cherished, how can one attain it without experiencing some hardships? Take for example the renowned martial arts family, Dugu Family; it is said their ancestors were cultivators who passed down a ’Daoist Rain Viewing Painting’ that can help an Innate Expert gain insight into the Dao... It has been coveted by countless, and when the Dugu Family was at its peak, it held up fine, but once they weakened, eight great bandits joined together to break through Dugu Manor and annihilated the Dugu Family..."
His words were cold, making Xu Shaoling bitterly smile, "Uncle, your comfort is rather chilling..."
"It was never easy to pursue the Dao. Our Xu Family has passed down martial arts through generations, and each generation produced Innate Experts, thereby keeping the county’s foundation stable, but it’s not entirely secure..."
Xu Hanlin looked at his son, "I just hope that our family can produce a cultivator as a descendant, then I could die content!"
"Dad, don’t talk about that... it’s inauspicious." Xu Shaoling felt a heaviness in his heart.
"Haha... What reservations could we, practitioners of martial arts, possibly have?" Xu Hanlin waved his hand, "This Xuling Mountain often hosts legends of immortals; it seems to be a gathering place for cultivators, so I brought you here to try our luck..."
In reality, wherever cultivators gathered, there were sure to be arrays in place to protect them, easily sufficient to confound a few ordinary martial artists.
Therefore, the chances of actually encountering an opportunity to ascend were slim to none.
"Sigh... The pursuit of Dao and becoming immortal..." Xu Shaoling looked up at the sky beyond the arbor, letting out a deep sigh.
It would be one thing for the ignorant and mediocre masses, but for someone like him, who knew the truth and could see a sliver of hope yet was unable to grasp it, the pain was especially acute.
Just then, his eyes flickered; he saw a streak of light flying past, with what appeared to be a human silhouette within it.
"An immortal! There’s an immortal!"
Xu Hanlin was overjoyed and immediately set off in pursuit.
Old Mr. Wang at his side only laughed in a seen-it-all-before manner, "These flying immortals, we catch sight of them a few times every month, but when you actually follow them, their traces vanish at the foot of Xuling Mountain... It’s all just a novelty, really."
Xu Hanlin and Xu Shaoling galloped on horseback, chasing all the way to the foot of Xuling Mountain, only to find that the figure had disappeared without a trace, leaving them greatly disappointed.
Hundreds of feet in the air, Zhong Shenxiu let out a light exclamation, having spotted two familiar figures.
But for just two mortals, there really was no need for him to descend from his flight to meet them.
Once he entered the perimeter of Xuling Mountain, he sensed a large array that repelled ordinary people and Innate Martial Practitioners, posing no obstacles to cultivators.
While he leisurely ascended the mountain on the wind, a streak of golden light dashed across the sky.
That golden light was of astonishing momentum, existing thousands of feet in the air and vanishing in a flash like a shooting star, clearly the sign of a Divine Power Practitioner.
Gang Sha Cultivators could rely only on themselves for flight and had a certain height limit, typically around a hundred feet, though Zhong Shenxiu could push it to several hundred feet if he tried.
In contrast, Divine Power Practitioners underwent a transformation, capable of soaring ten thousand feet high and harnessing Gang Sha Qi.
It was said that Primordial Pill Great Cultivators were different; in their hands, any spell or divine skill was cast with the power to transform decay into miracles. Even the impressive divine skills of Zhang Taiyi dared not target any Primordial Pill Great Cultivator.
The hierarchy of the Cultivation World was built upon such profound disparities in strength.
After another half an hour of flight, Zhong Shenxiu finally found a marketplace on top of a mountain peak.
This marketplace was carved out of the mountain itself, its front marked by a huge white jade pillar gate.
From time to time, figures would land or take off in a burst of light, immeasurably livelier than the gathering of Loose Cultivators he had seen before.
"To cultivate Earth Escape and Fire Escape, two yin evil skills, you need Five Elements Earth Evil and Five Elements Fire Evil. These two evil qi are only slightly rarer than the commonly seen ones, still relatively easy to find, otherwise, disciples of the Dragon Tiger Sect wouldn’t choose the Five Elements Heavenly Escape Divine Power..."
’Once my cultivation reaches a certain level, perhaps I could investigate that little print shop with the misprinted books? Through that clue, I might be able to trace back to the Black Lotus Sect’s slip-up... And that Wang Qiao Ren surely has something wrong with him!’
Zhong Shenxiu wasn’t completely unaffected by the annihilation of Yixin Temple, that much was certain.
But the Black Lotus Sect was powerful, having even infiltrated the Mystic Sky Bureau, which left him somewhat at a loss on how to proceed.
After much consideration, he decided he would write a warning letter when he traveled to other states and counties.
With a hint of melancholy, Zhong Shenxiu walked toward the largest building in the marketplace.
Upon entering, he saw an Innate Martial Practitioner dressed as a clerk, repeatedly bowing to a golden-robed monk, "Doctor Wang... Please... our shopkeeper will be here shortly."
The term ’doctor’ here did not refer to a medical practitioner, but instead was an official title.
For example, a Xuandu Doctor from the fifth rank among Daoist officials, or a Golden Que Doctor of the proper fifth rank!
’With cultivation in his person, he is a Daoist official in the Divine Power Realm, and surnamed Wang... Could it be such a coincidence?’ Zhong Shenxiu muttered to himself.
Just then, he saw that golden-robed monk scan over with a glance that made him extremely uncomfortable, scrutinizing him.