Chapter 60: 魁阴宗

The Mortal Realm

The existence of the Yama Banner must never be revealed. His own talent was abysmal, yet with the help of the Yama Banner, his cultivation speed was no slower than someone with a True Spirit Root. The Yama Banner must be an extraordinary treasure.

Qin Sang's mind raced, and he could only babble nonsense. "Replying to Senior, when I was a child, I once ate a fruit. Afterward, my entire body became hot, and the high fever lasted three days before subsiding, almost costing me my life. Only when I began cultivating later did I realize my meridians were much wider and tougher than others', and my speed of absorbing spiritual energy was also extremely fast. I wonder if it was because of that fruit..."

Liang Yan's eyes lit up. "What kind of fruit?"

"Blue... it seemed to be some kind of berry..."

Qin Sang tried his best to make things up, describing it with the color of copper sulfate solution and the patterns of iron oxide. In short, it was very bizarre; he himself didn't believe any spirit fruit could look like that.

"Blue? And it can expand meridians..."

Liang Yan thought for a moment. "Could it be the Drunken God Fruit? Does its skin have white speckles and a rich wine aroma?"

"I don't think it had a wine aroma."

Qin Sang tried hard to recall. How could he know the properties of the Drunken God Fruit? If Liang Yan was trying to trick him, he absolutely couldn't admit to anything. After some fruitless questioning, Liang Yan became somewhat disheartened.

"Enough!"

The black-robed elder interrupted Liang Yan. "Liang Yan, go write Qin Sang's name in the registry. From now on, he will be your junior brother."

Liang Yan exclaimed, "Ah! Uncle Yue, Junior Brother Qin has a Five-Element Spirit Root. Doesn't that go against the sect's rules?"

The black-robed elder snorted, "What rules? It's merely a custom. It hasn't been unbroken throughout history. The fact that he had the fortuitous chance to consume a spirit fruit and could find a sect token indicates his profound luck. Ultimately, your possession of a True Spirit Root is also a form of good fortune. As long as Junior Nephew Qin can... can meet the sect's requirements, there's no need to turn him away. Just go ahead and register him."

Liang Yan nodded profusely, registered Qin Sang's name, and arranged for Qin Sang to sit on a prayer mat, telling him to wait patiently. When the auction concluded in the evening, they could return to the sect. From Liang Yan, Qin Sang learned that their sect was named Kuiyin Sect. Qin Sang sat on the prayer mat, still somewhat dazed. Was he really accepted as a disciple by a cultivation sect just like that?

"Congratulations, Elder Brother Qin! From now on, we are fellow disciples."

Qin Sang suddenly heard Tan Jie's voice transmission. His heart stirred, and he also transmitted a reply, self-deprecatingly saying, "Senior Brother Tan, please just call me Junior Brother from now on, according to sect rules. To be honest, I still find this hard to believe. Do you all also have jade plate tokens?" Titles of Senior Brother and Junior Brother were assigned according to the order in the registry. Although Qin Sang was older than Tan Jie, he still had to obediently call him Senior Brother, unless he cultivated to the Foundation Establishment stage first, which would allow the Tan brothers to call him Uncle-Master instead.

"Of course. Without a token, you definitely can't be recognized by the Divine Artifact Pavilion. You know, opportunities for rogue cultivators like us to join a cultivation sect are extremely rare. Not only near You Mountain, but even many rogue cultivators from distant places are searching for Divine Artifact Pavilion tokens, and the competition is fierce. My elder brother and I also went through immense hardships and only obtained these two tokens by chance."

It seemed his luck was indeed good to have obtained the token from the youth named Han. As the saying goes, blessings and misfortunes are intertwined. With his talent, he originally could only have been in the outer sect of the Han family, but now he had joined a cultivation sect. He didn't know whether to hate or thank Zhen Ming.

Qin Sang gave a wry smile and sighed softly. "Senior Brother Tan, do you know where our sect's mountain gate is? And what is its strength?"

"I had heard of our sect's name before. It's rumored to be a famous cultivation sect in the northern lands, in the extreme northern frigid region. I didn't expect them to establish a Divine Artifact Pavilion so far away. Don't worry, Elder Brother Qin. Just looking at the Divine Artifact Pavilion, you can tell our sect's strength is not weak. With the sect's protection, we finally have hope for the future!" Tan Jie's tone was somewhat excited. The two exchanged a few more voice transmissions.

Joining a cultivation sect was always a good thing. The cultivation resources for sect disciples were incomparable to those of rogue cultivators. After joining the sect, whether for cultivation or finding Yin-fiend Qi, it would certainly be more convenient than fumbling around by oneself. But as soon as he thought about his Five-Element Spirit Root, Qin Sang couldn't bring himself to be happy.

They waited until nightfall. During this time, Uncle Yue led a few more rogue cultivators in, but ultimately only accepted one girl. The Divine Artifact Pavilion was thorough in its dealings; all rejected rogue cultivators received a mid-grade magical artifact as compensation. One rogue cultivator, despite having a Three-Element Spirit Root, was only at the second level of Qi Condensation and was still turned away. Another, whose cultivation was even higher than Liang Yan's, at the eighth level of Qi Condensation, was rejected due to his age. That person was naturally resentful but dared not act presumptuously in front of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. He could only take the magical artifact and leave indignantly.

In the end, only seven people were accepted into Kuiyin Sect: five males and two females, all around twenty years old. Not a single one was above the sixth level of Qi Condensation. Qin Sang couldn't understand what criteria Kuiyin Sect used for accepting disciples.

By night, the clamor had died down. Uncle Yue and two other black-robed elders walked in. Qin Sang and the others quickly stood up, saluting behind Liang Yan. "This junior greets Uncle-Master Dong, Uncle-Master Yue, and Uncle-Master Wu." The hook-nosed elder in the middle was precisely Uncle-Master Dong. His gaze was like a knife, making their eyes sting, and they all lowered their heads, not daring to meet his gaze.

Uncle-Master Dong suddenly let out a sinister chuckle, and the powerful aura of a Foundation Establishment cultivator erupted. Qin Sang was greatly alarmed, feeling as if Mount Tai was pressing down on him. He had to exert all his strength just to avoid collapsing to the ground; the others, too, had flushed faces and struggled to stand.

"The fact that you were chosen by my Kuiyin Sect indicates decent talent. After joining Kuiyin Sect, you must cultivate with all your might and sever all worldly ties! Before breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage, you are absolutely forbidden from leaving the mountain without permission, unless it's for a sect mission. Otherwise, it will be treated as treason. Don't blame this old man for not warning you then!" A stir went through the group upon hearing this.

Qin Sang's heart tightened. Pursuing longevity naturally required single-minded cultivation; even without sect restrictions, Qin Sang wouldn't be distracted. But if he couldn't leave the mountain, where would he find Yin-fiend Qi?

After closing the Divine Artifact Pavilion, Qin Sang and the others quietly left the market, following behind the three Uncle-Masters. After leaving the market, the three Foundation Establishment cultivators of Kuiyin Sect took out a milky-white jade shuttle. The shuttle glowed, enveloped everyone, and swiftly flew towards the horizon.

Unexpectedly, shortly after they flew out, a fiery red sword light suddenly shot out from the depths of You Mountain, striking the shuttle like a comet. An astonishing scene unfolded: the shuttle was easily pierced by the sword light, shattering into fragments of light like rain. It was, in fact, an illusion.

A startled cry erupted from the depths of You Mountain, followed by several figures bursting out from the darkness, fleeing in all directions. However, they despairingly discovered that they had been surrounded by eerie black mist at some unknown point. The black mist churned erratically, seemingly filled with the roars of countless evil spirits. It instantly engulfed the attackers; not a single scream was heard. When the black mist passed, only skeletons remained.

Qin Sang, who had witnessed the entire battle, was drenched in cold sweat.