Star Sky Professional
Chapter 170 - 149: Entering the Door (Seeking Monthly Ticket at the Beginning of the Month)

Chapter 170: Chapter 149: Entering the Door (Seeking Monthly Ticket at the Beginning of the Month)

Deacon Xue was no longer young, his head full of white hair, his face aged and weathered.

When Fang Xing saw this man, he was fishing at a pond, holding a purple jade fishing rod that was clearly made by a master craftsman, even his fishing line was made from spirit silk, which looked extravagantly luxurious.

"Being so engrossed in fishing, it seems he has given up on the Dao Path..." Fang Xing commented inwardly, yet a look of solemn respect appeared on his face as he greeted, "I’ve met Deacon Xue..."

His Divine Sense had already detected that this Deacon Xue was actually a Fake Core real person!

At this moment, the Qi Cultivation disciple had already gone forward and reported his wish to join the sect.

"Your name is Fang Xing?" Deacon Xue’s gaze remained fixed on the pond, but a powerful force of Divine Sense wrapped around Fang Xing, "Where are you from? Do you have any special skills?"

"I hail from Zheng Country," Fang Xing replied, "While cultivating Qi, I delved into the Alchemy Technique and once refined a Top Grade First Rank Elixir... Now that I’ve reached Foundation Establishment, I’m also somewhat confident in concocting Low Grade Second Rank Elixirs..."

Fang Xing was ready to demonstrate his abilities as a Quasi Second Rank Alchemist.

With such skills and cultivation level, he was bound to receive preferential treatment wherever he went.

"You can concoct Low Grade Second Rank Elixirs? Even if the success rate is not high, with Divine Sense to assist, you can slowly improve. Not bad, not bad..." Deacon Xue nodded approvingly, "Our Outer Hall disciples have only one task – to serve the Inner Sect disciples well... Your alchemy skills are very good, but even so, we still need to go through the standard procedures."

He lifted the fishing rod, and a golden carp was pulled out from the pond.

"Oh? A little golden scale carp, I’m in luck today, looks like it’s fish soup for dinner tonight..." Deacon Xue placed the golden carp into a bamboo basket and produced a Talisman in his hand, "This is a Second Rank Top Grade Heart Inquiry Talisman, with your cultivation, you absolutely can’t resist it..."

With a wave of his hand, the power of his Fake Core surged forth, stimulating the Talisman as a ray of light fell upon Fang Xing.

"Was there any falsehood in what you just said?" Elder Xue spoke solemnly.

"There was not!" Fang Xing felt a force compelling him to speak the truth.

If he were to speak any falsehoods, it would trigger an undesirable reaction.

But since he was being honest, he confidently responded aloud.

"Have you ever cultivated Demon Skills? Or are you a spy for other forces?" Elder Xue pressed further.

"Not at all..."

...

"Good!" After a round of questioning, Elder Xue nodded, "Fang Xing, is it? You are now an Outer Hall disciple of our Heavenly Sword Sect... Follow Xiao Yu and go through the procedures, and arrangements for your Cave Mansion and Identity Token will be naturally made in a few days."

"Is it really... that simple?" Fang Xing was somewhat incredulous.

A hint of playfulness appeared on Elder Xue’s face, "We, the Outer Hall disciples, originally face a hard time comparing with Inner Sect disciples... Since you’ve come to the Outer Sect, as long as you diligently cultivate, there will still be a chance to enter the Inner Sect in the future. And even if you stay in the Outer Sect, as long as you accumulate Merit, you can still exchange for Second Rank Spirit Items and breakthrough Elixirs... Should you make a significant contribution, you could be granted a Third Rank Demon Core, and then you would become a real person with a Fake Core... If you are even luckier and manage to condense a True Core, then you will become an Outer Hall Elder, and any force in Qi Country would have to give you some respect..."

However, it was clear that this was the limit for an Outer Hall disciple.

...

Fang Xing gave a formal bow and followed the Qi Cultivation disciple named Xiao Yu.

"Congratulations, Uncle-Master!" Xiao Yu smiled warmly, becoming somewhat more familiar.

"Hm, you’re not bad." Fang Xing laughed heartily and handed over a Mid-grade Spirit Stone.

Xiao Yu’s breathing quickened when he saw the Mid-grade Spirit Stone. He received gifts from others for doing favors, but none were as generous as this Uncle-Master.

"Is there anything else I should be aware of regarding joining the sect? How can I pick a good Cave Mansion?" Fang Xing inquired about what he most wanted to know.

"Now that you’ve passed Deacon Xue’s test, there shouldn’t be any obstacles to joining... As for the allocation of Cave Mansions, you could go see Deacon Huang, he is somewhat financially constrained..." Xiao Yu immediately shared some insider tips.

These little secrets were not easy to come by without spending a good amount of time mingling in the Outer Hall and could save one from taking many detours.

"I joined the Heavenly Sword Sect to seek a superior Cultivation Technique... Do we Outer Hall disciples truly have no further path to advancement?" Fang Xing expressed his regret at the end.

"As for the Cultivation Techniques, once you receive your Token, you can go to the Scripture Collection Pavilion to borrow them... But the path to advancement? It’s always been there!" Xiao Yu pointed in the direction of the Sword Fighting Platform, "Our Heavenly Sword Sect holds the sword in high esteem. To become an Inner Sect disciple, one must demonstrate sufficient Sword Dao talent... Apart from that, no amount of achievements or contributions will matter, the Sect would only bestow a Third Rank Demon Core or Core Formation Spirit Item... But that’s quite good, if I can reach Foundation Establishment in my life, I’ll be satisfied."

"The Sword Fighting Platform, huh..." Fang Xing sighed.

"Since Uncle-Master has reached Foundation Establishment, if you go to the Sword Fighting Platform, you’ll surely face Inner Sect Foundation Establishment Sword Cultivators... Some might even be of the Refining Sword into Gang caliber." Xiao Yu shook his head, knowing this path was not viable.

"What a pity, I’m not adept at magical duels..." Fang Xing looked regretful.

"Actually, if you wish to enter the Inner Door, besides the Sword Fighting, there’s another path." Xiao Yu suddenly smiled.

"Oh? Which way?"

Fang Xing looked genuinely interested.

The little fish pointed in the direction of Group Sword Peak, "There is a peak within the Sect, known as ’Sword Heart’, rumored to be left by our ancestral master... The Sect has decreed that Qi Cultivation disciples who climb Sword Heart Peak and reach one hundred steps can be directly accepted as Inner Sect Disciples, and those who reach two hundred steps are considered True Inheritors..."

"For Foundation Establishment Disciples, reaching two hundred steps gains entry to the Inner Sect, and four hundred steps makes one a True Inheritor..."

"Cultivators above Core Formation are forbidden from entering."

"Oh? What if one could reach the peak?" Fang Xing became intrigued.

"Sword Heart Peak is connected to the Sect’s grand Array, forbidding entry to Cultivators above Core Formation; there are a total of a thousand steps... Even the Supreme Elder, at the time of his Perfect Foundation Establishment, only managed to climb eight hundred and seventy-two steps..."

With a smile, the little fish stopped speaking.

Fang Xing smiled as well, "I was presumptuous..."

...

Inside the temporary Cave Mansion.

Fang Xing sat cross-legged, surrounded by Array Flags of the Thick Earth Array.

He slightly waved the silver Token in his hand, and a layer of earthy yellow light emerged, resembling a huge bowl that covered the entire Cave Mansion.

After doing all this, he put on a piece of sci-fi-looking monocle to check the latest surveillance.

"Finally... gone?"

Ever since settling down in Beili Immortal City, Fang Xing certainly hadn’t forgotten his own good practices by setting up Mechanical Puppets around the Cave Mansion.

And then... he immediately noticed something was amiss!

Someone was secretly monitoring him!

This was also one of the reasons that eventually led him to leave Beili Immortal City and join the Heavenly Sword Sect.

’I have a very simple life in Beili Immortal City... I haven’t even begun to flaunt wealth frequently to attract those looking to rob Cultivators...’

’If someone is surveilling me now, apart from that Tianyu True Person, there can be no other Cultivators...’

’Why would he do this? Could it be that he places extraordinary importance on the ’elder’ Fang Yun behind me?’

If it weren’t for the pressure from Wei Shentong, Fang Xing would actually quite like to play a game with the other party.

But for now, it was more important to improve himself, so he joined the Heavenly Sword Sect and made the other party give up on pursuing him.

"Tianyu True Person... I’ll remember this," Fang Xing sneered.

Although his true body had cultivated Divine Skills and could be considered a Third Rank Body Refinement Cultivator in the Cultivation World, Beili Immortal City was not Purple Bird Mountain City!

Facing a Jiedan Cultivator head-on, Fang Xing wasn’t overly fearful, but there could be more than one Core Formation Cultivator in Beili Immortal City, not to mention there were the four Fake Cores, as well as Arrays and large-scale War Magic Weapons...

Opposing the City Lord in Beili Immortal City was foolish.

And since he needed the Sword Dao, he simply found an opportunity to leave the city and joined the Heavenly Sword Sect directly.

Having a Nascent Soul Sect to protect him should surely scare off that Tianyu True Person.

And when the time came, when they ventured out or were alone, he could once again "thank nature’s gift..."

...

In the following days, Fang Xing has been handling the ’employment procedures’, and with little fish’s pointers, everything was quite smooth.

Especially after bribing Deacon Huang with Spirit Stones, he got a Cave Mansion that was not only serene but also possessed Quasi Third Rank Spiritual Energy, which was quite good.

And through some interactions, Fang Xing was surprised to find that the Heavenly Sword Sect really didn’t care about the Outer Hall.

They almost regarded the entire Outer Hall as a provider of various resources, with main authority concentrated in the hands of a few Outer Sect Elders with Core Formation Cultivation.

As for the Inner Sect Disciples, they were solely focused on sword training.

It felt like they were saying, as long as you provide resources, do whatever you want. If you dare to revolt in the future, I can suppress you with one sword...

’It strangely makes sense in a world where individuals surpass the ordinary...’

’Of course, no matter how bad the Outer Hall might be, there are still several Core Formation Elders and many Fake Core Deacons... Being numerous and powerful, destroying a few Core Formation Sects would not be an issue at all.’

One day.

Dressed in the Outer Hall’s Cloud Sword Pattern Robe, a White Jade Pendant hanging from his waist, Fang Xing arrived at a certain location on Group Sword Peak.

Amidst the swirling clouds, a massive Scripture Collection Pavilion appeared before him.

"Is this place the Heavenly Sword Sect’s Scripture Collection Pavilion?"

He remarked and entered the Scripture Collection Pavilion.

Naturally, the Pavilion was protected by an Array, but with his Outer Sect Disciple Token, he had no trouble entering and exiting.

The Pavilion was large, spanning across seven floors, with disciples coming and going from time to time.

Fang Xing approached the entrance and saw a white-haired Sword Cultivator sitting cross-legged behind a low table, examining a bamboo scroll.

He knew the man was a Sword Cultivator because the aura around him was extremely sharp, and a sheathed Ancient Sword lay beside him.

"Greetings to the Elder..."

Fang Xing felt a sharp aura assault him and stepped forward to make a respectful bow.

In a flash of light, his Disciple Jade Token flew out automatically and landed in the hands of the white-haired Sword Cultivator, "Outer Sect Foundation Establishment Disciple, your first visit to the Scripture Collection Pavilion allows you to freely choose one Cultivation Technique that leads directly to Core Formation and accompany it with three Spells and miscellaneous books... Take note, you may only choose from the first three floors."

The white-haired Sword Cultivator Elder spoke indifferently.

"Thank you for the guidance."

Fang Xing walked into the first floor of the Pavilion, his Divine Sense sweeping across, and saw a vast array of books.

Animal skin books, paper books, bamboo slips, Jade Leaf Gold Books...

It seemed as if all the books in the world could be found here.