Chapter 143: A Great Wave of Rogue Cultivators

Jiang Yan returned to his quarters and, rather than concealing the truth from Hong Jian, spoke plainly about the arrival of the five major sects, their intent to enter the secret realm, and his own plans.

Hong Jian had originally felt little interest in the Xianyun Sect’s secret realm, but upon hearing that people from the Futu Sect would be entering, a sense of regret stirred within her. It was a prime opportunity; Pu Pingping possessed a metal spirit root and, although at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, his cultivation would be suppressed within the sect's secret realm. If she were to strike unexpectedly, she could likely take him down in one fell swoop. As for Qi Xiuning, no matter how formidable she had become in the Demon Territory, she was a water-element cultivator, and Hong Jian believed she would be easier to handle.

It was a pity. However, Hong Jian also understood that if someone from the Futu Sect were to die mysteriously within the realm, it would inevitably bring trouble to Jiang Yan’s sect, so she said no more.

Lu Yanchang, unwilling to let Hong Jian risk entering the secret realm, immediately approved of Jiang Yan’s arrangements. "That is excellent," he said. "Let that fellow surnamed Pu enjoy his triumph after obtaining the treasure. I shall wait for him on the road back to his sect."

Hong Jian, however, had her concerns about this plan. "If you have such an idea, I fear others do as well. The people from Little Yingzhou include a Nascent Soul expert; how could that Pu Pingping be caught off guard? You had better be careful."

While this matter reached a standstill, the dissemination of rumors could not be neglected. With Jiang Yan’s help, in less than a day, the entire Xianyun Sect was abuzz with the rumor, the origin of which was unknown.

Lu Kaiyuan even ran over specifically to tell Jiang Yan, "Senior Brother Jiang, have you heard? It turns out that Ji Youyun is actually an elder of the Demon-Refining Prison. A while ago, remnants of the Heavenly Demon Sect suddenly attacked and breached the prison, and all the prisoners escaped. Ji Youyun is now frantic, busy trying to recapture them. Oh, so many demonic cultivators have broken loose; the world is about to fall into chaos!"

"How is it I heard that those imprisoned there were actually just rogue cultivators, many of whom were falsely accused?"

"Is that so? Many people are discussing it. Is that what you heard, Senior Brother? That version is certainly more common, though I find it hard to believe. Oh, Miss Chai, you and your brother are here too? I was so busy talking I didn't notice. Hehe, Senior Brother Jiang, carry on, carry on; I'm going to find Senior Brother Shang to discuss this."

The three of them watched the lad dash off like a whirlwind and could not help but share a laugh.

Jiang Yan remarked, "What is with Junior Brother Lu? Why is he so excited about the world falling into chaos?"

The wind of rumor blew ever stronger, and soon, even the likes of Qi Xiuning and Pu Pingping heard the commotion. The two approached Yin Quan, hoping that the Sect Master would quickly issue a decree to forbid such outrageous rumors and investigate their origin.

Before this matter could be settled, one wave subsided only for another to rise.

Three days before the opening of the Xianyun Sect’s secret realm, a large crowd of rogue cultivators suddenly surged to the foot of the mountain. Their numbers quickly surpassed a hundred and showed no signs of stopping. They were easily identifiable, all with cultivation levels between the mid-stage and perfection of the Foundation Establishment realm. As soon as they reached the mountain gate, they eagerly lined up.

The disciples guarding the gate received a few of them and discovered that their intentions were identical: after stating their names, they offered a large sum of spirit stones, claiming they had come to participate in the Xianyun Sect’s secret realm. The disciples were baffled; one or two could be dismissed as delusional, but such a large influx of rogue cultivators clearly had a cause.

They rushed to inquire further, only to learn that these rogue cultivators mostly hailed from Central Province, where news had been spreading like wildfire that the Xianyun Sect’s secret realm might contain a rare treasure this year. It was rumored that Sect Master Yin intended to open it to all cultivators—whether from major sects or rogue practitioners—provided they met the criteria.

The conditions were, first, that the participants must be Foundation Establishment cultivators. Second, since the realm belonged to the Xianyun Sect, they would not allow rogue cultivators to enter for free; each person must offer a thousand spirit stones. Once inside, whether they obtained treasure would depend on fate, and the Xianyun Sect would not be responsible for anyone’s life or death. Thus, to avoid trouble, a life-and-death waiver had to be signed beforehand.

The rumor further stated that the number of spots was limited, and since the major sects had already claimed a portion, there were only a few dozen spots reserved for rogue cultivators. Those who arrived early would get in, while those who arrived late would only be able to watch others reap the benefits.

A thousand spirit stones was a vast fortune, but among rogue cultivators, only those who had not yet reached Foundation Establishment were truly destitute; any Foundation Establishment cultivator could scrape together this amount. The secret realms of major sects had always been closed to outsiders, and the opportunities within had long made rogue cultivators drool with envy. Even without competing for treasures, the cost of a thousand spirit stones was nothing compared to the experience of training in such a realm. Consequently, every Foundation Establishment cultivator who heard the news flocked to the mountain, terrified that if the rumor were true, they might miss the opportunity by arriving late, which would be a lifelong regret.

The guarding disciples were stunned to learn the cause and effect. Seeing the turbulent crowd outside the gate—who were nearly coming to blows over their place in line—and fearing this might have been arranged by the Sect Master and the elders, they promptly reported it upward.

Yin Quan, Zhu Xian, and the others were already troubled by the affairs of the secret realm, and upon hearing this, their hearts stirred. Who had spread this news? To propagate it among the rogue cultivators of Central Province and have so many arrive at the Xianyun Sect required considerable time; perhaps the rumor had started before the Xianyun Sect had even decided that its own disciples would forgo entering the realm.

Regardless of who was pulling the strings behind the scenes, Yin Quan could not help but think of going with the flow. *You, Pu Pingping, want a life-and-death struggle, do you? I may not be willing to let my own disciples fight to the death with you, but why should I hesitate to let a few rogue cultivators in to cause you trouble?*

A thousand spirit stones and a life-and-death waiver—since the person spreading the word was so considerate of the Xianyun Sect, Yin Quan decided, after some deliberation, to accept the offer as it was. Furthermore, a thought occurred to him, and he instructed Zhu Xian to summon Jiang Yan and give him some specific instructions.

Jiang Yan thus received a favorable assignment: he was tasked with leading a few junior brothers to select eighty rogue cultivators from outside the gate to enter the secret realm. In Yin Quan’s view, since these people were chosen by Jiang Yan, they would at least owe him a favor; even if they could not provide help, they would not intentionally stir up trouble.

At this sudden turn of events, Hong Jian was both astonished and thought to herself, "Is it possible that I am truly fated for this secret realm, and that I ought to go in and have a look? Otherwise, how could a matter originally fraught with difficulties suddenly become so effortless?"

Regardless of the source of this turn of luck, she said to Jiang Yan, "Do not forget to save a spot for me. I shall write the life-and-death waiver for you right now. As for the spirit stones... I am a bit short, could I owe them to you for now?"

Jiang Yan said smugly, "Don't worry about it. What are a few spirit stones? Everything is up to me now."

Lu Yanchang hooked his little finger at him. "Come here, lad. We siblings don't like to owe debts. I'll dump this cultivation technique on you at a bargain price—just a thousand spirit stones. Take it, and don't be a fool with joy."

Jiang Yan took the jade slip in a daze. It looked quite crude, clearly something Lu Yanchang had cobbled together on the spot. Jiang Yan had not intended to accept any technique from Lu, but out of curiosity, he probed it with his divine sense. He immediately revealed an expression of extreme shock, his eyes widening like bells. "You... you want to give me this technique?"

Seeing that the "Heart-Wisdom Sword" technique had indeed stunned the lad, Lu Yanchang felt a sense of satisfaction. He laughed heartily, then affected a look of indifference, waving his hand dismissively. "Take it and hurry up to form your Golden Core. Once you’ve done that, practice diligently, and you’ll soon be as powerful as I am."

Jiang Yan was primarily surprised because he was not very familiar with Lu Yanchang, and to receive such a generous gift so suddenly caught him off guard. However, he quickly recovered, memorized the technique, tucked the jade slip into his Qiankun bag, and gave a bright smile. "This favor is massive. From now on, you are my own brother. Brother Chai, do you happen to have any more 'Heart Sword' heritage where that came from?"

Lu Yanchang, having his sore spot touched so directly, darkened his face instantly. "What’s the rush? You don't even know if you'll successfully reach the Nascent Soul stage in this lifetime."

Jiang Yan laughed aloud. Regardless of the fact that Lu Yanchang had a higher cultivation and was older than him, he reached out and slung an arm around his neck, saying affectionately, "No rush. When the time comes, the two of us will be companions, traveling across mountains and rivers to find the 'Heart Sword' technique together."

Having said this, he did not wait for Lu Yanchang to kick him away; he hopped back a few steps and headed off in high spirits to screen the rogue cultivators outside the gate.

Selecting people was a profound art. Those with fawning faces would not do—letting them in would only be a nuisance to the Futu Sect, and he didn't want them finding opportunities to suck up to Pu Pingping. Those with too many stains on their record would not do either; such people lacked moral judgment and were fickle, likely to bite back at any moment, adding too many variables. As for those with ties to the major sects, they had to be vetted with extreme care.

Jiang Yan had anticipated the difficulty early on and specifically called for a few senior brothers to act as consultants. The Xianyun Sect had not seen such a grand spectacle in years; consequently, with the crowds of rogue cultivators and the gathering of Jiang Yan’s peers, the recruitment area was packed as if it were a temple fair.

A table was set up in the center of the crowd covered with red paper. Lu Kaiyuan was in charge of recording names, and Shang Chun was responsible for collecting spirit stones.

Jiang Yan interrogated a hulking man who looked wild and untamable, checking his lineage back eight generations, before nodding with satisfaction. "Fine, put him down."

He tilted his head to look at the dozen or so names already recorded by Lu Kaiyuan, pointed to a blank space below, and said, "Here, write down Chai Xiaohong." Unable to think of a suitable pseudonym for Hong Jian on the spot, he had just made one up.

Lu Kaiyuan, not yet reacting, looked up at the rogue cultivators pushing forward and asked curiously, "Where?"

Jiang Yan glared. "I told you to write it, so write it! Why all the chatter?"

Lu Kaiyuan suddenly realized and hurriedly wrote it down.

Shang Chun reached out and said with a smile, "Senior Brother, what about the spirit stones?"

Jiang Yan laughed and cursed, "Get lost! You dare come asking me for spirit stones?"

Lu Kaiyuan chuckled softly. "Senior Brother, you really are something. Didn't they say Lady Duan of the Xianxia Sect asked you to take Duan Qiurong into the secret realm? With this one entering as well, are you planning on having one on each arm inside? Aren't you afraid they’ll start fighting?"

Jiang Yan let out a "hmph." "Who has the patience to cater to that Duan girl? Hurry up, continue."