Chapter 14: Entering the Mountain Gate
Taoist Master Dao Chong thought about it and decided that testing his spiritual roots wasn't a big deal. He decided to just try his luck. He nodded and said, "Junior brother, you're right. Shi Feng, don't panic. Testing your spiritual roots is a routine procedure for new disciples. But no matter what the results are, I will accept you as a disciple of my Iron Sword Peak sect. Don't worry." After saying this, he turned around and said, "Go get the Spiritual Root Plate."
The Taoist child standing nearby responded with a "yes," then left the hall. A moment later, he returned, holding a round plate. Taoist Master Dao Chong flicked his sleeve, and a beam of white light descended upon the plate. With a humming sound, the plate soared into the air, slowly landing before Shi Feng. The plate was entirely black, three feet square, with a palm-shaped indentation in the center. Around this indentation, five small beasts and birds were arranged according to the five elements: gold, wood, water, fire, and earth. These were the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermillion Bird, Black Tortoise, and Kirin. Beyond these five mythical beasts were a series of green, soybean-sized pebbles, arranged in a staggered pattern, clearly arranged according to a specific talisman formation.
Taoist Master Dao Chong said, "Shi Feng, this is the Spiritual Root Plate, which is used to detect the attributes of the disciples' spiritual roots. Press your right hand in the middle." Shi Feng did as he was told, stretched out his right hand, and slowly reached towards the middle of the Spiritual Root Plate. When his palm was still half a foot away from the Spiritual Root Plate, the plate suddenly generated a suction force, and Shi Feng was pulled forward. His right hand was tightly pressed on the middle mold. He struggled hurriedly, but it was stuck tightly and could not move at all.
Seeing Shi Feng's panic, the people around him chuckled. Taoist Master Dao Chong said slowly, "Shi Feng, don't panic! Just calm down, breathe evenly, and don't think about anything."
Shi Feng followed his instructions, calming down, slowing his breathing and clearing his mind of distracting thoughts. Everyone in the hall stared intently at the Spiritual Root Plate. For a long moment, the Plate remained motionless. Disappointment crossed the face of the black-robed elder. Taoist Master Dao Chong pointed, and the Plate shrank back to palm-sized size, returning to the Taoist boy's hands.
Seeing everyone's expressions, Shi Feng knew that he really had no spiritual roots, and he was extremely disappointed. He would never be able to learn the magic of immortals, and it seemed that he would not be able to avenge his mother and younger sister.
Taoist Master Dao Chong comforted him, "Don't be sad, child. I've already said that whether you have spiritual roots or not, you will be accepted into the inner sect. Come here and kowtow to the ancestor and pay your respects."
Shi Feng said, "Yes!" Holding back his grief, he kowtowed nine times respectfully before the statue of the Tai Chi Immortal. Taoist Master Dao Chong said in a gentle voice, "Dao Chong, the 23rd generation disciple of the Tai Chi Sect, is honored to take charge of the Iron Sword Peak branch. Today, I am opening the Ancestral Hall and respectfully inform all the previous masters that I am accepting Shi Feng as an inner disciple of the Tai Chi Sect. I hope that all the previous masters will protect him and help him quickly comprehend the profound principles and achieve the Great Dao."
After the invocation, he turned to Shi Feng and said, "Shi Feng, from this moment on, you are the 25th generation disciple of my Taiji Sect. Everyone in this hall is your senior brother, and those present are your uncles. Junior Brother Danyang unfortunately passed away, so Junior Brother Zhao and I are the only Jindan-stage cultivators on my Iron Sword Peak. He is your grandmaster."
Shi Feng knelt down and kowtowed, "Disciple pays homage to the two masters!"
Taoist Master Dao Chong said, "You will gradually become familiar with the other situations of our sect. Someone will naturally tell you the sect's rules in time. Our Taiji Sect has been established for thousands of years. It is one of the five righteous sects in the Great Yan Kingdom and has a strong reputation. The founder of the sect, Master Taiji, flew to the upper realm thousands of years ago and became an immortal. In the past thousands of years in the Yan Kingdom, only the founder has been able to attain enlightenment and ascend to heaven. After you become a disciple, you must practice diligently and must not tarnish the reputation of our Taiji Sect." Shi Feng nodded in agreement.
When the old man in black heard the words "study hard", he couldn't help but curl his lips.
Taoist Master Dao Chong said, "When you entered the mountain, you saw the oral instructions left by the ancestor at the mountain gate. It is said that the five elements are difficult to distinguish, good and evil are difficult to distinguish, inside and outside are difficult to repel, right and wrong are difficult to resolve, and love and hate are difficult to abandon. Although these twenty words are not the secret of the skills, they are the general principles of the methods of those of us who practice Taoism. Right and wrong, good and evil, love and hate, are all difficult to resolve. If you can see through the world, you will not be far from the Tao." Shi Feng was naturally puzzled, but nodded repeatedly.
After Dao Chong finished speaking, he turned to the black-clothed old man and said, "Shi Feng has already paid homage to the ancestor. Junior brother, who do you think should we enroll him in?" The black-clothed old man said hurriedly, "Shi Feng has a connection with Senior Brother Danyang, and he personally accepted him as his disciple. Naturally, he should be enrolled in Senior Brother Danyang's lineage." Dao Chong nodded and said, "Junior brother, you are right." He looked at the middle-aged Taoist priest second from the left and said, "Liu Yunzi."
The Taoist hurriedly stood up and said, "Disciple is here!" He was short, with a pale yellow complexion and ordinary appearance. Taoist Master Dao Chong said, "You are Junior Brother Danyang's eldest disciple. This Shi Feng will be accepted as your disciple. Please train him well." Liu Yunzi was reluctant in his heart, but he could only say respectfully, "Yes, disciple will obey the order of the head master."
Dao Chong nodded and said to Shi Feng, "Shi Feng, this Liu Yunzi will be your master from now on. Come forward and pay your respects." Shi Feng quickly knelt down and kowtowed, "Disciple Shi Feng greets Master." Liu Yunzi nodded lightly and said, "Stand up."
Taoist Master Dao Chong saw that everything was settled, so he flicked his sleeve and said, "Let's disperse." In a flash of green light, the man disappeared. The old man in black followed closely behind, but also disappeared without a trace.
As soon as the two ancestors left, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became lively, and everyone was whispering to each other. Those who could sit in the hall were all second-generation disciples who had already established their foundation. At this moment, they all stood up from their seats and, as usual, congratulated Liu Yunzi, "Congratulations, congratulations." "Congratulations to Brother Liu Yunzi for having such a talented disciple." "A good talent with beautiful qualities will surely bring honor to the master's sect," and so on.
Liu Yunzi was at a loss for words, so he simply bowed and hurriedly led Shi Feng and his group out of the hall. Once outside, Liu Yunzi pulled something from his bosom. It was the Meteor Shuttle. Dao Chong had given him some of Danyang Zhenren's magical instruments the day before. The Meteor Shuttle grew in size against the wind, reaching a staggering thirty or forty feet in length. "Let's go," Liu Yunzi said, stepping onto the shuttle first, followed by the other disciples.
Shi Feng hesitated slightly. He had seen the Danyang Taoist soar through the air on a flying shuttle, and while he envied him, he knew he would be crushed to pieces if he fell from mid-air. Seeing his hesitation, Liu Yunzi, impatient, grabbed him and put him on the shuttle. Then, with a magical incantation, the shuttle shot out.
Shi Feng exclaimed "Ah" as he was carried away from the ground by the shuttle and quickly flew into the air. He could feel the mountain wind whistling and the clouds passing by his feet. Shi Feng's heart immediately rose to his throat, but at the same time he felt it was novel and exciting.
After a cup of tea, the shuttle landed on a small peak east of Iron Sword Peak. Liu Yunzi put away the shuttle and led everyone into a room. The room was quite spacious, but the furnishings were simple. Liu Yunzi sat down on a chair in the middle and said, "Everyone, please sit down."
There were no extra chairs in the room, so everyone had to sit on the floor. Liu Yunzi pointed and said, "Shi Feng, this is your eldest brother Chang Qing, second brother Zhang Yuanqing, third sister Xiang Ying, fourth brother Xiang Hua, fifth sister Zhang Peijun, and sixth brother Zhou Qing. You are the seventh."
Zhou Qing was the young man who had led Shi Feng up the mountain earlier, and he was ranked sixth among Liu Yunzi's disciples. Of the other five, Xiang Ying and Zhang Peijun were two beautiful young women. Of the disciples, only Chang Qing and Xiang Hua were dressed as Taoists; the others were dressed in layman's attire.
Shi Feng bowed one by one and greeted his six senior brothers and sisters. The eldest brother, Changqing, was quite tall and looked to be in his thirties. He said, "Seventh junior brother, don't be polite. We are all family from now on. Just give me a call if you have anything." Shi Feng hurriedly thanked him.
Liu Yunzi said, "My uncle only spoke briefly about the murder of our late master, Danyang Zhenren. Now, Shi Feng, please tell me in detail." Shi Feng said, "Yes." He immediately recounted in detail what happened on Lushou Peak that night. He did not understand some of the details, so he could only give a rough description of the situation.
The fourth disciple, Xiang Hua, was a Taoist priest, but he was dark and fat, and had the most violent temper. After hearing this, he couldn't help but say, "How come the Demon Puppet Sect has done something so cruel, and the sect hasn't made any move at all? Our master is a great cultivator in the Golden Core Stage, so how can they just let it go?"
Liu Yunzi sneered and said, "How could you, a Qi-refining disciple, know whether there was any movement or not? In fact, not long after Master was murdered, Fairy Ying from Lingxiao Pavilion, who had been traveling with Master, came to our Taiji Sect and told us about her encounter with the Demon Puppet Sect. She was entangled by an elder of the Demon Puppet Sect and only escaped after a hard fight. She had no idea what Master was like at the time. Later, our sect negotiated with the Demon Puppet Sect, but they had also lost a Jindan-stage elder and demanded an explanation from us. The two sides argued and the matter ultimately came to nothing."
The disciples were silent for a while, and Liu Yunzi said, "Okay, let's not talk about this for now. The Demon Puppet Sect is as powerful as our Tai Chi Sect. If you want to take revenge, wait until you form your golden elixir. Changqing, you are the eldest brother, you should settle the seventh brother. Everyone else should go back and study hard. There will be a small competition in the sect in the next year, so don't embarrass your master." The disciples responded in unison, left the house, said a few words to Shi Feng, and then dispersed.
Chang Qing led Shi Feng and pointed to the mountainside below. He said, "Seventh Junior Brother, you should choose a place to live first. This mountain is where Master's cave is located. Master only has a few of us disciples, so there are plenty of empty houses here."
Shi Feng saw a few scattered corners of houses along the mountainside, all relatively far apart. He figured that cultivators preferred solitude and didn't want to be disturbed. "I don't mind," Shi Feng said. "Brother, just pick one for me." Chang Qing said, "Although Yuxiu Mountain isn't large, it has plenty of spiritual energy. Since I don't practice, I don't care about spiritual energy. I think we'll go with the one further down the slope. The slope is gentler there, so it'll be easier for you to go up and down."
Shi Feng said, "Very good." Chang Qing then led him along the way. Shi Feng asked, "I see Master has a magical instrument that allows him to fly. Why don't you use it, Senior Brother? Why do you have to walk all the way?" Chang Qing smiled and said, "Flying with an instrument is a magical power only possessed by Foundation Establishment cultivators. How can we Qi Refining disciples achieve it? However, if we use the Levitation Talisman or a Light Body Spell, we can probably fly a little distance."
As they talked, they arrived at the house. From a distance, it looked small, but as they got closer, they discovered a small courtyard with three rooms. One was a meditation room, sealed on all sides with fine iron. Another was a bamboo hut used for meeting guests and resting. The other was empty, presumably to be arranged as the owner pleased. In front of the courtyard was a well-maintained field, overgrown with weeds.
Chang Qing said, "This place used to be where Senior Brother Guo lived. He loved growing medicinal herbs, but it's been abandoned since he left. Junior Brother, are you satisfied with this?" Shi Feng had been wandering around for almost a year, going hungry and having a full meal. He was surprised to suddenly be settled down, and the house was so big. He nodded and said, "Thank you, Senior Brother. This is it."
Chang Qing said, "Okay, let's go to the Deacon's Hall to get our things first." Then he led Shi Feng down the mountain.
Chang Qing was obviously a chatterbox, consuming more saliva than tea, and he kept on talking all the way while introducing Shi Feng.
The Deacon Hall was on a hillside west of Tiejian Peak, not far from the mountain gate. Many people came and went here. Changqing walked all the way to the innermost hall. Inside, an old man was resting with his eyes closed. Changqing called out, "Old Yue, Old Yue, why are you sleeping all day long?" The old man hurriedly opened his eyes and saw Changqing. He said angrily, "How dare you say that? Today, the sect leader said that Tiejian Peak has a new inner disciple and specifically asked me to wait here. But I've been waiting for a long time and you haven't come yet."
Chang Qing smiled and said, "You've been talking so much nonsense, isn't it just to get some benefits? You're lucky, I just happened to have a lot of silver ring grass I picked last time, so I'll give you a bottle of Qi replenishing liquid after it's ready." The old man immediately smiled and said, "Brother Chang Qing is famous for his generosity. Thank you very much." He took out a small bag from under the table and said, "Everything is in it, Brother Chang Qing, would you like to check it out?"
Chang Qing took it and said, "What's so good about it? They are all worthless things. Let's go!" He led Shi Feng back to Yuxiu Mountain.
After entering Shi Feng's new home, Chang Qing put the bag on the table and said, "Junior brother, this is called a storage bag. You can store items in it, but this is just the most crude storage bag. It can only hold a few daily items. This thing requires magic power to open." As he spoke, he raised his hand and cast a spell on it.
A white light flashed, and a jade plaque, a green shirt, a wooden sword and a black-covered book appeared on the table.
Chang Qing picked up the jade token and said, "This thing is most important. It's your identity badge. You must drip a drop of your blood into it."
"Essence and blood, drip in?" Shi Feng was puzzled.
Chang Qing said, "It's very simple. Just find a knife, cut your finger, and smear the blood on the jade token. I'll look for a knife in the house."
Shi Feng said, "Big Brother, no need to look for it. I have a dagger on me." He was a hunter and always carried a dagger with him. He immediately pulled the dagger out of his pocket, pierced his left middle finger, and squeezed a drop of blood onto the jade token. The blood drop was reflected in the jade token, spun around, and disappeared, leaving the jade token as pristine as before.
Chang Qing said, "Alright, this jade token will be your proof of identity from now on. You'll need to carry it with you wherever you go within the sect. You'll also need it to use the sect's teleportation array. Inner disciples can use any teleportation array at will. You must keep it carefully and don't lose it." He then picked up the piece of clothing and said, "This piece of clothing also has the inner disciple logo on it. It doesn't need to be washed and is not afraid of water or fire."
Shi Feng reached out and touched it, feeling it was no different from his everyday linen clothes. Chang Qing said, "As for the remaining two items, they're of little use. This wooden sword is given to all disciples upon initiation, and it's just a low-grade magical weapon."