In an instant, the knives found themselves embedded in each of the elders' throats, and a moment later, their heads fell to the floor, dyeing the meeting room red.
His hands shook slightly, and he couldn't bear to look down, so instead, he approached the door and knocked twice. Immediately, five outer disciples stormed inside and began cleaning up the mess that had been made.
In the meantime, Lin Chao decided to take a stroll to calm his mind.
With that, his figure flickered out of the Core Pavilion, and as he was planning to explore this new world, he spotted two people in the distance, casually approaching the Azure Sky Sect grounds.
One was a man, and the other a woman. However, their strength easily rivaled the elders Lin Chao had killed just now.
Moreover, the man was using a Body Flickering technique, something reserved for those at the Spirit Master realm or higher. And yet, he was performing it at the Spirit Warrior realm.
"Fascinating..." Lin Chao muttered, a smile forming on his face. "I should observe them for a while. These two could potentially... huh?"
His eyes widened as the duo suddenly glanced in his direction, but Lin Chao managed to get behind cover and avoid being spotted.
"They detected me..." Lin Chao's heart began to beat wildly, almost like all his hope had been reignited.
He took a peek around the corner, staring at the duo with a look of obsession.
"If I can bring them in... the Azure Sky Sect might survive."
...
[Xuan's POV]
A shiver ran down his spine as he glanced in a random direction again, trying to spot something.
But there was no one. He was just being paranoid because he was hungry.
And on the topic of hunger...
"We're here," Yuelan announced, staring at the archway that had the words 'Azure Sky Sect' carved into the very top.
While it did look grand and all, Xuan could tell it was nearly abandoned. Dust gathered on the arch, and the walkway didn't even have a single footprint on it.
But in the distance, he saw a couple of young adults walking around, dressed in blue Daoist robes. They were well-fed, but they were weak. Really weak.
They're still at the Spirit Apprentice realm?
They were either lazy or incapable. He would do a coin flip if he had any money.
But even so, the two stepped onto the paved stone ground of the Azure Sky Sect and approached one of the workers who was carrying a clay pot to one of the Pavilions. The pot gave off a distinct, strong medicinal aroma.
The moment the worker spotted Xuan and Yuelan, he nearly dropped the pot as his eyes widened in surprise.
"New disciples...?" the worker muttered, then bowed. "I greet the new disciples!"
"We're not disciples," Yuelan corrected. "We're just here for some food. We'll be on our way after that."
"Food? Oh... the cafeteria is in the disciples' quarters. But if you want food, then you must join the sect. Our sect master sternly said that we shouldn't hand out food to strangers," the worker replied.
Xuan's brow rose. "So if we were to join the sect, what'll be the catch?"
Before the worker could speak, Yuelan chimed in.
"Sects usually want the disciples to be eternally loyal. There are a lot of chores, mandatory goals, mandatory missions, and even contribution quotas," she said, then gave Xuan a thumbs down.
And of course, that thumbs down was enough for Xuan.
"I see... I guess we're not left with many choices, are we?" Xuan smiled, placing a hand on the worker's shoulder. "Are there exceptions?"
The worker flinched. "I... yes, sir. If an inner disciple leads you two to the disciples' quarters, then you would be treated as guests of the Azure Sky Sect. The disciple would be in charge of looking over you, and if you do something wrong, the inner disciple would have to pay."
He gulped. "I'm not an inner disciple, sir. I'm an outer disciple. I joined the sect a few days ago... there are only a few inner disciples, but they don't show up that often. They train in the inner sect area."
"I'm starting to think it might've been easier for us to just hunt down a boar or something and cook it," Yuelan remarked.
"Yeah? Then go catch me a boar, I'll cook it," Xuan replied in a petty tone.
Yuelan's eyes widened. "Really? Would you really cook it?"
He shook his head.
"I'm too lazy."
Her cheeks puffed up, but before she could protest, the two heard footsteps in the distance.
Xuan let go of the worker and turned toward the footsteps, and he noticed a man with long black hair slowly walking toward them.
He radiated arrogance with each step he took, which made Xuan remember a few words Linhua had told him.
The people who were sent down from another realm were usually arrogant, and it seemed like this person here was the prime example.
But Xuan wouldn't jump to conclusions. After all, he wouldn't want to judge a book by its cover.
"What are these two doing inside my sect?" the man asked coldly.
The worker ran past Xuan and got down on his knees, bowing.
"Outer disciple An Jian greets Inner disciple Zheng Shui!"
Zheng Shui nodded with a slight smile. "Answer my question, little worm. My cultivation was disturbed when I felt the Qi of two elders entering our sect."
His expression turned to one of scorn. "But now I see two random cultivators who look like they stepped into shit. My mood is ruined, outer disciple An Jian."
"Come on, we don't look that bad, do we?" Xuan said, glancing at his clothes.
But due to blood, ice, and fire mixing, it really did look like the two had fallen into shit.
"Disgusting..." Zheng Shui placed his hand on his sword's scabbard, then glanced at Yuelan. He looked her up and down, a lustful look appearing on his face.
"My... you are a beauty. If you wash up, you might even rival the jade beauties back in the upper realm," Zheng Shui said, whistling. "What do you say we go back to my quarters and take a shower, hm?"
Xuan sighed in annoyance, and right as he was about to take Zheng Shui's head clean off his shoulders, Yuelan stepped forward, her sword fully drawn.
She glanced at Zheng Shui and flashed a warm smile.
"I failed last time, but congratulations. You will be the first-ever man I turn into a eunuch."