Shen Yuan thought for a second before shaking his head, “Not for now. I will look in the sect first for cultivation techniques or ask Mom for them. I’m sure you will suck me dry if I bought them from you.”
Yue Lan’s soft chuckle soon resounded,
[Oh how cruel, you know you will hurt a maiden’s heart if you spoke too harshly.]
Shen Yuan laughed softly, amused at her reply, “Don’t act like a maiden when you’re probably older than the combined age of every mortal in this world.”
[WHAT DID YOU SAY??]
“The sky is a little red today. Looks like a storm is brewing.” Shen Yuan whistled and ignored her.
[Hmph! Just you wait.]
Shen Yuan calmly smiled and gulped down his wine, “Ahh…The wine tastes especially good today.”
“Should I go into Dual Cultivation chambers for my closed-door cultivation?” Shen Yuan spoke to himself and waited for a bit for Yue Lan’s reply.
He chuckled softly seeing her remain silent, “Matters not, a calm period is exactly what I wanted to consolidate my position in the hearts of the Sect’s disciples. I need to remain a bit mysterious, otherwise they will take my existence for granted.”
The plum blossom fell down in the surroundings, painting a picture of an Immortal gulping on his wine guard while chatting leisurely with the wind.
He soon finished his gourd and placed it back in his storage ring. “Hmm… I’m running low on my wine gourds at this rate. I need to purchase more soon.”
He stood up and stretched, “Now, let’s go into seclusion. I will try to master more intents during this time if nothing else.”
He walked towards his room to enter closed-door cultivation.
…
Inside the Radiant Lotus Sacred Sect, atop the serene Radiant Heart Peak, Sect Leader Mei Hua quietly sat beside her lake, sipping a fragrant cup of tea. Her aura radiates a faint glow, showcasing her high mastery of the light-based cultivation technique.
Just then, an elder approached, the sound of her soft footsteps seemed hurried. This elder was Lan Xi, one of the inner sect disciples responsible for gathering information. Her face carried a mix of excitement and solemnity.
“Sect Leader Mei Hua,” Elder Lan Xi greeted Mei Hua with a respectful bow. “I just got news of something important.”
Mei Hua placed her cup down and gently smiled at Lan Xi, “I have told you guys to not act so rigid.”
“You are our Sect Leader, it would be improper to act informally with you.” Lan Xi replied to her in the same rigid tone.
“Alright, enough about this. Tell me what did you come here to tell me?” Mei Hua could only shake her head in exasperation.
Lan Xi straightened her back and stepped closer, “We have discovered a new Mystique Realm near the borders of our sect. Based on our investigation, the realm is for lower-level cultivators with the highest allowed being only the Inner Sea Realm. It will open in about four weeks.”
Mei Hua finally turned her gaze to Lan Xi, her expression turning curious, “The Inner Sea Realm? No wonder why I felt the subtle ripple in the world’s energy recently. Have you assessed the potential dangers and opportunities of that realm yet?”
“We have only found out about the existence of that realm recently, Sect Leader. The realm itself restricts higher-level cultivators from entering so we weren’t able to access the situation inside. A few other secs have caught wind of this news as well, and I believe they will send their outer sect disciples to explore the Mystique Realm.” Lan Xi replied.
Mei Hua grabbed her chin and thought for a second about something, “A realm with this level of restrictions would be an excellent place to train our outer sect disciples and some of the recently promoted disciples.” She paused slightly, “If the other sects are sending their disciples then it will be a nice competitive ground for the growth of our disciples. Our disciples can’t fall behind the other Divine Sects.”
“I feel the same,” Lan Xi nodded her head, “We can use this opportunity to see how our new generation of disciples will fare against other sects. And I heard Azure Cloud sect and Ironwood Mountain Clan are preparing to send their own disciples in the mystique realm as well.”
Mei Hua’s gaze drifted towards the calm water of the lake for a second, “They won’t miss this opportunity as well, but it is good. They will serve as good opponents for our disciples. Real-world experience is something that our disciples sorely lack.”
Lan Xi hesitated for a moment before speaking, “Sect Leader, there is one more matter to consider regarding a new outer sect disciple.”
Mei Hua moved her gaze away from the lake and looked back at Lan Xi, “Ah, Shen Yuan. I was wondering when you will bring him up.” Her lips curled slightly, “What about him?”
“He has made a tremendous impact on the outer sect in a very short time,” Her tone filled with admiration. “He completely surpassed all the pagoda’s records that were set, both the current records and the old records. And now all the outer court disciples look at him as their role model, even the lazier disciples have started working extra hard after hearing his speech. But sending him with them…”
Mei Hua’s eyes sparkled in amusement, “Yes, he is exceptional, that’s the reason I accepted him in the sect. But you are concerned that he will overshadow all of our disciples and might become a target for other sects?”
“Precisely,” Lan Xin nodded, “The other sects will surely notice him due to his strength. Some might even consider him a threat, especially due to the Ancestral Pagoda in his possession, even though we have already released news that the Ancestors took away the pagoda after its mission was done, the other sects won’t believe it that easily.”
Mei Hua smiled hearing her question, “Shen Yuan is not someone who will grow up in a sheltered environment. If we try to hide him, he would just expose himself even more, or worse, we might stunt his growth. He needs challenges to sharpen himself, just like any other disciple. Besides,” she added with a soft chuckle,
“He has both the Ancestral Pagoda and his own Mother for backup, with those two I can only think of a handful of people who can threaten his life. And either way, a little bit of attention is good for him.”
Lan Xi’s brow furrowed slightly, “Do you think the other sects will really target him? Even after knowing he has our entire sect as his backing?”
Mei Hua chuckled softly, “Desperate times call for desperate measures Little Xi, they might not do that outright but if Shen Yuan shined too brightly they will start to move in the shadows.”
“But can’t we do som-” Before Lan Xi could finish Mei Hua waved her hand dismissively.
“Let them. Shen Yuan can handle a little trouble himself. He has already shown enough intelligence and restraint to do that, and if the higher-level members of the sect come forward to hurt Shen Yuan then we will take action as well.”
