Xuantian Immortal Cultivation Record

Watching the three figures scurrying away in a sorry state, Huo Xiaokai was momentarily bewildered. He couldn't understand why the flying sword about to strike him had suddenly vanished, leaving him unharmed while his opponents fled in disarray.

"The woods?" He vaguely recalled someone shouting "Fly to the woods" just now, and turned to look at the forest beside him. This was merely a mountain path, surrounded by woods on all sides. He glanced around, but found nothing.

"Stop looking, come to Yunfeng Meadow." A familiar voice echoed.

Huo Xiaokai was stunned. This was a long-distance telepathic transmission using mana, something only a Foundation Establishment cultivator could achieve. It seemed this senior had helped him. Immediately, he felt a surge of joy, because the voice sounded remarkably like someone he deeply admired.

However, he quickly thought with disappointment, "Perhaps I misheard. I should go there and see. This senior helped me, I ought to go and thank them."

Yunfeng Meadow was a wide grassy field, named for its location beside a maple forest and the perennial mists that swirled around it. It was a well-known scenic spot on Lingxiao Peak, often visited by disciples from other peaks. Lao Shengzi and his companions must have just finished touring Yunfeng Meadow and were preparing to continue climbing when they ran into Huo Xiaokai.

Huo Xiaokai, carrying two buckets of fresh snow, found it inconvenient to traverse the forest and grass. He continued along the downhill path for a dozen yards, then turned right into a valley. Passing through it, he reached the outer edge of the maple forest. Walking along the hillside for another twenty yards or so, the expansive Yunfeng Meadow came into view.

A gray-robed Taoist stood silently on the cliff, hands clasped behind his back, watching the bustling Lingxiao City below.

Xuantian Outer Sect had seventy-two peaks, each with over two thousand Qi Refining disciples. Including the servants responsible for cleaning, cooking, laundry, feeding spirit beasts, and other miscellaneous tasks, each peak had over ten thousand people.

Initially, only the families of the servants lived at the foot of the mountain, forming small villages and towns. Later, some cultivators brought their families to settle down there as well. Some older Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment disciples with limited potential would also marry, have children, and establish families there. Over time, the population grew, forming cities.

Seventy-two peaks, seventy-two cities, ranging from tens of thousands to over a hundred thousand people, relied on the fertile land and abundant mountain products of Tianque Mountain, as well as providing various services to the cultivators in the mountains, and were quite prosperous.

Many Foundation Establishment cultivators were willing to serve as peak masters and deputy peak masters of the outer sect peaks because they valued the power to manage this large population and a city.

"You, you… are Elder Zhang?" The closer Huo Xiaokai got, the more familiar the figure of the Taoist in front of him became, gradually merging with a figure in his heart.

"Xiaokai, it's been ten years, you've grown so tall. Haha, I'm really happy!" Zhang Yuanjing turned around and said with a smile.

"Elder, it really is you! Disciple greets you!" Huo Xiaokai dropped his burden and rushed forward, kneeling before Zhang Yuanjing.

"Child, get up. Also, since you are a Xuantian disciple, you must not call me Elder!" Zhang Yuanjing gently raised his hand and helped Huo Xiaokai up.

"Yes, Zhang… Uncle-Master. This disciple always wanted to visit you, but unfortunately, my cultivation progressed too slowly and I couldn't refine a flying sword."

"Actually, I should have come to see you sooner. Alas, your tenth year was precisely when you needed the most care," Zhang Yuanjing sighed softly. In recent years, he had first been preoccupied with cultivating the Thick Earth Qi Nourishing Art, and then traveled far to Xue Wang Mountain, and had indeed neglected this child.

"Uncle-Master Zhang, I'm doing well. The sect takes good care of me. I lack nothing and don't need to do anything, just focus on cultivation," Huo Xiaokai said quickly.

Zhang Yuanjing had been following him all the way, witnessing everything, but he didn't reveal it. Because some things must be experienced. As long as it's within his tolerance, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

He believed that with Huo Xiaokai's talent and effort, Lingxiao Peak Lord Long Yuanshou would definitely pay attention to him and would never allow anything extreme to happen to Huo Xiaokai.

Even that Li Chongshan wasn't a blind fool. He might be unfair to Huo Xiaokai because he was alone and an orphan, but he would never do anything excessive.

Xuantian Sect, as a major sect in the Southern Domain, had a strict set of rules. Every Qi Refining disciple was officially registered, and every advancement, every transmission of techniques, and every experience would be recorded. Not to mention major accidents or even deaths, which would be thoroughly investigated before a conclusion was reached, sealed, and archived.

"Back in the Palm Xuan Hall, Sect Leader Brother praised your aptitude. Now it seems you have not disappointed us. I've been in Xuantian Sect for over two hundred years. I've seen many disciples with outstanding talents, but most of the disciples who truly succeed have undergone special trials, are mentally resilient, and seek solutions from themselves rather than blaming others. Although you are young, you can put this principle into practice, and you will surely shine brightly in the future," Zhang Yuanjing said with a smile.

"Uncle-Master is too kind, Xiaokai is far from it. Many fellow disciples have broken through to the fourth level of Qi Refining at my age. I'll need at least three more years to achieve that," Huo Xiaokai said with some embarrassment.

"You are being modest. However, in the low and middle stages of Qi Refining, the speed of cultivation doesn't mean much. Don't be obsessed with it. The key is whether the foundation is solid. Don't envy others, just do your best."

"Yes, Xiaokai will definitely follow Uncle-Master's teachings."

"Well, let's not talk about this. Let's go to Lingxiao Hall and ask about Zhou Yuming's situation. That kid is probably in seclusion for a breakthrough."

"Oh, this disciple hasn't seen Senior Brother Zhou for many years… Um, Uncle-Master, this disciple still has to deliver the fresh snow down the mountain," Huo Xiaokai stammered, his words unclear.

Zhang Yuanjing smiled, waved his right hand, and summoned his flying sword, letting it rest on the grass. He said, "Get on, I'll take you there."

Huo Xiaokai felt a warmth in his heart and was also a little excited. He grabbed the rope tying the long buckets and stepped onto the sword. The flying sword was only two inches wide and a foot long. Huo Xiaokai stood on it carefully, his heels touching, half of his feet suspended in the air. Even without ascending, he felt a chill in his heart.

Zhang Yuanjing changed his hand seals, and the flying sword "whooshed" forward, its speed astonishing. Huo Xiaokai felt something firmly fixing his feet to the flying sword. No matter how his body swayed back and forth, his feet didn't move an inch.

After a dozen breaths, Huo Xiaokai mastered the knack of "riding" the flying sword. His body constantly adjusted its posture according to the trajectory and speed of the flying sword, as if he were controlling the flying sword himself. At this moment, the flying sword began to accelerate, like a shooting star chasing the moon, heading straight for the Gengjin Courtyard's houses at the mountainside.

"Oh dear, where's Uncle-Master Zhang? It seems he didn't follow," Huo Xiaokai turned his head back, but didn't find Zhang Yuanjing's figure. At this time, the flying sword passed through several dense forests, and Yunfeng Meadow was long gone.

Just as Huo Xiaokai was searching, the flying sword suddenly began to decelerate and slowly descend. It had already arrived outside the Gengjin Courtyard. At this time, disciples and servants were coming and going in the courtyard. Suddenly seeing Huo Xiaokai descend from the sky, they all showed surprised expressions.

"Could this kid have broken through to the fifth level of Qi Refining and be able to use a flying sword?"

"That shouldn't be. When I saw him yesterday, he was still at the third level of Qi Refining. Besides, where would a poor kid like him get a flying sword?"

"Maybe he got a great opportunity and picked it up somewhere?"

"Picked it up? You pick one up and show me!"

"Hey, Xiaokai, where did you get the flying sword?"

…

There were also a few with higher cultivation who had long seen that what Huo Xiaokai was stepping on was not a magic tool, but a spirit tool-level flying sword. They looked at Huo Xiaokai with puzzled eyes, guessing his deeply hidden background.

The flying sword stopped on the steps of the courtyard gate, motionless. Huo Xiaokai hurriedly greeted a few familiar disciples and quickly walked into the courtyard, running towards the Gengzi Seventeenth House where Li Chongshan lived.

Li Chongshan had finished his morning class and was idly spacing out. Wu Qian's charming appearance was deeply rooted in his heart. A day apart felt like three autumns. He couldn't bring himself to do anything. The courtyard gate wasn't far from the Gengzi houses, but the commotion coming from there didn't attract his attention at all.

"Senior Brother Li, the fresh snow is back," Huo Xiaokai called out outside the house.

Li Chongshan immediately perked up, jumped up, and opened the door to greet him.

"Not bad today, much faster than usual… Hmm, why is it so noisy outside the courtyard?"

"No, it's nothing, maybe I should go take a look and come back and tell you."

"Forget it, who cares!"

Li Chongshan hurriedly collected the fresh snow with the jade bottle he had specially made, and then summoned his flying sword to go find Wu Qian.

Back at the courtyard gate, the onlookers were quite puzzled to see Huo Xiaokai not taking the flying sword and leaving it on the steps. Some, confident in their backgrounds, stepped forward to pick up the flying sword, intending to take it for themselves. However, whether they grabbed it with their hands or moved it with their qi, the flying sword remained motionless.

At this time, a disciple at the ninth level of Qi Refining couldn't stand it any longer and said coldly, "Don't waste your effort, this is a spirit tool. It's not something you can take."

"Spirit tool? Senior Brother Liu, how is this a spirit tool? It doesn't seem any different from a magic tool!"

"With Huo Xiaokai's cultivation, how could he use a spirit tool!"

Faced with the question, the "Senior Brother Liu" showed a disdainful expression and sneered, "Since it's a spirit tool, it's naturally used by a Foundation Establishment Uncle-Master. This Uncle-Master is probably nearby."

The crowd was skeptical and looked around, but they couldn't see where the "Foundation Establishment Uncle-Master" was hiding. Some clever people secretly suspected that Senior Brother Liu didn't dare to seize the flying sword in front of everyone, so he wanted to scare them away and then find an opportunity to steal it himself.

Huo Xiaokai returned to the courtyard gate and was about to step on the flying sword to leave when a tall, thin cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Refining stepped forward and shouted, "Junior Brother Huo, where did you get this flying sword? It looks like the one Senior Brother Jin lost a few days ago!"

Huo Xiaokai turned back in astonishment, then said with a smirk, "Senior Brother Xue, are your eyes playing tricks on you? Senior Brother Jin's flying sword is three feet long!"

The tall, thin cultivator's face didn't change. Instead, he raised his chin and said condescendingly, "I think the material is about the same. Maybe it was made by modifying Senior Brother Jin's flying sword. Hand it over and I'll find someone to identify it."

"Xue Dingwu, you're trying to steal by trickery. Everyone is watching!" A voice shouted from the crowd, obviously unable to stand this person's actions.

"What stealing by trickery! Don't talk nonsense. If the Dragon Peak Lord isn't here and the disciples have a dispute, they can naturally ask the senior brother of each courtyard to judge. I'm taking this flying sword to Senior Brother Lu. He will judge the truth, it's not up to you to be noisy!" Xue Dingwu squinted at the person speaking in the crowd and said slowly.

As soon as Xue Dingwu mentioned "Senior Brother Lu," everyone in the crowd fell silent.

Lu Zhensong, the senior brother of Gengjin Courtyard, won seventh place in the sect competition five years ago. He was greatly loved by Peak Lord Long Yuanshou and often handled matters in the peak on behalf of Long Yuanshou. He had a very high reputation among the Qi Refining disciples. And this Xue Dingwu was said to be the grandson of Lu Zhensong's aunt, so he was considered his junior.

Huo Xiaokai naturally knew his identity as well. Usually, he would avoid this person whenever anything happened. However, since this flying sword belonged to Zhang Yuanjing, how could he allow such a villain to covet it?

He was about to retort angrily when the flying sword, which had been silent, suddenly made a "hissing" sound, as if urging Huo Xiaokai to get on quickly. Huo Xiaokai thought, Uncle-Master Zhang is still waiting for me, this is not the time to argue with this person. He suppressed his anger and stepped onto the flying sword.

"Want to run? Get down!"

Xue Dingwu used two pseudo-spirit talismans, one green and one yellow. The green one was a wood-attribute Green Vine Talisman, which turned into several slender green vines, wrapping around Huo Xiaokai from all directions. The yellow one was an earth-attribute Flying Sand Talisman. As soon as this talisman was activated, a cloud of yellow sand enveloped the space three feet around Huo Xiaokai.

At this time, Huo Xiaokai had just stepped onto the flying sword and was unsteady on his feet. He had no time to act.

Most of the onlookers shook their heads, feeling that Xue Dingwu's victory was dishonorable. Not only was his cultivation two levels higher, but he also attacked by surprise, and used two pseudo-spirit talismans in one go.

Just as Xue Dingwu thought he had succeeded, the flying sword under Huo Xiaokai's feet suddenly spun violently, cutting off all the incoming green vines. Then, flashing with white light, it flew out of the yellow sand and soared into the sky, taking Huo Xiaokai and disappearing without a trace.

"Sword qi protects the body!"

"Straight into the clouds!"

"It really is a spirit tool flying sword…"