Chương 22: To Be a Master (I)

A single bit of news surprised me slightly on my daily descent to check out the decadent in case there were more hidden gems like Dai Xiu. Just as I made my descent, I chanced upon a returning entourage of disciples--there were about nine of them, a mix of Inner and Outer, with four of them appearing heavily wounded and all others also bearing at least some minor injuries.

I caught the first bit of their report to Elder Qin--they were attacked by the disciples of the Fire Sun Sect, and, apparently, two kids had died, one stayed behind as a distraction, and these nine managed to escape. My memories dictate that the Fire Sun Sect was the nearby competitor; their strength was ever so slightly greater than the Spirit Sword Sect on the whole, but they, too, only had one Void Transformation Realm cultivator, their own Sect Master. And just like Spirit Sage, he, too, was at the early stage.

Skirmishes between the two sects were relatively frequent--after all, in this godforsaken corner of the world, there weren't exactly all that many opportunities. So, the two sects competed for the resources, for the disciples, and even for the territory. One of the ways sects made their money was through a taxation and donation system--taxes were paid by the surrounding villages with the understanding that the Spirit Sword Sect would act in case wild and demonic beasts (or even cultivators) appeared and attacked.

Donations, on the other hand, were, in reality, bribes... but nobody called them that. Due to the overlap in territories, the two sects, thus, fought long and hard for every bit of resources that they could, often leading to the disciple skirmishes on the outside that resulted in just north of twenty deaths a year. Still, it was a bit... ominous and odd; twelve disciples was an unusual number to be venturing out together.

Ordinarily, even group missions mostly had up to six or seven kids; as it turned out, two such groups paired together when they got wind of some or another rare herb appearing. Just as they defeated the demonic beast guarding it, disciples--and an Elder -- of the Fire Sun Sect appeared and not only stole the herb but also killed and wounded as they pleased. Hey. Doesn't it just sound like they were baited into going there where the trap was set and then beaten black and blue? Right? They'll see through it, no?

Well, whatever--it has nothing to do with me. What did have to do with me was one of the returning disciples--as it just so happened, Daoist Mu was his master, and boy, was it not pleasant to watch the aged dude just ream the kid out in public. From the looks of it, all other disciples belonged to Elders, and, well, it was all politics, really. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The reason I got curious was… call it instinct.

Just the way the kid kept his composure despite being chewed out, and how the others held gazes of contempt when they looked at him... there was a backstory there, and it stank to high heavens of a protagonist. Luckily, I was yet to visit the dreaded compound, so I took a peek...

[--Creator's Eyes Used] [Target: Yuan Zemin] [Age: 19] [Talent: peak-Mortal(Sealed)] [Cultivation Realm: Peak Qi Condensation] [Cultivation Method: Spirit Sword Harmony, First Volume; Golden Horn Body] [Martial Arts: Charge of the Iron Fist (mid-Mortal), Iron Bones (low-Mortal)] [...] [Traits (Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary,???)] [Blood Inheritor (Legendary) -- inheritor of a legacy from 50, 000 years ago, Blood-Fiend Sutra. Currently sealed] [Body Purist (Epic) -- will only cultivate Body Arts. Believes in the supremacy of one's own physique] [Depressed (Common) -- got kicked out of his family due to low talent and just barely escaped with his life, choosing to hide here. Cannot understand why he isn't talented, unlike his siblings] [Seal of the Venerable Divine (???) -- a deeply rooted bloodline seal spanning countless generations. Venerable Divine, unable to destroy the body of the Blood-Fiend, instead sealed it into the mortal veins, where it was carried on through the eons] [...] [Assessing suitability...] [...] [Special Physique, Blood-Fiend God (Ancient), discovered. Currently sealed by Chains of Impunity] [Recommendation: due to the seal, it is currently impossible to cultivate the target's innate physique. Chains of Impunity requires a sutra of at least '???' rank to undo, and the host needs to reach at least the realm of a Demigod in order to create it. It is recommended that the target be taught pure, non-elemental Body Arts; despite the bloodline being sealed, parts of its intent have still leaked; in terms of pure body art talent, the target is still highly unmatched] [...] [Final assessment: if the innate physique is never unsealed, it is estimated that the target will peak at Revolving Core Realm, with potential combat of a Void Transformation Realm with proper arts. Unsealing the physique results in innumerable variables that make it impossible to determine the potential peak realm]... Hmm. That old saying of 'take a stroll and chance upon gold in the pile of excrement' is really true.... okay, I made that up, but it did ring true, no? In fairness, Yuan Zemin was actually distinctly different from both of my disciples in that he wasn't necessarily a heaven-defying talent.

Well, for these parts his body-art talent might be considered heaven-defying actually, but altogether, without his innate physique, he was just... okay. I didn't immediately decide to take him in, however; there were several issues with it. One, he was already nineteen, well past the age of brainwa--I mean, he'd already dedicated himself to a master for a few years. His loyalty will likely not be that high, especially because I won't actually have any unique means of immediately increasing his strength.

Two, the brief tidbit of his background... worried me. In these kinds of stories, protag families don't just go away. They're bound to return, either by them hunting him down or him returning home to restore his glory. And a family capable of rivaling or even outpacing the Sect... yeah, that shit didn't exist in these parts. So, it was probably from the 'richer' part of the world. Thirdly, the raw requirement to unseal him was simply too high--I mean, what the hell even was a Demigod Realm?

When would I even reach it? Maybe it was a realm immediately after Void Transformation, and it would take me about nine decades to get there. Or, maybe, it was a realm so far past it, I might never reach it. The truth was simple--Yuan Zemin will most likely have his day in the sun, but I am not equipped to be the wind that gets him there. It's a shame, but it is best that I don't get tangled up with his business. Just as I was about to go on and spend my two remaining charges of the Creator's Eyes, I paused...

because a window appeared in front of me. Reading it, my lips twitched, and I felt temporarily... befuddled. Yes, let's go with befuddled. [--Host correctly identified his inability to properly nurture a hidden talent] [+20 Creation Points] [--first time bonus activated: +40 extra Creation Points] [It is good that the Host understands the System is only as strong as the Host himself; there are as many hidden talents in the world as there are stars in the night sky. Not all of them are meant for you] [Good luck!]