Chapter 2

After bathing, Chun Chou shook out his long, jet-black hair and went off to look for Ling Wuji.

On this point, the ancients were truly troublesome—such long hair.

Fortunately, he was a cultivator. Though his spiritual roots were mixed and his natural talent so poor that others could hardly be bothered to examine it, he had at least reached the third level of Qi Refining. Simple everyday spells—such as instantly drying his hair—were well within his ability.

As he let his thoughts wander, he happened to run into the steward coming out of Ling Wuji’s room.

The steward shot him a fierce glare.

Chun Chou: Meow meow meow?(Say what now?)

Chun Chou felt that, in this body, he was only sixteen this year—precisely the perfect age to tattle. He immediately raised his voice and said, “Why are you glaring at me?”

Steward: “…”

Hearing the commotion, Ling Wuji pushed his wheelchair out at once. Though he bore the appearance of a youth, he carried a certain imposing presence. His gaze, icy and sharp, fell upon the steward.

The steward shuddered and his knees went weak; he was about to kneel.

Ling Wuji said coldly, “There is no need to kneel. Since you are leaving, none of you need ever return—especially you. Do not appear before me again.”

For a moment, the steward felt that Ling Wuji seemed like the makings of a foolish tyrant.

Very well, very well. Let us see whether this “foolish tyrant” will one day regret it.

He still knelt and knocked his head against the ground once. Not daring to glare again at that “demon consort,” he lowered his head and left.

Chun Chou was not surprised that Ling Wuji intended to drive them away.

Ling Wuji had already told him something of his “family background.”

Ling Wuji said that he was born into a mid-tier cultivation clan. His mother had been the previous clan head. In her early years, she had been brilliant, leading the clan to prosperity and even greater heights. She married a man of equal standing and gave birth to a daughter with excellent aptitude and spiritual roots. Although the couple later fell out and divorced, the clan head continued to carefully nurture that daughter, preparing her to inherit the position.

However, this clan head—Ling Wuji’s mother—later, as though bound by the clan’s fate, encountered her “fated one.” In her eyes, everything—her cultivation, power, the position of clan head, the prosperity of the clan, even her daughter—could not compare to that “fated one.”

Yet that “fated one” refused to marry her and later betrayed her. Pregnant, she personally killed him, suffered grievous injuries herself, and then, at the cost of her life, gave birth to the son of herself and that “fated one”—Ling Wuji.

Even that might have been bearable. Though Ling Wuji was an illegitimate child and an orphan with both parents dead, in such a great clan there should have been a place for him. But Ling Wuji’s mother left behind trusted aides and a final order demanding that Ling Wuji inherit the position of clan head, while the daughter she had raised for years could only act as interim head until Ling Wuji came of age.

Thus Ling Wuji could only be treated as a discarded pawn, sent far away to Hongye Town in the borderland between immortals and mortals, where he met Chun Chou.

Ling Wuji had long told Chun Chou that his own aptitude was merely average. Since he had never truly obtained the clan’s power and status, he had never grown attached to them. After meeting Chun Chou and seeing that Chun Chou likewise lacked much talent for cultivation, he felt that living out their lives simply in the borderland would not be so bad. Therefore, as early as ten years ago, he had sent the clan head’s token back to the family. Yet his elder sister still had not formally taken over as clan head, and the people stationed around him refused to leave.

At the time, Ling Wuji had no intention of returning to the cultivation world and did not particularly care. But after their long talk the previous night, when the two of them decided to go to the cultivation world, Ling Wuji could no longer allow those who supported him to remain by his side.

Ling Wuji took Chun Chou’s hand and said, “Just now, I also had them take back the jade pendant that represents the direct bloodline of the clan.”

Chun Chou replied, “If you’ve given it back, then so be it. You’re skilled at talisman drawing, and I’m good at cultivating spirit herbs. Together, we need not fear wherever we go.”

Ling Wuji was not surprised that Chun Chou would say this. He let out a low laugh, then pulled Chun Chou along with one hand while maneuvering his wheelchair with the other, heading off for their meal.

This meal was still prepared by someone. From the next one onward, there would be no one to cook for them.

But neither of them minded.

After they finished eating, Ling Wuji’s attendants came to bid farewell and departed.

Then Ling Wuji stayed home to sort out what was to be sold and what was to be packed and taken along. Knowing that Ling Wuji was at the fifth level of Qi Refining and possessed exceptionally strong spiritual sense, and that such matters posed no difficulty for him, Chun Chou felt at ease returning to his own home.

As soon as he stepped outside, he saw the mayor of Hongye Town waiting at his doorstep.

Chun Chou was somewhat surprised, yet also not entirely so. He hurried forward to exchange greetings.

The mayor was just about to happily present gifts to this elder brother of a future great cultivator—one said to possess four unique spiritual roots and physiques—when Chun Chou quickly declined them.

Previously, before he had that nightmare, he would have continued living in Hongye Town. In that case, there would have been no issue in accepting the valuable gifts from the mayor and the wealthy merchants of the town.

But now that he intended to leave, it was no longer appropriate to accept them.

After Chun Chou explained his plan to depart, the mayor fell into thought.

After a moment, the mayor said, ​”The divide between the Cultivation World and these Borderlands is as vast as the gap between the Mortal Realm and the Borderlands themselves.”

People of the mortal world exhaust every means to enter the borderland (Immortal-Mortal Realm), enduring countless hardships.

Likewise, those in the borderland who wish to go to the cultivation world must pass through layer upon layer of selection—one chosen from ten thousand—to have a chance.”

“However, you are naturally different, Young Master Chun Chou. When your younger brother and sister were taken away yesterday, I noticed they gave you an additional jade token, allowing you to enter the cultivation world at any time. Is that not so?”

Chun Chou felt that speaking at the main gate was rather inappropriate, so he led the mayor inside.

​”With a wave of his hand, the mayor entered the courtyard alone with Chun Chou and took a seat at the stone table.”

From his spatial jade talisman, Chun Chou took out spirit tea, spirit fruit, and a tea set, and personally brewed tea for the mayor.

He brewed tea as he answered the town chief’s earlier question.

“Yes, what you said is correct, Town Chief(mayor). The sword cultivator who took my younger brothers and sisters away did indeed give me a jade token, saying that I could go to the cultivation world at any time. I asked him then whether I could bring someone else along. The immortal thought for a moment and exchanged it for another jade token. Please wait a moment, Town Chief—I’ll take it out for you to have a look. I believe I should at least be able to bring one person with me to the cultivation world.”

Yesterday, disciples from a major sect of the cultivation world had come to recruit students. Naturally, those who came were only ordinary disciples of a great sect. Their first requirement in selecting disciples was that the candidate be under ten years old. Someone like Chun Chou, who was sixteen this year, or Ling Wuji, who was eighteen, did not even qualify to participate.

Chun Chou’s four younger siblings—Xie Fusheng, nine; Xie Yaoyao, eight; and the six-year-old twins Xie Changnian and Xie Youyou—were all within the eligible age range.

The town chief’s young son was also of eligible age, but he possessed only dual spiritual roots. His other child, a daughter with the rare single spiritual root, was already sixteen.

Yet the cultivation world accepted only those with a single spiritual root and under ten years of age. The town chief’s children were therefore left behind.

In the end, the great sect selected only seven people in total from Hongye Town and several nearby towns.

The great sect conducted its affairs in an orderly manner. Although they took people away, they left behind some cultivation resources for the families, as well as a jade token that would allow one person to travel from the mortal world to the cultivation world.

The families of the other three selected children each received one jade token, and each token permitted only one person to enter the cultivation world. Since there was only a single token, allowing only one person to go, those three families treasured them like heirlooms.

As for Chun Chou, since all four of his younger siblings had been selected, some began to wonder whether the single jade token in his possession might allow more than one person to leave.

While the town chief was still pondering this, Chun Chou finished brewing the tea and brought out the jade token.

The token was shaped like a flower in full bloom, with five jade petals. On it were engraved four characters: “Guiyuan Sword Sect.”

The town chief was overjoyed when he saw it. “Just as I thought! The jade tokens given to the other three families were shaped like unopened flower buds. That means each of those tokens allows only one person to pass unconditionally from the mortal realm to the cultivation world. But yours has five petals—meaning it can take five people at once, without restriction.

“Chun Chou, when you previously said you intended to remain in the mortal world, there were things I could not conveniently say. Now that you have decided to go to the cultivation world, why not make proper use of this jade token and plan carefully?”

The town chief looked at Chun Chou meaningfully.

Holding the five-petaled token again, Chun Chou belatedly realized that this was indeed a treasure capable of generating wealth.

He then recalled that the sword cultivator had originally given him a bud-shaped token. Only after he asked another question had the man replaced it with this one. The sword cultivator had likely assumed that Chun Chou had seen through his scheming intentions and, to silence him, had given him a five-petaled token rather than one with only four petals.

In truth, at the time Chun Chou had simply thought that if he were to leave, he must bring Ling Wuji with him. That was why he had asked that extra question.

It seemed that being in love truly had its advantages.

Chun Chou indulged in that sweet thought for a moment before turning his attention back to the town chief’s words.

The town chief had made his meaning clear. After having all the gifts he brought placed in the courtyard, he departed.

Before leaving, he said he would return home and spread the word on Chun Chou’s behalf, and would even help pre-select suitable candidates to bring for Chun Chou to meet.

Naturally, the town chief reserved one place for his own child. In addition to the gifts now piled in Chun Chou’s courtyard, he would also send a storage pouch, one hundred low-grade spirit stones, and copied jade slips of all the records concerning the cultivation world kept in his household.

Chun Chou said in surprise, “Wasn’t it said that spirit stones have not circulated in the mortal realm for a thousand years?”

The town chief looked at him deeply. “Weren’t there spirit stones a thousand years ago?”

Chun Chou immediately fell silent, thinking to himself: understood. They were either ancestral possessions or seized from someone later.

To cultivators, one hundred low-grade spirit stones were nothing remarkable. But in a mortal realm where spirit stones had not circulated for a thousand years, it was no small sum. Especially since spirit pearls were not accepted as currency in the cultivation world. No matter how many spirit pearls they brought, they would be worthless there.

Originally, Chun Chou had planned to exchange all the spirit pearls for supplies, have Ling Wuji draw more spatial talismans, and take the supplies along. Now, with three additional slots, they could safely acquire even more goods.

That evening, the town chief’s steward delivered a storage pouch and a list of names. Inside the pouch were two hundred low-grade spirit stones and nearly a hundred newly copied jade slips.

Chun Chou was having dinner with Ling Wuji.

Ling Wuji examined the items as well and smiled. “Two hundred low-grade spirit stones? Now that’s more like it.”

After dismissing the visitor, Ling Wuji took one hundred spirit stones from the pouch and brought out his spirit-gathering array. He said to Chun Chou, “The cultivation world is rich in spiritual energy. I imagine there are Qi-refining cultivators everywhere. Since we now have so many spirit stones, take this opportunity to cultivate as much as you can. I’ll handle selecting the candidates.”

Chun Chou felt that made sense, yet hesitated. “My spiritual roots are too poor. With just one hundred low-grade spirit stones, can I even advance one level?”

Ling Wuji: “…”

Having personally witnessed how mixed Chun Chou’s spiritual roots were and how slow his cultivation progressed, he paused before saying, “It’s fine. Aren’t there another hundred? We can find two more candidates; surely they’ll bring additional spirit stones. Don’t worry. Go cultivate.”

Chun Chou had no choice but to comply.

He thought to himself that fortunately Ling Wuji’s aptitude was also poor—only slightly better than his own. Otherwise, they might have had to break up over mismatched talent.

He could not afford to drag Ling Wuji down too much.

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