On getting to the tavern, Xiao feng, Xuan ping and their elder brothers and sisters began to have fun, they were not treated badly because they belonged to a distinguish sect (a first rated sect).
Waiter! Waiter!!
"Thank you for your patience, what is your order, young master?" Said the waiter.
"Junior brother Xuan ping, why don't you take the order" Said Jiang ping.
Thank God, I prepared a lot of money before I came here. He thought.
"Waiter! Three jars of your best wine would do and serve us your best soup" Said Xuan ping.
"Ok, young master, I will be back with your order as soon as possible" Said the waiter. He bowed and left rushing.
"A jar of their best wine already cost so much, and he dared to order for three? This Xuan ping seems to be filled with money, I will be sure to reap him later" Jiang ping thought as he chuckled slightly.
At the extreme of the tavern, members of an influential sect rated third, their sect mainly, is based on acupuncture- techniques to heal, kill, paralyze, immobilize or even worse, to manipulate opponents by attacking their acu pressure points with their bare hands or weapons.
Ever since the death of their ancestors, their sects' inheritance went missing and this made the sect which was once regarded as the best amidst the first rated sect in the south decline into a third rank stage.
"Xiao xiao, who are those disciples putting on white, their expression seems so predictable, something like they are suffering" Xuan ping inquisitive nature which was long locked began to open up as he asked.
"Hmm, you better watch what you say anyway they were once a first rated sect from the south that specialized in the use of acupuncture, but their sect declined as they could not find the whereabouts of their sects ultimate acupuncture techniques, let forget about that and enjoy ourselves here while we still can" Said Xiao Feng.
" Then what are doing far south when they are from south?" Asked Xuan ping.
"What? How am I supposed to know that, for all I care that is their sects business" Said Xiao Feng?
The look on Xuan pings face says he is not satisfied with the little information Xiao had just fed him.
Xiao Feng looked at him…what? Do you want me to go for you?
They both burst into laughter.
Although I'm not satisfied with that, I'm really bothered concerning emperor ye cang'er wish.
I really am sure there would be a technique relating to this sect amidst the techniques and the emperor had collected.
When I return to the sect, I will make sure to check for it, but the main problem now would be how to deliver it to their sect and not to think about it, it is located in the south.
"I wonder how long it will take, but I have a lot more to do than what I thought".
After getting themselves drunk, they all left the tavern, staggering with the stench of wine.
""""""""""""""""
"Xu Qing! How many times have I told you not to use my cauldron?" He asked.
Take a look now, you have destroyed so many of my treasured cauldrons, I am left with none.
"Damn!" The old man cursed with despair.
"Hmph, stinky old man how dare you put all the blame on me, all you do is complain over those substandard cauldrons of yours that can't even withstand the little energy I pored in, yet you dared to call the treasured".
"If this keeps on, I would piss my panties...they should be called trash instead, and you had better use them for cooking instead" Xu Qing said with a serious expression shown on her face.
"You! In fact, you are dismissed, don't ever let me see you set foot in here again" The old man said, feeling highly infuriated.
"That does it! Simple alchemy you can't teach, yet you have the guts to terminate my employment, I will go, join an influential sect then get the opportunity to learn an even better alchemy techniques". She said.
Xu Qing stormed off the shop in a rage as she began to say all sort of things to the old man.
As she was walking around the capital searching for an influential sect, but she was so unfortunate as she had found none.
She began to ponder distressed, unknowingly drawing attention towards herself as passers-by began to look at her.
As Xu Qing sighted a well-dressed man, she immediately scurried up to him.
"Excuse me! Good day sir" Xu Qing said.
"Good day young miss" said the man who was still trying to figure out where he had met her before.
"Have we met before?" He asked.
"No o o o" Xu Qing said, feeling a bit.
The thing is, I have been walking around the capital for a while now, looking for a sect to join, so I can learn alchemy, but I am yet to find one.
"Hmm, she seems the clueless type" He thought.
Anyway, there is no sect located within the capital, that is probably the reason you have been searching for a while now.
But there are also influential clans and families situated within the capital where you can practice in the way of alchemy.
"No!" Xu Qing disagreed.
I am not interested in any clans and I also won't like to intertwine myself with any family...."please, can you help remember any sects that are outside not too far from the capital" She asked.
"Hmm, There is a sect far from the capital, though their recruiting standard is quite high, and I don't think they are accepting disciples this year, probably in five years" The man said.
Xu Qing felt a glimmer of hope as she heard the man say there was a sect a bit far from the capital....."please, tell me how I am going to locate the sect".
Now, you seem to be getting impatient little miss anyway, once you are out of the capital, just take the narrow part and that leads straight to a mountain, there the sect is located, but...
"Thank you young master, Xu Qing really appreciates" She said and scurried away.
"By the way, I was about to tell her I would take at least five days by house and almost fifteen days by leg" The man said to himself.
Anyway, she would find out herself, the young man sighed and continued on his journey.
«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»«»
INSIDE THE FIRE PAGODA
Xuan ping and Xiao feng sweating profusely as the fire QI began to erode their body, the feeling of their body, bones, vessels, tissues, muscles, veins, and tendons starting to reform.
And there their first day of hellish training began.
"Bro…th…er xi…ao xi…ao, ha..ve you ev..er be..en to this pagoda before?" Xuan ping forcefully asked.
What! A voice cracked, Xiao Xiao chuckled at what just happened.
"No! Had it been I passed through this before, I would have told you to braze yourself".
Experiencing this now, I wish this place did not even exist in the first place...."It really hurts" Said Xiao feng.
"Argh." Xuan ping breathes heavily... and we still have more than five hours in this hellhole? How long I will be able to endure, only time would reveal.
They both, went.......
«»«»
"Sect master. Sect master."
"Xiao feng and Xuan ping had already collapsed" The elder in charge of monitoring them said.
"Let them be, they merely fainted since their body had not passed through that amount of exhaustion before," The supreme being said.
"But supreme being, I think taking them to the highest level of the fire pagoda is a bit too much and may take a toll on their body, Nonetheless, they are to spend twelve hours in there" Said the elder showing concern.
"Not until they grasp full control over the tremendous amount of QI they possess, so do as I say" Said the supreme being as he continued looking at the manual he held unto.
"Yes, supreme being" Said the elder as he was about to leave to watch over Xuan ping and Xiao feng.
And by the way, do not include the time in which they collapsed.
"What." He shouted, but since he had no say, he followed what the sect master (supreme being) had said.
«»«»
"How long do you think we had been unconscious, brother Xuan?" Xiao Feng asked as soon as he gained his consciousness, although his body still not in shape, slightly groaning.
"Well, I guess we had gone for close to three hours," Said Xuan ping.
"Senior brother Xiao feng, this tingling feeling still had not gone, and it still keeps getting worse" Said Xuan ping.
Lasting another hour in here might put our body in danger.
"Not if we find a solution," Said Xiao Feng. But I still don't know why the master did not allow use to ascend from the first floor instead, he moved us directly to the tenth floor.
The next minute, Xiao feng took a deep breath and began to think really deep looking for any occurrence that might have happened but unfortunate for him, nothing came to his mind, but as he was about to say a word, something flashed through his mind.
"To get rid of the fire QI, my body needs to be nourished by my yuan QI, that is I have to be in total control of my QI" He stated.
Immediately, both Xuan ping and Xiao feng went into position, quietened down and began circulating their QI throughout their body, controlling every inch of their body, gradually the fire QI that had sipped into their body began to get dispelled.
As they continued the process, their body began to lose QI gradually, they began to experience another mental exhaustion but this time around, things were different as their body had already adapted to the pain.
After trying several times, the fire QI was successful dispelled and their body was protected firmly by their QI.
They had finally grabbed the main reason why their master had then trained at the tenth level.
The sect master brought them back as they were breathing heavily.
"Hmm, looking at you reminds me of how pathetic I once was, anyway that aside, Good work, you both have learned to keep your QI in check even without a hint, I commend you both for that" Said the supreme being.
And do not think your training ends here's, for all I know, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
First, you are going to go through physical body refinement, and that includes...well let not inform you on that because it might break your will.
Secondly, this will happen before the first condition and that is to study your heavenly divine techniques to perfection and the duration will be three months, anything more than that will lead to a year confinement with hard seclusive training without connection to the outside world.
"What!" Xuan ping and Xiao feng shouted, showing dissatisfaction with what their master had just stated, but so unfortunate, they had no choice but to obey the strict rules of their master.
"Master" Xuan ping said. I would be visiting my previous sect during their competition and that will be held in six months time.
"Phew!" I knew you would ask that, but I never expected it to be this soon and still everything depends on your performance, three months after your seclusion will determine whether you are to leave or be confined.
The supreme being scuffed his shoes on the floor, took a look at his disciples and was about to leave….
"Master, I would love to tag alongside Xuan ping" Xiao feng shouted in hope for a positive answer.
"Do you as you wish" Said their master. Anyway, time would be the one to reveal things.
Immediately, Xiao feng jumped and hugged Xuan ping from his back.
And so, their secluded training commenced without taking a single rest.