Xin had just received medical treatment. His wrist was fully healed with a healing technique, but all of his bruises were covered with basic ointments and left to naturally heal. It was an ugly feeling, understanding that some higher ranked master could remove your injuries with a wave of their hand, but wouldn't. Demeaning.
In the same medical circle, Lei was laid shirtless onto a bench, and received a much more serious treatment. A wood path master was called to restore the grassroots in his arm; his internal injuries were quite severe, too, so he was treated to a mix of medicine and qi injections.
Still, he didn't calm down.
He called out to Yao Nang, the physical cultivator he just spat "lava" on, as she was getting her burns treated by an old female master:
"That granma is gonna save your pretty face? I am so relieved, this guilt was more painful than my wounds! Sorry, girl!"
"You... don't bother me... I don't want to do anything with you!"
"Look, I did nothing wrong, and Xin here was just trying to win! We had to fight an enemy above our class, used everything in our arsenal and won!"
"You fought dishonourably, it was just a training spar! Don't try and act like you don't know what I mean! You and your friend, scoundrels, you two!"
"Look, you are pretty and all that, but don't badmouth my friend!" He acted insulted, but it was just an excuse to insert another compliment "You don't know his story, you can't judge him! He's from Tealstone, do you have no shame? And speaking of honour, the biggest dishonour there is is to abandon your woman to be beaten! Your boyfriend was too bloodlusted to protect you!"
The girl didn't respond.
Xin rolled his eyes. Did this shameless manipulation plant a seed of doubt? She can't be THAT stupid. He wanted to expose Lei, but she also called him a scoundrel just a few moments ago, so she'll have to learn this lesson the hard way.
Lei continued:
"Your boyfriend rushed realms, he has a rank but no experience or wits. Not a single dao shard, either. Me? Would never blunder like that, it's not about the size of your qi pool, it's how you use it that matters. Cultivation is not just depth, it's also girth, if you catch my drift! Me and you, we could dual cultivate, what do you think? Help each other out."
The old female healing master turned to him with a stern expression:
"In this sect, we have serious rules about this sort of behaviour. You will not harass women here. Or men. Keep at this and I'll get you disqualified."
Xin's heart jumped. Is Lei finally in trouble? The dual cultivation thing is mostly a street legend, to offer it openly like that is to insult a female master's dignity.
Lei coughed.
"I see that you are right, master. Forgive me, please, it must be my injuries and battle rush making me act up. You remind me of my grandmother, by the way, she was also a strict woman with a heart of gold. Always knew how to scold me right!"
The woman was disarmed. Such shameless flattery, this guy is a weird fruit! As much as he annoyed her, he also managed to squeeze a smile out of her. A rare occurrence.
"Fine, just shut up."
Lei nodded, grinning widely. Xin squinted his eyes. Did this clown even know his grandmother?
Meanwhile, a quarter of people in the sparring circles were unfit to be even outer disciples, and were sent home. Others awaited judgement.
Xie Xiaodan, the instructor of their circle, was passionately debating something with his colleagues, and it made the young hunter a bit anxious. Are the others looking to disqualify us?
A minute later, Xie Xiaodan finally called everyone back into his circle, and announced the verdict.
"Good news first! I have identified three students worthy of being internal disciples with special benefits, called "seeds". You'll be given extra resources and some minor privileges once you confirm your competence in the skills you have claimed to have."
Xin smiled. There was no intrigue with this one. It was him and Lei, and the third one is obviously the girl, no one else came close. Still, did she do well enough? Us three are the only qi active people in our circle, was it the only thing that mattered?
Despite thinking this, there was a miniscule part of him that was still anxious about not being chosen, even if it was basically impossible at this point. He tried to shoo it away.
"The students are: Xin, no surname given. Brilliant performance, boy. Second student is Wu Lei, strong resolve and a good trap card. I hope you aren't a one-trick pony. Third student — Yao Nang. I had to fight the other instructors for you, and I am elevating you on potential, not merit. Remember this and prove them wrong. Now, for the regular internal disciples. Sadly, just five of you made it that far..." He kept naming those that successfully passed.
Xin and Lei didn't care about the others, they had each other, so they didn't even listen.
"Did you hear that? We are now sect prodigies, just like that!" Lei playfully put Xin into a chokehold. The other students weren't particularly happy. No one congratulated any of the three "chosen ones".
"Haha, stop, stop!" Xin punched him in the abs, not at full strength, of course. "It was just the first step, and now you'll have to study, and study hard."
"Study? You mean train? Oh, wait. Right." It only now dawned on Lei that he would have to learn the art of alchemy, calligraphy and several other disciplines like Feng Shui before he is actually promoted and helped to break through. This prospect didn't sound too appealing.
"Yes, and don't you dare get distracted or try and use me as your crutch. You'll have to work hard, there are no shortcuts here."
"I... I'll work hard, of course!" He said, but his playful eyes betrayed him, saying "I'll also try to find a shortcut".
"What's with that girl? Why did she even get the special treatment?"
"Nepotism, probably. Or caught someone's eye. Maybe her type is rare, I don't know. Physical cultivators are weird."
"Her boyfriend, that guy is trouble. Frankly, it was Xie Xiaodan who pushed us into conflict, we would have resolved it if he didn't start stirring shit."
"It's not like you weren't eager to jump onto this opportunity."
"After the shit you pulled, you're calling me eager? Half the newbies think you are a demon now!"
"Give me a month or two and none of them will matter." Xin raised his chin. Lei smirked.
Xin sank his thoughts again. Just a few weeks ago, he was bested by Lei, but now he was on top again. And his skillset will certainly be more valued in the sect.
In terms of growth, their new status as top-tier internal disciples would be a double-edged sword. Some would now consider them upstarts, some — honourless scoundrels. That earth path master (what was even his name?) would also try and hinder them, but with the loss of face he suffered, how much sway did he have? Xin was now focused on getting to Foundation stage himself, and he was confident that he'll be stronger once he catches up in rank.
They ventured into the Administrative pavilion, where an old man, an assistant treasurer, would explain the ground rules to all the new internal disciples. There were around thirty of them in total. According to rumours, there were also two Condensation stage (rank two) masters that joined today, and ten first ranks, but they would be given their separate briefings. The tryouts would last for a few more days, but most of the testing would conclude today.
"Listen here, youngsters. You will train martial arts every day, for three hours, at least. You are allowed to take extra classes, as long as all of your sect assignments are complete. In fact, you are encouraged to do so. You'll also have at least three classes of studies every day, and you get access to every basic facility of the sect.
Now, for the unpleasant part. Each of you will be given a job. Usually, it's managing the mortals in the sect villages, helping around the alchemy labs or administering the documents. If you slack in your duties, you might actually get fined and expelled from the sect. Did I make myself clear?"
Lei rolled his eyes. What's with this phrase and everyone here? Also, what did I get myself into? A full time job, and a studying regimen on top of it? His whole spirit revolted.
"Forgive me, master, may I ask a question?" A tall young man with lots of expensive jewellery asked.
"Sure. Go on, youngster."
"Is this not a waste of the sect's time? Why not just let the mortals handle their own stuff down there? They can handle it better than us, and we'd benefit much better from just training and studying more, instead. My father runs a castle complex, he always taught me to delegate."
Xin rolled his eyes. Did this guy just look for a pretense to show off and display his status as a noble scion?
"That's... not a question, youngster. My first piece of advice is to learn how to sound humbly, and not like you are contradicting the sect's teachings. It's unwise to openly doubt our leadership like that, and it's sad that I have to explain this sort of thing. The nuances of integrating the external candidates, I guess. All of you are hopefully future masters, and being a master isn't just about your cultivation rank.
All of you here have different talents, and different weaknesses. Our sect is built upon an idea of cultivating diverse talents so that we are prepared for every outcome. Each ground rule here is written in blood, remember it. Now, back to your 'question'.
The true meaning of these jobs is to give you practice in a safe, controlled environment, before you are elevated into higher positions. Still, these jobs are not to be taken lightly, as our financial streams depend on your performance. Those deemed unfit might still be culled, remember. Did I make myself clear?"
"Yes, master. Forgive me if I sounded disrespectful, I am still refining my etiquette." The man bowed.
Lei grinned and blurted out: "Guys, did you know that I am rich? You don't know how to run your sect! My father is rich, by the way!"
The noble looked at him, wide-eyed. The audacity!
Everyone laughed, but the administrative master hushed him:
"Silence. You're that fire spitting chump, right? I am speaking to everyone here, but you especially. We are not here to bicker or one up each other, but to develop. Now, about your living conditions.
You will be given food, lodgings and clothing for free. Every day, except an off day once per week, you have to wear your sect uniform. Lower ranks aren't allowed to stand out with jewellery, colourful hair or any other way you kids will come up with to draw attention to yourself. This will be punished. You will live in communal housing, four people in the room. Your neighbours will be picked randomly."
No. Please no. Xin's heart dropped, he wanted to stay with Lei. Wu Lei also looked at him like a sad puppy.
"I see that there are several females here. You live in a separate wing, otherwise the rules are similar. Now, about the... romantic relationships. The sect has strict rules about this."
The women in the crowd looked uncomfortable, surrounded by so many men. Many have only now realised how rare the women in the sect are, and what it means for their life here. Most of them will be pestered constantly, both by peers and older masters, starved for female attention.
"First of all, if you are in a relationship with a sect member, you inform the higher ups. This is crucial, as we don't want the conflicts of interest to create any corruption or nepotism. Second, you are to take rejections in grace. No funny scenes, every year we have to kick a few hopeless romantics out. Third, and most important — children."
Xin squinted his eyes. He wondered how the sect managed this stuff.
"Any child born to a female sect member belongs to the sect. Both parents contribute to the child's education fund and their basic allowance, and they stay with the sect until they are of age, living in special communal wings.
They will then make a choice between joining the sect as disciples or leaving to pursue their own fate. In my years here, very few left. Many are now valuable sect members, and their sect masters are as important to them as their actual parents. Up to a third of our usual yearly crop are people born to sect members, and up to a half of xiandao masters. But none of you here, obviously."
Xin felt uneasy. This system made sense, but also reeked of nepotism and brainwashing. Still, such children probably had stronger bloodlines, on average, and parents dedicated to their growth. It made sense. But being unable to raise your kids as a proper parent? The hunter realised that in some ways, a peasant actually had more freedom than the sect master.
Ironic.
Lei also stared into the distance. At least the kids are taken care of, and have a family. Brainwashed, probably, and turned into child soldiers early, but it's better than what happens in Clay Nest. Among the people he grew up with, some died of drugs, some cheerful young girls were pushed into prostitution early, some kids were made into serfs due to debt and sold, many joined a crime family or a mercenary gang. Only a few made it out, mostly quiet, determined kids.
Did I make it out now? He looked at his wooden arm.