On a vast grassland, an elderly and a young Taoist were leisurely walking. The old Taoist held a floating whisk, while the young Taoist had a long sword strapped to his back.
"Master, is this really okay?" The young Taoist asked, a bit worried.
"What's wrong with it?" The old Taoist lightly shook the whisk and opened a gourd, savoring a sip of wine. Suddenly, he seemed to remember something and turned around, glaring at the young Taoist. He said threateningly, "Don't you dare tell this to our sect leader, or I'll take back the sword you're carrying!"
The young Taoist glanced at the sword on his back and pouted, "It's just an old, broken sword. How dare you call it a treasure sword!"
Although the young Taoist had reached the early stage of "Condensing Spirit" and should have been given a better sword, he came from a small, modest background and had nothing of value.
His words immediately caused the old Taoist to choke on his drink. He turned around and laughed, saying, "Alright, alright. When we get back, I'll tell the sect leader to get you a better sword. Just don't mention today's events!"
"Master, you're at the peak of Yun Tian, with such powerful cultivation. Aren't you worried about retribution for stealing others' wine like this?" The young Taoist asked.
It turns out the two of them were disciples from a small sect called "Tai Fu Men" on the God Martial Continent. The sect only had a few hundred members, and the old Taoist was a senior disciple of the sect's leader. This time, he took the young Taoist down the mountain for training.
When the old Taoist passed by a tavern, the smell of wine made him itch for a drink. Seizing the opportunity when no one was looking, he used a shadow technique to sneak in and fill a gourd with fine wine. But a normal gourd was too trivial for someone of his cultivation, so he used a special one.
Soon, the entire tavern was in chaos as the fine wine, worth several barrels, disappeared in an instant. The tavern owner was so distraught, he cried out, cursing the thief. But by the time he noticed, the old Taoist had vanished, blissfully enjoying his stolen wine.
Hearing the young Taoist's words, the old Taoist laughed heartily. "Retribution? Haha, kid, you're so funny. Look at this vast plain; I can see a hundred miles around. What retribution do you think will happen to me? Do you believe a meteor will fall from the sky and hit me? Haha…"
"Bang!"
Just as the old Taoist finished speaking, an unknown object hurtled through the air and struck him, knocking him down to the ground.
"Huh? Why is it so soft?" The young Taoist looked behind him and saw something unexpected. His eyes widened in shock as he realized, "There's a person under me!"
It turns out that when Tian Fan entered the space, he had brought the dragon egg with him. When the space opened again, he was ejected and landed directly onto the old Taoist's back.
"God! Am I seeing things? This is really divine retribution!" The young Taoist was dumbfounded, murmuring to himself, "It's not my fault, not my fault... Namo Amitabha... Namo Amitabha..."
The old Taoist, lying face down in the grass, heard the young Taoist's words and angrily retorted, "What the hell, we're Taoists, not monks! That's a Buddhist chant!"
"Oh right, Namo Tianzun above, it's not my fault, Namo Tianzun above, it's not my fault..." The young Taoist muttered to himself again, this time with the correct chant, as he continued his prayer.
Hearing the prayer, the old Taoist, now furious, nearly shouted in frustration, "Namo what? You little brat, come help me up!"
As he lay on the ground, he noticed the young Taoist's feet beside his head and yelled, "Hey, are you enjoying yourself up there? Get off me, now!"
The young Taoist quickly ran over, helping the old Taoist to his feet.
"Sorry, senior. I didn't mean to do that," Tian Fan apologized, trying hard not to laugh. He could barely hold it in.
The old Taoist, keen-eyed, immediately noticed the mischievous glint in Tian Fan's eyes. He had an idea of what was going through his mind. With the young Taoist supporting him, he looked at Tian Fan and asked, "Did you think that was funny?"
"No, no. I wasn't thinking that at all," Tian Fan quickly answered, trying to hide his amusement.
The old Taoist wasn't satisfied. "Kid, tell me, how did you fall from the sky?"
Tian Fan sighed, knowing there was no point in hiding it. "Oh, well, a senior opened a space portal and sent me here."
Upon hearing this, both the old Taoist and the young Taoist erupted into loud laughter.
"Hahaha!" "Hahaha!" They laughed uncontrollably, exchanging glances between each other. They couldn't stop the hilarity of it all.
"Good disciple, I never expected there could be someone even more amusing than you! Hahaha, you've killed me with laughter!" The old Taoist laughed uncontrollably, clutching his stomach. Even the young Taoist, who had been startled earlier, was now shaking with laughter.
"Kid, do you think I've lived all these years for nothing? To tear open a space portal... even the most powerful beings from the Gui Xian Secret Realm can't do that. Only legendary gods can pull off such feats. Are you trying to tell me you were sent here by a god?" The old Taoist said, shaking his head with amusement.
Seeing the two laughing so joyously, Tian Fan knew that if he told them he had met a divine dragon in the Magic Forest and was transported by it, they would think he was insane. So, he quickly came up with a cover story. "Hehe, senior, you really have sharp insight, I can't fool you. Actually, I was caught in a powerful whirlwind that swept me high into the sky, and I ended up here. I'm truly sorry for causing trouble to you."
"Ah, that makes sense. The whirlwind on this vast plain is indeed fierce. With your low cultivation, it's not surprising that you were swept up. It's alright, I'm not hurt." The old Taoist paused, seemed to think of something, and then moved his hand away from his waist, standing up straight. He laughed again, "With your small strength, how could you possibly hurt me? Haha, no worries!"
Tian Fan had to hold back his laughter, but he still thanked him, "Thank you, senior."
The old Taoist looked Tian Fan over a few times. His clothes were decent, and though he looked a bit thin, he was still a handsome young man. "Where are you from, young man? Where's your home?"
The young Taoist nodded, waiting for Tian Fan to answer. Tian Fan turned and looked to the south, the direction of the Longteng Empire, where he had grown up. However, he no longer wished to return there. Even though now that he was cultivating, he could go back, and with the dragon egg in his possession, he might receive recognition from the emperor, Long Teng Aotian, and possibly even become the ruler of the Longteng Empire one day. But Tian Fan didn't want that life anymore. Right now, he felt free and happy.
"Eh? Young man? Hey, kid? Dao friend?... Hey, brat, snap out of it!" The old Taoist called out repeatedly before shouting sternly.
"Huh? Ah, sorry! I'm just a wandering cultivator, with no fixed home," Tian Fan quickly snapped out of his thoughts and apologized awkwardly.
"A wandering cultivator? I see!" The old Taoist's eyes lit up, and he grinned. "Hehe, kid, how about coming to visit my 'Tai Fu Men'? I'll give you a little hospitality."
Hearing this, the young Taoist's expression darkened. He pouted, clearly unimpressed. He remembered how, years ago, he had been tricked by the old man in the same way.
Tian Fan couldn't help but feel that the old Taoist's smile was both sleazy and scheming. However, despite the old Taoist's shady ways, Tian Fan didn't feel like he was a bad person.
"What is Tai Fu Men?" Tian Fan asked, looking at the young Taoist, but before the young Taoist could answer, the old Taoist interrupted.
"Tai Fu Men is a cultivation sect on the God Martial Continent. Have you heard of the Longteng Empire?" The old Taoist spoke with a solemn expression, as if revealing a great secret.
Tian Fan was well aware of the Longteng Empire. Who better to know than him? But he still acted surprised and exclaimed, "Of course I've heard of it! It's one of the most powerful factions on the God Martial Continent! Could it be that you, senior, are connected to the Longteng Empire?"
"Mm..." The old Taoist nodded in satisfaction, then smiled. "That's right. The current emperor of Longteng, Long Teng Aotian, is my younger brother. I'm not interested in court politics, so I've spent most of my time traveling. Once, I met an acquaintance, and we founded Tai Fu Men. We recruit talented young cultivators, and when they're strong enough, we send them to the Longteng Empire to become royal disciples! In a sense, Tai Fu Men is destined to be the successor of Longteng!"
The old Taoist stroked his beard, looking serious as he spoke.
Hearing this, Tian Fan couldn't help but burst into laughter. He, as the seventh prince of the Longteng Empire, knew very well that the late emperor, Long Teng Aotian, only had one son—himself! There were no other princes! Now, this old Taoist claimed to be Aotian's older brother? Tian Fan couldn't help but find the whole situation hilarious.
But despite his inner amusement, he still pretended to be shocked. "I didn't expect senior to have such a high status. Truly a person of the world's elite! I am deeply honored!"
Seeing Tian Fan's "shock," the old Taoist was extremely pleased. He then became serious. "Today, we have fate. That's why I'm telling you this. You must not reveal this to anyone. If others find out, it could bring us much trouble!"
"Of course, of course! I understand. I won't tell anyone!" Tian Fan said, trying his best to suppress his laughter.
"Good," the old Taoist said. "Then follow me. We're going to Tai Fu Men." He put his hands behind his back, holding the whisk in one hand, and started walking forward.
The young Taoist shook his head, deeply sighing. He thought to himself, "Another poor fool has fallen for the old scam."
Tian Fan, however, followed the two without hesitation. He didn't have any particular destination, so he figured there was no harm in seeing where this road would take him. And so, the three of them made their way toward Tai Fu Men.