***
Two days later.
Three cultivators in purple rose-patterned uniforms ran fast in the forest. The three came out near the forest after two black-horned ape monsters chased them.
They arrived at the teleportation zone between kingdoms, with a circular floor.
Unexpectedly, another monster appeared from the surrounding forest area. The three cultivators were trapped in the center of the circular floor; their cultivation was not enough to fight the monsters.
"Damn it! Senior Zhou isn't here," one of them complained.
"Use your greatest abilities. Defeat the low-level monsters, then immediately go to the nearest sect for shelter," replied a man, standing in the center and having the highest cultivation level among the three —6th Qi Condensation.
"Only the Rainforest Sect is nearby from here. The Dusk Lotus Sect is not on good terms with them," stated a woman among them.
BLAST!
An explosion of Qi happened in the place, sending a pulse of energy so powerful that it shattered rocks and shook tree branches.
The three cultivators turned their heads back and were knocked to the ground, all three sensing that the energy released by the mysterious person was extremely dense, different from usual.
"What's happening? Are there higher-level monsters?" the man asked.
"I don't know. However, from the energy fluctuations, his strength is on par with a Spirit Beast," replied the leader of the three-person group.
"Spirit Beast? This is bad! With our cultivation level, there's no way we can defeat it," replied the woman, terrified.
From where the stone ruins were, a black magic circle hovered and flew, drawing the dark energy of the place toward the monsters in the forest.
The powerful black magic circle floated and rotated clockwise. The attack defeated the monsters besieging this place; the average level of the monsters here was 1 and 2-star Mortal Beasts.
The three cultivators were stunned. The magic circle was not directed at them but the monsters around them.
The group leader realized that the strength of the magic circle was extremely powerful, equal to an artifact weapon of a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator.
The magic circle circled around the area and returned to Wang Yuan's hand. It seemed to rotate like a black magic circle bracelet in the young man's hand.
A purple pillar of light rose from the stone ruins, bringing out the figure of a young man in a uniform they did not know. It was Wang Yuan with his dark affinity.
"Terrible energy density. What affinity is he really possessing?" asked the woman, shocked.
"I don't know. Still, it seems like he's a wandering cultivator. He's not wearing any sect's hanfu suit," replied the group leader.
Wang Yuan's eyes opened, revealing a bright purple glow with energy distortions evident around him. The young man glanced forward, then frowned as he brought up two black magic circles on both hands.
"W-Wait, Senior. We have no bad intentions towards you," explained the group leader, bowing his head as he stood on the ground, cold sweat pouring down from the top of his head.
His two companions did the same. Wang Yuan was still silent in the sky, the two black magic circles still spinning on his wrists.
Slowly, Wang Yuan calmed down. He flew low and arrived before them. His two black magic circles disappeared, and his eyes' purple light faded.
The three people before Wang Yuan could breathe a sigh of relief. They bowed their heads in respect to Wang Yuan, their leader asked Wang Yuan's sect origin.
Wang Yuan's head suddenly fell into severe pain after the power of darkness consumed his body for a while.
From the dantian vision that appeared in his eyes, Wang Yuan saw that there was a purple-colored sphere among the sea of energy crystals like a galaxy.
The number of energy crystals was not that high; fingers could even count them. The center of the sea was a blue ball of light.
The role of the purple orb was to affect the energy crystals in the sea. He could see three energy crystals change from white to intense purple.
"What is that? What is the purple ball? What is the ocean?" asked Wang Yuan while grimacing in pain.
The leader of the three-person group saw Wang Yuan's pain. He told his female companion to restore Wang Yuan's condition.
Slowly, the infected crystal turned white again. Yet, the purple ball was still there, floating as if there were two different places, the ocean with the white energy crystal and the ocean with the purple ball in the center.
"Akh!" groaned Wang Yuan. The healing power of the woman successfully restored Wang Yuan's condition.
Slowly, the pain disappeared, and Wang Yuan recovered as before. The blood on his head and body disappeared, the vitality in his body returned.
'Is this the power of a cultivator?' Wang Yuan asked.
He still remembered when the Ancient Fire Lion Sect Leader pushed him so violently that he fainted. It was true that those who were strong would rule in this place, no matter what means they took to become strong.
"Are you alright?" the woman asked, Wang Yuan cleared his throat.
The group leader asked again about Wang Yuan's sect origin. He shook his head, not yet registered as a sect disciple.
The three cultivators in front of Wang Yuan were shocked; a young man with abilities as strong as Wang Yuan was a precious treasure for any sect.
"Just to let you know, Senior. Your abilities will be wasted if you're just a wandering cultivator. It would be better and safer if you came with us to our sect, the Dusk Lotus Sect," replied the man in front.
'He's right. I don't know anything about cultivation. It's better to learn in a place which can do that rather than wandering around without guidance,' Wang Yuan explained.
"Thank you for your kindness, Sir."
"Sir?"
'Damn. I'm not used to addressing someone in this world,' Wang Yuan complained.
"I mean senior," Wang Yuan replied.
The man smiled. He swung his hand to the side to collect the loot from the monsters he had killed. Taking advantage of Wang Yuan's ignorance, he stored the loot in his storage pouch.
"Alright. We'll go there right away," replied the man, walking away from the place with Wang Yuan following behind.
The woman with them began explaining the Dusk Lotus sect and their typical skills. Broadly speaking, Wang Yuan understood that the sect he was going to was not a big one. The sect categories were divided into four, starting from early, low, medium, and large sects.
For the Dusk Lotus, they were at least in the low sect category with less than 500 members. The highest cultivation level in the sect was only the Intermediate Core Formation.
A sect had to have 1000 disciples with three Golden Circle Core Formation level cultivators to rank from low to intermediate.
The woman beside Wang Yuan said that the possibility was there, but it would take 100 years to be accomplished, maybe more.
The forest area passed, they arrived at the Dusk Lotus Sect compound with a fairly high sect wall, about 3 meters high.
There were lotus flower ornaments attached in several places, Wang Yuan's presence in the center of the sect surprised the other disciples.
"Greetings, Leader Yi," greeted the group's leading man, standing up as he bowed his head in respect.
From the direction of the two-story temple-like building, a female figure appeared behind a thin blue curtain.
She stepped out wearing a gorgeous purple dress with thin tassels. Her long black hair was adorned with a small crown on top of her head, and the pretty and neat braids added to her graceful look.
Leader Yi Xian's appearance as the Dusk Lotus Sect Leader made many disciples in the place bow in respect.
Yi Xian looked below, seeing Fang Lan had arrived from the third ring monster clearing mission.
"These are the items we got during the mission," Fang Lan replied, handing the storage pouch to Yi Xian.
The woman received the items and looked at them, quite a lot and beyond Yi Xian's expectations of him.
The woman thanked Fang Lan. As a gift, she gave three second-tier pills to help them break through to the next stage. The three were grateful for Yi Xian's generosity.
"Then, who is he?" asked Leader Yi.
Fang Lan looked back, introducing Wang Yuan to Yi Xian. Yi Xian squinted. The Wang clan was an ancient clan in the Wei Kingdom; there weren't many bloodlines in the current period.
Yi Xian flew down gracefully, adorned with purple energy particles and charming lotus petals. Wang Yuan was briefly mesmerized, but he refocused so as not to leave a bad impression on her.
"Wang Yuan?" asked Yi.
"Greetings, Leader Yi."
'Just an ordinary mortal. His qualifications are simply awful. I doubt he can last much longer in my sect,' replied Leader Yi, sensing Wang Yuan's cultivation level was far from the minimum threshold for entering the sect.
'Forget it. Fang Lan found him. He must have seen something different in him.'
"Are you interested in joining the Dusk Lotus sect?" asked Yi Xian.
"Correct, Leader Yi," Wang Yuan said curtly.
"Alright. Place him as a fourth-grade disciple."
"Yes, Leader Yi."
Yi Xian left and returned to his mansion. Fang Lan told her companion, Xie Cai, to escort Wang Yuan to the fourth-grade disciple house. The woman nodded and escorted Wang Yuan there.
"What's a fourth-grade disciple? How many grades are there to become a disciple here?" asked Wang Yuan.
"Grade one disciples are direct disciples of the sect leader; they are core disciples," Xie Cai replied.
"Then second-grade disciples are disciples of the sect elders. Fang Lan belongs to the grade two disciples."
"Third-grade disciples are registered disciples. They are in charge of patrolling, guarding, and gardening. They are obedient to the second-grade disciples," Xie Cai said.
"Then fourth-grade students?"
Xie Cai sighed, then stopped at an old, rickety, and worn-out wooden house. There, Wang Yuan saw seven people gathered at a wooden table, drinking ale.
"Fourth-grade disciples are those who haven't been registered in the sect's records. They are to fetch water, cut grass, prepare meals, and clean the yard."
'In short. I'm an errand boy for them?" complained Wang Yuan.
"Grade four disciples are the lowest in status compared to the other grades. Accept your fate. It's much better than wandering aimlessly," Xie Cai pointed out.
'I have to figure out how to raise my disciple's status. I can't be an errand boy forever!" complained Wang Yuan.
'I have to cultivate!'