Chapter 345 – Rudimentary Sect Rules

As soon as Su Hao entered Cloud-Looking Moon Valley, his Radar Perception detected cultivators within the Immortal Gate.

There were only a little over two hundred and thirty people!

Compared to the several thousand people at Yuan Su’s Three Harmony Peak, this was not even a fraction! However, the blood qi of the cultivators in Moon-Looking Valley was generally extremely condensed, unlike the rabble at Three Harmony Peak.

“Perhaps Three Harmony Peak adopts a system of survival of the fittest, where they only teach, and it’s up to individuals to succeed, while Moon-Looking Valley concentrates resources on a small number of people, greatly increasing the chances of obtaining high-level cultivators.”

In this case, Moon-Looking Valley was more suitable for Su Hao.

The next day, Su Hao and the others were led into a large hall. At the main seat of the hall was a huge statue of an Immortal, with a serene expression and eyes slightly open, looking down. It seemed to be the founding ancestor of Moon-Looking Valley.

Beneath the statue, nine immortal-like cultivators sized up the dozen or so youths, and then began to compete for them!

Among the nineteen people, the eight girls were the most sought after. In the blink of an eye, they were all snatched up by the nine cultivators. No, there was one female cultivator who looked dazed and didn’t get anyone. She let out an ‘Ah?’ with a round face full of confusion. She looked at her eight fellow disciples, then looked at the remaining eleven youths with a dejected expression.

She thought to herself, “Since all the considerate girls are gone, it’s fine to choose a good-looking boy, right?”

So she locked her eyes on Su Hao and pointed, “Him!”

And just like that, Su Hao’s master was decided.

Then Su Hao’s seemingly unreliable master casually picked another youth who looked pleasing to the eye, Huang Guilai, whose family was in the grain business.

Upon learning that he would be under the same master as Su Hao, Huang Guilai’s expression turned extremely grim.

Then Su Hao’s master, the Round-Faced Fairy, frowned and glanced at Huang Guilai, saying, “What, you’re not happy to take me as your master?”

Huang Guilai immediately shook his head and forced a brilliant smile, saying, “It is my honor to be accepted as a disciple by such a heavenly beauty.”

The Round-Faced Fairy snorted, wrinkling her little nose, and turned to leave, “You two, follow me!”

She was very displeased that she hadn’t received any female disciples. As for how the nineteen youths would be divided among the nine cultivators…

‘Divide them however you want. This immortal is angry, so I’m only taking two!’

…

In a cave within a stone peak, the Round-Faced Fairy sat on a Grand Tutor chair. On a side table next to her were two cups of clear tea, while Su Hao and Huang Guilai stood before her.

The Round-Faced Fairy pointed at the two cups of tea and said, “Take them!”

Su Hao stepped forward and took one cup. Huang Guilai waited until Su Hao had taken his before daring to approach.

The Round-Faced Fairy’s expression turned extremely serious, and he said lightly, “If you wish to join my Moon Valley to learn immortal arts, you must abide by the Moon Valley’s Sect Rules. This is the prerequisite for everything. Listen carefully and remember it well.”

“One, once you join this sect, you may never leave for life.”

“Two, the immortal arts of this sect may not be taught to outsiders.”

“Three, the Immortal Gate comes first, elders second, and oneself third.”

“Four, fellow disciples must help each other and are forbidden from harming one another.”

“Five, if there are any intruders, you must go forth and defend against them.”

“Six, upon achieving success in cultivation, you must complete the tasks assigned by the Immortal Gate.”

“Seven, after ten years of cultivation, disciples of Moon Valley must take on disciples to pass on the immortal arts.”

“…”

He listed eighteen rules in total, then the Round-Faced Fairy looked at the two and said, “Have you all remembered them? Do you have any questions?”

Huang Guilai looked troubled. There were eighteen rules in total, and remembering them all at once seemed like an unreasonable demand. Who could possibly remember them all? He subconsciously glanced at the short-haired youth beside him.

He saw Su Hao nod and say, “I’ve remembered them all.”

Huang Guilai was shocked and thought to himself, “What? You remembered them? Are you kidding me? You dare to lie to your master right after meeting him? You’ve got some nerve! As expected, you’re someone I can’t afford to offend.”

The Round-Faced Fairy also looked at Su Hao in surprise, thinking, “I didn’t expect you to be such a genius!”

Su Hao then said, “I do have some questions.

Su Hao asked, “Regarding the second rule, ‘the immortal arts of this sect may not be taught to outsiders,’ if I comprehend other techniques from the immortal arts of this sect, can I teach them to others? In other words, if I create my own techniques, can I do as I please with them?”

“Pfft hahaha~”

The Round-Faced Fairy seemed to hear a great joke and burst out laughing. Then he said casually, “If you can create your own techniques, then you are free to do as you please. I won’t interfere.”

Su Hao understood and then asked, “Regarding the third rule, ‘the Immortal Gate comes first, elders second, and oneself third,’ if I believe that what I am doing benefits the Immortal Gate, benefits the elders, and also benefits myself, can I then act according to my own judgment?”

The Round-Faced Fairy looked at Su Hao with surprise and nodded, “Yes. You can also understand this rule as: the Immortal Gate’s commands are greater than an elder’s commands, and an elder’s commands are greater than one’s personal will.”

Su Hao said, “I understand. In other words, if there are no commands from the Immortal Gate or the elders, I can act as I please.”

The Round-Faced Fairy said, “That’s correct.”

Su Hao then asked, “Regarding the fourth rule, ‘forbidden from harming fellow disciples,’ does ‘harming’ have a specific standard? Does it refer to taking a life, or does it even include hitting someone?”

Hearing Su Hao’s question, Huang Guilai inexplicably felt a chill down his spine, sensing that Su Hao’s question might have something to do with him.

The Round-Faced Fairy then noticed something different about Su Hao. To be honest, she had never seen anyone analyze the Sect Rules so clearly when formally seeking to become a disciple. She couldn’t help but think, “What does this distinguished-looking young man want?”

After a moment of thought, the Round-Faced Fairy said, “Harming fellow disciples, there’s no standard!”

Su Hao thought to himself, “No standard? Does that mean whether or not it counts as harming a fellow disciple is up to the elders? I should clarify.”

Then Su Hao pointed directly at Huang Guilai next to him and asked, “If I find him too annoying and bothersome, and I beat him up, does that count as harming a fellow disciple?”

The Round-Faced Fairy was taken aback. She looked at the inexplicably terrified Huang Guilai and suddenly understood something. She burst into laughter, saying, “That doesn’t count! If he annoys me, I’ll beat him up too, hahaha!”

Huang Guilai couldn’t help but take a step back, his heart sinking. “It’s over~ I’ve fallen into the hands of two devils. I’m completely finished!”

He couldn’t understand why someone like him, a young man with such upright values, would be in the same room as someone acting like a devil. It was simply an insult to his refinement!

The Round-Faced Fairy asked again, “Do you have any other questions? You can ask them all now. I’ll answer them for you.”

For the Round-Faced Fairy, the more Su Hao asked, the more patient she became in answering each question. This was because Su Hao’s attention to the Sect Rules indicated he was listening attentively, thinking, and willing to act according to the rules, which put her more at ease.

Unlike some people who hide their true intentions behind a facade, nodding in agreement and acting perfunctorily on the surface while doing as they please in private. She detested people like that the most.

With that thought, the Round-Faced Fairy glanced at Huang Guilai.

After asking two more questions, Su Hao indicated that he had finished asking.

The Round-Faced Fairy looked at Huang Guilai and asked, “What about you? Do you have any questions?”

Huang Guilai swallowed hard, his mouth dry, and said, “No… no!”

He had originally prepared himself to perform well in front of his master, but now it seemed he had messed up?

The Round-Faced Fairy sat up straight, her expression becoming serious. “Since neither of you has any questions about the Sect Rules of Moon Valley in Cloud, and you are willing to abide by them, then from today onwards, you two will officially become the fifty-sixth generation disciples of Moon Valley in Cloud. You will become my disciples under Feng Ling! Serve the tea!”

“Master! Drink tea!” Su Hao offered the tea.

“Master! Drink tea!” Huang Guilai followed suit.

After Fairy Feng Ling drank the tea, the master-disciple relationship was officially established. She placed the teacup back on the table and pointed at Su Hao, saying, “No matter what your name was before, from now on, you will be called Feng Wei, and you are the Senior Brother.”

Su Hao then said, “Feng Wei greets Master.”

Fairy Feng Ling pointed at Huang Guilai and said, “You will be called Feng Cheng, and you are the Junior Brother.”

“Feng Cheng greets Master,” said Huang Guilai.

Huang Guilai was very pleased with his new Taoist name because he always felt that calling himself ‘Guilai’ (meaning ‘to return’) as a future Immortal was a bit undignified…

(End of chapter)