“Let’s start a Sect.”
“??!”
Cluru suddenly suggested starting a Sect, which startled me.
“Why start a Sect? Are you feverish?” I reached out to touch Cluru’s forehead.
It was cool to the touch.
“It’s not that… Aren’t you planning to open a School of Artifact Forging? So I thought, why not just start a Sect outright?”
Cluru’s little face looked so serious, she didn’t seem to be joking.
I started to sense that this was a real problem.
“Why would you have such an idea?”
Sitting cross-legged on the dorm bed, I faced Cluru, putting on a serious look.
“Mm? Sects are wonderful, aren’t they? There are caring Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, cute Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters, a seemingly strict but actually protective and gentle Master…
Everyone lives like a family, working hard together, always sticking up for each other if someone gets bullied… That’s how it always is in cultivation novels.”
A trace of longing appeared on Cluru’s face.
“But the Cultivation World isn’t like that,” I said, holding Cluru by the shoulders, “In reality, your Master only teaches you for the Sect’s salary. If danger arises, he’ll use you as a Human Shield at the first opportunity.”
Your Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters will rack their brains to compete with you for the Sect’s allocation of Spirit Stones…
They’ll use every trick to slow down your cultivation progress, and might even deliberately set you up to die during missions.
If you cause trouble outside, the Sect will immediately cut ties with you, call you a Temporary Disciple, and expel you from the Sect forever—they would never risk themselves for you.”
Cluru was stunned for a moment.
She bit her lip gently, her voice growing smaller, “There’s… no exceptions?”
“No exceptions. Love, Friendship, Kinship are all worthless compared to Cultivation Resources.”
“Oh.”
Cluru’s little head drooped, crestfallen.
We fell silent, facing each other.
“Why do you yearn for a Sect?” I asked.
“It’s nothing…” Cluru’s voice was barely a whisper, “I just thought you’d like it too…”
Me too… huh?
I fell into deep thought.
It was as if my mind drifted back to the moment I first joined an Immortal Sect.
[Senior… Senior Brothers and Sisters, greetings! I… I’m new here, my name is Yunxian!]
Halfway up a mountain, a shy boy bowed low, light shining in his eyes.
What was life like in a Cultivation Sect? Back then, I had no idea.
Thinking about it now, I guess I really did have expectations too.
But why did I look forward to it?
Why did I leave behind that Disciplinary Note—what was I trying to mourn…
The more I thought about it, the more bitterly I smiled.
—That answer I just gave Cluru was truly cruel.
Even crueler than telling a child “Ultraman doesn’t exist in this world.”
“I remember now,” I suddenly smacked my forehead in exaggerated fashion, “There actually are exceptions, I just forgot to mention it earlier.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, the Cultivation World isn’t all as I described—it’s just that my own experience was too unpleasant, so I generalized.”
“Oh—??!”
Starlight reappeared in the girl’s eyes.
“We can consider starting a Sect. If we’re the Elders and Sect Leader ourselves, we really don’t have to worry about a rotten Sect atmosphere.”
“Actually, that’s not necessary. I was just speaking casually earlier.” Cluru buried her face in my lap, blushing furiously, “You don’t have to take it so seriously…”
“Even the great powers of the Cultivation World, after achieving Earthly Ascension, like to leave their Legacy behind in the mortal world, so that if they ever fall, traces of them remain. We could leave behind a little Legacy too.” I said.
“Really?”
“Yeah, I’ve thought it through. I’m just too afraid of Earth turning into the Cultivation World, because I’ve seen too many disgusting Xiushi. But if we control the number of heirs, and make sure the techniques don’t leak, we can prevent that kind of thing from happening. And for me, there’s a way to make sure disciples don’t leak secrets.”
“Wow~~~”
Cluru’s face lit up with pure excitement.
Just like a real child.
“Then, Master, does that mean I can have Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters?” Cluru pounced on me, pinning me on the bed as she asked.
“Mm… that’s possible, but there’s no rush. We need to slowly find suitable candidates.”
“Yay yay yay! Long live Master!”
“Long live is too short. Ugh… let go… too tight…”
*
Having decided to properly establish the School of Artifact Forging, I went to Egg University’s administrative office.
“I want to withdraw from school!” I said bluntly.
“Again?!” Vermilion Bird Mentor covered her face in pain, “How many times have you said you wanted to withdraw now? What’s wrong this time, you little ancestor?”
“This time I’m really withdrawing. I’m going to another school—a school of my own, to teach students Artifact Forging, and to expand Xianlu Company’s business branch.”
Vermilion Bird Mentor pondered for a moment, “I get it, you’re taking the Graduate Entrance Examination, right?”
“Huh?”
“You want to leave Egg University and transfer to another school for a different department, isn’t that the Graduate Entrance Examination? Except you don’t need a mentor, you can bring your own students… That counts as a Doctoral Qualification, right? I get it, you’re aiming for the Combined Master’s and PhD Examination.”
“…”
I was dumbfounded for ages, unable to find a reason to refute her.
It really did sound about right.
“Egg University’s courses are too simple for you, so you’re skipping four years straight to the graduate program, and the school approves. As for the doctorate… even if you don’t take the exam, you’re already qualified. In fact, the old Academicians want to be your students.”
“Oh, it’s not that great, that’s an exaggeration.” I said modestly, though the corners of my mouth curled up a little.
Hmph, but isn’t that only natural!
“Alright, then. It’s Egg Academy’s tradition that graduate and doctoral students make a special Academic Contribution while in school. You need to produce a special research result during your studies, and then we’ll consider you as having passed…”
“That’s easy!”
I replied cheerfully. After all, I’ve only used a ten-thousandth of the techniques in my head so far—sharing a little more is a piece of cake!
“Good. In that case, the Research Topic will be chosen by the Academy. Is that alright?” Vermilion Bird Mentor bent down with a gentle smile, patting my little head.
I didn’t notice the danger approaching at all, puffing out my chest confidently:
“No research topic can stump me, Yun… Qilin! Please, give me your best topic! Wonderful! I knew my little Luoxian was perfect~”
As Vermilion Bird Mentor praised me, she picked up a sheet of paper from her desk.
Her graceful hand flew as she wrote quickly on the page.
[Research Topic: How to make Yun Luoxian grow Nine tails.]
I took the paper.
Touched my little butt, which, ever since drinking the Hair Growth Potion, still showed no sign of change.
Looking at that solitary, limp, energy-less tail.
I felt as if I’d been struck by lightning.
“This research topic is fine, right? And it’s your own wish too. As long as you can grow nine tails, the school will consider your research complete.”
“In other words, if you can grow nine tails, you can graduate!”