Chapter 34: Recruitment
Outside the Immortal Cave, as Lu Yang made his Breakthrough, intelligence about him was placed on the desks of interested parties, and his background was quickly investigated thoroughly.
And as Lu Yang had previously anticipated, his origins could only be described with four words.
Clean roots, dark sprouts.
A Disciple recruited annually by the Primordial Sect, officially entering after surpassing a dead Senior Sister in Joyfull Union Hall, then making a fortune by speculating on substitute yin corpse, and subsequently entering seclusion.
"He's an Ascetic Cultivator."
Looking at the Materials on the table, a female Cultivator with a powdered face and sharp, piercing eyes couldn't help but exclaim. She was also a Cultivator at the Qi Refining Late Stage, but compared to Lu Yang, who had just made his Breakthrough, her cultivation had evidently reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, just one step away from the tenth level of Perfection!
The female Cultivator was named Feixia, and her reputation within the Primordial Sect was considerable.
Not only because of her beauty, but also because she was one of the Primordial Sect's rare Talisman Cultivators, even gaining the appreciation of a Primordial Sect Elder through her talisman-making techniques.
"An Ascetic Cultivator alone can't reach the Qi Refining Late Stage."
Beside Feixia Immortal, a young man with a feather fan and a silk scarf smiled slightly: "He clearly made a fortune speculating on substitute yin corpse, yet he keeps a low profile."
"From this, it's clear he's also a cautious and intelligent person."
"Normal, this is also reasonable."
Feixia Immortal sighed upon hearing this: "For ordinary Disciples like us to stand out, talent, caution, intelligence, and courage are all indispensable."
"So, it's settled?"
Feixia Immortal nodded and said, "I'll recommend him. This person broke through to the Qi Refining Late Stage in just ten short years. My Three Rivers Association truly needs such talent."
Inside the Immortal Cave, Lu Yang sat upright on a meditation cushion.
Before him, more than a dozen talisman books were laid out in a row, each an olive branch, claiming that as long as he was willing to join their faction, a grand gift would immediately be presented, including but not limited to cultivation cauldrons, Cultivation Techniques, Divine Abilities, treasures, Medicinal Pills... truly everything imaginable.
"I didn't notice in my past lives, but I didn't expect there to be so many factions within the Primordial Sect..."
Basically, as long as one has the cultivation of the Qi Refining Late Stage, they can gather a considerable team within the Primordial Sect, just like Liu Xin did in his past lives.
Lu Yang wasn't surprised by this.
After all, without factions within a sect, there would be all sorts of strange things. The Primordial Sect is so vast that it's impossible for everyone to be of one mind; they will always band together for their respective interests.
Of course, those factions were rootless duckweed, without a Foundation.
Those truly confident enough to recruit him had to be factions established by some Primordial Sect Elders, or even True Disciples, and the conditions they offered were relatively more genuine and credible.
But that was all.
"I still overestimated myself." Lu Yang shook his head. The conditions offered by those major factions were indeed good, often tens of thousands of contribution points.
However, he wasn't short on money.
After all, he hadn't finished spending the contribution points earned from speculating on substitute yin corpse.
Compared to money, what he lacked was "authority"—the authority to truly access the middle echelons of the Primordial Sect and purchase things that couldn't normally be bought.
As Lu Yang pondered, suddenly, the Formation outside the door vibrated violently.
Lu Yang looked up in response, only to see the illumination Formation he had set up in front of his Immortal Cave radiating brightly, its brilliant light revealing a curvaceous and graceful figure.
It was Feixia Immortal.
"Junior brother Lu, you even understand Formations?" Feixia Immortal looked at the Formation patterns appearing around them in surprise, a hint of unexpected delight surfacing on her pretty face.
Lu Yang cupped his hands: "Senior Sister, may I ask why you have come?"
Feixia Immortal didn't act coyly, gracefully returning the bow: "I am Feixia, a Three Rivers Association Deacon of the Primordial Sect. I have come for Junior Brother."
"Oh? Senior Sister, please..."
Lu Yang quickly invited her in, and at the same time, his mind became active. The Three Rivers Association, wasn't this the faction behind Zhao Xuhe? Why would they come to recruit him?
Lu Yang actually didn't know much about the Three Rivers Association, but he knew that Zhao Xuhe was a member. More importantly, as a Disciple of the Mending Heaven Peak Lord, Zhao Xuhe seemed to only be in the middle to lower ranks of the Three Rivers Association. From this point alone, one could see the true worth of the Three Rivers Association.
"I hope Senior Sister will forgive me, this junior is ignorant and ill-informed. I don't know what the Three Rivers Association is...?"
Lu Yang asked very cautiously. Feixia Immortal wasn't surprised by his question and smiled: "The Three Rivers Association was established by three True Inheritance Senior Brothers."
"Among them, the Eldest Senior Brother is already a Foundation Establishment True Person, having opened a peak within the Cloud Sea."
"Although the Second Brother and Third Senior Brother have not yet reached Foundation Establishment, they have both refined Third-grade True Qi, ranking among the Qi Refining Great Perfection, and could reach Foundation Establishment at any time."
"I heard that junior brother Lu, you also come from an ordinary Disciple background, so you should understand the difficulties ordinary Disciples face in the early stages. The three Senior Brothers, like us ordinary Disciples, came from humble beginnings, so after achieving Major Achievement in their cultivation, they established the Three Rivers Association, aiming to help ordinary Disciples overcome their early difficulties."
"So that's how it is." Lu Yang said with a look of admiration: "The three Senior Brothers have immeasurable Karma."
Bah!
If I hadn't borrowed money from your Three Rivers Association in my previous lives and personally witnessed your 36% annual interest rate, I would have almost believed this nonsense.
Lu Yang grumbled inwardly. He was always one to not release the hawk until he saw the rabbit, so it was naturally impossible for him to make a hasty decision just because Feixia Immortal said so. He immediately said cautiously: "I am deeply honored to be invited to become a member of the Three Rivers Association, but I wonder what the benefits of the Three Rivers Association are?"
"Junior Brother can rest assured on this point."
Feixia Immortal said frankly upon hearing this: "As long as Junior Brother is willing to join, I can immediately decide to bestow upon you a True Inheritance-level Divine Ability secret art."
"After joining, there will be an annual offering of contribution points."
"Moreover, as long as Junior Brother has money, you can also use the True Inheritance authority within the association to purchase desired items, or even ask the three Senior Brothers for guidance in cultivation."
"Of course, there are also requirements."
At this point, Feixia Immortal took out a Jade Slip and placed it before Lu Yang: "All new members are required to sign a contract and leave a drop of essence blood..."
"This is simple."
Lu Yang glanced at the contract in front of him upon hearing this. It was nothing more than common terms found in various factions, such as confidentiality obligations. Perhaps some people might feel that doing so would mean losing their freedom and being unable to act on their own will in many matters, but Lu Yang didn't care at all and signed his name with a flourish.
It was just a matter for this lifetime; it wouldn't affect the next.
Lu Yang even wished the binding force could be stronger, as that would make him more likely to be considered one of their own, and the resources he received would certainly be better.
Seeing Lu Yang's straightforwardness, Feixia Immortal also nodded in satisfaction.
"Next, Junior Brother only needs to take out your Primordial Sect Disciple token, and I will set a Restriction on it for you. From then on, the token will be usable within the association."
"Thank you for your trouble, Senior Sister."
Lu Yang took out his token, only to see Feixia Immortal form a hand seal with one hand and strike a talismanic seal into it, upon which a completely new section immediately appeared on the token.
"Talisman-making technique..."
Lu Yang's eyes lit up slightly. He could now be considered a ninth-grade Formation Master. Although he didn't understand talisman-making, he could grasp a bit of it through analogy.
In his opinion, a so-called talisman was a simple, temporary small Formation.
Good stuff, I want to learn.
The next second, looking at this talisman-making technique, Lu Yang finally remembered who Feixia Immortal in front of him was. He had heard of her in his past lives.
"She's Zhao Xuhe's Dao Companion..." Lu Yang mused to himself: "In my past lives, when I was studying Formations, I heard that she and Zhao Xuhe became Dao Companions. Both were at Qi Refining Perfection, shining brightly on the Righteous-Demonic War, and even attempted Foundation Establishment together. Unfortunately, they both perished after failing..."
Thinking of this, Lu Yang's eyes immediately lit up.
The key wasn't that they perished after failing Foundation Establishment, but that they actually had the Opportunity to attempt Foundation Establishment—behind this must be a Foundation Establishment Opportunity!