Chapter 1: Immortal Mist and Formaldehyde
Ian stood outside the mountain gate of the "Azure Cloud Sword Sect." His nostrils were filled with a scent that was a mix of burning incense and the stale, moldy stench of rotting wood.
"Silence! The Immortal Selection has begun. Commoners, stand back!"
In mid-air, a cultivator dressed in white robes—the very picture of an immortal—stood arrogantly on a flying sword, looking down at the thousands of mortals below. His posture reminded Ian of those community directors back on Earth who stood on podiums with megaphones.
"This is cultivation?" Ian rubbed his aching neck and muttered. "At this altitude, if the engine... sorry, the spiritual energy suddenly cuts out, he won't even have time to file an insurance claim."
"Shut up, you barbarian!" a wealthy fat man next to him hissed. "That is Immortal Master Lu Yuan, a Foundation Establishment powerhouse! One more word and he'll take your head!"
Ian glanced at him. The fat man had just bribed a servant with three low-grade spirit stones to get a better spot in line.
So this was the so-called "Immortal Fate."
Ian had been in this world for three months. To him, this world wasn't "mysterious"—it was shambolic.
The so-called "Qi" was unevenly distributed and carried a form of morbid radiation. The "Immortals" were nothing more than a group of underdeveloped organisms who had stumbled upon high-dimensional energy but kept the bureaucratic logic of a primitive society.
"Next, Lin Dafu!"
The fat man scurried up. Immortal Master Lu didn't even look up. He held a balding brush and checked a box on a yellowed form. "Lin Dafu. Donation: 1,000 strings of cash. Spirit Stone Test: Mid-grade Earth Root. Enter the Outer Sect... go to the mines."
The fat man froze. "Master... 1,000 strings just to mine?"
"What, you find it too bitter?" Lu Yuan sneered. "Cultivation is about 'Fate.' Your 1,000 strings bought you the fate of entering the gate. If you want a cushy job, that depends on whether your 'loyalty' to the Sect is sufficient."
Ian almost laughed out loud. He knew those buzzwords. Back in the lab when he applied for grants, the dean said the same thing: "Your loyalty to research determines the magnification of your microscope."
It was Ian's turn.
He walked up and looked at the "Spirit Testing Stone." To others, it was a divine relic. To Ian, it was just a sensory mineral that reacted to bio-electric currents. Furthermore, the wear and tear on the surface didn't match its internal energy output.
Simply put, the "sensitivity" of this stone had been rigged.
"Name," Lu Yuan asked impatiently.
"Ian."
"A foreigner?" Lu looked up, seeing Ian's short hair and eyes devoid of any reverence. He frowned. "A man without roots. Put your hand on the stone."
Ian pressed his hand down. The stone did nothing.
Lu Yuan curled his lip as if he had expected this. "No affinity for Qi. A mere mortal. Next!"
"Wait," Ian didn't pull back. Instead, he leaned in, staring at the base of the stone. "Master, the negative feedback loop on your stone is broken."
Lu was stunned. "What nonsense are you talking about?"
"I'm saying," Ian pointed to a hidden dial engraved with runes at the base, speaking rapidly. "If this stone detects spirit roots, it should detect the resonance of the human body with specific energy frequencies. But you've installed the 'Qi Gathering Array' at the base backward. Now, it only reacts to things with a 'specific frequency'—like those three spirit stones that fat guy gave you."
Lu Yuan's face changed instantly. It was the frantic rage of a man whose workplace scam had been exposed.
"Presumptuous! How dare a mortal ant question a divine treasure?"
"I'm not questioning the treasure," Ian looked him dead in the eye, a sharp smirk playing on his lips. "I'm questioning your professional ethics. You set the threshold this high just to get rid of the smart people who don't pay up, so you can fill your mining quotas with the idiots who do."
The crowd erupted into a murmur.
"You seek death!" Lu Yuan slammed his hand down, and the pressure of a Foundation Establishment cultivator exploded outward. The mortals nearby collapsed to their knees, drenched in cold sweat.
Only Ian stood his ground, his body trembling slightly, but his eyes looked like he was observing a lab rat. "Pressure... air density increased by 0.3%, accompanied by slight ionization," Ian noted mentally. "Good for scaring people, but for killing? You wouldn't dare ruin your recruitment sign."