The gate-guarding disciple took the letter, opened it for a look, and said to Chu Shaoye, “Wait a moment.”
He put two fingers to his mouth and let out a sharp whistle. A bird cry answered at once from the dense forest, and before long, a small grayish-white bird flew out and landed on the gate-guarding disciple’s shoulder.
This was a Tier Two Spirit Beast, the Gray-Plumed Sparrow. About the size of a swallow, it had a tuft of gray plumes on its head. Once tamed, it could deliver letters for people and would not lose its way even across a thousand li.
The gate-guarding disciple rolled up the letter and said to the Gray-Plumed Sparrow, “Deliver this to Steward Fang, Fang Qingshan.”
Chu Shaoye bowed in salute to the gate-guarding disciple. “Many thanks, Senior.”
The gate-guarding disciple waved a hand, his attitude quite cold.
Chu Shaoye did not mind his attitude; it was already good enough that the man was willing to pass the message along.
After about an incense stick’s time, a middle-aged man glided down gracefully, standing atop a giant bird.
With a single glance, Chu Shaoye recognized it as a Tier Four Spirit Beast, the Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane. Crowned in bright vermilion and draped in long snow-white feathers, the Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane had a long, pointed beak and only a single leg.
A Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane could grow to Tier Five. Apart from Chu Qingyao’s Rainbow-Robed Luan, it was one of the highest-tier Spirit Beasts Chu Shaoye had ever seen.
The middle-aged man looked at Chu Shaoye and asked, “Are you the Chu Shaoye whom Junior Brother Lu mentioned in his letter?”
Junior Brother Lu was none other than the Aptitude Examiner who had written Chu Shaoye’s letter of recommendation; his full name was Lu Cheng.
Chu Shaoye bowed respectfully and said, “This Junior is indeed Chu Shaoye. Greetings, Steward Fang.”
The middle-aged man was none other than Steward Fang, Fang Qingshan, whom the gate-guarding disciple had just mentioned.
Quite pleased with his bearing and manner, Fang Qingshan stroked the long beard on his chin and gave a slight nod. “Come with me.”
Chu Shaoye carefully stepped onto the Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane’s back. Once he had his footing, the Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane beat its wings and, within a few breaths, soared a hundred meters into the sky.
As the Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane wove between the mountain peaks, Chu Shaoye, standing so high in the air for the very first time, could not help feeling nervous. His body went stiff, and he did not dare move an inch.
Seeing his unease, Fang Qingshan chuckled. “No need to be afraid. There is protective Spiritual Energy around Danyu’s sides; it won’t let you fall.”
Before long, the Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane landed steadily on a flat terrace halfway up the mountain, where two rows of wooden cabins had been built.
Fang Qingshan led him into one of the cabins and handed him a key. “This will be your quarters from now on. Settle in and rest today, and don’t wander around. Tomorrow, someone will take you to the Personnel Hall to collect your Identity Jade Token and assign your duties.”
Having said that, Fang Qingshan turned to leave. Chu Shaoye steeled himself and took the Tier Four Fire Attribute Spirit Core from his Black Jade Ring.
“Steward Fang, please wait,” Chu Shaoye called, hurrying after him and presenting the Tier Four Fire Attribute Spirit Core in his hand. “Thank you, Steward, for taking me into the Crimson Firmament Sect. This is a small token of this disciple’s gratitude. Please accept it, Steward.”
Even though Steward Fang was a Tier Four Spirit Lord, a Tier Four Spirit Core was not easy for him to come by. Moreover, his Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane was on the verge of advancing and was in need of Spirit Cores right now.
A flicker of surprise passed through Fang Qingshan’s eyes, and he accepted the Spirit Core with little hesitation. It was of superior quality; the Spirit Beast must have been slain in a single blow when it was hunted, for only then could such a flawless Spirit Core be cut out without leaking the slightest bit of Spiritual Qi.
Still, he felt somewhat doubtful. According to Lu Cheng’s letter, this youth came from a remote village under the jurisdiction of Zhuyu City. By rights, he should not have been able to produce such a flawless Tier Four Spirit Core.
Seeing his misgivings, Chu Shaoye let a timely trace of embarrassment show on his face. “To secure a good future for me, my parents traded the savings my ancestors accumulated over many years for this Spirit Core. I hope the Steward will look after me in the days to come.”
Put that way, it made sense, and Fang Qingshan doubted him no further. Parents who love their child always plan far ahead on their behalf; besides, where this Spirit Core had come from had nothing to do with him anyway.
Putting the Spirit Core into his Storage Bag, Fang Qingshan felt even more pleased with Chu Shaoye. Not only did the boy have fine looks and manners, he also knew how to conduct himself—he was quite a promising lad.
He took a jade talisman from his Storage Bag, handed it to Chu Shaoye, and instructed, “If you run into trouble, use this jade talisman to contact me.”
Chu Shaoye accepted it with both hands, saw Fang Qingshan to the door, and watched him mount the Vermilion-Crowned Feather Crane and depart.
Back inside the room, Chu Shaoye breathed a sigh of relief. Entering the Crimson Firmament Sect had gone smoothly enough. Though parting with that Tier Four Spirit Core stung, it had not been given in vain—it had won him some backing.
Chu Shaoye looked at the jade talisman in his palm. It was a type of Message Talisman; if crushed in a moment of trouble, the person holding the matching jade talisman would sense its location, making it easy to hurry over and lend a hand.
Although Fang Qingshan had told him to reach out if he ran into trouble, if the trouble came from someone of higher standing than Fang Qingshan—or even someone of equal rank—this jade talisman would be of no use. Chu Shaoye had at least that much self-awareness.
There were two beds in the room, separated down the middle by a wooden screen, along with a few pieces of simple furniture.
The bed on the right was clearly already occupied, so Chu Shaoye went over to the left of his own accord and took out some of his daily necessities from his Storage Bag. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
Once he finished tidying up, Chu Shaoye lay down on the bed and closed his eyes to rest. It was not until evening that the door to the room was pushed open.
A puzzled voice sounded. “Why isn’t the door locked? I’m sure I locked it when I left this morning.”
Hearing this, Chu Shaoye knew at once that his roommate had returned. He got up and greeted him. “Greetings, Senior Brother. I’m a Menial Disciple who just arrived today. We’ll be roommates from now on.”
Startled, his roommate clutched his chest and said, “You scared me half to death! How were you in the room without making a single sound?”
Chu Shaoye poured a cup of water and handed it to him so he could catch his breath.
The two sat down at the table, and his roommate introduced himself of his own accord. “My name is Ren Shengping. Forget all that Senior Brother business—we Menial Disciples don’t bother with such distinctions. Calling each other by name is fine.”
Ren Shengping had a broad, square face and large ears, with a tall, sturdy build, though his features still looked quite youthful; he could not have been very old.
Forthright by nature, he asked directly, “Brother, it isn’t the time for the Sect to take in new disciples right now. How did you get in?”
Since this was nothing that needed hiding, Chu Shaoye simply told him that he had come by recommendation.
Ren Shengping clicked his tongue twice. “Brother, your luck really isn’t bad. Steward Fang is a good man, and he treats us Menial Disciples kindly too. Whenever you have the chance, bring him gifts so he’ll look out for you a bit more.”
Chu Shaoye nodded. Even without Ren Shengping saying so, he had already given him a gift.
Ren Shengping went on, “Still, you’ll have to be careful. There’s also a Steward Wang here. Steward Wang has a foul temper and is at odds with Steward Fang, so watch out lest he make things difficult for you.”
Chu Shaoye had not expected there to be something like this going on. From his Storage Bag, he took out a roasted pheasant—an ordinary wild pheasant rather than a Spirit Beast. The two little furballs had grown picky after eating Spirit Beast meat all along the journey, so this pheasant had been left untouched.
He set the roasted pheasant on the table. Roasted to a glistening golden brown and wrapped in leaves, it had absorbed the fresh fragrance of the greenery and smelled mouthwateringly good.
Chu Shaoye gestured for him to help himself. “Brother Ren, could you tell me about it in more detail? Let’s eat while we talk.”