Life as a Rogue Cultivator

Chapter 325: Answering the Call

The twilight had deepened, a gentle breeze whispering through the air. Three days had passed since Liu Xiaolou accepted the recruitment from the Qingyuan Sect, and he'd been staying on the south bank of the North River ever since, with nothing to do.All of a sudden, a streak of light flashed across the sky, whipping up a ferocious gust of wind that sent fallen leaves swirling in chaos.

Liu Xiaolou looked up, staring at the streak of light fading into the distance. For a moment he zoned out completely.

Once you form a Golden Core, you get to fly on a sword. He wondered if he would ever have that chance in this lifetime.

Nearby, Feng Yuanfa noticed and said in a casual, matter-of-fact tone, "That's my Senior Brother Bi. Started cultivating at sixteen, joined the sect after twelve years, and formed his Golden Core at thirty. Guys like him used to be nothing special in our Qingyuan Sect, just average. But he kept grinding, and in the end, he still made it."

Liu Xiaolou dragged his gaze down from the treetops and turned to Feng Yuanfa. Feng nodded and went on, "That's why grinding away at your cultivation is the one real path forward... it never stops pushing you ahead."

Liu Xiaolou didn't buy it for a second. He'd seen plenty of cultivators grind their whole lives away and still end up with nothing. But he didn't argue with Feng Yuanfa. He knew the guy was deliberately trying to win him over.

After successfully recruiting another Foundation Establishment cultivator, even Feng Yuanfa himself probably had not expected that the higher-ups would assign Li Mu, also at Foundation Establishment, to serve under his command.

As things stood, Feng Yuanfa’s squad had twelve cultivators in total. He and Liu Xiaolou were both at the Foundation Establishment stage. The remaining ten ranged from fourth to tenth layer of Qi Refinement. Out of those, the three in late-stage Qi Refinement were actual Qingyuan Sect members.

Because of this, Feng Yuanfa did not have absolute control over his team. The biggest wild card was Liu Xiaolou, who was also at the Foundation Establishment stage. No wonder Feng was instinctively trying to buddy up to him. Beneath the surface, he was actually quite uneasy.

“The Qingyuan Sect is full of capable experts. I truly admire it,” Liu Xiaolou said, cupping his hands. “With your talent, Fellow Daoist Feng, you might well reach the Golden Core stage within ten years.”

Feng Yuanfa smiled. It was hard to tell whether he was being proud or modest. He only replied, “I wouldn’t dare.”

Just then, an inner-sect from the Qingyuan Sect rushed over and handed Feng Yuanfa a slip of paper. He glanced down at it, and understanding immediately dawned on him.

The note contained the sect's initial background check on Liu Xiaolou. According to confirmed information, “Li Mu” had once refused recruitment by Maling Mountain and, in the process, injured several of their disciples. He had bad blood with Maling Mountain, which was likely the reason he was willing to accept Qingyuan Sect’s offer.

As for the Mysterious Origin Sect of Bazhong, the name sounded pretty intimidating, but in Qingyuan Sect’s records there was no mention of such a sect at all. It was probably just a loose group of rogue cultivators with no real history or backing. The kind that could be brought over without much trouble.

Only then did Feng Yuanfa finally relax. “What are the sect master’s instructions?” he asked.

The steward delivered the order. “Senior Brother Feng, by command of the Sect Master: lead your team out first. Proceed along the Western Gorge and exit through Yunmen Mountain, then investigate the South Water area near Yao Village. If you encounter enemy activity, report it immediately. Be on guard against a Maling Mountain ambush coming at us from the side or rear.”

Feng Yuanfa nodded. “Understood.”

After the steward left, he turned to Liu Xiaolou, his manner especially courteous. “Fellow Daoist Li Mu, what do you think?”

Liu Xiaolou stood up. “We should, of course, carry out the order.”

Feng Yuanfa praised him. “Excellent. With Fellow Daoist Li Mu working closely with us, earning merit is only a matter of time. When that happens, the sect will surely reward us generously. Pills, spiritual materials, magical tools, spirit stones, none of it will be lacking. If the contribution is great enough, I can even put in a good word for you to join our Qingyuan Sect. Wouldn’t that open up a bright future?”

Liu Xiaolou nodded. After a moment of thought, he cupped his hands again. “Many thanks, Fellow Daoist Feng.”

With an understanding reached, Feng Yuanfa immediately gave the order to depart. The group of twelve crossed the North River and left this battlefield behind.

The major battle from the night before had made quite a stir, and on the surface it did look like Qingyuan Sect had won, since they now held the field. But Liu Xiaolou had experienced full-scale sect wars before and knew what a real victory looked like. There should have been heavy casualties. Yet he had not seen many bodies at all, and barely any seriously wounded either. That left him doubtful about who had truly won.

Of course, Feng Yuanfa kept bragging that his sect had crushed the enemy, saying “Those Maleng Mountain bandits didn't stand a chance.” But the moment they crossed the North River, he turned a lot more cautious. He even sent two Qi Refinement cultivators ahead, a hundred zhang in front, one to each side, to scout the way.

The two Qi Refinement cultivators were both in their fifties or sixties. At their age, being dragged off to fight a war was bitter enough. Their families lived near Qingyuan Mountain, with dozens or even hundreds of relatives effectively under the control of the Qingyuan Sect. Even if they were killed in battle, they would never dare try to run.

They marched through the night, and by dawn had covered a little over thirty li. Ahead of them, a mountain ridge came into view.

Feng Yuanfa knew this terrain extremely well. He led the group straight up to the highest point and had everyone rest in the shade of the trees. He then climbed onto a massive boulder nearby. From there, he was hidden from sight but had a clear view of the surrounding area.

After watching for quite some time, he asked Liu Xiaolou, “I don’t see any sign of the Maling bandits. Have you noticed anything, fellow Daoist?”

Liu Xiaolou studied the area just as carefully for a while, then shook his head. “The Maling bandits pulled back pretty far. They shouldn’t be around here. After all, they just took a loss.”

Feng Yuanfa then assigned two of the conscripted rogue cultivators to scout ahead. One to the east and one to the west, ten miles each. “Go,” he said. “I’ll wait two hours. If you’re not back by then, I’m moving on.”

The two rogue cultivators lowered their heads and acknowledged the order, then headed down the mountain in opposite directions.

Liu Xiaolou had no idea what leverage the Qingyuan Sect held over them, but Feng Yuanfa’s meaning was perfectly clear. If they did not return within two hours, Feng would treat it as desertion, and the consequences would be theirs to bear.

Liu Xiaolou climbed down from the boulder and returned to the shade of the trees. He picked a patch of clean grass at random and sat down, then turned to look at one of the rogue cultivators beside him, studying him for a moment.

The man sat there stiffly, clearly uncomfortable. He hunched forward, his face set and expressionless, not knowing what to say. He wanted to move farther away, but did not want to look weak either. The discomfort had him sweating.

At last, Liu Xiaolou spoke, breaking the tension and easing the awkwardness. “You’re from the Qingyuan Sect?”

The rogue cultivator nodded. “Yes.”

Liu Xiaolou asked again, “And how should I address you?”

“I wouldn’t dare,” the man replied. “My surname is Feng.”

“So you’re related to Feng Yuanfa, I mean to Fellow Daoist Yuanfa?”

“Yes. He’s my older cousin.”

“Where do you rank in your family?”

“Seventh.”

“Then I’ll call you Feng Seventh?”

“That’s fine.”

He tried hard to carry himself like a proper disciple of a major sect, yet at the same time he instinctively feared someone at the Foundation Establishment level. So even though his answers were extremely brief, he never dared leave any of Liu Xiaolou’s questions unanswered.

After chatting for a while, Feng Seventh gradually relaxed. He started to talk more, no longer limiting himself to just a few words at a time. When the conversation turned to the battle against the Maling bandits, he told Liu Xiaolou that he had already fought twice and had wounded one of the bandits.

Liu Xiaolou nodded, then flicked his eyes toward the bamboo basket on the guy's back. “What,” he teased with a grin, “is that your hard-earned loot from the battlefield? Don’t tell me it’s some kind of spiritual beast? Haha...”

Feng Seventh turned around and patted the big goose inside the basket. “This thing wandered onto the battlefield before the fighting even started. Dumb as can be. Elder Bi insisted it has spiritual potential. I have no idea where that’s supposed to be. He made me carry it around. Otherwise I would’ve roasted it and eaten it already.”

Feng Seventh kept stroking it with his palm, but the goose looked completely vacant, as if it felt nothing at all. It just tilted its head and stared at Liu Xiaolou without making a sound, not even a honk. Truly dumb as can be.

Liu Xiaolou couldn’t make sense of it, so he kept probing indirectly. “Just this one clueless goose? Nothing else? No ducks? Rabbits? Cats or dogs? Nothing at all?”

“No, just this one,” said Feng Seventh.

Liu Xiaolou asked, “This goose… it looks pretty plump. How about selling it to me?”

Feng Seventh shook his head. “Sorry. You’ll have to talk to Elder Bi. If he agrees, I wouldn’t mind giving it to you.”

The big goose suddenly let out two loud honks.

Feng Seventh looked surprised. “I’ve been carrying it on my back for three days, and this is the first time I’ve heard it make a sound!”

Liu Xiaolou rubbed his nose and let out an awkward chuckle, then said nothing more.