I have Immortality In The Cultivation World

Chapter 345 - 286: Sixth-Rank Official

"this is the token for third-generation disciples, just infuse it with your mana to activate it."

gu xiao pulled out the bronze token, its design simple and ancient, with cloud patterns engraved upon it.

on the front were the seal script characters for "mend heaven," while the back was inscribed with: where the heavenly way is lacking, let me be the one to repair it!

"elder brother gu, what does this inscription mean?"

zhou yi channeled a stream of mana, activating the token’s formation and prohibitions, which burst forth in a display of seven-colored spiritual light before returning to tranquility.

"this embodies the foundational doctrine of our sect. it is said that in ancient times, when the heavenly leak disaster struck, our founding ancestor renounced the opportunity of ascension and used his body to seal the leak.

these were his last words!" gu xiao spoke solemnly, "should dongsheng divine continent ever face a great calamity, the disciples of mend heaven sect must follow in the footsteps of our founder, sacrificing themselves to quell the disaster."

"..."

zhou yi found the token burning hot in his grasp; the doctrines of mend heaven did not suit his nature. having lived through the end times, beasts, and corpse demons, he had never entertained the thought of sacrificing himself for the greater good.

as the conversation took a new turn, he asked.

"elder brother gu, have you heard of the severing heaven sect?"

"of course, they are our arch-enemies," gu xiao replied with hatred in his voice. "the heaven-severing demon, singularly obsessed with ascending, creates disasters everywhere. our sect has thwarted them time and again, and over tens of thousands of years, a blood feud has formed!"

zhou yi, puzzled, asked, "why would the heaven-severing evil demon create such calamities?"

"it concerns the path of ascension. i, of lowly realm, am also unclear," gu xiao responded. "the severing heaven sect’s fundamental principle is to seize a thread of heaven’s secrets, creating disasters that may involve heavenly secrets and karma to aid their ascension—a way that harms others for self-benefit."

zhou yi nodded slightly and cursed the heaven-severing evil demon a few times before asking again.

"how did elder brother discover my practice of the purple sun scripture?"

"upon activation of the disciple token, if there is an aura of our sect’s cultivation technique within a thousand miles, and it hasn’t been registered in our records, an alert will be sent," gu xiao explained. "following the aura, i found you and waited outside the flying immortal tower for more than ten days.

seeing that you possessed the innate body of a true person, i concluded it was from the purple sun scripture."

there was envy in his voice; even within the mend heaven sect, there were not many who possessed an innate true body.

"no need for such courtesies," said gu xiao. "within the borders of daheng, there were originally four third-generation disciples. now that junior brother has joined, our banquets and discussions of the way will have even more enjoyment!"

zhou yi eagerly inquired about the other three elder brothers.

unexpectedly, they were all powerful deities, like the young gu xiao before him, who was currently serving as the city god of yongning prefecture, a position of high authority and heavy responsibilities.

"it’s all thanks to martial uncle’s maneuvering, a common nascent soul would never be suited for city god." taking out a flying sword talisman from his sleeve to use for future communication, gu xiao also shared some secrets of the mend heaven sect before departing.

zhou yi sat by the window, carefully examining the disciple token to make sure there were no scouting type prohibitions.

"mend heaven sect, with such lax governance, is indeed quite suited to me..." reflecting on his journey through the cultivation world up to now, zhou yi had never entertained the idea of joining a sect nor would he ever be loyal to any force, whether it’s the dan ding sect or mend heaven sect, it was all because of need and suitability!

the way of immortality is lonely, and he walked it alone. after eons, any status would dissipate like smoke and clouds.

...

a few days later.

zhou yi was cultivating when he suddenly received a summons from the imperial court officials.

stepping out of the gates of the flying immortal pavilion, he saw a red-robed official respectfully holding a roll of yellow silk.

"the wushan mountain god is to receive the imperial edict!"

zhou yi straightened his attire and respectfully responded, "i, your servant, receive the edict."

according to the laws of the daheng empire, cultivators need not kneel to officials; the same was true even in the presence of the emperor.

the official unfolded the imperial edict and recited aloud.

"the wushan mountain god has captured a criminal and is meritorious. effective from this day onward, he’s promoted to be the green cloud mountain god, ranked sixth-grade. commanding the ten thousand miles of green cloud mountain range and its subordinate mountains and waterways, overseeing the changes in clouds and rain, controlling the cycles of the four seasons..."

several hundred ornate words followed, but the only important sentence was the first.

wu mountain was a branch of the colossal green cloud mountain, the largest mountain range in qingyun prefecture, spanning thirteen thousand miles from east to west.

zhou yi waited calmly for the official to finish reading, then bowed again and declared, "i, your servant, give thanks for his majesty’s gracious favor. i will devote myself with utmost loyalty to serve our country, in gratitude for the imperial grace!"