novelraw Page 176
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"I am but a mere cultivator, unworthy of the title of immortal." The leading elder waved his hand casually, then said, "Follow me."
With that, he flicked his sleeves and walked along the mountain path to the side.
The two hurried to catch up. The two walked slowly but quickly in the mountains. In just a few breaths, they had covered a great distance. Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei had to jog to keep up with the distance. Before long, the two were already panting.
Fortunately, the old man stopped not long after. They were now at the site of the ancient star-gazing platform, a relatively open stone platform with some stone carvings on the surrounding rocks. It was already night, and the weather was quite nice that day, with a bright starry sky. Standing on the star-gazing platform, the name was truly fitting.
Then they saw the old man standing with his hands behind his back, gazing up at the starry sky, while the young man stood beside him.
Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei didn't dare to say anything more, so they stood aside and tried to catch their breath, which had become very rapid from running all the way.
After a while, the old man turned to look at the two who had gradually calmed their breathing: "Entering this gate is fraught with hardship. I observe that both of you come from wealthy families. If it was just a passing fancy, then leaving now would not be a big deal. If you only wish to avoid illness or disaster in this matter, that is not difficult either..."
As soon as they finished speaking, Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei both knelt down with a thud: "We disciples are devoted to the Xuanmen sect, and our desire for the Dao is as firm as a rock. We beg our master to accept us..."
The old man looked at the two kneeling figures again, then slowly nodded and said, "In that case, follow me..."
As he spoke, he slowly walked to the edge of the cliff, and then, with a casual flick of his sleeve, a rainbow bridge rose up before him, soaring straight into the night sky...
This rainbow bridge exists between reality and illusion, appearing both as a solid object and as a form of light and mist.
Immediately afterwards, the old man stepped onto the rainbow bridge and walked straight through the air...
Behind him, the young man also stepped onto the rainbow bridge, then turned back and smiled at Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei, who were still in a daze, saying, "You two, you'd better keep up..."
Without saying another word, he slowly walked forward.
The old man and the young man were naturally Zhang Taihe and Zhang Jing. In a short while, they had already traveled a considerable distance.
Wei Chengguang, disregarding his shock, quickly walked to the edge of the cliff, carefully stepped onto the rainbow bridge, and feeling the solid ground beneath his feet, gritted his teeth and stepped directly off the cliff ahead...
The two stepped onto the rainbow bridge one after the other, signifying the start of their test...
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Gasping for breath, Wei Chengguang shook his somewhat dizzy head and looked around blankly. Smoke and mist swirled around him, and behind him, Zhu Yingwei knelt on the ground, holding her forehead, seemingly still in a daze.
He remembered that just moments ago, he was encouraging Zhu Yingwei, and then suddenly... all the unbearable trials on the Rainbow Bridge seemed to vanish in an instant.
Then, I think I drifted off into thought?
Never mind all that, I have to hurry and give Hongzi a hand...
Without even thinking about what had just happened, Wei Chengguang quickly went over and patted Zhu Yingwei on the shoulder: "Hongzi, stop spacing out!"
"Oh... Ah!" Zhu Yingwei was patted by him and seemed to react immediately. She looked around and saw a dazzling gate appear out of thin air not far in front of her.
Before the gate, Zhang Jing gave a slight nod to the two young men who had passed the test, and then stepped through the door.
Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei exchanged a glance before stepping through the door one after the other.
The next moment, they arrived in a huge hall.
This is a huge hall with a classical Eastern style. On the wall to one side, at intervals, a flame floats quietly in the air, burning like a lit torch.
The walls of the hall were covered with abstract and ancient murals. She observed them and saw that the murals depicted scenes of battle, with humans fighting against terrifying monsters of various forms.
In front of these murals are statues of various shapes and sizes. Most of these statues are dressed in feathered robes and crowns, with a mystical appearance, but their postures are all different. Many of them, like the murals, are fighting against various unknown monsters.
On one side of the main hall stood a tall statue of a celestial deity. Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei were both heavy fans of the Xuanmen sect, so they immediately recognized it as a statue of the Supreme Celestial Deity.
"This is the Fengxian Hall, the place where the sect holds sacrificial rites." Zhang Jing's voice came from the side, solemn and dignified: "When juniors arrive here, please straighten your clothes."
Upon hearing this, the two quickly lowered their heads to straighten their clothes, and then, respectfully, bowed their heads and held their breath to show respect.
Zhang Taihe slowly walked to the statue of the Celestial Venerable, respectfully bowed, and then turned to Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei, saying slowly, "Our sect inherits the lineage of the Supreme Celestial Venerable, with strict rules and discipline. You two have one more chance to change your minds. If it's just for the sake of being different, or to show off your divine power to others, then you need not join my sect..."
Upon hearing this, Wei Chengguang was deeply moved. He naturally knew the status of the Supreme Heavenly Venerable in the Xuanmen. Now that his long-cherished wish was within reach, there was absolutely no possibility of backing down. He bowed deeply and said, "This disciple will strictly abide by the sect rules, respect the elders, and dare not overstep the bounds in the slightest. I only ask that the master accept me into the sect."
Zhu Yingwei also followed suit and fell to the ground.
Seeing the expressions on their faces, Zhang Taihe nodded in satisfaction: "In that case, you two come forward."
Then, he turned to Zhang Jing and said, "Zongxuan, you will perform the ceremony."
"Yes, teacher." Zhang Jing bowed respectfully, then walked to a huge bronze incense burner in front of him, three lit incense sticks now appearing in his hand without him noticing.
"With the Ancestral Master above, we have disciples Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei who are exceptionally talented and devoted to the Dao... We hereby welcome them into the sect as the fifty-third generation disciples of the Kunlun Sect..."
Then, he cupped his hands in a respectful bow and said, "Homage to Heaven and Earth!"
"kneel!"
Upon hearing this, the two men immediately knelt respectfully on the prayer mats in front of them.
"One kowtow..."
"Two kowtows..."
"Three kowtows..."
"prosper!"
"Paying homage to the Ancestral Master, the Supreme Heavenly Venerable."
"kneel!"
"One kowtow..."
"Two kowtows..."
"Three kowtows..."
"prosper!"
"Respect your teachers!"
"kneel!"
"One kowtow..."
"Two kowtows..."
"Three kowtows..."
"prosper!"
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Chapter 295 An Immortal Touches My Head, Granting Me Immortality
After a moment of disorientation, Wei Chengguang snapped back to reality, only to find himself still standing on the observatory, with Zhu Yingwei beside him, looking equally bewildered.
The two exchanged a glance, then simultaneously pulled up their right sleeves, revealing delicate, fingernail-sized badges on the inside of their arms. They both breathed a sigh of relief. These were the marks they remembered leaving after swearing their "Oath of Beginning."
All of this is not an illusion...
"If you have any questions about your cultivation in the future, you can directly seek clarification from your senior brother." Zhang Taihe's voice came from behind. Turning around, the two quickly bowed and greeted him. Now, their statuses were different, and they addressed each other as master and disciple. Wei Chengguang was the third disciple, with the Dharma name Zongguang, while Zhu Yingwei was the fourth disciple, with the Dharma name Zongwei.
Zhang Jing smiled and took out his phone, exchanging Qianluo numbers with the two men. This "modern" move made them feel a little out of place, but they quickly accepted it, thinking that it was a modern society after all.
"I hope you will give me more guidance in the future..."
“We are all fellow disciples, no need to be so polite.” Zhang Jing smiled and exchanged a few polite words, then said solemnly, “As you are new to cultivation, you must study diligently and build a solid foundation. Do not be lazy. In addition, remember to keep the precepts of our sect in mind and never violate them.”
Regarding the precepts, these disciples would swear a "heart oath" upon entering the sect. This was a binding oath that Zhang Jing had obtained from the Dharma Treasury, and it was a common method used by various sects in that era to discipline their disciples. Violation of this oath would have serious consequences. However, even with this constraint, Zhang Jing still reminded the two of the precepts again to reinforce the new disciples' emphasis on them.
"We will follow our senior brother's teachings," the two replied hastily.
Zhang Jing nodded, then smiled and said, "By the way, you also have a second senior sister. I'll introduce you to her later."
After allowing his fellow disciples a brief exchange, Zhang Taihe stood aside for a while, then cleared his throat. Seeing that all the disciples were looking over, he said, "Ximing, Yingwei, now that you two have entered the sect, I will first teach you the introductory mental cultivation method. This is the foundation of all methods, so you must cultivate it diligently..."
"Your disciples will obey your instructions, Master," Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei replied respectfully upon hearing this.
Zhang Taihe nodded in satisfaction, then with a flick of his sleeve, clouds and mist rose around the observatory, becoming indistinct and unclear, as if this area had been separated out.
"You all sit down cross-legged."
Upon hearing their teacher's words, Wei Chengguang and Zhu Yingwei quickly sat cross-legged on the ground. The next moment, before their very eyes, Zhang Taihe stretched out a hand towards them. This hand, in their perception, transcended spatial distance and directly touched the tops of their heads…
"The Immortal caressed my head, knotted my hair and received immortality..."
For some reason, at that moment, a sentence popped into Wei Chengguang's mind.
Immediately afterwards, he felt his five senses being stripped away in an instant.
His senses of sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste all seemed to lose their function in that instant, and for a moment, he experienced a kind of weightlessness.
However, in this wondrous situation, he began to sense the existence of a great power that transcended the essence of his life. This power was lofty and majestic, like a high and mighty deity. He instinctively realized that it was the power of his teacher.
This power connected with him in a subtle and peculiar way that defied description. Immediately following was a profound and awe-inspiring experience, like the sound of a morning bell. Guided by that power, he touched for the first time a vast and surging energy plane. Or rather, the word "plane" was not quite accurate, because in that instant, Wei Chengguang realized that it was actually another side of the world he lived in, another form of existence.
He had never been aware of this form of existence before, even though he himself was inseparable from it. Just as he had never been aware of the existence of breathing.
In that instant, he was like a fish leaping out of the water for the first time, becoming aware of the existence of the surface world.
At this moment, another form of existence in the world made intimate contact with his senses in a powerful and impactful way.