Conclusion; Decisions Made

A bright crescent moon loomed overhead. Quietly, the air was stirred by the shifting movement of space, allowing the world itself to attain a common temperature. Nature's symphony found the energy to play louder than ever, giving the nighttime scenery a taste of true beauty.

Sitting in the temple on the stone islet, Logean Wuji was finally able to ponder on everything he had been keeping himself from pondering. There were numerous stone lanterns all over the ancient village that he had ignited, attributing the softness of dim light to the entire mountaintop.

Ye Hong and Ling Ji'er had retreated for the night, while Bi Xue and her father had vanished into their new mansion and had not been seen afterward. He wanted to look in on them, but he felt it would be too much of an invasion of privacy. Another thing to consider was that Bi Xue was now his disciple, and he needed her subsequent impressions of him to fall in line with the image of a teacher he sought to uphold.

While he was lost in thought, a tiny figure came walking up the path, then across the stone tiles, heading straight for him. He did not need to look to know that it was Cyrus, so he pretended to not notice.

Eventually, he said with a strong voice, "Great Sir Wuji, it is I, Cyrus."

"I know. What do you want, Cyrus?" Logean Wuji gave a small nod, already dividing his focus so he could kill two birds with one stone.

"I wanted to ask your opinion on something. You see, I made the decision long ago so I need to know now whether or not you agree-"

"Just ask."

"Right, yes. Ahem!" Cyrus's took a deep breath, his chest rising along with his courage.

"If I do become a student of yours, I need to know what you think about me using your teachings to aid me in seeking revenge against my father." After he asked this, Cyrus shut his eyes tightly and turned his face to the side, as if he was expecting a slap in retaliation.

Logean Wuji gave no such reaction, of course.

"I would have no problem with that, if it is what you decide to do in the end. If I accept you as my student, I will only be responsible for exposing you to every option laid before you, and supporting whatever path you choose. Whether you disappoint me or not depends on your willpower and how far it will allow you walk on your chosen path."

"There are too many things to consider for now. Do not yet stress yourself with thoughts of revenge; you are young, inexperienced and weak. Accept that first and maybe your growth rate will see an exponential increase in the future."

Cyrus, at some point, had forgotten about his initial thoughts. Instead, he looked at Logean Wuji and began to feel his emotions fall into a slumber. He was like a tranquil body of water without ripple, calm and collected.

"Thank you, Great Sir Wuji."

"Heh. Farewell for now, King-Boy."

After Cyrus left, Logean Wuji's session of deep thinking also came to an end. It was clear in his mind, now, what would follow the events of the day. Once he was finished with that, he closed his eyes and folded his legs, beginning to meditate.

Hours passed and it was now dawn; the sky slowly shed the skin of its nighttime gloom, exposing the newness of another sunshiny day. It was still quite early, but Logean Wuji knew that the hearts of people were quite excitable.

He ended his meditation and merely sat in silence, awaiting the people's arrival. As he sat there, his "future retainers" came out of their homes and toward the village's center, eager to witness the events of the day.

Ye Hong was wearing bright red clothes with golden patterns, his short hair well groomed; face full of excitement and fervor as he found Logean Wuji. Ling Ji'er was also dressed festively but formally, reservedly showing bits and pieces of her lithe and petite figure in a red silk dress. There was a black hairpin holding her hair in place amidst a number of other ornaments.

Together they sat down at the water's edge and closed their eyes, patiently waiting. Logean Wuji smiled when he saw this, choosing to break the silence they sought they maintain.

"Ji'er, Hong, good of you to come to this early."

"It is to be expected, Sir Wuji," Ye Hong smiled.

"It is our duty, is it not?" Ling Ji'er bowed her head, bringing her hands together in a formal salute.

Logean Wuji remained smiling, sinking back into silence. Almost two hours passed before people started arriving.

Thin, misty clouds bashed against the mountaintop, sending scattered bits of fog throughout the village. From the village, a long line of people were beginning the march up to the summit. Though most of them were cultivators, none of them dared to profane the mountain's sanctity by rushing or flying; even the Prunes'.

Everyone took their time walking up the trail, enjoying the sights as the world below got smaller and smaller- further and further.

Master Gouki and his students remained resolute in the face of the mighty mountain, marching with the utmost conviction and drive. Cyrus and Ling Jian'er were amongst the crowd as well, glaring daggers at each other but nonetheless choosing to remain silent. Xiao Wanshou was present as well, enjoying the company of quite a large amount of people.

Most of them were teenage girls around his age, but there were also a few teenage boys and adults among them as well. As they questioned him ceaselessly, a soft blush burned to life on his face.

"Lil' Peashooter, have you ever tried 69?"

"69 of what?"

To his innocent and naive response, some of the girls giggled uncontrollably while hiding their faces with their hands. He could only smile bitterly and engage in a wild game of guessing to figure out what it was. Eventually, one of them whispered the answer in his ear and left him dumbfounded.

Also among them were the Zhou siblings. Zhou Mantiao was beyond reluctant to attend, but Zhou Hua practically dragged him along with her. She had been able to gain a new sense of purpose in her life after Logean Wuji admonished her, so she was eager to walk that path. Zhou Mantiao, on the other hand, was ready to abandon his dreams of being manager to a great world-renown restaurant.

Sluggish and listless, he walked behind his sister in dejected silence. 'Ah, goodbye money... My untold and innumerable future collection, of which I have dreamed since the days of my youth. I will never see you with my own eyes in this lifetime...'

"Haogui, come on. What are you worried about?" Ji Tianshan shouted at her brother, trying to get him to walk quicker.

"Are you seriously excited right now, Tianshan? Don't you remember that the Super Young Mas- I mean, Sir Wuji, said? We don't even share the same opinions about colors, far less about each other." Ji Haogui was deeply unnerved; the closer he got to the summit, the more he felt sick and nervous. A bit behind them, Mother Guan smiled warmly but kept quiet.

Not too far away from them, the Taigao Tribe children and Old Man Sun were working their way up as well.

"Say, Wanshi, didn't Sir Wuji call you stupid? Why are you even bothering to show your face?" Ye Zuliao said mockingly, causing Ye Wanshi's brow to twitch.

Adjusting his eyeglasses, he sighed and said, "You would think someone with such big eyes would be more observant. For your information, glutton, he did not question my overall intelligence but my strategic thinking. It was a teaching moment, so any idiot could see what he was hinting at."

As those two continued their back and forth, Ye Zhiyuan was focused on a fabulously dressed girl around her age. It was, namely, Pixie Prunes. Ye Zhiyuan did not know why, but the aura she sensed from Pixie seemed lowly and suppressed, but not in a mystifying way. Instead, it just made her seem lonely and sad even though she smiled and laughed with her parents.

As more and more people reached the summit, a whirring shadow sped around beneath their feet and hid in the large shadow of one of the old buildings. In the ancient village, shadowy spots like this were abundant, and thus this shadow was able to hide itself while stealthily heading towards the center.

Within this shadow, weak spiritual fluctuations arose. 'Sheee, Sheesh! What a place! I wonder what kinds of stuff are lying around here for me to steal! Today, Ton Lon becomes more wealthy than any man! Ahhhahahaha!'

Everyone had arrived. Bi Xue and Yan Longxi were seated beside Ye Hong and Ling Ji'er, as their positions were already set in stone. Logean Wuji gracefully glided over the water with slow steps, his eyes scanning the large gathering of people in the center.

"Good morning, all."

"Good morning, Sir Wuji." Like a well-oiled machine, their response was perfectly timed and delivered, as if it were planned. Logean Wuji was satisfied, but he did not show it. He had prepared himself for something chaotic and grating to listen to.

"Firstly, I feel I must reiterate. I have very strict requirements when it comes to selecting students. Not everyone called forward today will become a student of mine, but may instead serve me in other ways."

Understanding this, the people nodded or voiced their understanding in small ways. Gouki himself gave a loud, "Umu!"

"Good. Some of you may recall that I intend to turn my Logean Mountain Region into the grand state of Akna-Logea. It will be the celestial capital of this newborn dimension, but not before I have shaped it into something I deem fit. I will require all of you, who wish to live in it, to follow the instructions I shall pass down through my servants."

"I am not impatient, but I do value productivity and despise wasting time. That being said, let us get on with it."

Finally, spirits and tensioned were uplifted. Those words sent those present who truly believed they stood a chance into a contained frenzy. People were even placing silent bets on or against the potential candidates. After all, even though a lot of people went up on stage, there were only a few exceptional talents among them.

Unexpectedly, the betting was hijacked by a swarm of young people- mostly girls. They overwhelmingly voted for Xiao Wanshou, leaving those who bet against him with the chance to win more than 5000 gold pieces. Logean Wuji frowned on this, though.

'I forgot about the mortal currency they still use... I need to eradicate the secularity of the people before anything else. At least until low-grade spirit stones are the norm.'

After that, he created two lists of names that he passed on to Ye Hong and Ling Ji'er, allowing them to call the names instead. He returned to the small temple, watching as things progressed.

"When your name is called, please step out and come forward."

"Master Gouki, step forward."

"Lin Fei, step forward."

"Ling Jian'er, 'Whirlwind Monkey,' come on out."

"Cyrus the King-Boy, forward."

"Xiao Wanshou, 'Lil Peashooter,' step out." To this, shrill cries echoed throughout the ancient village.

"Ji Tianshan, Ji Haogui, step forward."

"Ye Zhiyuan, Ye Zuliao, step forward."

"Zhou Mantiao, Zhou Hua, step forward."

"Pixie Prunes, you are the last."

That was it. The lists of names combusted into green flames and burnt to nothing, not even leaving behind traces of ash or smoke. Those called had stepped forward and formed a horizontal line, smiling while trying to remained composed.

As the others celebrated their winnings or mourned their substantial losses, one person was speechless and devastated. That was, of course, Ye Wanshi.

______________________

End of Volume 1