Securing Spots in the Mystic Realm

Early next day, Dabang Sect Master's office...

"A pleasure to have you here, as always, Sir Caelus."

"The pleasure is mine."

Two men, one young and one old, sat opposite each other at a low tea table, calmly sipping their tea. They were, of course, Caelus and the sect master, Liang Teng.

Liang Teng let out a low, heavy breath, seemingly relaxed as he let the steam from the tea brush up against his face.

'What does this brat want with me, now?!'

However, although he held a calm facade, his inner thoughts were in turmoil.

'Is he going to try and strike a deal, again? Why can't he just do his research and stay quiet!?'

'This brat is going to drain me for all that I'm worth, at this rate! Why did we have to discover him when we're already in such a precarious situation?!"

The old man could already feel a stomachache coming on, as was usual when he thought about how Caelus and his friends could very well be a tipping point.

A tipping point that determined if the Dabang Sect could stay as one of the Great Sects, or not!

"So, Sir Caelus, is there anything I can help you with, today?"

Of course, he would never let any of his anxieties show in front of the person in question. He couldn't afford to drive him away, after all.

"Nothing much, Sect Leader," Caelus started, putting down his tea cup, "I've just come to request two spots for the Pill Saint Mystic Realm opening."

'*Just* two spots?! Don't you know how much those two spots mean for the sect!'

Liang Teng seethed inwardly while putting on a kindly smile, cursing the young man's infuriatingly unreadable expression. Of course, he had to know; why would this shut-in be coming to him directly, otherwise?

"Sir Caelus, I'm sure you're aware of the importance of these two spots..." the old man began, careful to not directly turn down Caelus's request.

Although there was technically no limit to how many people could enter the mystic realm, the various factions agreed to an arbitrary limit per faction, based on how influential said faction was.

This was in the name of conservation: although the inheritances and spiritual items of the mystic realm would obviously deplete over time, the demonic beasts and spiritual herbs would have a chance to replenish so long as the place wasn't stripped bare.

Such a consensus was only possible because cultivators in the Soul Wandering realm or higher were unable to enter the mystic realm. Even a newly ascended Soul Wandering expert would trigger a formation upon entering, threatening the collapse of the entire pocket dimension if the individual didn't leave quickly.

If more powerful individuals were able to enter, or if there were more precious treasures present, there was no way that the mystic realm could enjoy such peace...

'Two spots... If it were one, I may have been able to accommodate him more readily...' Liang Teng thought, his brow creasing.

The Great Sects were once afforded 20 spots each, but the Dabang Sect, having steadily fallen in power and influence, currently only held 17 spots. While 3 spots might not seem like much, that meant 3 less people that could help when competing for treasures with the other factions. To give up two more spots was...

"Don't worry, you can consider it as only one," Caelus went on, seemingly reading the sect leader's mind, "I wish to request one spot for Ryker, and the other will be for a disciple of your sect, Hu Long."

"Hu Long, was it?"

Liang Teng closed his eyes in thought, not expecting that it would only be Ryker going from his guest's camp. True, if the other requested spot was for a disciple of his sect, anyway, there wouldn't be much to lose.

And from the reports he received from Cui Feng about Hu Long's talents and the speed of his growth, it would in fact be in his best interests to let Hu Long enter the mystic realm and find more opportunities.

However...

"It's not that I don't want to give a spot to Disciple Hu, but it might be troublesome. Although he's shown an incredible talent, he hasn't even reached the Foundation Establishment realm, yet; there would be quite a few dissenting voices amongst the elders," Liang Teng said, making up an excuse to try and probe his expressionless guest. He still hadn't even received an offer, dammit!

"Of course. However, you'll be holding the Inner Disciple competitions soon, will you not? I don't think there's any problem so long as Hu Long proves himself, there."

Caelus took another sip of warm tea as Liang Teng strained to keep the cordial smile on his face. The two sat in silence for a while more, before Liang Teng finally sighed, shoulders slumped in defeat.

"... Yes, that shouldn't be a problem. However, as for the spot Sir Ryker will be taking..." he started to say, but was interrupted by a faint thud on the table, and he looked up to see a small, leather-bound book placed between their tea cups.

"The secrets of mana," Caelus said, going straight into his offer, "As well as a period of tutelage to ensure you have enough mana control experts, to run things when we're gone."

Liang Teng's eyes lit up at the prospect of finally getting his hands on the source of Caelus's mysterious power, his mind already turning to how the sect could capitalize on this opportunity. It didn't seem as if one needed cultivation talent to control mana; perhaps if they recruited from the mortals...

However, the last part of Caelus's statement suddenly hit him, and he looked up again in panic.

"Sir Caelus, has there been a problem with your accommodations, thus far?" he hurriedly asked, but Caelus simply shook his head, stowing the booklet on the table back into his dimensional pocket.

"No. I've mentioned that Ryker is the one we were looking for, yes?"

Casually finishing the rest of his tea, Caelus stood up from his cushion, moving to the door without further ado.

"After this business with the Pill Saint Mystic Realm is concluded, we'll be taking our leave to find our way back home."

Liang Teng nodded, but he couldn't help but shudder, his anxiety spiking as he watched the reticent young man's departing back. What would he do if they were taken in by the other sects? Was this the start of the Dabang Sect's downfall...?

At this moment, however, Caelus paused at the doorway, looking back at the sect leader with an almost imperceptible smile. No, Liang Teng could have sworn this usually emotionless shut-in was smirking!

"Relax. We have no intention of joining other factions, so you can rest easy, Sect Leader."

With that last remark, Caelus saw himself out the door.

Liang Teng sat in shock for a moment, before quickly recomposing himself. As usual, though, he was cursing inside his head.

'This brat... he's been teasing me this whole time!'

---

Meanwhile, back at Caelus's villa...

"Yeah, that's good! Put your back into it, Hu Long!"

In the center of the main hall, Hu Long shook violently from the exertion as he did push-ups with Ryker sitting cross-legged on his back.

"Aaaaarrrgh!"

He let out a cry of defiance, sweat and blood dripping from every pore, all the while pushing out rep after rep.

Ryker, too, was working hard on his training. That is, circulating mana through his body in accordance with the Cosmic Unity Scripture, as well as through Hu Long to help in his body refinement.

His hunch about getting better at controlling mana after breaking through to Foundation Establishment wasn't an illusion. After careful analysis, Caelus came to the conclusion that the more familiar he became with his cultivation method, the better he would be at manipulating mana, as well.

It wasn't clear whether he would get to the point of casting spells, just yet, but with a bit of practice, he was able to at least aid Hu Long with the Mana Body Refining Technique (name pending), without killing him.

Whilst the two youths (though mostly Hu Long) poured their blood and sweat into their training, Cui Feng, who had arrived a bit earlier with some food from the kitchens, sat with her chin resting in her hands as she watched, her concern growing with each pained grunt from her former Junior Brother. Hadn't Hu Long just recovered, this morning?

"... Are you two sure this is safe?" she asked, eventually.

Her concern was understandable. Since cultivators had little need for physical exercise on their journey of cultivation, things like push-ups and crunches were unfamiliar to many.

The most physical exertion a cultivator of a sect might experience were spars with their fellow disciples, and those were typically short affairs.

"Don't worry! As long as it's a physical injury, C can fix it up, no problem!"

Ryker gave a thumbs up as if to reassure Cui Feng, though to her, it was anything but assuring.

"It's... kh... it's fine. It was way worse, the first time around..." Hu Long said as well, eyes focused on the ground. Compared to when Ryker first exposed him to mana-based body refining, this pain was nothing!

"Hm... if you say so..."

As they were conversing, however, a subtle creaking of the door caught their attentions, and they all looked to see Caelus walk into the hall, the door closing itself behind him.

"... That should be enough for today's body refinement session, Hu Long," he said, after taking a quick glance at the situation.

Right on cue, Hu Long dropped like a sack of bricks, letting out an exhausted sigh. Ryker also got up from off of him, his hands behind his head as he turned to Caelus.

"The Sect Master has agreed to our proposal," Caelus interjected before Ryker could even ask, "Though Hu Long will need to put in a good showing at the upcoming Inner Disciple competitions."

"Then I guess we better get the ball rolling," Ryker said, looking down at the exhausted Hu Long with a grin.

"So? You up for a bit of sparring?"

Hu Long was still panting for breath on the ground, but eventually, he managed to raise his head, a determined look in his eyes as he nodded.

"Let's do it."