The Undying Immortal System

After advancing to Rank 3, ShouLi had as difficult of a time finding a path forward with body cultivation as I had with beast alchemy. Being a tamer herself, ShouLi already knew all the information given to me by JiaQi, but simply knowing the outline of what she would need to do wasn't enough to allow her to actually do it. Yes, she knew that she would need to incorporate either qi or karmic energy into her muscles, but how was she supposed to achieve that?

ShouLi, Liang, and NiangBa spent several years working on trying to find a way forward with this research, but eventually, they had to put it to the side. While improving the clan's understanding of body cultivation was important, there were other projects that needed their attention. ShouLi was still the nominal head of the clan's leadership council, and while the council's authority had started to wane in recent years, many of our members still looked to her for guidance.

So, ShouLi turned her attention to helping the clan advance further through the Nine Rivers Sect. However, as an inner sect disciple, the actual help she could provide was somewhat limited. As an inner sect disciple, she was forbidden from ruling a kingdom, she wasn't allowed to lead a group on the path to Heaven City, and her ability to post sect missions was somewhat restricted.

If ShouLi wanted to maintain her position as the head of our clan, remaining an inner sect disciple wasn't going to cut it. She needed a promotion, and that meant that she needed to take the sect's Exam.

With the amount of time that ShouLi and the others had put into improving their profession skills and cultivating their souls, I expected that several of them would easily be able to become core disciples. However, I had held them back from reattempting the Exam because I was worried about what might happen. With several people having made tangible progress in the path of body cultivation, how would the sect react?

Still, I couldn't hold them back any longer. If the members of my clan wanted to continue advancing in this sect, they would need higher positions. So, while I was still slightly wary, I gave my consent for ShouLi and the others to retake the sect's Exam. However, as I did so, I made a quick purchase.

"System, I want to buy a mental reversion point for the fourteen body cultivators from my clan who are taking the sect's Exam today. Standard practice. When they exit the Exam, revert their minds to how they were upon entering."

Purchase confirmed. Cost 4.1 billion credits. 30,217,883,769 credits remaining.

This was the first time that I had ever bought such mental reversion points for someone other than myself. Usually, I didn't see the need for it, but if the sect were going to plant impulses into anyone, it would be into my clan's body cultivators.

Most of the time, the Exam would take no more than a few hours. So, when ShouLi and the others left in the morning, I expected them to be back no later than mid-afternoon.

When no one returned by nightfall, I started to get worried, but there was nothing I could do other than wait.

An entire day passed, and then another.

Had something gone wrong? Had ShouLi and the others been kidnapped? Was there any way I could save them?

I didn't know.

The Sect Master was the Sovereign of the Jiu Clan. If he had decided to lock ShouLi and the others away, what could I do to oppose him?

I considered seeking out Emperor Li, but would he help me? Could he?

Finally, on the third day, everyone returned safe and unharmed. They didn't even know that they had been missing.

With everyone's memories having been erased, it was impossible to know what had taken so long, but I was pretty sure I already knew the answer. The sect, or more likely the Jiu Clan, had been extracting every bit of information they could about body cultivation.

The fact that everyone returned alive and well suggested that their interrogators hadn't pushed anyone to reveal any secrets protected by Oaths, but that was likely only because none of the information on body cultivation was protected in such a way. Our clan had popped up out of nowhere, and I was certain that the Sovereigns would want to know where we had come from, but luckily, they weren't willing to kill us to find out. At least, not yet.

As for the actual results of the Exam, those were a bit unexpected.

ShouLi, our clan's inaugural body cultivator and its public-facing leader, had been awarded the rank of ungraded Chosen. This confirmed my suspicion that the sect was searching for information on body cultivation, but based on everyone else's results, simply being a body cultivator wasn't enough.

Aside from ShouLi, everyone else was given the rank of grade 3 inner sect disciple. There wasn't a single core disciple in the entire group. My only guess was that since these people were seen as ShouLi's subordinates, they didn't qualify for anything higher.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

With her ascension to Chosen, ShouLi's focus turned to improving her cultivation base. She was already a Peak Lord, so to advance further she needed to become a King.

While ShouLi could have simply bought King-level karmic energy, this would have weakened her standing in the eyes of the sect, and that wouldn't have been ideal. We wanted the Sovereigns to think that we were all playing their game properly.

Instead, ShouLi needed to gain control of a kingdom. Not only would this provide her with the karmic energy she needed to ascend, but it would also help her further safeguard our clan.

As a Lord-Steward in Black River, if ShouLi wanted to become a King-Steward, she would need to target the stewardship of the Black River Kingdom, but for that to happen, Kang would need to vacate it first. There were a few ways to make this happen, the easiest of which was simply to wait until his term expired, but instead, ShouLi opted for a quicker route. She decided to make him an Emperor.

After only eight years of ruling over the Black River Kingdom, Kang had been able to gather enough contribution points to fund his advancement to Peak King. The only thing standing in his way of going further was the competition for control of the North Empire.

When Yan first reviewed his notes and found the details of what this competition would involve, we were a bit worried, but for whatever reason, the elders changed what was 'supposed' to happen. Instead of an open war between all of the northern kingdoms, they decided to have the competition be nothing more than a simple martial arts tournament.

With Yan's and ShouLi's assistance, Kang was easily able to clinch the championship.

This elevated Kang to Steward of the North Empire, and he was allowed to appoint a successor to fill the vacancy he left behind. While there were others within his retinue who he might have preferred to give this spot to, he made the smart choice and gave it to ShouLi.

The sect had already made it clear that only a limited number of people from our clan would be allowed to become core disciples, so Yan's idea of completely controlling the North Empire was doomed to failure. Still, he and ShouLi did what they could to put people in positions of power so that they would both be able to assist each other in times of need and so that they could pillage as many resources from the sect as possible.

With Yan and ShouLi working together, I felt no need to worry about the clan's day-to-day operations.

With everyone around me making solid progress, I felt that it was finally time for me to advance as well. So, I gathered up a small group of people who were ready for the trek to Earth City, took them back to Dragon Peak, and guided them through the Path of Body.

This path was rather simple, and by fighting as a team, we made quick work of it.

After the final individual challenge, I stepped through a portal and was teleported in front of one of the sect's elders.

I expected this to be a somewhat informal briefing where he quickly confirmed that my status as a core disciple hadn't changed and then sent me on my way. However, when I arrived, there was an empty chair in front of the elder's desk, and when I approached, the elder gestured for me to sit.

"Disciple Su Fang, congratulations on completing the Path of Body and earning a position in Earth City. This is a feat that only a small fraction of those who join this sect are able to accomplish, and you should be proud of what you have achieved."

The elder's words were congratulatory, but something in his tone made me concerned.

Still, there was no reason to be impolite.

I cupped my fists in a salute and gave a slight bow. "Thank you, elder."

The elder smiled and bobbed his head a few times as he thought through what he wanted to say next.

"Disciple Su Fang, I am afraid that there is an issue we must discuss." He steepled his hand on his desk and looked at me seriously. "When you joined the sect, you were assigned the position of grade 3 core disciple, and your performance since then has been exemplary. You have shown great skill in alchemy, you have completed several difficult missions, and you ruled TongBei City with distinction. Aside from choosing not to rule a kingdom, you have done everything that could possibly be expected of you."

I looked at the elder and raised an eyebrow. "However…"

He pursed his lips and dropped his eyes. "However, there is an open question of whether you are truly an independent actor. If you are merely following the orders of a superior, then you do not deserve a position as a core disciple. Even if your leader is a Chosen, mere subordinates are not allowed to become core disciples. So, I must ask you, do you believe that you are worthy of being a core disciple?"

I sat back in my chair and thought through my response.

"Elder, I am not entirely clear on the distinction you are trying to make. What would make me an 'independent actor?' What would make me a 'mere subordinate?' What qualities are you looking for that would qualify me for a position as a core disciple?"

The elder sighed and shook his head. "We are not entirely certain ourselves. This situation is… rare. While not entirely unprecedented, by the time most disciples make it to Earth City, it is usually clear who are leaders and who are followers. We shouldn't even be having this conversation, but your actions over the past several years are those of a simple protector, not those of a leader, so several elders have begun to question whether you should be allowed to continue on in your current position."

I tapped my armrest in thought. "My desire is to work on my craft in private. As you are no doubt aware, I am skilled in multiple professions, and my time is spent mastering these various crafts. I have no desire to rule kingdoms or empires. I have no desire to lead. I wish only to be left alone to pursue the pinnacle of alchemy, formations, and refining. If that makes me ill-suited for a position as a core disciple, then so be it."

This statement seemed to only increase the elder's agitation.

After a moment of hesitation, he let out a breath and slumped in his seat. "Can you promise me that when you journey to Heaven City, you will be your group's leader? Can you promise me that you will not join someone else's team, especially not someone from another peak?"

I nodded without even thinking about it. "Yes."

"Very well. I will assign you the position of grade 1 core disciple. This demotion will be enough to quell any discontent among the other elders, and since your focus will be on crafting, its impact will be negligible."

I bowed my head. "Thank you, elder."

He just let out a wry chuckle. "No need. The Master of the Fire Peak, Huo NuAn, has been advocating strongly on your behalf. I was just sent to make sure her decision was the correct one."

After waving a hand to update the information on my identity jade, the elder gave me a small bow.

"Good luck, disciple."