She couldn't help but glance around nervously, only to immediately feel a wave of relief. If anyone stood out as odd, it was surely the people on this ship, right? Half of them were dressed in ancient attire, but the other half—what on earth were they wearing? One was draped in tattered rags like a mop, another was covered head to toe in assorted feathers, and yet another had bones of unknown origin strung all over. And let’s not forget the guy at the bow, who seemed to have simply thrown a bedsheet over himself—cutting two holes for his arms didn’t make it clothing, buddy. At least show your head! Had she accidentally stumbled into some cosplay convention?
Compared to these folks, she suddenly felt her outfit was oddly appropriate for the era.
"Hey, girl, why are you just standing there? Come sit!" A man clad in chicken feathers a few steps away brushed aside a colorful strand of plumage hanging over his forehead and waved at her warmly. "The sea’s rough—you’ll fall if you don’t sit."
Only then did Shi Xia realize the ship had already set sail and was now cutting through the ocean. After a moment’s hesitation, she walked over. "Chicken Feather" promptly scooted aside, making room for her.
"Thanks."
"No problem. When you’re away from home, it’s good to help each other out." Chicken Feather grinned amiably. "My surname is Lu, given name Ren. This is my younger brother, Lu Se." He gestured to another feather-clad man beside him. "We’re from the Qi Kingdom. May I ask your name, miss?"
Shi Xia’s lips twitched. Lu Ren? Loser? Wow, what classy names.
"My surname is Shi. I’m from… the Liang Kingdom," she lied smoothly.
"For a young lady like you to make it here must’ve been quite the journey."
Shi Xia’s face darkened as memories of her harrowing ordeal flashed through her mind. "It was… manageable." At least she was still alive.
"Just getting here is impressive. My brother and I searched for five whole years," Lu Ren said sympathetically. "But it’s fine—once we cross this sea, we’ll arrive."
Shi Xia blinked. "Brother Lu Ren, do you know where this ship is headed?"
Lu Ren gave her a puzzled look. "To the Jade Flower Sect, of course. Aren’t you here to seek immortality like the rest of us?"
"Immortality?" Shi Xia’s heart leaped. She grabbed his arm excitedly. "The Jade Flower Sect has immortals?" Did that mean there was hope for her to return home?
"How do you not know any of this?" Lu Ren shot her a look that screamed, How did you even get here? With a sigh, he launched into an explanation.
After his crash course on the world’s workings, Shi Xia finally grasped what kind of place she’d been dumped into. In short, this wasn’t a world of gods and myths—it was a world of cultivation. Those sword-riders she’d seen soaring through the sky earlier weren’t actual immortals but cultivators.
Yes, here, mortals could ascend to immortality through cultivation. However, the cultivation world existed beyond the reach of ordinary folk, accessible only to those with fate’s favor. The Jade Flower Sect was essentially a vocational school for cultivation, teaching people how to refine their path to immortality. But cultivation wasn’t easy. Mortals rarely stumbled upon the cultivation world, and even if they did, finding a reputable sect was another hurdle. Then came the matter of innate talent, comprehension, and other deciding factors.
"So there aren’t any real immortals in this world?" Shi Xia’s hope dimmed.
"Immortals reside in the celestial realm—why would they descend to the mortal world?" Lu Ren said matter-of-factly. "But cultivators’ abilities are nothing to scoff at, especially the high-ranking elders. I’ve heard some grandmasters with millennia of cultivation can move mountains and part seas. To us mortals, that’s practically godlike, isn’t it?"
"Grandmasters?" Shi Xia’s eyes gleamed. Could a grandmaster help her cross worlds?
"Exactly." Lu Ren suddenly grew animated. "I’ve heard the Jade Flower Sect has two grand elders—their cultivation is unfathomable. A century ago, when the Demon Lord wreaked havoc, one of them repelled him multiple times, securing the cultivation world’s peace for the last hundred years."
Grand elders? Shi Xia suddenly recalled Yuan Wu’s grumpy, inexplicable grandmaster. No way it’s the same person, right?
Shi Xia had assumed the Jade Flower Sect was nearby, but she’d severely overestimated ancient transportation—even with cultivation techniques, progress was limited. They sailed for an entire month. By the end, even she, who’d never been seasick, felt like she was floating on air. The worst part? The food. It was atrocious. On the first day, she’d been thrilled to have fresh seafood—after all, in this era, a seafood meal usually meant emptying your wallet. Free fish sounded like a dream.
But no amount of free food could make up for a month of the same dish—red-braised fish with nothing but salt. By the end, even a plain cabbage started looking like a delicacy.
She’d wanted to complain to the chef, but strangely, after scouring the ship, she couldn’t find anything resembling a kitchen. Then she spotted the boy who called everyone for meals—standing at the stern, stabbing fish from the sea with his sword. With each catch, he’d slap the fish’s belly, toss it into a bowl, sprinkle salt, and set it aside.
Watching those "freshly prepared" grilled fish, Shi Xia suddenly decided she could endure a few more days. When others grumbled and demanded to confront the blue-robed disciples, she kept her mouth shut. She didn’t want to end up like the fish.
The ship continued its leisurely journey until, a month and a half later, on a bright, spring day—
"Look! What’s that?" someone suddenly shouted.
Shi Xia followed the crowd to the bow. The vast ocean ahead seemed to have been sliced in half, revealing a bizarre chasm—below, an abyss of darkness; above, a dense white mist. The howling wind carried the sound of countless razor-sharp blades whirling chaotically within the mist, leaving no gaps.
Shi Xia’s heart clenched. The wind blades summoned by that "Black Fiend" guy earlier were nothing compared to this. Stepping into that would reduce a person to dust. Panic erupted on the ship.
"Quiet! Stop fussing!" The blue-robed disciple who’d brought her aboard stepped forward, glaring. "We’ve arrived—what’s all the noise about? Amateurs."
He pulled out a jade token, murmured an incantation, and the token glowed brighter, rising into the air. It expanded into a luminous sphere, encasing the entire ship. The vessel shuddered—then, instead of sailing, it lifted off, soaring toward the mist. The deadly wind blades parted, clearing a path.
Everyone’s expressions were like this: (⊙▽⊙) Mom, come quick and look at the flying ship!
In less than a quarter of an hour, the ship had passed through the zone of wind blades, revealing a new world before their eyes. The sky was streaked with aurora-like ribbons of light, and floating peaks of varying sizes dotted the heavens, each adorned with countless pavilions and towers. Auspicious clouds drifted everywhere, accompanied by the melodic cries of cranes, while figures on flying swords occasionally streaked across the sky. Shi Xia felt as if she had suddenly been transported into the setting of an immortal-themed game—specifically, the high-level main city zone.
The ship docked at the foot of the largest floating peak, where the majestic silhouette of a grand palace could faintly be seen in the distance. Several disciples dressed in white robes with blue patterns led the group off the ship and toward a passage at the mountain’s base.
There stood two disciples in identical attire—one male, one female.
"Senior Brother Bai, Senior Sister Mu," the young man who had escorted them onto the ship, Li Lin, greeted the pair respectfully, followed by a few other disciples.
"Junior Brother Li Lin, you’ve worked hard on the journey," Senior Brother Bai said with a smile, stepping forward to glance at the crowd behind them. "Are these the new disciples joining today?"
"Yes," Li Lin replied deferentially. "A total of two hundred and fifty."
"There are quite a few with immortal fate this year."
"Today is only the first day, so of course it’s like this," Senior Sister Mu chimed in with a smile. "There are still two more days to come. We might not see such numbers later."
"True enough," Senior Brother Bai nodded, straightening his expression before turning back to Li Lin. "Junior Brother, have the selections been finalized?"
Li Lin answered, "They were confirmed as of yesterday."
Senior Brother Bai waved a hand. "Then announce them."
"Yes!" Li Lin turned to face the crowd, pulling a booklet from his sleeve and loudly reciting a long string of numbers: "7, 9, 15, 17, 18…" He continued for a full quarter of an hour before finally stopping. His gaze swept over the crowd, and his voice turned cold as he declared, "Those holding the numbers just called may leave now."
The moment these words fell, the crowd erupted in uproar—the numbers called had clearly accounted for nearly half of the total group. Some even stepped forward in outright defiance.
"What’s the meaning of this?"
"Exactly! We worked so hard to get here—why won’t you let us join?"
"Right, we all came together. Why can some stay while others have to go?"
"Honored Immortals, could there be some misunderstanding?"
The crowd grew increasingly agitated, demanding an explanation.
Is this about to turn into a fight? Shi Xia quietly took a step back.
"Enough noise!" Li Lin’s brow furrowed, showing no intention of offering an explanation. With a flick of his hand, he formed a seal, and suddenly, a massive circular array lit up beneath their feet on the grassy ground. In a flash of white light, all those who had been protesting vanished on the spot. The area fell silent in an instant, and when the light faded, less than half the crowd remained.
Shi Xia found the array on the ground somewhat familiar—it resembled the one from the jade token. It seemed to be another teleportation array, though this one was clearly far more advanced, capable of mass teleportation.
