Second Time

Chapter 3 - Monsoon Sect

Monsoon Sect was a small sect situated in the center of three different towns. Around four hundred disciples studied within its walls. The sect master had a cultivation of Second Stage Nascent Soul, with no others being in the Nascent Soul Realm. In the grand scheme of things, it was pitifully weak, but they had enough power to control most of the surrounding area.

The Nascent Soul Realm was the fifth realm in the orthodox path, where cultivators started to develop their soul. After two years of effort, Shao Yue had stepped into the third realm, the Resonance Realm. That alone clearly showed the ineptitude of the sect.

But, it wasn't truly the cultivators' faults. The world energy on the island where they lived was quite thin when compared to the mainland, slowing the rate at which everyone could gather qi. Nascent Soul was practically the peak that could be achieved.

None of that mattered to Shao Yue. She knew how to cultivate. She didn't need an instructor. The pills would be low grade, but they would suit her current cultivation. Once she exceeded their usefulness, she'd save up money to travel to the mainland, join a larger sect, and continue from there.

First, she had to actually join the sect.

Shao Yue walked through the gates and looked around. The layout matched most sects she'd seen previously. The inner area held the nicest amenities. Around a hundred people lived there, none of them below the Resonance Realm aside from maids and servants. A wall separated it from the outer area where the other three hundred disciples lived.

She didn't get far before two male disciples in the Qi Refinement Realm stopped her.

"Hey, beggar girl. This isn't a place you can come."

Shao Yue supposed her clothes did give her the look of a beggar. "I'd like to join the sect."

One of them held out a hand, his fingers spread apart. "You need to have at least five meridians open to apply. Come back next year."

Even though he was stopping her, he had good intentions, so she couldn't be mad. "They'll make an exception for me."

He looked at her with an inquisitive expression. "What's your name?"

"Shao Yue."

He turned to his companion. "Do you know a Shao family?"

The other boy shook his head. "Nope. Maybe she has some treasure she wants to trade for entry?"

"A treasure, huh?"

The two stared at her with greedy eyes.

"I have no background and no treasures," Shao Yue stated. "I have something they desire even more than either of those. If you cause trouble for me, the Elders might just flay off all of your skin, roll you in salt, and hang you from the gates as an example to the other disciples."

The two were taken aback. She had said it so directly, so matter-of-factly. It didn't mesh at all with her twelve-year-old appearance.

"You have nothing to lose from helping me," Shao Yue continued. "The elder may even be so happy that they grant you both extra pills or something. If I'm lying, I'm the only one who will be punished."

The two disciples exchanged a look. For a cultivator, there wasn't much that could be considered more precious than pills. Depending on the type, they could heal wounds, increase cultivation speed, calm the mind, and much more. Especially for lower ranked cultivators who could only meditate for an hour or two before losing focus, each one represented great gains.

After a bit of deliberation, they agreed to take her to one of the sect's elders. What she said made sense, and her complete confidence made them uneasy.