Chapter 19 (1/2)

The man in white looked at him, his expression still pleasant and friendly, “I assume you still have questions, Junior Brother?”

Xiao Chen’s eyes narrowed as he studied the two newcomers. “Questions? Of course, I do. If I might ask, who among the five Elders are your masters?”

“This…” The two men shared a look, brief and embarrassed. The man in green answered, “To speak the truth, we are actually Outer Disciples of the Three Pure Sect.” He then pointed at a shorter peak beside the main peak.

“Outer Disciples…” The sudden revelation caught the three princes unawares that they began to look sullen as if a pail of icy cold water had been poured over them.

The man in white then continued, “We may be Outer Disciples, but we are not much different from the Inner Disciples of the order. There are ample opportunities for us to be promoted as Inner Disciples.”

Seeing that Xiao Chen was looking derisive, the man in green remarked, “We are aware that you have excellent results in your tests. But there are more than a handful of others who have displayed greater potential than you. Our Sect accepts only five fresh Inner Disciples and fifty Outer Disciples per intake. But let it be known that we will never accept not even another once the tally is full.”

Prince Qi asked sharply, “What do you mean?”

The man in white replied, “It means that you may reject our invitation to be one of us, the Outer Disciples. But we will find others who might be interested until the count of 50 is met. By then, your only chance of gaining entry into the Sect would only be that five openings for new Inner Disciples.”

So, this was the conundrum: they could elect to continue further and seek to enroll as Inner Disciples, but this will see them forfeiting the final chance of being Outer Disciples. However, if anyone were to stop and leave with the pair now, they would directly become Outer Disciples.

Luo Shangyan stood silently without uttering a word. Prince Yan was the first to move, shifting closer to the men in white and green, whispering to his companions, “I think their offer is acceptable. Should we just…”

Prince Zhao and Prince Qi listened quietly. But seconds later, they too relented, “Senior Brother Xiao, Senior Sister Luo… Our apologies…”

Xiao Chen heaved a long and heavy breath, gazing up at the densely-clouded peak. “The journey in pursuit of immortality has never been for the faint-hearted who lack the needful resolve and will. Let us press on, Senior Sister,” Xiao Chen said to Luo Shangyan.

“Ah, I hardly care if this is the end or not. I am only curious to see how the top of Lingtai Mountain looks like,” said Shangguan Yan nonchalantly. With that, the three companions continued their upward hike.

The companions, now with only three remaining, went on without words. Luo Shangyan was especially silent. Xiao Chen gave a little laugh, “Trouble yourself no more with sad thoughts, Senior Sister. Everyone has a choice of their own and they made theirs, knowing that being Outer Disciples might suit them better. We do not force others to walk the same path as we do.”

Luo Shangyan shook her head gloomily; still refusing to say anything. But suddenly, they heard the sounds of huffing and puffing coming from behind them, “Senior Brother Xiao, Senior Sister Luo! Wait up!”

It was the three princes. Xiao Chen laughed enthusiastically, “I thought you have already become Outer Disciples! Why have you returned? Are you here to see us off?”

Prince Zhao held to a tree as he panted hard. Finally, when he regained his breath, he said, “We have decided! It is just as Lady Shangguan here had said, we do not care if we are accepted as disciples or not. But we will step onto Lingtai Mountain ourselves and behold with our own eyes a stronghold of the Immortals!”

“Hear hear! We have gone through thick and thin to reach this far. We must at least see it on our own lest we might have regrets! It is a sacrilege for us, the Three Swordsmen, to just walk off!” Prince Qi quipped as well.

“Hahaha!” Xiao Chen laughed to the sky heartily.

Even Luo Shangyan emitted a stifled giggle. Her eyes were red and moist. “This is good. It is a blessing that you had not left with them,” said she.

“Huh? What do you mean?” The rest of the five companions looked at her incredulously.

“Nothing. Let us continue our journey,” said Luo Shangyan as she giggled again.

At the foot of the mountain, the young men in green and white were still there. The man in green was the first to speak, “Argh… This is a silly idea by the Second Elder to have concocted such a lame plan to test the will of the fresh aspirants! We have even failed to lure away the three morons! Who else can we fool now?”

“Could it be that you have spoken too much, and they have noticed something wrong?”

“That is impossible. Hush! Look, somebody’s here! Let us prepare again to fall from the sky!”

The two young men leaped onto their Immortal’s sword and took into the skies once more.

Two hours later, Xiao Chen and his companions finally reached the peak of Lingtai Mountain where they found that they were surrounded by a sea of clouds rolling about around them and silhouettes of divine cranes flying freely in the sky. Into the distance, they could see that there were four other mountain peaks which were of equal height and the five mountain peaks were connected by steel chains. There were majestic and imposing halls build upon these peaks. Marble fences line around buildings of scarlet-red walls and fresh-colored roof tiles. This was the sacred domain of the Immortals.

They were at the first of the five peaks. Standing here, Xiao Chen could feel the Spiritual Qi emanating richly around him; a huge contrast to the grounds below where mortals reside.

The three princes were breathless by the beautiful and extraordinary sight before them. “So, this is where the Immortals live… Our journey has not been for naught…”

“My congratulations to all of you. You are the first group to complete the test,” a cheerful voice came from within the thick clouds and mists.

A young man, looking like a true Immortal, appeared from the plumes of clouds. He flailed his sleeves and dispersed the incessant clouds around him. It turned out that they had reached a large square where many young men and women in white robes have congregated. Silent without a word, they regarded Xiao Chen’s and his companions’ arrival quietly. Some nodded with approving smiles.