Mo Xuan asked Granny Lin, "How long until the recruitment?"
"A few months." She smiled. "If you set out tomorrow morning, you should have enough time to get there."
Mo Xuan nodded slowly.
That evening, Mo Xuan returned to his room earlier than usual. He closed the door. Then he sat at the small wooden table. For a long time, he stared at the blank sheet of paper before him. He had originally intended to leave without saying too much.
Perhaps a simple goodbye. But the longer he stared at the paper, the more uncomfortable he became. Granny Lin had taken him in, given him food, a place to sleep.
Clothes.
Most importantly... She had given him somewhere to belong when he had no idea where he was. Leaving without telling her the truth felt wrong.
Mo Xuan picked up the brush. The first words came slowly. Then faster.
He wrote about the Mo Clan, about the hidden cave he had discovered after being chased by the Blood Wolf, and about how he had been teleported here — leaving out the details that might invite trouble.
And finally...
He wrote about his determination to return home. He did not know whether she would believe any of it. Perhaps she would think the story was nothing more than the imagination of a child. But he wanted her to know. He owed her that much.
When he finished, he folded the letter carefully. Then he placed it on the table.
The following morning, Granny Lin woke before sunrise. She found the house strangely quiet. "Xuan'er?"
There was no answer.
She walked toward his room.
The bed had already been neatly arranged. His few belongings were gone. Only a single folded piece of paper remained on the table. Her hands trembled slightly as she picked it up.
She opened the letter. The further she read... The quieter she became.
Every impossible detail was written with such sincerity that she could almost hear the boy's voice as she read. By the time she reached the final lines, tears had gathered in the corners of her eyes. She slowly lowered the letter.
"Silly boy..." Her voice trembled.
The valley beyond it was already beginning to brighten beneath the morning sun. Granny Lin wiped her eyes. Then she smiled.
"Go."
Several hours earlier, before Granny Lin had awakened, Mo Xuan had already left the village, as he was not used to goodbyes. A small pack rested upon his back. His Storage Ring was still fastened around his waist beneath his clothes.
He stopped at the entrance to the valley and turned around.
The village looked peaceful beneath the morning light. Smoke rose from the chimneys. Farmers were beginning their day's work. Children chased one another between the houses.
For a year...
This place had been his home. Not his true home. But a home nonetheless. Mo Xuan lowered his head. Then he bowed deeply. He straightened. He turned away. This time, he did not look back.
The journey toward the Azure Cloud Sword Sect took several months.
Mo Xuan travelled mostly on foot. He avoided unnecessary conflicts and kept his cultivation concealed whenever possible. Along the way, he passed through small towns and mountain settlements, slowly learning more about the world beyond the valley.
He heard stories of powerful clans. Ancient sects. Spirit Beast territories. Cultivators who could cross hundreds of kilometres in a single day.
He listened carefully.
Every piece of information helped him understand the world he had been separated from. Yet one name appeared repeatedly.
Azure Cloud Sword Sect.
It was one of the Five Great Powers of the Central Plains. The sect had existed for generations and was renowned for its sword cultivators.
Eventually...
The mountains appeared. At first, Mo Xuan thought they were ordinary peaks. Then he noticed something strange. One mountain rose before him. Then another. All of them rose toward the heavens like enormous swords. Clouds wrapped around their peaks.
Then he saw the highest ones. They pierced through the clouds like enormous swords. Waterfalls descended from cliffs hundreds of metres high, their roaring sounds echoing across the mountains.
And above those peaks...
Swords floated through the heavens. Some were physical weapons. Others were manifestations of Sword Intent condensed from generations of cultivation. They hovered silently in the sky, emitting faint vibrations that resonated through the surrounding mountains.
Mo Xuan stopped walking.
For the first time since leaving the valley, he felt genuinely small. The Mo Clan had once seemed enormous to him.
Now...
He realised how limited his previous world had been. The cultivation world was far larger than he had imagined. And this...
Was only one sect.
As Mo Xuan approached the entrance, the number of people increased. Hundreds of young cultivators stood in long orderly lines before the enormous entrance plaza. Some were excited, while others were nervous. A few were already boasting about their cultivation. Mo Xuan quietly joined the queue, the entrance token Granny Lin had helped him obtain resting in his hand.
He looked toward the massive stone gate. Four enormous characters had been carved into it.
Azure Cloud Sword Sect.
The recruitment process was simple. Every applicant first received an entrance token. Then they were required to undergo several examinations.
Age. Cultivation. Soul Type. Foundation.
Finally... Their Martial Soul would be summoned and examined by the sect elders.
One person after another stepped forward. Some were rejected immediately. Others were accepted after displaying impressive talent. Occasionally, the crowd erupted in discussion.
"Level eighteen, a Late Soul Scholar at eleven years old!"
"His Martial Soul is actually a Purple Lightning Wolf!"
"That child has a Variant Soul!"
Mo Xuan listened quietly.
Eventually... The line moved forward.
Mo Xuan could now see the examination platform clearly. An enormous stone slab stood in its centre. Runes covered its surface. Several elders sat nearby. One of them wore grey robes and had a stern expression. Every applicant who approached the slab placed a hand upon it. The runes would then illuminate.
Their information would appear across the surface.
One by one, the applicants stepped forward.
Then... "Next."
Mo Xuan heard the voice. He stepped out of the line while hundreds of eyes immediately turned toward him. He ignored them and walked onto the platform.
The grey-robed elder looked at him. "Name."
"Mo Xuan."
"Age."
"Ten."
The elder nodded. "Place your hand on the slab."
Mo Xuan slowly raised his hand. Then his palm touched the stone.
Hum!
The entire examination slab suddenly lit up.
Runes spread outward beneath his palm. One circle. Then another. The light continued climbing. The crowd gradually became quieter.
Mo Xuan's eyes narrowed as the runes finally stabilised. Several lines of characters appeared across the surface.
Bone Age: 10 years.
Cultivation: Soul Practitioner — Level 20.
Cosmic Soul Type: Mutated.
The silence lasted only for a heartbeat. Then the entire plaza erupted.
The grey-robed elder's eyebrows rose.
He looked directly at Mo Xuan.
"Summon your cosmic soul."
Mo Xuan's fingers tightened slightly. He slowly closed his eyes. His Cosmic Soul responded. A faint pressure spread from his body. The air around him became strangely still.
Then— Hum!
Light appeared behind him. A circular rune formation slowly emerged, its edges seemingly dissolving into the surrounding air. At its centre... A sword appeared.
Half of the blade was black. The other half was white. The two colours existed together in perfect balance. The sword remained suspended within the rune circle, surrounded by a faint, almost imperceptible aura. It looked as though it were separate from the rune, yet also as though it had always been meant to merge with it — giving off a strange, unplaceable feeling.
The entire arena fell silent. Even the elder stared at the strange sword suspended behind the boy. Mo Xuan opened his eyes. He could feel the gaze of hundreds of people upon him.
The elder slowly stood. "A sword..."
The elder's expression became solemn. He found himself unable to identify what he was seeing.
Before the elder could continue— A lazy voice suddenly drifted across the examination ground. "Tell that long-bearded goat..."
"...I'll take this one."
The grey-robed elder's expression stiffened as the surrounding disciples turned toward the source of the voice. A man was walking lazily across the edge of the arena.
His clothes were dishevelled, and his hair was messy.
His beard had clearly been neglected for far too long. A wine gourd hung from one hand. His footsteps appeared unsteady, as though he were already drunk. But as he walked, space seemed to fold beneath his steps. One moment he was at the edge of the arena; the next, he stood before the examination platform directly in front of the elder.
The moment he appeared... Several elders immediately became serious. The younger disciples looked at one another in confusion. The elders, however, did not move.
The grey-robed examiner's expression changed. He knew there was only one person who dared call their sect master a long-bearded goat — the eccentric Elder Han Long.
The elder immediately stepped aside.
Han Long walked toward Mo Xuan while drinking. His eyes briefly swept across the boy. Then he grinned. "Interesting."
Mo Xuan remained silent.
Han Long stopped in front of him. "What's your name?"
"Mo Xuan."
"Have you ever practised sword arts?"
Mo Xuan hesitated. "A little."
Han Long laughed. "Perfect."
He took another drink. "I like cubs who think they know something."
Mo Xuan frowned slightly. There was something strange about this man. He looked completely unreliable. Yet Mo Xuan could sense something terrifying beneath that drunken appearance. His Spiritual Sense instinctively warned him.
Danger.
Han Long suddenly placed a hand on his shoulder. "Come."
Mo Xuan's body instinctively tensed. Before he could react, the surrounding scenery blurred.
Space twisted.
The next instant...