Cultivation: Beginning with the Heart Reflecting Heaven and Earth

Just as he was about to take a few steps, his stomach growled, and Lu Qian immediately knew that at least a day had passed.

"I haven't tried the medicinal cuisine yet, so let me take a fasting pill first!"

The Bigu Pill can be obtained by presenting the token of an outer disciple; thirty pills can be obtained each month, which can be considered a free benefit.

However, the spiritual food specially supplied by the sect is not something that outer disciples can enjoy.

After taking a fasting pill, Lu Qian meditated for a while before he recovered.

Bang!Bang!

There was a knock on the door.

It seems that only Chen Yu would come looking for Lu Qian, but when Lu Qian opened the door, it was Wu Ling'er who appeared outside.

"It's been a few days, and I'm really not used to it anymore."

Wu Ling'er smiled sweetly, her face flushed, as she had applied rouge, and she also carried a faint fragrance.

Lu Qian was surprised. He didn't expect Wu Ling'er to have changed so much in just a few days. She used to be a simple and lovely little girl, but now she had a worldly air about her.

They used to be classmates. Wu Ling'er usually behaved very properly, but now she leaned closer to Lu Qian and said with a low laugh, "But you haven't changed. You're always alone."

"Miss Wu is too kind. I am merely yearning for the path of immortality and have been diligently cultivating myself."

Lu Qian showed no change in expression, simply cupping his hands in greeting, "May I ask what brings Miss Wu to see me?"

Why have we become so distant?

Wu Ling'er gave Lu Qian a reproachful look, and seeing that he didn't react, she smiled sheepishly, "Based on what I know of you, you shouldn't have joined any faction, right?"

"I have no idea what you know about me."

Lu Qian first retorted, then shook his head, "I really haven't joined any faction; I only want to focus on my cultivation."

"Devoted to ascetic practice? That's a nice idea, but people in this world form cliques. Without anyone's help, where can you find a place for ascetic practice?"

Wu Ling'er stretched out her jade-like fingers and spread them apart one by one. "Whether it's the herb garden, the fish pond, or other tasks, they've all been taken over by various forces. If you only want to fight alone, you probably won't even be able to get through the door. Even if you manage to get in, you'll be doing the hardest and most tiring work, with no benefits at all."

"But without resources, what can one achieve by simply practicing hard?"

Lu Qian understood these principles, of course, but he had no background. If he rashly joined a faction, he would probably only be doing the hardest and most tiring work, and might even be exploited. It would be better for him to fight alone.

Everyone is thinking about banding together to gain benefits, but where do these benefits come from?

Resources don't appear out of thin air. When there are more people, there will be fewer. It's certainly not easy to seize resources from the outside, but internal exploitation can be done with just a word.

Lu Qian has no intention of joining any faction until there are clear benefits, and since he has not yet shown any potential, no faction will be willing to invest in him.

So he declined again, saying, "Thank you, Miss Wu, but I have no intention of joining any other faction for the time being."

"Even if you truly live a life of indifference to worldly affairs, do you know that even if you become an inner disciple and join one of the 108 peaks, each peak is different?"

Despite being somewhat disappointed by Lu Qian's reply, Wu Ling'er did not give up trying to persuade him. "The treatment of the Upper Nine Peaks is completely different from that of the other peaks. If you only join a lower-ranked branch, you will only be an outer disciple among inner disciples, and you will not have any hope of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage."

Lu Qian was unaware of these things, and now that someone was telling him, it couldn't be better. "I'm not aware of these things; I'd like to hear more!"

"In fact, many outer disciples have already met the standards to be accepted into the inner sect, but they still stay in the outer sect, hoping to win a place in the top ten of the outer sect competition, because there are differences between inner disciples."

"The simplest way is, of course, to become a disciple of a Foundation Establishment Elder. However, while Foundation Establishment Elders may be pillars of some small sects, they are just so-so in my Canghai Sect. Some elders can become disciples simply by giving a gift. Even if you don't give a gift, you can still become a disciple once you reach the late stage of Qi Refining, but you will only be accepted into the lower lineage."

Wu Ling'er stopped talking at this point, but a smile remained on her face.

Lu Qian had no choice but to ask, "If there's a lower pulse, then there should be an upper pulse. Shouldn't there be some difference?"

"Now you know to ask? If you were just going it alone, who would bother with these things?"

Wu Ling'er rolled her eyes at Lu Qian, but continued, "The Upper Meridian is actually the Upper Nine Peaks, also known as the Dao Meridian. It is the place where my Canghai Sect truly inherits its Dao lineage. The four pavilions of arrays, artifacts, pills, and talismans are also located in the Dao Meridian. The sect's structure is basically managed by the Dao Meridian."

"The Thirty-Three Peaks are the central vein, the backbone of my Canghai Sect. The strong ones are no weaker than the Dao veins, and the weak ones also have outstanding qualities."

"The lower branch is the lower sixty-six peaks. This is relatively peripheral. It only has the name of the Canghai Sect. It is better than an affiliated force, but not much better."

"Therefore, there are differences between inner disciples. The status of inner disciples in the Dao lineage is no weaker than that of Foundation Establishment elders. Genius disciples with two spiritual roots also join the Dao lineage. The top ten in the outer sect competition can also join the Dao lineage. That's why so many people flock to it!"

Lu Qian was unaware of the many twists and turns involved, but he quickly realized, "Could it be that the faction you belong to allows one to join their Dao lineage?"

He had eaten too much of that pancake, and had gained experience from it, so he immediately grasped the most crucial issue.

As powerful as the Daoist lineage is, what does it have to do with Wu Ling'er?

This simple logic is not difficult to understand.

Wu Ling'er immediately gave an awkward smile, "I can only say that we have disciples from the Dao lineage behind us. As for whether we can get you in, that ultimately depends on ourselves."

Lu Qian, however, remembered the two geniuses with dual spiritual roots who had traveled with him and asked, "Is it Qi Linye or Wan Qiushui?"

Wu Ling'er's expression immediately changed. "Did Chen Yu tell you?"

"What does it matter if it's him or not?"

Lu Qian smiled and said, "Since I already know, it's okay to say it, isn't it?"

Wu Ling'er hesitated for a moment before speaking, "It's Wan Qiushui. As soon as she arrived at Canghai Sect, she joined the most mysterious Array Pavilion. She's different from us."

"As for Qi Linye, his spiritual root is very suitable for combat. He joined one of the Dao lineages, Liuguang Peak. Privately, we all call Liuguang Peak Sword Pavilion, but the sect does not have a Sword Pavilion, so we still refer to it as Liuguang Peak."

Lu Qian did have some impression of Qi Linye; he was the first person to be detected with two spiritual roots, and he seemed like a rather ordinary young man.

Wan Qiushui was somewhat mysterious. She wore a veil and seemed to have had some connection with the Canghai Sect before. Moreover, Lu Qian had never seen her before.

This is not enough. The requirements for talent in the array path are extremely high. These requirements are not even related to spiritual roots. Not just anyone with two spiritual roots can join the array pavilion, especially in such a short period of time.

The most reasonable explanation is that Wan Qiushui had already established connections with the Array Pavilion before coming to the Canghai Sect.

These things had little to do with Lu Qian, so he could just listen and forget about them. However, he did understand why one could become an inner disciple once their skills reached a certain level. It was because this was a special recruitment method of the Dao lineage; if one met the requirements, one could naturally enter.

But no matter what, it doesn't seem like it's easy to get by in the Canghai Sect. There are only so many opportunities for advancement, and it's hard to seize them. Moreover, if you're slow at one step, you'll be slow at every step. It can be said to be quite strict.