Chapter 75: Peak of Enlightenment

Someone who feared even cliffs would never have another chance to change their allegiance, and those two disciples who had left the mountain would likewise lose the opportunity to become official disciples, becoming servants instead.

After crossing the iron suspension bridge, Chen Luo began taking stock of his surroundings on the Peak of Enlightenment.

Compared with the desolate landscape beyond the mountainside, this place was clearly much more pleasant. Both sides of the path were lined with neatly trimmed greenery, and the steps beneath his feet were much cleaner, implying that they were regularly swept until spotless. A gentle breeze carried a hint of warmth; separated by only one bridge, these two places might as well have been worlds apart.

Upon reaching the peak, Chen Luo felt like he had arrived at some fragrant valley full of birdsong, devoid of the chill typically found at such high altitudes.

“New shidi?”

A voice came from above the stairs.

Chen Luo looked up and saw a man dressed in teal Daoist robes standing in the middle of the road, seemingly waiting just for him. The man possessed a slim build and gaunt features, looking very much like a poor scholar who had suffered long-term nutritional deprivation.

“Why are you alone? Did Sect Uncle Chengfeng toss everyone else down here?! What will we do?” When speaking of Immortal Crane Chengfeng, the young man’s expression grew bitter.

Even Chen Luo didn’t dare provoke that crane.

He hurried forward and bowed respectfully to the man. “Greetings, Senior.”

He didn’t know what this person’s seniority was, but it certainly couldn’t hurt to be deferential. Addressing everyone as Senior was definitely a safe bet.

“I’ve only accepted one shidi; how am I supposed to report back to the sect? If Shizun remembers, he’ll tear me apart!”

The young man’s attention remained focused on the other disciples who had yet to arrive, so he completely missed Chen Luo’s greeting. Seeing this, Chen Luo could do nothing but stand off to the side and wait.

After another moment, approximately half the time it takes an incense stick to burn, more people began rushing over. The female cultivator who had initially sought out Chen Luo for directions and her two friends were among them; the rest appeared to have truly gone down the mountain.

“Phew, phew,” the young man breathed, finally relieved after seeing the new arrivals. Though their numbers were still lacking, with Chen Luo included, they just managed to meet the quota.

“Come up the mountain with me, everyone. I’ll arrange your accommodations first.” The young man led the way, introducing himself along the path. “My name is Hu Qiudao, you may call me Elder Brother Hu.”

At this point, Hu Qiudao turned to look at Chen Luo and added, “I don’t seem too old, do I?”

”…Not old.”

Chen Luo was speechless; he finally understood why his elder brother had ignored him earlier. It seemed that Elder Brother Hu was unhappy with being called ‘senior’.

“I entered the Dao at age seven, and have cultivated for twenty-three years now.”

Hu Qiudao continued walking ahead, rambling on aimlessly the whole way. At first, Chen Luo and the others still felt some respect for this elder brother, but by the end, their ears were buzzing like mosquitoes, itching to cover his mouth.

Before long, the group arrived at the highest point of Peak of Enlightenment.

The summit looked very small from below, but once they’d actually climbed up, they discovered it was quite spacious. Aside from the main hall in the center, there were several side halls nearby. On the outermost edges stood rows of guest rooms, arranged neatly together and inscribed with immortal scripts and talismans on their surfaces—presumably for dust removal purposes.

“Elder Brother Huang, everyone’s here! Five people altogether!”

Once they reached this point, Hu Qiudao spoke less frequently. He stood before the door of one such guest room, calling out through the thatched hut inside.

Creak!

The wooden door opened accordingly.

A weathered man poked his head out from one of the rooms and glanced at Chen Luo’s group with clear displeasure.

“How few people are these?”

“Too few.”

Another voice rang out, but this time it was clearly not human.

The new disciples cast bewildered glances around them, growing even more perplexed as they confirmed that only Hu Qiudao and Elder Brother Huang were present. The voices were obviously those of two people conversing, so why did they hear three?

But these two clearly had no intention of clarifying matters for them.

“The rest have been driven away by Sect Uncle Chengfeng,” said Hu Qiudao innocently. “If you’re unhappy, go find him yourself.”

“Sect Uncle Chengfeng?”

“That damned crane again! I’m gonna pluck all its feathers sooner or later!”

Two more voices sounded, but this time Chen Luo and the others saw clearly that both came from Elder Brother Huang.

“Have their accommodations been assigned?” Hu Qiudao seemed to have grown used to Elder Brother Huang’s voice and immediately turned to fulfill his duty.

“There’s plenty of room; just pick anywhere is fine.”

Elder Brother Huang walked out from the room.

“Since Shizun is free, let me take them to pay their respects first.”

This time, everyone clearly saw Elder Brother Huang’s appearance: a middle-aged man slovenly to the extreme, so filthy that one could smell his clothes from afar. Strangest of all was how he held up his right hand, which was covered with a tiger head puppet identical to a real person, examining them with interest.

“What are you staring at? Haven’t you seen such handsome tigers before?” As this group looked on, the tiger puppet unexpectedly opened its mouth and spoke.

Elder Brother Huang’s hands moved like those of a traditional puppeteer controlling a figure. The sight rendered several disciples dumbstruck.

“It’ll pass; there was a bit of a mishap during Elder Brother Huang’s Enlightenment, resulting in some mental issues.”

“What do you mean, ‘mishap’?! You talk too much!”

The tiger puppet immediately shot back, causing Hu Qiudao to grow displeased as he joined the argument.

The two walked and argued the whole way, leaving the people behind utterly bewildered.

Was this truly the Divine Lake Immortal Sect?

After passing through the bluestone corridor, they entered the Inner Court, where a long gray-tiled walkway stretched out before them. The walls were yellowed along both sides, and many places had been eroded by rainwater, leaving behind strange patterns.

“You two are from the She Nation?”

At the end of the bluestone corridor, the arguing pair suddenly ceased their quarrel. The ‘tiger-head puppet’ in Elder Brother Huang’s right hand turned to glance at Chen Luo and the others, then spoke up.

“Yes.”

The girl next to him responded with the same answer. The other three said nothing; perhaps they belonged to different nations.

“I’m also from the She Nation,” he continued. “As fellow countrymen, let me warn you: cultivation on the Peak of Enlightenment requires maintaining a proper state of mind. The way we cultivate here may not be what you expect.”

“How so?” Chen Luo asked.

“The Peak of Enlightenment has another name within the Divine Lake Immortal Sect: Heart Demon Peak.”

“Seeking immortality leads to Xin Mo!”

Xin Mo?

Chen Luo looked at the tiger head puppet he was speaking to, then glanced over at Elder Brother Huang, who hadn’t spared them so much as a glance, and suddenly understood what this meant.

“There’s no need for you to be afraid; although the cultivation method here at the Peak of Enlightenment is prone to producing Xin Mo, it’s extremely helpful for learning techniques. Other people might spend half a year or even longer mastering something, but we can learn it within a month.”

As they spoke, the group passed through side rooms until they arrived at the inner hall.

Once inside, everyone fell silent, the atmosphere growing significantly more tense.

Elder Brother Huang, who had been walking in front, stopped before a room and knocked lightly on the bronze ring hanging above its door three times.

“Shizun, I’ve brought the newly accepted disciples.”

After his voice rang out, there was a brief pause, followed by another voice from within: “Come in.”

The copper door creaked open slightly, allowing a burst of white steam to escape. The group unconsciously held their breaths, only to discover that the circulation of spiritual energy within their bodies instantly sped up several times over.

How abundant the spiritual energy!