Bing Meilu halted her writing, looking down at Xia Xuefeng with a raised eyebrow.

"You want to come with me to the Palace?" Bing Meilu asked.

"Yes," Xia Xuefeng nodded. "I know it's a lot to ask but, I'm willing to repay you."

"And what exactly do you plan on repaying me with?" Bing Meilu asked dryly.

Xia Xuefeng gulped but quickly replied, having clearly prepared her answer in advance.

"I can be your servant!" Xia Xuefeng replied. "I am literate and capable at math, so I could be your scribe or accountant and I also know how to cook and bake."

Bing Meilu hummed to herself in consideration. She did not particularly care about Xia Xuefeng's mortal skills like baking, but the girl was not untalented in terms of cultivation. Furthermore, Xia Xuefeng was someone without much prior knowledge of the cultivation world, meaning she would be easy for Bing Meilu to mould. In Bing Meilu's experience, people like that generally made the best minions-subordinates.

'As my master always told me, never turn down the chance to recruit followers unless there is a very good reason,' Bing Meilu thought.

The only risk was that Xia Xuefeng would expose the fact that Bing Meilu owned multiple cultivation manuals, tell people that Bing Meilu had claimed to be a sect disciple well before she had officially entered it or somehow otherwise betray her. If Bing Meilu was going to accept her as a follower, she would need an assurance she would not betray Bing Meilu.

"If you want to serve me, give me some of your blood," Bing Meilu replied impassively.

"... My blood?" Xia Xuefeng asked, taken aback. "Why do you need my blood?"

"Swearing oaths over blood is still a common practice with the mortals on this continent isn't it?" Bing Meilu asked, frowning.

"O-oh, of course," Xia Xuefeng said, nodding in understanding. "That's what you meant."

Of course, that wasn't the real reason Bing Meilu wanted her blood. In truth, she simply needed a way to ensure Xia Xuefeng wouldn't end up betraying her. There was a near-endless array of curses, hexes and afflictions that could be placed on a cultivator using their Essence Blood. No cultivator with any degree of knowledge would ever give that out to anyone, even their closest friend or lover. It would effectively give that person total control over your life or death.

In short, the perfect preventative measure against betrayal that Bing Meilu could do at her current cultivation.

"So do you agree?" Bing Meilu asked.

"Yes, of course!" Xia Xuefeng responded firmly.

Bing Meilu nodded, smiling slightly. She opened her palm, blue light rapidly swirled above her hand, gathering into the shape of a shimmering ice-knife.

"Stay very still. This will hurt," Bing Meilu said, getting to her feet and walking up to Xia Xuefeng.

Bing Meilu took the blade, pressing it to the skin atop the bridge of Xia Xuefeng's nose. In terms of acupuncture, this was the Ancestral Cavity, where the soul resided. The blood here was given the special name 'Essence Blood' because its proximity to one's soul gave it powerful spirituality.

A small cut was sliced into Xia Xuefeng's flesh, from which a single drop of blood began to slide out. Bing Melu raised another hand, forming a small bottle out of ice. Bing Meilu pressed the bottle against Xia Xuefeng's skin, catching the blood inside and capping the bottle.

"Consider this drop of blood as the signature of our agreement," Bing Meilu said. "From now on, you must loyally serve me."

"Yes, young mistress," Xia Xuefeng responded bowing her head. "I swear, you won't regret giving me a chance!"

Bing Meilu nodded, stepping back over to the bedside table where she had been in the process of scribing the instructions to the Butcher Sage's Legacy tome. It was rather strong- for the Bird Talon Continent, but not exactly what Bing Meilu would want her personal servants cultivating. Now that Bing Meilu had the assurance of Xia Xuefeng's loyalty, she had no reason to not give the girl a much stronger cultivation manual.

What was the strongest blood-type cultivation manual Bing Meilu had ever come across?

As Bing Meilu thought that, a distant memory flashed in the back of her mind, of a crimson red moon shining down upon a desolate battlefield littered with the corpses of gods and devils.

Bing Meilu had scavenged many treasures from that place but none came close to what her close friend Ruan Hua had discovered.

Smiling slightly, Bing Meilu grabbed the ink brush as she began to write down the instructions to the Blood-Moon Spectral God's Anthem of the Crucified.

Xia Xuefeng kneeled patiently at the foot of Bing Meilu's bed, watching her boss write for hours on end. Eventually, Bing Meilu set down her brush, lifting the stack of papers that contained the Mortal-Realm portion of the Anthem of the Crucified.

"Here you go," Bing Meilu said, handing the papers to Xia Xuefeng. "Diligently cultivate this manual and you will definitely make a fine subordinate. If you have any questions you may come to me for advice."

Xia Xufeng grabbed the papers, standing up from her kneeling position.

"Thank you, young mistress," Xia Xuefeng said. "I definitely won't disappoint you."

The young girl turned around, stepping out of Bing Meilu's tent. Bing Meilu sighed slightly, closing her eyes.

Now, it was time to cultivate.

---

Zhang Yi sat in an alleyway, slowly nibbling on a small piece of dry bread. His hair and clothing were matted with dried sweat from days of martial arts fighting, but the comfortable weight of coins in his pocket left him feeling inordinately satisfied with the results of the last few weeks.

For the first time in his life, Zhang Yi had a skill he could consistently leverage for real money. Using the martial arts Teacher had taught him he would challenge others to fight, betting money on the results. When he inevitably won he would take in large sums of money, dozens of times higher than what he used to make doing odd jobs.

As for losing, well... Zhang Yi made sure not to lose very often.

Already the young boy had begun to build up some bulk from finally being able to consistently afford food. It wasn't quite a cure for years of malnutrition, but Zhang Yi was still pleased with the progress.

As he ate, the young boy began to hear excited cheering coming from somewhere in the town. The sheer volume of the noise made it clear that at least several dozens of people had gathered.

'That's strange. I wasn't aware there were any festivals or events this month,' Zhang Yi thought, the pale-skinned boy standing up from where he had been kneeling on the mud-covered ground.

Curious, the boy walked towards the source of the cheering. His search quickly led him to the edge of the village where a large crowd had gathered.

Merchants, peasants and even city guards all filled the crowd, all excitedly talking over one another. Zhang Yi strained his neck to see what the crowd had gathered around, but the boy, though tall for his age, was unable to see above the tall adults.

Quickly Zhang Yi scampered up to a mid-sized house near the crowd. Digging his fingers into the cracks between bricks, he agilely climbed his way up to the top of the building. Years of running from bullies had left him quite skilled at climbing.

With his newfound height advantage, Zhang Yi turned back to the crowd, finally able to see what the cause of the commotion was. In the center of the crowd stood a tall, well-muscled man dressed in extremely expensive-looking copper-coloured robes lined with gold filigree. His skin was clear and unblemished and his hair was a strong, dark black. A long copper blade hung at his side, dimly reflecting the light of day.

"Perhaps some travelling nobleman," Zhang Yi questioned.

As Zhang Yi watched, the man's mouth moved, though Zhang Yi was well too far away to make out what he said. However immediately the crowd went wild, cheering and shouting in a crazed fashion.

Curious as to what was going on, Zhang Yi climbed down the side of the house he had been standing upon, running closer to the crowd until he could just barely make out individual voices.

"-ank you, Great Immortal!"

"Please, my son is-"

"-uy you a drink at the-"

Zhang Yi arrived at the edge of the crowd, tapping the shoulder of a man in leather clothing. It was a butcher that Zhang Yi used to do chores for in return for discarded slices of meat.

"Butcher Ren, what's going on?" Zhang Yi asked straining his voice to be heard over the crowd.

"Oh, if it isn't little Yi," the man remarked turning around. "Well, it looks like a real immortal from an immortal sect has come to recruit talented youngsters!"

Zhang Yi's eyes widened. A real immortal? As with all children, Zhang Yi had grown up hearing stories of mighty immortal Daoists who could do all sorts of wondrous things, like flying on swords, concocting mystical pills and controlling the elements.

Suddenly, a thought occurred in Zhang Yi's mind.

'I wonder if he would accept me? Could I become an immortal too?'

As Zhang Yi watched, the crowd split open, the Immortal stepping forward. His copper robes shimmer with metallic light, blowing in the wind.

"The test will be held tomorrow right here. Anyone below the age of fifteen may take the test to join the Copper Egg Sect and gain the chance to pursue immortality!"

Suddenly a cloud of smoke exploded under the feet of the man. When the dust settled, the man had disappeared!

A trace of determination and admiration appeared in Zhang Yi's eyes. That was a real immortal! Zhang Yi would definitely pass tomorrow's test. This was his chance!

As Zhang Yi thought that, the Copper coin hanging from a chain on his neck vibrated imperceptibly. A great destiny had begun to unfold.

---

Bing Meilu sat deep in meditation, scintillating blue light shimmering around her as she cultivated. Her weeks of travel had left her little time to cultivate which left Bing Meilu more delayed than she'd like.

The sound of approaching footsteps knocked Bing Meilu out of her meditation, the girl opening her eyes to stare annoyed at the intruder.

"What is it?" Bing Meilu asked, sighing.

"We're all ready to set out now," Xia Xuefeng said from the entrance of the tent.

Bing Meilu nodded, standing up. It was time to enter the Flesh Mountains.