Ah, hidden realms. The promised lands of cultivation, where years of progress could be done in days. Mystical trials to be surpassed, hidden treasures to be found and of course, fierce competition. Only the worthy would be able to find success after all – a realm of limited resources would naturally lead to fierce clashes over those resources.

All very exciting of course, but as Aki rested in his comfortable bed, it just felt bothersome. He would vastly prefer to relax in his brand-new hot spring for a few years at least before going off on some adventure. He didn’t even have hot wings to motivate him this time! Still, he was a man who could see when things had to be done, and he was fully capable of resolving himself for the sake of the necessary.

Besides, if he did not go, he would miss out on a chance to have some drinks with that nice tax lady...

I am still much too weak to be a proper sect elder. For an inner sect disciple, my cultivation would be progressing very nicely – but that is not the position I’m in. I’m supposed to be a powerhouse of the sect, knowledgeable in all manners of cultivation. I have to progress as fast as humanly possible.

He rolled himself off his bed and stood up. It was time to make some plans, so Aki began pacing around in his room.

A realm that opens every 500 years... this is a rare opportunity. Or is it actually? How many hidden realms are there? 500 such hidden realms would lead to one every year on average. Am I placing too much value on this?

No, that’s a bad thought. Even if that was the case, it would just mean I should go to all the ones that do open up. Waiting even one year could be very risky – I need to seize hold of every advantage I can. Besides, Keen Blade did imply that this would be useful for me, I don’t think she would say that idly.

She is her sect’s handler for all this sort of stuff, so she’ll probably be at the event too. At least her complaints contained many references to similar things... There’s probably no way I’m slipping in there without her knowledge at least, but she did seem amenable to that. But I can’t just go as I am now, an elder shouldn’t be participating in such things. How should I disguise myself?

Aki strode off to his storage room and began rummaging through it to find some proper tools for this job. He first took up the wooden mask he had used for a disguise at that demonic cultivator meeting – It was an effective tool and should serve to mask his identity well enough. Only Winter Gale had knowledge of it, and she was too strong to come along on this trip. He decided to take it along as one option.

However, it would be good to have backup plans, so Aki decided to examine other options. He had procured some tools from the treasure pavilion to his own storage and had a few that could work here.

First were some disguise talismans. They lasted for 3 days and could be used to set an illusion on top of yourself, different for each talisman. He had one that would make him appear younger, and one that would change his hair colour to green. Not the best options, but maybe they could be useful in an emergency. He took them along.

Relying on magical tools might be a tad risky – Aki had always felt that movies which used practical effects were often more convincing than those which used elaborate CGI. Could the same apply here? Maybe a simple approach could also work.

Aki had bought some additional clothing to fill out his wardrobe, and he had one piece of clothing in mind that could work for this. It was a brown robe with a deep hood on it. He had bought it on a whim just in case he ever got the chance to play at being the [Mysterious Old Man] of stories, but it could work here too. If he wore it and pulled the hood up, it would cover his whole face. Why rely on magic if simpler means could work too? Aki decided to take the robe along as well.

He went back to his room and put all the tools on his bed and looked over them. Hmm, what if I use all these techniques at once? I’ll put on the robe and hood, wear the mask and then have one of the talismans as a backup. Then nobody will be able to guess what my real identity is!

Aki could already imagine it – a mysterious hooded figure wearing a magical mask. Just the thought got his blood pumping. An opportunity to play the role of a mysterious rogue cultivator... It was one of those things he did not know he had wished for deep in his heart before he got the idea. All he was missing was a good name for his new identity!

I think I did well with those demonic cultivators – Lord Bloody Massacre got them good. It really felt impactful, it left an impression. I guess my naming sense is a lot better than I thought it was. What should I go for this time? I’m feeling up for something proper mysterious, maybe I’ll be Lord Mysterioso this time? That sounds pretty cool.

With the important parts done, a look and a name set for his new identity, all Aki was missing was a plan to help slip Lord Mysterioso inside the realm. That however might prove difficult – or would it?

I’m the damn sect leader, aren’t I? Why couldn’t I just tell everyone that my good friend mister Mysterioso will be going along with the group? That should work fine.

Satisfied with his great plan, Aki cleared the tools from his bed, put them into a sack and went to sleep.

The next day, it was time to make some more preparations. As usual, Aki was sipping on some tea in his courtyard garden. Soul Food Hall had brought some exotic tea flavours with them, so Aki was getting more variety than he was used to. This one almost had a bit of a chocolatey flavour, which made him extra content. Ah, I really made the right choice in getting this hall to join up.

This time, he had both Winter Gale and Passionate Seeker in attendance. They were sitting opposite him, already finished with their own cups of tea. Passionate Seeker was focused and ready with her notebook, while Winter Gale was eating some spirit strawberries from her pockets. Aki was a bit surprised that she had managed to find some, autumn was well underway after all. Still, that was not the point of this meeting. He finished his cup and got things going.

“Disciples, I trust you have heard of the upcoming hidden realm trip. It will be a great opportunity for this sect, and I would like to have your assistance in choosing the right disciples to go there.”

Passionate Seeker’s expression brightened up quite a bit. “Master, will I get to go there? I’m close to a breakthrough, and I’m sure the hidden realm would give me what I need for it!”

“Naturally, you will be coming along. I expect good results from you, of course.”

“I won’t fail you master!” She replied, slamming her notebook down on the table. However, after the burst of excitement wore off, her face turned to a frown. “So, I’m participating, but I’m also helping to choose participants? Isn’t that... problematic?”

Aki nodded at her. “That is a good observation, however I trust you to not misuse the authority you are being given. You are the only member of my council who is still an inner sect disciple, so you have a valuable perspective for this. You will, of course be working under Winter Gale on this, so there is supervision on this.”

Winter Gale finished eating a berry, then joined the conversation. “So, I’m acting as a watchdog for her? Sounds fine to me. What types of people should we be targeting?”

Aki thought on that for a moment. “Not including Passionate Seeker, we need 18 other talented cultivators with lots of room to grow, who have under 3 Qi strings formed. Hidden realm trials are a great opportunity for the brightest of our sect to seize their destinies.”

“I can think of some possible names for that list...” Passionate Seeker began thinking, then continued. “However, may I make an unorthodox suggestion?”

Aki raised an eyebrow. “I am always open to fresh ideas, go on.”

The woman nodded gratefully at him and went on. “You’ve had me teaching Little Hawk for a while now, and his talents have been outstanding. He has not formed even his first Qi string yet, but manages surprisingly well against the weaker inner sect disciples. People like him are rare, and something like this may be a great opportunity for him.”

“Hmm, an interesting idea.” Aki had to admit. This was a strange suggestion, and Aki covertly decided to use his [Thread of Fate] technique to verify something. To his dismay, the thread was vibrating more than he had ever seen before. Aki turned back to his apprentices, keeping his face cool and calm.

Is that kid actually like a main character, somebody blessed by the heavens? Treading into a realm to compete with those way ahead of him, it feels like such a storybook move. Do I dare oppose this? The karma of this moment felt way too significant.

“I’ll... allow it.” Aki decided. “Do you have any other suggestions that need extra attention?”

His apprentice shook her head. “No, not at the moment. I’ll have to consult with elder sister Winter Gale more on this.”

“Well then, you two are dismissed. I hope to see good results.”

The month passed by fast as Aki focused his time on practicing the few combat techniques he knew and making various extra preparations.

His karma techniques were not much good for combat, so he was left with the water techniques he had been practicing – the [Basic Water Control] and [Six Fists of Water] techniques. He was getting a decent grip on them by now, though he still lacked the water Qi string that would truly empower the techniques. Something he hoped to fix on this trip.

[Basic Water Control] did pretty much what you would expect, it allowed for basic control of water. Nothing too destructive could be achieved with it, so Aki did not count on it too much. He was placing his hopes on the [Six Fists of Water] technique, which allowed him to strengthen his fist strikes with water – nothing too fancy, but it was versatile enough. His physical body was Aki’s strongest weapon at this point, anything else would be just a bonus. Naturally, he also had his trusty knife which he could throw around with ease. Flying on it still eluded him though.

Aki had to make some arrangements to get Elder Boreal Night along for the trip, a necessity because he could not actually power the giant flying fan artifact which the sect would be using for the trip. The fact that he intended to slip away played a part too – he couldn’t exactly leave the sect with no representation outside the realm.

In the end, he managed to get the elusive elder onboard by referring to the dangers caused by demonic cultivators. They had been stirring more trouble recently after all, which managed to convince the woman.

Soon, he had the travel party gathered, and it was time to set off. Everyone gathered on top of the flying fan, elder Boreal Night went to pilot it, and Aki turned to gaze forward.

It was time to head off to the hidden realm!