Elder Wei and Elder Fang were waiting by the sect entrance. It was also an exit but for the purposes of the sect, they called it the sect entrance. It was a major debate among the elders on what to call this location. Only after a majority vote did they call it the sect entrance.

Near the two sect elders, was a carriage. It was really a wagon with supplies in the back and enough space for two in the front and four in the back, including supplies. The wagon was attached to two powerful looking horses with great black manes. These horses were next to one other horse - an even bigger horse with reins. This horse was Elder Wei’s. The sizes of the horses are mentioned only to illustrate that they could be threats and the size becomes a factor in the near future.

Elder Wei looked at the horses and the absurd wagon that Tian Lu had requested. The wagon was plain and white, and it looked like something a merchant would use to carry goods. This journey would take much longer than their initial plan but he felt it would be a good experience for the disciples as they hadn’t had too many life or death battles. If any. Those experiences were truly the best way to become stronger. He remembered fondly of the life and death battles he had. It was all life for him, and not a single one was death. Because if even one was death, he would not remember any fondly. Because he would be dead.

Elder Fang was not used to riding in a wagon, much less horses. As a young girl, she thought cultivators would just fly to places and soar great heights. She later learned that much qi was wasted in flight and was really dangerous for many cultivators. It was not until the Unity Realm cultivators one even thought about flying across the continent. It took great skill to fly on a sword and only the powerful, or ones who wanted to show off, would be able to. So, she had expected the group would have to each ride a horse to their destination. When she discovered Tian Lu wanted to take a slow carriage and go through a longer route, she was sort of looking forward to it. She did not get to go out of the sect too much and this would let her see the sights. She was a fan of seeing. Speaking of which, she saw Zhao Fei’s disciples walking towards her.

The three disciples were truly outstanding individuals. Looks, strength, and demeanor, she was jealous. Though she was not much older than the senior disciple, she knew she had reached her limit.

Two other individuals were by the carriage but they were not mentioned yet because they were not important to the story at that time. Huang Di’s personal disciple, Gong Chang, was dressed in light black leather. He had a bald head and a muscular frame. He looked very much like a monk because he was bald and in this world, people did not choose to look bald naturally if they were not monks. Elder Wei shaves his head bald for a mysterious reason as he is not a monk. Gong Chang had a bald head because he thought he looked more serious and tough. It would be easy to believe that there must be other individuals who choose to be bald and are not monks, but it is very unlikely. It just so happens that this mysterious sect has two such individuals.

Gong Chang was 23 years old and the oldest among this group. He was ashamed he still cared what his fellow disciples thought of him. And this shame had led him to become the strongest man among his peers. ‘Shame was the greatest motivator’, he had read in a book. Tian Lu did not count as a peer because he was younger. As the sect master’s personal disciple, it was not just this strength that led him to be chosen. Sect master Huang Di favored those with some kind of special skills or intelligence. Elder Fang was one such example. In reality, that was the only other example because Huang Di had only ever taken two personal disciples in the time he’d been in the sect.

Mei Ahn was 13, barely even a teen. But a teen because of thirteen, as twelve does not contain the word. She was the youngest disciple in this group and currently in the Foundation Establishment realm. But she was close to Core Formation. Her fiery personality would be her calling card if it wasn’t for her frightening skills with formations. She was Elder Fang’s personal disciple and had come to experience the formations within the secret realm. She had no doubt she was the weakest among them and in her heart, she was afraid. Afraid to embarrass these senior brothers and sisters due to her talent. Her master had praised her talent for formations and she could see that her cultivation speed was unrivaled. Meaning without rivals because she did not consider any of these three disciples coming up to the carriage her rivals. They were too old.

Gong Chang was the only one among the disciples to wear clothing appropriate for a journey and for exploration of a secret realm. The other four disciples wore their sect robes. Some sects had enchanted robes that provided the same level of protection as light leather armor. These were not those robes. Elder Fang was dressed ready for battle as was Elder Wei. It would seem that these four talented disciples were not adequately prepared for the journey ahead.