Within the Wuxian Sect, there were various factions.
For the outer disciple tier, there was less interaction with the factions.
Because for the small forces and factions within the Wuxian Sect, these disciples had no stability, and it was uncertain when they might leave the sect.
Moreover, the cultivation of the outer disciples below the realm of Refining Truth Seventh Layer was too weak, and recruiting them was not beneficial. Apart from those truly talented individuals, even the smaller factions did not pay much heed to these outer disciples.
Lan Yuelake was one of the many factions of the Wuxian Sect.
"A society within the grand academy?"
Along the way, as Lu Qinghe listened to Lu Qingyun explain the factions, he had a vivid idea in his mind.
"The Wuxian Sect, represented by the five sect masters, has the five major factions. Among these five major factions, the 'Immortal World Pavilion' is the most powerful, and among the remaining ten academies, and the fifteen academies, they form the upper echelon, monopolizing ninety percent of the resources of the Wuxian Sect. Anyone who wants to achieve something in their cultivation needs to obtain resources from these fifteen academies. The 'Lan Yuelake' that I joined is one of the ten major academies."
Lu Qingyun quietly introduced.
"The fifteen major academies..."
Lu Qinghe summed it up a bit, "It's somewhat similar to the presidential elections between political parties. The sect master is like the presidential party, the four deputy sect masters are like the four vice presidents, and the remaining ten major academies are like the candidates for president."
"Han Yayi, which academy do you belong to?"
Lu Qinghe asked with some curiosity.
"As an outer disciple and attendant, I never even paid attention to the smaller academies, but my elder brother Han Zhen is a steward of the Lan Yuelake. In this regard, there is some similarity between you and me."
"Han Zhen has already risen to the position of a steward? It seems he has big ambitions."
Lu Qingyun said.
"Hehe..."
Han Yayi didn't respond well to Han Zhen's matter.
"However, one thing you got wrong is that I didn't bring Qinghe here this time to look around, but to have him join Lan Yuelake."
"Join Lan Yuelake?"
Han Yayi was slightly surprised and looked at Lu Qinghe.
A Refining Truth Fifth Layer joining Lan Yuelake? In Lan Yuelake, those outstanding Refining Truth Sixth Layer outer disciples and attendants, and Refining Truth Seventh Layer inner disciples were ordinary members. Excellent members were Refining Truth Seventh Layer masters and Refining Truth Eight Layer disciples who had the power to challenge beyond their realm, and so on.
In the top ten rankings of the former six peaks, one could obtain the position of a steward.
And then, there were the core disciples.
"What? Impossible? My brother's swordsmanship is not something that Nangong Yue can compare to. If Nangong Yue could be included in the pre-selection invitation list of Lan Yuelake, let alone my brother?"
"This... I believe in Senior Brother Lu Qinghe's swordsmanship accomplishment."
Han Yayi responded with a nod.
"I won't join Lan Yuelake."
During their conversation, Lu Qinghe suddenly spoke.
"Not join?"
Lu Qingyun was slightly surprised, then quickly shook her head, "No way."
"I came here to cultivate and seek the truth. Joining a faction, competing for the position of sect master or deputy sect master, I'm afraid it will lead to countless troubles. For me, I am most afraid of trouble."
"Seeking the truth? Seeking the truth also requires sufficient resources, and without resources, one man's cultivation in the deep mountains and old forests will only lead to a pile of yellow soil after a hundred years."
"Resources are available in the Wuxian Sect."
"The Wuxian Sect?"
Lu Qingyun shook her head, "Qinghe, as I said before, ninety percent of the resources of the Wuxian Sect are in the hands of the fifteen major factions, and the remaining ten percent, where do you think it goes? It goes to the other smaller factions! The treasures in the hands of the disciples are without exception common items."
"Common items?"
Thinking back to the hunting light jade and other things he had seen, those things did not seem as simple as common items.
"Of course! Have you ever seen high-quality swords sold outside? Have you ever seen advanced martial arts sold outside? Have you ever seen the highest-level top-grade swordsmanship being sold outside?"
Lu Qinghe thought carefully and indeed had not seen advanced martial arts.
He had seen several top-grade swords, but there was no sign of supreme swords. At the time, he thought it might be too late, or supreme swords were not commonly seen...
Could it be…
Seeing Lu Qinghe's eyes, Lu Qingyun nodded, "Even the 'Dustless Sword', or the 'Mysterious Light Manual', even the 'Splitting Light and Transforming Shadows Sword Art', are all obtained through the channels of Lan Yuelake. Even if you have the means to buy them in the outside world, the price would be several times, or even tens of times higher!"
"Monopoly!?"
"Yes! As with the Ask Immortal Sect, the Thousand Ages Kingdom is the same. The truly powerful techniques, swordsmanship, and the method to open up the origin world have always been held by those ancient sects, royal families, and inherited clans. For ordinary cultivators, reaching the ninth realm of cultivation is the limit. Discovering the method to open up the origin world is as difficult as reaching the heavens. This is also an essential reason why forces are indispensable to cultivators."
On the side, Han Ya listened as Lu Qingyun instructed Lu Qinghe in basic knowledge, which opened up her train of thought.
Lu Qinghe…
Knows very little about these common knowledge.
Perhaps, by using this, they could establish a good relationship.
With exceptional swordsmanship talent and a genius sister like Lu Qingyun to support him, Lu Qinghe's rise to power was right in front of him. When else would be a better opportunity to make friends with him?
However, Lu Qingyun's words made Lu Qinghe feel the situation was tricky.
In this world…
There are immortals.
Upon receiving this information, he only wanted to seek the true path and reach the peak to overlook the world as soon as possible.
But now it seems that achieving this is not easy.
He didn't want to get involved in the vortex of the major forces.
However, for the sake of practicing techniques, for exquisite swordsmanship, and for cultivating resources, he had no choice…
At this moment, he finally understood Lu Qingyun's previous guidance.
"I understand."
Lu Qinghe nodded.
"That's good."
Finally convincing Lu Qinghe made him understand what reality is. Lu Qingyun was visibly satisfied.
In the inner Nine Peaks, there are upper and lower divisions in the Blue Moon Lake, located at the second and seventh peaks.
Lu Qingyun led him to the Blue Moon Lake branch at the second peak.
Although it was located on the second peak, its actual location was at the foot of the mountain.
After descending from the third peak, not even ten miles ahead, a huge complex of palaces appeared in Lu Qinghe's view.
This complex covered over 600,000 square meters, with various courtyards scattered around. The countless parks, landscapes, rockeries, small ponds, and open spaces were all part of it.
In the center of the complex, a massive lake, like the core of an array, drew in the essence from all directions. Stepping into the range of the lake, one would feel instantly relaxed and at ease.
This was the characteristic of the Blue Moon Lake.
Each branch had a lake, and the lake was the core of the entire complex—an array formed by the high-ranking core disciples of the Blue Moon Lake known as the Sun-Moon Reaching Heaven Array.
"This is the Blue Moon Lake."
Lu Qingyun led Lu Qinghe into the Blue Moon Lake.
There were many disciples in the Blue Moon Lake.
In the Nine Peaks, there were only upper and lower divisions— the upper division overseeing the members from the first to the sixth peaks, and the lower division for the seventh peak, the ninth peak, and all the outer disciples.
The number of people in the six mountain peaks increased in a step-like manner.
The first peak had just over 100 inner disciple, the second peak had over 200, the third peak had 488 inner disciples, and by the time it reached the fourth peak, the number had already exceeded a thousand.
The total number of inner disciples from the six peaks exceeded 6,000.
With the attendants and the outer disciples qualified to enter the inner peaks, the total population was no less than 100,000.
Even if only 1% joined the Blue Moon Lake, it would still be over a thousand.
With over a thousand disciples, it was impossible for them to be in the Blue Moon Lake at all times. However, there were always two to three hundred people coming and going, along with the Blue Moon Lake's staff, attendants, and servants, maintaining a constant population of around a thousand.
Lu Qingyun and Lu Qinghe quickly arrived at a palace not far from the entrance, with Han Ya following closely behind.
As the three entered the palace, three teams of personnel were already waiting inside.
Upon seeing Lu Qingyun arrive, all the members of the three teams focused their attention on her. One of them, a young woman in her twenties, even nodded at her in greeting.
"Just wait."
Lu Qingyun said.
Lu Qinghe nodded, not in a hurry.
The wait lasted for an hour. During that time, a man and two women arrived and stood on the side, waiting as well.
An hour later, the doors of the palace opened, and a middle-aged man in his forties, accompanied by three attendants, entered the hall.
Seeing this middle-aged man, all the people in the hall respectfully bowed and saluted, saying, "Greetings, senior brother Guzhen."
"Those who join our Blue Moon Lake should treat each other like family and there is no need for formalities."
Senior brother Guzhen, a strong person in the Yuan Ying realm, said with a gentle smile.
"Guzhen, one of the twenty-four core disciples of the Blue Moon Lake."
Lu Qingyun quietly introduced.
Lan Qinghe nodded.
Although the ancient town was restraining the pressure, Lan Qinghe was able to vaguely judge the cultivation of this core disciple with his insightful intuition, which should be below that of the elder of the True Destiny level.
As for the first strong expert Jing Wuxie he had encountered...
Both were worlds apart.
"The joining system of my Blue Moon Lake has always been based on active invitations and recommendations. There is no concept of application or assessment. You all are official members of my Blue Moon Lake. If you are willing to recommend elite disciples to join my Blue Moon Lake, my Blue Moon Lake will be delighted." The ancient town said, gesturing with his hand. "I have already activated the formation for those who are ready to take the assessment. It remains the same as before, fighting against the sixth-level puppets. Each puppet core can be exchanged for ten points. Those who pass with ten cores can become outstanding members. Those with 30 cores can become advanced members. Those above the age of 30 need to double their effort, while those under 25 years old need only half the effort, and those under 20 need half of that, with the points earned doubling at each stage."
"Brother, you are exactly twenty years old." Lan Qingyun looked at Lan Qinghe, feeling a bit regretful. "Unfortunately, I didn't make it to the top ten in this assessment. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had to go through the assessment and could have been recommended directly."
"The assessment has its benefits," at this moment, Han Yayi added, "The more puppet cores you get, the more points you earn. This is a benefit that non-assessors do not have. The points from the Blue Moon Lake are very valuable."
"Assessment... points..." Lan Qinghe couldn't help feeling very familiar with this scene.