When Ji Yuan returned to the temporary camp, everyone there had prepared food and was leisurely eating and drinking.
He did not join them, but instead consumed a pill he had painstakingly refined, its ingredients all precious herbs.
This pill possessed the effects of nourishing qi and consolidating the foundation, while also containing abundant essence and vital energy, capable of replenishing a cultivator of the first realm for three days. If a cultivator of the second realm were to take it, it could also sustain them for a day.
"Daoist Ji, are you an alchemist?" Liu Donglai asked curiously.
On their journey so far, he had seen the other party take pills two or three times. Ordinary cultivators could not afford such extravagance; only alchemists or those from prominent backgrounds could indulge so freely.
Ji Yuan nodded. This was not something to be kept secret. In fact, for cultivators of the four paths, the louder their reputation, the better.
Ideally, everyone would know their identity!
Only with a more resounding reputation would more cultivators seek them out. For alchemists, to improve their alchemical skills, they required various refining materials provided by these cultivators who came seeking pills.
Otherwise, relying solely on self-practice to accumulate experience would undoubtedly consume a vast amount of silver.
"An alchemist! They are the wealthiest among cultivators!" Wu Chengqing couldn't help but exclaim.
Pills were consumables, and each one was very expensive to produce, yet they were essential for cultivation. Therefore, alchemists were considered the most affluent among cultivators.
In terms of accumulating wealth, even master artificers who could forge magical treasures, array masters who could set up massive formations, or even talisman masters who could draw talismans, were far inferior.
Ji Yuan smiled faintly. When interacting with the three before him, he mostly listened silently, occasionally interjecting a word or two.
It wasn't that he was putting on airs; it was simply that once these three started speaking, there was essentially nothing left for him to say. If left uninterrupted, they could continue like this indefinitely.
After eating their fill, the group set off again, following the main road cleared by the Nine Xuan Sect, continuing towards the market town several dozen li away.
Throughout the entire day, they had traveled approximately seventeen or eighteen li, a speed considered extremely fast.
While traveling, Ji Yuan also saw many dust-covered people, mostly parents with their children, walking step by step towards the Nine Xuan Sect.
Upon seeing the disciples of the Nine Xuan Sect, they would move to the side of the road, gazing with envious eyes and expressions of excitement.
There was even an elder with white hair who, upon seeing them, excitedly pulled his young grandson and prostrated himself on the roadside.
These were ordinary folk living in various places within a hundred li radius, some from the county town, some from remote mountain villages, all hoping to send their children into the Nine Xuan Sect.
Even if they couldn't embark on the path of cultivation and become "immortal lords" in the eyes of mortals, even becoming a mere handyman disciple would be enough to bring glory to their ancestors.
Typically, if a family's child became a handyman disciple of the Nine Xuan Sect, they could hold their heads high and brag in their villages and towns, often even holding feasts.
After all, if one worked the land, an annual harvest of ten to twenty taels of silver would be quite difficult to achieve. After deducting seed costs and other essential expenses for the following year, what truly ended up in their hands was only six or seven taels of silver.
But becoming a disciple of the Nine Xuan Sect was different. Not to mention the possibility of ascending to heaven in one step to become a lofty immortal lord, even a handyman disciple received an annual stipend of thirty taels!
For this reason, throughout the year, mortals would often bring their children to seek an opportunity here.
There were even often able-bodied young men who braved mountains and rivers to come here, willing to become the outermost handymen of the Nine Xuan Sect, not even considered disciples. Besides the hope of "immortality," it was also for the "generous" stipend.
The disciples of the Nine Xuan Sect were accustomed to these matters; in fact, some of them had entered the sect through such means.
It was Ji Yuan's first time witnessing such a scene, and he couldn't help but look a few more times, later pondering the thoughts of these people.
Cultivation involved not only cultivating one's magical power and realm but also cultivating the mind, which was equally important. This accumulation also related to future achievements.
"At the Nine Xuan Sect, every three hundred years marks one cycle of recruiting disciples," Wu Chengqing said with a smile, seeing Ji Yuan's slight interest, adding some amusement to the somewhat tedious journey.
Unlike most sects that recruited disciples year-round without interruption, the Nine Xuan Sect had its own meticulous rules for recruitment.
The cycle for recruiting a generation of disciples was three hundred years. Of this, two hundred and forty years were spent selecting and training disciples, after which no more disciples were accepted, and the sect waited for the current generation to mature.
A period of sixty years was sufficient for many disciples to gradually grow, with many reaching the third realm, or even becoming great cultivators of the Golden Core stage. Only then, after three hundred years, would the next generation of disciples be recruited.
"This method ensures the quality of the disciples and allows for sufficient resources to be allocated to each one," Ji Yuan nodded slightly, immediately understanding the purpose of this practice.
The Nine Xuan Sect's approach undoubtedly ensured that limited resources were fully utilized for the disciples within the sect, and the number of disciples was controlled within a certain range, ensuring adequate guidance and training.
This was unlike ordinary sects that only wished they had more disciples. Even if the sect's resources and finances were already overstretched, they would still accept anyone who came without hesitation.
This naturally led to an extremely bloated sect, with disciples of uneven character and cultivation, greatly hindering the sect's development.
The higher-ups of these sects were not fools; they simply followed a strategy of casting a wide net. If one or two outstanding disciples emerged, they considered it a profit and concentrated all resources on nurturing them.
As for disciples with mediocre or no talent, they would be sent outside the mountain gates to laboriously earn resources and wealth for the sect, supporting the masters and genius disciples within.
"Every sect has its own way of survival; no one can definitively say which method is most suitable for a sect's development," Wu Chengqing stated. However, despite his words being sound, his tone carried an inherent sense of superiority.
Clearly, in his eyes, the Nine Xuan Sect's approach was the most correct.
Ji Yuan remained noncommittal, but deep down, he also greatly approved of the Nine Xuan Sect's method, as it ensured both the quality of disciples and the continuation of the sect's legacy.
"We will rest here tonight," Wu Chengqing said, pointing to a patch of hills not far away as the sky began to darken.
Before long, dozens of Nine Xuan Sect disciples had set up tents and lit bonfires here.
In fact, the route of the Nine Xuan Sect had been traveled by its disciples for hundreds of years, and a set of rules had long been established. How far to travel each day and where to stop and rest were all recorded in books.
Although no one believed that anyone would dare commit violence within the Nine Xuan Sect's territory, the vigilance that had been maintained for hundreds of years was never relaxed by any disciple.
These routes, recorded over a long period, were undoubtedly the safest and most suitable places to stop along the dozens of li journey.
However, for some reason, ever since nightfall, Ji Yuan had a nagging premonition, as if something was about to happen.
Yet, when he found Wu Chengqing and the other two, he saw that their expressions were normal, and they did not feel any unease.
If he didn't have absolute confidence in his spiritual intuition, he might have dismissed it as an illusion.
"Daoist Ji, don't scare yourself. We are only about twenty li from the Nine Xuan Sect's mountain gate. How could anyone dare commit violence here?" Wu Chengqing said with a wry smile, clearly thinking Ji Yuan was being overly cautious.
However, even as he said this, he still signaled his two junior siblings to go and scout the surroundings.
At the same time, he took out a set of simple formation flags from his mountain and river pouch and planted them in various corners of the temporary camp, while also reminding all the disciples to remain vigilant and pay attention to any disturbances in the surroundings.
Wu Chengqing, being responsible for transporting the sect's daily necessities, was clearly not an ordinary inner disciple. Even if he wasn't among the top thirty-six, he was likely close.
Although it was just Ji Yuan's word, he still treated it with sufficient importance, using it as an opportunity to train the outer disciples' vigilance and accumulate experience in dealing with such situations in the wilderness.
Before long, Liu Donglai and Wang Xiaoxuan returned. Their patrol had found no abnormalities.
However, a hint of gloom lingered on their brows. Previously, they hadn't felt anything, but after Ji Yuan's words and their personal reconnaissance, a sense of unease gradually arose within them.
After listening to his junior siblings' report, Wu Chengqing's expression also became much more solemn. His gaze swept across the dark surroundings outside the camp, as if sensing many eyes quietly watching them from the darkness.
A chill, inexplicable, rose from the depths of his heart and quickly spread throughout his body.
"It can't be this uncanny, can it?" Wu Chengqing muttered to himself. It couldn't be that something that hadn't happened for centuries would happen on his watch, setting a precedent.
Beside him, Ji Yuan sat by the campfire, feeling no warmth at all, as if the flames before him were a ball of cold air.
The situation was now obvious: someone was impatiently eager to make a move, even though they were only twenty li from the Nine Xuan Sect's mountain gate.
He had anticipated that this journey would be fraught with danger, that someone would undoubtedly make a desperate move, intending to kill him somewhere along these dozens of li, thereby shaking the Nine Xuan Sect's hard-won destiny.
Even a slight disturbance would be a guaranteed profit for factions that did not wish for the Nine Xuan Sect to advance to the status of a major sect.
What he hadn't expected, however, was that after only a day, and having traveled less than thirty li, someone was already unable to contain themselves.
And knowing that besides him, there were three cultivators of the second realm and ten of the first realm present, yet daring to attack, clearly indicated that the attacking force was no weaker than theirs, if not stronger!
"If anything goes wrong later, do not fight to the death. Just protect the outer disciples," Ji Yuan said, looking at the three with slightly heavy expressions. "Their target is me. As long as I leave here, they won't engage you in a desperate fight."
After all, this was still within the Nine Xuan Sect's sphere of influence. Engaging in a deadly battle with a group of inner and outer disciples would not only bring no benefit to the factions that chose to attack but could also lead to their complete annihilation.
If time were bought, even if they succeeded, they would ultimately be unable to escape. They would not be able to leave the hundred-li radius in time.
"Daoist Ji, don't underestimate us," Wu Chengqing laughed heartily, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes.
Beside him, Liu Donglai and Wang Xiaoxuan wore similar expressions.
They might not be among the top-ranked geniuses within the inner sect, but they were disciples of the Nine Xuan Sect nonetheless, and they possessed a natural arrogance.
This was not arrogance or conceit, but the confidence accumulated over years of being inner disciples of the Nine Xuan Sect, believing themselves to be no weaker than any cultivator of the same realm.
As they spoke, a gentle breeze blew, carrying a faint, chilling killing intent.
The four of them rose simultaneously, their gazes fixed on the dark surroundings. Under their Dharma eyes, they could see several figures swaying and approaching in the darkness.
The three had already taken out their respective Dharma artifacts. While Wu Chengqing held a large banner, Liu Donglai and Wang Xiaoxuan gripped similarly styled long swords.
Among the three, only the former had managed to acquire a Dharma artifact of decent quality through accumulating time and completing numerous tasks. The latter two wielded the standard Dharma artifacts gifted by the Nine Xuan Sect to second-realm disciples.
These Dharma artifacts were made from passable spiritual materials and contained only one innate restriction. Their enhancement to cultivators was not high; they could only be considered better than nothing.
As the three stood up, the disciples in the camp also entered a state of alert, drawing their personal weapons and systematically supporting each other to form several defensive formations.
It was at this moment that the swaying figures in the night gradually became clearer under their Dharma eyes.
Following this, the four couldn't help but gasp. Even with their second-realm cultivation, they couldn't help but feel a chilling sensation.