A leisurely life in the world of cultivation

Chapter 171 Only Recruiting Female Disciples

"Wei Zhou, what are your plans for those five people?"

After the jokes, Tian Ru got down to business.

Li Weizhou said, "Let them work as stewards in the outer sect first. They're tired of the fighting and killing, and their cultivation has stagnated for years. They want to find a way out. Coincidentally, we also need people to do things. At least, we need these people to collect news and intelligence from the outside world and run errands."

Nine people in one sect may be carefree, but they can't be completely oblivious to what's happening in the spirit world.

With the outer sect established, various small and medium-sized families gathered, and with these five people, virtually nothing, big or small, happened in the spirit realm could escape the ears of the inner sect.

Tao Ling'er, who had once been a "rogue cultivator," exclaimed in amazement, "Wow, Junior Brother, you're amazing! Fiery Axe King Kui, withered vine swordsman Liu Zhe—these five are all renowned rogue cultivators in Qingshui City, possessing formidable strength, each with the cultivation of the Spirit Origin Realm. You're recruiting them just to be outer sect stewards? Will they even listen to you?"

Li Weizhou said with a smile, "Under the Five Elements Formation, let alone the Spirit Origin Realm, even the Spirit God Realm would have to crawl on their knees."

Tian Ru paused for a moment before saying, "Be careful. But these five people, generally speaking, I haven't heard of any bad reputations. Only that Lan Gu is known as the leech, having sucked the essence of many men. She is somewhat evil, so be careful."

Before Li Weizhou could speak, Tao Ling'er said happily, "Mother, don't worry. Although Aunt Lan is quite pretty, compared to Yue Niang, Situ, Bi Wu, and Er Niang, she's about the same as me."

Tian Ru was both amused and distressed, saying, "You child, why are you speaking such blunt truths, as if your junior brother were a lustful fiend?"

Amidst laughter, Li Weizhou defended himself, saying, "This disciple is truly pure of heart and desireless. Master's wife, have you forgotten? When I came up here, the monks of Tianji Temple all praised me for my wisdom and for being a good candidate for becoming a monk."

Tian Ru ignored this and added, "The inner sect's formation must never be leaked. Alright, it's getting late, you can go now. From now on, focus on your practice and don't need to come over every few days."

Zhou Yueniang laughed and said, "This is indispensable. Besides, we can also find an excuse to take a break and get some fresh air."

Tian Ru stroked Zhou Yueniang's hair, looked into her amber eyes that shimmered with light, and said with admiration, "I don't know what good luck Wei Zhou had to marry such beautiful and talented girls like you. Just one of you is a blessing from your ancestors, and with four of you, we should go and see if there's any smoke rising from your ancestral graves."

Zhou Yueniang smiled and said, "Not only is Master's wife of noble birth, but her appearance is also one in a million. Yet, her eyes and heart are only for Master. I think Master is the luckiest one."

Tian Ru laughed heartily, saying in a cheerful mood, "Good, good, well said."

Li Weizhou was shocked. Could it be that the girl-help-girl thing was about to begin?
He clicked his tongue in admiration and said, "Yes, yes, it's all thanks to the good burial of our ancestors. If we have the chance to meet again, we'll properly thank our ancestors for generations to come. Let's go, let's not disturb Master's wife's rest."

……

Back at the Five Elements Palace, Qi Erniang felt much more at ease. She stretched lazily and asked Feng Biwu, "Did you have a great time today?"

Feng Biwu snorted, not denying it, and said, "You can still go out if you want."

Li Weizhou nodded and said, "Those who want to go out, we'll take turns taking you out for a stroll."

Zhou Yueniang smiled and said, "Can't we go out together?"

Li Weizhou hurriedly said, "She's already stunningly beautiful, and today we even encountered a group of cultivators who were after her beauty, but I managed to get rid of them. If we go out together, all the cultivators in the entire Northern Spirit Region will have to come here."

Several women laughed, and Situ Qingyue glared at him, saying, "You smooth talker." She then asked Feng Biwu, "Biwu-jun, how do you feel after receiving the Divine Power Seal?"

Feng Biwu nodded and said, "My cultivation has progressed quite a bit. However, in such a short time, three of my marks have already been destroyed." He gave a wry smile.

Li Weizhou laughed and said, "There's nothing we can do about it. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth is always a scarce commodity. When we went there, the smaller spirit beasts all hid. After we left, they naturally emerged, found what was competing with them for spiritual energy, and destroyed it. If every one that was destroyed became a treasure, who could compare to Biwu? But it doesn't matter. We can just go and set it up again after a while. When the outer sect rises up in the future, we can also go to Black Wind Lake to get a share of the pie. At that time, we will have a mark that is not easy to destroy."

Zhou Yueniang said, "Let's not talk about cultivation today. Let's have a relaxing day. When I was in the mortal realm, I thought the upper realm was a paradise on earth, full of beautiful flowers. I never imagined that it would be such a grueling cultivation day and night."

Everyone laughed, and Feng Biwu said softly, "There's no other way; we need to be able to protect ourselves first. I wasn't used to it at first, but I'm much better now."

Li Weizhou laughed and said, "It's not just much better, it's that I no longer have to live in fear."

As he spoke, inspiration began to flow from his five fingers.

The women did not understand what it meant, but then, the five-colored spiritual energy began to liquefy, turning into drops of crystal clear, colorful spiritual liquid.

Zhou Yueniang, Situ Qingyue, Feng Biwu, and Qi Erniang instantly stood up, their four pairs of beautiful eyes, each with its own distinct charm reminiscent of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums, widening in disbelief as they stared at Li Weizhou's left hand...

Spiritual energy liquefies!
Qi Erniang exclaimed in surprise, "My lord, you've entered the Spiritual Origin realm?!"

Li Weizhou smiled slyly and said, "After countless days and nights of arduous training, I've finally made it through. Do you still remember the array plate of the Five Elements Grand Array?"

Of course I won't forget.

Li Weizhou said, "The array plate is a rare treasure left behind by the Five Sacred Mountains True Lord. It contains the Primordial True Qi that has been transformed over the past two thousand years since his passing. It was with the help of this abundant reserve that I broke through the barrier in one fell swoop! Not only that, I have completely taken over the Five Elements Grand Array, and my mastery of it is far beyond that of my master and mistress."

As he spoke, he summoned the Five-Colored Divine Sword.

Five divine swords—white, blue, black, red, and yellow—hovered around Li Weizhou, circling and then slowly merging into one.

Situ Qingyue, who had the deepest understanding of sword intent, saw the five-colored divine sword in Li Weizhou's hand and her pupils instantly constricted. She sensed an extremely terrifying sword intent, so ferocious and even evil that it seemed to want to devour its inhabitants...

The other three were also pale, as if Li Weizhou held a venomous, heaven-devouring python in his hand.

After putting away the sword, Li Weizhou said smugly, "In the Five Elements Formation, this sword can kill spirits and gods as easily as taking something out of a bag, and can even defeat immortals! In other words, within this radius of several hundred miles, our family can do whatever we want."

The four women looked at each other, overjoyed.

The heavy weight that had been pressing on my heart for so long has finally been lifted.

Situ Qingyue said softly, "Even if Master breaks through to the Immortal Spirit Realm, will he still not be able to regain the authority over the great formation?"

The others looked at Li Weizhou, who chuckled and said, "He doesn't have the Five Elements Spiritual Root, so he's never really controlled a great formation before. But I guess even my master and mistress didn't expect that I could enter the Spirit Origin Realm so quickly, and then take control of the Ancestral Five-Colored Divine Sword, and then truly control the Five Elements Great Formation."

Zhou Yueniang said, "Master and Mistress are only happy. We are uncertain, but aren't they worried too?"

Feng Biwu said, "Should we tell Master's wife about this?"

Li Weizhou shook his head and said, "No need."

Feng Biwu reminded them, "They are under a lot of pressure."

Li Weizhou clicked his tongue and chided, "Without pressure, where does the motivation come from? Master and Mistress are in their prime; taking on more pressure will help them break through sooner. Are we really going to live our lives confined to this small area? The Spirit Realm is so vast; the Northern Spirit Region is just one corner. There are so many secret realms and so many fun things to explore. Before ascending to the Immortal Realm, we should at least see them all, right?"

"Hahaha!"

Even Situ Qingyue laughed and said, "You've come to the Spirit Realm and haven't even gotten to know the place yet, and you're already thinking about ascending to the Immortal Realm? I heard from my master's wife that for tens of thousands of years, I haven't heard of anyone successfully ascending."

Li Weizhou laughed and said, "No rush. The mortal realm was also talked about in a mysterious way back then, but in the end, didn't we all come up here as a family? Of course, I was just saying that casually. We haven't even finished exploring one ten-thousandth of the spirit realm yet."

Situ Qingyue glanced at him and said, "I'm going to rest."

After saying that, he left.

The other three women's eyes darted around, Feng Biwu got up and left, and Qi Erniang also left with a chuckle.

Zhou Yueniang was about to leave, but Li Weizhou stopped her, laughing, "You made a bet with me back then, are you trying to renege on it?"

Zhou Yueniang glared at him, then smiled and said, "I'm just going to cheat... Oh, what's wrong~"

Li Weizhou grinned mischievously, "How about we try it out on a flying sword?"

"..."

……

"Have you heard? The five of them—the withered vine swordsman Liu Zhe, the blazing axe Wang Kui, the broken-blade swordsman Shen Quan, Lan Gu, and Luo San—have actually joined the Five Elements Sect. What do you think they were thinking? The Xuan Tian Pavilion offered them such an invitation, and our Falling Stone Sect even had an elder who called Luo San his brother. Our disciples all call him 'ancestor,' and we've been trying to invite him back as a respected figure, but they just won't budge."

And the Iron Saber Sect's leader calls the Broken Saber Swordsman "Big Brother," right? They originally wanted to recruit him back to their sect as an elder. But look what happened, they all ran off to the Five Elements Sect. Do you think the Five Elements Sect is closed off or not? I've never heard of a closed-off sect still recruiting members, or a sect leader still going to brothels!

In the center of Qingshui City, on the first floor of Xuantian Tower, disciples from small and medium-sized sects and aristocratic families, along with independent cultivators, were chatting about recent hot topics while accepting missions.

Not only are Liu Zhe and Wang Kui's group of five powerful, but they are also low-key. Over the years, there has never been any news of them resorting to banditry when they were starving.

People like them among the independent cultivators are actually the odd ones out.

However, it is precisely because of this approach that they have been able to survive to this day, and have been able to gain the trust of many sects, caravans, and aristocratic families.

What's the most expensive thing in the cultivation world?
Of course it’s talent!
Moreover, these five people have known each other for nearly a hundred years and cooperate seamlessly. Together, they can rival a Grandmaster of the Spirit God Realm, which means they can control an enormous amount of resources.

How could the Five Elements Sect have given it to them?

Some people who felt they had been wronged started to hurl insults without restraint.

"In my opinion, that young sect leader must have used some kind of crooked and evil method!"

The red-faced cultivator from the Falling Stone Sect spat as he spoke, "Otherwise, how could those two old geezers, Luo San and Liu Zhe, have changed their ways?"

A rogue cultivator in black robes chimed in, "And that Lan Gu, she's probably bewitched by the Five Elements Sect Master! I heard her cultivation technique requires men's semen, hence the nickname 'Leech.' Could it be that the Five Elements Sect Master himself is her cultivation vessel?"

"Hahaha!"

Just as the laughter began, a cold wind suddenly blew in from outside.

A crisp, woody aura wafted in the wind, and the laughter of the crowd paused. Turning around, they saw an old man in a green robe standing at the door, holding an old bamboo sword in his hands. The withered vines coiled on the scabbard shimmered with a pale blue light, and between the lines, tiny green buds, the size of grains of rice, were gently trembling.

It is a willow herb.

He had just emerged from seclusion at Qingmu Peak and was instructed to come out and inquire about news from the spirit realm. If there was anything noteworthy, he was to go back and mention it, along with the fact that the Five Elements Sect would be selecting young people to enter the academy in three years. He never expected to hear such vulgar language as soon as he entered the building.

"Noisy."

Liu Zhe's voice wasn't loud, but it was like an icicle piercing one's ear.

The red-faced cultivator paled, forcing himself to remain calm, and said, "Senior Liu, what brings you here? We were just chatting casually..." "Casually chatting?" Liu Zhe raised his eyes, his gaze devoid of any emotion or life. A chill ran down the spine of the people in the building. He slowly said, "Chatting that my Five Elements Sect is a heretical sect? Talking that the sect leader is Lan Gu's cauldron?"

Before he finished speaking, he lightly flicked the bamboo sword with his fingertip.

"bass!"

The swords rang out like dragons, and suddenly several pale blue vine-shaped sword shadows appeared, wrapping around the cultivators who had been making the most noise earlier, as if they were living creatures.

"Puff puff……"

A series of sounds of swords piercing bodies rang out. Before Liu Zhe's swordsmanship, these people's protective spiritual shields were no more than a piece of paper.

Several senior, highly skilled rogue cultivators sitting inside the Xuan Tian Tower saw this scene and their pupils constricted.

They recognized Liu Zhe and had seen him fight before, but they had never seen such sword intent before.

He is a master of the Spirit Origin Realm, but not a top-tier master, due to limitations imposed by the cultivation techniques he has inherited.

But even if we know he joined the Five Elements Sect, how long has it only been?
Is this it? !
"Old Liu, why are you so angry? These people are all influential figures. You usually don't want to get involved with them. What's wrong with you today?"

An elderly man with white hair walked over with a smile and looked at Liu Zhe.

After looking at it several times, he was surprised to find that he had indeed passed the level.

Liu Zhe sheathed his sword, glanced at the groaning figures on the ground, and then swept his gaze over the elders of their sects and families behind them, all of whom were in the building. With an indifferent expression, he met their gazes and simply said, "The sect cannot be humiliated."

The white-haired old man's gaze deepened, and he chuckled, "Are you really ready to settle this? Old Liu, our Wan family has been sincerely inviting you for many years. As long as you are willing to join the Wan family as a retainer, we can even take out our Wan family's 'Ten Thousand Swords Scripture' for you to study together. What, is there anyone in the Five Elements Sect who surpasses our Wan family in swordsmanship these days?"

Liu Zhe glanced at him and said, "The swordsmanship of the Wan family is incompatible with my swordsmanship. Brother Wan, if we talk about the depth of skill, the person who guided my swordsmanship may not be as good as you, nor as good as the head of the Wan family. However, in terms of swordsmanship and sword intent, the person who guided my swordsmanship is the only one I have ever seen in my life."

The white-haired old man asked curiously, "It seems it's not that young sect leader of the Five Elements Sect. Could it be that there is another highly accomplished master within the Five Elements Sect?"

Liu Zhe chuckled, but then gave a self-deprecating laugh, saying, "It's not just Brother Wan who has this doubt; even I was once arrogant and overbearing, thinking I could sit in the position of a sect elder. In the end, I didn't even have the courage to draw my sword in front of others. As for the person who guided me in the way of the sword, it is the new head of Xuanjin Peak, Lord Situ. I don't know anything more. In short, you will know when the sect reopens in the future."

In the innermost corner sat a middle-aged man with a sickly appearance, looking as if he had been drained by wine and women. His thick, dark eyebrows slanted upwards towards his temples, but there was a hint of wickedness in his eyes. On the table lay a spirit snake sword, which looked remarkably like a living snake. After finishing his cup of spiritual tea, he suddenly spoke, "Sect Leader of Xuanjin Peak? Liu Zhe, I also enjoy swordsmanship. Could you introduce me to him? I particularly enjoy sparring with sword masters using my spirit snake sword technique. If you satisfy me, I may join the Five Elements Sect."

The sound wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears.

Upon recognizing the person, almost everyone became somewhat panicked.

This man was named Chu Changxi, and called himself the Spirit Serpent Gentleman. However, the rogue cultivators secretly called him the Poisonous Serpent Demon Lord, because he was extremely skilled and adept at lurking like a venomous snake, plotting to kill and steal treasures.

Many tragedies have occurred, and everyone knows he was responsible, but there's no evidence.

The more this is the case, the more frightening it becomes, for fear of being targeted by him.

Liu Zhe was not afraid. He said calmly, "The Five Elements Sect has already closed its mountain. Only we outer disciples occasionally go out..." Seeing Chu Changxi's face darken, he changed his tone and said, "However, if it is Fellow Daoist Chu, then of course you can agree."

He thought to himself that although the sect leader was not old, his scheming was truly remarkable.

Li Weizhou anticipated that there would inevitably be aggressive experts. When encountering such people, he advised against arguing or quarreling while traveling, and instead to lead them back to the Five Elements Sect.

Knowing that he was no match for this sorcerer, Liu Zhe simply did as the sect leader said and took him back later.

Many people looked at Liu Zhe with sympathy. It was really hard to say whether the Five Elements Sect, that mess, could handle Chu Changxi now.

Even if Tao Xixing has truly recovered, it should be at the crucial moment of breaking through to the Immortal Spirit Realm, otherwise what kind of mountain is he sealing?

If Chu Changxi interrupts us at this moment, something big is likely to happen.

Those with more experience might already be trying to figure out who's behind Chu Changxi and why he was invited to test the Five Elements Sect.

Otherwise, this old venomous snake wouldn't show itself so easily.

The Five Elements Formation is indeed troublesome, but as long as one doesn't enter the main peak, it's unlikely to be able to do anything to someone like Chu Changxi.

Some people admired Liu Zhe's courage, as he remained calm and composed in the face of such a fierce person.

The old man from the Wan family asked, "Brother Liu, has something come of your business today?"

Liu Zhe nodded and said, "Having heard about our past, the sect leader felt sorry for the difficulties faced by independent cultivators and wished to open a convenient door to accept independent cultivator disciples and those who aspire to the Great Dao of the Five Elements Sect. All of them will have the opportunity to study at the Five Elements Academy. After passing the test, they can enter the sect to learn the supreme Dao. The start date of the semester is the Tianyuan Festival three years from now. You may circulate the specific requirements."

After saying this with a great sense of shame, he took out a thick stack of flyers from his sleeve pocket. Before he could even hand them out, they were snatched up instantly.

Ignoring the commotion of the crowd, Liu Zhe said to Chu Changxi, "Let's go."

Chu Changxi: "..."

"Wait a minute! Old Liu, what do you mean by only recruiting female disciples in the initial stage?"

A lazy, unaffiliated cultivator glanced at the flyer and spotted something interesting, so he quickly called out.

Liu Zhe didn't even turn her head, and said calmly, "Because the current leaders of the five peaks are all female cultivators."

"Wow!"

An uproar!
This sect is becoming more and more interesting.

……

For some reason, looking at Liu Zhe's calm expression, Chu Changxi felt uneasy and asked, "Where will you meet me? Inner Mountain or Outer Sect?"

Liu Zhe said, "Even I am not allowed to enter the inner mountain."

Chu Changxi felt relieved. He had actually been to the Five Elements Sect.

After the internal strife within the Five Elements Sect, the Northern Spiritual Region was shocked. How could he possibly miss such a good opportunity to fish in troubled waters and profit from chaos?

He could come and go freely in the outer sect, but he could sense great danger in the five peaks, especially the Hunyuan Peak. As soon as he touched the formation, a tremendous force pressed down on him, forcing him to flee in an instant.

But as long as he stays in the outer sect, even if something unexpected happens, with his cultivation level and magical treasures and talismans, he is still confident that he can protect himself.

And so, he reverted to his lazy, unruly, and wicked demeanor.

Liu Zhe glanced at it but said nothing.

Still young...

Chu Changxi chuckled and said in a sinister tone, "The five peak leaders are all women, so the Five Elements Sect can't do without me."

Liu Zhe glanced at him again but said nothing.

If someone wants to die, you can't stop them.

He brandished the withered vine sword and led the man to Greenwood Peak.

……

On Xuanjin Peak, Li Weizhou and Zhou Yueniang stood at the edge of Zijin Cliff.

This is the place with the strongest spiritual veins of Xuanjin Peak, where Zhou Yueniang's metal-type spiritual root can flourish the most.

Below the cliffs are patches of "Gengjin grass," with narrow, sword-like leaves that gleam with a bluish-white metallic sheen. When the wind blows, the grass leaves rub against each other, making a sharp "rustling" sound, which carries a hint of the grimness of clashing swords.

"Your master's wife suggested that you only recruit female disciples for the outer sect. Are you unhappy about that?"

Zhou Yueniang looked at Li Weizhou and smiled.

Li Weizhou lazily looked around at the scenery. The sunlight on Xuanjin Peak was different from other places, always carrying a heavy metallic feel, as if it had been tempered by Geng metal.

He shook his head and laughed, "How could that be? Master's wife has a mature perspective. Anything that dares to be the first in the world will attract a lot of attention. Such attention may not be a good thing for the Five Elements Sect at present. If we only select female disciples, although there will be far fewer people willing to rent a house and settle down here for girls, there will also be far less trouble. Besides, with the four of you and Senior Sister as masters, I would certainly prefer all of you to be female disciples."

Women need to keep busy, otherwise they'll easily cause him trouble. Besides, as the leaders of their respective peaks, they naturally need to select their own disciples.

Zhou Yueniang smiled and said, "Ximei is the happiest." She paused and then added, "If the Five Elements Sect becomes an all-female sect in the future, will you... be secretly pleased?"

Li Weizhou laughed and said, "I thought you were asking me if I would feel awkward... but that's not the case at all. Besides, it probably won't always be just a women's sect."

He suddenly remembered that in the past it was the Battle of the Five Peaks, a chaotic battle between the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.

If mismanagement occurs in the future, could it lead to mixed-gender fighting?
Probably not. Any potential fighter would be crushed to dust by his iron fist.

As the two were talking, they suddenly saw an aura surging between Xuanjin Peak and Lihuo Peak, accompanied by thunderous sounds.

Zhou Yueniang exclaimed in delight, "Sister Situ has improved again? That's amazing! Sister Situ's talent is probably no less than yours."

Li Weizhou smiled and nodded, saying, "She's never just below me; she's always been above me."

"..."

Zhou Yueniang pinched him and said with a laugh, "If Senior Sister finds out, she'll definitely wail a few more times."

Just as Li Weizhou was about to speak, his eyebrows suddenly rose and he said, "We have a guest. Come on, today I'll teach you how to use your 'Yuanjin Sword Technique'."

"it is good."

……

(End of this chapter)