Mortal: Starting by joining the Falling Cloud Sect

"I wonder what brings Junior Sister Song Yao to my courtyard? Surely it's not just for these few medicinal herbs?" Zhou Qing asked gently after inviting Song Yao into the main house.

Song Yao grabbed the fruit in her hand, took a big bite, and said in a sweet voice, "Oh dear, I almost forgot the important matter. My sister asked me to come this time to check your cultivation level and also to summon you to her cave. She said there's something important to discuss."

"Since it's urgent, I'll head there immediately. Thank you for passing on the message, Junior Sister Song Yao."

Zhou Qing stood up and walked towards the door. Song Yao followed closely behind, and before leaving, she didn't forget to sweep up all the spiritual fruits on Zhou Qing's table.

The two released their magical artifacts together and took to the air, heading straight for Song Yu's cave.

"Your spirit fruit is delicious! Where did you get it? Could you send me a few more baskets later?"

This spiritual fruit was discovered by Zhou Qing and several fellow cultivators when they explored a secluded mountain valley before he entered the sect.

At that time, the spirit fruit tree was very small and inconspicuous. Zhou Qing noticed the flow of spiritual energy within its trunk and transplanted it.

After being nurtured by Zhou Qing's spiritual liquid, the fruit tree has grown considerably and is now able to bear fruit. Zhou Qing planted it in the back mountain of the courtyard and covered it with an array.

Zhou Qing had also tasted this spiritual fruit. It was sweet and delicious. After eating it, he felt refreshed and his spiritual energy surged. He guessed it was an extraordinary fruit.

"Junior Sister Song Yao, I obtained this spiritual fruit by chance, and there were only a few left. Now they're all in your pocket, aren't they?" Zhou Qing said with a smile.

Song Yao chuckled, her face flushed but her heart not skipping a beat, and immediately changed the subject.

"Speaking of which, our master assigned you to be temporarily looked after by my sister. In these three years, you haven't gone to see her even once, which truly surprises me. You should know that in the entire Luoyun Sect, there isn't a single male disciple who doesn't want to see my sister, but you are completely different. Could it be that Brother Zhou is playing hard to get?"

Zhou Qing chuckled at Song Yao's guess and waved his hand, saying, "I have no such intentions. I have been focused on cultivation and managing the herb garden, so I have not been able to visit Uncle Song."

Song Yao nodded as she listened, seemingly in agreement, but the glint in her eyes still shone brightly.

As they spoke, the two had already arrived outside Song Yu's cave.

The scenery here is beautiful with green hills and clear waters, but there is only one lonely pavilion sitting there.

Zhou Qing followed Song Yao up to the pavilion and felt that the surroundings were ancient and elegant.

Song Yu was sitting at a low stone table, intently looking at a bamboo scroll on the table.

Upon seeing Zhou Qing and the other person enter, she swept the things on the table away with a flick of her sleeve.

"Yao'er, the Spirit Gathering Array has been prepared for you. Go back to your room and cultivate. I have something to discuss with Zhou Qing."

"Huh?" Song Yao pouted, unhappy, but seeing Song Yu's extremely serious expression, she was too embarrassed to pester him any further.

Before leaving, he took a few spirit fruits from his pocket and placed them on the stone table before retreating.

"I wonder what business Uncle Song has with me?" Zhou Qing asked respectfully.

"Sit down and let's talk." Song Yu looked at the chair next to Zhou Qing.

Zhou Qing understood and sat down in the chair, quietly waiting for Song Yu to continue.

"Zhou Qing, you've only been here three years, yet you've already advanced from the tenth to the twelfth level of Qi Refining. You must have been cultivating diligently every day. Your next step is to strive for Foundation Establishment, right?"

"This disciple is indeed considering the matter of Foundation Establishment."

Although Zhou Qing did not know what Song Yu meant by what he said, there was no need to hide such a logical thing.

"Our sect bestows Foundation Establishment Pills upon Qi Refining disciples in three ways: by making great contributions, through sect allocation, and by participating in the Yunmeng Tournament. Making great contributions is rare and almost impossible to achieve in a short period. As for sect allocation, the number of Foundation Establishment Pills distributed this year is less than in previous years, so the competition will definitely be more intense. Zhou Qing, you are a newly entered disciple, so the chances of you getting one this time are not high."

At this point, Song Yu paused, seemingly giving Zhou Qing time to think.

Having spent many years in the cultivation world, Zhou Qing naturally understood the deeper meaning behind Song Yu's words. She described the first two methods as so difficult in order to guide Zhou Qing to choose the third option: participating in the Yunmeng Conference.

However, Zhou Qing was still unclear about Song Yu's true intentions in inviting him to the Yunmeng Conference, and they needed to continue their conversation.

He then revealed a hint of worry, his brows furrowed slightly, and said in a deep voice, "Thank you for your guidance, Uncle Song. It seems that if I want to establish my foundation as soon as possible, the best option is to participate in the Yunmeng Conference."

"Participate in the Yunmeng Conference? Are you confident?" Song Yu raised her eyes and glanced at Zhou Qing before asking.

"It's all up to human effort!" Zhou Qing wasn't sure if it would work or not; he never made promises about the future lightly, so he said seriously.

Upon hearing this, Song Yu's eyes lit up, and he slightly raised the corners of his mouth, revealing a faint smile.

"In the past three years, I haven't given you any guidance in your cultivation. I'll take this opportunity to instruct you on combat techniques. Come downstairs with me."

A flash of light appeared, and a colorful cloud descended, carrying Zhou Qing to an open space in front of the pavilion.

"You attack, I defend; there's no need to hold back."

After Zhou Qing regained his footing, Song Yu had already gathered the colorful clouds in front of her, revealing her true form, which was a seven-colored flowing cloud ribbon.

Zhou Qing knew that Song Yu was trying to figure out his strength, so he took out his own magic weapon, a crimson flame ring, which spun around.

Once the Crimson Flame Ring appeared, it spun rapidly, spitting out bursts of flames with impressive force.

"Go!" Zhou Qing made a hand seal, waved his hand, and the crimson flames swirled as he broke through the air and disappeared.

Song Yu neither dodged nor avoided, but simply waved his hand to shield himself with the Flowing Cloud Silk.

The Crimson Flame Ring struck the Flowing Cloud Silk, causing a surge of spiritual energy and a booming sound, which was firmly blocked by the silk.

Seeing that his first attack failed, Zhou Qing withdrew the Crimson Flame Ring and attacked again from a different direction, but all his attacks were completely blocked by Liu Yunling. Even the flames spewed out by the Crimson Flame Ring could not harm Liu Yunling at all.

"Your magic weapon is excellent in both attack and flexibility; it's a decent high-level magic weapon. However, relying solely on this one high-level magic weapon won't be enough to defeat those disciples who have been immersed in Qi Refining for many years," Song Yu said softly.

Zhou Qing was only testing the waters initially. Seeing that the results were not good, he made another hand seal and used a freezing technique.

Ice crystals instantly condensed in the air and gradually spread towards Song Yu's side.

Upon seeing this, Song Yu raised her delicate hand and cast a spell on the Flowing Cloud Silk. The spiritual energy around the Flowing Cloud Silk trembled, and ice crystals shattered and fell down, sweeping away the chill.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Qing decisively increased the flames on the Crimson Flame Ring. The flames came into contact with the water vapor from the exploding ice crystals, and with a loud bang, the water mist immediately spread out.

Several small creatures quietly flew out from beside Zhou Qing and, under the cover of the mist, flew to Song Yu's vicinity.

Song Yu used a wisp of flowing cloud silk to instantly disperse the mist, only to find two crow-like spirit beasts facing him from all sides.

As Zhou Qing unleashed another fierce attack with the Crimson Flame Ring, the two crows also spewed out a stream of red flames from their mouths, heading straight for Song Yu.

The red spiritual flames contained a hint of gold, and their power was quite domineering. For a moment, Song Yu found it difficult to cope and had to summon another magical artifact to defend against them.

"Alright, let's wrap this up!" Song Yu suddenly said.

Zhou Qing stopped in response, called the two crows back, and with a wave of his hand, retrieved the Crimson Flame Ring.

"My master's magical power is profound. Even with all my strength, I could not harm him in the slightest. I admire you!"

Upon hearing this, Song Yu rolled her eyes at Zhou Qing, who chuckled.

"With your strength, breaking into the top ten shouldn't be difficult. Your two Sun Crows have a hint of gold in their spiritual flames, indicating they possess a trace of the bloodline of some powerful demonic beast. If used properly, even disciples who have just entered the Foundation Establishment stage would find it difficult to withstand them. You've certainly had some fortuitous encounters."

Zhou Qing cupped his hands slightly: "It was just luck."

Zhou Qing knew very well the strength of these two Sun Crows. Their attack power was definitely not bad, but their speed was slightly inferior. If they could not form a siege, they would not be of much use.

Just as Zhou Qing finished being modest, he was once again enveloped by the colorful clouds and returned to the pavilion.

The two sat down again, and Zhou Qing knew it was time to get down to business.