Lonemoon pursed his lips. Was this deterioration? This was more like reloading, right?
Among the group in front of him, he saw a familiar Zuo Shuming who was then looking at the stage with curiosity and excitement. Apart from being a bit younger, his cultivation level was also not at the Nascent Soul stage as they guessed. Instead, he was only at the Qi Refinement stage.
He was at what looked like a recruitment ground of a certain immortal sect. The sect seemed to be recruiting at the moment They must have been some powerful sect, because by the time they found the sect, there was already a huge crowd gathered, wanting to register as disciples. Most of them were at the third or fourth stage of Qi Refinement. Zuo Shuming was just a bit better than the others – he was at the seventh stage.
But compared to the cultivation level he was at when he just ascended awhile ago, the difference was like that between heaven and earth.
"Fellow Daoist Zuo!" Lonemoon could not stop himself from calling out to him. He looked at Zuo Shuming with a pained expression, as if there were many things he wanted to explain but could not.
Zuo Shuming paused and looked around.. Then, he turned to Lonemoon. "Fellow Daoist.... You know me?"
"You don't remember me?" Lonemoon frowned. It looked like this turning back in time was no different from what he knew as reloading. Even Zuo Shuming's memory was gone.
"I'm sorry." Zuo Shuming thought he had indeed forgotten Lonemoon. He immediately looked guilty. "I really don't remember you. I wonder where we met? How do I address you, Fellow Daoist?"
"My name is Lonemoon." Lonemoon's eyes narrowed. Then, he changed the topic and began to make up a story. "It's nothing huge. We met once a few years ago. At that time, you didn't bring spirit stones with you and you borrowed two from me for transport. Do you remember that?"
Yi Qing: "..."
Shen Ying: "..."
What kind of stupid excuse was that – would anyone take him seriously?
"I see!" Zuo Shuming had a sudden look of realization. "I'm sorry – I can't believe I forgot something like this. We're fated to meet again, Fellow Daoist." He quickly retrieved four spirit stones from his robe. "I'll return the spirit stones to you immediately. Thank you for helping me in my time of need, Fellow Daoist."
The master and disciple duo: "..."
He really did believe Lonemoon. This man was quite gullible, wasn't he?
"Don't worry about it, Fellow Daoist. We really were fated to meet again!" Lonemoon smiled and accepted the spirit stones.
The master and disciple duo: "..." He really accepted the spirit stones with no shame. His surname was really Niu – his skin was as thick as a cow's hide 1 !
"Fellow Daoist Lonemoon, are you also here to participate in the Tai Yan Sect's disciple recruitment process?" Zuo Shuming asked.
"Fellow Daoist Zuo, you're interested in joining Tai Yan Sect?" Lonemoon scanned the crowd and said, "I wonder what's so special about this Tai Yan Sect?"
"You must be kidding, Fellow Daoist." Zuo Shuming looked at Lonemoon earnestly. "Who doesn't know that Tai Yan Sect is the world's number one sect? Of course all cultivators want to join their sect. The only catch is Tai Yan Sect is extremely strict about its recruitment. I've been working hard for a long time to arrive at this stage before I dared to come forward and give it a shot."
"I see." Lonemoon nodded.
"That's right – I wonder what cultivation Fellow Daoist Lonemoon is at now?" Zuo Shuming could not tell what cultivation Lonemoon was at. He guessed that he was more powerful than Zuo Shuming.
"I'm at my Foundation Establishment stage," Lonemoon said casually.
"Foundation Establishment!" Zuo Shuming exclaimed. "Fellow Daoist, you're already a Foundation Establishment cultivator! Then... Why are you here for the recruitment?" He pointed to the yard not far away from them and said anxiously, "Fellow Daoist, you're in the wrong place. Foundation Establishment cultivators are supposed to go there for their own separate recruitment process. Tai Yan Sect has always placed much emphasis on one's cultivation level. Since you're already at the Foundation Establishment stage, they'll most likely take you in."
Lonemoon turned to look at the yard beside him, then cupped his fists. "Thank you for your directions, Fellow Daoist Zuo."
"Fellow Doist, don't worry about it." Zuo Shuming smiled kindly. "For all we know, we might end up in the same sect in the future."
"Then I wish you success!" Lonemoon responded courteously. He stayed no longer. After exchanging a few more pleasantries, he turned around to re-join Yi Qing and Shen Ying, carrying the four spirit stones he just earned.
It was only until they reached the end of the street that he asked, "Chef, what do you think? Does that Zuo Shuming feel like an invader to you?"
"No!" Yi Qing shook his head. "I've checked his body and his soul, but I didn't find anything out of the ordinary."
Lonemoon frowned even more deeply. Could it be that this Zuo Shuming really did not have anything to do with the invaders? Did he really just get pulled back to the mortal real because someone else turned back time? Was he that unlucky?
"Where's Little Biao's scale?" Shen Ying suddenly asked.
Both Lonemoon and Yi Qing stared blankly back at her, before Yi Qing recalled that they were supposed to deal with this matter as well. "I didn't find it either! There was not a hint of immortal Qi on that man's body. The scale is not with him."
"In other words, he has not even picked that up." Lonemoon's expression darkened. He seemed to realize something as he frowned.
"Master, what should we do now?" Yi Qing asked.
Shen Ying tilted her head to ponder for a moment. Then, she said, "Wait!"
"Wait?" Wait for what?
The two of them exchanged a meaningful glance. A moment later, Lonemoon's eyes brightened. "You mean wait for the invader to make his move? Would he be that stupid?"
Shen Ying retrieved a fruit from her robe out of habit. Gnawing it, she said, "The invader just spent a huge amount of energy turning back time. He must have done this for a reason."
"Master, you mean to say that he's trying to change something?" Yi Qing asked.
"Mm." Shen Ying nodded. "He turned back the time in this small world. This means that the invader did not have enough powers to turn back time in the entire plane. And that Zuo... Zuo Two Bucks?"
"It's Zuo Shuming!" Lonemoon pursed his lips. Where did this Two Bucks come from? Was it the two spirit stones?
"Right. He's already an immortal," Shen Ying continued. "By right, what happens in the small world would have nothing to do with him. He should not have been pulled back here. But the invader pulled him back here on purpose. What do you think he was after?"
"The invader wants something that has to do with Zuo Shuming!" Yi Qing exclaimed. "If that's the case, the invader might make an appearance near Zuo Shuming. We have to..."
"Follow Zuo Shuming in order to find the invader!" Lonemoon finished his sentence. Holy shit – this was so logical. Indeed, once the cheat worked her brain, it would be good for at least a couple of years.
"Then now..." Yi Qing turned to Shen Ying.
"Of course we should try to join the Tai Yan Sect – that makes it easier for us to keep an eye on him!" Lonemoon responded at once. "Let's go! It's time to register."
As he spoke, he led the two of them to the yard that Zuo Shuming pointed them to. He adjusted his own cultivation level, so he looked like a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment stage.
Compared to the large crowds they saw outside, there were very few people inside the yard. It got a lot cooler. Zuo Shuming was right. This place was indeed for those who were already Foundation Establishment cultivators. The first two people who were registered were dressed in blue uniforms. Lonemoon guessed that they belonged to the Tai Yan Sect.
The two of them were still in their Qi Refinement stages. Thus, they treated the people registering with warmth. They took pains to invite them to sit down, then went to each of them to register them. Then, one by one, they tested the cultivators' sorcery, asked them to set up a few simple arrays, and measured their spirit roots.
Lonemoon and Chef were high-level cultivators to begin with. Thus, these things were easy for them. But Shen Ying.... Er, The two disciples did not even spare her one glance throughout the entire process.
The test was quite simple for cultivators in the Foundation Establishment stage. Apart from them, everybody else in the yard seemed to pass the test effortlessly. By the time the results came out, the Qi Refinement recruitment process was more or less ending as well. The crowd outside had been reduced by more than half.
Zuo Shuming, who was in the seventh stage of Qi Refinement also miraculously... failed to make it!
Lonemoon: "..."
Yi Qing: "..."
Shen Ying: "..."
Shit!