CHAPTER 80: CHAPTER 80: STARS PEAK_1

They had witnessed with their own eyes Lu Ming and Shen Mo being actively courted by the three Peak Masters.

The remaining newly promoted disciples also harbored high expectations of being valued.

However, they were disappointed.

The Peak Masters offered no such welcoming gifts to the subsequent new talents. At most, they would inquire if a disciple was willing to join their peak. If the disciple agreed, they were accepted; if not, there was no compulsion.

The reason for this disparity was mainly the significant gap in performance between Lu Ming and Shen Mo compared to the other new disciples.

Nearly all disciples ranked in the top twenty of the New Star Competition were approached by a Peak Master with an invitation to join their peak. However, those ranked below the top twenty were largely overlooked.

Only a few lucky disciples received invitations.

Although Cao Ren was fortunate enough to rank in the top fifty, thereby qualifying for the Mountain River Realm, his victory had been too narrow. As expected, no peak was willing to recruit him.

Nevertheless, Cao Ren was not disheartened, as he already knew he had no hope of being accepted into a peak.

Being able to enter the Mountain River Realm was already a great blessing.

"Shen Mo, if you thrive in the sect in the future, you have to look out for me," Cao Ren said.

"Remember when we were guarding the gate in the outer area? We said that if one of us became rich and successful, we wouldn’t forget the other, right?"

"Rest assured, I remember," Shen Mo replied, gazing at Cao Ren’s eager expression and smiling faintly.

What a useless fellow. He’s been with Shen Mo for so many years and still hasn’t learned anything worthwhile, Cao Shanyue grumbled to himself from the side.

He had always known his son wasn’t a prodigy, so reaching the top fifty was already quite satisfactory.

But unfortunately, with Shen Mo as a comparison, the disparity was stark.

This made Cao Shanyue not only fail to feel happy for his son but instead find fault with him in every way.

"How can Talent and aptitude be learned?" Cao Ren retorted, pouting helplessly at his dad’s sour expression. "You only know how to make demands of me. You want me to distinguish myself in the New Star Competition, but why don’t you usually give me more cultivation resources?"

"Are you alright? You seemed to get hurt during the fight with Lu Ming," Chen An inquired as he walked over, his first concern being Shen Mo’s condition.

This warmed Shen Mo’s heart. "I’m fine, just some minor cuts and bruises. I’ll be completely healed after a day or two of rest."

"That’s good." Chen An nodded, momentarily at a loss for what else to say.

"If Mengze is in trouble in the future, please look after her for me." After a moment’s hesitation, Chen An added, "Your Uncle Chen is old now, and my age is catching up. I fear my thunder poison injury hasn’t healed, and I won’t be able to protect that girl anymore."

After watching this New Star Competition, Shen Mo’s performance had both surprised and delighted him.

Although Chen An knew Shen Mo had a boundless future in cultivation ever since he had condensed three Dantians, he hadn’t expected this day to arrive so quickly. Not long ago, Shen Mo had grandly promised that if he succeeded, he would bring everyone up with him and would certainly lend a helping hand.

"Uncle Chen, rest assured. If Senior Sister Chen faces any trouble, I will not stand idly by," Shen Mo said, then added, "Also, your injury... it should be healed soon."

He had already gathered most of the medicinal ingredients required for the Thunder Transforming Pill. The only missing ingredient was the Jade Water Pearl. Guo Zhao had said he had a lead on it and could deliver it in a couple of days.

Once the medicinal ingredients were ready, he could perform Alchemy for Chen An and help him recover to his peak state.

「Atop Stars Peak.」

Guo Zhao led the way.

Shen Mo followed closely behind him, occasionally gazing at the magnificent scenery of cloud-wreathed mountain ravines.

"This is our Stars Peak plaza," Guo Zhao announced, leading Shen Mo to a cliff edge.

The place was adorned with exquisite pavilions, beautifully arranged.

Above a mountain ravine, a waterfall cascaded gently, like a stream of white silk or the Milky Way descending.

In the distance, immortal cranes soared, and auspicious purple qi rose from the east. It was truly an immortal holy land.

Compared to this scenery atop the Spirit Vein Peak in the Inner Door, the square and mountain gate of the Riverside Sect’s Outer Gate area seem far too shabby, Shen Mo thought.

"Nonsense! This is where the Spirit Vein is located, and where most of the elite core disciples of the Inner Door reside. Naturally, it has to be lavishly appointed," Guo Zhao said, taking out a small Jade Vase from his robes. "Here, these are five Earth Yuan Pills. The Peak Master instructed me to give them to you."

Shen Mo took the Jade Vase and opened it.

With just a sniff, the incredibly rich medicinal fragrance wafting from it refreshed his spirit.

"A fine treasure," he murmured.

He carefully stored it, then continued to follow Guo Zhao to register his name at the Stars Peak Deacon’s office.

"Keep this Token safe." After the registration was complete, Guo Zhao quickly procured a Star Order for him, which served as proof of his identity as a disciple of Stars Peak.

"This Token allows you to freely enter and exit Stars Peak. Moreover, by presenting this Token each month, you can receive additional rewards—cultivation resources worth about twenty Lower Grade Spirit Stones."

"In addition, the Alchemy Room and the Forge Hall within Stars Peak are open to Peak disciples free of charge for three days each month. If you wish to practice Alchemy or Forging, you can come here anytime. The facility has Earthly Fire in storage, making the speed and success rate of Alchemy and Forging much higher than in the Outer Realm."

"Furthermore, if you want to accept sect missions, you no longer need to go to the main Deacon Hall. You can check within the Peak first. Missions are often posted within the Peak, and these typically offer far greater rewards and rarer opportunities than those announced in the main Deacon Hall."

Following Guo Zhao’s detailed explanations, Shen Mo toured the area.

Listening to Guo Zhao’s constant stream of information, Shen Mo felt quite dazzled.

The benefits truly are much better than those for ordinary inner disciples, he thought.

After Guo Zhao’s exhaustive introduction, Shen Mo gradually understood why many inner disciples aspired to join the ranks of the Three Peaks disciples.

Compared to ordinary inner disciples, disciples of the Three Peaks enjoyed free Alchemy and Forging, an additional generous monthly stipend, priority access to high-quality sect missions, a day per month to cultivate in the Spirit Pond, and many other privileges.

Inner disciples promoted from the outer ranks, aside from gaining the qualification to establish their own residence and receiving a fixed monthly sect allowance, mostly just gained access to previously restricted areas.

"Also, although Stars Peak, Rising Sun Peak, and Bright Moon Peak all belong to the Riverside Sect, the competition between us has been quite fierce in recent years."

"The Mountain River Realm will open in a month."

"When the time comes, it would be best for you and the other new disciples of Stars Peak to team up. This way, you can avoid being bullied by disciples from the other two peaks after entering."

"Mm, I’ll keep that in mind," Shen Mo nodded.

"There’s nothing else, really." Guo Zhao suddenly sighed. "It’s just a pity that you didn’t win first place and missed a great opportunity..."

"Senior Brother Guo, what do you mean by that?" Shen Mo asked, slightly stunned. Could there be other benefits for winning first place among the newcomers?

"Previously, on the high platform, the Peak Master had declared that regardless of whether it was you or Lu Ming who won first place in the New Star Competition, he was willing to make an exception and accept them as a personal disciple."

"If you had defeated Lu Ming at that time, you would most likely have been the one accepted by the Peak Master."

Upon hearing this, Shen Mo wasn’t regretful. He just shook his head and stated, "Being accepted as a personal disciple by the Peak Master is indeed a great opportunity, but my strength was insufficient. That opportunity was never meant for me."