So loud. Why?
Rhee, Long, and Mei did the same, each wearing an expression of discomfort. Ishin gazed around their new surroundings, eyes still scrunched from the pain of the chime. He saw a man in his early thirties with hair in a topknot, dressed in pure black robes with a red obi wrapped around his waist. The man immediately stepped forward, and Ishin uncovered his ears to speak with him.
With a deep bow, the man said, “Greetings to the Crimson Abyss Sect, Honored Disciples. Congratulations on surviving the Culling. My name is Attendant Ming, and I have the honor of escorting you to the Administrative Hall.” He rose smoothly and extended a hand toward the north where the platform’s exit lay. “If you’d please depart and follow me.”
Rhee was the first to disembark the sky chariot. She offered her own bow before replying, “Thank you, Attendant Ming. We appreciate your assistance and will happily follow your guidance.”
Ishin stepped off the sky chariot too, content to let Rhee speak on their behalf. Instead, he examined the attendant with his third eye. To his surprise, Attendant Ming was at the seventh layer of the Initial Realm.
He’s as strong as we were just yesterday. And he’s an attendant?
Ishin considered the man with new eyes.
If the servants are this strong, how powerful are the actual disciples?
Once all four had left the sky chariot, it immediately began rising back into the air. By the time the four, led by Attendant Ming, had left the platform, the sky chariot had already begun its return to the carpet.
The journey to the Administrative Hall was short, only taking half an hour. Even after stepping off the platform, Ishin could immediately see the structure in the near distance. It was an impressive wooden building in the Sect’s red and black, and it must have stood at least one hundred feet tall. He glanced back at the imposing tower south of the platform. Whatever function it served appeared more military in nature.
They followed a worn, barren trail from the platform to the hall, with trimmed emerald grass on both sides. The ocean coast rested only a few hundred feet to the west, with the smell of saltwater and the feel of an ocean breeze ever-present.
During their journey, Rhee engaged Attendant Ming in conversation. She inquired about the noise they’d heard, and Attendant Ming explained that the Ancestral Gong was always sounded to mark the arrival of new disciples to the Sect.
What Ishin found more interesting on their walk was the lack of any other Sect disciples. They passed a few other servants—attendants in black robes with hair in topknots like Attendant Ming—but no disciples. Given the vast size of the Sect’s territory, it seemed strange that they didn’t encounter any on the multi-mile walk to the Administrative Hall.
Attendant Ming pushed open the two front doors of the Administrative Hall. Inside was a vast interior hall branching into several corridors and passages. Four staircases rested in the corners, leading to the higher floors of the building. Lanterns lined the edges of the atrium, and seven circular chandeliers adorned with candles hung overhead, illuminating the hall. Within the atrium, servants—attendants, Ishin guessed by their matching uniforms—moved about. Most carried stacks of paper or scrolls, while others consulted a large chalkboard that filled the entire eastern side of the atrium. Like its exterior, the inside of the Administrative Hall was painted the same red and black. Ishin had the impression that all of the Sect’s facilities would share the same color pattern.
Attendant Ming led them through the atrium toward a set of doors at the far end. As Ishin and the others followed, something caught his eye: a jade tablet, ten feet tall, mounted at the center of the western wall. From this distance, Ishin couldn’t make out the details, but he could definitely see rows of engraved text.
Must be important.
Once they reached the far doors, Attendant Ming pushed them open again. Inside was an office, far smaller than the atrium but still the size of someone’s house back in the Daihu Tribe. Seated at the desk near the room’s end was a man who appeared to be in his forties. His hair was kept in a long tail and, unlike Attendant Ming, he wore pure crimson robes with a black obi.
Someone of higher status?
The man looked up from the scroll he was writing on and set his ink brush aside. Attendant Ming closed the doors behind them as the new official stood and gave a minimal bow. “Greetings, new disciples. My name is Junior Administrator Guanting.”
Rhee returned the gesture. “Greetings, Junior Administrator Guanting. I am Disciple Zhu Rhee.” She glanced at Ishin, who followed her example.
“Greetings. I am Disciple Ro Ishin.”
“Disciple Wei Long,” Long said with his own bow.
Mei was last to speak after offering her bow. “Greetings, Junior Administrator. I am Disciple Wen Mei.”
Ishin caught the faintest flicker of a reaction from Junior Administrator Guanting when Mei introduced herself. Circling around his desk, Guanting told Attendant Ming, “Inform Elder Su that Disciple Wen Mei has arrived. I will handle their in-processing personally.”
Attendant Ming bowed. “Understood, Junior Administrator.” He then swiftly departed the office.
Mei frowned as Attendant Ming left, but said nothing.
Does she not want her aunt to know she’s here?
Junior Administrator Guanting retrieved a thick, leather-bound ledger from a shelf that stretched across the entire left wall of the office. The ledger was so large he needed both hands to carry it back to his desk.
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I wonder how strong he is?
Ishin used his third eye to assess the Junior Administrator.
Adept Realm!
Not just that—the man was well into the second realm of cultivation. He possessed two chakras: one clearly wood-aspected, and the other an aspect Ishin couldn’t place. It was dark in color like darkness qi, but noticeably different—almost similar to water qi in consistency. More importantly, the unknown chakra was at the third layer, while the wood chakra was at the second.
Why is he a servant instead of a disciple?
Junior Administrator Guanting flicked a hand and the various parchments and scrolls on his desk vanished into thin air. It took Ishin a moment to realize the man wore a storage ring and had simply stored the items away.
But I thought you had to touch objects with the ring directly. Is that not always the case?
Guanting opened the book, letting the heavy pages thud against his desk. He then flicked two fingers and the worn, light-yellow pages flipped rapidly before stopping at a section in the last third of the book.
Retrieving the brush from its inkpot, he said, “Please come here and write your name. This is the Registry of Outer Disciples. It records the names of all disciples who have joined the Outer Sect.”
“Very well,” Rhee said, stepping forward to take the brush.
With a quick motion she wrote her name in the book. Ishin walked up behind her and took the brush. When he went to engrave his name, he quickly examined the previous entries. There were only a few dozen on the page ahead of Rhee’s, but he recognized one of them. Bai Hao’s name was four lines above Rhee’s.
So he did make it off the island.
He wrote his name and then handed the brush to Long. Moments later, both Long and Mei had finished. Junior Administrator Guanting retrieved the brush and then waved his hand over the book. It closed on its own.
“Excellent. Next I’ll give you your Sect medallions.”
He moved to a cabinet in the far back corner of the office. Retrieving a key hidden within his robes, he unlocked a series of locks on the upper drawer and withdrew four black medallions on tight cords, along with a thin ceremonial dagger.
“These will be your Sect medallions,” Junior Administrator Guanting explained as he returned with the items. Holding the dagger, he continued, “They will be linked to you through your blood so that only you can use them. If you’d be so kind, Disciple Zhu Rhee?”
Rhee approached, looking a touch apprehensive. “You need my blood?”
“Only a drop. A prick on your finger is enough. You’re welcome to do it yourself; just ensure that a drop falls onto the medallion.”
He handed her the dagger and separated one medallion from the others. It was the size of a tael and possessed a smooth, ink-black surface. Rhee accepted the dagger and pricked her left index finger, eliciting a slight wince. She held her finger over the medallion and let a single drop fall. Upon contact, the character for Rhee’s name appeared on the medallion’s surface—red like her blood.
“Excellent.” Junior Administrator Guanting took the dagger back and handed her the medallion. She slipped the cord over her head, wearing it like a necklace, and silently studied the engraved crimson character.
“Your medallion will mark you as a member of the Sect, allow you access to certain facilities, and serve as a repository for your earned contribution points. I’ll explain more later.” He held out the dagger. “Who would like to go next?”
Before long, they had all linked their medallions and wore them proudly.
What an interesting spirit tool.
Ishin could sense that the medallion was keyed to his thoughts. It was unmistakably his—and currently empty.
Is this how a storage ring works?
“Now that your medallions are set up, allow me to go over your orientation with the Sect.”
To Ishin’s surprise, they were led back into the central atrium. Gesturing toward the massive chalkboard, Junior Administrator Guanting began. “This is the Mission Board. All missions offered by the Sect for Outer Sect disciples can be found here. Each entry denotes the mission parameters along with the contribution points you’ll earn upon completion. Earned contribution points will be recorded on your medallion. The far column indicates if another disciple has accepted the mission. Once a mission has been completed, it will be removed from the board. If you wish to accept a mission, record it with the present attendant and we will register it. The mission details will also be inscribed on your medallion.”
Fascinating. So these are tasks we need to complete to earn points.
Ishin studied the list of available options on the board.
- CLEAN THREE HUNDRED BEAKERS FROM THE ALCHEMICAL HALL — 6
- GUARD THE WESTERN WATCHTOWER FOR ONE DAY — 8
- COPY TEN RECORDS FROM THE ADMINISTRATIVE HALL — 10
- PERFORM THE SANCTIFICATION RITUAL WITHIN THE FALL SHRINE — 15
- CUT DOWN THE ENCROACHING TREES FROM HELL LEAF FOREST — 7
The list went on and on. There must have been at least two hundred different missions; fewer than a fourth had a disciple’s name denoted beside them.
Most of the simpler ones offer ten or fewer contribution points and seem to require a day or less.
The mission that paid the least involved cleaning dishes in the Communal Hall, offering only a single contribution point. In contrast, the highest offered 100 contribution points but involved retrieving a bottle of Blooming Cherry Virgine Wine from a region Ishin had never heard of.
It appears that risk and duration are the leading variables. And that mission has four names listed next to it. Can multiple disciples participate on the same mission? How would the distribution of points work?
Before Ishin could ask for clarification, the front doors to the Administrative Hall opened. A beautiful woman with long, flowing white hair dressed in red and black robes stepped into the atrium. Her heart-shaped face was pale and smooth, with a single blemish. With her arrival, the surrounding temperature seemed to drop five degrees. Piercing blue eyes found their group. Aside from the difference in eye color, the family resemblance was unmistakable—she could have been Mei’s older sister, looking no more than twenty-five.
Every servant in the atrium immediately bowed at her arrival, as did Mei. The woman approached their group, and Ishin quickly followed everyone else in bowing.
This has to be Mei’s aunt.
“Aunt—Elder Su,” Mei said shakily. “It is a pleasure to see you after so long.”