Chapter 3: Tongzhou Hall

Fire Lord rode in a carriage and sped along, arriving quickly at the central square of Hai Lan City.
The three major cultivation factions of Zhu Yanxing—Tongzhou Hall, Chendan Pavilion, and the Zhu family—all recruited new members, so naturally, they chose the most prominent location in Hai Lan City for this purpose.
By now, the central square was already filled with countless people, numbering no less than a hundred thousand.
Although Zhu Yanxing was small, everyone on the planet practiced cultivation, with tens of thousands reaching the Human Immortal level. As for those below the Great Vehicle stage, they naturally made up the vast majority.
Thus, upon hearing that the three major factions were recruiting together, many cultivators from Zhu Yanxing came to Hai Lan City.
Among the hundred thousand people in the square, there were only about a thousand Human Immortals; the rest were mostly cultivators below the Great Vehicle stage.
Fire Lord got off the carriage and strode straight toward the square, his aura as a Human Immortal unmistakably evident.
The cultivators in his path sensed his high cultivation level and immediately stepped aside to create a path for him, gathering back together only after he passed.
Unimpeded, Fire Lord reached the front of the crowd.
This was the power of strength—those below the Great Vehicle stage had to voluntarily make way when they sensed someone far stronger than themselves. In the immortal realm, if such cultivators offended those above the Human Immortal level, they would be killed without anyone showing pity.
The first row of people in the crowd were all Human Immortals, each casually emitting their aura—not only to warn the cultivators below them but also to compare themselves with other Human Immortals, and mostly to draw the attention of the three major factions.
In front of the crowd stood three jade platforms made entirely of Ice Jade, each with three people seated on them—these were the locations where the three major factions recruited new members.
On the left platform were the three members of Tongzhou Hall, a cultivation sect focused on weapon crafting: two young cultivators at the Human Soul Immortal level, and a middle-aged man at the Human Spirit Immortal level.
Tongzhou Hall had sent three Human Immortals!
On the right platform were the three members of Chendan Pavilion, a cultivation sect focused on potion crafting: a man and a woman at the Human Soul Immortal level, with a graceful man in the middle at the Human Spirit Immortal level, smiling constantly.
Chendan Pavilion had also sent three Human Immortals!
And on the central platform were the three members of the Zhu family.

The three members of the Zhu family were all young in appearance, each coldly scanning the crowd ahead as if dissatisfied with every single person in it. Yet, these three indeed had the right to look down on the crowd, as all of them had reached the realm of Human Soul Immortals. Although they were all Human Immortals, only one in a hundred thousand might progress from Human Soul Immortal to Human Immortal. Thus, the three Zhu family members couldn’t hide their dissatisfaction at the absence of any Human Soul Immortals among the crowd. Still, they understood that cultivators at such a high level would likely already be recruited by various factions, so it was unlikely they would appear in such a public place to be evaluated by others.

※※※

At that moment, the three people in the middle behind the three jade platforms stood up simultaneously and exchanged glances. “Xiao Qiang, Sun Xiao, start,” said the young man from the Zhu family, addressing the leaders of the other two factions.

Xiao Qiang was the Human Soul Immortal among the three from Tongzhou Hall. Sun Xiao was the Human Soul Immortal among the three from Chendan Pavilion. “Okay, Brother Zhu Bao,” replied Xiao Qiang and Sun Xiao with smiles.

The three Zhu family members were Zhu Bao, Zhu Ding, and Zhu Ping, with Zhu Bao being the one who had spoken earlier. Immediately afterward, the leaders of the three factions turned their cold gazes toward the crowd. “All of you who are not at the Human Immortal level, leave. Only the Human Immortals may stay,” shouted Xiao Qiang from Tongzhou Hall in an unchallengeable tone.

Those with cultivation levels below the Great Multiplication stage were not of interest to these three major factions. After all, each faction already had many disciples at the Great Multiplication stage, so there was no need to recruit more newcomers to share their cultivation resources. Especially in a place like the Immortal Realm, where spiritual energy was abundant, people were born with innate aptitudes. They entered the Qi Attraction stage as soon as they could walk, had Golden Pills in their bodies by the time they could speak, and naturally reached the Yuan Ying stage by around ten years old. Thus, there were far too many people with cultivation levels below the Great Multiplication stage—more than ants in the Immortal Realm—so they received little attention.

Among the crowd, those with cultivation levels below the Great Multiplication stage showed disappointed expressions upon hearing Xiao Qiang’s shout and quickly left, none daring to voice complaint. They had come here just to try their luck; if they caught the attention of the recruiters from the three major factions, they could join one of them, gain abundant cultivation resources, rapidly advance to the Human Immortal level, and thus gain a place in the Immortal Realm.

Without the cultivation level of a Human Immortal, one cannot obtain an identity card, will never be able to hold their head high, and will be trapped on a planet for life. In the square, only those thousand Human Immortals remained, including Fire Lord among them. At this moment, Sun Xiao from the Chen Dan Pavilion spoke calmly, “You thousand people may voluntarily join our three factions. Choose now.” There were three jade platforms, each with three people sitting behind them, smiling faintly as they watched the thousand Human Immortals ahead. These three factions actually allowed the thousand Human Immortals to make their own choices without further introduction. Yet, these three major factions of Zhu Yan Planet indeed had such strength, as their influence covered the entire planet, and all cultivators were aware of them, so no further introduction was necessary. Fire Lord, having already decided that he was skilled in controlling flames through his cultivation of the “Fire Mastery Technique” and familiar with basic formations, naturally chose to go to the Weapon Crafting Sect, Tong Zhou Tang. Thus, Fire Lord headed straight for the jade platform where Tong Zhou Tang was located. Unbeknownst to him, as he walked, two voices reached his ears. “Fellow cultivator, come to our Chen Dan Pavilion. The fluctuations of fire energy in your body are very even and orderly—clearly you’re an expert who can skillfully use the essence of fire energy. If you join us, you’ll receive a hundred Essence Stones per year, and when you attempt to reach the level of Human Soul Immortal, we’ll even give you a Fa E Dan.” “Fellow cultivator, join our Zhu family. You must possess powerful fire-related cultivation techniques. If you give them to us, I guarantee you’ll become the leader of the family’s guard.” It turned out that although these three factions pretended to let each Human Immortal choose on their own, they were actually competing fiercely behind the scenes, using their immortal senses to communicate and vie for the people they wanted. Hearing the two voices, Fire Lord stopped and looked curiously toward Chen Dan Pavilion and the Zhu family. At that moment, Xiao Qiang from Tong Zhou Tang, seeing Fire Lord stop, became nervous despite his earlier smile. “Fellow cultivator, our Tong Zhou Tang focuses on weapon crafting. The stability of fire energy in your body shows you’re highly skilled in controlling flames. I believe you’ll achieve great success here. If you join us, you’ll receive two hundred Essence Stones per year, a starship at the Human Soul Immortal level, and a hundred female cultivators at the Mahayana stage to serve you.” Xiao Qiang also immediately sent a message through his immortal sense.

Fire Lord smiled helplessly. It turned out that these three factions had agreed to let everyone choose on their own, but were actually competing fiercely for members in secret. Of course, Fire Lord understood immediately—among immortals and sages, there were differences in rank and potential, so it made sense for the three major factions to vie for those with greater potential.

Originally, Fire Lord wanted to go straight to the Jade Platform of Tongzhou Hall, register his name, and wait to join. But now, after hearing the messages from the leaders of the three factions, he wasn’t in such a hurry to go there right away.

“Fellow cultivator, don’t miss this opportunity. Let me make a decision for you—once you join our Tongzhou Hall, I’ll give you 300 Origin Stones per year, which is already a very generous annual reward.”

Xiao Qiang from Tongzhou Hall, seeing Qu Yi’s hesitant expression, showed his impatient nature and immediately added another offer.

Fire Lord held his chin with his right hand, frowning as if evaluating the conditions of the three factions, unable to make a decision for a long time.

“Fellow cultivator, aside from the conditions just mentioned, I can also decide to provide you with a private cultivation room,” Xiao Qiang sent another message, his eyes fixed on Fire Lord.

This was exactly what Fire Lord wanted. Since all three factions were interested in him now, why not take the chance to boost his status and secure some benefits for himself? Of course, it wasn’t the 300 Origin Stones per year that attracted him—after all, his identity card already contained a huge amount of Origin Stone points, enough to rival that of an entire sect. Moreover, Qu Yi himself could create Origin Stones at any time, so he wouldn’t lack a source of them.

What Fire Lord wanted was his future position within the sect. Being recognized by the sect from the start would greatly help him rise to an important position quickly.

After hearing Xiao Qiang’s message, Fire Lord nodded and continued walking toward the Jade Platform of Tongzhou Hall.

Sun Xiao from Chendan Pavilion, seeing Fire Lord’s direction, knew he had made up his mind. He simply sighed and didn’t send any further messages.

However, Zhu Bao wouldn’t give up on Fire Lord so easily.

“Fellow cultivator, although the Zhu family is considered one of the three major factions, our family’s strength is enough to overwhelm Tongzhou Hall and Chendan Pavilion combined. Don’t regret your choice in the future,” Zhu Bao sent a message to Fire Lord, his eyes filled with cold murderous intent.

Upon hearing this, Fire Lord immediately looked at Zhu Bao and saw the murderous intent in his eyes.

“This Zhu family is really arrogant. But I, Fire Lord, am no one to be threatened by you.”

Fire Venerable smiled faintly, a thought flashing through his mind, then continued toward the Jade Platform of Tongzhou Hall. Zhu Bao, Zhu Ding, and Zhu Ping all stared at Fire Venerable at the same time, their anger evident, which made even the immortals arriving at the Zhu family’s Jade Platform feel a bit frightened.