Chapter 17

As night fell, the flying boat finally arrived at its destination. If it hadn't stopped to pick up people along the way, it would have arrived one or two hours earlier.

In terms of speed, the flying boat isn't necessarily faster than a swift horse, but the lack of obstacles in the air gives it a significant advantage. This is why most people want a flying boat or other flying array devices, or even a flying mount that relies on external forces.

The darkness enveloped the entire Qingyun Mountain, but it did not obscure the Qingyun Sword Sect; instead, it made the sect stand out even more, due to the bright lanterns and the faint, mysterious light.

The buildings of the Qingyun Sword Sect, situated amidst the Qingyun Mountain, shimmered in the darkness. Especially the roads connecting the peaks, adorned with a row of lanterns, were even more splendid.

"Wow, the Qingyun Sword Sect is much larger than the county town..."

Steping, moved by the beautiful night view, let out a sigh. The feeling was like a country bumpkin entering the city; besides describing it as much larger, he couldn't find any other words.

However, this also indicated that the scale of the Qingyun Sword Sect was considerable, giving it the feel of a small city. This was just the main cluster of buildings in the mountains, not including the independent villas and courtyards on the surrounding peaks.

"Wow, yes, yes, it's so big." Xiuying also sighed, though she was a bit better off than Steping, she was still someone who hadn't seen much of the world.

Fortunately, they weren't the only ones here. Among the fifteen-year-old boys, there were still many who were pure, and of course, some who were arrogant.

These arrogant ones looked down on the boys who were amazed by everything.

"Hmph, real country bumpkins!"

In such a situation, the boys stopped their behavior and felt a bit embarrassed, but soon they weren't so embarrassed anymore because some people were still doing what they considered embarrassing.

"Wow, Xiuying, look at that, that, that..."

Steping, completely unaware of the changes around him, pointed at things that amazed him and shouted loudly, acting like a small country bumpkin.

At this moment, Xiuying had already noticed the situation and stood far away from Steping, looking around, as if she didn't know him.

Steping, however, seemed to still be in a state of excitement, as this was the "big place" he had never seen in his life.

This made some people feel embarrassed for him, and they labeled Steping as a country bumpkin who hadn't seen much of the world!

However, at this moment, someone was very satisfied with Steping's state...

"This kid, I like him!" A senior of the sect who had never spoken before nodded, and other non-new members of the Qingyun Sword Sect also showed varying degrees of approval.

Because they had a sense of pride in the Qingyun Sword Sect, which the new members didn't have, and this pride made them like Steping's naive behavior.

The more naive he was, the more it highlighted the grandeur of the Qingyun Sword Sect!

This was something the new members hadn't thought about. If this were somewhere else, the senior members would have found Steping embarrassing, but here, at the headquarters of the Qingyun Sword Sect, which was a source of pride, the feeling was completely different.

The more embarrassing Steping's behavior, the more comfortable they felt.

Steping was completely unaware of others' thoughts and didn't understand the impact of his behavior. He thought it was a normal reaction, and normal people would have the same response.

Why didn't the others react the same way? That was their business. It was certain that some people were just too embarrassed to show it.

Because of this, Steping got a good opportunity. According to the previous arrangement by Old Liu, he would have been assigned to the worst and least promising position.

However, because he gained the favor of these seniors, even though they still respected Old Liu's face, they didn't assign him to the best place, but to a relatively better position among the worst.

"Alchemical Peak?"

"Do we have such a place here?"

After resting for a night, Xiuying went to the cultivation place with other outer sect disciples, and Steping was also assigned a place. Holding his identity token, he tried to find his place, but when he asked people, he received blank responses. It wasn't just that nine out of ten didn't know; it was ten out of ten.

Could the information on the token be wrong?

Steping couldn't help but doubt it and picked up his token again. It was a not-so-refined black iron token, engraved with the emblem of the Qingyun Sword Sect, some unique array patterns, and the words "Alchemical Peak" plus "Steping."

The black iron token was the symbol of a miscellaneous disciple, while outer sect disciples used bronze tokens, and ordinary disciples and above used jade tokens, though the quality of the jade varied.

Each disciple had their own assigned place, like Steping's Alchemical Peak.

The core of the identity token was the array patterns on it. These patterns could verify the authenticity of the token and display information in certain places, as well as record information.

In simple terms, the identity token not only served as a means of authentication but also as a tool for storing information, recording various details.

Generally, the identity token recorded the disciple's contributions to the sect, usually in contribution points. Unless there was a special event, only the contribution points would be displayed.

Moreover, like most sects, the Qingyun Sword Sect required disciples to complete a certain number of contribution points each month. If they failed to meet the quota for three consecutive months without a valid reason, they would be expelled from the sect.

Generally, a miscellaneous disciple like Steping only needed to complete 300 contribution points, but Steping's black iron token seemed to have received special treatment, requiring him to complete 500 contribution points.

Steping didn't know this at the time, and for a long time afterward, he still didn't know, as he had never discussed it with anyone. He thought it was normal and felt that it was a good thing, and even more perfect if it were a bit more.

Because after completing the required contribution points, the sect would provide corresponding rewards. One contribution point was equivalent to one silver coin, so 500 contribution points equaled 50 taels of silver. Steping had never had 50 taels of silver in his life, and now he would have it every month, so he was overjoyed.

As for the fact that this would leave him with little time for cultivation, it didn't matter to him. He wasn't someone who aimed to practice martial arts.