The Cave On Mount Gyorei

Since I safely obtained permission from Elder Shanshi, I decided to begin instructing Shunlin and the others from the next morning. Shunlin and Hongfa brought back the claws of the Iron-Claw Bear they had killed, and apparently asked a blacksmith in town to make Iron-Claw Hammers using them.

Now that I had obtained the antlers of the Demon Twin-Spear Deer and the pelt of the Golden-Furred Ape, I planned to use the Demon Twin-Spear Deer’s antlers for making Qi Prosperity Pills, and to recover the golden fur from the Golden-Furred Ape’s pelt and spin Golden-Fur Thread with the alchemy furnace. I planned to use that Golden-Fur Thread to make a new cut-resistant vest and gauntlets.

The next day, when I was waiting at the training grounds after morning practice ended, Haoxuen and Seiran came together with Shunlin and the others.

“Kou-shixiong, thank you in advance.”

Hongfa called out cheerfully. Hongfa had a shy personality, but she seemed to have decided that she could trust me.

“I read the guidebook for Girui Gong, but moving art really is difficult, isn’t it?”

The guidebook for moving art was written in a distinctive style. It took time to get used to it. I explained it until Shunlin understood.

“Shunlin, until you can refine Fifth Tier qi with Girui Gong, focus on qi training. I’ll teach Meimei and Hongfa the Immortal Foundation Qi Combat Art.”

“We already learned the Immortal Foundation Qi Combat Art.”

Meimei said that. However, Meimei and Hongfa could not be said to have truly mastered the Immortal Foundation Qi Combat Art yet.

“You still have a long way to go. Once you can really use the Immortal Foundation Qi Combat Art, you should be able to defeat something like a Fang Rabbit with ease.”

“Really? I’ll do my best.”

“Me too.”

Just as I had instructed Haoxuen and Seiran, I thoroughly taught them the fundamentals: qi training and the Immortal Foundation Qi Combat Art. Thanks to that, the movements of the three of them improved so much they were almost unrecognizable.

Meanwhile, I had Haoxuen and Seiran train their qi with Girui Gong and Bosatsu Gong. Seiran quickly reached the Fourth Tier, and results appeared. Once Shunlin got used to Girui Gong, she became able to refine Fifth Tier qi with moving art.

Around that time, the three-month new disciple period ended, and it was decided that Meimei and Hongfa would join the group Shunlin belonged to.

The problem was Haoxuen and Seiran. The two of them asked Elder Shanshi and two high disciples to take them as disciples, but apparently all of them refused. The reason was that they had not yet reached the standard required to be accepted as disciples.

So they thought about joining one of the groups, but apparently there was no group they liked.

“Kou-shixiong, do you know of a group called the Old Refinement Fellowship?”

Haoxuen asked me.

“No, I’ve never heard of it.”

“It’s a group that looks like it’s about to collapse.”

“So what about it?”

When I answered in a tone that showed little interest, Haoxuen grinned.

“There are three inner disciples in the Old Refinement Fellowship, but apparently two of them have given up and are going down the mountain.”

There was a rule that a group would be abolished if it did not have at least three inner disciples, so the Old Refinement Fellowship was as good as finished.

“So what about that nearly abolished group?”

“Why don’t we take it over?”

When I heard that, I burst out laughing.

“And what would we do by taking over a group like that?”

“The Old Refinement Fellowship has its own private cave. Isn’t that amazing?”

There were several caves left on Mount Gyorei that had been used long ago. The groups maintained those caves and used them as places for study and training.

Hearing that there was a cave piqued my interest. In the old days, people had even lived in caves while training in immortal arts, so it would not be a tiny cave. It had to be large enough for several people to live in. I thought that if it was there, we might still be able to practice even when the snow piled up.

I went to meet the last remaining member of the Old Refinement Fellowship. That Taoist practitioner was around fifty years old, and apparently had resolved to be buried in Gyorei Cave.

“You’re Shuyon-shixiong, right?”

When I asked that, the shixiong, who looked tired, nodded.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Kou, an inner disciple. I’m interested in the cave the Old Refinement Fellowship has, so I’d like to have a look at it.”

Shuyon-shixiong gave a wry smile.

“It hasn’t been used for around eight years, so I think it’s probably become a ruin.”

“That’s fine with me.”

Shuyon-shixiong agreed to guide us there.

The place where that cave was located was diagonally downhill from the spring where I used to fetch water. Something like a beast trail lay along the way, but the path had vanished beneath the weeds.

“This is the Old Immortal Cave.”

The cave entrance had been blocked by something like a door, but that door had rotted away from wind and rain. We cleared away the remains of the door, and then Shuyon-shixiong went in first.

When we entered through the entrance, which was about one hundred fifty centimeters wide and about two hundred fifty centimeters high, it was like a passage hollowed out of rock. I had thought it would be dark inside, but because there was light ahead, it was not so dark that nothing could be seen.

On both sides of the long passage were many small rooms. They had probably been used as bedrooms or storage rooms.

“It’s a little damp.”

Seiran said that. Hearing him, Shuyon-shixiong nodded.

“There’s a hole in part of the ceiling of the great hall ahead. Rain falls in through that hole.”

We arrived at that great hall. It was about fifteen meters square, and the ceiling was dome-shaped. And part of the ceiling had a hole in it, with sunlight streaming in from there.

However, dead leaves and broken branches had come in through the hole and piled up in the great hall. Rain had fallen on top of them, so they were damp.

“It could be used if it were cleaned, but this place is inconvenient.”

It could not be helped if it was inconvenient. But it seemed like we could still practice here even when the snow piled up. Besides, it felt a little like a secret base, which was exciting.

After finishing our tour of the Old Immortal Cave, we immediately offered to join the Old Refinement Fellowship. Shuyon-shixiong gladly gave permission. He had thought it was going to be abolished, so he was probably happy.

On the way back from the Old Immortal Cave, when we returned to the spring, I sensed bloodlust. The instant I reflexively grabbed the Thunder Piercing Hammer, an arrow came flying at me. I knocked that arrow down with the Thunder Piercing Hammer.

“Who’s there!?”