Elder Chen Yong took another very long swig of his gourd and attempted to ignore the disapproving glances from the other elders seated around the observation room.

  He didn’t care what the other elders thought. Let them judge him. They could meditate for twenty hours a day and circulate their qi through their meridians until their faces turned blue.

  Chen Yong had found a better way.

  The Dao of Drunken Immortality.

  Most cultivators spent centuries searching for their dao, that fundamental truth that resonated with their souls and helped guide their cultivation path. Some cultivators found their dao in the sword. Other cultivators found their dao in formations or alchemy or music. Unfortunately, some never found their dao and spent their whole lives cultivating with generic methods led to nowhere special.

  Fortunately for Chen Yong, he had found his dao at the age of sixteen.

  All it took was stealing his master’s wine jar and getting so drunk that he’d accidentally broken through two levels of Qi Condensation in a single night.

  Of course, his master had been furious about the wine.

  And even though the breakthrough helped calm him down, he was still mad enough to make Chen Yong run laps around the mountain for three days.

  But Chen Yong had learned something important that night.

  Wine wasn’t merely wine.

  At least not for him.

  For him, wine was enlightenment in liquid form.

  The Dao of Drunken Immortality was a simple concept. The more he drank, the more his cultivation improved. Every drink cleaned his spiritual essence. Every bottle brought him closer to the next stage. The drunker he was, the clearer his perception of the fundamental laws governing reality were.

  Unlike other cultivators that needed to go sit in a cave and contemplate the nature of existence, Chen Yong needed to get intoxicated to understand reality.

  The only downside was that it worked too well.

  Chen Yong had never intended to become powerful. He just wanted to drink peacefully. But the Dao of Drunken Immortality had other plans. Every year his cultivation improved. Every month he reached a higher level. At age eighteen, he had reached Elemental Realm. At age forty, he had reached Stellar Realm. And to his utter horror, without even trying to cultivate, at the age of a hundred, he had somehow jumped to the peak of the Stellar Realm.

  One step away from Life Realm, which Chen Yong had no intention of reaching anytime soon.

  Because reaching Stellar Realm had made him a minor elder of the Azure Peak Sect.

  And given him responsibilities.

  Chen Yong hated responsibility. Responsibility disrupted his drinking schedule.

  He took another drink of his gourd and savored the sensation of the peach blossom wine burning down his throat. This particular vintage was three hundred years old. It had been stolen from a demonic sect's treasury during a raid that Chen Yong had been forced to attend fifteen years ago. The demonic cultivators had died. The wine now lived on in Chen Yong's storage ring. A worthy legacy, in his opinion.

  "Elder Chen Yong, do you really need to drink during official sect business?" Elder Meng asked across the observation room.

  Chen Yong looked at the senior elder.

  Elder Meng was in Life Realm, which meant that his cultivation was an entire major realm ahead of Chen Yong's. But Chen Yong had been drinking for so long that he had learned how to handle those who believed themselves to be superior.

  "Do I need to breathe during official sect business?" Chen Yong retorted. "Does my heart need to beat? Do my meridians need to circulate qi? Drinking is my cultivation, Elder Meng. Would you ask a sword cultivator to stop wielding his sword? Would you ask a formation master to stop thinking about formations?"

  Elder Meng's eye flickered, but he stayed silent.

  Some of the other elders shifted uncomfortably in their seats.

  "Drinking is not cultivation," Elder Zhao stated, his voice heavy with the weight of authority that caused the air to grow thicker. "It is indulgence disguised as cultivation."

  "Well, then it is good that I’m better at indulgence than you are at cultivation," Chen Yong retorted, while continuing to take another drink. "Or else I wouldn’t have reached Peak Stellar Realm at a younger age than you.”

  Elder Zhao's face grew darker, but he said nothing.

  Although Chen Yong was a minor elder, he was far too talented to punish for a little disrespect.

  Only the Grand Elders and the Sect Master himself were able to give orders to Chen Yong.

  Unfortunately, the Sect Master had told Chen Yong to be here today.

  The observation room was situated within a restricted area of the sect library.

  The room had been built by Elder Chang, using formation arrays nearly four hundred years ago that allowed her to monitor specific areas of the sect grounds.

  In the middle of the observation room, a large, three-dimensional image floated in the air.

  The image showed the library floor below, where this year's outer disciples were selecting their cultivation methods. The image was incredibly detailed and clear, so much so that Chen Yong could see each individual jade slip and discern the facial expressions of the disciples.

  "The Chen clan boy just picked the Flame Heart Method," Elder Feng reported, studying the formation display with the utmost scrutiny of someone inspecting merchandise. "Average choice for a fire affinity. Worth approximately eight hundred spirit stones if sold outside the sect."

  "We aren't selling our cultivation methods," Elder Wan cut in. "Our sect's knowledge belongs to the sect disciples."

  "I'm just stating the market price," Elder Feng explained. "That boy's family bribed his way in. His family expects to receive a return on their investment."

  Chen Yong ignored their discussion and focused on his wine. He had heard these conversations before. The elders always spoke about resources, value, and optimization. To them, the disciples were nothing more than investments that produced returns.

  Chen Yong thought that was ridiculous.

  The disciples were just children that wanted to cultivate.

  Let them pick whatever method they wanted to and just leave them alone.

  "The Mei girl chose the Flowing River Method," Elder Meng noted. "It suits her background."

  "What a waste of potential," Elder Zhou said, displaying his usual ambition. "She has decent spiritual roots. She could have picked something more aggressive."

  "Not every disciple needs to be aggressive," Elder Wan said calmly. "Flowing River is a solid base for—"

  "For mediocrity," Elder Zhou interjected. "But I guess not every disciple can be exceptional."

  Chen Yong rolled his eyes and took another drink. Elder Zhou was one of those cultivators that judged everything based on its potential for killing an opponent quickly. To him, if a technique couldn’t kill someone efficiently, then it was useless.

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  The formation display changed as the disciples continued to make their selections. Chen Yong watched with only mild interest. Almost all of the disciples picked the common human-level cultivation methods. Reasonable choices. Safe choices. Choices that would result in stable but unimpressive cultivation careers.

  Then one of the disciples decided to pick something different.

  "Wait," Elder Liu leaned forward in his seat, staring intensely at the display. "Is that boy holding the Celestial Palace Method?"

  The observation room fell quiet as all of the elders turned their attention to the display.

  A young man wearing clan recruit robes was examining one of the remnant cultivation method tablets. His hand hovered over the jade surface as if uncertain.

  "Idiot," Elder Wan whispered softly. "Remnant methods can be fatal.”

  "Unless he’s successful," Elder Meng suggested, his polite demeanor barely concealing the greed in his eyes. "The Celestial Palace Method allows cultivators to use a domain at Qi Condensation. Just imagine… none of the other disciples would be able to touch him."

  "Just imagine the devastating consequences of an inner world collapse," Elder Wan retorted. "Do you remember Disciple Wen Jia? Coma for three years before we eventually crippled her cultivation to save her life!"

  "It's a calculated risk," Elder Liu argued. "If he is talented enough—"

  The disciple removed his hand from the Celestial Palace Method and picked a normal jade slip instead.

  Elder Zhao sighed. "Coward."

  "Realistic," Elder Wan corrected. "He will live to cultivate another day."

  Chen Yong finished drinking his wine and wondered how much longer the meeting would continue. He had a fresh batch of spirit plum wine waiting for him in his chambers. Five hundred years old, purchased from a traveling merchant that had proclaimed that it would help break through bottlenecks.

  Chen Yong had no bottlenecks, but he had bought it anyway, it was delicious.

  "Another disciple is going over to a remnant method," Elder Feng reported.

  Chen Yong glanced at the formation display. An ordinary young man, dressed in the robes of an outer disciple, was walking towards the rear of the cultivation method aisle. There was nothing unusual about him. Average build, average face, average in every aspect.

  "Village recruit," Elder Meng dismissed the young man. "He will choose something mundane and disappear into obscurity along with the rest of them."

  But the young man didn’t select something mundane.

  He picked up one of the ancient jade tablets.

  The World Tree Sutra.

  The reaction to the young man's decision in the observation room was explosive.

  "He can’t be serious," Elder Zhao exclaimed, leaning further in his seat.

  "Elder Chang is allowing it," Elder Feng observed. "Notice that she isn't stopping him."

  "Of course, she won't stop him," Elder Liu declared, with an obvious hint of desire. "She wants to see what happens, she always does."

  Chen Yong observed the young man holding the World Tree Sutra tablet. Through the formation display, he could sense that the ancient jade seemed to be responding. The gold veins in the tablet glowed with a weak light.

  "The tablet is reacting to him," Elder Wan said, with awe in his voice. "That is... that is incredible. The World Tree Sutra hasn't reacted to anyone in over a decade."

  "Zhang Wei," Elder Meng remembered, in a soft tone. "Three years ago. The tablet reacted to him too."

  "And now Zhang Wei is a tree in my inner world," Elder Liu said, with a smug expression. "Very beautiful specimen."

  Chen Yong experienced a wave of nausea. He took another drink to cleanse the taste of disgust from his mouth.

  "I could use a World Tree for my inner world," Elder Zhao mused. “I think that’s what I’m missing for my breakthrough to Life Realm."

  "You are already talking about who will claim him after he fails?" Elder Wan's voice rose slightly. "The boy has only taken the tablet! He has not even started cultivating yet!"

  "Be realistic," Elder Meng calmly cut in. "The failure rate is greater than ninety-nine point nine percent. Those odds don’t favor success."

  "But there is a point one percent chance," Elder Feng reminded. "And if he is successful, the World Tree Sutra is one of the most powerful cultivation methods we have."

  "If he is successful, we need to establish protocols for resource distribution," Elder Meng calmly interrupted. "Disciples of this caliber need to be overseen by a senior elder."

  Chen Yong understood what that meant.

  Elder Meng wanted to make sure that the boy's success would benefit the elder council, not the boy himself.

  "The boy is already at Qi Condensation Stage 2," Elder Zhao noted. "That’s fast cultivation speed.”

  "Which means he is even more valuable," Elder Liu added. "It doesn’t matter if he becomes a tree or successfully cultivates the method, we need to keep a close eye on him."

  Chen Yong watched the formation display as Sister Liu Qingge appeared, trying to convince the young man to return the tablet. The warning was obvious, even through the silent image. She’d lost Zhang Wei to the World Tree Sutra. She didn’t want to lose another disciple.

  The young man listened, but he didn’t return the tablet.

  “He’s going to do it,” Elder Feng said. “He’s actually going to cultivate the World Tree Sutra.”

  “Good,” Elder Zhao said. “I’ll start making arrangements in my inner world for when he transforms.”

  “You’re disgusting,” Elder Wan said bluntly. “You’re planning to harvest a human being.”

  “I’m planning to utilize a cultivation resource,” Elder Zhao corrected. “If the boy fails, he becomes a tree. Trees go in inner worlds. I’m just making sure he’s used efficiently.”

  “I agree with Elder Zhao on this,” Elder Liu said. “Wasting a perfectly good World Tree would be foolish. Although, I think allocations should be based on cultivation realm. Elders in the later stages of Life Realm should have priority.”

  Chen Yong drank more wine and attempted to tune out their voices as other elders joined in to explain why they deserved to take the tree into their inner world. These were the elders that controlled the Azure Peak Sect. These were the people that decided what happened to disciples.

  And they were already discussing how to divide up a boy who hadn't even failed yet.

  The formation display changed again.

  The young man was leaving the library, with the World Tree Sutra tablet tucked securely under his arm.

  “Ke Yin,” Elder Meng said aloud, reading from a jade slip that had suddenly appeared in his hand. “Village recruit from the southern farmland areas. No notable ancestry. No clan affiliations. Parents are alive but can be paid off if the boy does transform.”

  “Perfect,” Elder Zhao said. “No complications.”

  Chen Yong was about to take another drink when the air in the room cooled.

  And he wasn’t talking about the physical temperature.

  After all, cultivators at their level didn’t experience temperature the same way mortal humans did.

  It was the spiritual pressure that suddenly filled the chamber that made everyone freeze.

  A figure materialized in the center of the room, standing directly in the space where the formation display had been. The three-dimensional image flickered and reformed around him, adapting to his presence.

  This was Sect Master Yuan.

  Chen Yong almost spilled his wine. He placed his gourd down gently and bowed.

  Around him, the other elders followed suit.

  The Sect Master was a god-like being who had lived for thousands of years.

  But no one would be able to tell based on his appearance.

  He looked to be in his late twenties with sharp facial features and serious, black eyes that seemed to see past everything he looked at. He wore simple white robes with no adornment. A Civilisation Realm expert didn’t need fancy displays of power. Their mere presence was enough.

  The gap between Life Realm and Civilization Realm was so vast that most cultivators couldn't even comprehend it. A Civilization Realm cultivator could create entire societies inside their inner world. They could create rules of reality that govern large sections of land. And they could kill Life Realm elders with a mere thought.

  "Sect Master," Elder Wan said, his voice respectful. "We weren't expecting—"

  "Elder Chen Yong," the Sect Master said, his voice cutting through Elder Wan's words.

  Chen Yong’s heart sank. This couldn’t be good.

  “Sect Master,” he said respectfully, continuing to bow.

  “I have a mission for you.”

  Of course he did. Chen Yong had known this was going to happen.

  Why else would the Sect Master have specifically asked him to attend this meeting?

  “This humble elder is honored to serve,” Chen Yong said, using the formal language required by etiquette.

  “The boy that chose the World Tree Sutra,” Sect Master Yuan continued. “Ke Yin. Observe him. Watch his development. Report any noteworthy changes to me personally.”

  "May this humble elder ask why?"

  The words came out before Chen Yong could stop them.

  One of the elders made a small choking sound. You didn't question the Sect Master.

  Fortunately for Chen Yong, the Sect Master didn’t seem offended.

  "Because you're one of the few elders in this sect who doesn't have an agenda. You won't try to manipulate his cultivation. You won't try to claim him for your inner world if he fails. You'll simply watch and report what you see."

  "Because I just want to drink," Chen Yong said.

  "Yes, because you just want to drink," the Sect Master agreed. "Which makes you perfect for this task."

  Chen Yong wanted to argue. He wanted to explain that he had three cases of rare spirit wine arriving next week and he'd been planning to spend the entire month in his quarters testing them.

  But you didn't argue with a Civilisation Realm monster.

  "This humble elder accepts the task," Chen Yong said.

  "Sect Master," Elder Wan spoke up. "Why don't you take the boy as a personal disciple? If the World Tree Sutra truly resonates with him, he could become—"

  "I already have my eye on a disciple," Sect Master Yuan interrupted.

  The chamber fell silent.

  It was extremely rare for the Sect Master to take personal disciples.

  Whoever the boy was, he must have heaven-defying talent.

  "May we know who?" Elder Meng asked carefully.

  "Song Xiang," the Sect Master said.

  Several elders gasped.

  Chen Yong vaguely remembered the name.

  It was some outer disciple who'd shown exceptional talent during the entrance exam.

  Also, apparently, he had been able to hold his own against an inner disciple.

  Before anyone could ask any questions, the Sect Master vanished.

  With a heavy sigh, Chen Yong slowly sat back down and picked up his wine gourd.

  Around him, the other elders were all staring at him with expressions ranging from envy to outright resentment.

  And Chen Yong understood why.

  Everyone wanted to be associated with a potential World Tree cultivator.

  Either to help the boy succeed for their own gain, or to claim him for their inner world after he failed.

  But Chen Yong wasn’t like any of them.

  He just wanted to drink in peace.

  Unfortunately, the Sect Master had assigned him a mission.

  Which meant Chen Yong had no choice but to do it properly.

  The only thing he could do was pray that the boy wouldn’t be too much trouble.

  With another sigh, Chen Yong took a long drink from his gourd, enjoying the burn of 300 year old peach blossom wine, and mentally cursed his terrible luck.

  Being responsible was such a waste of good drinking time.