To tell the truth, Zhang Ze felt he should proceed cautiously.
And one should not be bogged down by trivial matters; going in and out of the Spirit Realm three times wasn't an issue, at worst he could call more people to accompany him in and out of the Taisui Cave.
Because upon entering the Light Sect, Zhang Ze realized the distribution of challenges in this so-called Spirit Realm was problematic.
The second Spirit Realm seemed endless.
Fortunately, Zhang Ze had done some experimenting with Bai Tao before entering, certifying a few things.
Firstly, Bai Tao couldn't come out. Although they could communicate, his own Golden Core couldn't be extracted within this Spirit Realm.
Secondly, the flow of time in this Spirit Realm was inconsistent with the outside world.
The five days in the Spirit Realm seemed to Bai Tao, who was sitting and reading in the Beast Taming Ring, to pass in a blink of an eye.
And thankfully, it was just a moment; otherwise, Bai Tao might have really been bored to death.
Thinking about Bai Tao who believed that a day in heaven was like a year on earth, Zhang Ze put down the fishing rod, sighed, left the cold pool, and began to walk up the mountain.
He had spent a full three years inside the Sword Sect in this Spirit Realm.
That day, after entering the Light Sect, he hadn't faced a second test. When he reopened his eyes, he was already wearing the white robe of the Sword Sect, becoming an inner disciple.
But it was quite a bargain; Zhang Ze felt he gained a free play of the Sword Sect simulator.
He thoroughly experienced the so-called ancient technique of immortal cultivation, making up for the lessons he skipped from his master, Li.
At this time, the Sword Sect was still conservative, not as liberated as in later generations. Disciples followed their masters, and the entire Sword Sect was influenced by the Ancestral Masters, becoming somewhat orthodox and upright.
The education of disciples was much the same.
And Zhang Ze didn't intend to mess around, because although this place was fake, it was still the Sword Sect.
The fellow disciples of his age or even younger were all predecessors who had passed away, or ancestors of their families.
He couldn't bring himself to do it.
Zhang Ze had just put down the fishing rod and left the cold pool when a child not even as tall as his knee clung to his clothes.
This little boy, chubby and rosy, was biting his fingers while chasing closely behind him.
"My little ancestor, what brings you here today?"
Zhang Ze called out willingly, as this little brat was precisely Chen Qin's great-grandfather.
"You play with me, those old men are boring, I want to hear your stories."
The unruly little ancestor refused to let go, sticking to Zhang Ze wanting to hear stories.
Initially, Zhang Ze upheld the etiquette, but yesterday, was pestered into telling the little ancestor a made-up story.
However, this was also part of his plan.
"Find your brother Wei Zhuang." Zhang Ze said.
"I can't find him; brother Wei Zhuang said we're playing hide-and-seek, he hid two days ago, and I haven't found him yet."
The little ancestor seemed a bit disappointed.
"Then find your sister Wei Ning." Unable to avoid it, Zhang Ze picked up the little ancestor, coaxing him while continuing up the mountain.
"I won't go, I'm scared." The little ancestor shook his head like a rattle.
As if on cue, as Zhang Ze sat down in a pavilion with the little ancestor, Wei Ning approached swiftly.
Without a word, she took the little ancestor from Zhang Ze's arms, then slapped his bottom twice.
Before he could cry, she delivered a precise chop to his neck and began to soothe the now barely-breathing little ancestor.
"Don't cry, don't cry, sister will play with you."
Zhang Ze had seen this scene more than once, although the sequence was always wrong, at least everyone was alive, right?
Maybe that's how those two older people became connected.
A childhood sweetheart exists in the big sister.
"Did Master look for me?" Zhang Ze asked.
"Hmm, Master is at the Sword Worship Pavilion." Wei Ning finished, continuing to comfort her future husband, who was only breathing, leaving Zhang Ze's sight.
By coincidence, the master in this Spirit Realm also had the surname Zheng.
Perhaps, there's some connection to Pavilion Master Zhengyi. New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on N0veI.Fiɾe.net
Moreover, compared to the future, the past Sword Sect had some prestige.
The Sword Worship Pavilion floated above the clouds, upon reaching the summit, before getting close, a stone platform flew to welcome, clouds parted, fog scattered, beneath the feet, mountains appeared rugged and majestic, as children worshiping the sword.
Shaking his head, Zhang Ze stepped onto the stone platform.
He thought he had probably endured until the end of this challenge.
In those days, the Sword Sect didn't have divisions between Inner and Outer Sects, it was passed down from each master to disciple, each disciple was rigorously selected, pursuing a personalized elite path without a unified standard.
This Old Mr. Zheng believed in building a strong foundation for the future.
So, upon entering the Sword Sect, Zhang Ze had to hone his mind, forge his physique, nurture his qi in the heart, ensuring the integration of essence, qi, and spirit, with no residues of foreign elements, only then could he advance to the next step.
After three years, he could receive his master's teachings, enter the path of Qi Refining, and learn Sword Sect's Heart Method.
This was the frustrating part, although he entered the Spirit Realm and started from the lower levels, Zhang Ze was confident, having the Sword Sect's Heart Method from the future and the Thousand Mechanism Heart Method. His cultivation would progress naturally, advancing rapidly.
Yet, this Spirit Realm lacked martial virtue, it locked experience.
In these three years, Zhang Ze couldn't sense even a hint of qi.
Inside, his meridians seemed blocked like a dead end, no matter the strategy, it was useless.
Moreover, he had to listen to other disciples praise his outstanding talent daily, calling it a once-in-a-millennium occurrence.
Zhang Ze felt it was like watching a cutscene without a fast-forward option.
However, he didn't waste these three years.