Chapter 3: The Sect Base is Completed

At the break of dawn, the nearby households of the Lin family weren't awakened by the usual rooster crowing.

After giving Lin Xiao a good scolding, Lin Dayou, feeling refreshed, grabbed his axe and hoe and headed out to build the grass hut.

Lin Xiao limped along behind him, calling out as he walked, "Dad, it's the flat area halfway up North Mountain! Don't go building it somewhere else!"

Despite a few bumps along the way—specifically to Lin Xiao's rear end—by lunchtime, the grass hut on the mountainside was completed with the help of Lin Dayou and his uncle, Lin Damang.

They used up a few pieces of wood stored at home and a large bundle of dried thatch.

The hut covered an area of about eight square meters and stood about two meters high.

Lin Yun, his older brother, even hung up some bamboo curtains he had recently woven around the hut.

Once the grass hut was finished, Lin Dayou left the tools on the mountain, instructing Lin Xiao to bring them home later. Then, he grabbed his hoe and headed down the mountain with Lin Damang. There was still plenty of work to be done in the fields that day.

Lin Yun also reminded Lin Xiao to head home early and not to get too carried away with playing before leaving the mountain as well, leaving Lin Xiao alone on the hillside.

Looking at the freshly completed grass hut, Lin Xiao felt quite satisfied.

Then, he heard a "ding" in his mind.

[Congratulations, Host, for successfully activating the Myriad Worlds Sect Construction System.]

[This system is designed to build a cultivation sect. Please name your sect as soon as possible (Note: Once named, it cannot be changed).]

Lin Xiao thought to himself: As expected.

A cultivation sect! This means that cultivation is possible in this world!

Lin Xiao was a bit excited and took a couple of deep breaths.

Naming... Naming...

Got it!

[Proposed Name: Lingxian Sect. Confirm? (Note: Once confirmed, it cannot be changed.)]

"Confirm."

[Name successfully confirmed.]

With a "poof," Lin Xiao noticed that a large stone slab, about half as tall as a person, had appeared beside the grass hut.

On it, three large, crooked characters were inscribed—Lingxian Sect.

[Note: The sect stone tablet can be upgraded along with the sect's core cultivation techniques. Please create and upgrade your core techniques as soon as possible.]

[Activation rewards have been distributed. Please check your inventory.]

In Lin Xiao's mind, a sect panel appeared.

In the bottom right corner, the words "Activation Rewards" were displayed. Lin Xiao chose to open it.

[Congratulations on receiving the following activation rewards: Ten Miles Peach Blossom Tree x1, Spirit Stones x5, Pine Soot Ink x10 (Note: As the sect currently lacks a treasury, the rewards have been placed in the Host's private storage. Once the sect has a treasury, the Host may choose to move the rewards.)]

Lin Xiao saw that there was now a "Private Storage" section in the panel.

Opening it, he found the three rewards he had just received lying inside.

The spirit stones seemed to function similarly to the spirit stones he was familiar with.

Pine soot ink—wasn't that just writing ink? He couldn't figure out how it related to cultivation...

So he shifted his attention to the Ten Miles Peach Blossom Tree. The thumbnail image of the tree looked quite beautiful.

Lin Xiao tried to get more details but found he couldn't.

[Appraisal function not yet unlocked, unable to view item details.]

[Would you like to plant the Ten Miles Peach Blossom Tree?]

Lin Xiao looked around. It seemed that choosing this location had indeed been the right decision.

The area he was in now was relatively flat and spacious, covering about two to three hundred square meters—plenty of open space.

Lin Xiao chose a spot near the mountain path and decided to plant the tree.

Instantly, beside the small, winding path that had once been overgrown with weeds, an ancient and elegant peach tree appeared.

At that moment, as if responding to the call of the spring equinox, the small buds on the tree suddenly burst into bloom. With the spring breeze blowing, the fragrance of the flowers spread all around.

Lin Xiao could only regret that he hadn't brought a reclining chair with him.

This kind of bliss, if not shared with others, would be like wearing fine clothes in the dark!

Lin Xiao decided to go down the mountain to bring Jiang Youfu up, making him the first disciple of Lingxian Sect!

Just as he was about to head down, Lin Xiao suddenly realized—after bringing Jiang Youfu up here, what would they do after admiring the sect base?

They couldn't just come up to look at the grass hut and peach tree and then head back down, right?

It's a cultivation sect now; they needed to do something proper—like cultivating!

The system seemed to have mentioned creating a core cultivation technique... How was he supposed to create one?

[Ding—Core Technique Creation function activated. Please provide the necessary items to begin creation.]

The system's timely notification echoed in Lin Xiao's mind. Immediately after, he saw a glowing platform appear in front of him, with four small slots arranged in a row.

The first slot displayed the word "Paper."

The second slot displayed the word "Ink."

The third slot was labeled "Core Technique."

The last slot, however, was marked with a "?"

Paper? Lin Xiao thought for a moment. He remembered seeing some paper mulberry trees further up the mountain. He had seen in many novels and videos that this type of tree was often used for making paper, so he could try gathering some later and placing it in the slot.

As for ink, Lin Xiao glanced at the ten portions of pine soot ink in his private storage. The system was quite thoughtful.

But as for the last two slots, Lin Xiao was clueless. He planned to experiment and see what those slots required.

Grabbing the axe that Lin Dayou had left behind, Lin Xiao immediately set off to chop down some trees.

After chopping down a paper mulberry tree, he peeled off the bark and placed it into the first glowing slot. The border of the slot began to flicker with yellow light.

Lin Xiao was a bit confused—did this mean it was successful or not?

Uncertain, he decided to ignore it for now and moved on to the second slot.

He took a portion of pine soot ink from his private storage and placed it in the second slot.

The edges of the slot lit up with green light.

Great, it seemed the first slot was either incorrect or insufficient in quantity.

Lin Xiao thought for a moment, then peeled off more bark and placed it into the slot.

As he added more bark, the previously flickering yellow light gradually faded and turned into a steady green light.

So, it was a quantity issue.

Lin Xiao rubbed his hands together in excitement.

Now for the third slot!

Lin Xiao tried tapping on the third slot with his finger.

A prompt appeared in his mind:

[Would you like to input the core of the technique?]

Lin Xiao decisively chose yes.

[Inputting core technique, countdown begins: 30 seconds... 29, 28, 27...]

Lin Xiao was dumbfounded.

A countdown? What was he supposed to do?

He hadn't prepared anything!

But time waited for no one, and Lin Xiao didn't have time to complain. His mind, a blank slate, began to race frantically.

A jumble of random fragments flashed through his mind in an instant.

But in the end, nothing stuck. His mind remained blank, and he had no clue what to do.

[...3, 2, 1. Core technique input complete.]

With his mind still blank, Lin Xiao saw that the third slot was now glowing green.

Lin Xiao: Goodness, I don't even know what I just input, and you're telling me it's complete?