Meeting The Sect Elders

After flying for five minutes, Karsha and Elder June landed in front of a grand mansion. Its exterior was constructed from pure gold, making the pillars shimmer with a golden glow under the rays of the setting sun.

Karsha gazed at the building for a few seconds before following Elder June inside. Back on Earth, the only place you could see something like this would be in a mansion belonging to powerful tycoons or wealthy families with businesses everywhere. But even they couldn't use pure gold to build something like this.

To Karsha, who was used to living in a modest four-bedroom apartment with his family, the exterior looked like heaven. When they entered, Karsha let his jaw drop as he admired the opulence. The entire room was decorated in gold, from the chandelier to the curtains. Everything gleamed, making the awestruck general wonder where this person had acquired such immense wealth.

"Finally. We waited for two days while you had all the dreams in the world," Elder Chen, the angry looking elder, snapped, bringing Karsha back to reality. "I am sorry. I was too tired from my travels and overslept," Karsha apologized politely making sure to sound as polite as he could be.

"Ha. Don't bother; we weren't in a hurry anyway," said Elder Lin, focusing her gaze on Karsha's body as if she was searching for something.

"Traitor," Elder Chen muttered, feeling betrayed by Elder Lin's statement. They had all agreed that when Karsha arrived, they would use the fact that he had made them wait for two whole days to guilt-trip him into staying in their sect. However, Elder Lin's comment shattered that plan, making the irate elder feel betrayed.

"Don't worry, Grandpa, I'll make it up to all of you." Sensing the tension, Karsha sought to ease it. He knew that if he could bring a smile to Elder Chen's face, he might get away with a few things since he intended to cause a lot of trouble. His reasoning was simple: the more people knew him, the faster he would integrate into society, making him more present in their eyes and minds.

This, of course, would dispel any suspicions that might arise about the slave mine incident. Additionally, the more people who knew him, the more secure he would be, even if someone eventually found out. He may have already started causing chaos by sending the young master of a great family to the infirmary just a few minutes ago without him even knowing it.

Of course, Karsha wasn't aware of that yet. However, he would soon learn that the young man he had kicked was a young master from the Varon Great Family, a family specializing in espionage and assassinations.

"You better keep your promise, young man; I'll come asking for that favor soon enough," Elder Chen said, allowing a small smile to escape his lips.

"Since he is here, I guess we should start with why we called him," the Sect Master said. "We called you here to get to know more about you and see if it is worth expending the sect's resources on you," Sect Master Xu continued, making their intentions clear to Karsha, who was also curious about the purpose of this meeting.

"First, tell us the name of the family you are from," he asked, directing his question at Karsha. Karsha felt as though a predator's gaze had landed on him. The feeling he got from the old man was many times more unsettling than the one he had felt before being sucker-punched during the trial.

An average cultivator would have crumbled under that gaze. However, Karsha was different. He had witnessed many terrifying things in his previous life, so only a few things could scare him now. He was almost immune to fear. "I am not from any family. Well, I used to have a family, but they are all dead now, so I am all alone," Karsha replied, making sure to convey the pain of losing his family and that of Austin's family.

He didn't inherit Austin's memories, but from what the being who transmigrated him had shown him, Austin's family was killed by their business rivals. He even learned their names, so even without Austin's memories, he could remember the names of those who killed the family of the body he currently inhabited.

Perhaps feeling the pain in his reply, the Sect Master sighed in guilt. He had initially intended to shake down Karsha and make sure he wasn't an heir to any family before accepting him into the sect. Although they had heirs of other families in the sect, they didn't give them much special treatment since their families already took care of that.

However, there were a few disciples they personally paid attention to. These few disciples came from no family or low-status families. These disciples were more inclined to contribute greatly to the sect's development once they became strong enough to undertake expeditions to tombs, ruins, dimensional gates, and more.

Elder June, who was standing behind Karsha, gave her father an annoyed look before patting Karsha on the shoulder. "Sorry to hear that. Xian said the same thing, but we didn't believe him. We just wanted to confirm, that's all," Elder Lin quickly dissolved the tension.

"It's okay, they are gone; the best I can do is get stronger and seek revenge on those responsible," Karsha said with a dangerous smile. Seeing this, the Sect Master sighed inwardly. He would be lying if he said he wasn't intrigued by how Karsha was handling the situation.

Although Karsha tried his best to hide it, the pain within him didn't escape the eyes of any of the Elders. "So tell us, what are your plans now that you are a disciple of one of the most powerful sects in all of the Central Continent?" Elder Lin asked.

"Nothing long-term yet. For now, I just want to become strong enough to protect those I will call friends and family," Karsha replied. He would be lying if he said he had any clue about how to proceed, especially since the system was still out of commission. "Also, I made a promise to a very powerful old man that I will take alchemy very seriously, so I plan on practicing alchemy alongside my sword," he added.

"Is that all?" Sect Master Xu asked, sounding surprised by Karsha's answer.

"That will be all for now. Of course, I plan on making a name for myself, so if you accept me into the sect, I might bring a trouble or two to your doorsteps. But fear not, I won't cause any great trouble that will threaten this beautiful establishment," Karsha responded with a confident smile.

The smiles on the faces of the Elders widened at Karsha's response. They were more than happy with his plan. Initially, when they heard about what had happened to his family, they thought he would focus all his attention on getting stronger solely to avenge them. However, after hearing his plans for the foreseeable future, they felt relieved and pleased.

In short, Karsha was the perfect disciple. They planned on nurturing him to become a powerhouse. Seeing his carefree nature and hearing his balanced approach, they knew he had the potential to become a great student. With few obstacles in his path, they believed he could rise to the peak with their dedicated guidance.

They had witnessed his performance during the trial, so they were confident they wouldn't be wasting their time on him. Despite being at the Master stage, his talent was evident. The Sect Master wanted to ask more about this, but after another stern look from his daughter, he decided to hold back and ask later.

However, Karsha was no ordinary 19-year-old. He was a 32-year-old living in the body of a 19-year-old. He noticed the Sect Master's lingering curiosity, so without waiting for anyone to ask him about it, he went ahead and explained the situation.

"You don't have to worry about my cultivation base. I can break through whenever I want. I'm just holding back for a few weeks to improve my mastery of certain skills," Karsha said, deriving his explanation from the knowledge he had gained from the legacy of the divine alchemist. Surprisingly, the elders nodded, signaling they accepted his reason.

"Good. To become an Inner Area disciple, you have to be at least at the Grandmaster stage, so do well to raise your mastery quickly and break through. The longer you stay at the Master stage, the more trouble will find its way to you," Sect Master Xu said. Karsha nodded before turning to Elder June.

"Can you please direct me to where Xian is?" Karsha asked. Since the Sect Master had now confirmed that he was not from any prominent family, they could plan how to approach his cultivation. They had a lot to discuss, and Karsha had no business being there for it. He simply wanted to get out quickly and catch some fresh air.

Elder June nodded and gestured for Karsha to follow her. As they left the room, the elders began their discussions, confident that they had made the right decision in accepting Karsha into the sect.

"Follow me," Elder June said as she started moving out of the mansion. Karsha gave the interior one last look before following her.

After leaving the mansion, Elder June led Karsha to a small house where Xian was practicing calligraphy. When Xian saw Karsha approaching, he immediately dropped what he was doing and ran toward him. "You're awake! I came to your place yesterday, but you were still asleep, and Sister Mei chased me away, thinking I would wake you."

Karsha gave him a slight smile before taking a seat. He then retrieved his water bottle and took a sip before speaking. "Are you not hungry? Because I am starving. Let's go eat something."