This moon is said to have once belonged to a place known as the Night Cave, a mysterious cave that is famous for always imitating a night sky no matter the hour. Inside, countless tiny stars glimmered softly, and a single small moon shone with a gentle, unchanging light. Even when the world outside is flooded with sunlight, the cave remains untouched by it, its night eternal and serene.
The moon that now hovered above the Moonlight Sect is believed to be the very same moon that had been taken from that cave long ago.
Within the Night Cave, everything came together perfectly to mirror the true night sky. The positions of the stars, the constellations, and even the faint glows of distant lights all appeared exactly as they did in the heavens.
"Even though this moon is far smaller than the real moon in the sky, it is still immense in size and possesses remarkable power. For the Moonlight Sect to actually use something like this as a core material for their ire is no small accomplishment. Yet, impressive as this moon is, it still pales in comparison to the Moonlight Pagoda, which is their true trump card."
Yang Zhai's thoughts flowed as he quietly observed the Lake of Impartiality and the Sacred Moon.
He remembered well from his previous life how, when the entire cultivation world united in their greed to destroy the Moonlight Sect and claim these two treasures, the sect had unleashed a final move that turned everything upside down.
Moonlight Ground.
When the Moonlight Pagoda ire was activated, it unleashed a vast field that spread across an immense area, enveloping everyone—both allies and enemies—without discrimination. The first thing this field did was forcibly balance the power of everyone caught within its range, erasing the gap between higher and lower ranks. Then, once the playing field had been leveled, it bestowed an additional surge of strength upon all Moonlight Sect members, whose special insignia between their eyebrows would become visible the moment the Pagoda was activated.
The Moonlight Pagoda drew upon the combined powers of both the Moonlight Lake and the Sacred Moon to create this field of overwhelming advantage—a battlefield where the Moonlight sect alone stood supreme.
Yang Zhai's gaze deepened as he contemplated these memories.
"Let's go," Elder Del Mo said calmly, stepping forward.
She came to a halt near the busy bazaar and turned toward Yue Yao, her expression composed and clear.
"Yue Yao, take them to one of the residence areas. I will go and meet with the sect leader." With those words, she began walking toward the right mountain, where a long staircase coiled upward into the clouds.
"Follow me," Yue Yao instructed.
She guided them to a section filled with rows of houses built from wood and stone, their designs simple but solid.
"This is one of the many residential areas within the sect. Every house here was constructed by disciples themselves. If you wish to live here, you can build your own house. But there's another option as well. Once a month, you're allowed to challenge another disciple of the same rank for their house. If you win, the house is yours. But if you lose, you'll have to serve them for an entire week. I'll be leaving now." With that, she departed, heading in the direction Elder Del Mo had gone.
The older disciples dispersed one by one, each returning to their residences. The last one turned before leaving and said, "If you want my advice, build your own house. Losing a challenge here… well, it's not something you'd want to experience. Consider that a little welcome gift from a senior." Then he, too, walked away.
For a moment, silence hung in the air. No one moved.
"Building our own house would mean we'd need wood and stone. In a place this unfamiliar, that doesn't sound very practical. Where exactly are we supposed to find the materials? And even if we did, cutting down trees here might get us into trouble. That elder gave us no clear instructions either, just left us with a single vague option… Is fighting really the only path left, the only clear instruction we were given?" Yang Zhai muttered, his voice low but clear enough for everyone to hear.
The others glanced at one another, uncertain.
Who is he anyway? Elder Del Mo seems to favor him a lot. Maybe he knows how to handle this situation. Should we just follow his lead and challenge someone? But that senior advised against it…
While they hesitated, Yang Zhai didn't. He strode up to a nearby wooden house and knocked on the door.
A man in his thirties stepped out, looking at him with calm eyes.
"May I ask what your rank is?" Yang Zhai inquired evenly.
Since only disciples of the same rank could fight, there was no reason for anyone to hide it. Even though he didn't believe the man would be at rank six. He thought it was better to ask directly.
"Rank 4, peak stage," the man replied without hesitation. Then, without another word, he closed the door.
Yang Zhai: "..."
He turned away and went to another house, knocking again. This time, a boy who seemed around twenty-five opened the door.
"May I ask your rank?" Yang Zhai repeated with the same calm tone.
"Rank 4." The boy's answer was short. Then, like the first man, he closed the door immediately.
Yang Zhai: "..."
Two rank fours in a row? That's a little too coincidental…
He narrowed his eyes slightly and approached another house. A young woman, probably in her late twenties, answered with a faintly questioning expression.
"Are you at rank 4?" Yang Zhai asked, hiding his presence behind the green lines entirely this time.
"No. Rank 5," she replied bluntly, then shut the door just as quickly as the others.
As expected. Those first two were lying, but she exposed her real rank the moment she couldn't sense mine. So, she could only trust my words and believe that I am a rank 4 as I was asking for a rank 4 cultivator. I believe many cultivators in this residential area should be rank five cultivators. They're probably just tired of constant fights… or were simply told to lie.
Yang Zhai knocked again.
"What is it?" she asked, opening the door once more.
"May I come in for a moment?"
"No."
"Senior, please hear me out. Also, I'm a rank five cultivator, not a rank four. So avoiding a fight isn't possible anymore," Yang Zhai said calmly as he deactivated the green lines.
The moment his presence was released from the chains of green lines, the girl's expression shifted subtly.
As expected. The moment I deactivated the green lines, she could sense my rank, that's why her expression changed. They definitely have methods to sense our ranks. Yang Zhai's eyes sharpened as he studied her face.
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Chapter Name - The Sacred Moon, The Moonlight Pagoda