A large statue of a man with long hair and wearing robes stood tall with his sword placed on his shoulder. It made the man look valiant, but in reality, Yuki felt that this was probably the farthest from the truth. She was basing this assumption based on the old man standing in front of the statue making the same pose.

Yuki and Nana were standing next to each other. The air seemed to be different between the two than it was the previous day. It seemed more relaxed and connected than before. Ai quickly spotted Yuki and began making her way over to her but before she could a certain young man had already run over to Yuki's side. "Miss Yuki! My name is Sakaki Kenji, I was wondering if you would have some time later to talk about some issues I have been having with my cultivation."

"What issues! You are just trying to make small talk to try to woo Yuki!" Ai's voice came from not far away, making Kenji click his tongue.

"My dear sister, why are you making up such lies? I really just wished to get a better understanding of cultivation, and as she is one of the golden girls, I figured it would be best to ask her." Kenji tried to hide his anger as he spoke as elegantly as possible, trying to make a good impression on Yuki.

"Lies? Hah! Kenji, dear brother, I suggest you give up. Does Yuki look like someone who cares about relationships? Do you think she came all the way to a sect to hook up with some boy? No! She came to cultivate like the rest of us!" Ai exploded. She hated her brother to the core right now. She did not understand why he was so adamant about trying to pull Yuki to his side. He was basically trying to ruin her cultivation path!

*Clap!* *Clap!* *Clap!*

"Well said, young lady." The old man with the sword on his shoulder nodded his head in approval as he gave a one handed clap. "What she said is right. If you came to this sect, then you should focus on cultivating. Cultivators live for hundreds and even thousands of years and will look young for most of their life. I myself am nearing the end of my life, which made me look like I am today, but until a hundred years ago, I still looked around twenty years of age. I will say this now. To cultivators, time is nothing.

"But at the same time, every second counts. This is especially true in the early stages of cultivation. This means keeping your hormones in check. The first time we hear a girl is pregnant, the man and the girl will be tossed out of the sect." It seemed with all these warnings thus far that it has happened more than once. 

"Ahem… anyway, you were all called here today for a specific reason. As new disciples, you will all be going to the dark forest next to the sect to do a three month training trip in the forest. You will be put to the test. Your abilities to survive will be put on full display. But do not worry. If you are close to death, we will have a few elders following you around. So if you are close to death, you may just be saved." The old man chuckled when he saw the pale faces of the new disciples. He liked messing with them.

"Alright, everyone, let's head out. We will be heading to the forest now." The old man's grin widened as he saw the panic in everyone's eyes. He was waiting for this. Many people did not bring their swords. Only those who truly wished to become cultivators would have their swords on them at all times.

This whole situation was done every recruitment. It was to test these new disciples to see just who the elders should be keeping an eye on. From what he could see, only a few had swords on them, which meant there was going to be quite a mess once they left the sect to head to the dark forest.

Yuki and Nana both had their swords on them, while Ai also brought her sword. As for Kenji, he did not bring his sword because he did not think he would need it. But this was a mistake for two reasons. First, he would need to fight bare handed against demonic beasts, and the second was that a cultivator should always carry a weapon on them. As he began to panic, he noticed Ai's sword and said: "Ai give me your sword."

  "What!? Why would I give you my sword!? Kenji, don't go too far! Just because you did not think to bring your weapon doesn't mean you can go and try to steal mine!" Ai was once more enraged by her brother. He was always selfish like this. But because he was favored, she could do nothing but give in to him. But now, she was no longer at home. She was a cultivator. She did not need to return home ever again.

"Shut up and give me your….." Kenji suddenly stopped talking as two swords were pointed at his face. One was broken, and the other was a large blade that looked heavier than his own body. "Wha? What!? This is a family issue…."

"Yuki does not like to talk, so I will say it. You are pushing things too far. This is no longer your house." Nana was the one to speak up, causing everyone to raise an eyebrow. The girl just spoke so much!

"This has nothing to do with you!" Kenji was now enraged. He did not understand why everyone was going against him. But he knew he could not win in a fight against Nana, so he could only grit his teeth and say: "Ai, you better watch yourself. Since you are hell bent on going against me!"

After saying this in a low, threatening voice, Kenji turned and walked away, not wanting to get close to the three girls. But this did not mean he was giving up on Yuki. He just needed to change his plans a bit.