Pay to Cultivate Immortality? My Sect is Completely Free - Chapter 41

Chapter 41: Our Heavenly Dao Sect Will Not Join the Immortal Alliance

Elders of the Immortal Alliance!

Across the entire continent, anyone who has come into contact with the path of immortality knows this name.

These are the unparalleled powerhouses who stand at the very pinnacle of the immortal cultivation world!

What does it mean to be an Elder of the Immortal Alliance?

The top thirty-two forces of the Immortal Alliance each contribute one representative to form the Elder Council of the Immortal Alliance, which manages the tens of thousands of forces within the entire Immortal Alliance.

In other words, Elders of the Immortal Alliance are at least elder-level figures from the top thirty-two forces!

Such entities are so rare that even forces as strong as the Lingxiao Sect, one of the Immortal Alliance Top 500, would find it difficult to encounter them, as they belong to the highest echelon of the continent!

“Grandpa, I can’t go up any further.”

The girl came down from the Tenth Layer of the Heavenly Ladder, running over to the old man with a pout, looking quite dissatisfied.

“Ha ha, now you understand that there’s always someone stronger out there, don’t you?”

The old man laughed heartily and patted his granddaughter’s head.

The girl huffed, turning her head to the side, mumbling, “That’s impossible! I’ve always come in first during assessments; I’ve never done this poorly before!”

Then, her gaze shifted to Su Bai, and she asked, “So, what exactly does your entrance assessment for the Heavenly Dao Sect evaluate?”

This time, she seemed to have set aside her previous mischievous demeanor and looked at Su Bai with a serious expression.

Being defeated here after always ranking first made her somewhat unwilling to accept it.

“It doesn’t relate to talent; it assesses fate, our connection to the Heavenly Dao Sect,” Su Bai replied calmly.

“Fate? What a strange way to conduct an assessment.”The girl looked puzzled. It was her first time witnessing such an assessment method after following her grandfather through so many sects.

“If a genius with a Heavenly Spirit Root doesn’t have enough fate, would you also reject them from joining?” the girl asked curiously.

“That’s right. If they can’t ascend to the Sixtieth Layer, don’t even mention the Heavenly Spirit Root; I wouldn’t accept them even if they had a Chaos Body,” Su Bai replied calmly.

The girl blinked and looked at Su Bai, asking, “What if someone who passes doesn’t have a Spirit Root, or is even old and poor? Would you still accept them?”

“My disciples in the Heavenly Dao Sect don’t judge by qualifications; we only value character and fate. Aside from that, anything external can be discarded,” Su Bai said softly.

“Even if you don’t have a Spirit Root, as long as there is fate and you are upright in character, the Heavenly Dao Sect will still welcome you!” Su Bai continued in the same calm voice.

“What a remarkable perspective on qualifications!” the Old Man spoke up, looking at Su Bai with admiration. “Though young, you possess such thoughts; your future achievements will undoubtedly be equal to or surpass us old folks. I, the Old Fool, admire you.”

“You’re flattering me,” Su Bai replied humbly.

“No need to be modest. I have walked the world for over a thousand years and have seen sects and forces in numbers as many as grains of sand. Yet all these forces, when recruiting disciples, look to talent, wealth, or background.”

The Old Man continued, “Only your Heavenly Dao Sect recruits disciples solely based on fate and character, and it’s free to join while allowing free selection of Immortal Techniques. Such a generous mindset is truly rare in the world.”

The girl nodded as well, saying, “This is my first time seeing such a thing, so I have a pretty good impression of you.”

Su Bai chuckled and said, “You didn’t come here just to say this, did you?”

“Haha, indeed not.”

The Old Man stroked his beard and smiled, saying, “That’s right; I’m here mainly to invite your Heavenly Dao Sect to join the Immortal Alliance.”

“Oh?”Immortal Alliance?” Su Bai furrowed his brows and said, “I don’t know what benefits joining the Immortal Alliance would bring to my Heavenly Dao Sect.”

The Old Man smiled mysteriously and replied, “Any force at the Golden Core Level on the continent can apply to join the Immortal Alliance, but few will pass unless they have a background from the top five hundred.”

“But for Nascent Soul Level forces, nearly none in the entire world choose not to join the Immortal Alliance.”

“Once you join the Immortal Alliance, whether it’s for purchasing Immortal Techniques, pills, or spirit weapons, or for gathering spirit grass and trading resources, you will have access to the channels of the Immortal Alliance.”

“The most important thing is that joining the Immortal Alliance means you are recognized by them. In the future, your Heavenly Dao Sect will not face any limitations in expanding its territory.”

After the Old Man finished speaking, he looked at Su Bai, waiting for him to make a decision.

He believed that no one in this world would refuse to join the Immortal Alliance.

However, to his disappointment, Su Bai maintained a calm expression.

In this world of cultivation, where the weak are preyed upon by the strong, how could such significant benefits from joining the Immortal Alliance sound somewhat counterintuitive?

“Since there are so many benefits to joining the Immortal Alliance, I would like to know, do sects that join the Immortal Alliance not have to pay something?” Su Bai inquired.

The Old Man was momentarily taken aback before nodding and responding, “Naturally, there is a price to pay for joining the Immortal Alliance. It depends on the rating of the sect, and each year, a certain amount of spirit stones and resources must be paid.”

“For example, Golden Core Level forces must pay fifty percent of their total annual income.”

“Nascent Soul Level forces only need to pay forty percent of their income each year.”

“For Divine Transformation Level forces, the requirement drops to thirty percent of their income.”

“If you go even higher, entering the top thirty-two of the Immortal Alliance, then you only need to pay ten percent.”

Upon hearing this, Su Bai nearly burst out laughing in anger.

Fifty percent or forty percent, and that’s of the total income?

Isn’t this just a form of exploitation?

This is not joining the Immortal Alliance; it’s clearly being exploited like a dog!

Seeing Su Bai’s displeased expression, the Old Man added, “Don’t be fooled by the high resource payments each year; there are also many benefits.”

“For instance, if you have enemies, you can pay a stronger sect to take action on your behalf.”

“If you need spiritual weapons, you can go directly to a powerful sect to purchase them at discounted prices.”

“You can also affiliate with a strong sect to protect your own sect’s foundations.”

“You can enable highly talented disciples in your sect to study in better sects.”

“In short, as long as you join the Immortal Alliance, you can secure your position in the cultivation world. The wealth you spend doesn’t just buy status; it buys a lifeline.”

After a moment of silence, Su Bai suddenly raised his head and asked, “What if I refuse?”

“Refuse?” The Old Man was slightly taken aback, as if he hadn’t expected Su Bai to actually decline.

Throughout the world, large and small forces take pride in joining the Immortal Alliance, with their recruitment banners emblazoned with the Immortal Alliance emblem to attract more participants for assessments.

Joining the Immortal Alliance has become a symbol of a strong sect!

“If you refuse to join the Immortal Alliance while your sect is still small or not influential, nobody will care about you.”

“But I see that your Heavenly Dao Sect will inevitably grow strong one day. When that time comes, many powerful forces will have legitimate reasons to devour your sect under the pretext of eliminating outsiders.”

“That’s why I suggested your Heavenly Dao Sect join the Immortal Alliance. Although the benefits may be fewer, it’s more than enough to secure your foundation!” the Old Man said slowly.

Su Bai smiled slightly and replied, “Thank you for your advice, but my mind is made up.”

“My Heavenly Dao Sect will not join the Immortal Alliance!”

His words were filled with conviction, firm and resounding.

The Old Man let out a light sigh, clearly unsure how to persuade him further.

The girl beside him gave Su Bai a thumbs up and said, “You have ambition! I hope we can meet again. Hehe, actually, I don’t really like the atmosphere of the Immortal Alliance either…”

“Yan’er, do not speak carelessly!”

Before she could finish, the Old Man interrupted her, glancing around warily. He whispered sternly, “There are too many people; don’t talk nonsense in the future!”

“Okay, okay, I got it!” The girl stuck out her tongue and replied playfully.

“You, at your age, are still the same as when you were little.” The Old Man sighed helplessly, smiling wryly.

Su Bai stood by, watching the two with great interest.

Then he spoke up, “If one day you wish to come to my Heavenly Dao Sect, the doors of my Heavenly Dao Sect will always be open for you.”