Chapter 300: History Of A Sect

Han Xuhan left Mu Ran's hut with a complicated expression on his face.

On one hand, he had managed to hook Mu Ran into Kong Ye's apprentice recruitment scheme. But on the other hand, he could clearly sense unspeakable horrors awaiting him at the upcoming tournament of all sects.

Being the well-known underling of a protagonist had its downsides, just like this instance. Not to mention, Han Xuhan was simultaneously connected to several protagonist-level figures of this 'story'.

He couldn't help but feel a bit concerned about how many layers of misfortune he'd face once he accompanied these brats to the tournament. He'd be doomed for sure if there was a stacking effect...

"Can't even surrender at the drop of a hat now. The entire outer court saw me beat Chen Yan. To avoid dangerous situations in advance, I must fake a qi deviation right before the tournament begins."

He had already employed this tactic before, so he had confidence in being able to trick most people, except

the sect master himself. Hoping for the best, he ran all the way back to his hut, and discovered Xiao Wu pacing in the courtyard.

"Martial Brother, this is a pleasant surprise! You've been avoiding everyone for a while now," He shouted happily. Xiao Wu greeted him back with a clear countenance.

Since the night he had dealt with Xiao Mei and made peace between her and Xiao Wu, this guy had locked himself up inside his hut under the excuse of secluded cultivation.

But at the moment, Xiao Wu didn't seem as awkward as that night. The passage of time had washed off his sense of guilt, it seemed.

The two of them sat on the porch, easing into a mundane conversation. Seeing the opportunity to hook another fish on Kong Ye's apprenticeship scheme, Han Xuhan decided to strike at once. Of course, the method had to be different from how he had convinced Mu Ran. Xiao Wu wasn't that gullible.

"So, martial brother, what have you been up to during your seclusion, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Oh, the usual. Cultivating in the morning, cultivating at noon, cultivating during the evening, and cultivating at night. And oh, did I mention that I was cultivating?"

"...You sound fed up with it." Han Xuhan felt jealous. People who had normal meridians were so blessed! They could cultivate whenever they wanted.

"OF COURSE I AM!" Xiao Wu let out a frustrated shout.

"When I was younger, my idea of cultivating in a sect involved a lot more action, exciting adventures, and heaven-defying treasures.

"I joined this sect not just because of the Xiao Clan's arrangements, but also because it looked like it might go through a new phase of expansion, where spirit and enthusiasm would be valued, battles would be frequent, and resources would be easy to grab amidst the chaos.

"But who could have thought it would be so stable? I haven't encountered a single fortuitous opportunity. The most remarkable incident I got into was being blackmailed by my own people.

"What else can I do except to sit inside a hole and keep cultivating ceaselessly, hoping that destiny will favor me more once I'm strong enough?"

"...Well, there's no need to sit inside a hole for cultivation. You could do it in more comfortable ways-"

"You wouldn't get it." Xiao Wu waved his suggestion off. "My cultivation technique is strict about the meditation environment. I need to surround myself with certain arrangements of the five elements of nature..."

He trailed off, realizing he was giving away more information than needed.

But Han Xuhan's curiosity had already been piqued by something else.

"Brother Wu, it has always confounded me how cultivation sects operate, as a whole, over so many centuries. From what I've heard, the Crimson Snow sect takes in new disciples once every four to six years. What do these disciples do after that?"

Xiao Wu replied with a subtle expression, "Haven't you seen it already? Our senior disciples all had to leave the sect.

"Either they accept a long-term mission from the sect, or they return to their families, or they pursue whatever they want to do as a cultivator. And if you're lucky, you can get a ticket to enter the Inner Court of the Sect, wherever the hell that is."

Han Xuhan recalled Senior Brother Lin and his group, who had headed out on a mysterious mission. Elder Zuo had let slip that they would be breaking into some forbidden area...

Judging by the equipment they were carrying and the peculiar expertise of that group, their job had to be highly technical in nature, something very interesting and dangerous for sure! He'd have to poke the Sect Master occasionally to truly get a clue.

But discussing it with Xiao Wu was pointless.

"I'm talking about sects as a whole, brother Wu. Is everybody content to sit inside a hut and meditate for centuries while everyone and everything they knew outside slowly fades away with time?"

Xiao Wu shook his head. "Didn't you hear me talk about phases of growth?

"Generally, in an era of peace, the history of a powerful sect can be divided into several phases. One is the quiet 'consolidation' phase, where they recruit young disciples with potential from all over the regions they have influence in.

"Initially, there would be enough resources and space for growth for all the new disciples. But after a few decades, resources dedicated to each disciple will definitely decline, and the regions they have influence in will become too small to hold them there.

"At this time, the higher-ups in the sect will choose to start the second phase, the 'expansion'. In this phase, disciples will be encouraged to fight over resources among themselves, or with disciples of other neighboring sects. The party that comes out as the winner in the long run will be able to go through its expansion phase successfully and reach a higher level of quality in terms of influence and manpower. And the losing sect shall retreat into a phase of decline.

"Unnecessary to say, the ones who survive the chaos will almost always be stronger and more reliable than the ones who didn't. This will ensure that the prime aim of that sect has been accomplished. The survivors will have many times more resources to grow after taking over the conquered territories.

"With their experience and considerable foundation, they'll keep the sect afloat for a long time while the sect again enters the 'consolidation' phase to tackle a greater target. If the sect cannot house all the senior disciples, they will open a subsidiary branch and elevate the powerful disciples to the positions of instructors to placate them."

"Of course, the entire thing sounds simple enough in words. But to implement the changes and go through the ordeal is something few average sects can achieve. Most of them never rise up to a higher position after a couple of expansions. Every region has its own uniqueness, rendering formulaic plans useless.

"The longer a sect survives, the more ties it creates in the mortal world that hold it back. Families of the disciples, influential clans, affiliated organizations that work in the regular towns and cities under the sect's banner, countless mortals who live under the sect's protection....

"It takes centuries of rigorous maintenance of quality, strict discipline, properly nurturing capable disciples, and some brilliant tactics across history to continue to advance as a sect."

In one breath, Xiao Wu fired off an explanation much more detailed than Han Xuhan expected him to come up with. But once he really thought about it from this new perspective, a sudden question popped up.

"Wait a minute, Brother Wu... What phase is our sect in right now? Why doesn't it resemble any of the phases you mentioned?"