This Disciple was strong and robust, clearly having trained his body extensively. Not only was his Realm at Cultivation Level 11 of Qi Refining, but his strength was also considerable.
He dragged the leather harness with An Chen tied inside, pulling him over ten meters to place him onto the buckle.
The leather straps appeared taut, but after he pulled the lever, the harness was dragged back another full ten meters by the buckle underneath.
An Chen looked at the leather straps on both sides; they were incredibly tight and seemed to be trembling.
"Um, is there a countdown or something..."
"Whoosh!"
Before he could finish his sentence, An Chen felt a strong push from behind, and in the next instant, he realized he was already in mid-air.
He flew diagonally upwards, the scenery behind him rapidly shrinking, and Chen Sheng was still smiling and waving at him.
Subsequently, his upward speed gradually decreased, eventually beginning to fall diagonally downwards, with the downward speed accelerating, making An Chen's cheeks sting from the wind.
An Chen suddenly caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye.
He turned his head to look, only to find a black dot far behind him and to his side. It wasn't a bird; he could vaguely make out that it was a human figure.
He didn't know who was performing Sword Flight.
An Chen really wished he could also perform Sword Flight so he wouldn't have to fly down the mountain like this.
His flight lasted a full half-minute. Passing through the clouds halfway down the mountain, An Chen saw Qingfeng City rapidly growing larger on the ground.
It had to be said, Qingfeng City was vast. It was estimated that several million people could live there, and there were large rural areas on the outskirts. The black dots on the ground were pedestrians, who, compared to the magnificent city, were like grains of sand on a beach.
In a few seconds, An Chen rapidly descended several hundred meters. In the blink of an eye, he would probably crash onto the ground.
His landing spot was not within the city, but outside, where there was an open area and a few bungalows had been built. An Chen couldn't see the rest clearly.
The wind was too strong; he couldn't even open his eyes.
An Chen suddenly felt a force "blowing" on his body. This force was very gentle and slowly increased, counteracting the effect of gravity and slowing him down.
This prevented him from being instantly crushed by a powerful force.
This force then enveloped his entire body and made subtle adjustments for him, guiding him to land precisely in the center of that open space.
An Chen landed steadily, like jumping up and down, but his legs gave way, and he fell.
"Oh, a newcomer."
Not far in front of An Chen, a Little Old Man was sitting in a chair drinking tea. He took a sip and laughed heartily.
"No need for such a grand gesture! Rise quickly!"
This old man was quite dramatic.
An Chen muttered a complaint in his heart, stood up, but the fear had not completely dissipated, and his center of gravity was a bit unstable.
However, An Chen didn't forget his manners. He cupped his hands and bowed, calling out, "Senior."
This Little Old Man did not conceal his Qi. An Chen could feel that he was at least in the Spirit Nurturing Stage, certainly worthy of being called a Senior.
"It's fine, it's fine. This is something every newcomer has to experience. I've been watching here for a long time. Every few years, a batch of people like you flies down. It's perfectly normal."
The Little Old Man put down his teacup and came over to pat his shoulder.
However, this Little Old Man was quite short and a bit hunched, while An Chen was rather tall and upright, almost 1.8 meters, so he had to reach up to pat him.
Soon after, two more people landed one after another. These two were naturally Jiang Cheng and Chen Sheng.
When Chen Sheng landed, he was even smiling, as if this were some fun amusement ride.
"Look at your Senior Brothers; they both love to play. This mountain descent slingshot was originally free for the Sect, but because some people played it every day, it now costs one Spirit Stone per use."
An Chen was startled; he hadn't known this thing cost money.
Did his Senior Brother pay for him?
However, the Little Old Man quickly answered his doubt.
"But for newcomers like you, the first time is free."
Chen Sheng and Jiang Cheng ran over. Jiang Cheng bent down to rub An Chen's calves, while Chen Sheng patted An Chen's back.
"How was it? Didn't wet your pants, did you?"
"How could I?"
An Chen's mouth twitched.
"I have a question: when we go up, will there also be a slingshot to launch us up?"
Coming down relied on the height difference and gravity; going up surely wouldn't use that, right?
Could it be that there was an even larger slingshot?
"Of course not. We have flying boats. There's one trip each in the morning, noon, and evening. After we finish our tasks, we'll take a flying boat up the mountain tomorrow."
"So why couldn't we take a flying boat down?"
Chen Sheng laughed heartily again.
"This is the newcomer's initiation ceremony! It's a tradition of many years, it cannot be broken!"
For some reason, An Chen suddenly thought of Su Xiaojiu's Family tradition.
Running away from home.
Could this be the same principle?
The Kyushu Continent truly was strange.
An Chen thought for a moment, then asked:
"Then why did they use a carriage to pull the children up the mountain back then? Wouldn't transporting them directly by flying boat be faster, more convenient, and safer?"
This time, Chen Sheng thought carefully, but it was Jiang Cheng who spoke first.
"The mountain road is long, and there's nothing else to do along the way. There's enough time for people to sit in the carriage and think, allowing them to transition from initial excitement and thrill to a longing for home. Some people will jump off the carriage and run back, and we can catch them. Some people won't run more than a few steps before realizing they can't go back."
In Kyushu, many children of that age had never left home. Who didn't go home to sleep every night?
After staying out for one night, they would miss home.
"But we want to tell them that they are no longer mortals. Immortals and mortals walk different paths. The world below the mountain no longer belongs to them. What they need to do is Cultivate with peace of mind and walk their own immortal Dao. This is tempering the Heart."
After becoming Cultivator, maintaining lingering ties with one's relatives is a major taboo.
Not only would it slow down their Cultivation speed, but after those relatives passed away, it might even lead to Heart Demons.
So, it's better to sever ties early.
Qingfeng Sect would not let these families raise their children for nothing; they would give their original families a large sum of money to live on.
This was also the measure adopted by most Sects.
"But, wouldn't being sent directly up the mountain also mean staying out overnight?"
An Chen couldn't understand this point.
If it was to make them realize they had left that home, it could be done at any time.
"Think about it: if you were sent directly up the mountain and ran into a scoundrel like your Senior Brother Chen, wouldn't you be led astray immediately? Where would you have the mind to miss home? If you suddenly thought of it someday and ran back down the mountain, that would be even more troublesome!"
An Chen suddenly felt that this made a lot of sense.
