The Invincible Sect Leader

Fang Yu, the dirt-covered boy, knelt before Chan Li with determined eyes.

The crowd scoffed.

"He's just a beggar! How can someone like him join a sect?"

"Look at him! He has no resources, no background, no talent!"

"Even the Young Masters were rejected, what makes him think he has a chance?"

Chan Li, however, remained silent.

He scanned Fang Yu's body with his spiritual sense and his eyes narrowed slightly.

"Oh?"

Fang Yu had no spiritual roots.

His Qi flow was blocked, and his meridians were damaged.

A hopeless case.

…Or so it seemed.

A Hidden Potential?

Chan Li stepped forward and placed two fingers on Fang Yu's wrist.

A small pulse of Tai Chi energy flowed through the boy's body.

For a brief moment

A reaction.

Deep inside Fang Yu, something stirred.

Something ancient.

Something powerful.

Chan Li smirked. "Interesting."

A Simple Test

"Alright," Chan Li said, stepping back. "If you want to join, you must pass a test."

The crowd laughed.

"That's it? What test? He can't even cultivate!"

Chan Li ignored them and tossed a simple wooden sword at Fang Yu's feet.

"Pick it up."

Fang Yu nodded and grabbed the sword with both hands.

"Now," Chan Li continued, "attack me."

Fang Yu hesitated.

"S-Sect Master… I don't know how to fight."

"Doesn't matter," Chan Li said lazily. "Just swing it at me with everything you have."

Fang Yu took a deep breath.

Then, he charged forward

And swung the sword straight at Chan Li's chest!

Everyone expected Chan Li to simply dodge or block effortlessly.

But

BOOM!

A shockwave exploded from Fang Yu's strike!

Dust and wind kicked up, shaking the ground!

The crowd stared in horror.

"W-What? That force…"

"How did a mere mortal create such power?!"

As the dust settled, Chan Li stood completely unscathed, his finger casually blocking the blade.

He grinned.

"You pass."

Uproar in the Crowd

"WHAT?!"

The entire crowd erupted.

"Master! Are you sure about this?" Yan Rui asked, frowning.

Xie Yun was also shocked.

"He has no cultivation! No talent! What do you see in him, Master?"

Chan Li smirked.

"Tell me, what's the foundation of cultivation?"

Yan Rui blinked. "Spiritual roots?"

Xie Yun added, "Talent, Qi absorption, technique?"

Chan Li shook his head.

"No. The foundation of cultivation is… the will to fight against fate."

He looked at Fang Yu, who was still gripping his sword tightly, despite his hands bleeding from the force of the impact.

"This boy… has the heart of a cultivator."

Fang Yu's First Lesson

Chan Li turned to Fang Yu.

"From today onward, you are my disciple."

Fang Yu's eyes widened in disbelief.

"R-Really?! Master, I"

Chan Li flicked his forehead.

"First lesson: Stop talking and start training. Meet me at dawn."

Fang Yu nodded furiously.

"Yes, Master!"

The Sect's New Problem

With the recruitment finally over, Chan Li returned to the sect hall with Yan Rui and Xie Yun.

"Master, we now have 20 new disciples," Yan Rui reported.

"Mm. Good."

"But…"

Chan Li raised an eyebrow. "But what?"

Xie Yun sighed.

"We… have no food."

Chan Li froze.

Yan Rui nodded. "And we also have no money."

Chan Li's eyebrow twitched.

"..."

Thus, the legendary Heavenly Mystical Sect's first major crisis was not a war

Not an invasion

But poverty.