Journey Towards Dao Chapter 27: Appointment

Elder Lin surveyed the crowd before he raised his hand to point consecutively towards multiple children.

The four of you that I just pointed towards, step forward imdiately.

Among the four Elder Lin was speaking of, Auslen and Nathaniel were the first to be singled out.

Interestingly, their new friend Mia was also among those moving forward.

Auslen glanced to his left to observe the last child moving closer to the desk.

The boy had caral brown skin and black hair, seeming to be around the age of 12 or 13. Unlike the other kids around him, he moved with a palpable confidence in his stride.

Seeing the correct children coming closer, Elder Lin spoke, You four are the only ones among this batch that have managed to beco practitioners at this stage.

Auslens eyebrows raised slightly, thinking about the little girl next to Nathaniel.

So Miss Chubby-cheeks wasnt as simple as she appeared

Elder Lin continued as he lowered his head to begin writing, The four of you will be assigned to supply distribution. Hurry up here, Michail! These will be your new ntees.

Auslen and the rest glanced behind them to see four older disciples approaching them from afar, each of them looking to be in their early 20s.

Within the group, a handso young man suddenly stepped forward with significant force. His figure disappeared from the vision of all the children that were looking back, only to reappear with a silent step directly to the left of Auslen.

The youngsters shoulder-length, brunette hair fluttered during his landing, tanned skin crinkling around his blue eyes as he smiled with a respectful bow.

Greetings, Elder Lin!

Despite not looking up from his desk, Elder Lins expression looked sowhat pleased as he instructed, Michail, take these four to the repository, and get them familiarized with the

Boom!!

Interrupting Elder Lins instructions, an ear-splitting sound erupted from nearby, causing high-pitched screams of fright to ring out from within the group of children.

Auslen scrunched his eyebrows as he looked around, his gaze finally settling on the vibrating obsidian door that the sound originated from.

Elder Lin raised his head with a deep frown before angrily commanding, Irene! Send that idiot Victor to the infirmary. And deduct any damages dealt to the supplies he borrowed from his remaining rit Points!

A red-haired young woman sighed slightly before rushing towards the still trembling door, opening it to unleash thick clouds of pungent black smoke.

A hazy film of orange light materialized over her fair face as she stepped into the smoke. It was but a few monts later that she was seen carrying out a torched black, half naked body.

The masculine figure had various injuries covering his body, and sections of his Outer Sect robe were still burning with red cinders.

Auslen could still hear the males weak voice as he was quickly carried away, I was almost there Irene I almost got this ti

Irenes anger was salient within her dissipating voice, Shut up, Victor! How many tis must you blow yourself

Once their voices disappeared from earshot, Elder Lin waved his hand in annoyance, saying, Just take your ntees to the repository, Michail. You are familiar enough with the procedures.

Michail bowed once more while aningfully winking towards Auslen and the other three.

Auslen, Mia, and the brown-skinned boy quickly understood his hint, bowing in tandem towards Elder Lin. Nathaniels anxious bow ca a beat later.

Nodding in satisfaction towards the group, Michail turned as he said, Lets go.

As supply distributors, our job is to deliver apprentice-requested items to the appropriate Alchemy Chamber before the apprentice arrives at their scheduled ti-slot. Its the apprentices job to return anything borrowed before they leave, so our duty ends there. Its not all that complicated, really.

Auslen and the rest were following behind Michail through a hidden hallway, passing by several other Outer Sect Disciples that were rushing by with huge black leather bags hanging from their shoulders.

The group stopped in front of a heavy set of obsidian doors before Michail unlocked them with his Identity dallion in one smooth, practiced motion.

As he casually kicked open the doors, Michail continued, If you dont count lugging the heavy supplies around, the hardest parts of the job are rembering the nas of everything and where they're all stored. Let give you a walkthrough.

Once Auslen made it inside the repository, his brows twitched slightly before he quickly got control of himself.

Beside him, Nathaniels jaw fell open in astonishnt before he whispered to Auslen, Its too big! Howd it all fit inside?

Auslen shook his head in ignorance, as he had been thinking to himself the very sa question.

The repository was gargantuan. The most peculiar thing was that its size greatly exceeded the scope of the entire Elixir Refinent Hall! Auslen could not even guess how this achievent was made possible.

Is the bizarre spatial extent of the repository due to so sort of Spell Formation? But Grandfather told that the effects of Spell Formations were all sowhat limited, and this law-defying feat doesnt quite seem like it could be classified as "limited"

Auslen glanced around, failing to accurately estimate the height of the far distant ceilings. He could not even begin to see where the repository ended, as he got dizzier the longer he stared. Rows upon rows of stupidly tall wooden shelving, filled with various sealed items, extended down the repository farther than the eye could see! And within those shelves, disciples could be seen roaming and flying around hastily like ants within an ant colony.

While Auslen, and Nathaniel, and even Mia were all revealing varying signs of bewildernt, a sudden whisper caught their attention.

This repository isnt truly located within the Elixir Refinent Hall, but contained inside of a Ruin Fragnt. All of the Outer Sect Elixir Refinent Halls have access to this place.

Auslen quickly turned his gaze towards the speaker, realizing that it was the brown-skinned, blue eyed pre-teen that was also a part of their group of four.

Ruin Fragnt? Disregarding what that even ans, how would this newly arriving Outer Sect Disciple know of such a fact.

Could this be another potential targe friend candidate? On the sa day?

Auslens cute face bead, blinking in confusion as he questioned the child.

How did you know.. uhh Whats your na, anyways?

Nathaniel and Mia were also quite interested, turning their attention towards the older boy in anticipation.

The boy chuckled before silently replying, My nas Tarek. What about you three?

Noticing that they were suddenly introducing themselves again, Nathaniel seed particularly enthused this ti.

My nas Nathaniel!

Mia bowed her head shyly, Mia.

Auslen waved as he finished, My nas Auslen. Nice to et you, Tarek!

Before any of them could say anymore, their ntor had abruptly halted his stride in front of a shelf, turning back towards them with a smirk.

And my na is Michail Nikolaou, your Appointnt ntor and Senior Brother within the Outer Sect.

Now that we've all gotten to know each other, we shall begin the tour! Dont worry about the exaggerated spaciousness, for now. Well start you guys out with just this one shelf.

As he waved his hand, several large sheets of paper appeared within, which he then handed to each of the children.

Auslen looked through the dense page, reading nurous terms that he had never heard of before.

Jade Spirit Vine? Paralysis Poison Grass? Are these supposed to be Spirit Plants?

Michael explained, Although there is a considerable amount for you guys to rember, during the next three hours, we will only focus on the basics. Just keep that cheat sheet in your storage rings, and you can study them later in your own ti.

He raised his hand towards the packed shelf as he pointed towards two different types of equipnt.

The first thing apprentices typically send us a request for is a cauldron. Equally as frequently requested is the Ignition Plate. Most Outer Sect Disciples do not have their own refining equipnt, which is why our jobs are so important.

He moved his finger further down the shelf, causing the group of children to draw their gaze to the innurable thin, rectangular jade boxes that lined the shelf.

Gazing at the seemingly endless amount of supplies, Nathaniel gulped loudly in distress.

Michail chuckled before he continued, Each of those jade boxes house an individual Spirit Plant. Most Alchemists and apprentices prepare their own beforehand, but we still sell them onsite on the behalf of the Spirit Botanist Association, in case an unprepared apprentice arrives.

"Today, I'll give you guys a brief overview on the Spirit Plants that are most commonly asked for, but we wont focus on them until next week. You four are only here three half-days out of each week, so were gonna have to move fast. Lets get to it!

Michail had brought the children inside one of the Alchemy Chambers, which was completely covered in pitch-black obsidian. A few illumination crystals lined the ceilings to give the sizeable space sufficiently bright lighting.

Michael was currently removing his hands from a leather bag, taking out a large, circular Mystic Artifact, upon the shiny bronze finish being inscriptions of dense glyphs and patterns. The Mystic Artifact looked to be around a ter in diater.

... Always set the Low-Grade Ignition Plate onto the table first. Do you guys see these four nodes? That is where the legs of the cauldron should be placed

Auslen and the rest listened to the instructions as they witnessed his careful demonstration, watching him also take out a heavy, four-legged black cauldron before placing it onto the Ignition Plate. Though the cauldron looked quite ornate, it was not a Mystic Artifact.

At one point during the instruction, Auslen glanced sideways to catch the end of Nathaniels wide yawn.

Auslen was actually quite impressed that his young cousin could hold out for this long. He was unfortunately used to the boys constant whining and begging, but it seed that even Nathaniel was aware of when he could and could not act as he pleased.

Michails sudden clap brought back Auslens focus.

And were done for today! You guys are free to go. I suggest trying out one of the cafeterias on the mountain for lunch, as its complintary and all-you-can-eat! Either way, Ill see you four the day after tomorrow.

Michail opened the door for them, ushering them back into the now incredibly busy second floor.

Turning to the others, Auslen smiled and asked, You guys wanna go to the cafeteria?

Tarek and Mia glanced at each other before nodding towards Auslen. Then, the group weaved through the growing crowd of apprentices as they ventured towards the nearest location.

Tarek, whats a Ruin Fragnt?

The four were sitting at a large square table in a dining hall surrounded by droves of their fellow disciples. Their table was piled with food. Auslens potions, in particular, were piled much higher, as he was still nourishing himself from his advancent from the previous week.

Although he had Demon at readily available, he decided to save his first filet for his next breakthrough, as he was already halfway finished with this nourishing cycle. He didn't know how long the five cuts of at would last him, so he didn't want to waste them unknowingly.

Hearing Auslens sudden question, Tarek finished chewing and replied, Im honestly not sure. Its just sothing my brother told a while ago.

Nathaniel piped up curiously, Brother?

Tareks voice was tinged with subtle, child-like pride as he said, My older brother is an Inner Sect Disciple of the Sect. He works at the Alchemy Palace on the Inner Sect's Conflagration Nurturing Peak!

Auslen's brows raised imperceptibly, but he remained silent as he continued chipping away at his lunch.

anwhile, Nathaniel exclaid, Wow! No wonder youre so smart!

Mia nodded in silent agreent with Nathaniel's words.

Looking slightly embarrassed at Nathaniels childish praise, Tarek changed the subject, Its nothing! Anyways, since we dont have to go to Qi Refinent classes, what are you three planning for the rest of the day?

Mia looked unsure while Nathaniel turned his head to Auslen, clearly expecting for him to answer for the both of them.

Auslen already had a specific lecture in mind, but he didnt mind hearing the boys thoughts.

He shrugged and swallowed his mouthful of food before replying, I dont know! Do you have an idea, Tarek?

Tarek said, Theres a beginner-targeted lecture on Spirit Botanism happening soon. If you guys have nothing better to do, we can go together. What do you all think?

What a coincidence.

At the boys invitation, Auslen smiled while noticing his cousin's expression sagging in desperation.

Nathaniel had never liked being forced to listen to anything even vaguely educational. It was a wonder he could even cultivate successfully.

Nathaniel silently pleaded with Auslen to decline the offer with his eyes, but after Auslen continually refused to pay him any attention, he turned to Tarek before hesitantly muttering, Im just gonna

Were going!

Auslen instantly interrupted his cousins reticence before turning to Chubby-cheeks.

What about you, Mia?

Seeing Auslen looking straight at her, she blushed before nodding quickly.

Ill Ill go!