"This is the Immortal Palace?!"

　　Junior Leopard was looking at a distance, eyes filled with confusion.

　　There was no palace before him at all, but a piece of ancient Chinese landscape painting.

　　The towering black mountains in the horizon stretched endlessly, shrouded by clouds and mist. Birds could be seen flitting through the mist now and then.

　　A few simple pavilions were scattered on the mountains, carving a secret path within. One could feel a burst of refres.h.i.+ng breeze traveling down the path.

　　This was the Immortal Palace!

　　"Out of your expectations, isn't it? The Immortal Palace is actually such a shabby place!"

　　"Shabby? I don't think so. It's pretty good actually!" Looking around, Junior Leopard's smile was sincere.

　　They were standing opposite the mountains. They stayed in the small village at the foot of the mountain.

　　The village was similar to the village Junior Leopard was born in, underneath the Misty Mountain, yet was also quite different.

　　It was as harmonious and innocent as the village he was born in. The only difference was that everyone here knew martial arts and had Internal Qi Even even if not all of them had a good cultivation.

　　For instance, the farmer carrying the two buckets of manure also had a Level Three cultivation. The man ploughing the land had a Level Five cultivation of Level Five. The farmwife feeding pigs by the hedge also turned out to be a Level Four expert in the Bone-Forging Realm. What surprised Junior Leopard most was that the farmwife was using a technique of concealed weapons to feed the pigs.

　　"Stop looking around. Everybody here has practiced martial arts since young, but they don't do it to compete with others like those in the martial arts world. They only practice to keep fit!"

　　"So all these people are from the Immortal Palace?"

　　"Correct. They're all from the Immortal Palace!" Jin Yuquan smiled. "In the beginning, the Immortal Palace was just this tiny village. Right now, those staying here were all relatives to members of the Immortal Palace. I grew up here as well."

　　As Jin Yuquan talked, he heard someone calling him. "Junior Quan, why did you leave so long this time? You even missed your father's birthday! I bet a good chiding is awaiting you at home."

　　Junior Leopard could feel the speaker was gloating over what awaited Jin Yuquan ahead. He raised his head toward the source of the voice and saw two elders seated before a simple stone desk under a huge tree at the village entrance, playing chess. With the game coming to its climax, many villagers had gathered around the elders to watch. The speaker was a middle-aged man who smiled merrily at Jin Yuquan, with a hoe in hand.

　　Upon closer inspection, Junior Leopard found the man to also have a Level Three cultivation.

　　"There's too many things to do outside so I'll be obviously busy. How can I be as relaxed as you?" Golden Rooster cursed, laughing. "Is Elder Qing at home?"

　　"Yes. He has already prepared a golden rooster for you when he heard you'll be back soon. Hahahaha!"

　　Laughter reverberated from where the man stood.

　　Golden Rooster flushed in the face and cursed in a low voice, but didn't argue. Instead, he smiled to Junior Leopard in embarra.s.sment and said, "Leave them as they are. None of them are nice people!"

　　Junior Leopard smiled without replying, only following Golden Rooster straight toward a house situated west of the village.

　　The farmer's house was quite ordinary, just like other house in the village. The yard appeared even smaller than others. In the yard, a few chickens and ducks were wandering around, looking for worms to eat. Gold Rooster and Junior Leopard's arrival spoked them and they flew away. In a moment, sounds of flapping wings filled the yard and their escape finally alerted the person inside the house.

　　"Is it Yuquan? Come in!"

　　The voice seemed aged but full of energy and pleasing to the ear.

　　"Elder Qing, I brought Zhou Bao here!" Junior Leopard followed Jin Yuquan into the house. With full respect, he greeted the old man who was appreciating tea and enjoying sunflower seeds.

　　The old man nodded gently before turning his focus to Junior Leopard. He smiled satisfactorily and said, "You're awesome, young lad. You've achieved so much at such a young age. What a promising lad!"

　　Being in his 60s, the elder's eyesight was poor. His cultivation was surprisingly low for someone who looked strong like him. He only had a Level Two cultivation.

　　Placed in Jianghu, a man with a Level Two cultivation wouldn't have any status at all. He would merely be an ordinary guy. But Jin Yuquan, a Level Seven expert, was being very respectful to him. Most importantly, when he looked at Junior Leopard, Junior Leopard's initial curiosity and impatience soon became tranquil. Junior Leopard was now feeling much better.

　　His heart soon felt a tick and he immediately understood that the elder wasn't as useless as he appeared to be. Realizing the fact, he hastily saluted the elder after Jin Yuquan.

　　"Don't feel so unfamiliar. Since you've decided to join the Immortal Palace, we're now a family. My name is Fang Qing and they call me Elder Qing because I'm a few years older than them. And of course, you may also call me Lao Fang."

　　"My name is Zhou Bao. Those close to me always call me Junior Leopard. From now on, I'll have many things to learn from you!" replied Junior Leopard.

　　"Junior Leopard? Hehe. Is it because there's the word 'Leopard' in your name that you chose the Water Leopard of Winnowing Basket?"

　　"One of the reasons!" Junior Leopard nodded and answered, "Frankly speaking, I hadn't thought that much then. It is only because I think the name of Water Leopard of Winnowing Basket sounds good to me."

　　"According to the rules, you'll get the item belonging to the constellation you choose. There haven't been any exceptions since the establishment of the Immortal Palace." His eyes revealed signs of surprise as he spoke when he looked at Junior Leopard again. "Different constellations have different items including secret skills, special techniques, martial arts, mental cultivation methods, and celestial device cultivating methods. Normally, if the constellation you choose has a celestial device, we'll usually prepare all the necessary materials ready for you. But..."

　　"But what?" asked Junior Leopard.

　　"But because no one has chosen the Water Leopard of Winnowing Basket in the past 50,000 years, we didn't prepare the materials for cultivating the Air-frozen Bead. I can only tell you the way to refine it and the materials you need."

　　"What?!" Junior Leopard was shocked for a while, his face turning blue. Before he learned about this, Golden Rooster clearly told him the Immortal Palace would not only tell him the way to cultivate the celestial device but also provide enough materials for him if the constellation he chose has a gift of a celestial device. Now that he was here, they didn't give what they promised? His expression soon turned gloomy.

　　Jin Yuquan wasn't happy either. Though it was w.a.n.g She who recommended Junior Leopard, he himself found the young man to have great potential after meeting him several times. Therefore, he had used all complimentary words he knew to praise the Immortal Palace to get Junior Leopard to join them. He never expected things would go awry as soon as they arrived. Now he felt like he had lost his face. It was as if it was him who had cheated Junior Leopard.