Chapter 10: Small Team

With a flick of Uncle Ding's sleeve, the youths were enveloped in a kaleidoscope of colorful light specks, which lifted them toward the sky. For the first time, Cheng Buzheng experienced a sensation that the technological world could never provide.

Once the youths had boarded the white jade boat, Cheng Buzheng hurried to its edge. His movement immediately prompted the other youths to follow suit.

Before long, several small heads appeared along the edge of the white jade boat hovering in mid-air.

Uncle Ding gave a light stomp on the stone ground and shot upward like a great roc spreading its wings. Following him were eight senior brothers, some flying on swords, some on blades, and even some on rings—an endless variety.

This scene left the youths in utter awe.

Dressed in black robes, Uncle Ding surveyed the group before walking to the bow of the boat and sitting cross-legged. The eight senior brothers followed closely behind him, sitting cross-legged and closing their eyes to rest.

At that moment, the hovering white jade boat shot off like an arrow from a bow, leaving the county square. Simultaneously, an invisible membrane enveloped the boat, ensuring that the youths leaning against the edge felt neither the biting wind nor any jolting bumps.

After a brief period of panic, the youths quickly grew accustomed to the situation and began whispering to one another. Since their uncle and senior brothers were present, they did not dare to be too boisterous.

Cheng Buzheng noticed that unless necessary, neither the uncle nor the senior brothers spoke a word; they simply sat cross-legged with their eyes closed.

"Is it because Uncle is here that the senior brothers don't dare to be reckless, or is it something else?"

Cheng Buzheng glanced at the other youths again. Although they were still whispering quietly, the frequency of their conversations had increased significantly.

He did not approach them to socialize. Instead, he turned and leaned against the edge of the boat, quietly watching the scenery pass by.

As the jade boat sped across the mountains and rivers of the earth, they vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.

Over the course of a month, batches of youths arrived on the white jade boat one after another.

By now, there were eighty or ninety people on the boat. The smallest batch consisted of only two or three people, while the largest—the very first batch—had contained seventeen.

As the number of youths increased, they began to silently form small teams. Cheng Buzheng noticed that the most interesting pattern was that youths who boarded in the same batch were the most likely to form groups together.

At this moment, only a few individuals remained solitary. The youths from his own batch, who should have formed the largest group, had split into three smaller cliques because they each had familiar acquaintances.

The number of teams on the white jade boat was increasing rapidly. Small teams immediately prioritized recruiting the unaffiliated youths from the same batch.

Because Cheng Buzheng traveled alone, he had yet to join a team.

As a loner, he immediately drew the attention of three teams composed of youths from his hometown.

A moment later, a thin youth walked over and said with a smile, "My name is Nan Ye; you can just call me Brother Ye. We are all fellow villagers from Ping'an County. I've formed a team, and including myself, there are four of us. In the future, we can help each other within the sect. Going it alone will surely lead to difficulties where you can't look out for yourself. What do you think?"

Cheng Buzheng looked at the youth. The boy's aptitude was the same as his—a Three-Element Spiritual Root.

After thinking for a moment, he said solemnly, "My name is Cheng Buzheng; you can just call me Buzheng. But I want to make one thing clear beforehand: regardless of any group activities, no one can be forced to participate. If you agree to this condition, I will join your team."

Nan Ye was slightly taken aback, then smiled. "Of course! I formed this team so we can look out for one another; there are no forced requirements, and you can leave at any time! Come, let's go over there. Our teammates are waiting!" He pointed toward a corner.

Following his finger, Cheng Buzheng took a look.

There were three people in that corner. One was somewhat familiar—the only other youth in the square who, like him, had not said goodbye to his family. At the time, Cheng Buzheng had wondered whether this person was being overly cautious or simply didn't have family nearby.

He had never spoken to the other man and woman; they were merely familiar strangers. He realized that within this team, he was the youngest.

While Cheng Buzheng was observing his potential teammates, they had been silently observing him from the moment they decided to invite him.

In an instant, Cheng Buzheng and Nan Ye arrived at the corner where the group was gathered.

Nan Ye said with a smile, "This is Brother Buzheng; he will be a member of our team from now on! Why don't you all introduce yourselves to him?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a petite girl with delicate features, looking about fifteen or sixteen, looked at Cheng Buzheng with a grin and said, "I'm Wang Min. You can just call me Sister Xiaomin. If you have any trouble in the future, come find me!"

Looking at the lively girl, Cheng Buzheng gave a small, smiling nod.

Then, a rather sturdy youth with a somewhat honest face rubbed the back of his head and said in a blunt voice, "I'm Xu Shi, but everyone calls me Shitou (Stone). I'm really good at roasting meat; you all can try some when you have time."

Wang Min looked at Xu Shi with surprise. "Brother Xu, can you really roast meat? Teach me next time! I've wanted to learn for a long time, but no one has taught me!"

Xu Shi gave a simple smile. "Sure, I'll teach you when you have time!"

"What's so great about roasted meat? Xiaomin... if you want to eat something, just tell me!" A handsome youth, appearing to be about fifteen or sixteen, gave Xu Shi a disdainful glance.

"Gao Li, how can you say that? Brother Xu is only being kind," Wang Min said, somewhat indignantly.

The honest-looking Xu Shi waved his hands dismissively. "It's fine... don't be angry, everyone!"

Seeing this, Nan Ye quickly intervened. "Alright, stop arguing. Buzheng is watching! Let me explain how our team will look out for one another in the future!"

The members of the team immediately turned their gaze to Nan Ye, eager to know the specifics.

Nan Ye continued, "We have all just joined the immortal sect, and from now on, you are all my brothers and sisters. We group together to better support our cultivation. In the future, whether it's trading items or exchanging information, we will prioritize doing so within our team first! Since we are all on the same side, it will not only be convenient but also prevent unexpected trouble. What do you all think?"

Hearing this, Cheng Buzheng couldn't help but think highly of Nan Ye. Even without knowing anything about the sect, he had proposed a method to foster unity. Although the method was crude and lacked detail, it showed he was a capable leader.

Seeing that no one had objections, they began to discuss specific matters. The other two did not have much to add.

In the end, Nan Ye and Gao Li worked together to refine the plan. Both came from merchant families and had been trained in such matters since childhood.

Cheng Buzheng remained low-profile. If it weren't for the fear of having no source of information within the sect, he wouldn't have joined a team at all. After all, they were currently flying blind, and it was better to be prepared.

With that, Cheng Buzheng, Wang Min, and Xu Shi sat together in silence, chatting about various oddities and news from their county while waiting for the other two to finalize their plan.