Rise of The Banished Azure Sky Prince

Zhu Yuan's Ambtions.

Zhu Yuan opened his lazy eyes slowly peering up into the skies. To his utter disbelief night was approaching.

"Oh no. How is it night already?" He jolted up cursing his terrible luck. Zhu Yuan grabbed his old trusted leather pouch and rushed down the small hill just south of Red Eagle Town.

"The old man is surely going to scold me to death this time."

Old Man Yuan, middle level pellet refiner and owner of The Healing Essence Shop, a small but thriving medicinal pellet shop on the outskirts of the busy town was a truly enraged man.

His flowing white beard trembled as he muttered unprintable expletives , his scowling face locked south in the direction his pesky grandson had taken mid morning with a huge list of herbs to collect and bring back with haste.

They had just undertaken a huge business to refine a hundred pink princess glow pellets for the wealthy Kong Merchant Family. The pellets were in high demand especially amongst the wealthy women's circles.

The Kong Family Patriarch Jue Kong had just dispatched servants to inquire on the refinement progress and Old Man Yuan had lied through his teeth and given a promise to deliver within three days.

The lively Zhu Yuan approached hastily and upon seeing the severely stern face of his grand father all the crafty excuses he had made up evaporated in undue fashion.

"Just where the hell have you been? Do you want us to forever wallow in poverty and shame!?"

"I had to lie to the Kong's family envoys while you loiter and frolick about you ungrateful rascal!"

"I err.. got lost as I foraged for the yellow essence flower grandpa. I was working really really hard."

"Nonsense, that's one of the most common herbs in the entire province!"

"Come in at once, prepare the herbs. Set up the refining kiln. You can forget about sleeping tonight!"

A sulking Zhu Yuan entered their home behind their shop and set about his work.

"It's your fault for serving such a heavy lunch." He muttered

"What did you say.."

"Nothing grandpa, nothing at all. It must be the wind."

Zhu Yuan set up the table and lit up the kiln. He began to weigh the various herbs as Old Man Yuan inspected his progress.

"Wait... Where is the light concealing grass? It was first on the list..."

"This... This is gray nut essence grass. How could you mix this up."

"They are no way similar, light concealing grass is thin and longer and has a distinct spicy smell."

"S# *t , today's luck was simply too terrible."

Thinking on his feet Zhu Yuan was quick to reply.

"Err, Oh this. We must have mixed up herbs with Cui Jiang. We were collecting herbs together. I'll get the light concealing grass from him first thing in the morning."

"Hmmph.. No wonder. That boy is a good for nothing ingrate. . huh . . wait a minute." Old Man Yuan's scowl darkened a further shade.

The gray nut essence grass wasn't a rare herb in itself but its use was definitely unique. It was used used to refine the grey men's pellet, a pill much in demand amongst men's circles as it helped increase libido five fold!

Zhu Yuan recognized his mistake at once. " Err its funny because I just cannot fathom why he would need grey nut essence grass for. Perhaps you can enlighten me grandpa. "

Old Man Yuan almost chocked on his own spit.

" cough, cough... ahem this is not something that you should concern yourself with. Dispose of it at once. Go prepare our evening meal."

"I want that light concealing grass first thing in the morning. Go."

Zhu Yuan escaped to the kitchen area concealing a mischievous grin.

Old Man Yuan sighed. " This pesky rascal. He knows too much."

He had only began teaching Zhu Yuan the way of pellet refining roughly a year ago. But his pesky grand son's heart was not in it. He only briefly skimmed the large volumes of books he had labored to put before him.

Despite all this his intelligence and high perception shone brightly as his knowledge of herbs and medicines was way ahead of his peers. If Zhu Yuan immersed himself seriously he could become a renowned pellet refining master within a few years. But like all the rest Zhu Yuan's head was high up in the clouds.

Later on Zhu Yuan walked aimlessly on the town streets. He thought of his grandfather. He knew of his intentions. He wanted him to be a pellet refining master just like him. He would then later on take over their family business, settle down and devote his life there.

"I'm sorry grandpa. I'll have to disappoint you."

The thought of spending his whole life here in Red Eagle Town just would not do. Zhu Yuan wanted to enter the path of cultivation. Follow the way of the Divine.

His dream was to become a Great General in the Imperial Celestial Sky Army. To be part of great and glorious conquests. To travel the vast Celestial Sky Continent.

This dream was grand as it was arduous and extremely hard to pursue. The only way was to join one of the five major sects in Celestial Sky Continent. These were vast existences only below the Celestial Imperial Palace and the four Main Sky Subduing Halls.

Getting into these hegemons was akin to scaling the high heavens. Amongst the millions of eager practitioners only mere thousands were able to attain this highest honor of joining these sects.

Fortunately for Zhu Yuan and millions of hopeful practitioners there existed numerous outer sects in almost all the major towns and provinces. These outer sects took in hundreds of thousands of students every year. There through extreme hard work, determination and sheer luck the top most batch of excellent students would be elevated to the major sects once every three to five years.

To Zhu Yuan and any young soul who harboured grand ambitions, these outer sects  represented the only slight ray of  hope. And it was this slight hope that drove them.

But the entry exams to these outer sects were extremely strict too. They only took in those that showed a high aptitude to the divine way and there also existed an age restriction.

One had to be below the age of sixteen. This was vital as there had to be at least a two year period for the outer sect instructors to guide the young practitioners in forming their foundations for the path of cultivation. To open up all their meridians and to form their dantians.

When one reached the age of eighteen before opening up all his meridians and fully forming his or her dantian, he or she could forget about cultivation.

Zhu Yuan's hopes entirely lay upon Southern Skies top most sect, The Heavenly Sky Sect. Together with Cui Jiang his childhood friend they had set their sights on the outer sect of the Heavenly Sky Sect which was located in the inner most part of Red Eagle Town.

Standing on a lone hill under the dark skies Zhu Yuan looked at the silhouette of his beloved town. He vowed to participate in the upcoming entrance exams at the end of the year. He would give it his utmost, whether he would pass was an extravagant question. One whose answer was as elusive as the revered phoenix of legend.