Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Is Heaven Supposed to Hurt This Much? (1)
"To cultivate is to have courage. To spill blood. To venture into the heavens or down to the depths of hell. To fight through the nine skies for the path to eternity." A voice echoed across the foot of the small mountain.
The voice's owner was a blue-robed, white-bearded, and wizened man. He looked as if even the smallest gusts of wind could topple him, yet he stood firm in front of the young students who had not yet entered the sect.
"Your path begins here. There are five ways to the top of the mountain. At the far right is the Thunder Path, where thunder souls will test and temper your spirit channels. Those who walk this path to the top will become an inner disciple of the Nine Thunders Sect. The far left is the Spiritless Path. In between are the wood, fire, and water paths." The man paused his speech and turned his attention to the boy at the front. "Anlin, what's your choice?"
Anlin had been the best of this year's sixty students, passing the first two tests of the sect entrance exam with flying colors. Now, he was just one final step away from becoming a full disciple of the sect.
The other students held their breath as they waited for his answer. The choice Anlin made today would determine his future fate.
"Elder, regarding the wood, fire, and water paths. If I take them, I won't be able to become an inner disciple?" Anlin asked.
"Indeed. Those who reach the top with any of the other elemental paths will still become disciples, but only outer disciples. And anyone who chooses the Spiritless Path, they'll become a sect laborer."
Anlin nodded. "Elder He, I'd like to try the Thunder Path."
"Good." Elder He stroked his beard and gave a kind smile. "Remember to stay focused and keep walking forward. The test is not without risk. I will heal any injuries you sustain during the test once you reach the top of the mountain. But if you stop during the test, no one can help you. You will die if you can't keep going."
"I understand," Anlin said, bowing to the elder, and walked to the start of the Thunder Path, a simple set of stone stairs that rose up the side of the mountain.
Taking a deep breath, Anlin stepped forward. Nothing happened as he planted himself on the first step, or the second. He moved onward briskly from there.
Soon, the other students had to strain their eyes to distinguish Anlin's small figure amid a white fog that seemed to thicken as Anlin climbed higher. Things were going so well that he began to accelerate, taking two steps at a time and going faster and faster.
And then things went wrong.
A white cloud emerged from the thicket of fog, well-defined and heavy at the bottom, bobbing menacingly a bit further up the stairs. Luckily, Anlin had not let his focus flag entirely. He spotted the thunder soul in front of him and slowed down. When the soul didn't immediately attack, he stepped to the right side of the stairs, trying to get around it.
Continuously facing the cloud, Anlin climbed higher, wary of the threat even as he tried to pass by it. Soon he was parallel with the soul, and moments later managed to pass it.
Before he could celebrate his good luck, a blue lightning bolt arced out of the bottom of the cloud and cracked against his chest in the blink of an eye. Anlin's cotton robe instantly burned away as he staggered back from the impact. He found his footing inches from the right edge of the stairs, almost falling off. He got into a stance, crossing his arms protectively in front of his chest.
The thunder soul threw a second follow-up bolt that splashed against Anlin's arms. He winced at the pain coursing through his body and curled his hands into tight fists, his fingernails digging so deep into his palm that blood began to trickle down his arms, but he didn't retreat.
With a shout, he charged downwards at the cloud and flailed his fists.
As hard as it had been able to hit him, Anlin was surprised at how easily the white fluff dispersed under the attacks. Each punch he threw tore a tiny fragment away from the cloud. The fragments stuck to Anlin's skin before being absorbed by his body. Soon, the thunder soul was defeated.
Anlin stopped to savor the feeling of victory before continuing his climb.
At the bottom of the mountain, Elder He waved the other students to begin the sect exam. Some of the students chose the Wood or Fire Paths. Only two picked the second most difficult Water Path.
But most simply accepted their lesser fate and took the Spiritless Path to the top. Becoming a sect laborer, one forced to work for cultivation resources, was still a high accomplishment by mortal standards. Their cultivation progress would be slow, but a limited success was still far better than failing the entrance exam or losing their lives to the elemental souls.
Once the students were fully sorted into their various paths, Elder He glanced at the other two sect members observing this year's exam. One was an inner disciple called Zeran, and the other was an elder named Pidao. Although both Hetain and Pidao were elders of the Nine Thunder Sect, Hetain belonged to the sect's more senior combat faction while Pidao was backed by the smiths.
"Perhaps I should take Anlin as a disciple before he gets to the sect," Elder He muttered to himself. "Three personal disciples will make it easier to get a good score in the end-of-year competition, especially since Anlin is the best of his class. The edge might mean that I could win a Water Charm Pill, or perhaps even a Jade Zhen Sword."
If he were to ask Anlin to become his disciple, the other two were too low on the totem pole to do anything about it. By the time they got back to the sect, the master-disciple relationship would have already been established, and by then even the sect leader couldn't usurp the rules and force Hetain to relinquish his disciple. A small smile spread across the wizened man's face.
Back on the Thunder Path, Anlin saw the end of the stairs in the distance. It seemed he only had a minute or so worth of climbing left. Although his chest and arms hurt slightly from the earlier encounter with the thunder soul, he still felt mostly fine. His legs were strong, and his breathing was even. He could keep going.
He couldn't stop the smile that began to creep up his face. His thoughts wandered to his rough childhood, the years he spent studying at the sect's academy, and even to his future life as a disciple cultivator. This was the moment he had been working so hard for. It was all there, just a few more steps.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
tqzhangwrites
tqzhangwrites Hello everyone, I thought I'd introduce myself.
I'm TQ. I've been reading fantasy stories, especially Xianxia, in one way or another for ten years. There's something about the world of cultivation that's fascinating to me. I kept finding myself turning back to Xianxia stories. Maybe it's the spirit stones or the techniques or simply the idea that someone could cultivate and become immortal.
But that's not to say Xianxia doesn't also have its flaws. A lot of stories are translations from Chinese authors with a different moral perspective. So the most common MC archetype in Xianxia is a cultivator who cares a lot about face and wins because of brawn rather than brain.
Cultivating Insanity is my attempt to broaden the genre while preserving a lot of old-school cultural elements. I hope you enjoy
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TLDR, expect:
+ A strategic MC who doesn't use brute force to win every time
+ Huge Xianxia world interspersed with Chinese sayings/phrases
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