"Hehe... a natural hermit, I see," the elder smiled and looked at Mo Li. "It is impossible to cultivate with spirit stones forever as the stronger you get, the useless they become. It is like food when you were a child. Only a little amount was enough to satisfy you, but right now, the same amount is useless," Mo Li nodded his head and cupped his fists, but just as he was about to sit down. The elder continued, "You should only go into self-seclusion when you're about to break through or comprehend the Tao. If you do it only to absorb energy, your cultivation will be useless; you'll be like a sword used for decoration. Flashy but useless. Cultivation is all about going against heaven; you can't do that while hiding," the elder finished his lecture and stroked his long white beard.

"Any other question?"

"Elder, my name is Nangong Ruxue. First in line successor of the great Nangong family," the prideful girl scanned the class with a beautiful grin and nodded to herself. "My question is, what is your cultivation base?" And how long did it take you to achieve it?" 

"Hehe... that's not a secret, but I will not tell you, you need to find out for yourself. Tell you what, anyone that can guess. I'll add them [40] spirit stones," at his sudden declaration. The class grew wild and restless.

"Foundation establishment!"

"Core formation!"

"Golden core!"

"Nascent soul!"

Shout after shout resounded in the room as the disciples tried their luck. The surnamed Nangong sat down, annoyed that her question wasn't answered to her satisfaction.

"You guys are just listing the realms randomly and hoping you will be lucky," the elder waved his sleeves. "Since you have all tried, I will add each one of you two stones," I reached out and grabbed the stones floating towards me. I can't reject an opportunity like this. The others all received the stones and vigilantly pulled them close to their bodies like a brooding hen.

"Since there is no question, I'll proceed," once silence dominated the noise. The elder started by waving his hand, and a small floating ball appeared floating just close to his head, "assume this ball here is your dantian, and the pipes surrounding it your meridians," saying that, multiple pipe-like openings surrounded the small ball. It looks like the heart. The pipes reminded me of the veins responsible for transporting blood in and out of the heart.

"Your meridians absorb energy and deliver it to the dantian, slowly filling it," yellow liquid from the meridians-pipes started to fill the small ball. "Once the dantian is full, it will break and repair itself. That process is called breaking through," the ball followed the elder's words and cracked as promised. It quickly repaired itself, and the liquid that once filled it to the brim could now only fill a tiny part of it. "There are two types of breakthroughs; minor and major. Each cultivation base has nine layers; a breakthrough from the first layer to the second is a minor breakthrough while a breakthrough from the 9th layer to the first of the next layer is a major breakthrough," what the elder is saying is basic information that everyone should know, but the number of nodding heads showed that many didn't know.

"The cultivation levels that you guys should know for now are Qi gathering, foundation establishment, core formation, golden core, and nascent soul; if you are curious about the rest when visiting the martial hall. You can check their respective information."

"Most of you are now in the first layer of qi gathering, the stones I have given you should be enough to push you at the peak of the first layer," I looked at my spiritual stones and wondered if they would be enough as the elder says.

"Now that I'm done, I think I should give you some advice," the elder's expression turned serious.

"Cultivation is a personal journey. Hence it would be best if you prioritize yourself over your neighbor. You can enjoy a conducive environment right now, but the moment you step outside the sect's jurisdiction, you will know how unforgiving the world can be. The person you think is your ally will betray you to gain the slightest advantage," the elder's words are golden. To put all your trust in a stranger is dangerous.

"I will never betray you," Hong Lin whispers. I know he is someone I can trust, but I can't fully put my trust in him. "Do you doubt me?" His soft voice suddenly becomes stern. "This is an oath I learned from my mother; with the heavens as a witness, I at this moment swear my full loyalty and attention to you and you alone," his oath is weird, but I'm used to his words being like that.

Do you think I will believe such nonsense? Then let me play along, "With heaven as a witness, I Jiang Ming, accept your oath and take you as someone I can trust with my life."

"Hehe.. you've said it. Now you can't go back on your words," strangely, I feel a connection to Hong Lin. Is his nonsense actually real?

"I'm not trying to pit you against one another. What I'm telling you is to be wary of each other. Don't fully trust your friend," the elder finishes his advice with a distant look. Maybe he was betrayed?

"Also, if you have an irreconcilable dispute. Don't kill each other because of it. The sect will handle any murder case inside the sect ruthlessly. Just visit the discipline committee and ask them to find a way to settle your grudges," a peaceful sect is a thriving sect. If we were to kill each other over the slightest inconvenience, then there would be no point in the sect.

"Finally, I want you to pair up and then move at the back," the elder suddenly stood and gave out an instruction. I looked at Hong Lin, and he did the same. We both nodded as a silent agreement was made. A slight commotion ensued as groups of two streamed to the back of the class. We, too, moved according to the elder's instruction.

Once everyone moved to the back, the elder came down from his podium. He then waved his sleeves, and the mats we were sitting on neatly moved to the walls.

"I want to judge your battle sense; it is how good you react in fights," I looked at Hong Lin and smiled. It has been a long time since we last sparred. His expectant eyes told me he thought the same. "Now, spread out and start sparring... don't fear using lethal moves. If anything unexpected happens, I'm here to prevent it."

Soon, everyone spread out, and the elder motioned us to start.

"Do you want to...," I was about to ask Hong Lin if he wanted to go first, but he was way ahead of me; He lunged at me with a kick.

I back-stepped out of his range, "can't you fight like a civilized man?" Since he didn't intend to pull his punches, I wasn't going to either. I rolled my fingers into a fist and attacked while he was still out of balance from the kick. I wanted to deliver a devastating gut punch, but his ominous smile warned me otherwise.

I stopped in my tracks and narrowly dodged another kick from him, that was close. He somehow used the momentum of the first kick and launched another one. It is then that I discovered the issue; I am judging him based on his capabilities before the first layer of qi refinement.

Although he is a good fighter, his abilities are only limited to kicks and his unusual flexibility. If I get past his kicks, the fight will be as good as done.

"This is going to hurt," I intentionally eyed his gut and launched towards him. It is then that I discover I'm faster than before.

Hong Lin notices my gaze and moves into a defensive position, got you. He launches another kick to keep me out of reach, but that is what I was aiming for. His kick was aimed at my face, so it was easy to dodge by moving my upper body. After dodging, I followed his descending kick with a punch, causing him to lose footing and fall.

"Haha... my work here is done," I said that and deliberately looked away and dismissively waved my hands. I could sense the rising temperature from Hong Lin's anger.

"Jiang Ming, how dare you turn your back on me?"  Hong Lin was faster than I thought, he turned on the ground and flew at me with a punch, but his punches were the least of my worries; the worst they could do was create a little discomfort. I dodged his flying body causing him to fall on the floor like a sack of potatoes.

"I was only joking, now look, the whole class is staring at us," my words seemed to get through him as he finally looked around. The class had long stopped their fight and concentrated on us; Hong Lin got up and walked towards me.

"Don't think this is over," I scoffed at his words.

*Cough**Cough*

"Some of your abilities are commendable. You will make fine warriors. If you received instruction from me, you should consider pursuing other disciplines like alchemy and crafting. You can still practice a martial art, but that shouldn't be your major," What should I do? I have always been interested in plants and animals, so alchemy? I'll check that later.

"For today, the class is dismissed. There will be classes on the 2nd, 4th, and 6th days of the week. The classes aren't compulsory, but I will always be present. If you have any questions, you can visit for assistance," with the elder's words, disciples started to stream out of the class.

"Do you know where to go?" Elder Da Wei asked.

It finally dawned to the departing disciples that they didn't know where to go, "Your tokens should lead you to your allocated courtyards. Just insert a trace of your qi inside, and you will know what to do next. As for those who can't control your qi yet...hehe, it is a good opportunity to learn. Otherwise, you will sleep outside like  feral dogs," I'm not going to another courtyard. To relocate means to give up my plants and the familiar courtyard; change is bothersome to cope with. Since it was Jiang Yan that allocated us the courtyard, there shouldn't be a problem. 

"Oh, before my old brain forgets. Since you are now outer-sect disciples, food won't be free. To be served food, you'll need to earn mission points that you can convert into stones and purchase food at the dining hall," the elder's words caused a commotion, but everyone ultimately walked away after the elder motioned us to go.

"Jiang Ming, do you want to move out?" Hong Lin tapped my shoulder and asked. For some reason, he looked enthusiastic about it.

"No, do you?" I replied, to which he appeared disappointed. 

"Well... I had some new design ideas, but I guess I'll apply them to the old house," Hong Lin confirms a question that has been on my mind for some time; he was the one?

I shrugged it off and continued walking. Hehe... I should visit Zhu Ling and see how she's taking up cultivation. Since she lives with Jiang Yan; she should have some way of helping her awaken her meridians. 

I was about to walk back to the courtyard, but the crowd in front stopped us. A bunch of older disciples stopped all the new disciples.

"The two of you, come here and pay respect to your seniors."

Junior_elder

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