Shen Qingci's expression remained calm, but in her heart, she had already broken down and pondered every single rule.
A monthly allowance of three hundred mid-grade spirit stones was nothing to her, but the rule stating “personal disciples may enter the bottom floor of the Library twice a month for free” held a value far exceeding spirit stones.
Although the grades of the cultivation techniques collected on the bottom floor of the Library weren't high, they excelled in variety and completeness, which could fill many gaps in her understanding of this world after her transmigration.
As for contribution points... she wasn't in a hurry for now. The system's Belief Value was her core resource; sect contribution points were merely a smokescreen.
After finishing her explanation of the sect's structure, Jiang Rui took another sip of tea. When she set down her teacup, her tone was noticeably lighter. “There is still half a shichen left for this morning's class. Let me tell you about some dry topics.”
She walked to the edge of the high platform and sat down cross-legged. This casual posture allowed the new disciples below the platform to relax.
The rules and structures from earlier had made everyone's scalps tingle with tension. Now, with this setup, it seemed she was about to dish out a bunch of idle chatter.
“Common knowledge of the cultivation world is something you all have been exposed to since childhood, but today, I still must go over it once more in accordance with the sect's rules.”
Jiang Rui held up a finger.
“First: the essence of realm bottlenecks.”
“From Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment, from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core, from Golden Core to Nascent Soul... breaking through each major realm is not a battle of how much spiritual energy you have, but of the resilience of your meridians.”
“Meridians are the riverbeds, and spiritual energy is the river water. If the riverbed is too narrow, no matter how much water there is, it won't flow smoothly. Forcing it will only cause the banks to burst.”
“The meridians will shatter completely, and your cultivation will be entirely ruined.”
“Therefore, most great families will force their descendants to polish their foundations, simply out of fear that they might die on the path of breakthrough.”
She spoke bluntly, causing several new disciples to unconsciously touch their dantian areas.
Shen Qingci listened intently.
Back when she worked as a game designer, she had designed similar numerical models for cultivation games, but those were all just theoretical designs on paper. What Jiang Rui was talking about now was the underlying logic that had actually governed this world for millions of years.
Jiang Rui held up a second finger.
“Second: the pros and cons of spiritual roots.”
As she spoke, her gaze drifted toward Shen Qingci, seemingly intentionally yet casually.
“For example, the Lightning Spiritual Root possesses formidable combat power, with few rivals in the same realm. That is the pro. But where is the con? The corrosive power of lightning spiritual energy on the meridians is three to five times that of other spiritual roots.”
“With ordinary spiritual roots, the meridians wear down naturally, only showing signs of fatigue after thirty to fifty years. But for a Lightning Spiritual Root, if it isn't nurtured for three to five years, hidden injuries will form in the meridians.”
“Once these hidden injuries accumulate to a certain point, they will explode directly during a breakthrough.” Jiang Rui made an exploding gesture. “Bang. Gone.”
The hall fell silent for a brief moment.
【Σ( ° △ °|||)︴】
Zhao Yu sneaked a glance at Shen Qingci's back, only to find her sitting perfectly upright, her spine not wavering in the slightest.
This level of composure was truly terrifying!
Jiang Rui held up a third finger.
“Third: the importance of divine sense.”
“Many rogue cultivators risk their lives to pile up spiritual energy and spells, but they never cultivate their divine sense. Why? Because the methods of cultivating divine sense are tightly held by the major sects. Rogue cultivators couldn't learn them even if they wanted to.”
“As for the benefits of a strong divine sense, I will only mention one: if a Golden Core stage cultivator has a Nascent Soul stage divine sense, then in a battle within the same realm, before the opponent's spell is even cast, you will have already anticipated three of their moves. If a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator has a Golden Core stage divine sense, the success rate of their alchemy, artifact refining, and array formation will double...”
Jiang Rui raised a fourth finger.
“Fourth: the resource channels of the cultivation world.”
“Secret realms, ruins, demon beast dens, and the origins of natural treasures... these things are divided among the major sects and demon race forces. The Azure Cloud Sect occupies the three best secret realms in the Southern Region. Every year, it organizes disciples to enter for experiential learning. Sixty percent of the looted items go to the sect, and forty percent go to the individual.”
“For capable disciples, it is not uncommon for their net worth to increase tenfold after a single trip to a secret realm.”
Hearing this, many below the platform had eyes glowing with greed. Yin Ruozhuo began counting on his fingers, his grin widening from ear to ear as he calculated.
“Don't celebrate too early,” Jiang Rui poured cold water on their excitement. “The demon beasts in the secret realms start at the Foundation Establishment stage at the very least, and Golden Core beasts are everywhere. With your current cultivation, going in there is just offering yourselves as food to the beasts.”
Yin Ruozhuo's mouth snapped shut.
Jiang Rui went on to explain several more pieces of common knowledge, from “the grades and exchange rates of spirit stones” to “the accumulation and resolution of pill toxins,” and from “precautions for maintaining magical artifacts” to “life-saving tips for outdoor experiential learning.” Each point was explained concisely and directly, without a single wasted word.
Shen Qingci listened more and more intently, her divine sense fully active, carving every word Jiang Rui said into her sea of consciousness.
These so-called “common knowledge” points might be platitudes that the natives had heard since childhood, but to a transmigrator like her, every single one was invaluable, life-saving information.
The system could give her the confidence to weave a flawless identity, but it couldn't give her the experience of living in this world.
Right now, that was exactly what she lacked most.
Sitting to the right behind her, Gu Qingyi had been keeping an eye on Shen Qingci. She noticed that not only was Senior Sister Shen listening intently, but she was also taking notes, tracing invisible characters on her left palm with her right index finger.
She couldn't help but admire her silently: As expected of someone from a hidden great family. Just this level of diligence alone puts us, the so-called children of the Southern Region's great families, to shame.
Cultivation world common knowledge was something they had heard since they learned to speak. It was always the same repetitive information. Who could possibly listen as seriously as if they were hearing it for the very first time?
Zhao Yu was also observing.
He tucked his folding fan into his sleeve, leaned forward, and sat up perfectly straight, mimicking Shen Qingci. He stared at Jiang Rui without even blinking.
Xiao Yan glanced at him. “What are you doing?”
“Imitating Senior Sister Shen,” Zhao Yu's lips barely moved, his voice squeezed out from between his teeth. “She's been sitting like this all morning. Doesn't her back hurt?”
“She's trained.”
Although Xiao Yan said this, he also quietly straightened his own slouched posture.
Yin Ruozhuo didn't have so many thoughts. He simply found the things Jiang Rui was talking about rather sleep-inducing.
But after glancing left and right and seeing how seriously these people were behaving, he suddenly understood something and curled his lips in his heart:
【A bunch of copycats! Unlike them, I'm a man destined to be the King of Horses.】
The time it takes for an incense stick to burn passed in the blink of an eye. Jiang Rui stopped speaking and tapped the edge of the table.
“That is all for this morning's class. At the Wei hour sharp this afternoon, we will cover basic spells and spiritual energy manipulation. The location remains the same. Dismissed.”
Just as her voice fell, a male voice came from outside the hall.
“Deacon Jiang, please wait.”
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a person stepping over the threshold. He wore a long robe with narrow sleeves, its collar adorned with two dark gold cloud patterns.
He was tall and broad-shadowed, with regular features and a high brow bone. When he looked at people, his eye sockets cast faint shadows, giving him an air of natural authority.
He stopped in front of the high platform and cupped his fists in salute to Jiang Rui.
“Disciple Lu Beichen was delayed by some matters this morning and failed to make it to the morning class. I have come specifically to apologize to the Deacon.”
The hall fell silent for a few breaths, before immediately erupting into low whispers.
Zhao Yu tapped his right hand on his knee. “Oh? The Sect Master's fifth disciple? I didn't see him all morning; I thought he wasn't coming today.”
Rate on N.U.
