This is not the training room. I looked around. Not my room either. Then I heard footsteps and I turned my eyes off again. Damn it, this is where having eyelids will be beneficial. I let out a strand of divine sense outwards to check. Making it as thin and invisible as I can so I can see while my eyes are turned off.

  “Are you sure he’s already awake?” Qingfeng asks as he opens the door

  “Master said he’s already awake.” Zhaoxia then entered behind him, back in her robes

  The two then assess me in silence. Not exactly sure how to determine if I am awake or not.

  “Did you punch him too hard?” Qingfeng asks again in concern, his finger too close to my eyes

  “Of course not! He managed to make a protective spell that managed to stop my punch!” She defends herself

  “Then how is he like this?”

  “Well… I-uh, get flustered when my punch is blocked. Then he hit the back of my head. So I uh—” Zhaoxia tries to excuses herself

  “So you punch him too hard.” Came the conclusion

  “I think I need to train you too.” Then the threat

  “No, I take my words back. One month with second sister is enough for a lifetime.” Finally acceptance

  “Don’t let her hear you saying that.” Then I noticed a faint telepathic line to Zhaoxia

  “Wake him up, master said we can poke his eyes if he wants to keep pretending.” Zhaoxia relay the message

  “Alright-alright, I’m awake.” I groan as I immediately stand, “I am not dragged back to the white room right?”

  Fortunately for me, Senior Sister Zhaoxia just performed more checks on me. Making sure I have recuperated properly.

  “Danxing, I apologize for what happens in the training room. I’m not a violent woman, I swear.” She apologize for what happened in the training room, then she created a telepathic link

  ‘Also, I’m certain you know what will happen if you tell the great view you had’ The threat confuses me as I blink before remembering the amazing view from her damaged clothes, not to mention her fighting style

  ‘Oh yes. Of course. I am very tight lipped’

  Then she sent me away with Qingfeng who led me outside the room. Apparently this is the hospital equivalent for the sect which of course is located in our peak.

  “This is where we work. Senior Sister Zhaoxia works as the head physician. I refine pills and medicine. Second Sister is also talented as a healer but she rather uses swords and rarely presents.” Qingfeng introduces and guide me through the place

  I felt like a kid in bringing your kid to the workplace part of the curriculum. Inside the building complex are various individual recuperating rooms. Mostly empty and kept clean and those that had occupant are mostly light injuries. Those that I am allowed to see at the very least. Then I noticed that most of the staff wear grey robes and only three at most that wear black and white robes. They just offer a brief and polite greeting before resuming their own work.

  “Are others in black and white robes also the old man’s disciples?”

  “No, those are mine and senior sister Zhaoxia’s disciples.”

  “You? Have disciples?”

  “Yes, have any problem with that? I am still the best pill refiner in this sect.”

  “Just unexpected. So, what am I to do? Helping around?”

  “Later. Master has something else in mind. Follow me.” He led me outside the building while I followed

  I looked back as we were descending down the peak again. Only after I made a comfortable distance do I dare to ask.

  “So, I’m here, does that mean I managed to scratch Senior sister Zhaoxia?” I lean down and speak quietly

  “Yes, you managed to make her head bleed apparently. And in just a week too. That’s an achievement on its own.” He relays

  “What do you mean a week?”

  “Oh, it's normal. There’s no telling of the passage of time in the training room. Added that she knocked you out with every punch, it must feel like a brief moment for you. Second sister needs a month until she can scratch Senior Sister Zhaoxia and then Second sister trains me in turn. Being chased around by a madwoman with a sword for a month is not fun.” He recounts his own traumatic experience

  “You know, I haven’t got the second sister’s name. Also where is she?” Genuinely curious as we walk to the central platform

  “Hmmm. Her cultivator name is Hánhuá (寒華|Cold Brilliance). I think it's better if she introduces herself to you. As for where she is, she is currently out on sect mission.” He only offers a quick info

  “Sect mission?”

  “Usually the surrounding mortal dynasty sent a petition for help. Can be a drought, flood redirection, and sometime can also be demonic beast incursion or rogue cultivators making problems. So we deal with them. Other times it is the sect that sent us for expeditions, material gatherings, and so on. In return we get merit points that can be traded in the Treasure Hall for various things.” He explains

  “Fascinating. I thought we would just stay in the mountains for a long time and secluding ourselves.”

  “We practically do that. But the sect requires a reputation to recruit more disciples and materials for cultivation is not exactly common. Oh, and as a Foundation Establishment, we need to complete at least one mission every ten years.”

  “ONE mission in TEN years!?” I exclaim in shock

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  “I know right! This is too much. Other large sects usually only require one mission every twenty years or so.”

  Goddamn you and your lazy ass. Only doing one work every ten years is already heaven and it's too much for you? If average workers back home hear this they will riot. But again, they are not cultivators. So, is this the feeling of those in the first percentile? Ayyyyyy

  After that is mostly small talk. My effort in trying to fish information about senior sister Hanhua is in vain. As in Qingfeng’s words, she is: a madwoman, who prefers using swords rather than healing. So I move on, guess I will just need to meet this Hanhua personally. We walked towards the opposite of the Training hall and Grand Library. Surely Baldy Tianjiao is not the elder of whatever place we are going right? Right? Instead, Qingfeng leads me to a quite expansive one story building. However, all around me are groups of young boys and girls, teenagers in age. Very few look like they are above seventeen years old.

  “This is the education hall. Master said you need to attend.” My vision tunnels as I heard Qingfeng’s words

  “I’m sorry, but did I hear that the old man is sending me to a school?”

  “Yes.”

  “But why? Surely he can teach me everything better himself.” My eyes darts around

  All around me are teenagers. Whispering at the sight of me. Though many tried to hide their fear at my presence, there are plenty who are clearly haughty like a bunch of rich kids. All the bad memories of my brief moment as an elementary school teacher floods in.

  “Danxing, let me paraphrase what master said,” He coughs, finger pointing up, “We have give him plenty of stuffs, we can’t spoon fed him forever. So he needs to learn by himself and just in time, this year's batch of latest disciples have arrived.” Qingfeng relays the old man’s words with a deeper voice

  Some snickers can be heard coming from two groups of haughty kids hearing Qingfeng’s words. One is a group filled with girls, another with boys. The third group that looks like they are filled with rich kids are pretending to be unbothered and unconcerned with my presence. The last one is fine, but the first two will be hell isn’t it.

  “Don’t worry too much, the class is just once a month. So that’s that. I will leave you then. Oh, and master asks you to not make any problems.” Qingfeng then said, like dropping a kid in a kindergarten

  Okay, okay. These bunch of kids look like teenagers. That’s better right? Surely they won’t be as chaotic as a bunch of elementary school children. Besides, I am not here as a teacher. Surely I won’t be roped to their problem. Then looking at the robes, it looks like all of them are outer disciples. So no one at this Foundation Establishment thingy. So I should be safe.

  “One more thing, I almost forgot. Master also asks you to find any potential outer disciples that you like.” Qingfeng appears one more time

  “What for?”

  “You need servants for your new house, remember.”

  Like a target painted at me, the attention of every kid's present converges on me. Even the bunch of rich kids that pretend to be unconcerned. Everyone is eyeing everyone else as a competitor. All for the position to be my servant. Then all of their attention is back at me. Filled with greed and ambition. Immediately, after Qingfeng left, outer disciples in droves swarmed me.

  Oh, hell no.

  “Senior Brother! I’m willing to be your servant!” shouted one of the more brawny boys

  “Senior brother! I am handsome, hardworking, and disciplined! I’m best to be your servant!” Lies, all three of them, made out of desperation which made it very bitter in my mouth

  “Senior brother,” came a shy young girl’s voice, “I can be a good servant, and… good at other things too.” She adds in a thinly veiled innuendo

  Girl you are not seventeen yet! But the shouting continues, the lies keep piling in my mouth. I looked up, mouth open, gagging as the taste overwhelmed me. The colors of all their halo, stacking, overlapping in kaleidoscopic manner. Blinding. Then a bone cracking sound follows, my deer head turning into the wolf again.

  “All right. That’s enough.” I snap my jaw shut loudly.

  Silencing everyone else and making most recoil back in fear. Some fell to the ground and trampled a bit. Damn, this is how a psyker felt when surrounded by too many people huh. I noted the few that don't recoil in fear. One is the leader of the haughty girls, eyeing me in a way that made me uncomfortable. Fingers moving to the side of her face, pushing some stray hair to the back of her ear. Then smiles shyly. Oh god, please no. The other two are not from the bunch of haughty kids and not even part of the ones that swarmed me either. One is a scrawny boy and another is a shy older girl with striking blood red hair. Where most of the outer disciples gathered here are teenagers aged 14 to 16 at most, both the scrawny boy and the girl in red hair look to be between 17 to early 20s. Well, they are candidates for sure.

  For now though, I went to this hall first. Immediately the other followed. The education hall is a massive open air classroom. I picked the seat at the middle back. No need to block the sight of others behind me. To my delight, most of the outer disciples are picking seats away from me. The problem however, is that the one that sat beside me is the girl with red hair and the leader of the haughty girls. The scrawny boy meanwhile sat near the window at the edge, looking outside.

  Before the girl can speak, I immediately fish out the Fundamentals of Soul Arts. Reading it so as to not get disturbed. Turning off my perception of the halos, I read where I left off. Then, like a habit of listening to music while reading, the gentle guitar sound from the last song resumes. The head reverts to the usual deer skull.

  The Bind Every Word part mentions taking any name offered, but doesn’t tell me how. Should I just do the classic ‘Can I have your name?’ like in those older myths? Maybe I can test this if I did get to pick an outer disciple for my servant. But moving on to the next page for now.

  Feast on Desire.

  ‘This talent is rare to be naturally present even in those gifted in Soul Arts. However, this talent can be gained quite easily. Desire came in many forms and in many sources. Greed, ambition, and all sorts of things those tiny dick, hypocritical, bald ass for face, monks of the buddhist sects try to deny.’

  I blinked after reading this. Flipping to the previous page and back again and reread. The sentence stays the same, the author of this book hates buddhists. Noted. Then I continue reading.

  ‘If you see any buddhist cultivator, please make them suffer. Except those female monks of Cílían (慈蓮|Merciful Lotus) temple. They’re… they are good. Hehehe.’

  Hmmm. I’m starting to think that this book has the requirement of having talent in soul arts because the author writes this kind of thing. From the looks of it, the author enjoys plenty of things for him to specifically write this. Moving on,

  ‘Moving on, how this works is very mundane. It uses the same principle as Bind Every Word, but much more formal and powerful. But different from it, this talent is borderline demonic in nature. As for how it works, it is similar to trading things. One party desires something, then you as the practitioner do it on their behalf in a deal or oath. Once the deal is done, you can feast on it. The more the other party desires something, the more powerful the benefit would be. You can skip this method and alternatively feast on the other party’s desire directly. But this way, you will consume the part of the soul directly and is a demonic path. If you must do it, leave no witnesses. More alternatively, you can make an oath to yourself, limiting yourself in one way and empowering you in another. However, like any oath a cultivator swears, this is permanent. Unfortunately this will not improve your cultivation, only improving your soul strength.’

  I think I’m going to enjoy practicing this one so much. This world is not ready for the multiple pages terms & agreements. The image of faceless corporate and a devil offering deals to unsuspecting victims. On second thought, let’s limit this on the most deserving. Being on the receiving end of this kind of terms such and I wouldn’t want it to happen to the innocent. Hmm wait, the book doesn’t mention what type of deal so maybe this can be applied to a work contract too? Then I move to the next page

  Attunement to the World Spirit

  Olala, jackpot.

  But then a fair hand landed on the page. I looked up, and saw a beautiful woman with white hair.

  “I apologize for disturbing your reading. And your music. But class is starting soon.” She softly chastises me

  “Alright.”

  I close the book and keep it in my robe. Only then I realize that I am projecting music again and I turn it off. Guess I will save attunement to the Noosphere for later.

  The woman fades and reappears in front of the class in an instant. At least it wasn’t Baldy Tianjiao that was going to teach the lesson.

  So chapter every 3 days is back on track until next month