Chapter 52: Living by the Boat (6000 words)

At this moment, under the setting sun, the afterglow spilled onto the small mountain path, as if draping a layer of orange-colored thin gauze over the stone steps, adding a touch of sanctity.

It seemed that walking upon it, stepping on the sunlight, one could walk all the way toward glory.

On both sides of the mountain path, green leaves and flowers were visible everywhere. The fragrance and the scent of soil blended into the mountain breeze that blew past, rushing against the face with dampness, seeping into the mind and permeating the whole body.

And the green trees all around provided shade, and the crisp bird calls that came from time to time seemed to be composing a score for the future of everyone who had ever walked this mountain path, including the group of people here at this moment.

A group of five, at the very front was that middle-aged man with a round face. He walked with his hands behind his back, introducing the sect to Xu Qing and the others behind him.

"Since you have successfully joined the Seven Blood Eyes, I will explain the sect to you. Actually, in my opinion, the Seven Blood Eyes is not a sect."

"It is more like a massive profit-making industry operating under the name of a sect!"

The round-faced middle-aged man spoke indifferently. His words fell into the ears of the four people behind him, causing these young boys and girls who had just joined the Seventh Peak to feel their hearts tremble.

Among the four, besides Xu Qing, the other three were Zhou Qingpeng, Li Zimei, and a young girl.

The girl was named Xu Xiaohui. She wore a ponytail and ordinary clothing; it was clear she was not from a wealthy family, but she was much better off than a scavenger. She was likely from a small town.

On the road, she had once shown goodwill toward Xu Qing, but Xu Qing was not good at socializing and did not like people getting too close to him, so he only nodded. Thus, the girl soon began to curry favor with Zhou Qingpeng.

Zhou Qingpeng's smile was gentle, which was the opposite of Xu Qing's reticence, making the girl feel increasingly close to him. The two occasionally whispered to each other on the road.

As for Li Zimei, she seemed very reserved and had some inferiority complex, so she stayed at the back of the group, keeping a certain distance from everyone.

However, Zhou Qingpeng was very attentive to her and Xu Qing, so he would occasionally take the initiative to smile, which seemed to reduce Li Zimei's reserve a little.

At this moment, the mountain breeze blew past, lifting everyone's hair and also carrying over the words of the round-faced middle-aged man in front.

"The Seven Blood Eyes is divided into 'on the mountain' and 'off the mountain.' You can think of them as two worlds; in reality, they are indeed two worlds. And you... are the people off the mountain."

"Only those who have reached Foundation Establishment possess the qualifications to go up the mountain and the right to share in the Seven Blood Eyes' profits. As for the people off the mountain, they live in cruelty and hardship, struggling to survive."

"Therefore, for the people off the mountain, going up the mountain is the greatest desire of their lives. Do you know how many people are in the main city off the mountain?" The round-faced middle-aged man glanced at the four young boys and girls behind him.

"Three million people!" He raised his right hand and extended three fingers.

"These three million people include commoners and all the low-rank disciples of each peak. You will also be one of them, needing to survive under the rules of the Seven Blood Eyes."

"The rules of the Seven Blood Eyes main city are very simple: it's all about contribution points. Everyone off the mountain, whether commoner or disciple, has a daily residency fee for the main city of thirty contribution points, which is thirty spirit coins."

"It is deducted every single moment of every day. Once the number on your jade slip token hits zero, you will be expelled from the Seven Blood Eyes. This applies to commoners, and it applies to disciples as well."

"If you stay by force, you will be wiped out by the formation after one hour."

The words of the round-faced cultivator caused the expressions of all four, including Xu Qing, to change. Even though Zhou Qingpeng had some prior knowledge, hearing this rule again at this moment, his eyes also revealed fear.

"This is just the basic residency fee. As for food and lodging, it depends on your own choices. Survival of the fittest, and the prices in the Seven Blood Eyes main city are extremely high, but the highest of all are the cultivation resources."

Listening to the round-faced cultivator's words, Xu Qing remained silent. The other three were also shocked by this harsh explanation. Xu Xiaohui hesitated for a moment and asked in a low voice.

"If that is the case, why do so many commoners still come? Thirty spirit coins a day... that's one spirit stone a month. That is too expensive. Moreover, if we have obtained disciple status and still have to pay contribution points, what is the use of being a disciple?"

The round-faced middle-aged man glanced at Xu Xiaohui.

"The commoners who spare no expense to teleport here are all capable people. The reason they scramble to come here is that the Seven Blood Eyes main city protects commoners; disciples are not allowed to slaughter the innocent at will. Additionally... there are formations here that isolate foreign substances, increasing one's lifespan."

"Compared to the outside where foreign substances permeate and desperate beasts and murderous people are everywhere, the Seven Blood Eyes main city is naturally the place they dream of."

"As for what is the use of becoming a disciple?"

"First, cultivation resources are only open to those who have obtained disciple qualifications. Others cannot buy them, and their circulation is strictly prohibited. Once caught, death is certain."

"Second, only disciples who cultivate the Seven Blood Eyes techniques can, after reaching Foundation Establishment in the Seven Blood Eyes, possess the right to go up the mountain and obtain a share of the profits. So, you must work hard in the future. Although the sect does not openly allow internal slaughter, every month... there are still quite a few disciples who disappear from the city for no reason. Regarding this, the sect mostly turns a blind eye. It's like raising poisonous insects; death and injury are normal."

"But once an outside Foundation Establishment cultivator takes action against you Qi Condensation disciples, then the person who took action will be severely punished. This belongs to breaking the rules of the Seven Blood Eyes. Of course, the sect does not care about outside Qi Condensation cultivators."

The round-faced cultivator smiled meaningfully.

Xu Qing felt a slight sense of relief upon hearing these words; this was one of his purposes for coming to the Seven Blood Eyes.

At this moment, Li Zimei, who was on the side, asked a question after hesitating.

"If it is only like this, then how can the sect make the disciples who grow up in such an environment feel a sense of belonging, and how can the sect itself have cohesion?"

The round-faced cultivator laughed.

"Cohesion? What is cohesion? Friendship is a kind, gratitude is a kind, and awe is also a kind. But these are not solid. In this cruel, chaotic world, true belonging and true cohesion is profit!"

"As long as you are a Seven Blood Eyes disciple and break through to Foundation Establishment using Seven Blood Eyes techniques, you can obtain the qualification to go up the mountain and possess the right to share in the Seven Blood Eyes' profits."

"The Seven Blood Eyes' monthly revenue is public. It comes from everyone's residency fees, the buying and selling of cultivation resources, and port traffic. There is roughly five hundred million spirit coins coming in every day. Calculated in spirit stones, that is five hundred thousand. A month is a profit of fifteen million spirit stones."

"These profits, according to the rights and interests of different cultivation bases, after the sect retains a portion for daily expenses, the remainder is distributed to all disciples at the Foundation Establishment level and above."

"The higher the cultivation base, the more is distributed. A Foundation Establishment early-stage disciple can probably be allocated about five thousand spirit stones of profit a month. If one reaches Core Formation, it is at least tens of thousands of spirit stones every month."

"This is why I said the Seven Blood Eyes is more like an industry. All Foundation Establishment disciples who have been promoted up the mountain are equivalent to having bought shares in this industry. As long as the Seven Blood Eyes exists for one day, there is one day of profit!"

"So, do you think that when an outside enemy wants to plunder your industry, you will watch your own interests being taken away without taking action?"

As the round-faced cultivator's words spread, a profound light appeared in Xu Qing's eyes. He now had a thorough understanding of the Seven Blood Eyes.

Cohesion in a chaotic world, perhaps... is truly as the other party said; profit can bind everything together.

Li Zimei also fell silent and stopped talking.

The round-faced cultivator smiled indifferently. He had brought many batches of new disciples, and he had said the words he just spoke many times. In a chaotic world, profit is an eternal truth. At this moment, he pointed down the mountain.

"Let me tell you about the prosperity of the Seven Blood Eyes. Look over there. That is the largest port in the entire Eastern Wanggu. Cargo ships come and go in an endless stream on weekdays. Whether it is transport by any outside force or disciples from other peaks of the sect going out to sea to complete missions, most have to pass through here. And what the Seventh Peak controls is this port area."

"Therefore, boats... are the key to the cultivation of my Seventh Peak disciples. We call them Dharma Boats."

Xu Qing looked in the direction of his finger. At this moment, in the setting sun, from this position on the mountain, he could clearly see the main city port below.

Near the sea, multiple horseshoe-shaped bays had been excavated. Each one was very large, seemingly able to accommodate a large number of boats, and the number of such bays was not small—a full hundred.

While vast and spread out far, the overall colors were also different. Half were white, with a majority of huge merchant ships inside, and the other half of the bays had buildings that were mostly purple.

Looking from afar, the boats in the purple area were all very small and densely packed.

Besides this, every bay had sluice gates and tall lighthouses.

"The white area is for the outside, while the purple area is the residence of my Seventh Peak disciples."

"The boats inside are the Dharma Boats I just mentioned!" The round-faced cultivator's words came over.

"The Dharma Boats of my Seventh Peak enjoy a great reputation throughout the entire Eastern Wanggu, and they are also the core and soul of the Seventh Peak disciples' cultivation."

"It is your cave dwelling, your mount, and even more so, your partner in battle and a necessity for obtaining resources. You can completely view a Dharma Boat as a... magic treasure!"

When the round-faced cultivator said this, Li Zimei and Xu Xiaohui both widened their eyes; it was clear they knew of the existence of magic treasures. Zhou Qingpeng's eyes also shone with a strange light, carrying strong anticipation.

Xu Qing was the same. His heart trembled; he was very clear about the value and rarity of magic treasures. Thus, he looked at the purple area of the port again, but the densely packed boats there made him feel that it was somewhat contradictory to the rarity of magic treasures.

"Of course, it is not a magic treasure in the true sense, but the Dharma Boats of my Seventh Peak possess growth potential. With the improvement of your cultivation realm and constant refining, it is not impossible for them to become magic treasures sooner or later."

"Therefore, owning a Dharma Boat of one's own is the greatest dream and pursuit of every disciple who has just joined the Seventh Peak."

"It's just that even the most basic Dharma Boat requires exchange, costing one hundred thousand contribution points, which is one hundred spirit stones, to be able to exchange for one."

"Additionally, only disciples who possess a Dharma Boat are qualified to be randomly assigned to work and cultivate within the bays."

"As for disciples without a Dharma Boat, they can only find ways to earn money on their own. The limit is three years. If they still cannot accumulate enough contributions to exchange for a Dharma Boat within three years, their cultivation will be reclaimed, and they will be expelled."

"Because the techniques of my Seventh Peak are related to the sea. Cultivating in coordination with a Dharma Boat, and borrowing the spirit-gathering array inside, will yield twice the result with half the effort. By the way, the technique is free; you can obtain it once you become a disciple."

Listening to the round-faced middle-aged man's words, waves rose in Xu Qing's heart. While being attracted by the Seventh Peak's special Dharma Boats, he also gradually gained more understanding of the Seventh Peak.

The Dharma Boat is the key item for Seventh Peak disciples.

Disciples who possess a Dharma Boat will be assigned duties and are qualified to live in the purple sea area of the bay. So, the round-faced middle-aged man said before that the boat is the cave dwelling, though one would imagine that living there also costs contribution points.

And disciples without a boat can only stay on the shore, doing menial tasks, struggling to cultivate, and needing to work hard every day to accumulate contributions.

Furthermore, because the voyages of other peaks and even the entire Eastern Wanggu mostly have to pass through here, many times they need to rent the boats of Seventh Peak disciples. This is also a way to earn contribution points.

Throughout the entire Seventh Peak, basically the vast majority of disciples are like this. Everyone is struggling to survive, wanting to break through to Foundation Establishment and obtain the qualification to share in the Seven Blood Eyes' profits.

"Therefore, the Dharma Boat and cultivation base are the keys to whether one can survive in this Seventh Peak before Foundation Establishment."

"Must exchange for a Dharma Boat as soon as possible!" A sharp light appeared in Xu Qing's eyes, and a strong sense of urgency arose in his heart.

Just like this, along the way under the introduction of the round-faced cultivator, Xu Qing and his group arrived at the mountainside. This was the place for new disciples to activate all the functions of their identity tokens, and at the same time, techniques and Dao robes were distributed.

There was only one kind of Dao robe, and that was the gray Dao robe.

The gray Dao robe is the basic attire for all disciples of the Seven Blood Eyes peaks. As long as a disciple activates their identity token, it will be issued free of charge.

It's just that activating the token requires one thousand contribution points, and the activated token records everyone's basic information and contribution value, and can also be used for communication.

As everyone received the techniques and successively activated their identity tokens, obtaining the gray Dao robes, Xu Qing held his in his hand, feeling the faint spiritual energy fluctuations emanating from it, knowing that the material of this Dao robe was not ordinary.

It felt very soft to the touch and would not easily form wrinkles. If placed in the outside world, the value of this Dao robe would likely be quite high.

Li Zimei, who was on the side, was similar to Xu Qing, also stroking the Dao robe, her eyes revealing determination. Beside her, Xu Xiaohui was looking at Zhou Qingpeng.

Zhou Qingpeng blinked, his gaze sweeping over the round-faced cultivator and the sect senior who was distributing supplies, and suddenly spoke softly.

"Senior, this junior would like to buy a Dharma Boat."

The round-faced cultivator smiled upon hearing this. The one distributing supplies on the side was a thin, withered old man. He flipped his eyelids to glance at Zhou Qingpeng and spoke indifferently.

"One hundred thousand contribution points, or one hundred spirit stones." As soon as the thin old man's words came out, Li Zimei and Xu Xiaohui both gasped. One hundred spirit stones was an unimaginable amount of wealth in their cognition.

And at this time, Zhou Qingpeng hurriedly stepped forward, took out a golden paper note, and respectfully handed it over.

"A spirit note from the Second Peak? That works." The old man took it, looked at it, put it away, and then took out a purple brocade box and pushed it over. Afterward, he looked up at the others.

"Who else among you wants to exchange?"

Li Zimei and Xu Xiaohui both lowered their heads. After thinking for a while, Xu Qing endured the heartache, stepped forward, took out one hundred spirit stones from his leather bag, and placed them in front of the thin old man.

The old man said nothing. Amidst the envy of Li Zimei and Xu Xiaohui and the side-glance of Zhou Qingpeng, he gave him a brocade box as well.

Xu Qing took it and opened it. Inside the brocade box were only two items: a jade slip and a small transparent bottle.

The small bottle was very strange, only the size of a palm, with half a bottle of liquid inside, looking like seawater. And floating on that seawater was a small black-awning boat!

This small boat was entirely black and looked simple, but staring closely, one could find that every plank on it was permeated with a large number of runes. Even though the boat was separated inside the bottle, it still emitted waves of extraordinary pressure.

It could be said that whether it was the bottle itself or this small boat, the value far exceeded one hundred spirit stones. As for that jade slip, it recorded information about the small black-awning boat.

"Alright, you can go down the mountain. Remember, the techniques and Dharma Boats cannot be passed on to others, otherwise... it will be very miserable." The round-faced middle-aged man's voice interrupted Xu Qing's observation.

"Xu Xiaohui and Li Zimei, you two must work harder and take care of yourselves, striving to obtain a Dharma Boat as soon as possible. As for Zhou Qingpeng and Xu Qing, your identity tokens have appointment information. Go your separate ways."

The four immediately cupped their fists toward the round-faced cultivator. Xu Qing was about to leave, but was called back by the round-faced cultivator.

"Xu Qing."

Xu Qing turned his head and looked respectfully at the round-faced cultivator.

"Among low-rank cultivators, you are very strong. Although you are only at Body Tempering Layer Seven, you have formed the shadow of Qi and blood that only those at the Body Tempering Great Perfection have. It can be seen that your talent is not bad. It can be said that among low-rank cultivators, you are already in the category of the strong. Killing some miscellaneous cultivators and small-sect Qi Condensation Layer Nine or Ten cultivators is also easy."

"But, Body Tempering is relatively simple; it is just the accumulation of speed, strength, and recovery. But this is not the Great Dao."

"The Great Dao of our generation of cultivators is cultivating Dharma! I advise you to pay more attention to cultivating Dharma in the future. The spiritual energy and Dharma power in your body are too weak. It is fine to face miscellaneous cultivators, but if you face disciples of great sects, you will suffer a great loss!"

Xu Qing felt his heart tremble upon hearing this.

"Additionally, I don't know where you lived before, but it must have been fraught with crises, so it has fostered some instinctive habits in you."

"Habits?" Xu Qing was startled.

"Considering that I was the one who tested you this time, I will give you a reminder. For example, when you walk, your right hand hardly moves, especially the index and middle fingers, which are always in a state of vigilance. I guess that in the leather bag on your right side, there is a needle-like or flying-knife-like weapon that can be gripped by two fingers, making it convenient for you to take out at any time."

Xu Qing's expression tightened. It was the first time he had been seen through so clearly.

"But I advise you, it is best not to treat habits as nature. If you do, it is very easy for people to see the clues, and thus you will suffer. You must know that having no traces, hiding needles in cotton, is the way of our generation."

The round-faced middle-aged man smiled. He looked to have no sharpness at all. This time, reminding the disciple in front of him was just something he did casually, counting as a small investment.

But Xu Qing felt a chill down his back. After standing there and taking a deep breath, he bowed deeply to the other party.

Until he walked far away, the other party's words were still echoing in Xu Qing's heart. He lowered his head to look at his right hand, trying hard to control it to make it look more natural.

Under this attempted control, his right hand slowly changed, no longer stiff, but slightly more natural. But if one looked closely, one could see that in this naturalness, every sway seemed to hide sharpness.

And on his way down the mountain, in his constant attempts, in the wilderness very far from the Seven Blood Eyes, inside an unfamiliar scavenger camp, Seventh Master was squatting on a roof, looking with interest at a young boy not far away who was fighting with a wild dog. The boy's mouth was covered with blood and flesh stained with dog fur, and his expression seemed to still carry bloodthirst.

Seeing this scene, appreciation appeared in Seventh Master's eyes.

Beside him, the servant was also squatting there. At this moment, he took out a jade slip, checked it, and spoke in a low voice.

"Seventh Master, the kid has arrived at the Seven Blood Eyes."

"What kid?" Seventh Master looked at the boy in front and said casually.

The servant gave a wry smile and explained in a low voice.

"It's that boy who was reluctant to wear new clothes before killing someone. You even spoke for him to Master Bai and taught him the Way of Plants and Trees, and later gave him a white token."

Seventh Master's expression was dazed. He nodded and recalled Xu Qing, and appreciation appeared in his eyes again.

"I remember now. That is a good child with feelings and righteousness."

"Is special care needed?" the servant asked.

Seventh Master waved his hand.

"No need. In this chaotic world, if you want to survive, you need to rely on your own efforts. If he can eventually rely on himself to walk in front of me, I will give him a stroke of fortune." As he spoke, Seventh Master pointed to the boy fighting with the wild dog not far away.

"You say this boy, compared to the kid, who is more like a wolf cub?"

The servant looked at the boy Seventh Master pointed to and gave a wry smile. He had already answered similar questions several times. This was already the ninth child Seventh Master had taken a fancy to since the kid.

"They are about the same."

Hearing this, Seventh Master turned his head to look at the servant and suddenly laughed.

"I spoke for the kid to Master Bai and gave him a white token. This was a favor I gave. But this does not mean I must take him as a disciple. I don't owe him anything; I just gave him a chance."

"And I indeed want to take a fourth disciple, but when I took the third, I issued more than fifty white tokens before only one third disciple appeared. You have been with me for a short time, so you don't understand my style."

"This time, I feel that fifty-plus tokens are not enough for a fourth disciple to appear. At least one hundred are needed."

"Go give this boy a white token. Still, there is no need to say anything more." After Seventh Master spoke, he stood up and walked toward the distance.

The two chapters total nearly 10,000 words; I didn't force them into three chapters.

I saw the ranking of the monthly tickets, very happy. Thank you to all the handsome guys and young ladies, special thanks to Brother Yanhui for the support~

Cupping my fists and bowing! ===== CHAPTER 53 =====