Chapter 9: Understanding Your Profession

Mu Yi increasingly felt that he knew nothing about his own profession.

Not only is his Elite Talent seriously problematic, but even his own career plan is unclear to him now.

Mu Yi decisively exchanged his Zongwang Disaster Coins for a single profession guide: "General: Understanding Your Profession".

Thank heavens, he's not a sorcerer; otherwise he couldn't even afford the most basic magic book.

Although he doesn't know why, books from the mage line cost several to dozens of times more than the General series, but the cheap price is a good thing for Mu Yi right now.

As the Zongwang Disaster Coins were spent, a notification refreshed on Mu Yi's retina that the book had been placed in his inventory.

Mu Yi's heart burned with excitement, just like every boy who has just opened a mysterious website…

Knowledge is power!

Mu Yi slowly turned the pages of the book, and the text in a square font gradually unveiled the world of Generals and Jiuzhou for him.

Jiuzhou does not simply refer to a single world; it denotes a civilizational phenomenon, and the Hundred Schools, monsters, Heavenly Court, Underworld… all belong to Jiuzhou.

The world Mu Yi lives in also belongs to Jiuzhou, but the book explains that the Transcendent, hidden from the world, unified under the End of Dharma era.

Nevertheless, it still belongs to Jiuzhou.

Mu Yi thought of the tiger tally he had seen; judging from the image on it, it's highly probable that this inheritance also does not belong to this world.

Until then, Mu Yi had not observed any trace of Transcendent beings in this world.

Maybe he's a homebody? Or perhaps all Transcendent traces have been concealed?

Even in the information age, the concept of an information cocoon makes Mu Yi uncertain whether the world he sees is truly the real world.

According to the book, many people like him have stumbled upon inheritances—either a chance tossed casually by a big shot or a trace left by someone who died without a path; which specific case it is doesn't matter.

Once one accepts the inheritance, it means becoming a part of Jiuzhou.

Likewise, only people from Jiuzhou can receive such an inheritance.

Although not stated outright, Mu Yi still sensed an extremely xenophobic attitude from the book's content.

Recalling the information he saw on forums, Mu Yi felt his future looked bleak.

But those matters are not important for now; Mu Yi still wants to learn more about the General profession.

After a quick skim, skipping a huge chunk of background lore, Mu Yi finally found the section on how a General becomes stronger.

After a long while…

Mu Yi placed the book aside slowly, then hurled it down viciously.

"What a rip‑off!"

The part on how a General gets stronger was only a single page, and Mu Yi summed it up simply: "Combat."

If your strength isn't enough, no problem—find a thick‑skinned, hefty opponent, fight, cut them down, and your strength will increase.

If your speed isn't sufficient, no problem—find a fast opponent, fight, cut them down, and your speed will improve.

…

Such descriptions made Mu Yi's head spin.

The logic is as stated, but what if you fail to cut down the opponent and they cut you down instead?

After calming himself, Mu Yi could only reopen the book and start reading from the beginning.

All the Zongwang Disaster Coins were spent, the book purchased; such knowledge items are explicitly non‑returnable, so Mu Yi can only try to dissect something from it.

As he read on, Mu Yi actually found a method to become stronger, not in the General section but in the description of the Military Strategist within the Jiuzhou cultural introduction.

The author even interjected a rant, apparently not fond of the brute‑force type.

【This book tailors instruction; an impatient General will surely flip straight to the later part, just go "brute, brute, brute" and that's it—if you don't die, you become stronger】

【Of course, setting aside those single‑minded, impatient fools, disciples of the Military Strategist have many ways to grow stronger】

…

Compared with traditional classes like Warrior, Assassin, or Ranger, the General profession is more of an all‑rounder.

Of course, being all‑round means investing more effort and time into cultivation.

In the end it can be summarized into four paths to strength, which correspond exactly to the four Military Strategist skills in the profession.

The first is the brute‑force style despised by the author, namely Military Formation, whose core improvement method is combat.

Growing stronger through endless battles and slaughter is direct, lethal, and also a method the author deeply scorns.

The next three differ greatly from Military Formation.

The second is Military Power Scheme; simply put, it is leading troops into war, strengthening through warfare.

However, this has no practical value for Mu Yi now; he is a lone wolf, clueless where to recruit subordinates, and even if he wanted to join a faction, there is no avenue.

Although the author devoted extensive passages to detail the benefits of the Military Power Scheme school, Mu Yi cannot reap them and can only regretfully PASS it.

The third is Military Technique; compared with the previous two, this section feels to Mu Yi more like describing side jobs in an online game—pharmaceuticals, poisons, blacksmithing, cooking…

Mu Yi's mouth twitched; although most of the introductions are useless to him, the part about cooking seems rather useful.

【Your profession skill – a new recipe added to the Military Technique skill pool: Vitality Soup (common recipe).】

【Vitality Soup: three taels of cinnamon twig, four taels of peony root, two taels of roasted licorice, three taels of ginseng, twelve jujubes, four taels of fresh ginger… one animal heart】

【Effect: tonifies Qi and blood, harmonizes Ying and Wei, strengthens the body, the top choice for body refinement】

The menu specifies that the animal heart must come from a non‑Transcendent creature; otherwise the recipe is invalid. The stronger the sub‑Transcendent creature, the better the effect, greatly benefiting the expansion of Inner Qi.

Although hearts of large beasts are hard to obtain, cow hearts are fairly easy to get; cows may not count as beasts, but they are still quite robust.

As for the other herbs, Mu Yi looked them up; they are sold at ordinary Chinese pharmacies and can be ordered for delivery.

As for the final type, Military Yin‑Yang, it is rather esoteric.

It gains power through mysterious rituals such as sacrifices and prayers.

This requires a corresponding entity, relevant ritual knowledge, and most importantly, offerings.

The simplest and most effective is a sacrifice to a deity.

The three sacrificial animals and six domestic beasts, jade and silk, wine, people, blood... can all serve as offerings, but whether the deities will answer you depends on their mood.

Moreover, it is explicitly noted that deities from different worlds, even if they share the same name, may differ as individuals, causing ritual problems; a deity's lack of response is a minor issue, but sometimes it can provoke the deity's wrath.