[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-cultivation-i-studied-abroad-in-the-modern-world":3,"chapter-cultivation-i-studied-abroad-in-the-modern-world-cultivation-i-studied-abroad-in-the-modern-world-chapter-88":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Cultivation: I Studied Abroad in the Modern World",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2263814,4418,"Chapter 88: Trial by Fire","cultivation-i-studied-abroad-in-the-modern-world-chapter-88",88,"\u003Cp>“Brother, you’re not joking, are you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the fat brother’s expression radiated humble enthusiasm, Zheng Fa’s response was cold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Going back was impossible—if this ship turned around, he’d offend everyone aboard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This brother’s words sounded insincere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fat brother smiled awkwardly and gave a glance to another brother beside him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That brother immediately handed over a small, square box.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa had already suspected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough, when opened, it was piled high with gold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A rough estimate put it at fifty to sixty taels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thanks to your luck, our book sales have been excellent—I already planned to give you a share, but now that we’re both under Sister Zhang’s tutelage and one family, it’s even less of an issue.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa fell silent for a moment, then asked: “Brother, how much does this book sell for at Jiushan Sect?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Eight taels in the marketplace,” the fat brother whispered. “Cost is four taels—we make six taels profit per book…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa nodded. These three brothers were more restrained than he’d thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This box held roughly sixty taels of gold—the extra two taels each these three earned were all here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa thought for a moment, took out two taels, then closed the box again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll take this money.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fat brother’s face broke into a smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Zheng Fa added: “Please return the rest of the money in this box—two taels each to all three of you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is that not acceptable?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The money was given to you, so it’s yours to dispose of—but… return it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Return it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother, you really are… fine!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fat brother stared at him for a long while; his smile grew fainter, and he no longer spoke of them being “one family”—he simply grabbed the box and walked out the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After walking a few steps, one of his companions asked: “Why are we leaving?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Leave? This Brother Zheng isn’t easy to fool!” The fat brother’s smile vanished; he frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why did we give him money?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“To apologize?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fat brother shook his head: “Clinging to a powerful person’s leg! We keep talking about Sister Zhang, but does she even know us? This brother was actually trained by her. Give him money, and we’re just his servants.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The younger brother suddenly understood: “So he’ll join us in our shady dealings!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pah!” The fat brother kicked him: “That’s called sharing the same boat!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then why are we leaving?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This brother is proud—he refuses to mix with us over a few taels. He’s not one of us!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I get it—he wants to be a good person.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No—he’s taking our money and playing the good person.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fat brother glared at the box in his hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We really return it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Return it this time—I want to see if Sister Zhang truly values him!” The fat brother sneered. “Do you think I don’t know her nature? Who has she ever been close to? We’ll hold onto this money until I learn this man’s true character.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jiushan Sect has arrived!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cheers echoed down the corridor; Zheng Fa couldn’t help but open his door and step down onto the deck, where everyone was gathered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several new disciples greeted Zheng Fa.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because of the fat brother’s return of the gold, Zheng Fa’s popularity among them had slightly risen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Zheng Fa!” Zhou Gan waved from the far end of the deck: “Look—Jiushan Sect.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ahead rose nine towering, connected peaks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The central one was especially tall, resembling the Ninth Mountain Zheng Fa had once climbed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other eight were split into two groups, like arms stretching out to cradle a valley.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Where the arms met was a valley entrance, beyond which surged a wild, turbulent river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Zheng Fa stared, he felt a strange familiarity—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If these nine peaks were a city wall, the river would be its moat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Defending the valley entrance would make this place easy to hold, but he wondered how Jiushan Sect guarded against cultivators who could fly and teleport.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa’s boat gave a gentle tremor and slowly settled into the river at the valley entrance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was a dock, crowded with boats, bustling with activity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shore teemed with a constant, noisy stream of people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only one spot was relatively empty—a figure Zheng Fa recognized stood there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was Sister Zhang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Zhang seemed to notice Zheng Fa and nodded slightly, gesturing for him to come over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind him, the fat brother stared dumbfounded as Zheng Fa walked toward Sister Zhang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s Sister Zhang!” his companion shouted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve seen her!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But have you ever seen Sister Zhang smile like this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“… ”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So… are we still investigating him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“… Don’t mention my name before you die.” The fat brother turned and walked away quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa looked at Sister Zhang’s radiant smile and her outstretched palm, and felt speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wasn’t here to welcome him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was here to collect his manuscript.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa handed her the completed exercise book; she took it, weighed it in her hand, and nodded in satisfaction: “I’ll take you to your quarters.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they walked away from the dock together, Sister Zhang suddenly asked: “What did you buy on the way?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa looked up at her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Zhang glanced at him and said: “Did you think I told you to bring extra money for no reason?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister knows about this?” Zheng Fa pulled out *The True Person Zhang’s Treatise on Talismans*.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is my lecture compilation from the Talisman Pavilion,” Sister Zhang said. “I take one tael of gold per copy sold.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>… So you really are the shield for those three lawbreakers?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Only when I take my cut by the rules do they dare earn theirs by the rules,” Sister Zhang said coolly, as if reading his thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“… So Sister also knew about what happened on the boat?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What happened? I don’t know—I can guess. First, scare you on board, then lock you in your cabin and sell things. New disciples dare not offend them and think them dangerous, so they all buy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“… ”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do you think spiritual energy’s decline is recent?” Sister Zhang glanced at him. “Elder disciples bullying new ones, squeezing money from those who know nothing—it’s been going on for ages.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa finally understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d been puzzled: two or three hundred taels of gold wasn’t trivial, but to cultivators, it shouldn’t be worth the risk—why would those three brothers take such a chance?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Turns out it was tradition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of sect was Jiushan Sect?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There are rules. They won’t do anything extreme—if you refuse to buy, they won’t truly harm you,” Sister Zhang said, as if sensing his thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa realized she was right—the three brothers were rough, but they hadn’t actually hurt anyone; if you ignored their initial coldness, they seemed almost law-abiding.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why is this so?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He still couldn’t understand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After spiritual energy declined, lower-tier disciples grew more resentful… Killing for treasures is unacceptable, but taking a little money? The sect can tolerate it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zheng Fa fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sister Zhang turned to Zheng Fa and suddenly said: “I was tricked by elder brothers too.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What happened after?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After that, those brothers sold books for me,” Sister Zhang said calmly, stopping before a small courtyard. “As long as you’re strong enough, you can ignore all this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As she left, Sister Zhang added to Zheng Fa: “Under spiritual energy decline, immortal sects are no paradise. If you can’t handle these people and events, I’ve misjudged you… These things now? Consider them a small trial.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, Zheng Fa opened his door to find the fat brother squatting outside his courtyard, face grim.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brother, what’s this…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sister Zhang said you’re new to Jiushan Sect, so I’m to guide you for a few days,” the fat brother said mournfully, clearly not willing at all. “Today we’ll register your life token and receive your cultivation technique…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...Why does it feel like Sister Zhang is aiming to temper this senior brother?\u003C\u002Fp>",1331,"2026-06-19T19:16:02.864Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","98d54f184c92118a24cb3157b9a4738e9a640ed19958afd050df003693b29e95","cultivation-i-studied-abroad-in-the-modern-world-chapter-89","cultivation-i-studied-abroad-in-the-modern-world-chapter-87",487,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fcultivation-i-studied-abroad-in-the-modern-world-cover.jpg"]