Chapter 2

After the small interlude, Zhao Xing continued planting, and before sunset, he finished sowing the last acre of public field he was responsible for.

Basic and low-level spells leveled up quickly in the early stages, and the proficiency of the low-level spell "Thriving Growth" had already accumulated to 200 points.

Looking at the neat, side-by-side, lush green fields, Zhao Xing straightened up and clapped his hands in satisfaction.

When finishing work, he habitually glanced at the panel.

[Name: Zhao Xing]

[Realm: Unranked]

[Qi Luck: Yan One]

[Spells: Basic Cultivation (Max Level)]

[Thriving Growth: Low-level (201/9999)]

[Cloud Walking: Low-level (352/9999)]

[Qi Gathering: First-tier (58/100)]

Because he hadn't changed jobs, the panel data was quite rudimentary.

Upon obtaining a profession and during version updates, these would change accordingly, but it was from these few pieces of data that Zhao Xing recalled a lot of extra information.

"After the Great Zhou Ancestor unified the nineteen continents, he made a grand vow: 'Let all the talents of the world enter my urn; my law is the law for ten thousand generations.'"

"He unified the cultivation realms and set the 'Nine Ranks, Thirty Levels'."

"Below the fourth rank, it is divided into Principal, Secondary, Upper, and Lower. Above the fourth rank, there are only Principal and Secondary."

"Then, with great supernatural power, he bound the dynasty's Qi Luck and set a rule: Those who are not citizens of the Zhou Dynasty cannot cultivate."

"And he built temples and spread ten thousand laws across the nineteen continents."

"This system was used until the recovery version, or until players broke through the level limit, before it could be updated."

In the early days, this system was often complained about by players on the forums: This is not even as good as 'Half-step Peak Great Perfection'!"

Because he hadn't changed jobs yet, his realm was 'Unranked'.

The Qi Luck system was divided into forty-nine levels.

It took the meaning of 'Great Expansion is fifty, Heaven's expansion is forty-nine'.

Yan One Qi Luck was basically the standard configuration for billions of commoners.

It also affected the utility and success rate of certain spells; for example, the [Cloud Walking] he just cast had a 'Great Success' saying, which purely depended on luck.

The three types of spells were 'Arts', and Qi Gathering was 'Gong'.

Billions of commoners could all 'Gather Qi' to strengthen their bodies, increase their lifespan, and increase their blessings. This was another achievement of the Great Zhou Ancestor.

Under the premise that spiritual energy had not yet recovered on a large scale, civil and military officials could use even weaker vitality to drive powerful spells.

"Cultivation is like building a ten-thousand-foot-high building; the Great Zhou's dynasty Qi Luck can help people build foundations and add bricks and tiles. A single imperial decree can make one rise to the clouds, increase lifespan, change fate, and head straight to the First Rank realm."

"If you don't become an official, limited by aptitude, you will be stuck at a bottleneck until you die of old age, while others will soar. The unified Qi Luck dynasty, relying on this official-standard cultivation system, truly achieved the goal of 'letting all the talents of the world enter my urn'."

"However, the downside is also very obvious; the same imperial decree can also cast one into the abyss, stripping away their cultivation along with it, and returning the Qi to the court."

"I remember there is a way to eat the sugar-coated shell and fire the cannonball back... but thinking about these things now is still too early."

"In the current era, Great Zhou is in invincible mode; now is the era of Emperor Jing, and after Emperor Wu, the invincible Great Zhou will begin to go downhill. By then, this Qi Luck dynasty model will show more and more flaws..."

Thinking of this, Zhao Xing couldn't help but shake his head and smile, not out of pity for Great Zhou, but a self-deprecating smile.

Damn it, he didn't even know if he could survive the era of Emperor Wu; he hadn't even received a job change mission yet.

The Zhao family of Gucheng was a wealthy family in Nanyang Prefecture, known for their virtue.

Every few years, they would fund the government agency 'Charitable Institution', and even send clan members to personally adopt orphans displaced by natural disasters; Zhao Xing was one such example.

The Zhao family's industries included food, clothing, housing, and transportation, as well as high-profit industries like mechanisms and forging.

As a large family, donating money to other government agencies had the suspicion of collusion between officials and merchants, which was easily criticized.

But doing charity, the voices of doubt were much smaller.

Zhao Xing's adoptive father was named Zhao Ruide, from the East Lake branch; in his early years, he worked in escorting and nursing with merchant caravans, and his life was very comfortable.

Unexpectedly, at the age of forty-five, he lost his family; his wife and only son fell into the water and died while on a pleasure boat.

The hidden injuries accumulated from traveling north and south were diagnosed by physicians as making it difficult to have children again, so under the arrangement and persuasion of the family, Zhao Ruide adopted the 6-year-old Zhao Xing from the charitable institution and took him as his foster son.

Originally, he was quite fond of Zhao Xing, but unexpectedly, changes had occurred in recent years.

Because six years after adopting his foster son, Zhao Ruide's concubine actually gave birth to a boy for him!

Zhao Ruide, blooming like an old tree, was overjoyed and immediately promoted the concubine to his wife, while also giving all his love to his biological son; in recent years, he had gradually become distant from Zhao Xing.

Looking at the Zhao family courtyard in front of him, recalling the various encounters of the original body, Zhao Xing felt a little emotional and pushed the door to enter.

Zhao Ruide was cooling off under a willow tree, fanning a child napping on a mat; seeing Zhao Xing walk in, he hurriedly made a gesture for silence, just pointing to the kitchen, letting him go eat by himself.

Zhao Xing didn't care that the family hadn't waited for him to eat, bowed his hands, and walked toward the kitchen.

It should be said that the relationship between an adoptive father and son shouldn't be this distant, but Zhao Xing was a latecomer; he hadn't experienced the years when Zhao Ruide loved the original owner the most, so maintaining superficial respect was a mode of interaction he felt comfortable with.

As for Zhao Ruide? His mind wasn't on Zhao Xing either; there had been disagreements before because of Zhao Xing's employment problem—he wanted Zhao Xing to practice martial arts or do business, but Zhao Xing insisted on entering the Office of Agriculture.

How much money could an agricultural official make? How much of a future could there be?

In the end, he couldn't win and defaulted, but the relationship between them became even more distant.

If the relationship with his adoptive father was distant, then the relationship with his stepmother, Madam Cai, was indifferent.

Just as he entered the kitchen, Zhao Xing heard a sharp voice coming from outside the door.

"Is his nose that of a dog? It's really sharp! As soon as the family stews meat, he comes back; could it be that the smell of stewed meat drifted all the way to the Office of Agriculture?"

"Shh, say less, Zheng'er just fell asleep after playing... eating a few pieces of meat won't be missing anything, our family isn't unable to afford it."

"I'm not heartbroken over that meat, but he's already eighteen or nineteen, and he doesn't give any subsidy to the family; which child from other families doesn't know how to be filial to their family?"

"Master, you raised him to adulthood, yet he doesn't listen to you about what to do, insisting on entering that Office of Agriculture; that would be fine, but it's been almost a year, and he still hasn't been ranked; I'm afraid that in the future, will he come to fight with Zheng'er for the family..."

"Are you done yet? Why say this? I'm not dead yet!"

"Wuwu..."

"Sigh, crying again, it's really annoying; look, you woke Zheng'er up..."

Then came the child's crying and the woman's wailing.

"Madam Cai, oh Madam Cai, I have already clearly stated that I will not divide Zheng'er's family property in the future, why don't you believe it. This crying makes me feel ashamed."

Zhao Xing thought to himself, but his body was very honest; he quickly lifted the lid of the pot and started eating quickly and in large mouthfuls.

Zhao Ruide had some savings and was a martial artist; there were four large pots on the kitchen stove, three of which were meat.

The Office of Agriculture didn't care about breakfast or dinner, and petty officials had no salary to speak of, only some subsidies.

To improve the proficiency of the [Qi Gathering] cultivation method, to put it bluntly, it was to try every possible way to absorb heaven and earth vitality, strengthen one's own energy and blood, so eating couldn't be too bad.

A child eating his father's food is only right and proper! Even if it's an adopted son!

Agricultural players were all pragmatists, shamelessly sponging off food, and Zhao Xing had to sponge off it first!

The louder the crying outside, the faster Zhao Xing ate.

By the time the sound gradually faded, he was full.

Seeing the progress of the Qi Gathering column, it had increased by another 3 points; Zhao Xing wiped his mouth and walked out of the kitchen with satisfaction.

With the person involved coming out, Madam Cai stopped making a scene; after all, she still had to give the master some face.

Zhao Xing was also used to it, bowed to the two: "Greetings to Adoptive Father and Madam, I will return to my room to rest."

Zhao Ruide nodded slightly, signaling Zhao Xing to leave quickly; he wanted some peace and quiet.

Madam Cai, however, started muttering again: "Every time he comes home, he eats and sleeps, and doesn't know how to play with Zheng'er for a while; does the Office of Agriculture only recruit rice buckets..."

"……"

This was truly wronging Zhao Xing.

He returned to his room, not intending to actually sleep.

Closing the door, he lit three incense candles and ground them into ink with special materials.

There was a wastepaper basket beside the desk, inside which were many yellow papers crumpled into balls.

What Zhao Xing wanted to do now was to obtain a secondary profession—Talisman Maker.

"Fortunately, in this period, the cultivation methods are complete, the materials are cheap, and the acquisition channels are many, so I don't need to spend any effort."

Zhao Xing picked up the brush, dipped it in ink, and began to draw talismans on the yellow paper.

Perhaps it was because he had tried too many times, or perhaps his vitality was increasing day by day, this time it was unusually smooth.

At the moment the brush stroke was about to end, Qi Gathering was activated, a touch of brilliant light passed from his fingertip to the brush handle, derived onto the yellow paper, and the entire yellow paper emitted a faint light, then completely converged within it.

[You have successfully comprehended the way of talisman making and produced a Guidance Talisman]

[You have obtained the secondary profession 'Talisman Maker']

[Basic Guidance Talisman (1/1000): Stick it on your body to accelerate the absorption of heaven and earth vitality]

"There are over five hundred people in the Office of Agriculture, but the annual quota for becoming a regular official is less than five; for children of great clans like Li Chengfeng, who have sufficient wealth, if I want to compete with them, I have to overtake on a curve."

Can becoming a Talisman Maker make a lot of money and help him get ashore?

Obviously not; Zhao Xing considered that if he went out to sell at this level, he would have his stall overturned by customers, and he couldn't compete with other Talisman Makers at all.

So his goal was not the secondary profession at all.

Taking advantage of the good feeling, Zhao Xing began to try to draw the second talisman.

Soon he obtained the second type of basic talisman.

[You have successfully comprehended the way of talisman making and produced a Soul-Calming Talisman]

[Soul-Calming Talisman: Has the effect of calming the soul and stabilizing the mind]

"Done!"

Zhao Xing stuck the Guidance Talisman on his abdomen, the Soul-Calming Talisman on his forehead, lay on the bed, bent into a strange posture, and muttered:

"Student Zhao Xing, respectfully requests the Great Dream Academy to open the door to learning."