Chapter 2: Moving Clouds, Spreading Rain

After the brief interlude, Zhao Xing continued transplanting rice seedlings, finishing the sowing of the last mu of public field under his care before sunset.

Basic and low-tier spells leveled up quickly in the early stage; the proficiency of the low-tier spell 'Robust Growth' had already accumulated to 200 points.

Looking at the neatly aligned, lush green fields, Zhao Xing straightened up and clapped his hands in satisfaction.

When knocking off, he habitually glanced at the panel.

【Name: Zhao Xing】

【Realm: Unranked】

【Fortune: Yan One】

【Spell: Basic Cultivation (Max Level)】

【Robust Growth: Low-tier (201/9999)】

【Moving Clouds: Low-tier (352/9999)】

【Gathering Yuan: First-tier (58/100)】

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

When he obtained a profession, and with version updates, these would change accordingly, but even from this limited data, it helped Zhao Xing recall a great deal of additional information.

"After the Great Zhou Taizu unified the nineteen provinces, he made a grand vow: all the talented people under heaven shall enter my jar, and my law shall be the law for ten thousand generations."

"He unified the cultivation realm, establishing the 'Nine Ranks, Thirty Levels.'"

"Below the Fourth Rank are divided into Principal, Subordinate, Upper, and Lower. Above the Fourth Rank, there are only Principal and Subordinate."

"Then, with immense divine power, he bound the dynasty's fortune and set down a rule: those who are not subjects of my Zhou dynasty shall not cultivate."

"And in the nineteen provinces, he built divine temples and spread ten thousand laws."

"This system continued in use until the Revival version, or until players broke through the level cap, only then was it updated."

In the early days, this system was frequently mocked by players on the forums: "What the hell, this isn't even as good as 'Half-Step Peak Great Perfection'!"

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

The fortune system, on the other hand, was divided into forty-nine levels.

It drew on the meaning of the Great Yan fifty, with King Tianyan taking forty-nine.

Yan One fortune was basically the standard for the countless common people.

It also affected the efficacy and success rate of certain spells; for instance, the 【Moving Clouds】 he had just cast had something called a 'Great Success,' which was purely luck-based.

The three spells were 'techniques,' while Gathering Yuan was an 'art.'

Countless Li Min could all practice 'Gathering Yuan,' strengthening their bodies, increasing longevity and fortune. This was yet another achievement of the Great Zhou Taizu.

Under the premise that spiritual energy had not yet revived on a large scale, civil and military officials could even use one level weaker yuan qi to drive powerful spells.

"Cultivation is like building a ten-thousand-zhang tall building; the Great Zhou dynasty's fortune can help people lay foundations and add bricks and tiles. A single imperial edict can make one rise rapidly, increase longevity, change fate, and head straight for the First Rank Realm."

"Not being an official, limited by aptitude, stuck at a bottleneck until death, while others soar. The unified fortune dynasty, relying on this official-centered cultivation system, truly achieved 'all the talented under heaven enter my jar.'"

"However, the downside is also very obvious: the same imperial edict can also cast one into the abyss, stripping away cultivation along with it, and returning the fortune to the court."

"I remember there's a way to eat the candy coating and send the cannonball back... but thinking about these now is premature."

"In the current era, Great Zhou is in invincible mode. Now is the Jing Di period; after Wu Di, the invincible Great Zhou will begin to decline. When that time comes, this fortune dynasty model will show more and more flaws..."

Thinking of this, Zhao Xing couldn't help but shake his head and smile; it wasn't pity for Great Zhou, but a self-mocking laugh.

Damn, he didn't even know if he could survive the Wu Di period; right now he hadn't even received his job-change quest.

The Zhao family of Gucheng was a prominent household in Nanyang Commandery, long known for its reputation of virtue.

Every few years, they would donate to the imperial court's 'Charitable Nursery' 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 covered clothing, food, housing, and transportation, as well as lucrative sectors like mechanisms and forging.

As a great clan, donating money to other government agencies carried the suspicion of colluding between officials and merchants, making it easy to be criticized.

But doing charity drew far less questioning.

Zhao Xing's adoptive father was named Zhao Ruide, from the East Lake branch lineage; in his early years, he traveled with merchant caravans doing escort and guarding work, and lived quite comfortably.

Unexpectedly, at the age of forty-five, he lost his family—his Lady and only son drowned while on a pleasure boat.

The hidden injuries accumulated from traveling north and south were diagnosed by physicians as making it very difficult to have another child; so, under the family's arrangement and persuasion, Zhao Ruide adopted six-year-old Zhao Xing from the Charitable Nursery, taking him as an adopted son.

Originally, he was still quite doting on Zhao Xing, but unexpectedly, changes occurred in recent years.

Because six years after adopting his adopted son, the concubine Zhao Ruide took actually gave him a boy!

Zhao Ruide, with an old tree blooming anew, was overjoyed; he immediately elevated the concubine to Lady, and at the same time gave all his affection to his biological son. In recent years, he had gradually grown distant from Zhao Xing.

Looking at the Zhao family compound before him, recalling the various experiences of the original host, Zhao Xing felt a slight pang of emotion in his heart, then pushed open the door and entered.

Zhao Ruide was enjoying the cool under a willow tree, fanning the dozing child on the cool mat. Seeing Zhao Xing walk in, he hurriedly made a shushing gesture, simply pointed at the kitchen, and told him to go eat on his own.

Zhao Xing didn't mind that the family hadn't waited for him to eat, cupped his hands in a slight bow, and headed toward the kitchen.

Normally, an adoptive father and son shouldn't be so distant, but Zhao Xing had joined the family halfway, and he hadn't experienced the years when Zhao Ruide doted on the original host most. Maintaining surface-level respect was the interaction mode he found comfortable.

As for Zhao Ruide? His mind wasn't on Zhao Xing either. Previously, there had been a disagreement over Zhao Xing's employment—he wanted Zhao Xing to practice martial arts or engage in commerce, but Zhao Xing insisted on entering the Agricultural Bureau.

How much money could an Agricultural Official make? How much future could he have?

In the end, he couldn't win and tacitly agreed, but the relationship between them grew even more distant.

If the relationship with his adoptive father was distant, then the relationship with the second wife, Madam Cai, was cold.

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

"Is his nose a dog's? It's really sharp! The moment the family stews meat, he comes back. Could the smell of that stew have drifted all the way to the Agricultural Bureau?"

"Shh, say a little less. Zheng'er played himself tired and just fell asleep... a few pieces of meat won't make much of a difference; it's not like our family can't afford to eat."

"It's not that I'm stingy about the meat, but he's already eighteen or nineteen, and he doesn't give the family a single cent. Don't other people's children know how to be filial to their families?"

"Master, you raised him to adulthood, yet he won't even listen to you about anything. He insisted on entering that Agricultural Bureau, so be it, but it's been almost a year and he still hasn't entered the ranked realm. I'm afraid in the future he'll come to compete with Zheng'er for the family..."

"Will you ever be done? What are you saying this for? I'm not dead yet!"

"Waaah…"

"Sigh, crying again, so annoying. Look, you've woken Zheng up…"

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

"Lady Cai, Lady Cai, I've already made it perfectly clear that in the future I won't split up Zheng's inheritance — why won't you believe me? The way you're crying, even I'm starting to feel ashamed."

Zhao Xing thought this to himself, but his body was very honest — he swiftly lifted the pot lid and began eating quickly, in big bites.

Zhao Ruide had a modest nest egg, and being a martial practitioner, of the four large pots on the kitchen stove, three were filled with meat dishes.

The Agricultural Office didn't provide morning or evening meals; minor clerks had no salary to speak of, only a few subsidies.

To raise the proficiency of the 【Gathering Origin】 technique, put plainly, one had to find every way to absorb the world's vital essence, strengthen one's own energy and qi-blood — and to start with, the food couldn't be too shabby.

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

Agricultural Office players were all pragmatists — brazenly freeloading with thick skin. Zhao Xing had to freeload first too!

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

When the sounds gradually faded, he was also full.

Seeing the progress in the Gathering Origin column had risen another 3 points, Zhao Xing wiped his mouth, thoroughly satisfied, and walked out of the kitchen.

The person involved came out, and Lady Cai stopped making a scene too — after all, she still had to give the master of the house some face.

Zhao Xing was used to it. He cupped his hands in a salute toward the two of them: "I pay my respects to my adoptive father and Lady. I'll head back to my room to rest now."

Zhao Ruide gave a slight nod, gesturing for Zhao Xing to hurry off — he wanted some peace and quiet.

But Lady Cai started muttering again: "Every time he comes home he just eats and sleeps, never thinks of playing with Zheng for a while. Does the Agricultural Office only recruit rice buckets…"

"…"

That really was an injustice to Zhao Xing.

His returning to his room was not because he actually intended to sleep.

He closed the door, lit three incense candles, and used specially prepared materials ground into ink.

Beside the desk was a wastepaper basket, filled with many yellow papers crumpled into balls.

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

"Good thing that in this era, techniques are complete, materials are cheap, and there are many ways to obtain them — no need to spend much effort."

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

Perhaps because he had tried so many times, or perhaps because his vital essence was growing day by day, this time went unusually smoothly.

At the moment the brushstroke was about to finish, Gathering Origin activated. A flash of brilliant light traveled from his fingertip to the brush handle, then spread onto the yellow paper. The entire paper emitted a faint glow, which then fully 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): Affix to the body to accelerate the absorption of the world's vital essence】

"The Agricultural Office has over five hundred people, yet fewer than five slots for full appointment each year. For someone like Li Chengfeng, a scion of a great clan with ample wealth, to compete against them, one has to overtake by an alternate route."

Could becoming a Talisman Maker earn him a fortune and help him get ashore?

Obviously not. Zhao Xing reckoned that at his current level, if he went out to sell, customers would flip his stall — and he couldn't outcompete other Talisman Makers either.

So his goal had nothing to do with the secondary profession at all.

Taking advantage of the good feel, Zhao Xing began attempting to draw a second talisman.

Soon he obtained a 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 settling the spirit】

"Success!"

Zhao Xing affixed the Guidance Talisman to his abdomen and the Soul-Calming Talisman to his forehead, lay on the bed curled into a strange posture, and muttered under his breath:

"Student Zhao Xing respectfully requests the Great Dream Academy to open the gates of learning."