Chapter 71: Officially Joining the Xuanbing Sect

On the other side, Ruan Xing gazed at the orderly buildings vaguely visible amidst the lush mountain rocks and woods on the outer peak, and began to ponder.

Finally... she could be considered to have a sect now.

Before she reached the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, she did not intend to leave the sect gates again; presumably, it should be safe enough here, and she would not be attacked by Demon Cultivators again.

However, Ruan Xing still planned to perform a simulation after she became familiar with the environment.

Firstly, to see if the Xuanbing Sect would be attacked by Demon Cultivators in the year she turned twenty-three, and secondly, to know what realm she could ultimately reach if she stayed in the sect and cultivated with focus.

To avoid any melodramatic plots of being bullied or ostracized by sect disciples, Ruan Xing did not wander around randomly; she only flew her Sword nearby to look at the scenery of the outer peak, and if she encountered anyone, she would take the initiative to avoid them.

After waiting for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, she finally saw Qin Shixiong and Zhao Fengchun riding the same Flying Sword over to find her.

There was no look of misery on their faces from having been punished; on the contrary, Zhao Fengchun even gave her a grateful smile.

This left Ruan Xing baffled.

Qin Shixiong said meaningfully, "Fellow Daoist Ruan, so you do know how to fly a Sword."

Ruan Xing had not intended to keep hiding it anyway; it was merely an excuse she had made to reach the sect safely. Hearing this, she said without a hint of guilt, "Only a little, not as profound in Magic Art as you, Qin Shixiong."

Qin Shixiong gave a light hum, "Follow me."

With him leading the way, the three of them went to the Treasure Pavilion together. Halfway up the mountain, they jumped off the Flying Sword and landed on the open ground in front of the gate, where people were coming and going.

Entering the door and walking to one of the counters, Qin Shixiong asked Ruan Xing to take out one of the two jade plates and hand it to the old Cultivator sitting inside the counter.

After the old Cultivator picked up the jade plate and identified it with his Divine Sense, he smiled and said, "A six-year-old at Qi Refining Layer Nine, it seems our sect's Inner Sect will have another heaven-gifted talent. Congratulations, Fellow Daoist, please wait a moment."

The old Cultivator pushed open the wooden door behind him, went in for a while, and then came back out with a tray in his hand.

On the tray were two sets of clothes in the same style as other disciples, two sheets of thin paper, two bottles of Gathering Qi Pills, and ten Low-grade Spirit Stones.

"This is the sect's monthly stipend for this month, as well as the basic resources for a newly initiated disciple. From now on, you may come to the Treasure Pavilion every month to collect one bottle of Gathering Qi Pills and nine Low-grade Spirit Stones." The old Cultivator wore a kind smile on his face, "I wonder if you have any requirements for your residence, Junior Sister?"

Zhao Fengchun whispered to Ruan Xing, "The Ding-character Courtyard is where ordinary low-level Cultivators and servants live together. From the Bing-character Courtyard upwards, they are single-occupancy residences, and there are Spirit Gathering Arrays available for cultivation. The closer you are to the center of the array, the higher the concentration of Spirit Qi. The Bing-character Courtyard requires a monthly Spirit Gathering Array fee of six Low-grade Spirit Stones, while the Jia-character Courtyard costs thirty Low-grade Spirit Stones per month. I live in the Yi-character Courtyard, number 168, which costs fifteen per month; usually, it is paid every three months."

She didn't expect that even in the world of Cultivation, one still had to pay rent...

But it was fine; nominally, the residence was free, and what was charged was the Spirit Gathering Array. If one didn't want to spend a single Spirit Stone, one could just live in the Ding-character Courtyard.

But Cultivators felt they were different from mortals; even if their pockets were empty, they had pride in their hearts and would certainly not be willing to live with servants.

Ruan Xing thought for a moment. The ticket money for entering the Secret Realm had already been refunded to her, and with the newly issued sect stipend, she had sixty-one Low-grade Spirit Stones.

After paying the rent for the Yi-character Courtyard, she would still have sixteen left.

Moreover, even Zhao Fengchun, at Qi Refining Layer 4, had to work hard to earn money to live in the Yi-character Courtyard; presumably, the efficacy of the Spirit Gathering Array was extraordinary, and most high-level disciples were gathered in the Yi-character Courtyard.

"Alright, then I will live in the Bing-character Courtyard. I'll pay for one month first, thank you," Ruan Xing said firmly.

Just kidding, was she the type of person who would cultivate on her own? It had been almost a month since she stepped into the Qi Refining stage, and she hadn't sat down for a proper session even once.

For her, Spirit Stones were not just currency and cultivation resources; they were points, they were life.

If it weren't for the fact that the Ding-character Courtyard had no single rooms, she would have wanted to live there.

The group fell silent for a moment, all looking at her in surprise.

They never expected that a Cultivator at Qi Refining Layer Nine would choose to live in the Bing-character Courtyard.

However, the old Cultivator didn't say anything. After taking the six Spirit Stones from the tray, he gave the tray to Ruan Xing, "The location of your residence will be sent to your jade plate shortly."

After exiting the gate of the Treasure Pavilion, Zhao Fengchun couldn't help but say, "Ruan... Junior Sister."

She seemed a bit unaccustomed to this form of address, but Ruan Xing had called her 'Senior Sister' for several days and even given her Gathering Qi Pills. Now that they were fellow disciples, if she still called her 'Fellow Daoist', it would seem heartless, so she had to overcome it herself.

"You might not understand the significance of the Spirit Gathering Array if you have always cultivated alone at home. Staying in an environment rich in Spirit Qi makes one day of cultivation comparable to three or five days for others, and even when breaking through, the success rate is higher than others. When I first entered the Outer Sect, it took me two years to reach Qi Refining Layer 3. After moving into the Yi-character Courtyard, I broke through to Qi Refining Layer 4 in less than a year, and I have already touched the threshold of the fifth layer. At the latest, I estimate I will reach Qi Refining Layer 5 next month. Your aptitude is better than mine; since entering the Dao early has limited the growth of your Spirit Bone, you should not waste this talent. You should aim to form a Golden Core and reshape your physical body as soon as possible."

Zhao Fengchun looked earnest.

Ruan Xing knew this girl had no ulterior motives and was acting out of her own experience and thoughts for Ruan Xing's sake. Her heart softened, and she smiled, "Thank you, Zhao Shijie, I understand. However, I have just entered the sect and am short on funds, so I don't have enough Spirit Stones to be your neighbor. Let me think of a way to earn some Spirit Stones first."

She had asked Qin Yi about ways to earn money within the sect on the way. Qin Yi naturally could see that she had the cultivation of Qi Refining Layer Nine but lacked the financial resources of one, which was an awkward situation difficult to speak of for many Cultivators who came from ordinary backgrounds but had good aptitude. Therefore, he interrupted the conversation, "The canteen should be serving food at this time. We've been rushing about for half a day, aren't you hungry?"

Cultivators at the Qi Refining stage had not yet been able to abstain from grains. For the past few days, Ruan Xing had been eating Bigu Pills; they had no taste and were dry, just like chewing chalk. Hearing this, her eyes lit up, "Alright, let's go eat. I'll taste how the food is here at our Xuanbing Sect."

"Okay," Zhao Fengchun replied, then turned to Qin Yi and said, "Shixiong, don't we need to redo our sect task for this month? Can we invite Junior Sister Ruan to join us? Her cultivation is high, she will definitely be more useful than me."

Qin Yi nodded, "You can, but you are very useful, don't belittle yourself."

"That's great," Zhao Fengchun exclaimed happily.

"What sect task?" Ruan Xing leaned forward and asked curiously.

Zhao Fengchun pursed her lips and smiled, "Outer Sect Disciples are required to complete a certain number of sect tasks every month to receive their monthly stipend. If you don't complete them for three consecutive months, you will be expelled from the sect. This quantity is determined based on your cultivation. Junior Sister Ruan, at Qi Refining Layer Nine, you should need to complete one Yellow-grade Upper-class Task or five Yellow-grade Lower-class Tasks."

She paused and continued, "Originally, you wouldn't need to complete sect tasks in your first month of joining, but didn't you just say you were short on funds? If you complete tasks with us to earn Contribution Points, you can exchange them for Spirit Stones or Pills later. By the way, we can also teach you how to accept tasks and earn rewards in the sect."

"So that's how it is." Ruan Xing nodded. She had originally intended to research how to earn Contribution Points to exchange for cultivation techniques, so having Zhao Fengchun willing to help teach her was the best thing possible.

However, for the sake of caution, Ruan Xing still asked, "What kind of task are you going to do?"

If it was the kind that required leaving the sect, she wouldn't go, so as to avoid encountering Demon Cultivators; not only would she lose her own life, but these other fellow disciples would also suffer.

"It's not decided yet," Qin Yi replied, "but there aren't many days left until the end of the month, and there are other Junior Brothers and Sisters involved. We need to complete a Yellow-grade Upper-class Task. I will go to the Sect Affairs Hall in the next two days to see if there is anything suitable. If nothing goes wrong, it should be to kill a Monster Beast."

Killing a Monster Beast required leaving the sect, so Ruan Xing immediately lost interest, "Then forget it, I don't really want to go out for the time being."

Qin Yi said calmly, "That's fine, you can come with me to the Sect Affairs Hall tomorrow to see if there are any tasks that meet your requirements."

The canteen for Outer Sect Disciples was on the outer peak, where fixed meal boxes were provided for people to collect. The three of them collected their food and, having no intention of returning to their residences, found a table and sat down to eat. In the meal box was a bowl of rice, a dish of seasonal vegetables, a dish of steamed meat, and a bowl of egg drop soup, all of which were mortal food containing no Spirit Qi.

The price of Spirit Rice and Monster Beast Meat was very expensive; it was impossible to provide them for free in the canteen for Outer Sect Disciples. Apart from buying them with one's own Spirit Stones, perhaps one would only be able to enjoy the sect's Spirit Rice ration after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage and entering the Inner Sect.

Many people in the canteen were servants and disciples below Qi Refining Layer 3, sitting sparsely to eat.

Seeing that Ruan Xing seemed to have questions, Qin Yi took the initiative to explain, "Generally, in order to have more time for cultivation, we choose to eat Bigu Pills more often. At most, if we have a craving or don't want to spend Spirit Stones on Bigu Pills, we will come here to eat a few times. Moreover, many high-level Qi Refining disciples are unwilling to come here and will have servants collect the food and deliver it to their residences."

The arrogance of a Cultivator, right... understandable.

Ruan Xing pointed to a few small Cultivators at Qi Refining Layer 1 in the corner of the canteen who looked to be thirteen or fourteen years old, "What about them? Are they also newly initiated disciples?"

Looking in the direction she pointed, Qin Yi thought for a moment, "They seem to be a few mortals with Spirit Bones recruited from the surrounding towns last year. This happens from time to time in sect tasks; recruiting one disciple with a Spirit Bone gives five Contribution Points."

"Whoa, then did I also earn you five Contribution Points?" Ruan Xing asked in surprise.

Qin Yi didn't speak, and Zhao Fengchun said with some embarrassment, "Uh, this task was counted towards me, Senior Brother..."

After all, Ruan Xing had been looking for her from the start; although Qin Yi had also helped, how could he possibly compete with Zhao Fengchun?

"Outer Sect Disciples have to earn all their resources themselves, and cultivation also relies entirely on one's own exploration. Won't they suffer from Qi deviation? I'm afraid many mortals wouldn't even understand the content of the Qi Refining Formula."

"How could one possibly explore it on their own?" Qin Yi said incredulously, "If one could reach Foundation Establishment just by blindly practicing according to the Qi Refining Formula, wouldn't everyone be a genius?"

Ruan Xing felt a bit ashamed; she was the one who had been blindly practicing according to the Qi Refining Formula by relying on the Simulation...

"There are senior brothers and sisters who teach at fixed times for guiding Qi into the body; this is free for all disciples to attend. Later on, there are also various courses for improving cultivation, practicing Magic Art, and breaking through realms, but those require Contribution Points to redeem attendance qualifications. By the way, teaching is also a Sect mission, which does fit your requirement of not wanting to leave the Sect, though with your image, there probably won't be many people signing up for your class."

In the stereotype, people still feel that being more mature makes for a good teacher.

Just like an old traditional Chinese medicine doctor, the older they are, the more sought after they are.

However, strength can break through stereotypes. If she can make the majority of Outer Sect Disciples think she is very powerful, then there will definitely be people listening when she opens a class.

This Sect mission can be listed as an alternative...

Suddenly, Ruan Xing felt her jade tablet flash with green light and vibrate once.

She took out the jade tablet to check, and Qin Yi reminded her, "It might be that the residence has been arranged."

Sure enough, when she probed her Divine Sense inside, it was written: Bing-character Courtyard, number 391.

"Indeed it is," Ruan Xing nodded and said.

Zhao Fengchun also took out her own jade tablet, "Since it's all set, Junior Sister Ruan, let's leave each other our Spirit Marks so it will be convenient to contact each other in the future."

Isn't this just adding a friend to expand one's list?

Ruan Xing gladly accepted Zhao Fengchun's friend request.

Under Zhao Fengchun's expectant gaze, Qin Yi also took the initiative to exchange Spirit Marks on their jade tablets with Ruan Xing.

The meal was almost finished, so the three of them stood up to leave, and Ruan Xing also happened to go back to see her new residence.

"Is it better than what you had at home?" Zhao Fengchun blinked curiously and smiled shyly, "I actually rarely leave the Sect either, and I haven't eaten home-cooked food for more than three years."

Mess hall food is always very average, but Ruan Xing replied tactfully, "It's alright. If you miss home, why not go back? The Sect doesn't seem to restrict freedom."

Having been in the world of Cultivation for nearly a month, most of the Cultivators she had seen were not the type to sever all worldly ties upon entering the immortal sect.

This made the way the Six Suns Study recruited Inner Sect Disciples even harder to evaluate.

"I'll go back to visit once I reach Foundation Establishment," Zhao Fengchun clenched her fists, her eyes sparkling with longing, "I'm afraid that if I go home, I'll lose the fighting spirit to work hard at cultivation."

"Then I wish you an early Foundation Establishment," Ruan Xing said sincerely.

The three of them separated after entering the residential area.

Qin Yi's residence was also in the Yi-character Courtyard, not far from Zhao Fengchun.

Through their explanation, Ruan Xing had a rough understanding.

Jia-character Courtyard, numbers one to fifty.

Yi-character Courtyard, numbers one to two hundred.

Bing-character Courtyard, numbers one to four hundred.

Ding-character Courtyard has no numbers.

The seven hundred or so Outer Sect Disciples were scattered throughout this residential area. It seemed like the 650 houses around the Spirit Gathering Array were not enough, but in reality, Cultivators at the first or second level of Qi Refining could not steadily earn the six Spirit Stones for rent every month, so the Bing-character Courtyard was not full.

The Jia-character Courtyard was inhabited by two Foundation Establishment Outer Sect Elders, some disciples from aristocratic families, and quasi-Inner Sect Disciples who were about to reach Foundation Establishment.

For example, that Xie Huai who made Ruan Xing feel inexplicably dangerous.

He lived in the Jia-character Courtyard, very far from Ruan Xing's residence, which gave her a little peace of mind.

At least she didn't have to worry about running into him when going out.

Pushing open the door, it was bright and clean inside; it must have been cleaned by servants already. There were two rooms, a bedroom and a quiet room. The area was not large; combined, it was probably less than five square meters.

Ruan Xing spread her arms and threw herself onto the bamboo mat in the bedroom. The smooth woven surface felt cool, and she squinted her eyes comfortably, taking the opportunity to circulate her internal energy to begin cultivation, letting all the pores on her body open to breathe in the fresh Spirit Qi brought by the Spirit Gathering Array.

Mmm... it really felt better than when she was in the town, though it couldn't compare to the Spirit Qi at the peak of the Cold Mountain Secret Realm.

Seeing several comments saying it's hard to imagine how big a five-square-meter house is, you can refer to Hong Kong's low-rent housing; the prototype is exactly that.

Thanks to sisi88 for the monthly ticket~(End of this chapter)