Two Orders

After nodding in acknowledgment, Zhou Zhiruo stepped forward and handed a sheathed wooden sword to Gu Shao'an.

"Junior Brother has only just arrived at Emei and does not yet have a suitable weapon. Eldest Senior Sister said that we are still too young to use the blades in Emei, lest we injure ourselves. Third Senior Sister previously made two wooden swords for me by hand. This one is for you, Junior Brother."

As she spoke, Zhou Zhiruo kept her gaze fixed on the tips of her shoes rather than looking at Gu Shao'an.

Gu Shao'an was not surprised by this.

At present, Zhou Zhiruo was merely a boatman's daughter who had lost her family and been sent to Emei. She was not exactly introverted, but she was still somewhat lacking in confidence.

Looking at the wooden sword Zhou Zhiruo offered him, Gu Shao'an accepted it with a smile. "Thank you, Fourth Senior Sister."

Seeing that Gu Shao'an had not refused, Zhou Zhiruo's brows showed a little more delight, and her expression relaxed considerably.

Taking in their reactions, Zhao Jingxuan smiled and led Gu Shao'an and Zhou Zhiruo toward the front mountain.

As they walked, Zhao Jingxuan continuously told Gu Shao'an about the Emei Sect and the current state of the martial world.

Zhou Zhiruo at her side also occasionally took the initiative to speak.

Emei had seventy-two peaks, including Tianchi, Huayan, Jade Maiden, and Stone Shoot, as well as the four mountains of Da E, Er E, San E, and Si E.

Several thousand Emei disciples and servants usually lived upon these four mountains.

The Outer Sect disciples were distributed across places such as Tianchi Peak and Huayan Peak.

Apart from Mount Emei, the other three mountains each had sect elders responsible for guiding the disciples' daily cultivation.

"Furthermore, ordinary Outer Sect disciples receive no monthly stipend. Inner Sect Disciples can receive a fixed five taels of silver each month, along with one Qi Gathering Pill refined by the sect."

The money provided by the sect did not sound like much.

But one had to know that within the Great Wei Kingdom, a single tael of silver was enough to cover the monthly expenses of an ordinary family of four.

When traveling outside, obtaining anywhere from ten to fifty taels of silver already counted as quite a lot.

Not to mention that Inner Sect Disciples could earn even more money.

Gu Shao'an asked, "What about us?"

Zhao Jingxuan replied, "We are Personal Disciples of the Sect Leader. Our fixed monthly stipend is ten taels of silver, while everything else is the same as for Inner Sect Disciples."

After a pause, Zhao Jingxuan continued, "If you wish to earn money, you can go to the Mission Hall on Xuanwu Peak and accept assignments issued by the sect."

"The Mission Hall?" Gu Shao'an turned to look at Zhao Jingxuan.

Seeing this, Zhao Jingxuan sighed and explained, "Our Emei Sect oversees Jiading Prefecture, Yuzhou Prefecture, and Xuzhou Prefecture. We collect offerings from those three regions, and we must also maintain public order there, protecting them from harassment by other martial artists."

Considering that Gu Shao'an had only just joined the Emei Sect and knew little about the martial world or the imperial court, Zhao Jingxuan explained in greater detail.

In any place, there were usually two kinds of order.

One was the order in the open.

The other was the order in the shadows.

The order in the open was the imperial court.

The one in the shadows was naturally the martial world.

There were some matters that were inconvenient for the imperial court to handle, even when it stepped in.

Thus, after several hundred years, the martial world and the imperial court had formed a unique system in this world.

Every city and even every village divided its annual commercial and household taxes into two portions.

Eighty percent went to the imperial court.

The remaining twenty percent was divided among the martial world's various forces.

Though it was only twenty percent of the taxes, it was still no small sum.

It was more than enough to support several martial sects.

At this point, Zhao Jingxuan sighed. "Within Emei's jurisdiction alone, there are more than a hundred other third-rank forces and countless independent martial artists. These forces and martial artists clash almost every day."

"Furthermore, if certain shops offend someone, they will come to Emei and offer 'Peace Offering Silver' in exchange for Emei dispatching disciples to assist them or mediate disputes. Emei itself also has some businesses outside the mountain."

"There are countless scattered and trivial matters. If all of them were handled by the sect elders or the Sect Leader, how could they possibly manage them all?"

"That is why Grandmaster established the Mission Hall. On one hand, it resolves these issues. On the other, it allows disciples to gain experience, so they will not live in the mountains for too long without knowing the dangers of the martial world."

"After accepting a mission, one can directly receive the corresponding payment from the sect. Depending on the mission, Outer Sect disciples may receive anywhere from ten to fifty taels of silver. They can also obtain sect rewards, which may be money or Contribution Points."

Zhou Zhiruo suddenly spoke up. "Contribution Points can be used to exchange for Emei Sect martial arts, weapons, and medicinal pills. However, the most profound martial arts cannot be exchanged for with Contribution Points."

Zhao Jingxuan nodded. "The Emei Sect's martial arts are broad and profound, and Grandmaster Guo Xiang was a peerless talent of her generation who studied extensively. To prevent disciples from learning too many arts without mastering any, Contribution Points were established. Other than Personal Disciples of the Sect Leader like us or disciples of elders, all other Inner and Outer Sect disciples must use Contribution Points if they wish to cultivate other martial arts."

Gu Shao'an showed nothing on his face as he listened to Zhao Jingxuan and Zhou Zhiruo, but inwardly, he sighed softly.

He had not known any of what Zhao Jingxuan had said before.

Yet after thinking it over, it made sense.

Heroes violated prohibitions through martial strength, and martial artists far surpassed ordinary people in power.

At higher levels of cultivation, they could even take an enemy general's head amidst an army of thousands.

If martial artists caused trouble everywhere day and night, the imperial court would be exhausted from dealing with them.

Now, merely giving up twenty percent of the tax revenue allowed the people of the martial world to play among themselves rather than interfere with the imperial court's affairs. No matter how one looked at it, it was an exceptionally worthwhile deal.

The three set out in the early morning and did not return to Mount Emei until evening.

After the three had dinner at the front mountain of Mount Emei, they returned one after another to the rear mountain.

Before parting, Zhao Jingxuan looked at Gu Shao'an and said, "Now that you have toured Emei today, you must cultivate diligently in the days ahead, Little Junior Brother. Once your Qi Foundation grows strong enough to condense your first thread of inner force, Master will be able to teach you more profound Emei martial arts."

After a pause, Zhao Jingxuan stroked Zhou Zhiruo's head and said to Gu Shao'an, "Fifth Junior Brother, you and Fourth Junior Sister are close in age, so the two of you can spend more time together in the future. Zhiruo joined Emei half a year before you, so she knows many things about Emei. If there is anything you do not understand, she can explain it to you."

Gu Shao'an smiled. "As long as Fourth Senior Sister does not find me troublesome, I will have to trouble you often in the future."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhiruo hurriedly waved her hands to show that she did not mind.

Zhao Jingxuan, Ding Minjun, and Bei Jinyi had all reached marriageable age and were much older than Zhou Zhiruo. The three were also all disciples of Miejue and were usually stern and sparing with words, making Zhou Zhiruo afraid to grow too close to them.

As for Miejue, Zhou Zhiruo was even less daring to say much in her presence.

Now that Gu Shao'an had arrived and was close to Zhou Zhiruo in age, she naturally wished to become closer to him, lest she be too lonely within the Emei Sect.

After the two left, Gu Shao'an dragged his exhausted body back to the Bamboo Hut.

Lying on the bed, Gu Shao'an recalled the matters of the martial world Zhao Jingxuan and Zhou Zhiruo had explained that day.

The things the two women had described were basically all things Gu Shao'an already knew.

At most, there were some minor changes in the details, all of which remained within Gu Shao'an's ability to accept.

After thinking for a while, Gu Shao'an shook his head and suppressed the thoughts in his mind.

Since the larger direction had not changed, the rest was not something Gu Shao'an needed to worry about right now.

For the time being, the most important thing was still accumulating his own strength.

With that thought, Gu Shao'an endured the exhaustion from walking all day and sat cross-legged, focused his mind, and began cultivating the Emei Breathing Technique once more.