Learning Characters at the Lecture Hall

"Thank you for telling me, Uncle." Xu Chunniang gave him a grateful smile.

The fat old man waved his hand. "Now that you have entered the Carefree Sect, do not call me Uncle. I entered the Dao before you and am merely a few years older. My surname is Zhao, so just call me Senior Brother Zhao. This information is worth nothing; anyone who has spent a few years in the outer sect knows it."

Although Steward Zhao said it was nothing worth mentioning, Xu Chunniang still remembered the favor. She had only just arrived and understood nothing. It was rare for someone to be willing to offer her guidance.

After taking a Grain Abstinence Pill, Xu Chunniang put away her token and white jade bottle, then asked curiously, "Senior Brother Zhao, does the Dining Hall have food like that in the mortal world?"

Steward Zhao shook his head. "The five grains and miscellaneous cereals of the mortal world will hinder our cultivation if eaten too much, so we do not have them here.

"But once your cultivation rises and you hunt demon beasts, you can bring them here to be processed. Cultivators can eat those, and eating more of them can even strengthen your cultivation."

Learning that there was no food from the mortal world, Xu Chunniang felt somewhat disappointed, though it was also what she had expected.

Sure enough, even immortals ate differently. This was the world of immortals, and she had to adapt to it. As for the demon beasts Steward Zhao had mentioned, she felt they were still far too distant from her.

After thanking Steward Zhao once more, Xu Chunniang left the Dining Hall and headed toward the Lecture Hall.

The Lecture Hall was not far from the Dining Hall. Xu Chunniang arrived after walking for a quarter of an hour.

At the entrance to the Lecture Hall, she found a lively crowd of half-grown children gathered together.

Looking closely, she recognized quite a few of them. They were the people who had ridden the Flying Ship with Xu Chunniang.

There were also many unfamiliar faces, all dressed in the uniform outer sect robes of the Carefree Sect.

Xu Chunniang hurried forward and slipped into the crowd.

A thin, frail-looking man emerged from the hall and said in a deep voice, "Silence!"

Though his voice was not loud, it reached every person's ears. The disciples fell quiet.

The thin man nodded in satisfaction. "Those who can read may go directly to the second floor to attend Foundation Establishment Uncle-Master's lessons. New disciples may attend lessons free of charge for their first three years. If you still wish to attend after three years, you must pay spirit stones. One spirit stone grants you one month of lessons.

"When Foundation Establishment Uncle-Master is teaching, you had best behave yourselves. If you offend an inner sect uncle-master, even I will not be able to save you."

Seeing everyone nod obediently, he continued unhurriedly, "I am the outer sect steward of the Lecture Hall. You may ask me any questions related to the Lecture Hall. My surname is Cui, so you may call me Senior Brother Cui."

"Senior Brother Cui, what should we do if we cannot read?" someone immediately asked.

Senior Brother Cui glanced at that person. "If you cannot read, you may practice writing on the first floor. In addition, there are some public classes on common knowledge of the Cultivation World on the first floor. Attend a few lessons, and you will understand.

"The first floor of the Lecture Hall is permanently open to Outer Sect Disciples free of charge. But if it takes you years just to learn what is on the first floor, I advise you to pack your things and get lost early, lest you waste the sect's resources for nothing!"

Everyone's expressions tightened. They had finally reached the world of immortals; they did not want to be driven out!

Hearing that she could learn characters and attend classes on the first floor, Xu Chunniang quietly committed it to memory.

Senior Brother Cui pointed at a huge black stone by the entrance. "Whenever you come for lessons, simply place your token on this stone to register. It will automatically display your name and your remaining study time."

As he spoke, Senior Brother Cui placed his own token on it. Before long, two lines of writing appeared on the huge black stone.

One of those who could read softly read them aloud. "Cui Li, remaining study time... three years!"

Senior Brother Cui nodded. "During the three years I serve as steward of the Lecture Hall, I may attend lessons here for free. This is one of a steward's benefits.

"Enough, do not crowd around here. Go inside. But let me advise you: even if you already know how to read, it would be best to finish the common knowledge classes on the first floor before going upstairs, lest you spout nonsense and violate cultivation taboos.

"The literacy Lecture Rooms are to the east, while the Common Knowledge Class Lecture Rooms are to the west. If you come from a cultivation Aristocratic Clan, there is no need to study such common knowledge again."

With that, Cui Li put away his token and calmly went up to the second floor.

The new disciples followed his instructions one after another, eagerly taking out their tokens, registering them on the huge stone, and entering the Lecture Hall.

Most remained on the first floor and went to the corresponding Lecture Rooms under Senior Brother Cui's guidance. Only a small handful from cultivation Aristocratic Clans proudly headed to the second floor.

Xu Chunniang noticed that Qi Haozhi, the boy from earlier, had gone directly upstairs.

She was secretly astonished. He was actually from one of those cultivation Aristocratic Clans. Then the identity and origins of the young girl he followed were likely even less simple.

Xu Chunniang stood at the very back of the line. Once everyone else had gone inside, she carefully took out her black token and copied what the others had done, placing it on the huge stone. Soon, two lines of writing appeared on the stone, showing that registration had succeeded.

After putting away her token, an indescribable feeling rose in her heart. Starting today, she would begin learning characters!

The characters that only the village head in Xu Family Village knew were, in the world of immortals, the very most basic things.

Xu Chunniang walked to the eastern courtyard and saw people entering the Lecture Rooms one after another. Each Lecture Room stood alone and could accommodate only one disciple studying within.

Once a disciple entered a Lecture Room, the lamp outside would light up, indicating that someone was inside.

After Xu Chunniang understood this, she found an empty Lecture Room, pulled open the door, and went in.

Inside the Lecture Room stood a desk and chair in the small space. Paper and brushes lay on the desk, along with a Metal Sphere. As the door of the Lecture Room closed, the Metal Sphere actually emitted a red glow and slowly rose into the air!

Even though she had seen many immortal techniques over the past few days, Xu Chunniang was still startled and retreated several steps.

An emotionless voice came from within the Metal Sphere.

"I am a puppet specifically assigned to teach new disciples. Elementary instruction will now begin. You may adjust your learning progress by turning the knob."

As its words fell, something even more miraculous happened. A simple Rune appeared above the Metal Sphere. To the right of the Chinese character was a stretch of azure sky.

At the same time, the Metal Sphere's voice rang out again.

"Sky means the heavens. It can also be used to record time. From sunrise to moonset is one day, and one day has twelve double-hours."

As the Metal Sphere explained, the image above it began to change as well.

In the formerly azure sky, a glittering golden sun rose and set. Then the sky darkened, and the moon slowly rose before setting again.

Xu Chunniang's eyes brightened. So that simple Rune was the character for "sky"!

With the Metal Sphere's explanations and pictures, those complicated, hard-to-understand Runes did not seem difficult to grasp at all.

Xu Chunniang steadied herself and sat down in the chair. Following the Metal Sphere's instructions, she picked up a brush and began to learn...

The same scene played out in nearly every Lecture Room. With the Metal Sphere's explanations and the amusing, interesting images, the new disciples found learning characters not difficult at all and studied with ravenous hunger.

Very soon, the disciples grasped the pattern.

When the Metal Sphere called a "puppet" gave lessons, it generally taught for one double-hour at a time, then rested for half a double-hour. This both helped the new disciples remember the characters they had learned and allowed them to rest and adjust if they grew tired.

If they wished to begin or end early, they could also turn the knob on the puppet's body to select an immediate start or adjust the progress.

In Xu Chunniang's Lecture Room, the Metal Sphere had just finished one double-hour of teaching. Yet with a light twist of her finger on the knob, the little puppet that had only just begun resting was forced back to work...