For the rest of the journey, Xu Qing seemed to have opened the floodgates and started chatting nonstop.
Seeing this, Yang Ling and the other two seized the opportunity to ask all sorts of questions.
It turned out that among the factions on the Divine Realm Rank List, none were First-rate Sects except the Iron Clothes Department.
Ku Jue Temple and the Great Evolution Sword Sect were Second-rate Sects.
Star Gazing Academy wasn't a Jianghu Sect.
The Valley of the Dead, the Heavenly Blade Sect, and the like were Third-rate, just like the Mountain River Sect.
This came as quite a surprise to Yang Ling.
He had chosen the Constable path only as a second choice.
He hadn't expected that, by a twist of fate, he had ended up in a First-rate faction.
Still, the Iron Clothes Department was different from a sect. It was, after all, an office of the imperial court.
Even if he became an Eighth-Rank Iron Clothes Constable, he would have far less freedom than a sect disciple.
"Ku Jue Temple really is only a Second-rate Sect. The Vajra Mingwang Technique isn't their Cultivation Method at all.
The Ku Jue Heart Sutra that Huìnéng practices is the true foundation of Ku Jue Temple."
Yang Ling thought to himself.
"There are actually quite a lot of Second-rate and Third-rate Sects in Zhao State. I haven't counted them all."
"But there are only four First-rate Sects."
Xu Qing's expression turned solemn.
"They are the Divine Sect in the east, Arhat Temple in the south, Nine Immortal Dao Palace in the west, and Extreme Flame Sword Mansion in the north."
Chen Xu and Chen Guoqing didn't dare take this lightly. They quickly committed the information to memory.
"Senior Brother Xu, how powerful are these First-rate factions?"
Yang Ling asked curiously.
"How powerful?"
Xu Qing mused. "If you were in the Central Plains, the imperial court would call the shots.
"If you were in the east, the Divine Sect would call the shots; in the south, Arhat Temple; in the west, Nine Immortal Dao Palace; and in the north, Extreme Flame Sword Mansion."
"..."
"Sects can rival the imperial court!? Is that even possible..."
Chen Guoqing muttered to himself.
As a police officer, he found it hard to imagine that local factions could become so powerful!
"Why wouldn't it be possible?"
Xu Qing gave a half-smile. "Take the Mine Gang, for example. It has no fewer than twenty-seven Third-rate Sects like the Mountain River Sect under its banner.
"If the Mine Gang truly acted as one, it would be enough to rival a Second-rate faction.
"But even the Mine Gang has to obey Arhat Temple."
"You all know Huìnéng, the monk who came here a while ago, right? He's from Ku Jue Temple, a Second-rate faction, and even they have to obey Arhat Temple."
"The foundations of the four Western Great First-rate Sects are beyond your imagination. Being accepted as an inner disciple by one of them would be an absolute dream come true."
Xu Qing clicked his tongue. "They eat bottles of all kinds of pills that boost cultivation, like Spirit Nurturing Pills that aid Martial Skills!"
Spirit Nurturing Pills!
"Of course, Zhao State still rules this land."
Xu Qing changed tack. "Unless absolutely necessary, the four Western Great First-rate factions won't offend the imperial court.
"The relationships involved are too complicated. Don't dwell on them; you wouldn't understand them anyway."
"Senior Brother Xu is right. Something like that is far beyond us.
"My dream is to join the Mountain River Sect."
Yang Ling said.
Chen Xu and Chen Guoqing nodded quickly.
"So is ours."
"Join the Mountain River Sect... If you can distinguish yourselves at the Red Gold Mine this time and help secure my position, it might be possible to make the necessary arrangements."
Xu Qing mused.
The three of them brightened a little.
Yang Ling was just about to ask for details when Xu Qing changed the subject.
As they chatted, Yang Ling suddenly asked curiously:
"Senior Brother Xu, what was that Spirit Nurturing Pill you mentioned? Does taking it help you train in Martial Skills?"
"Spirit Nurturing Pills are excellent. After taking one, the Martial Skills you practice will improve by leaps and bounds."
Xu Qing continued, "Martial Skills have five levels in all: First Glimpse of the Door, Mastery Through Practice, Perfected Skill, Entering the Hall and Room, and Supernatural Skill.
"First Glimpse of the Door is the easiest. Take the Black Tiger Fist, for example. An ordinary Martial Artist can usually reach First Glimpse of the Door after two or three months of practice."
Two or three months for an ordinary Martial Artist, huh?
Yang Ling felt secretly pleased.
He had taken only four or five days the first time.
It seemed that Mental Power could also be considered a measure of aptitude.
"After that comes Mastery Through Practice, which might take a year or two. As for Perfected Skill, it probably takes a decade or so of hard work.
"You could say that each level is ten times harder than the one before."
Xu Qing sighed. "The Martial Artist I mentioned might spend his whole life bringing a single Martial Skill to Perfected Skill. He'd struggle even to reach Entering the Hall and Room."
"If he had a little more talent, perhaps he could reach Entering the Hall and Room after a decade or two, but he could forget about Supernatural Skill."
"Even disciples of the First-rate Sects, whose talent is among the best in the world, might only bring a Martial Skill to Supernatural Skill in their old age."
"But as a Martial Artist, relying on just one Martial Skill is far too dangerous. If you want to learn several, you won't have enough time. What can you do?"
"Spirit Nurturing Pills can solve that problem."
"As far as I know, young Martial Artists in the four Western Great First-rate Sects, and even in many Second-rate Sects, rely on Spirit Nurturing Pills to master several Martial Skills to the Entering the Hall and Room level while still young."
"Keep in mind that the Martial Skills they practice are far superior to ours, and much more difficult, too."
Xu Qing said wistfully, "Compared to them, I doubt I could catch up in this lifetime, even if I tried my hardest."
Chen Xu and Chen Guoqing fell silent, trying to absorb all this information.
But Yang Ling had drawn a few conclusions from what Xu Qing said.
"The higher the grade of a Martial Skill, the more Proficiency it requires? The Collapse Mountain Fist only needs 100 Proficiency to reach First Glimpse of the Door. Could some advanced Martial Skills require 1,000 points just to get started?"
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