Deducted Upon Entry

"Especially, do not let the Imperial City find out."

Two sword-bearing disciples received their orders and left the side hall. One headed toward the mountain gate to check the registry, while the other rode his sword down the mountain, rushing toward the village where Li Sanshun had grown up.

The black-robed elder remained in the hall, placing the Mystic Bird Old Token back into its wooden box.

Thirty-seven years ago, a palace coup occurred in the Shunchang Imperial City. The Third Prince's estate fell in a single night; the family members were struck from the clan genealogy, leaving only a one-year-old infant missing.

The guard responsible for escorting the infant was known for using a short golden blade.

Many years had passed, and no one in the imperial court still pursued the old case. Yet, on the very day the Tai Xuan Sect accepted disciples, the golden blade had appeared once more.

The black-robed elder latched the wooden box and whispered to himself, "It had better just be a coincidence."

On the other side of the mountainside, Li Sanshun had followed the registration disciple to the Xuan Chu Academy.

The Xuan Chu Academy was built against the mountain. The front courtyard served as the lecture hall, the middle courtyard housed the training grounds and the dining hall, and the back courtyard was where the new disciples resided. Dozens of small courtyards lined the mountain path, with wooden signs marked "Jia," "Yi," and "Bing" standing outside their gates.

The square-faced disciple responsible for the assignments was named Sun Huai. He opened the registry, first assigning the Jia Courtyard to those with high-grade spiritual roots, then placing those with dual spiritual roots into the Yi Courtyard.

When it was Li Sanshun's turn, the brush in Sun Huai's hand paused for a moment.

The test results on the registry were written clearly.

Five-element low-grade miscellaneous spiritual root.

Although a note was added below stating, "Five elements in harmony, verified personally by the Sect Master," the old rules for Xuan Chu Academy assignments only considered the grade of the spiritual root. Sun Huai had worked with Deacon Zhao for many years, and just this morning, he had received a bottle of Qi Gathering Pills sent by the manager of the Zhao family.

Now that the Zhao family manager had been taken to the Enforcement Hall, the pills had already landed in his own storage bag.

Sun Huai flipped to the last page and wrote Li Sanshun's name next to "Courtyard Bing-17."

"Courtyard Bing-17 in the back mountain, two people share one courtyard. Collect your key and come to the lecture hall tomorrow morning. Three unexcused absences will result in a deduction of that month's spirit stones."

Shi Xiaohu, who was standing behind Li Sanshun, became anxious upon hearing the arrangement.

"Senior Brother Sun, the Bing courtyards are near the back mountain's Cold Pool; the spiritual energy there is half of what it is in the Jia courtyards. Big Brother Li's score is the highest of this year's intake, how could he be assigned to a Bing courtyard?"

Sun Huai closed the registry, his tone revealing impatience.

"The Immortal Inquiry Stage scores only represent physical constitution and temperament; assignments are based on spiritual roots. He is a five-element low-grade, so living in a Bing courtyard follows the old rules. If you are dissatisfied, you can go live there with him."

Shi Xiaohu only had a low-grade earth spiritual root and was originally meant to live in a Bing courtyard. He hugged his pack tightly and nodded earnestly.

"I'll live there, then. I'll share a room with Big Brother Li, and that will save anyone from playing dirty behind our backs."

Sun Huai had not expected him to actually agree, so he raised his hand and tossed out two wooden keys.

Li Sanshun caught the key without arguing with Sun Huai.

The quality of one's living quarters only affected daily spiritual energy. The gains from breathing were related to air quality; while the Bing courtyard was indeed inferior to the Jia courtyard, he was new to the Tai Xuan Sect, and it was more important to first understand the rules.

Zhao Yuanqing stood in the Jia courtyard line, his mood finally improving.

No matter how much of a stir he caused at the testing grounds, once he entered the Xuan Chu Academy, it was still about spiritual roots. The Jia courtyard was equipped with a small spirit-gathering array, and he could receive two extra bottles of Qi Gathering Powder every month. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before he widened the gap in their cultivation levels.

Zhao Yuanqing walked to Li Sanshun's side and lowered his voice.

"The matter of the Immortal Inquiry Stage hasn't been cleared up yet; the Xuan Chu Academy won't revolve around you alone. Five-element harmony sounds rare, but cultivation requires five times the resources. You live in the Bing courtyard, and I'll live in the Jia courtyard. We'll see whose cultivation is higher in three months."

Li Sanshun handed one of the keys to Shi Xiaohu.

"It's hard to say if your second uncle is even still in the sect, so worry about yourself first. You keep bringing up your family members; I almost thought the Zhao family relied on their ancestors to cultivate."

Zhao Yuanqing was full of retort, but hindered by the presence of the registration disciple, he could only flick his sleeves and leave.

Sun Huai watched his retreating back, a sense of agitation rising in his heart.

If Deacon Zhao could get away, his arrangement today would count as a favor. If Deacon Zhao received a heavy punishment, he would need to distance himself quickly. The safest course of action right now was to settle Li Sanshun according to the old rules—giving him no more, and no less, than what was standard.

Courtyard Bing-17 was located at the end of the mountain path.

The paint on the courtyard gate was peeling, and withered leaves had accumulated on the roof. A low wall separated the back of the courtyard from the Cold Pool, and the moisture seeped into the room, leaving even the bed boards damp.

Shi Xiaohu set down his pack and found a broom to tidy the room.

"Big Brother Li, Sun Huai is definitely bullying us. In the Jia courtyard, everyone gets their own room; in the Yi courtyard, two people share a room; by the rules, the Bing courtyard should house four people. Him putting us here isn't even the worst of it."

"Living with fewer people is quieter."

Li Sanshun pushed open the back window. White mist floated over the Cold Pool, carrying thin wisps of spiritual energy.

He took a deep breath.

[You have absorbed a mouthful of Cold Pool spiritual energy.]

[Air Quality: Good.]

[Life energy increased by 0.2 points.]

[Immortal Method energy recovered by 0.02 points.]

[Water-element energy channels have received slight nourishment.]

The gains from the Cold Pool's spiritual energy were lower than the array energy at the Immortal Inquiry Stage, but they had the advantage of being available for long-term absorption. The Bing-17 courtyard being near the water was not considered a good place for others, but it was useful to him.

Li Sanshun tried circulating the Primordial Origin Art again.

The water spiritual energy entered his energy channels first, followed by the wood, fire, earth, and metal channels, which acted as a guide to disperse the excessive water energy. After the five energy channels completed a cycle, his Immortal Method energy felt a bit more solid than it had that morning.

Shi Xiaohu finished wiping the table and took out the introductory manual issued by the Xuan Chu Academy.

"Tomorrow we first collect our robes, spirit stones, and Qi Gathering Powder, and we can also choose a basic Immortal Method. The manual says every new disciple gets ten points of Xuanchu Merit, which can be used to exchange for techniques at the Scripture Pavilion."

Li Sanshun took the manual and flipped to the resources section.

The introductory supplies for new outer-sect disciples included two low-grade spirit stones, three bottles of Qi Gathering Powder, a set of dharma robes, a standard longsword, and ten points of Xuanchu Merit.

These items were not many, but they were the foundation for a new disciple's start.

Early the next morning, the two rushed to the Supplies Hall.

A long line had already formed in front of the hall. The Jia courtyard disciples were the first to receive their items; Zhao Yuanqing received three bottles of Qi Gathering Powder, four spirit stones, and a Jia courtyard cultivation token.

Shi Xiaohu stated his name and received the items as recorded in the manual.

When it was Li Sanshun's turn, the duty disciple flipped through the wooden tablet and only took a set of dharma robes and a standard longsword from the cabinet.

"Li Sanshun, Bing courtyard disciple. One set of dharma robes, one standard longsword. Once you've collected them, go to the side and press your seal."

Li Sanshun did not reach out.

"Where are my spirit stones, Qi Gathering Powder, and Xuanchu Merit?"

The duty disciple looked up at him, then looked at the distribution ledger on the table.

"The ledger says you damaged your identity token at the Immortal Inquiry Stage and consumed an additional seven array spirit stones during the test. Your introductory resources have been deducted to cover the compensation, and the Xuanchu Merit has been temporarily withheld."

Li Sanshun picked up the distribution ledger and found Sun Huai's personal seal stamped below the deduction record.

At the entrance of the Supplies Hall, Sun Huai was walking over with his hands behind his back.

"Sect resources don't come for free. Since you damaged public property, you can't expect other disciples to bear the cost for you. Deducting these few items for seven array spirit stones is already being lenient."

Li Sanshun turned the ledger toward him.

"Elder Yan personally decreed that the identity tokens contain spirit-suppression runes, and that any damage during the Immortal Inquiry Stage is to be borne by those secretly operating the array. You used my introductory resources to settle the debt—did the Enforcement Hall change the verdict, or did you make the decision on behalf of the Enforcement Hall?"

Sun Huai's footsteps faltered.

The new disciples inside and outside the Supplies Hall all looked over.