Although Four Seasons Valley suited him, its core inheritance was incomplete, so it ultimately had its limits. Not to mention that its assessment was extraordinarily difficult—tasting seasonal grains to comprehend the Four Seasons Dao Resonance was not something even Jiang Xuan felt confident about.
Star Sword Peak was different. It possessed a complete intermediate Dao Branch and was better suited to him, now that he had become a Clear-Heart Sword Disciple.
If the test involves swords, with the Heart: Sincerity talent, my chances of passing should increase by at least thirty percent.
As for spirit cuisine—Jiang Xuan's mind turned swiftly, and in an instant, he found a workaround:
"Disciples of an intermediate Dao Branch hold no low status within the sect. If I truly enter Star Sword Peak, I can take another route—cultivate the sword path at Star Sword Peak while asking Dong Hao to make introductions and find a cultivator who has joined the spirit chef Dao Branch. I can hitch a ride and enter to observe and learn."
"With the status of an intermediate Dao Branch intern, they will most likely not refuse."
With a solution that served both purposes, Jiang Xuan stopped agonizing over it and nodded in agreement.
Seeing him agree, Dong Hao immediately led Jiang Xuan to meet Xie Hanyan.
What made Jiang Xuan's brows knit slightly was that Zeng Jun was there as well. From the look of it, he had the same idea as Dong Hao.
The difference was that he was not paving the way for someone else. He intended to use Xie Hanyan's connections to join Star Sword Peak himself.
"...Troublesome."
Though Zeng Jun's presence made him frown, Jiang Xuan had no intention of backing down.
In terms of pure strength, having become a Clear-Heart Sword Disciple and possessing the Sword of the Mind, he did not fear Zeng Jun at all. Even if Zeng Jun and Guo Shaoshang joined forces, Jiang Xuan still had the strength to fight them.
As Jiang Xuan walked over, Zeng Jun lifted his eyes and glanced at him. A few deep, shadowy lights flickered in his gaze, but in the end, he said nothing.
Xie Hanyan was the same. She merely confirmed with Dong Hao, "Are you certain you want to give him your chance at a recommendation?"
"Mm."
"I understand. Gather at the Daoist Academy entrance at noon."
With that, she went to sit off to one side, closed her eyes, and regulated her breathing in preparation for morning cultivation.
Seeing this, Jiang Xuan and Dong Hao did not go over to disturb her. They turned and returned to the side seats. The moment they sat down, Dong Hao lowered his voice and mentioned another matter. "The Dao Branch assessment is set for the afternoon, so your celebration feast can only be moved to tonight."
"No matter." Jiang Xuan replied calmly.
The peak he would join had already been decided. Next came the unwavering morning cultivation session of the Star Daoist Academy.
As usual, before cultivating, Jiang Xuan first cleansed his body, hands, mouth, and heart. After completing the full ritual of purification, he cast the Three Purification Incantations · Communion with Truth upon himself. Only after his mind had fully returned to a state of clarity and spotless purity did he formally begin cultivating.
This time, however, he was no longer cultivating the One Qi Sword Art, but the Nine-Breath Qi-Absorption Method.
"Exhale, inhale..."
Because of the Dao Foundation Contract, Jiang Xuan's cultivation of this technique proceeded remarkably smoothly.
So smoothly that he suddenly realized he no longer needed to rigidly maintain a seated meditative posture!
As long as his breathing remained synchronized with the circulation of the technique, whether he sat, lay down, walked, or even divided his attention to handle other matters, the technique's operation was not hindered in the slightest.
This was originally a trait unlocked only upon reaching the third realm of a technique—Minor Achievement in Mastery. Yet with the tailor-made compatibility of the Dao Foundation Contract, coupled with the [Qi Perception] trait unlocked when he became a Qi Refiner Apprentice, Jiang Xuan had achieved it early in the second realm.
"As expected of the profession system's abilities."
"Mm... This should also be related to the Cosmic Cycle Circulation trait of the Nine-Breath Qi-Absorption Method. If I changed to another technique, I definitely would not be this relaxed and at ease."
The only thing Jiang Xuan found somewhat regrettable was that, with his current Divine Soul and source power, he could only adapt to one technique, and could not change it midway.
"For the second Dao Foundation Contract slot, I either have to wait for an opening to unlock when the Qi Refiner profession advances, or wait until the moment I formally forge my Dao Foundation."
That matter was still far away. Jiang Xuan shook his head and cast the thought aside.
Then, he stood up.
Since he could cultivate without sitting in meditation, continuing to sit there stiffly would be nothing more than putting on a show and wasting time.
Jiang Xuan did not want that.
While everyone else cultivated, he intended to complete every prerequisite for becoming a Kitchen Apprentice.
"If I move quickly, one morning should be enough to finish all the prerequisites... I wonder what traits becoming a Kitchen Apprentice will unlock."
Carrying a few expectations for his new profession, Jiang Xuan rose and left his seat.
"Rustle..."
Though he had tried to be careful when standing, because he sat near the front, he still caught the attention of some people.
Morning cultivation most forbade distraction and disturbance. Jiang Xuan's movement made quite a few people frown.
Yet unlike before, very few people spoke up to mock him this time. The looks they gave him held more curiosity and scrutiny.
The ordinary students in the back rows especially stared unblinkingly after him, the same thought surfacing in all their hearts: Had he discovered another special cultivation method?
As long as you were strong enough, others would always voluntarily find good reasons for your unconventional actions. Today, he had experienced that truth crystal clear.
Ignoring them, Jiang Xuan slowly walked out of the training hall and headed straight for the Star General Goods Shop beside the Daoist Academy.
The Star Daoist Academy had more than three thousand students. Of them, only one or two in ten had been born into immortal sects; the rest came from major imperial dynasties and immortal cities scattered across the land. These students had no residences in the Divine Firmament Sect's outer sect and mostly lived in the Daoist Academy's student dormitories. Where there were many people, naturally, there would be a general goods shop selling daily necessities.
The Star General Goods Shop Jiang Xuan visited was just such a place. Its stock was quite comprehensive, from pills and talismans for cultivation to ordinary daily necessities—it had everything one could need.
Jiang Xuan bought two hundred cucumbers, one hundred eggs... as well as an iron wok, charcoal, and a kitchen knife.
Jiang Xuan had originally intended to carry these things to a secluded spot by himself. But before he could act, a respectful voice sounded beside him. "Young Master Jiang Xuan, leave this sort of rough work to this humble one."
The speaker was Cheng Xiu. His sudden appearance surprised Jiang Xuan slightly.
"You do not need to attend morning cultivation?"
"This humble one can cultivate at any time. Young Master's affairs are what matter most."
Cheng Xiu's utterly respectful manner, always placing Jiang Xuan first in everything, left Jiang Xuan somewhat speechless. It also convinced him once again that he could never become a servant—the servants of this world competed with one another far too outrageously.
Still, having someone lend a hand truly saved him a great deal of trouble.
Cheng Xiu was especially swift and capable. In only a short while, he found a secluded patch of open ground, set up the iron wok, lit the charcoal fire, and arranged a wooden table and chopping board. He handled every trivial matter impeccably, leaving Jiang Xuan free to focus solely on the ingredients.
Before lifting his knife, Jiang Xuan performed the usual ritual of cleansing his hands and heart, returning his mind to a state of clarity and spotless purity.
When he picked up the kitchen knife, he did not strike immediately. Instead, he ran his fingertips inch by inch over its cold blade.
"Buzz..."
A faint tremor rose from the knife. As Jiang Xuan's heart aligned with his intent, and his intent aligned with the blade, the knife's construction, balance, and sharpness all became perfectly clear in his mind.
This was precisely the core trait of a Clear-Heart Sword Disciple—the application of Heart: Sincerity.
As for why an ordinary kitchen knife could trigger a Sword Cultivator trait, the reason could not have been simpler: in Jiang Xuan's understanding of the sword path, all things beneath heaven and earth could become swords.
Anything with an edge was naturally a sharp sword; blunt sticks and clubs without an edge could also be heavy swords without a blade. Even flowers and grass, flowing water, clear wind, sunlight, and even human hearts and worldly affairs could all become swords in one's hand.
"Since it is a sword, it can naturally stir my Heart: Sincerity!"
"Buzz..."
Once the kitchen knife and Jiang Xuan had completely achieved the unity of man and "sword," everything that followed came as naturally as water flowing into a channel.
Without needing the slightest adjustment, he casually slapped a cucumber onto the chopping board. His hand rose and the knife fell as he began slicing.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
The fierce flashes of blade-light rose and fell like the wind, so fast they nearly left afterimages. Under the sharp edge, the emerald cucumber instantly became even, thin slices. Three breaths later, Jiang Xuan withdrew his knife and stood still. The cucumber slices on the chopping board were as thin as cicada wings; held up to the light, one could clearly see the scenery on the other side through them.
Almost at the same moment, two system notifications sounded deep within his sea of consciousness.
[You prepared one portion of vegetables. The finished product has reached the standard of "thin as cicada wings." Kitchen Apprentice knife skill proficiency +1. Current progress: 1/100] [You completed one session of swordsmanship cultivation. Clear-Heart Sword Disciple profession experience +1]
The first notification was secondary. What truly made even Jiang Xuan, in his Pure Heart state, pause slightly was the second notification that followed.
"This counts too?"
The instant a trace of surprise surfaced in Jiang Xuan's heart, he immediately found the answer.
"Of course it counts."
"Since all things beneath heaven and earth can become swords, how could swordsmanship cultivation be confined to the form of holding a sword and striking?"
"Wielding a sword against an enemy is cultivation. Quietly contemplating the blade is cultivation. Even chopping firewood and slicing vegetables, so long as the heart aligns with the blade and intent aligns with the Dao, are naturally cultivation as well."
"As long as my heart is sincere, I can cultivate at every moment."
With that thought, Jiang Xuan, whose heart was as still as water, gathered all stray thoughts and swept the sliced cucumber aside. Then he lowered his knife once more and began slicing the second cucumber.
"Swish, swish, swish..."
The blade-light continued without pause, and time quietly passed amid the rhythmic sounds of the falling knife. In less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Jiang Xuan had sliced one hundred cucumbers, completing the first requirement for becoming a Kitchen Apprentice.
The second requirement, heat control, was even easier to complete.
An ordinary chef might need years upon years of practice to precisely control the transition between low and high heat. But this was the cultivation world, where wondrous artifacts and Spirit Materials were countless. Jiang Xuan spent only a few Spirit Stones to rent an ungraded fire-controlling artifact with marked settings. Low, medium, and high heat could all be adjusted at will, and in merely a few minutes, he perfectly completed the heat-control assessment.
Next came the third requirement—seasoning.
This had originally been the most difficult hurdle in becoming a Kitchen Apprentice. The system required him to prepare three dishes rated "delicious." In the mortal world, that would require at least months, perhaps even years, of honing one's cooking skills before one could barely manage it.
But as he had said, this was the cultivation world. He could completely use Spirit Materials to "take a shortcut."