Cultivation Plans
Spirit Mist Mountain had once been a treasure land rich in spiritual energy. It had belonged to a sect.
But after the sect's ancestor perished, it could no longer hold the mountain and was forced to sell it to the Four Seas Merchant Guild.
After taking over, the Four Seas Merchant Guild spent a fortune developing the mountain for centuries, finally turning it into a blessed land.
Besides its excellent cultivation environment, Spirit Mist Mountain also had an Earth Martial Realm warrior appear at Dao Cliff every six months to expound on the deepest truths of martial arts. Anyone cultivating there could attend.
Spirit Mist Mountain was, in short, a cultivation sanctuary the Four Seas Merchant Guild had built to nurture young warriors, a place where they could set aside all distractions and focus on training.
Now that was vision. Now that was wealth!
Even Lin Chen could not help marveling inwardly.
"As expected of the Four Seas Merchant Guild, with its reach across the Nineteen Provinces and wealth to rival a nation. What an astonishing undertaking."
Lin Chen was tempted.
The terms they offered were too generous, their sincerity too plain to miss.
He had only just arrived. If he could enter the blessed land of Spirit Mist Mountain and gain the protection of a colossus like the Four Seas Merchant Guild, he could at least spend seven years cultivating without fearing for his safety.
Next, he turned to the records concerning the Spirit Pool Baptism.
The baptism took place in an Earthcore Spirit Spring deep within Spirit Mist Mountain Blessed Land.
The spring's spiritual liquid contained the essence of the earth and thousand-year-old Spirit Herbs. It had the extraordinary power to wash the marrow, refine the bones, and improve martial talent.
It opened only once every ten years, and only rising martial stars with first-class talent potential could receive its baptism.
"Marrow-Washing and Bone-Refining, improving talent..."
Lin Chen nodded slightly. That would indeed help him.
Granted, Lin Chen had a marvelous method called Attribute Allocation.
But his chances of success when breaking through to a major realm were still affected by his martial talent.
If he could improve that talent, breaking through to the Earth Martial Realm and Heavenly Martial Realm would be much easier in the future.
"The Four Seas Merchant Guild isn't just eager to invest in promising warriors. It's even more willing to pour resources into true geniuses."
Lin Chen gradually understood.
The Four Seas Merchant Guild spanned the Nineteen Provinces. With its enormous scale and staggering accumulated wealth, it needed supremely powerful experts to hold the fort, or others would covet what it owned.
But a Heavenly Martial Realm expert was already the exalted ancestor of a major power. Even the Four Seas Merchant Guild would find it far from easy to win one over.
If, however, the guild invested in a young person who had yet to mature, and that person truly reached the Heavenly Martial Realm one day, the returns would be immeasurable!
"A Tower-Climbing Trial in half a month?"
Lin Chen murmured to himself. He had made up his mind.
He did not leave immediately. Instead, he continued reading the other intelligence, gradually forming a clear picture of the entire Cloudmist Territory.
At last, Lin Chen glanced at the index for the Cloud Province Rising Stars Ranking.
According to its introduction, the All-Knowing Tower compiled the ranking by assessing the cultivation, battle records, and potential of Profound Martial Realm warriors under eighty in Cloud Province.
In a sense, it showed the shape of Cloud Province's younger generation. Everyone on it was considered capable of reaching the Earth Martial Realm and becoming a dominant figure in their own right.
Yet even the weakest warrior on the ranking had reached at least the fifth level of the Profound Martial Realm.
Lin Chen shook his head.
He was only thirty. He had, after all, spent far too little time cultivating.
The ranking included Profound Martial Realm warriors under eighty, and even its youngest entrant was around forty-five.
Lin Chen considered the threshold for making the list. Reaching the Profound Martial Realm in his early thirties gave him a huge advantage in age. For now, that was perhaps the most remarkable thing about him.
But that was as far as it went.
He then looked through past records and intelligence on the Tower-Climbing Trial itself.
To Lin Chen's surprise, it seemed he did not have to pass the Tower-Climbing Trial to join the Four Seas Merchant Guild as other warriors did.
He had spotted a note:
Anyone who demonstrated first-class talent potential or better could be accepted by the Four Seas Merchant Guild at any time.
Geniuses always had privileges!
"That makes sense. By casting such a wide net, the Four Seas Merchant Guild isn't trying to produce more Profound Martial Realm or Earth Martial Realm warriors. All it needs is one Heavenly Martial Realm expert, or perhaps a few."
"A warrior with first-class talent would be a prized seed for any sect or power to nurture. Naturally, the Four Seas Merchant Guild would open its doors to one..."
Having worked that out, Lin Chen smiled faintly.
He did not like special privileges, but it was another matter when he was the one receiving them.
After all, he had earned every bit of his current cultivation through hard work, one step at a time!
What was wrong with enjoying the rewards now?
With his answer in hand, Lin Chen was in no hurry.
He stayed until the sun slanted west and the sky turned orange, reading through all the intelligence before returning the jade slips to their shelves.
That better part of a day spent reading had given Lin Chen a preliminary understanding of the Cloudmist Territory.
Its powers were tangled together like roots, and opportunity and danger went hand in hand. It was nothing like the relatively simple world of Kaiyang City.
But its stage was larger, its resources richer, and the path to becoming strong clearer.
Toward the end, Lin Chen even caught sight of a list titled the Great Qian Dynasty's Heaven's Chosen Ranking.
It contained the dynasty's true figures of renown. Even vast Cloud Province had only a handful of names on it.
Lin Chen merely glanced at it before looking away. That level was still beyond him.
For now, he only needed to take one step at a time: reach the tenth level of the Profound Martial Realm, then set his sights on the Earth Martial Realm.
Lin Chen remained clearheaded. Potential was only potential, a measure of how high he might rise someday. Strength was what allowed him to survive and make his way in the world right now.
Short-term goal: join the Four Seas Merchant Guild, spend seven years at Spirit Mist Mountain cultivating in peace, and grow stronger.
Long-term goal... perhaps make the Cloud Province Rising Stars Ranking within twenty years.
Lin Chen settled on his plan.
Then he went downstairs and returned the token to the middle-aged steward on the first floor.
The steward took it with his customary smile.
"Did you find what you were looking for, young master?"
"I learned a great deal."
Lin Chen nodded, then asked, "Is there a quiet inn near the Four Seas Merchant Guild?"
"So that's what brings you here too, young master."
The steward understood and handed him a simple map.
"There have been quite a few people like you lately. The Four Seas Merchant Guild is holding its Tower-Climbing Trial in half a month, after all. Any warrior who thinks they have some ability wants to give it a try."
He paused, then added another thought.
"But earning the guild's focused support won't be easy. You'd have to be rated at least a second-class genius."
Lin Chen nodded and thanked the steward.
After paying three hundred Spirit Stones for the intelligence, he followed the map out of the All-Knowing Tower.
Near the Four Seas Merchant Guild's Yunlan City branch, he found a quiet inn and took a room.
He spent a day resting and recovering his energy.
Early the next morning, Lin Chen wasted no more time and headed straight for the guild's grand, imposing branch.