It Was All About Connections

The next day.

Just as Ye Shanhua had said, someone really did come to register their spiritual roots.

The person who came was Liu Chuansheng. Seeing him, Xu Changshou secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At least he did not have to worry about his spiritual root attributes being exposed.

Inside the pavilion.

Liu Chuansheng held a stick shaped like a fluorescent panel and tested everyone's attributes.

"Su Mo, wind, fire, metal."

"Lin Xian'er, water, fire, wood."

"Ye Shanhua, water, fire, wood."

"Han Zong, earth, wood, darkness."

"Jiang Xiaochuan, fire, earth, metal."

"Qian Yuanbao, water, fire, wood."

"Zhang Feixian, water, fire, wood."

"Li Linhao, water, metal, lightning."

As everyone was tested in turn, Xu Changshou could not help frowning.

As far as he remembered, only Zhang Feixian had water, fire, and wood roots. How had four people suddenly tested as having them, including Ye Shanhua?

Could there be something fishy about spiritual root registration too?

Xu Changshou rubbed his chin. He kept feeling that Liu Chuansheng was unreliable and might have been bought off.

Otherwise, how had so many people suddenly turned out to have water, fire, and wood roots?

After all, water, fire, and wood were the best combination for pill refinement.

Soon, it was Xu Changshou's turn. Liu Chuansheng swept his broad sleeve. "No need to test. I remember you. Your name is Xu Changshou, the only person this year with mixed five-element spiritual roots."

With that, Liu Chuansheng left. After his departure, the atmosphere became rather subtle. Everyone exchanged smiles without saying a word, then returned to their rooms.

Only Xu Changshou and Jiang Xiaochuan remained in the pavilion.

"Junior Brother Jiang, something's wrong. How did so many people suddenly turn out to have water, fire, and wood roots?" Xu Changshou asked in a low voice.

Jiang Xiaochuan gave a mysterious smile. "Senior Brother Xu, you might not know this, but some people gave Senior Brother Liu gifts."

"I knew it!"

Xu Changshou nodded to himself. Damn it, it really was all about connections.

Liu Chuansheng was dishonest, just as he had thought. Back then, he had personally seen Zhang Zhengyuan bribe Liu Chuansheng with three Fragmented Spirit Stones to change the assignment time.

"Junior Brother Jiang, can giving Senior Brother Liu gifts get you into Cinnabar Clouds Peak?"

Jiang Xiaochuan shook his head. "Giving Senior Brother Liu gifts won't help. It only buys you some peace of mind. So what if everyone tests as having water, fire, and wood roots? After all, the Cinnabar Clouds Sect only has a limited number of places. They'll recruit people with genuine water, fire, and wood roots whenever possible. Only if there aren't enough genuine candidates will they choose from the fake ones."

"You mean Senior Brother Liu plays both sides, accepting gifts without getting anything done?" Xu Changshou asked in confusion.

"Heh!"

Jiang Xiaochuan smiled. "Senior Brother Liu does keep two lists of candidates. But you can't blame him for that. He doesn't have the final say. It's just a case of one willing to strike and the other willing to take the blow."

Xu Changshou asked, "If there aren't enough people with genuine water, fire, and wood roots, who will they choose from the fake ones?"

Jiang Xiaochuan raised his eyes. "That depends on who gives the biggest gifts and who has the strongest backing."

"So that's how it works!"

Xu Changshou inwardly marveled. This had truly opened his eyes!

Even a mere Servant Disciple position on Cinnabar Clouds Peak had so many hidden ins and outs.

Wouldn't the competition for Foundation Establishment Pill allocations be even fiercer?

"Junior Brother Jiang, tell me honestly. Have you given any gifts?"

"Uh..."

Jiang Xiaochuan smiled wryly. "This concerns my whole future. Of course I had to do something.

"Senior Brother Xu, don't say I didn't warn you. The placements will be finalized in another half month. During that time, give gifts if you can and pull strings if you have connections. Whatever happens, you absolutely must not end up on Green Ink Peak."

"All right, all right! I'll do my best to give some gifts."

Xu Changshou brushed him off with that and went back to continue cultivating.

Two days later.

A senior disciple of the sect was giving lessons in the Cultivation Transmission Hall, mainly on cultivation in the qi refining realm.

Xu Changshou had always cultivated alone, and there were indeed some questions he needed to ask someone. Since lessons were available, they would save him the trouble of finding someone to ask.

Xu Changshou went on the first day.

As it turned out, very few people attended. Of those in Gengzi Courtyard, no one came except him.

Clearly, Jiang Xiaochuan and the others were all disciples from lineages, and someone had already taught them about cultivation.

They had no need to attend lessons.

"Junior brothers and sisters, I'll be teaching you for the next three days, mainly sharing some of my own cultivation insights from the qi refining period. If anything I say is incorrect, we can discuss it together."

A familiar voice rang out. Xu Changshou looked up and saw a graceful figure on the teaching platform. It was Liu Ru Is.

Senior Sister Liu was... teaching the lessons?

Xu Changshou was secretly delighted.

Ever since seeing Liu Ru Is last time, her figure had often appeared in his mind. He had even dreamed about her once.

Xu Changshou was twelve or thirteen, an age of hazy, budding feelings. Naturally, he felt some affection toward outstanding women around him.

As for Ye Shanhua and Lin Xian'er, they were little girls barely into their teens and had yet to mature. Xu Changshou found them unattractive.

An adult woman like Liu Ru Is, on the other hand, was more appealing to someone his age.

Of course, this vague affection was not romantic love.

"Normally, as long as you have a suitable cultivation technique, you only need to cultivate according to its prescribed energy circulation route. There isn't much to explain there.

"Today, I'll discuss some important bottlenecks in cultivation during the qi refining period.

"Breaking through from the qi refining third layer to the fourth, from the qi refining sixth layer to the seventh, and from the ninth layer to the tenth.

"These are the three major bottlenecks of the qi refining period.

"No matter who you are, when you encounter a bottleneck, your cultivation will stall for some time, to a greater or lesser extent.

"If you encounter such a situation, junior brothers and sisters, let me share my personal experience with you.

"I have three ways of breaking through bottlenecks. The first is to stop cultivating for a while and go out to see more of the world. Balancing work and rest like this can help you break through.

"The second is a Barrier-Breaking Pill. Taking a Barrier-Breaking Pill is also the best way to overcome a bottleneck.

"There's also a third method. If you can't buy a Barrier-Breaking Pill and can't find your own way past the bottleneck, then your only option is to take large quantities of Qi Gathering Pills. Brute force can work miracles. If you take enough Qi Gathering Pills, they can help force your acupoints open too..."

For three days in a row, Xu Changshou attended the lessons every day.

Ye Shanhua and the others did not attend. They went out early every morning and did not return until late at night.

They seemed to be running around trying to secure their assignments.

Their placements would be finalized in another half month. Naturally, they would not sit idle during that time, nor were they in any mood to cultivate.

Xu Changshou had long since made his peace with things and was unaffected.

He cultivated when it was time to cultivate and attended lessons when it was time for lessons.

After listening to Liu Ru Is's lessons, he gained some insights.

He still had four Qi Gathering Pills. He would use them to aid his early cultivation until they were all gone.

Then he would cultivate without pills until he reached the peak of the qi refining sixth layer. At that point, he would spend his remaining fifty Fragmented Spirit Stones on Qi Gathering Pills.

He could not afford a Barrier-Breaking Pill, so he planned to use Qi Gathering Pills to push through to the seventh level of qi refining.

Once he broke through to the seventh level of qi refining, he would be able to open the Bloodline Jade Talisman. He could decide what to do next then.

That night.

Xu Changshou focused his mind and calmed his breathing, preparing to take his second Qi Gathering Pill.

This time, he had made plenty of preparations. He had obtained some dogtooth rice from the Spirit Dining Hall so he would have something to eat when he got hungry.

Whatever happened, he could not go hungry like last time.