The contest for the top ten, undercurrents stirring - two chapters in one

"Yes. The top ten receive fifty Dao Merit a month for a year, paid monthly."

Ji Bochang spoke with absolute certainty.

Zhang Jing's expression grew serious.

A reward of fifty Dao Merit a month.

At first, it did not sound like much-provided Zhang Jing had never asked Senior Brother Liu about exchanging Dao Merit for a Middle-Grade Inheritance.

The crucial point was that he had.

Naturally, Zhang Jing understood how valuable this reward was.

Fifty a month meant six hundred Dao Merit a year.

That was almost enough for a small half of a Middle-Grade Inheritance.

According to Senior Brother Liu, that amounted to twenty or thirty years of savings for an ordinary Outer Court disciple.

And how many thirty-year stretches did an Outer Court disciple have?

"Calculated that way, it actually means that once the top ten enter the Outer Court, the Dao Academy covers all their early cultivation resources. They only need to focus on cultivating, without worrying about Dao Merit."

Whew-

Zhang Jing could not help exhaling a breath of stale air.

He could imagine how wild those "Grade B geniuses" would go upon hearing the news. Especially with first and second place practically reserved in advance by the two "First-Grade Prodigies," leaving so few spots.

At that moment, Zhang Jing suddenly recalled Senior Brother Liu's advice: strive to formally achieve Qi Induction and enter the Qi Refining Realm before the thirty-day assessment period ended.

A trace of fervor flashed in his eyes.

For someone yearning to obtain the [Sea-Covering Flood Dragon Void-Seizing True Method], those six hundred Dao Merit were important too!

Naturally, he had to contend for them.

"Brother Ji," Zhang Jing said, his eyes flickering, "did that dear senior sister of yours tell you what determines the rankings?"

At those words,

Ji Bochang's face immediately fell, and he muttered,

"I don't know which idiot up in the Dao Academy-"

The moment the words escaped, Ji Bochang realized his mistake. He hurriedly clapped a hand over his mouth before saying sheepishly,

"I don't know which benevolent, kind, and wise Immortal Elder in the Dao Academy designed the rules, but the method for determining the assessment rankings changes every time. Senior Sister personally told me they've previously held spiritual chess tournaments, strength contests, cultivation rankings, Spiritual Sense rankings, and so on. There's no single standard."

"And for the cohort before ours, three years ago, the final rankings were determined through magical combat."

Beside him, Zhang Jing listened, dumbstruck.

"Magical combat? Strength contests? Cultivation?" he asked incredulously. "Doesn't that disadvantage people who only reach the introductory stage of their Visualization Method and pass the assessment toward the end?"

"Disadvantage?"

Ji Bochang shook his head at that. "Brother Zhang, you certainly have a way with words. How is that merely a disadvantage? They simply... have no part in it."

By then, Zhang Jing was gradually coming to understand.

Clearly, whatever method determined the assessment rankings, the participants' cultivation would play a decisive role.

Furthermore, only the top thirty received rewards.

That being the case, it really had little to do with those assessed as Grade D. Those assessed as Third Grade might still have a little hope.

It truly was the Dao Academy's usual style.

There was no so-called "fairness." How many resources one could obtain depended entirely on talent and fortune, cultivation and ability.

At that thought,

Zhang Jing looked at the illusory Jade Talisman before him.

[Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary · Uninitiated (0/50)]

[Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method · Level 1 (19/100)]

Skill trait: Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light (Low level)

[Low-Tier Dharma Seed: Mind's Eye (Cannot be upgraded)]

[Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm · Fragment (Cannot be upgraded)]

With Mind's Eye enhancing my comprehension and thinking, [Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm · Fragment] helping me sense and absorb spiritual qi, and [Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light] increasing my qi-refining speed and the purity of the spiritual power in my Dantian, the top ten... should be within reach, right?

Zhang Jing quietly thought to himself.

Before he knew it,

"Brother Zhang, here we are!" shouted Ji Bochang from ahead.

Zhang Jing instinctively looked up.

Two small courtyards stood about a hundred and fifty paces apart, one behind the other, beside a small pond ten zhang long and wide.

Each courtyard covered half a mu and seemed to have been cast from some kind of hard earth and stone, forming a seamless whole.

His gaze swept across the surrounding scenery, taking it all in.

It was evening.

At sunset, birds returned to the woods, their calls rising and falling; ripples leaped with gold, and flowing water murmured.

"Rich spiritual qi and peaceful surroundings. What a fine place!" Zhang Jing's eyes lit up. He drew a deep breath and could not help praising it.

"Of course. My eye for these things is hardly lacking."

A touch of satisfaction appeared on Ji Bochang's face. He then pointed at the courtyard in the back. "That's the one. Go on over, Brother Zhang."

"Many thanks, Brother Ji."

Zhang Jing shouldered his luggage, walked straight to the unoccupied courtyard, and pushed open the door.

Creak-

The door slowly opened a crack.

A head suddenly poked in from outside and looked at Zhang Jing, who was tidying the house. A timid question followed.

"Brother Zhang, may I come in?"

"Uh..." Zhang Jing froze for a moment, then pointed at Ji Bochang's head and said flatly, "Brother Ji, you're already inside..."

"Hehe, well, you didn't lock the door, Brother Zhang."

Ji Bochang first chuckled, then pointed one hand toward the sky and solemnly vowed, "I was presumptuous this time. I swear on my Dao heart that there absolutely won't be a next time."

You've only just stepped onto the path of cultivation. What blasted Dao heart do you have!

Been reading too many tales of immortals and demons, have you?

Zhang Jing's eye twitched at his words. He could not stop inwardly grumbling, while reminding himself, I must lock the door from now on!

He turned his head.

Only to meet Ji Bochang's yearning gaze.

Zhang Jing instinctively stepped back, swallowed, and asked nervously, "Brother Ji, is there something you need?"

"Well, um..."

Ji Bochang hemmed and hawed, looking rather bashful.

At the sight, Zhang Jing's heart shook violently, and a trace of horror slowly crept onto his face.

But just then,

"Brother Zhang, didn't you promise earlier to give me some pointers on painting fans? No time like the present. I'm terribly impatient."

Ji Bochang finally got the whole sentence out, putting Zhang Jing at ease.

For a moment, he had almost thought...

"Oh, that. A trivial matter."

Afterward, Ji Bochang's exclamations of admiration rang out from Zhang Jing's room from time to time, along with exceedingly bizarre, wicked laughter that made one's skin crawl.

Some time later,

As Zhang Jing saw Ji Bochang out, he asked curiously,

"Brother Ji, this stuff hardly belongs in polite company. Why are you so impatient about it? Isn't cultivation the pressing matter right now?"

"Brother Zhang, you don't understand the joys of senior sisters," Ji Bochang said meaningfully. "Besides, this is my cultivation."

"Wait!"

Zhang Jing's expression suddenly turned somewhat strange. "Brother Ji, which Middle Grade method did you choose?"

"The [Fish-Dragon Union of Bliss Record]."

"That dual cultivation method?!"

Zhang Jing had some impression of that method.

He stared at Ji Bochang incredulously, as though saying, Wait, you're actually serious about this?

Ji Bochang merely chuckled, snapping open his erotic illustrated fan with a flamboyant flourish. He said smugly, "It's all a matter of compatibility. I didn't really want this either."

Watching Ji Bochang's carefree departing figure and his slightly unsteady steps, Zhang Jing could not calm down for a long time.

Why did he inexplicably feel a little envious?

The next moment,

"Brother Ji, you're going the wrong way!" Zhang Jing called, watching Ji Bochang walk farther and farther away.

He had barely finished speaking when Ji Bochang waved a hand.

"Haha, Brother Zhang, I'm going to Senior Sister's cave abode to cultivate tonight. The spiritual qi there is frighteningly rich. Cultivating there is extremely effective."

"Also, I feel like I'll break through to the Qi Refining Realm in another two days. You'd better work hard, Brother Zhang. Don't let me leave you too far behind~"

Before the courtyard gate,

"It's just as well he's gone. I like quiet when I cultivate..."

Zhang Jing took several deep breaths before he barely managed to settle his seething thoughts.

Night lay deep.

In the cultivation room, candlelight flickered.

Indeed, Zhang Jing had now traded his bird gun for a cannon.

His courtyard looked large, and in truth, it was not small at all. A reception room, bedroom, study, cultivation room-it lacked nothing.

The Dao Academy had even thoughtfully placed a fine meditation cushion woven from spirit-awakening grass in the cultivation room.

As for how Zhang Jing knew all this so clearly, naturally, it was because he had seen the small writing beside the cushion:

Spirit-Concentrating Meditation Cushion: woven entirely from spirit-awakening grass. Calms the mind and concentrates the spirit, slightly improving cultivation efficiency. Worth fifteen Dao Merit. Three-day trial. Buyers must repay the Heavenly Craft Pavilion one Dao Merit every three months.

One could certainly say the Heavenly Craft Pavilion had put some "thought" into it.

Perhaps because of the shock of the price of a Middle-Grade Inheritance and the rewards for the assessment's top ten, Zhang Jing actually found the cushion quite cheap now.

On the cushion,

Zhang Jing closed his eyes and focused, slowing his breathing.

An illusory Mind's Eye abruptly appeared, emitting a ray of divine light. Then, under Zhang Jing's control, it gradually closed until it reached a state between open and shut.

He carefully gauged the rate at which it consumed spiritual sense and its enhancement of his thinking and comprehension.

Mm, roughly a fifteen-percent enhancement. This degree of opening is just right. My spiritual sense can sustain the consumption for quite some time.

Zhang Jing thought with satisfaction.

Then,

He recalled the contents of the [Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary] and quietly began contemplating them.

Within his consciousness,

The faint image of a surging river appeared, radiating a trace of endless, boundless intent while also giving him a sense of extreme violence and turbulence.

Vast and boundless!

At that moment, Zhang Jing gained a new understanding of the [Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary].

Time slowly passed.

His thinking grew somewhat sluggish.

His gaze unconsciously shifted to the Jade Talisman.

[Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary · Uninitiated (15/70)]

"That's about enough. Going too far is as bad as falling short." Satisfaction flashed in Zhang Jing's eyes. "Next, the [Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method]. I can't neglect my cultivation."

Zhang Jing immersed his mind directly in the [Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method].

At the same time, wisps of spiritual qi gathered around Zhang Jing as though drawn by some force. They entered his body with his breathing and slowly began circulating along a prescribed route.

Gradually,

More and more spiritual qi accumulated within him, circulating faster and faster.

And during this process,

An inexplicable change occurred in Zhang Jing. His skin, meridians, internal organs, and every other part of him, even his hair, began strengthening and transforming.

I'm very close to achieving Qi Induction and entering the Qi Refining Realm.

A trace of understanding arose in Zhang Jing's heart.

Suddenly, he seemed to think of something. In the deepest recesses of his mind, the dormant Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm gradually began to awaken.

Roar-

The instant a Flood Dragon's roar sounded in his ears, a terrifying hint of wild, ravenous intent permeated Zhang Jing's spiritual sense. A strange perception, like that of a black Flood Dragon, spread outward.

The gathering of spiritual qi abruptly accelerated.

With the support of the Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm,

Every moment, every instant, vast quantities of spiritual qi were drawn over and immediately absorbed into Zhang Jing's body, more than fifty percent faster than before.

Within his Dantian,

Pure white Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light shone like a sun, illuminating his internal organs.

Zhang Jing could clearly sense that his body would complete its transformation in five days at most!

By then,

The [Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary] would also just about reach the introductory stage and manifest its skill trait, perfectly carrying him into cultivation in the Qi Refining Realm.

By this day,

Zhang Jing's understanding of cultivation had grown increasingly profound.

"Beginning the Visualization Method transforms Spiritual Sense and the mind, while Qi Induction transforms the body. In other words, the body must be strong enough to withstand the process of vast quantities of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy being converted into pure spiritual power within it. This process also makes the body more receptive to spiritual qi."

"From mind to body, just like the legendary... reversing the acquired to return to the innate?" Zhang Jing murmured to himself.

At this moment, he even felt he could kill an ox with a single punch-not some boastful figure of speech, but a ferocious beast taller than a man.

Zhang Jing suddenly recalled a story he had read in a storybook, in which a villain took advantage of an Immortal Elder's slumber to kill him with a single slash and successfully obtain an Immortal Method, setting off a storm of bloodshed in the martial world.

Now, he found it rather laughable.

He could deduce as much from the changes in his own body.

Even if a cultivator who had formally entered the Qi Refining Realm lay on the ground with his eyes closed and offered no resistance, an ordinary mortal probably could not even break his skin.

As for being killed with a single slash, that was simply a tale from the Arabian Nights.

Mortals and cultivators were entirely different levels of life!

At this thought.

Zhang Jing suddenly felt a surge of lingering fear.

Fortunately, when Instructor Wang-no, Senior Brother Wang-had patted his shoulder back then, he had restrained his strength. Otherwise, wouldn't Zhang Jing have died right there on the spot?

The next day.

The Inheritance Pavilion.

A lovely figure in a green palace dress slowly walked out through the doors. Faint excitement showed on her pretty face, its skin so delicate a breath or touch might break it. A rosy flush spread from her slender neck all the way to her translucent earlobes, tracing a breathtaking loveliness.

"A Middle Grade method, with a compatibility of three feet and three inches."

"I will definitely be the first female cultivator of the Chu Clan to enter the legendary inner sect of the Dao Academy!" Chu Lingyun's eyes burned. "It's just a pity I was born nine years too late. Otherwise, I might have been the Chu Clan's first cultivator to enter the Inner Academy."

Just then.

A man in blue robes riding a Spirit Sparrow swiftly landed before Chu Lingyun. A flicker of admiration passed through his eyes as he looked at her, and he asked tentatively, "Junior Sister, are you Chu Lingyun?"

"I am Chu Lingyun. Greetings, Senior Brother," Chu Lingyun answered reservedly.

"You're too polite, Junior Sister. I only came at your older clansman's request."

With that.

The man took a Jade Key, a small vial, and a bronze bracelet from his Storage Bag and handed them to Chu Lingyun:

"Junior Sister Chu, your older clansman is currently away on a mission, so he asked me to give you these things, along with this message: placing in the top ten of the assessment is very important. Devote yourself fully to cultivation and make your preparations."

"This little vial contains ten Purple Spirit Pills. Their medicinal properties are pure, and they can help you improve your cultivation. The Jade Key is the key to a cave abode your older clansman has here. The spiritual qi inside is abundant, making it suitable for cultivation. Extend your Spiritual Sense into the Jade Key, Junior Sister, and you'll learn its location. As for the bracelet, it is a Low-Grade Protective Dharma Artifact."

"Senior Brother, these... what about the Dao Academy?" Chu Lingyun pointed toward the sky and asked in puzzlement.

"Haha, don't worry, Junior Sister. The Dao Academy hasn't forbidden this sort of thing. Besides, as far as I know, quite a few mission teams in the Outer Court have already begun competing ahead of time for the geniuses in your cohort."

"Those two First Grade monsters, tsk, tsk. The very best teams are practically beating one another's heads bloody over them~"