NOVEL NEXT Chapter 23: Chapter 23: The Scripture Pavilion
The morning sunlight filtered through the window, casting a warm glow in Zhang Hao's simple room. "Knock knock!" A crisp knock interrupted his cultivation.
Zhang Hao opened the door to find Zhao Ming standing outside, his green robe fluttering in the breeze, looking particularly spirited. Zhang Hao thought to himself that this must be the exclusive attire for inner sect disciples.
"Good morning, Senior Zhao Ming," Zhang Hao greeted politely.
"Zhang Hao, I'm free today and thought I'd show you around Qingchuan Sect to familiarize you with the place," Zhao Ming smiled, his tone gentle.
"Thank you, Senior," Zhang Hao followed behind Zhao Ming as they left the room and stepped onto the bluestone path.
Heading north towards the peak, they passed many busy disciples along the way, each hurrying with their own tasks, either cultivating or discussing cultivation insights.
Soon, they arrived at an antique pavilion, where Zhao Ming stopped and pointed to the plaque above the door, "This is the Scripture Pavilion, which houses various cultivation scriptures accumulated by our sect through the generations."
Zhang Hao looked at the pavilion with curiosity, a hint of anticipation in his eyes.
"The first and second floors are open to all disciples, where you can find many introductory cultivation techniques and insights," Zhao Ming continued, "The third floor and above are accessible only to inner sect disciples, where we keep the Huang-level-upper-grade scriptures."
"What are Huang-level scriptures?" Zhang Hao asked, puzzled.
Zhao Ming smiled slightly and began to explain, "From the moment we start cultivating, we need a set of introductory breathing techniques and incantations for practice, which have been passed down through the ages. Through these specific breathing techniques and incantations, we can begin to cleanse our bodies and gradually improve our physical condition to a state suitable for cultivation. This is the most important foundation of cultivation."
Zhang Hao interrupted Zhao Ming's explanation, a bit flustered, "Perhaps because I've always cultivated directly under the guidance of my family's master, I haven't heard of these."
He thought of the little boy, "The one who guided my cultivation was the little boy, but he never told me about these, and I've been following everything he taught me step by step. Who is he really? What kind of breathing techniques and incantations did he teach me?" Every time Zhang Hao thought of the little boy, he felt confused.
"So that's the case, no wonder you didn't know," Zhao Ming said harmoniously.
"By the way, I haven't finished. When we reach the fourth layer of the Body Refinement stage, we can use our techniques to sense the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and utilize it. The 'Qingchuan Sect Basic Qi Cultivation Technique' I mentioned yesterday is a Qi cultivation technique. In addition to Qi cultivation techniques, there are combat techniques, which, as the name implies, record combat moves such as swordsmanship, knife techniques, and boxing. You can also start choosing some to practice. The Huang-level upper-grade books I mentioned earlier are a standard for classifying these techniques. They are divided into Tian, Di, Xuan , and Huang, each with upper, middle, and lower grades. Huang-level upper-grade is already quite rare. Xuan-level lower-grade is even rarer and can only be consulted by the sect leader and elders. As for Di and Tian levels, they are one in a million, and even Qingchuan Sect doesn't have any," Zhao Ming explained in one breath about the classification of techniques.
Zhang Hao listened intently, "I see. So, what level of books are in the first and second floors that we disciples can access?"
"Most of the books there should be of the lower grade of Huang level. If you're lucky, you might find some Xuan-level middle-grade,"
Zhao Ming patted Zhang Hao on the shoulder, encouraging him, "As long as you work hard, you will also have the opportunity to access higher-level scriptures in the future."
After leaving the Scripture Pavilion, Zhang Hao's heart was filled with a thirst for knowledge. He decided that he must come here for in-depth study in the future.
A while later, they arrived at a large open space, with some areas around for disciples to cultivate. The most striking feature was a competition arena in the center, surrounded by seats. "It's just like a modern football field," Zhang Hao couldn't help but think.
On the cultivation field, Zhang Hao and Zhao Ming encountered several outer sect disciples discussing something. Zhang Hao approached and heard them talking about something called the "Dragon and Tiger List."
"There's been a new change on the Dragon and Tiger List," an burly disciple said excitedly.
Curious, Zhang Hao asked, "What is the Dragon and Tiger List?"
The disciples turned around, and when they saw Zhao Ming, they showed a bit of awe.
"Greetings to Senior Zhao Ming," the disciples respectfully greeted.
"The Dragon and Tiger List is our outer sect disciple ranking list," an older disciple explained, "Every month, the top six on the list can challenge an inner sect disciple. If they win, they can be promoted to the inner sect. The losing one have to go to outer sect."
A glimmer of light appeared in Zhang Hao's eyes; this might be an opportunity for him to enter the inner sect.
"What about the strength of the outer sect disciples? How do they compare to the inner sect disciples?" Zhang Hao continued to ask.
The older disciple smiled, "There are also many strong individuals in the outer sect. They stay in the outer sect, just waiting for the right opportunity."
Zhang Hao nodded, making up his mind to work hard and strive to get on the list as soon as possible to challenge the inner sect disciples.