Cultivation: I Have Studied Abroad in the Modern World
Chapter 88 Welfare

Chapter 88: Chapter 88 Welfare

Zheng Fa felt he had entered an unhappy arranged marriage.

He and this plump senior brother seemed to share a sense of mutual speechlessness.

"What should I call senior brother?" It was Zheng Fa who actively broke the silence.

"Han Qi." The plump senior brother also adjusted his facial expression, exhaled a breath, stood up, and said to Zheng Fa: "I’ll take junior brother to get your Life Plate."

Zheng Fa followed him and walked outside.

After the exhausting journey yesterday, he only caught a fleeting glimpse of the Jiushan Sect, without the chance to observe it closely. Today, after taking a look around, he felt a bit puzzled:

He lived at the mouth of the valley, which was also the most bustling area of the Jiushan Sect. The flow of people had been incessant starting from the docks.

It seemed like the residential area was to the west of the valley mouth; Zheng Fa resided here, in a small courtyard upon entry, which was considered quite upscale in this locality.

Half of the buildings in this residential area were the kind where you could see from the front door to the back in one glance.

The spacing between houses was minimal, and the architectural styles varied widely, making the entire residential area appear crowded and disordered.

Probably, to the east of the valley mouth was the workshop area; six rows of similar-looking small houses were neatly arranged.

Voices of hawkers, conversations, and the sounds of price haggling from the workshop area drifted over.

Zheng Fa felt somewhat familiar looking at it—the sense of familiarity was that this place didn’t quite resemble the Immortal Sect, instead bearing too much of the aura of the mundane world.

What puzzled him was why all these buildings were piled up at the mouth of the valley—looking into the valley from the mouth, the buildings’ density inside was much lower, even appearing sparsely populated in comparison.

Seemingly perceiving his confusion, Han Qi chuckled and said: "Junior brother probably doesn’t know, we Outer Disciples, along with those mundane followers, can only live at the mouth of the valley. Most of the houses can only be built by ourselves."

Zheng Fa understood—oh, it’s like a village within the city.

"Only the Inner Sect Disciples who have achieved Foundation Establishment can live inside the valley; look..." He pointed at the several dozen small courtyards closest to the valley mouth, "Those are the residences of the Inner Sect Disciples."

... Upscale community.

"As for those at the Golden Core Stage who are True Disciples or elders, like Sister Zhang, they can live at the base of the mountain."

... Villa district.

"And only the Nascent Soul true immortals are allowed to live on the mountain."

... Mountain-top garden.

"But what’s the meaning behind such division?" Zheng Fa still didn’t quite understand; after all, besides the status, he couldn’t see much difference.

"Spirit Vein." Han Qi spoke with a somewhat cold tone: "The larger the formation of our Jiushan Sect is, the closer to the center, the richer the spiritual energy. We lower-level disciples don’t even have the right to inhale more Spiritual Energy."

"..." Zheng Fa truly understood why Sister Zhang had mentioned that the lower-level disciples harbored heavy resentment.

...

Perhaps realizing that his last two sentences betrayed a bit too much discontent, Han Qi didn’t say more and simply led Zheng Fa deeper into the valley: "Today we first need to go to the Affairs Hall to get your Life Plate, and then head to the Scripture Pavilion to select a Cultivation Technique for you."

"Yes."

Zheng Fa was somewhat grateful in his heart, mainly towards Sister Zhang—having a senior brother to guide him was indeed quite convenient.

They passed through the valley mouth and Zheng Fa noticed something different.

Behind the valley mouth stood more than ten small buildings; some had signs hanging above, clearly shops.

Compared to the small houses in the workshop area, these buildings, in terms of both scale and location, seemed far superior.

"Senior brother? What is this..."

"That one is the Ten Thousand Talisman Pavilion, it’s ours, Jiushan Sect’s, specializing in selling Spirit Talismans. That one over there is the Nine Reincarnation Pavilion, exclusive to Qingmu Sect for selling elixirs, and that one is the Hundred Treasures Tower, of the Chongyue Sect, specifically for Magic Artifacts..."

Through Han Qi’s introduction, Zheng Fa began to understand—those in the workshop area were probably all individual proprietors, while these ten or so buildings were renowned chain stores of the Hundred Immortals Alliance. Each store essentially represented a Sect, and the items inside were all high-end luxury goods.

What puzzled Zheng Fa was—this area was quite deserted.

"Han Senior Brother, if the items here are good, why is there so little business?"

Han Qi glanced at him and smiled: "You know about the decline in Spiritual Energy, right?"

"I know."

"Throughout the past ten thousand years, the prices of Spirit Ink, spirit grain, Spiritual Artifacts, Spirit Talismans... Anything with Spiritual Energy has been getting more and more expensive."

"Everyone can’t afford them?" Zheng Fa understood.

"However, there’s one thing that’s gotten cheaper..."

Han Qi pointed with a peculiar expression toward a shop at the very corner of the square, where business was the best among the ten or so shops around, with people constantly coming and going.

"People."

"Huh?"

"That’s the Xunfang Pavilion, opened by the Su Nu Sect... I heard recently that the fairies in there have significantly improved both in looks and variety."

"..."

"Not to mention anything else, but I heard that ten thousand years ago, introducing a new Disciple would earn you Spirit Stones... and now, the Affairs Hall only pays out Gold."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Fa gained a deeper understanding of the current state of the Immortal Sect—prices were up, wages down. To sum it up in two words: doomed.

...

The Affairs Hall was located at the foot of a mountain near the mouth of the valley.

It was a main hall flanked by two side halls.

"The Junior Master Fang who manages the Life Plates has a proud temperament and some background. He generally doesn’t care about people—my little Brother, don’t act rashly, just follow my lead."

Zheng Fa understood that this was well-intended advice and nodded slightly.

Han Qi, leading Zheng Fa, entered the right side hall, where a middle-aged man with three long whiskers sat cross-legged on a cushion, eyes closed in meditation, clearly slacking off.

Han Qi, however, kept a very low profile—he didn’t call out to the man but stood silently in the hall with Zheng Fa, waiting.

Nearly half an hour later, the middle-aged man slowly opened his eyes and, upon seeing the two, did not seem overly surprised. He asked coolly, "A new Disciple?"

"Yes, would you kindly register a Life Plate for this Brother Disciple."

"What’s the name?" The middle-aged man glanced at Zheng Fa nonchalantly.

"Zheng Fa."

"...Zheng Fa?" The middle-aged man jerked, jumping to his feet from the cushion, "The Zheng Fa that Nephew Zhang brought back?"

"...Yes."

"Hey, isn’t this neglecting you!" The middle-aged man patted Zheng Fa on the shoulder, looking very enthusiastic; "Nephew Zhang already told me about you, I’ve been waiting... Why didn’t you call me earlier?"

Zheng Fa slowly turned his head and looked towards Han Qi.

The middle-aged man followed his gaze to Han Qi.

Han Qi opened his mouth and finally squeezed out a sentence from his throat: "...My fault!"

...

"Nephew Zheng, everything has been arranged by Nephew Zhang, you’re an Outer Disciple as you’ve just entered the Sect, and you’ll get one Spirit Stone every month for the first ten years—this cannot be changed."

"Ten years?"

"After ten years, if you can’t achieve Foundation Establishment to become an Inner Sect Disciple, then you’ll get no more Spirit Stones..." The middle-aged man paused, then said, "Considering Nephew Zhang’s high regard for you, that shouldn’t be the case."

Han Qi’s complexion darkened beside him.

"However, Nephew Zhang said your talent in talismanic magic is unparalleled in ten thousand years, so he asked me to allocate to you an additional hundred talisman papers and two portions of Spirit Ink every month—also limited in time, you’ll get nothing after six months."

Me, unparalleled in ten thousand years!

Here to collect a scholarship!

Is that all?

Zheng Fa glanced at Han Qi beside him, who had three words written all over his face: So much money!

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