Chapter 118 - 107: New Roommate

Chapter 118: Chapter 107: New Roommate

Zhao Zuo pushed open the courtyard gate. There were three houses within. Two were already occupied; only the house on the right had an iron lock on its door, indicating the courtyard was meant for three residents.

The courtyard was a few hundred square meters in size. To the left was a bamboo grove of about forty square meters. The tallest stalks reached about thirty-four meters high, while the shortest were just three or four meters. The soil beneath the grove was slightly raised, and here and there, bamboo shoots were just starting to break the surface.

On the opposite side of the yard was a small pond about ten meters in diameter, where a few golden koi swam. Beside the pond stood a stone table and chairs, along with an open space containing a heavy stone roller and iron rods as thick as a fist, clearly for physical training.

Zhao Zuo had only taken a couple of steps when the door of the leftmost house was pulled open from within. Out walked a graceful, middle-aged woman. She looked to be around thirty, with a classic oval face, a distinct beauty mark near the corner of one eye, and expressive eyes that seemed to tell a story. This was a very charming woman.

Cultivators tempered their bodies with the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power, so most of them were handsome men and beautiful women.

"Fellow Daoist, you must be the new neighbor?" Zhao Qingmeng asked in a soft voice, her eyes narrowing slightly. As she drew closer, Zhao Zuo could smell a fresh, unique medicinal fragrance wafting from her.

"That’s right. I just passed the assessment not long ago. I’m an Outer Sect disciple of the Earth Fire Hall," Zhao Zuo replied politely. After all, they were going to be neighbors for a long time.

"I didn’t expect us to share a surname," Zhao Qingmeng said with a smile.

The two chatted briefly. Zhao Qingmeng was an Outer Sect disciple of the Core Heart Hall and was currently studying under a Tier-One Alchemist, learning how to pair and extract medicinal ingredients, as well as the method of Refining Medicial Liquid into Pills.

"At the beginning and end of each month, a Steward will give a lecture at the Outer Sect’s central platform. They cover techniques for Alchemy and Artifact Refining, as well as tips for Cultivation and combat. It’s one of the perks of joining the Moyun Sect," Zhao Qingmeng continued.

"Alright, let’s go listen together at the start of next month," Zhao Zuo replied, making a mental note.

"Oh, by the way, if you ever need to buy Pill Medicine, you can come to me." Zhao Qingmeng had been an alchemy apprentice for several years. While she still struggled to refine Tier-One Pill Medicine on her own, she did have some connections.

"If I’m ever in need, I’ll be sure to find you," Zhao Zuo answered.

Their conversation eventually turned to their other neighbor.

His name was Lin Hao, an Outer Sect disciple from Shenxiao Hall. He was in the Late Period of the Qi Cultivation Realm and excelled at Swordsmanship, making his combat abilities quite outstanding. He had once slain an Evil Cultivator of the same Realm and held considerable prestige among the Outer Sect disciples. He was unofficially considered the leading disciple of Shenxiao Hall’s current generation of outer disciples.

The two chatted for another half an hour before Zhao Zuo finally excused himself and returned to his room. He activated two Cleaning Talismans... which swept the dust from the room, and he opened the windows to vent the stale air.

The house’s interior was almost identical to his old residence in the Moyun Workshop, though it was about ten square meters smaller. Furthermore, it lacked a second floor and an Earth Fire Chamber, having only a Cultivation Quiet Chamber, a kitchen, and a storage room.

It was enough to meet his basic needs, though it could hardly be called comfortable. After laying out his bedding, Zhao Zuo went to the Cultivation Quiet Chamber to meditate and noticed a layer of old Concentration Incense ash piled in the burner.

Zhao Zuo took the Communication Jade out of his Storage Bag and infused it with Mana.

"I passed the assessment. I’m an Outer Sect disciple of the Moyun Sect now."

About thirty seconds later, the Communication Jade vibrated faintly, and Shen Yunjiao’s voice came through.

"Congratulations. I’m hunting Demon Beasts in the Yunlan Mountain Range. I’m surprised we can connect from this far."

Her voice held a trace of surprise.

"The Communication Jade I bought is a rather High Level one," Zhao Zuo explained.

"Over the next few days, I’ll be heading deeper into the Yunlan Mountain Range, so I might not be reachable."

"Alright."

Zhao Zuo exchanged a few more words with Shen Yunjiao before ending the call. He then took another Communication Jade from his Storage Bag—the one for Chen Xiaorong. He toyed with it in his hand, his mind involuntarily drifting to what Liu Heng had said on their journey.

In the end, he put it back into his Storage Bag. He wanted to advise Chen Xiaorong to stop making enemies, but he didn’t know how he should go about persuading her.

After a moment of thought, Zhao Zuo opened the book of sect rules.

They could be roughly summarized as: loyalty and integrity, obedience to sect regulations, prudence in word and deed, and a prohibition on private conflicts.

Loyalty meant that Sect Disciples must be loyal to the sect, and any act of betrayal would be met with dire consequences. While private fights between disciples were forbidden, there were two sanctioned methods for resolving conflicts: wagered duels and deathmatches, both of which required the consent of the two parties involved.

Next were the benefits for Outer Sect disciples: upon completing tasks, they could receive a bonus of fifty Contribution Points each month. But you had to complete tasks worth fifty Contribution Points... to be eligible for this bonus.

The tasks were incredibly varied, including tending to Spirit Beasts and Spirit Grass, serving as an Alchemy or Artifact Refining Apprentice, hunting Demon Beasts for their materials... and so on. Even Zhao Zuo himself could post a task for another disciple to carry out.

Outer Sect disciples of the Earth Fire Hall typically took on the task of forging Spirit Iron. Each piece was worth half a Contribution Point. To earn the monthly stipend, a disciple had to forge one hundred pieces of Spirit Iron per month.

At the same time, Contribution Points were effectively the currency of the Moyun Sect, exchangeable for Pill Medicine, Cultivation Techniques, Magical Artifacts, Spiritual Objects, Secret Techniques... and many other things useful only to Cultivators.

One could even pay for private instruction from Stewards and Elders. In short, daily life for most people in the Moyun Sect consisted of hoarding Contribution Points and then spending them to study subjects that interested them.

Furthermore, entry to the Scripture Pavilion also required Contribution Points. It housed tens of thousands of books on subjects ranging from Artifact Refining materials and Alchemy ingredients to the autobiographies of powerful experts and chronicles of local cultures. This was the place that interested Zhao Zuo the most.