Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“Jiang Li, I do not wish to become a monk. How about we go to the Hundred Tempering Mountain?”
“At the very least, the artifacts and spirit pills are much easier to obtain there than anywhere else. It will definitely be very helpful to our cultivation.”
The Hundred Tempering Mountain was indeed as he had said. Every year, there would be a lot of medium and low-level artifacts produced.
For someone like Yan Hong who loved doing business, it was indeed a very tempting thing to be able to get hold of first-hand goods.
However, when Jiang Li saw the two rows of names of the sect higher-ups, he frowned.
The Sect Leader, Situ Fengzhu, the Second Elder, Situ Tingxin, the Weaponry Refinement Elder, Situ Baige, and the Foreign Affairs Elder, Situ Etong…
First Elder Ma Liuqi, Third Elder Ma Lichou, Alchemy Elder Ma Minglou, and Medicine Elder Ma Changgu…
In the booklet, there were quite a number of high ranking elders of various positions in the Hundred Tempering Mountain. However, all of them had either of these two surnames.
One must know that the history of the Hundred Tempering Mountain had most definitely surpassed five hundred years. However, in all these years, not a single disciple with a different surname had ever managed to emerge in power.
If there was no strange rule that they had to change their names to become higher-ups, one could imagine just how difficult it would be for them to obtain promotion and benefits from this clan-style sect.
There was no way weak newbies like them could withstand the power of nepotism. Jiang Li really did not have the interest to go over and have his youth ruined by such a sect.
After Jiang Li’s explanation, Yan Hong broke out in a cold sweat as well. He did not want his entire life of hard work to benefit the relatives of the sect elders.
In that kind of sect, although it seemed like the treatment was good, once you get into a conflict with the disciples of those two families, justice was simply a joke.
“Looks like we don’t have many choices left.”
The two of them brought their lackeys around the venue and analyzed the pros and cons of the various sects in a low voice. Finally, they walked to the entrance of the Scripture Storage Valley.
Compared to the other three top sects, the advantage of the Scripture Storage Valley was not obvious. There were even many major flaws.
For example, they had been established for too short a period of time and their sect’s heritage was lacking.
For example, it was established by unaffiliated rogue cultivators, the distribution of higher-ups was too complex.
Although the problem of factions was not as deep-rooted as the Hundred Tempering Mountain, it still existed.
It was said that there were even demonic cultivators among the rogue cultivators who had joined. From time to time, there would be cases of disciples dying mysteriously.
When it came to the field of expertise, because they were all rogue cultivators in the past, most of the things they knew were not systematic. They knew a lot but were not experts in anything.
Therefore, whether it was refining weapons, refining pills, or drawing talismans, they all knew a little, but they were not very capable.
Compared to the other three sects of the same level, the Scripture Storage Valley was much more mediocre.
However, Jiang Li and Yan Hong still chose it in the end.
This was because, in terms of size, Scripture Storage Valley was indeed considered first-rate in the cultivation world of the Great Mountain Region. Moreover, it only took two hundred years to reach this level.
In the cultivation world, two hundred years might not be enough for the rise and fall of a generation. This meant that this sect had a very promising future. In the future, there was hope that under the hard work of their generation, they could completely surpass the other three sects.
For young people like them who had great potential, such a promising sect was still a place worth fighting for their entire lives.
Okay… fine.
This was not the main reason.
The real reason was that Benevolent Travel Temple mainly cultivated the Metal and Earth attributes, while Hundred Tempering Mountain mainly cultivated the Fire attribute.
The Shu Mountain Five Elements Peak had all five elements, but they did not want the two of them.
Jiang Li had a dual-attribute Yin and Wood spiritual root while Yan Hong had a water attribute spiritual root, so they actually had no other choice.
5
It was said that only the Scripture Storage Valley with countless cultivation methods in its storage could allow them to obtain the most suitable technique for themselves.
When they entered the Scripture Storage Valley’s gate, it was already quite spacious inside. The others did not have as many thoughts as them, most of them already chose their sects.
Cultivators worked quickly. It did not take long for disciples to register and sign contracts.
Jiang Li and the others walked in and saw twenty long carved tables placed in the courtyard. And standing behind the long tables were not real people, but twenty wooden puppets wearing clothes with vivid expressions.
“Hehehe… there are many newbies again.”
Behind the table, the puppets that had been quietly standing suddenly moved. Their joints creaked as they moved. Their movements were different, and they could even open their mouths and speak human language.
A few of the lackeys behind them were so frightened that they wanted to turn around and run away, but Jiang Li and Yan Hong quickly stopped them and kicked them down.
They then cupped their hands in the direction of the wooden puppet and hurriedly apologized, “We are sorry for our rudeness.”
The lackeys realized what was going on and hurriedly bowed.
“Haha, it’s fine, it’s fine. You are not the first disciples to be scared.”
One of the wooden puppets laughed and waved its hand. The actions were no different from a real person.
“Allow me to introduce myself. I’m an elder of the Scripture Storage Valley’s Mystic Gate Hall. You can call me Weng Sanqi.” Another puppet with a serious expression began to speak.
“Elder Weng Sanqi!”
Everyone bowed again. However, there were a total of 20 puppets moving around in front of them, and none of them knew which direction to salute in.
“Are you here to join the Scripture Storage Valley?” The puppets beckoned them to come forward a little.
“Our Scripture Storage Valley is one of the best sects in the Great Mountain Region. According to the rules of the sect, after you enter our Scripture Storage Valley, you can choose any basic cultivation method to cultivate.”
“Every week, there will be a public lecture by the sect elders. Every month, resources will be allocated to assist in cultivation… and through paying spirit stones and sect contribution points, many cultivation methods, spell techniques, medicinal pills, and artifacts can be exchanged…”
The wooden puppet shook its head as it spoke. Jiang Li discovered that most of the basic treatment did not differ too much from the other sects.
However, Weng Sanqi mentioned several times about choosing cultivation methods and spell techniques during his introduction. It seemed that he was very confident in the sect’s collection.
“I understand. Elder Weng Sanqi, may I know what we should do after joining the sect?”
Jiang Li understood that such benefits came with responsibility. High level cultivators could easily live for hundreds or thousands of years. They were much more unlikely to leave an inheritance so early compared to mortals who could only live for dozens of years.
Even if they really wanted to pass on their legacy, people with their spiritual root aptitude would not be chosen.
“We won’t charge any fees for joining the sect. In the first year after joining the sect, all you need to do is cultivate in peace without any compulsory requirements.”
“However, after a year, all the outer sect disciples will have to start accepting sect missions. Of course, missions are either difficult and easy. Even if your strength can’t keep up, you can still accept some laborious missions. You can rest assured about this.”
Because of the history of the Rogue Cultivator Alliance, the Scripture Storage Valley seemed a little stingy in the early stages of investment.
The other sects would usually give new disciples a buffer period of two to three years before arranging for them to accept missions.
For many disciples with inferior-grade spiritual roots, it was hard to say whether they could even take the first step in cultivation after a year.
Jiang Li and Yan Hong glanced at each other before the former spoke, “Elder Weng Sanqi, we are willing to enter the Scripture Storage Valley!”
The puppets looked at him together.
“There are already people following you even before you entered the sect? You’re not bad. This will make you have an easier time in the outer sect.”
“Don’t just stand there. Come and fill in the information before signing the contract.”
The 21 of them split up in front of the 20 puppets. There was no need for them to line up. They picked up two pieces of paper and began to fill them in.
This cultivation world believed in karma and fate, so it was especially strict about the disciples’ backgrounds.
Where did he live? What was his name? How many parents and family members did he have? What did he do before this? Was he married? Did he have no children? Did he kill anyone? Did he start a fire before? Did he kill a man or a woman? Was the fire big or small?
If Jiang Li had a good memory, he could even be requested to write his family’s ancestral records…
In short, Jiang Li would fill in whatever he knew, and after studying the terms of the sect contract for a long time, he signed his name.
“Eh? You have a dual-attribute spiritual root. Not bad, not bad. You’ve made the right choice to join the Scripture Storage Valley.”
Jiang Li had a puzzled look on his face. Could it be that there was some other secret?
“Elder, please enlighten me.”
After handing over the wooden tablet, Jiang Li walked into the courtyard and finally saw Elder Weng Sanqi, who was controlling the puppet.
“Hehe, kid, do you know the difference between a dual-attribute spiritual root and a single-attribute spiritual root?”
Weng Sanqi’s figure was a bit short, a bit inferior compared to these thirteen or fourteen year old children. His hair was gray and white, but his complexion was rosy, not the slightest bit aged. He held a large wine jar in his hands, about to take a sip after saying a few words.
He did not answer Jiang Li’s question directly. Instead, he asked this question.
“Cultivators with dual-attribute spiritual root can easily master spell techniques of two elements and have stronger combat power.”
After Jiang Li found out about the attributes of his spiritual root, he had asked someone to inquire about this information. However, the opinions he received were all very one-sided. He could only tell what he knew.
“Yes, but that’s not all. Having spell techniques of two elements means that you can deal with more situations. It’s easier to gain an advantage when fighting with others.”
“You need to know that Wood attribute cultivation methods can only increase one’s Wood attribute cultivation base. Similarly, Yin attribute cultivation methods can only increase one’s Yin attribute cultivation base.”
“However, if you cultivate two cultivation methods at the same time, you will definitely slow down your cultivation speed. As a result, you will be far inferior to cultivators who only cultivate one cultivation method. Therefore, many cultivators with a dual-attribute spiritual root will give up and cultivate only one of the two.”
Jiang Li thought about it and felt that it made sense. However, since the other party said so, there must be a solution. He calmed his anxious heart and continued listening.
“Elder, please enlighten me!”