章 22: Duty Hall
A cloud of about three feet in diameter slowly condensed in front of the four people.
After Shi Chuan called out, he led Liu Ming and the other two onto the grey cloud and flew towards the mountain base.
Liu Ming stood on the grey cloud, feeling that the substance beneath his feet was soft and fluffy, which seemed to lack the solidity of the black giant cloud summoned by "Uncle Master Li." Moreover, under Shi Chuan's direction, the cloud did not fly particularly fast; aside from being able to fly higher, its actual speed was not much different from the pace he ran at full strength before advancing to a Lingtui.
"Senior Brother Shi, I see that many brothers in the sect seem to be able to ride the clouds. May I ask what spell this is, and how fast can it go at its fastest?" Liu Ming could not help but ask.
"Junior Brother Bai, are you talking about the Flight Technique? This is a very simple spell. As long as you convert some of your Yuan Energy into mana, you can use it. As for the speed, it is naturally quite slow; it is only suitable for short-distance flight. For longer distances, it is better to use other means," Shi Chuan replied without hesitation.
"Senior Brother, from the sound of it, there are many ways to fly?" Liu Ming's eyes brightened.
"Of course, there are several methods for flying aside from the Flight Technique. However, either you must rely on talismans and magical artefacts such as the specially crafted flying spirit tool 'Divine Travel Talisman'; or you must practice certain techniques to a certain level before you can use specific escape methods that are unique, like the well-known sword flying, which is a unique escape method of sword cultivators. The former is simpler, and as long as you advance to the middle stage of Lingtui, you will have the ability to activate some simple talismans. In the later stage of Lingtui, you will have the capability to use some spirit tools with singular powers. As for the latter, do not think about it for now; even among the Uncle Masters and seniors in the sect, few can master such escape techniques," Shi Chuan explained after some thought.
"What is a spirit tool, and is it the same as a talismanic tool?" Liu Ming asked again.
"Hehe, of course not, the power of the two is vastly different. Furthermore, after being refined, a spirit tool can change size and be wielded at will, making it incommensurable. However, spirit tools are extremely rare; aside from the Spirit Masters like Uncle Masters and seniors, there are very few Lingtui who possess such items. In our vein, aside from Junior Sister Zhu who has a protective spirit tool, the other disciples still use talismanic tools," Shi Chuan chuckled and replied.
"Junior Sister Zhu?"
"She is Uncle Master Zhu's only daughter; you should have seen her in the hall earlier."
"I see, thank you, Senior Brother, for the guidance," Liu Ming had a moment of realization, and the faces of the two beautiful women he had seen earlier flashed through his mind.
"Senior Brother Shi, I was wondering if the basic techniques of our branch are the same as the others, and if there is room for selection? Since Masters Gui and the others cannot personally pass on the teachings, where shall we learn these cultivation techniques?" Wan Xiaoqian, the girl, also started asking at this time.
"If Junior Sister wants to learn the basic techniques, you can go to the Scripture Pavilion for free. Our Barbarian Ghost Sect has a total of thirteen basic techniques available to all disciples without restrictions. However, since the sect is divided into eight branches, each branch naturally has its emphasis in the choice of basic techniques. For example, our Jiuying vein is famous for the Huangquan Yinmo Technique, which would be best to choose either the 'Earth Spirit Technique' or 'Yin Kui Technique' as one of the two basic techniques. If you practice another basic technique before choosing this one, it will be twice the effort with half the result, or you might even be unable to reach the highest realm at all. For the practice of some powerful secret arts within the sect, one must also have a certain technique practiced to a specific realm as the basis. Therefore, the choice of basic technique is quite important in a way," Shi Chuan replied earnestly this time.
"Senior Brother Shi, I have another question, I heard that..."
That was how it went, as Shi Chuan led the three to choose their dwellings while casually answering some of their questions.
In the blink of an eye, they had visited over a dozen suitable places for disciples to live around the mountain.
Under the recommendation of Senior Brother Shi, the three each chose their dwellings.
The place Liu Ming chose was a small courtyard composed of three houses amidst the waist of the mountain, which was not only very isolated but also extremely quiet.
Afterward, Shi Chuan naturally led everyone to the giant peak where the Steward Hall was located.
Not long after, the grey cloud carrying everyone landed in front of a thirty-foot-tall giant pagoda.
"Take note, Junior Brother Bai, this tower has three floors and is entirely owned by the Steward Hall, but each floor serves a different function. The first floor handles various miscellaneous affairs within the sect and is where disciples are assigned routine tasks. The second floor is where internal reward missions are received and released, allowing one to freely earn contribution points and spiritual stone coins. The third floor is where Steward Hall disciples can rest temporarily."
"Contribution points! Spiritual stone coins!" Upon hearing this, Liu Ming's eyes narrowed slightly.
On the way earlier, he had learned from Shi Chuan that, aside from the ability to study some common techniques and secret arts of their vein for free, the truth was that truly special techniques and secret arts could not be easily passed on, but rather can only be exchanged for with enough contribution points at the Scripture Pavilion. These contribution points could also be used to exchange for various items within the sect, such as pills, talismans, materials, and so on. Also, to use some special places beneficial for cultivation within the Barbarian Ghost Sect, one must spend contribution points to enter.
As for spiritual stones, they are said to be the most universal item in the cultivation world, which consists of cutting some crystals containing the essence of heaven and earth into uniform sizes and then using them as currency.
The large crystals embedded within the array he saw at the spirit opening ceremony must have been unprocessed spiritual stones.
Although Liu Ming was hearing about these two things for the first time, he immediately realized their importance in securing his position within the sect in the future. Gazing at the giant pagoda, he couldn't help but feel excited.
At this moment, there were not many disciples entering and leaving the stone pagoda, likely because it was getting late.
Shi Chuan led Liu Ming and the other two into the stone tower's grand entrance.
The first floor of the stone tower was about half an acre in size. Standing behind a long stone platform was a gaunt old man with somewhat murky eyes, and in front of him stood five or six sparsely distributed outer gate disciples, listening respectfully to what the old man was saying.
"That's enough, you may go. This time, you've barely completed the task. But if it's this poor next time, I will deduct your contribution points. Take out your nameplates." the old man said impatiently in the end.
"Thank you, Steward Hu!" The outer gate disciples were overjoyed upon hearing this and hurriedly each took out a white jade plaque from their persons and placed them on the stone platform.
Steward Hu also took out a short stick emitting a faint golden light from his bosom and tapped each of the white jade plaques once before quickly putting it away.
Only then did the outer gate disciples leave the stone platform with smiles all over their faces.
"Uncle Master Hu, I've brought a few newly initiated junior brothers to collect some items," Shi Chuan said as he led the three over, speaking very politely to the Hu-surnamed old man.
"Who do we have here, it's Junior Brother Shi. These must be the newly initiated disciples from your lineage, indeed all of them possess outstanding appearances. By the way, Junior Brother, about the Yin Qi stones you promised me last time, do you have any more? If so, I am still willing to purchase them at the old price, no matter how many," the old man immediately revealed a pleased expression upon seeing Shi Chuan's face clearly, he gave Liu Ming and the others a quick glance before disregarding them.
"Uncle Master Hu, I've been busy with my spiritual practice lately and haven't had time to go to Yin Sha Valley," Shi Chuan frowned slightly, saying indifferently.
"Haha, no worries. When Junior Brother has time in the future, please don't forget to bring a few pieces for your senior brother. Oh, let me first get the items for these three Junior Brothers. Their names are..."
The Hu-surnamed old man showed some disappointment upon hearing this, but he quickly regained his composure and turned to ask Liu Ming and the others for their names.
Liu Ming and his two companions reported their names one by one, and after the old man verified them, he walked toward what seemed to be an empty blue wall behind him.
To Liu Ming and company's surprise, a scene they hadn't expected occurred.
The moment the Hu-surnamed old man's body made contact with the wall, it unexpectedly emitted white light and directly disappeared into it without a trace.
"Junior Brother Bai, there's no need to make a fuss, it's just the most common object-passing technique combined with some simple enchantments," Shi Chuan explained with a smile at their side.
Upon hearing these words, the astonishment on the faces of Liu Ming and the others faded somewhat.
A moment later, when the wall behind the stone platform lit up again, the Hu-surnamed old man had already come out with a large pile of items, which he placed on the table.
"Each of you, one nameplate, one set of Dust-Avoiding Clothes, one Talisman Sword, and five Spirit Stones. One more thing, newly initiated disciples can come to me to collect five Spirit Stones each month, but must also complete a routine task monthly. Otherwise, you won't receive a single Spirit Stone. Now, you three drop a drop of blood onto your nameplates and activate them in front of me," the Hu-surnamed old man said plainly.
"The nameplate is something sect disciples use to store contribution points and represent their identity. It is itself a type of special talisman. Once activated by blood and bound to the owner's spirit, no one else can utilize its functions," Shi Chuan added an explanation on the side.
Although Liu Ming didn't quite understand, he knew it wasn't the right time to ask questions and immediately bit his fingertip after putting it in his mouth, causing blood to ooze out, and then shook a nameplate towards it.
A drop of bright red blood rolled down and disappeared into the jade plaque with a flash.
Instantly, the surface of the nameplate emitted a soft white light and about a dozen strange silver characters flashed by, then the light receded and it returned to its original appearance.
Liu Ming, out of curiosity, picked up the object and flipped it over to take a few looks.
"Junior Brother Bai, there's no need to inspect it further. Once you have mana, just inject a little into it and you'll understand how to use it," Shi Chuan said.
Liu Ming nodded, put away the nameplate, and quickly picked up a set of green disciple robes and a long sword with a yellow sheath.
Xue Shan and Wan Xiaoqian, on the other side, swiftly did the same.
After thanking the Hu-surnamed old man, the three left the stone tower following Shi Chuan.
"There's still some time now. Junior Brother Bai, would you like to visit the Scripture Pavilion for a glance?" Shi Chuan hesitated and asked as soon as they stepped out of the door.
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