บท 9: 9.

"Old Xie, I want to ask some questions."

Two hours after leaving town, while the carriage was travelling through the dirt road, Yang Ze suddenly spoke.

Old Xie was stunned by this sudden question before he let out a smile. "There is no need to be so formal second young master. You can ask this old slave anything you want."

"Hmm."

With a nod, Yang Ze jumped to the front seat of the carriage, sitting beside old Xie. There was silence for a long time before Yang Ze asked the question.

"When we passed the outer circle, I didn't see many strong people there. Almost all of them look weaker than the members of our family."

"Haha."

Old Xie laughed for a moment before replying in a gentle tone.

"Young master, how much do you know about the realms of the cultivation?"

Thinking for a moment, Yang Ze replied with an obvious tone. "Well, the first realm is called qi condensing, the second is called qi guiding."

"As for what comes after it, I am not sure."

Listening to Yang Ze speak, Old Xie was silent for a moment before nodding his head.

"Since you were never able to step into qi condensing, you won't realize the hardship it takes."

'No shit Sherlock.' Even though Yang Ze was rolling his eyes, his face remained that of a pious learner.

"Let's talk about the qi condensing first. To condense qi into the body, one not only needs an internal art, but also tons of food and resources."

"For the people living in the outer circle of the city, they don't even have enough food to fill their bellies, much less other precious medicines and resources. As for the matter of internal arts, it is almost impossible. And then there's the matter of qualifications. After all, not everyone is qualified to walk this path."

"So, there is no way for a common person to get the internal art?"

Frowning Yang Ze asked in a questioning tone. He was getting precious fruits and resources for practice every week, so it made him forget that these resources came from the family. He didn't know the hardships one had to face just to get these few measly resources. But now that he thought about it...

"Well, for the people living in small cities like ours, there is just one way to get the internal art, and that is to join one of the four families. But it comes with its fair share of problems. Firstly, not everyone is eligible to join the families. And if they are, then the question of whether they are eligible to get the Secret Arts still remains.

Only those who have served more than five years in a family are eligible to get the first volume of the secret art, thus opening their path to qi condensing. As for the matter of resources... hehe... one needed to earn them by performing various tasks."

By the time he reached the last sentence, his voice trembled for a moment. Even Yang Ze who was listening to him, felt the absolute sense of hopelessness and despair from it. It was as if he had given up on life. For a moment Yang Ze was sure that this old man was thinking about his past experiences.

"Anyway."

Even though old Xie lost his composure for a moment, he turned back to normal in the next second.

"Stepping into the qi condensing is already hard enough. But, if you are talented or lucky enough to condense qi, there is no guarantee that you will be able to get the next volumes of the internal arts. At that time, even if you get other internal arts, you will not be able to practice it."

"Why? Can't we just abolish our internal qi before practising other methods?"

"Heh."

With a smile, old Xie shook his head.

"Internal qi is not some kind of sand structure that you can construct and break anytime you want. Once you step into the Qi condensing, you can never change your art. This is the reason why even after many restrictions from the big families, many people want to join them. Unlike many broken or half-missing internal arts, they have the set of complete internal arts."

"Interesting."

This was the first time Yang Ze came into contact with this type of knowledge.

"Wait, why don't people join the martial academy then? I heard they are coming to the city after six months. If you ask me, that is a pretty good chance for the people who can't get their hands on internal arts or join any family."

"Hmmmm."

Exhaling a long breath, old Xie loosened the reins on the horses, slowing the speed of the carriage before speaking out.

"The martial academies are not the places of charities. Do you know, this time, the four families gifted countless resources and even a part of their internal arts just to get the quota for a single person?"

"So, unless your family spent tons and tons of resources or you are some kind of genius seen once in a decade, no martial academy will accept you."

Old Xie's statement only confused Yang Ze further instead of solving his doubts. He had now heard it many times that one needed a quota to join the Academy. But if the quota was already decided, why were they even coming to the city in the first place? And why were they even taking an exam? And the most obvious question, why were other people allowed to take the exam? The more he thought about it, the more confusing it got.

There was a long silence on the carriage as both of them were lost in their train of thought. It was only after a long time, that Yang Ze broke this silence.

"What about the Qi guiding realm?" Since he couldn't understand how those from the Academy think, it was no use pondering about them further. Instead, he asked the question that mattered to him the most.

But to Yang Ze's surprise, this time, old Xie didn't answer him. Instead, he asked the question.

"Second Young master, how strong do you think the current head of the Yang family... your father is?"

"Hmm. No idea."

Yang Ze thought for a moment before giving him the answer. He had never heard from anyone how strong Yang Yuanzhen was. As for noticing it by himself... Yang Ze met him before he even stepped into the realm of Qi condensing. There was no way for him to notice his strength. Besides... the guy must be in a higher realm, so even if he tried his best, it was impossible for Yang Ze to see through his realm.

"Yes. If the other party doesn't make a move, it is almost impossible to know its strength."

After a short silence, Old Xie continued.

"Unlike the Qi condensing, Qi guiding is divided into four realms. Early stage, where one is able to move qi inside his body, nourishing the internal organs. The middle stage, where one can layer his body with qi, gives him strength and speed that far surpasses others. Late stage, where one can imbue other objects with qi, giving him the ability to turn anything into a weapon. And the peak stage, where one can release qi outside his body, thus giving him the ability to destroy things without even touching them."

"Wait you are telling me there are four realms in the Qi Guiding?"

Suddenly there was a bad premonition in Yang Ze's heart. Taking a deep breath, he looked at the screen in front of him.

------------------------------------------------------

{Name: Yang Ze}

{Realm: Early Stage Qi Guiding}

{XP: 100/500}

{Technique: Seaheart Art Second Layer}

{Martial Arts: Black Tiger Blade Technique 'Great Accomplishment'} [0/500]

{Efficiency: 100 XP/day}

{Level: 1} (0/10 spirit stones needed to upgrade)

--------------------------------------------------------

"Sure enough."

Looking at the rows of newly added text, Yang Ze was starting to get some idea about this plug-in of his. It seems that this thing would be affected by his understanding too.

Taking a deep breath, he focused his gaze on old Xie again.

"What about the patriarch of the Yang family?"

Looking at Yang Ze addressing his father this way, old Xie was stunned for a moment before replying.

"The patriarch of the Yang family is at the Peak stage of Qi Guiding. Not only he, but the patriarchs of all the other three major families are at the peak of Qi Guiding."

"This Martial Academy quota is not only needed for the growth of the family, but it is also their hope to step into a realm beyond Qi Guiding."

"I see."

Nodding his head, Yang Ze was still processing the information he had just received. He had to admit, this one conversation with old Xie was more beneficial to him than spending hours in the library.

"Wait."

Suddenly, there was a frown on his face.

"How do you know so much about these things old Xie? What is your strength?"

Even though he knew the old Xie was no ordinary servant, it was at this moment he paid attention to him. Till yesterday he thought the old Xie was only proficient in martial arts, but after listening to him, he wasn't so sure anymore.

"Heh."

With a soft chuckle, he looked at the road in front of him with a smile on his face before replying in a soft voice.

"You will know it soon second young master."

The moment he finished speaking, a tree fell in front of the carriage, raising dust and a few pieces of rocks that flashed past the carriage. If not for the fact that the carriage was moving rather slowly, they would have crashed into it.

"What the?" Narrowing his eyes, Yang Ze took a deep breath as his gaze focused in front of him. He couldn't see it due to all that dust, but he was sure there was a group of twenty or so people standing in front of the carriage.