Cheng Hao hummed with satisfaction as he peeked in at his first disciple ardently cultivating. An orphan, Deng Che perfectly suited the profile he wanted as his first disciple. His cultivation wasn't that high, and there was a good chance his disciple might surpass him; an orphan would feel way more gratitude than a child who already had everything. They also tended to work harder.
During the week he had spent at the village, Cheng Hao had made 12 silver coins as an advance for the trade pathway he would establish with her. In reality, it was hush money to keep her indiscretions hidden. There were benefits to being handsome after all.
With his newfound wealth, he had purchased a sword and a saber from the village blacksmith. The weapons were crudely made, but they were enough to hunt some dumb beasts in the mountains.
Form talking with his disciple, Cheng Hao realized he had been mistaken as a high-level martial practitioner. It seemed that the lower levels of the world were similar to the wuxia novels he used to read, and only when the martial practitioners broke through to a certain level would they be known as cultivators. It looked like Body-Refining and Qi-Gathering manuals did not exist, at least not in the lower levels of the Eastern Wastelands.
Instead, martial arts practitioners would gradually refine their body, and meditate on the natural world. Eventually, they would be able to sense Qi, and thus start Qi-Gathering. Although this gave Cheng Hao and his disciples a massive advantage when it came to cultivation, any half-decent martial arts practitioner would easily be able to kill him, even at a lower level. After all, no matter how good he was at fencing, it wouldn't help him against decades of life and death battles these martial cultivars went through.
In other words, it was time to learn magical sword techniques.
Purchase confirmed
Initializing Sect Library…
With a rumble, a large two story wooden building sprung up from the ground. The building was rather nondescript, with the exception of elegant wooden eaves curling the perimeter of the roof. A signboard at the front spelled out ‘Library’ in fancy calligraphy.
Pushing open the heavy doors, he walked out of the hot sun and into a different world. Engravings on the wall soothed his spirit when he gazed on them, and the beautiful carved mahogany shelves spoke of scholarship and erudition. Unfortunately, they were empty.
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“You can't be serious,” he muttered sadly. With a sigh he opened up the system, and sure enough a new tab appeared
Library Store
[Basic Mortal Sword Manual] 1 point
[Basic Mortal Saber Manual] 1 point
[Basic Mortal Saber Manual]1 point
[Basic Mortal Spear Manual] 1 point
[Basic Mortal Hidden Weapons Manual 1 point
[Basic Mortal Movement Technique Manual]l 2 points
[Low Grade Qi Gathering Manual] 10 points
[Basic Mortal Formations Manual] 2 points
Introduction to the Library's features - 0 points
“At least you have some conscience,” Cheng Hao exclaimed as he immediately purchased the free introduction. A burst of information was injected into his mind, which took him several minutes to parse and digest.
It looked like the library was the system’s biggest gift. It had the ability to automatically create, improve, and edit Manuals and Techniques. The more manuals and techniques he collected, the better. It reminded him of A.I learning back on earth. As an example, if he had the Southern Ice Fist technique for Qi-Gathering and Qi-Condensation, along with several ice techniques for Foundation Establishment, at the cost of several sect points the library would automatically derive the Southern Ice Fist at the Foundation Establishment level.
Whenever he leveled up the system, the library would also level up and improve and add more features. For now, other than the derivation function, apparently disciples with aptitude could fall into a trance when studying the library’s signboard and gain insights. As for what that meant, Cheng Hao had no idea, “because I guess my aptitude isn't’ high enough” he grumbled.
“Master is this your magic” Deng Che cried out in amazement
Startled, Cheng Hao turned around. That’s right he realized, to his disciple the sect library must have appeared out of thin air.
He dismissively waved his hand. “It’s just summoning a building, is there a need to get so worked up? This is the new sect library; you are the eldest senior brother of the sect, work hard to maintain your position. Once you reach the Qi-Gathering stage you can peruse its contents.”
“Yes master!” Deng Che replied eagerly as he ran back to his habitation to cultivate again.
Birds die for food, men die for wealth, but this Deng Che was going to die for prestige and recognition. With that thought, Cheng Hao turned back to the Library Store. Industrious disciples were great and all, but he couldn't let himself get surpassed. At least not yet.
Purchase Confirmed