"For now, I've saved at least a year by entering as an Inner Disciple." Shuren lay in his dorms, packed in a room with the other three boys he came in with. They'd have to share a room until they contributed enough to the sect.
"My goodness, it sure is stuffy in here." Junyu said, waving a fan. "I must start collecting those cloud sigils as soon as possible."
"Agreed," Wiping down his sword sheath, Ming Wu said. "Let's take a look tomorrow. I'm certain large battle related missives will yield the highest sigils."
"Sounds great. I'm going to head out for some fresh air." Junyu said. Ming Wu went alongside to do the same.
Chen sat at the corner of his bed, grasping his cloudmulet. He had not uttered a single word today, like a stray lone wolf. Shuren paid him no mind. But he had heard he was the last man to battle Wu Ming, and almost win at that.
He's not from any major clan I know of in Cloud City. It won't be bad to form a friendship.
By using a sliver of Qi, the cloudmulet manifested a list of curriculums and vocations. It truly was a one of a kind innovation. He hadn't personally heard of this sort of technology from the other sects.
Words etched in his eye with all sorts of information, and he couldn't get rid of them without controlling his Qi in the cloudmulet. He had to choose at least one vocation as an inner sect disciple, a core philosophy of the Seven Clouds sect.
Vocations, akin to a second path. Whether through a study of trends or assumption, cultivators at higher levels had a tendency to explore other activities beyond their primary path. Sects and organisations that had incorporated vocations in their institutes began yielding far more cultivators, breaking the myth that less time spent cycling the flow of Qi would set you back. It also saved resources, where instead of having multiple organisations in the sect based on pill refining or weapon smithing, most people on the martial path already learnt these on the side.
After all, the higher your cultivation, the greater the results your vocation would yield.
This is where the reputation of the Seven Clouds Sect came into play. Their teaching methods yielded the most cultivators reaching Rank 2. The average of 1 in a 100 was reduced to 1 in 20 in this sect, leading them to have a unique power structure amongst the political world even at Rank 5.
Or perhaps Rank 6 soon.
Shuren had a few days of free time to prepare himself. He then saw the calligraphy and poetry vocation. This is the most suitable, but I'm only a fan of Dan Zi's work. Besides, there's not much practical use unless I follow the Lexis Path.
The Lexis Path was a famous and versatile Path, relying on one's honing of the laws of words. It was pioneered and popularised during the First Grand Era.
There were three Grand Eras in this world, eras unlike any other, where the entire world had forever changed.
In the First Grand Era, mortals were gifted with the grace of literature. This began the movement of scriptures, books, manuals, and so on. Before then, such a gift was only unique to powerful cultivators, hoarding knowledge to themselves.
It was thanks to the founder of the Lexis Path, a Rank 9 Immortal, that people now could spread knowledge and culture to an unprecedented level, firmly solidifying humans above the Era of Beasts, the Oblivion Era.
His name was Seraphim All-Seer, an Immortal Reverend. The most recognisable ancient Immortal, his statue could be found in any scholarly institute and well-established school; this was for his proliferation of the scholarly arts and the wisdom of words.
Even Shuren himself held Seraphim All-Seer in high light. He was celebrated the most in the Granxian Continent, the supposed homeland of this ancient Immortal.
A sharp pain in his head forced Shuren to rub it. "Seriously, I've only gone one day without my tea and I have a headache." Candeseal leaves had Qi infused traces of caffeine, while also being an intense flavour that would take anyone weeks to get used to. There's no tea making vocation, is there? Would it fall under spiritual alchemy?
Alchemy had different categories, and spiritual alchemy focused on enhancing the blessed flora of the land, refusing to use the inanimate and lifeless material. Essentially, it combined botany, dendrology, and mycology and elevated it with cultivation.
Mineral alchemy, or metallurgy was also another mainstream vocation, mostly used for weaponry.
He peered out the window, watching Heaven's Eye softly closing. Evening had arrived, and Shuren was uncertain about the institutes' closing times.
"The second mountain, Spirits Clouds, shouldn't be too far from here. I may as well stroll around there for the meanwhile." He stood up and head to the door. While Shuren wasn't able to bring any of his belongings on the orientation, he brought out a small perfume bottle to spray that he always kept on hand. Basic hygiene was vital.
"Spray that shit elsewhere." For the first time, Yuang Chen finally spoke.
Shuren held no reaction as he turned the doorknob and stepped out. Without looking back, he simply said, "Open up the windows."
Chen Yangquan scowled.
Unkept dog. Shuren thought. He lost all interest in befriending this person.
In the time it took for an incense to burn, Shuren approached the perimeters of Spirits Clouds mountain. As he got closer, the enchanting and ethereal fragrance of processed herbs and flowers wafted to his nose. A symphony of aromas.
He thought back to the imprinted map of the mountains. The main building for spiritual alchemy was a five-storied pagoda, near the east of the mountain. Fire lamps illuminated the surroundings as the night sky grew darker, auroras shimmering from the fragments of Heaven's Eye, with sect members still present and moving around. Shuren noticed that at dark, his flying nimbus had glowed, ensuring that one could see the other party and avoid a head on collision. He adjourned the nimbus as he stepped foot at the entrance of the pagoda.
A clouded crystal screen, which created a link between his cloudmulet, opened up a gap for Shuren to enter the entrance of the pagoda. A defensive mechanism to avoid outsiders. At the receptionist was a senior sect disciple, working to gain more sigils.
"Excuse me, senior, where do I go to register spiritual alchemy as my vocation?"
He used his Qi to float over a small folded card, "In there are all the details you'll need. Come back in the morning to register."
Shuren left with a slight bow, sitting down in the lounge while reading the card. The lounge and archive of formulas were mainly located on the first floor of the pagoda and the following four floors above contained rooms for classes to be held and practical rooms with testing equipment. The students were encouraged to gain enough resources to develop their own system within their own rooms.
Shuren had stopped slouching and raised his shoulders upright, craning his head further to read the notes. Perfect, there is a subsection for the use of tea leaves and its recipes. Spiritual tea, interesting.
He walked over to a bookshelf in the corner, sliding his fingers across the edge. '10 Ways to Boost Cultivation with Tea!', the most popular book in this art. He stood there, reading a few pages, each turn causing his face to embroil in shock and excitement. "These guys are fanatics. They even have Nascent Soul cultivators in this expertise? Why're they using all these ridiculous equipment just to extract essence from the leaves? Tea that can bring clarity and tranquillity without side effects?"
Shuren closed the book with a thud, marching back intensely to the stairs. The third floor provided equipment access, and the floral section had a dedicated room for working with leaves. "I have to join this vocation. I must." A passionate glare as he climbed up, holding the book in his hands with a grin.
Shuren was spending his time observing and learning the names of all the equipment. They had distilling mortars that excretes condensed liquified essence, a revolving wheel with compartments that cut and crushed different materials of flora, and even a glass container which was used to contain ingredients and investigate the flow of Qi, and the effects it would have interacting with other reagents.
This was a far step above from simply adding bagged tea leaves to brew. He had to go back down to find a beginner book which explained the equipment and all of its uses.
While walking around to note down the room to his mind, another person had come in carrying a bag, a waft of medicinal herbs flowing from it. With dusk's embrace, its surrounding shards illuminating the night sky with colourful auroras.
Zhou Yan had already brought and prepared some materials from the local mountains to experiment with. She didn't expect to come across another newcomer from her group.
She saw Shuren intently reading his book while glancing back at the table of spiritual distillery armaments. Laying down her bag on the table with a thud, she inquired, "Liu Shuren, right? Hello, it's good to see you."
Shuren was broken out of his trance, shutting the book closed and setting it aside. "It is good to see you, too. Have you already decided your vocation?" He glanced down and saw the contents of her bag, having answered his own question.
Fortunately she's not strange like that other fellow.
"Yes, my family has a history of dabbling in alchemy and pill crafting. Spiritual alchemy is a branch I've always been interested in." Yan Zhou dabbed a tuft of leaves. "In truth, I aim to become a Core Disciple of Elder Aurelia. She is this mountain's most recognised elder, so it'll be a long path ahead to be recognised by her."
Everyone had their own goals coming to the Seven Clouds. Shuren thought back to Haze's self acclamation, that this sect was unrivalled in making one's desired path bloom. "May your path lay unfettered, blooming with the spirits, and let it cross with Grand Elder Aurelia's." In an expression of admiration, Shuren acknowledged Zhou Yan's ambitions.
"Sincere gratitudes, Liu Shuren. May I ask why you're considering this vocation? I can provide some insight, at the very least," she said with a soft smile.
Shuren faced towards her, "My father is a Woodspirits Smith. I've grown up seeing his crafts and sculptures. I'm not particularly inclined towards that path, but spiritual alchemy seems most suitable to me." He held the sheath of his staff.
Her ears perked at the words Woodspirits Smith. "No way! I heard that's a vocation only practiced in the far south. I've begged my parents to let me take a visit, but with no luck. Your father must have many friends around the world."
She walked over to see Shuren's book. "Can I take a look?" He handed it over to her, unsure if the topic was considered ridiculous.
"10 ways to boost cultivation…with spiritual tea?" She made a strange glance at Shuren, but he did nothing more than shrug his shoulders.
"It seemed promising." He said.
She flipped through the book; her face squinting in disbelief as she read the ridiculous concepts and recipes. "Th-these guys are…they're insane! Who would waste so many spirit stones and hire esteemed mineral smiths, just to make a machine to distribute the grains of crushed tea leaves equally? It's-" She bit on her own tongue, continuously flipping through the contents of the book.
Shuren held a finger to his chin, staring at Zhou Yan in amusement. The desire for a good cup of tea to rest one's mind is the most crucial aspect. He thought back to his perhaps unhealthy addiction to Candeseal tea. "The feeling of being able to replenish your energy, clear up your mind and regain clarity is-"
"Can you shut up for a minute? I'm trying to-"
Zhou Yan's carefully curated image had just shattered. Though, thinking back to how engrossed she was in the book though, he got an inkling of her personality.
"What?" Shuren said with a sharpened gaze.
Zhou Yan gingerly placed the book back down on the table, red creeping up on her neck and face.
She had planned to cultivate the perfect persona for her entire sect life, and yet on the first day, she had already failed. She didn't want anyone to see her bad habits of getting grumpy when engrossed in her work.
Zhou Yan made an intensely deep bow, with tensed muscles around her mouth. "Please forgive my language, Liu Shuren. I didn't mean any offence."
At least she has some sense.
So long as it wasn't overly rude, like Chen.
"I'll forgive you, but in return, give me pointers on spiritual alchemy and share with me your insights."
Yan Zhou took a deep breath and relaxed herself, standing upright. "I can work with that. You also tell me everything you know about Woodspirits Smithing. I want to see some of your father's works."
"I acknowledge." Shuren returned the bow in order to make it less awkward for her. "I, Liu Shuren, express deep gratitude for your enlightenment, Lady Yan."
Can't go wrong with getting some free pointers.