immortal pagoda

Chapter 12: Awakening Cultivation

Chu Qing couldn't help but think after hearing this. Although the spiritual roots of these three people were mixed, they still had spiritual roots. If they could get started, he would have made a contribution to the sect. Maybe he could also get some rewards according to the five spiritual roots standards.

Thinking of this, he quickly bowed and said, "Second Elder, spiritual roots are hard to find. Our Qingyang Sect is no longer able to catch up with the old ones, and the Handyman Hall is even more in need of people. Otherwise..."

Yu Tong stared at Lu Li and the others and thought for a while, then said, "The rule of Qingyang Sect is that as long as the spiritual roots are awakened, one can enter. But I never thought that mixed spiritual roots like yours could also be awakened, so there is no rule for mixed spiritual roots. Since the spiritual roots cannot be harvested, so be it. Then, according to the entry standards, you will start as handyman disciples just like those with five spiritual roots..."

After hearing this, Lu Li and the others suddenly looked happy, glanced at each other, and thanked him respectfully.

Yu Tong nodded. "But what I want to explain to you is that I have never seen such mixed spiritual roots. Although the spiritual energy of our Qingyang Sect is much richer than the outside world, I don't think you can reach the second level of Qi Cultivation in this lifetime. The rule of our Qingyang Sect is that you can only become a formal disciple after reaching the third level of Qi Cultivation. You... must be mentally prepared."

When Qin Shouren and Chen Zhong heard this, their faces suddenly fell.

Lu Li, on the other hand, kept saying that it was no problem and that as long as the Qingyang Sect could take them in, it would be a great favor to them.

Seeing how sensible Lu Li was, Yu Tong nodded appreciatively, stroking his beard and smiling before calling for a disciple. The disciple first took Lu Li and the others downstairs to register, then gave each of them a small cloth bag. After explaining some sect rules and precautions, the group walked towards the path to the west of the square.

While walking, Lu Li couldn't help but ask, "Senior Brother, where are we going?"

The senior brother looked back at Lu Li and said as he walked, "You are all handyman disciples. You have to report to the Handyman Hall. I forgot to tell you just now that there are no resources for handyman disciples."

"If you want cultivation resources, you have to do tasks. Different tasks will earn you different contributions. Your contributions can be exchanged for cultivation resources at the Contribution Hall, or you can use them at the Kung Fu Pavilion to exchange for techniques and martial arts."

"Oh." Lu Li stopped talking after hearing this.

After walking for a long time, a small house and a small square suddenly appeared in front of them. There were few people walking around the square.

Directly north of the square stood an obviously more luxurious house. The senior brother led the three across the square and walked in.

In the main hall, a middle-aged man with a rough face was lying on a Grand Master's chair, fast asleep. The senior brother stepped forward and coughed twice. The rough man suddenly woke up, turned over, and sat up.

When he saw the senior brother, his expression changed. He hurriedly stood up, saluted, and said with a smile, "Senior Brother Liu, what kind of wind has brought you here?"

Senior Brother Liu glanced at him indifferently, pointed at Lu Li and the others, and said, "These three are new disciples. Make the arrangements; they will be part of your Handyman Hall from now on."

"Yes, yes." The rugged man nodded hurriedly.

Upon seeing this, Senior Brother Liu gave a few instructions to Lu Li and the others before leaving. The rugged man stared at Lu Li and the others for a long moment before speaking in a cold voice:

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Wen Hong, and I am the only deacon of the Miscellaneous Hall. You can call me Deacon Wen. When you're here, you must listen to my orders. If anyone dares to disobey, I will make their life a living hell. Remember that!"

Although Lu Li and the others didn't like Wen Hong's tone, they all expressed their understanding and compliance.

Wen Hong then called for a young servant. After giving some instructions, he asked the boy to take Lu Li and the others to find their residence.

The houses in the Handyman Hall were all courtyards. Normally, six people could live in one courtyard. However, since there were not many handyman disciples now, many courtyards remained empty. Lu Li and the other two chose a small, unoccupied courtyard and moved in.

After some dizzying busyness, the three of them could finally have some peace and quiet. After gathering together and sighing for a while, they each returned to their rooms.

Lu Li couldn't wait to open the small bag he had just received from the Foreign Affairs Hall.

He didn't care about anything else—he was only concerned about whether there was a book of cultivation techniques inside. According to Senior Brother Liu, every new disciple received a basic Qingyang Sect technique.

Opening the bag, he saw that there was indeed a cultivation technique book titled "Qingyang Jue."

Suddenly, his breathing became a little faster.

Without bothering to check anything else in the small bag, he immediately placed "Qingyang Jue" into the Space Palace. Then, sitting cross-legged on the bed, he transformed into his original form and entered the Time Palace with a single thought.

Inside the Time Palace, Lu Li reached out and summoned the "Qingyang Jue" into his hand again. This was the wonder of the pagoda—no matter what he did inside, to the outside world, it only appeared as though he were meditating.

According to Lu Li's understanding, the Time Palace functioned more like an illusionary space. Everything he did inside was imagined, yet the cultivation gains would be reflected in his real body without any loss. Furthermore, in the Time Palace, he could retrieve items from the Space Palace but could not access anything from his real body outside. This was why Lu Li had placed "Qingyang Jue" into the Space Palace beforehand.

Seated cross-legged, Lu Li began reading the "Qingyang Jue."

After about an hour, he had read through it completely and gained a general understanding of its practice. However, upon reaching the final page, Lu Li realized that "Qingyang Jue" could only be cultivated during the Qi Training Stage—there was no guidance beyond that.

Though slightly disappointed, he still considered it better than nothing.

Lu Li spent another hour carefully rereading the text, ensuring that he memorized every detail of "Qingyang Jue".

Then, he began practicing. As he released his spiritual sense, he immediately sensed the violent spiritual energy around him. Compared to the spiritual energy in Qingliang Temple, it was more than ten times denser—giving him newfound hope for cultivation.

Although his spiritual roots were mixed, with the tenfold time acceleration inside the Time Palace, his refining speed would not be too slow.

As he activated the technique, the surrounding spiritual energy rushed into his body, following his guidance into his Dantian.

It was worth noting that a cultivator's spiritual roots affected only the refining speed of spiritual energy, not the absorption speed.

The speed of absorption depended entirely on the grade of the cultivation technique. The higher the grade, the faster the absorption.

In just a dozen breaths, the spiritual energy within three feet of him had been absorbed completely. As the surrounding energy gradually replenished, Lu Li continued operating the technique, refining the violent energy into true qi.

Unknowingly, thirty hours passed inside the Time Palace.

But Lu Li had no intention of stopping. He enjoyed the anticipation of breaking through and was eager to unlock his second acupoint.

Dong! Dong! Dong!

Just then, a loud knock on the door echoed.