Chapter 49 of 100

Chapter 49

15 min read3,679 words

"Very well said!"

A loud shout suddenly rang out.

Ripples spread across the lake once more, and it turned out that Li Yu had returned.

"Senior!"

This time, all the students bowed respectfully to Li Yu in unison.

Only Tang Jie stood there, looking at Li Yu and asked, "Didn't you leave?"

Li Yu rolled his eyes and said, "This Jade Belt Lake is my home. Where else could I go?"

Then he burst into a hearty laugh, "I haven't seen such an interesting little kid in a long time. Not bad, not bad, I quite like you. Here, take this. It's not some divine opportunity or anything related to the academy; it's a personal gift from me!"

As he spoke, a beam of golden light flew toward Tang Jie, who caught it with one hand. It turned out to be a golden fish scale, and he immediately knew it was a scale from Li Yu's body.

Anything that could come from this transformed great demon, even if it wasn't a treasure, must have its unique value. Tang Jie was overjoyed.

Li Yu shouted, "You've received a favor from me, so you must bow in gratitude!"

"Thank you, Senior, for your generous gift. I will bow!" Tang Jie bowed without hesitation.

"Good, I'll accept it then!" Li Yu said loudly, "Listen up, you brats. I love hearing flattery. If you want to get something from me, you'd better learn how to behave first. But the first gift only requires a few nice words, the second one needs a grand bow, and if you want more from me, you'll have to find more ways to make me happy! Hahaha!"

With that, he laughed and leaped back into the lake, leaving the people on the boat staring at each other in silence, no one daring to say anything more.

However, this had nothing to do with Tang Jie's words. Very few people could truly understand the principles from an argument. They were silent because they feared Li Yu could hear them at any moment.

Li Yu must have heard the criticism earlier. The reason he gave Tang Jie such a valuable gift might not be entirely because he found Tang Jie interesting, but more likely to anger those people. This showed that although Li Yu seemed generous, his heart might not be as broad. If they dared to criticize him again, he might not just be angry; he might come out and beat them up.

No one dared to criticize him further, but their eyes couldn't help but linger on the golden fish scale in Tang Jie's hand. Wei Tianchong, curious, walked over and said, "Let me see, what's this treasure? What's it for?"

Tang Jie put the fish scale away, "You saw how I got it. He didn't say, so how would I know?"

"Let me see, don't be so stingy."

"I'm afraid you won't give it back if you see it."

Wei Tianchong, caught in his thoughts, laughed, "Then why don't you just give it to me?"

Tang Jie's tone was serious, "Do you think that's appropriate?"

"I'm the young master, why wouldn't it be appropriate?"

"Right, you're the young master! I've only heard of servants begging for food from the young master, not the young master taking treasures from the servants."

"Then how about I pay for it with silver?"

"Do you think the Senior would be happy if we discussed buying and selling his gifts here at Jade Belt Lake?"

"… Forget it then." Hearing Tang Jie mention Li Yu, Wei Tianchong could only reluctantly give up.

The others found it amusing. One of the students who had just become familiar with Wei Tianchong laughed, "Tianchong, your servant is quite interesting, isn't he? He's not afraid of you. He must be a descendant of the elders in your household, raised in the Wei family, right?"

Wei Tianchong sighed, "Not really, he's only been in the household for three years. But he saved my life, so I can't hold it against him."

He thought to himself, the key is that he has the family law given by my mother, which can be used to beat me…

Someone laughed, "I see, no wonder he's so arrogant. But since he's a servant, he should maintain the proper conduct of a servant. Even if he has done something good, he shouldn't use it to his advantage. Tianchong, I'll help you teach him a lesson when the opportunity arises, to show him what it means to be a servant."

Wei Tianchong grinned, "Thanks, but there's no rush. He's usually quite obedient."

They laughed and chatted as the boat reached the shore.

The students disembarked, and someone led them up the mountain.

Wash Moon Academy, though built on a mountain, was grand and majestic. Upon entering, the first thing they saw was a three-zhang-tall bronze statue of the founder of the Wash Moon Sect, Water Moon Venerable.

It was said that Water Moon Venerable, while traveling to Outcloud Mountain and Moon Reflection Pond, saw the scene of golden mist swallowing the moon, which inspired him. He used the Water Moon Retrieval technique to cleanse the moon in the water, break through the protective boundary, and achieve enlightenment, eventually ascending to the heavens. His successors founded the sect, naming it Wash Moon, symbolizing a realm of transcending illusion to reach truth, unrelated to any specific cultivation technique. The name of the country, Wenxin, also comes from the phrase "ask the heart and achieve enlightenment."

Thus, the Wash Moon Sect's principle is to point directly to the heart. Since it points directly to the heart, it naturally encourages fierce competition on the path to immortality, so the sect never shies away from the word "competition." This is why they started with the gift of wine, a scene that happens every year, though the methods vary and are not easily noticed.

Of course, you can only compete if you are allowed to. If you are not allowed to compete, it's best not to even think about it. Even if you are determined to advance, you must do so on the path laid out by the academy. Straying from the main path and stepping into the void is courting death.

Upon entering the academy, there was a registration desk where everyone registered their names and backgrounds.

"Name?"

"Tang Jie."

"Jade Gate?"

"Five Transcendences."

"Only five Transcendences, yet he dares to claim he wants to be one of the top ten. How ridiculous." Someone in the crowd sneered.

Tang Jie had become famous for his roar, so many people paid attention when he registered. They thought he might be a nine-transcendence genius from the Jade Gate, but it turned out he was only at five Transcendences.

On the other side, Wei Tianchong and Shidream had also registered. After all three of them were registered, a student issued them student badges.

These student badges were made of gold and iron, yellow and eye-catching, and could be worn on the waist. They were the academy's point cards, with internal recording arrays that tracked each student's points.

If a student made a mistake, the academy's inspectors would deduct points from the card. The points were recorded in two places: on the student's card and in the inspector's records. Even if you were a genius and could break the array, it wouldn't help.

After receiving the point cards, someone led them to the Ten Thousand Harmony Garden.

The Ten Thousand Harmony Garden was where all the students lived, housing over ten thousand students, fitting its name.

Though it was a student dormitory, it was elegantly arranged. The rooms were not in a modern grid layout but scattered like pieces on a chessboard, dotted among the mountains and forests. Streams, pavilions, and fragrant terraces were interspersed, creating a beautiful garden landscape.

The Ten Thousand Harmony Garden, just one dormitory area of the Wash Moon Academy, had such scenery, showing the academy's well-deserved reputation.

Despite its vast area, it was not obvious from the outside. Tang Jie suspected it was due to an array, but as a newcomer, he was still unfamiliar with many places.

Although Tang Jie and Wei Tianchong were servant students, this was only their private status. On the surface, all students were treated equally, so Tang Jie and Wei Tianchong did not live in the same place.

The student led Wei Tianchong to a courtyard and pointed to it, saying, "This is your residence."

Wei Tianchong found the courtyard spacious and the surroundings relatively serene, feeling quite satisfied. He nodded, "Although it's not as big as the Tranquil Garden at home, the environment is nice. The only downside is that the courtyard is too empty, with nothing in it."

The student who led them sneered, "Another ignorant commoner. Every blade of grass and tree here is a masterpiece of nature, even the mud on the ground is of higher quality than anything at your home. How can your rural house, filled with the stench of the mundane, compare?"

"You…" Wei Tianchong had never been spoken to like this before and was about to retort, but Tang Jie stopped him, giving him a meaningful look.

Wei Tianchong remembered the academy rules: students who fought with each other would lose five points, those who injured others would lose ten points, and those who caused death would be expelled. He had to suppress his anger.

The student, seeing Wei Tianchong's restraint, sneered and then led Shidream and Tang Jie to their residences.

Tang Jie's residence was next to a plum grove, with a stream nearby and a small pavilion a bit further away, situated at the edge of the mountain, offering a beautiful view of the scenery.

After settling in, Tang Jie went to Wei Tianchong's place. He found Wei Tianchong still fuming and cursing the senior, while Shidream was trying to calm him down.

Tang Jie laughed, "Still angry?"

"That guy is a real piece of work. I don't know what I did to him, but he mocked me so harshly." Wei Tianchong said angrily.

"Not surprising. He was trying to provoke you. If you hadn't held back and argued with him, he would have achieved his goal."

"Huh? Why?" Wei Tianchong was confused.

"Because he's an academy inspector. Inspectors are responsible for deducting points, and according to the academy rules, if an inspector deducts 100 points, they get one point as a reward."

"The academy actually has point rewards?" Wei Tianchong was shocked.

"Of course. We'll be here for ten years. You never know when you might make a mistake and lose points. 100 points might seem a lot, but spread over ten years, it's only ten points a year. One fight and it's gone. Without some rewards, how many would survive? In our hometown, this is called a carrot and a stick. Points are not just a guarantee to stay in the academy; they are also an important criterion for selecting disciples in the future."

"So that guy was deliberately trying to trap me?" Wei Tianchong finally understood.

He knew the cultivation world was cruel, but he didn't expect it to be so full of traps. He had almost been framed on his first day. If he hadn't listened to Tang Jie and temporarily memorized the student rules, he would have fallen into the trap.

Now Wei Tianchong began to understand what Wei Ming had said.

"Exactly," Tang Jie smiled. "These inspectors rely on us for their benefits. They hope we make mistakes and are ruthless when deducting points, always aiming for the maximum. They don't care about personal feelings. If we don't make mistakes, they find ways to tempt us to do so. In our hometown, this is called entrapment. Do you think the hundreds of students who are eliminated each year are all that foolish?"

Wei Tianchong was sweating, and he said sternly, "I'll have to stay away from these guys in the future."

"You can't avoid them. The one earlier was obvious, but there are also hidden ones who lurk in corners waiting to catch you. They've learned cultivation techniques, and some can use invisibility spells. They are all very devious, and you never know when they might suddenly appear. So, you must be careful not to make mistakes…"

Wei Tianchong shivered and instinctively looked around.

Seeing his tension, Tang Jie knew he had made his point and smiled, "Don't worry. Inspectors can't sneak into students' rooms. If they are caught, they will be expelled."

"Phew!" Wei Tianchong finally relaxed.

"But…" Tang Jie's "but" made Wei Tianchong's heart race again.

"But according to the academy rules, cultivation students must be neatly dressed and their rooms must be clean, with no dust or dirt, and no disorder. Violators will be deducted one to five points, and each violation will be penalized. So, they can't sneak in, but they can openly inspect the cleanliness."

"Hey, why didn't you say that all at once? You scared me. This is simple."

Hearing this, Wei Tianchong wasn't worried anymore and turned to Shidream, "Shidream, clean the room."

What are servant students for? Isn't this what they are supposed to do?

So, they not only take care of daily life but also ensure that the young masters don't get expelled for such things.

Hearing the young master's order, Shidream looked at Tang Jie, wondering about him.

On the way, there were many servants, and these chores were done by others. Shidream and Tang Jie didn't have much to do, but now it was just the two of them, and the work needed to be divided.

Wei Tianchong said seriously, "I need to memorize the student rules. Tang Jie, explain to me what these rules are all about."

Fine, I'll do it myself.

Tang Jie said, "Memorizing the rules is easy, but understanding their deeper meanings, using them to your advantage, analyzing potential traps, and finding loopholes to exploit takes time."

"Don't worry, I'll listen carefully!" Wei Tianchong replied.

Even the most capricious person learns to behave after a setback.

Tang Jie looked helpless, "The problem is that my room isn't cleaned yet."

"Shidream, after cleaning my room, clean Tang Jie's room as well."

"… Yes, Young Master!"

Shidream's face was so gloomy it could almost drip water.

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