Chapter 15: Outer Sect Disciple

Qi Refinement is divided into nine layers, with two stages of spiritual power refinement serving as bottlenecks.

Breaking through to the middle stage counts as one, and breaking through to the late stage counts as another. For those with wasted spiritual roots, it is difficult to break through to the middle stage of Qi Refinement in a lifetime, and the reason lies here.

It is difficult to refine the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and even harder to condense it to improve its quality; this process almost entirely relies on one's spiritual roots, which is why they are called "wasted spiritual roots."

For those with Heaven-grade spiritual roots, however, not only is the speed of absorbing and refining spiritual energy fast, but the quality is also high. They face no bottlenecks before breaking through to the Core Formation stage, precisely because the effectiveness of their spiritual roots is so outstanding.

Mana transforms from "strands" into "Dao," and then from "Dao" into "streams."

When breaking through to Foundation Establishment, there are three obstacles blocking the Dao. The Blood-Qi Barrier mentioned by Manager Duan is the first, the Spiritual Power Barrier is the second, and a cultivator must complete a third refinement of spiritual power.

Transforming streams of spiritual power into liquid "True Essence" is a fundamental difference from mere spiritual power. A Foundation Establishment cultivator can fly through the sky and easily crush a cultivator at the Great Circle of Qi Refinement.

Mass and volume are major factors.

Exquisite mastery of cultivation techniques can also increase the chances of passing this barrier. For Wang Yu, this is still too far off, and he does not yet possess enough information.

After the breakthrough was completed, the aged appearance on Wang Yu's face significantly eased, no longer looking like a man on the verge of death.

Aside from his conspicuous white hair, he had regained much of his former handsome, youthful appearance.

The days when he did not need to submit Spirit Sand also meant he no longer had to worry about his cultivation speed. He would soon become an outer disciple, so a little abnormality could be easily ignored.

The only thing Wang Yu found regrettable was that the Idle Slot showed no changes, proving his previous guess was correct.

He would have to wait until he broke through to the fourth layer of Qi Refinement—the small change from the early to the middle stage—to see.

He did not rush to change the contents of the Idle Slot.

He intended to experience different types of cultivation to see how the Idle Slot would feedback his progress.

That day, class proceeded as usual.

Manager Duan provided personal guidance. After the customary two-hour lecture, he did not dismiss the class immediately.

"Wang Yu!"

"This humble one is here."

He had always been very rigorous with self-address; even knowing what was about to happen, he did not commit any transgression.

"True Disciple Su noted your great merit. For your contribution of lifespan to the sect and the large amount of Spirit Sand provided, your 'body-purchase price' has been paid in full. You are hereby promoted to an outer disciple of Cold Blood Peak."

"Wang Yu accepts the command."

This news instantly caused a commotion in the Bluestone Square. Whether old or new, from the moment they arrived at the Reverse Spirit Blood Sect to become spirit slaves, this was the first time they had witnessed someone truly promoted to an outer disciple.

In the face of such imbalance, an older slave said sourly, "So what if he was promoted? Look at his aged appearance; who knows how much of his lifespan he burned through."

"It is said that competition among outer disciples is even more intense. How can a mere spirit slave compete with those cultivators who have at least three spiritual roots!"

"True Disciple Su personally appointed him; isn't that enough? Never mind the outer sect, even the inner sect is far below the status of a True Disciple. Just being associated with it is enough for him to hold his own in the outer sect."

"That makes sense."

After the bitterness, there were also rational people making analyses. They all saw hope in Wang Yu—a glimmer of light to escape their status as spirit slaves seemed very close.

This was especially true for the new batch of arrivals, whose fighting spirit had not yet been completely crushed.

Seeing the high morale of the spirit slaves, Manager Duan was quite satisfied with this result. Giving Wang Yu a "tangible piece of the pie" would greatly assist his subsequent integration work.

"Follow me."

"Alright."

There was not much to pack in Stone House No. 83.

The clothes Wang Yu wore were even the same set he had been wearing when he was first bound; they were heavily worn. Although he frequently cleansed them with spiritual power, the fabric was too ordinary, making him look like a destitute scholar.

Manager Duan led the way, first taking him to a pavilion beside the square to hand over the standard items for an outer disciple one by one, explaining them along the way.

"This is your disciple token, also known as the [Blood Command]. Drop a bead of blood into it to bind it to you, and you can wear it on your waist."

Use blood?

Wang Yu felt a subconscious resistance.

His vigilance regarding his physical body was extremely high. The last time he took back his severed arm that had been turned into minced meat to be destroyed, it was to prevent anyone from using his flesh and blood for their own purposes.

He was not afraid of the present, but worried about the future.

He never believed he would stop at the lowly Qi Refinement stage.

But since it was a necessary procedure, he had no choice. Following Manager Duan's explanation, after forcing a drop of blood from his fingertip into the token

The waist牌 (waist pendant), which had a black base inlaid with a piece of blood jade, automatically appeared before his waist, with a black leather strap extending from both sides to fasten itself.

The character [Cold] emerged in the center of the blood jade before receding, turning into the number zero.

"This is the disciple token representing Cold Blood Peak. From today onward, it is the symbol of your identity. Remember, do not lose it. If you do, go to the Affairs Hall to apply for a replacement.

"The number on it represents your sect contribution points. Techniques and spells from the Library Pavilion, resources from Cold Blood Peak, special facilities... and so on, all require contribution points to obtain.

"As the name implies, contribution points must be earned by contributing to the sect. The simplest way to obtain them is through various tasks at the [Mission Hall].

"Currently, you hold a Black Blood Disciple Token. All outer disciples of the nine peaks of the Reverse Spirit Blood Sect use this. Inner disciples use Purple Blood tokens, and True Disciples use the highest grade, Red Blood tokens.

"The tokens used by seniors such as Deacons, Elders, and Hall Masters are a different set. You may have the chance to know about them in the future, or perhaps not.

"To be promoted to an inner disciple, you must have at least a late-stage Qi Refinement cultivation and a total accumulated contribution of over ten thousand points; points already spent still count toward the total.

"Alternatively, you can become an inner disciple through the recommendation of a fellow disciple at the level of an Elder or True Disciple. Is that clear?"

Wang Yu nodded quickly, indicating his understanding.

Next came the other equipment for outer disciples.

"A low-grade storage bag..."

"A First-Tier Flying Tool—Black Silk."

"One opportunity for a free exchange of a technique from the Cold Blood Peak Library Pavilion, limited to First-Tier techniques."

"One arbitrary exchange token worth one thousand contribution points."

The last one was a special reward given to Wang Yu by True Disciple Su, which could be used to exchange for spells, cultivation pills, or cultivation skills, as long as the value was under one thousand contribution points.

Wang Yu did not yet have a concrete concept of the value of contribution points.

Additionally, there was one more item: the standard uniform for outer disciples. It was primarily black, with red linings and collars, embroidered with the scenery of the nine peaks of the Reverse Spirit Blood Sect in gold thread, making it very beautiful.

It only possessed a rudimentary cleansing spiritual pattern, making it a quasi-cultivation robe, not of a formal rank.

The abundance of basic benefits for an outer disciple made Wang Yu gasp.

Only after handing everything over to Wang Yu did Manager Duan say, "I have explained almost everything. You can learn the remaining trivial details yourself. Now, I will take you to the residential area for outer disciples."

"Alright."

Having become an official disciple, his residence was moved to the cluster of buildings at the base of the nine peaks that Wang Yu had seen when he first arrived.