After completing the day's training Zhang Wuji strained the decoction in the two pots into two bottles and added a drop of pink liquid in the nourishing decoction and green in healing. He took a towel and a change of clothes from his bag and along with the two bottles left the room locking the door behind him. His room was the second last one from the front of the building on the rightmost side of it on the third floor. There were two more floors above his. One could see a single floored massive structure on the right side of the residential building separated by a few metres wide lawn. That is Zhang Wuji's destination. That is the bath centre. It is filled with bath cabins which are allocated to each outer disciple. First class disciples have all required facilities in their courtyards and do not use the bath centre. People in this world do not have connected bathrooms. Bathrooms and living areas are in separate buildings. He reached his cabin swiped his token at the lock entered the room and closed the door behind him. There is a single bath tub and a shelf to keep his belongings and nothing else. On the wall at the head of the tub there was a pattern with a bunch of geometric shapes and a slot to put one's token at the center. It is a very basic formation which fills the tub with thirty eight degree temperature water, which is the optimal temperature for a medicinal bath, when the token is put in the slot and flushes the water when it is removed. The underground inlet and outlet pipes connect at the bottom of the tub.
Zhang Wuji got undressed put the token in the slot, poured the contents of the bottle containing nourishing decoction with the drop of pink liquid and lay in the tub. He started chanting and trembling certain body parts corresponding to the chanting while enduring the prickling pain all over his body except the part that is trembled which experienced a soothing heat. The pain isn't too unbearable therefore he successfully completed the nourish step of body refinement.
After half an hour he got out the bath took out the token waited a few minutes entered it back into the slot emptied the contents of the second bottle and entered the tub. The medicinal essence that enters through the pores of the skin cause an intense itching sensation. Not scratching is a challenge and a necessity. One needs to continue the trembling and chanting.
'Aah this sucks!'
Zhang Wuji frequently breaks the continuity of the chanting scratching his itch then controlling himself to continue cultivating.
Another half hour later he got out the tub refreshed the water took a bath, dried himself with the towel and got dressed.
'I wish I had cold water. Warm water makes me sleepy. First class disciples are really enviable. The formation in their tub allows for a change in temperature.'
'I gotta hurry. The classes will start in an hour. Fuck my life I gotta walk for a THOUSAND kilometres now. Haaah..'
He took his items, returned to his quarters put them down, took a small sack and went on his way to the classes.
The sect grounds are roughly square in shape. With an area of around 100km². The sect gate is on the dead centre of the southern wall. Upon entering the gate one would see a beautiful scenery filled with green trees and bushes. A whitish grey stoned path leads deeper into the sect. All around the path one could see beautiful pavilions, quiet lakes with different birds and their melodious cries overall inducing a peaceful atmosphere. A distance to the right of the gate was the beast rearing grounds. It mainly had horses and a kind of reptilian beasts that looked like a big green iguana with maroon circles made of zigzag pattern at its joints connecting the upper and lower parts of the limb. Other than the two there were also a variety of beasts only on small numbers. They were personal mounts of some sect members. All beasts here were taken care of by third class outer disciples that got this job. A bit north were big warehouses that stored necessary mortal goods like grains and stuff either delivered from outside or produced within the sect grounds. To the left of the gate were training grounds. This is were selection process for new disciples is held. This particular training ground was equipped with formations that allow testing various aspects of the candidate.
The west wall cuts three to four kilometres into the enormous Silver Bark forest named after the silver bark oak trees native to that forest that lies on the western border of the Frost Swallow country. The forest is so massive that it is said to be atleast five times the size of the country which itself is close to twenty million square kilometres which is bigger than the biggest country back on earth, Russia. It is filled with dangerous swamps, chilling lakes, mountains, poisonous lands and many perilous places. It is even said to contain beasts equivalent to nascent soul realm cultivators in prowess. And ofcourse it contains many precious and rare resources and is frequented by many cultivators. The sect alse frequently sends expeditions into the forest. There are many missions in the Mission Hall that require one to enter the silver bark forest.
Some of the forest thus contained within the sect walls was turned into farm lands, herb fields and various training grounds while the rest was left as it was. Outer sect disciples who reached seventh level of body refinement and above could enter it to hunt down body refinement realm equivalent beasts and get some combat practice and do some herb and beast parts collection missions for contribution points. This is done in strict regulation to ensure that the forest is not exhausted of it's resources.
The main hall of the sect where important sect meetings were held was around seven and a half kilometres to the north of the gate. It was surrounded by the residences of core disciples and higher level members, important structures like the Martial Arts Repository, sect treasure vault, and herb gardens of rare second tier and above herbs. the whole area was surrounded by a high grade formation that greatly increases the density of spiritual energy within even when compared to the rest of the sect. Even inner disciples and deacons need special permission to enter the core area.
To the south of the core area lay the inner disciples' residences to the south of which was the outer disciples residences.
The eastern part of the sect was the main activity area. That's where all of the four Halls of the sect namely Wisdom Hall, Punishment Hall, Mission Hall and Treasure Hall were. These four combined dealt with everything that a qi condensation realm and below sect member would come across in his cultivation. Those sect members above qi condensation stay within the core area and have different arrangements fit for their smaller numbers.
Zhang Wuji's classes come under the Wisdom Hall and he had to walk for three kilometres to reach the class. The classes are taught by the inner sect disciples who took the job in exchange for contribution points and sect deacons. What is taught is basic knowledge that every cultivator is supposed to have along with optional subjects of elementary alchemy, tool refining and formation theories. Basic knowledge classes have compulsory attendance and teach three classes two hours each everyday. The subjects include herbology, zoology, basic anatomy, material science, combat formations and foundational martial arts. More specific topics like history and geography could sometimes be discussed when the need arises. For example when a familiar secret realm restricting entry to body refinement realm cultivators surfaces or when an inter sect event occurs. There isn't much to learn and take note of in body refinement realm and therefore no cultivation classes are held. If one encounters a problem in their training they could directly go to their senior disciples and get their doubts cleared after the classes.
The classes were generally held in a large lecture hall with a semi circular pitched floor with those at the back at a higher elevation big enough to hold a thousand people. There's been only 400 to 700 outer disciples in the sect at any point of time and therefore the hall was enough to accommodate all of them.
Along the way Zhang Wuji could see outer disciples in green robes hurrying to the classes. By the time he reached the lecture hall there was already 200 disciples seated there. He took a seat at the back and waited. After a while when the lecture hall was half filled a voluptuous woman wearing grey robes with the words Wisdom Hall on them entered the class with a small box in her hands. She put it on the table taking out two violet coloured herbs.
"The devil moon orchid is a very important tier 1 herb used as a main ingredient in various grade 1 pills especially the gate opening pill that is essential in qi condensation realm. It is also extensively used as a supporting ingredient in grade 2 and even grade 3 pills. It cannot be grown in herb fields. How this plant reproduces is unknown. We do not even know whether it is sexual or asexual. These can be found in places with a great density of plants. It is believed that they consume the wood essence from these plants and materialize as there is a significant growth retardation and decrease in wood essence observed in the plants surrounding the orchid. After their materialisation they behave as normal tier 1 plants absorbing the spiritual energy of the world and stop disturbing the wood essense in the vicinity. No two orchids have ever been found to grow within a kilometre of each other. There is no way to obtain them other than stumbling upon them in a densely forested area."
"Right after a flower is plucked the plant starts wilting and slowly disappears into thin air along with the roots and everything. So when you come across them pluck all the flowers at the same time and secure them. They have a thin film of sap on them which prevents their medicinal essence from leaking and hence do not require to be put in jade containers. The disappearance remains a mystery. Plants in the vicinity do not go back to their usual growth after the disappearance. It is unknown how it happens and where all the remaining essence goes. In case you fail to pick all the flowers, the orchid leaves behind a violet moon image that lasts a few breaths and induces an irrational terror within viewers irrespective of their cultivation when disappearing which is the reason behind its name."
"There are a few things to take note of when dealing with these....."
The deacon continued to describe the steps of handling the orchid with a monotonous voice and a serious face.
'Did someone die? What's with the gloom? Those curves are wasted on her. This is sooo boring. Where is the action? Is this really a cultivation world? Each day is a chore. There is nothing interesting here.'
*smack*
Zhang Wuji slapped himself on the head. 'What am I thinking. It is good that there is no action. Cultivation sucks for now but once I enter qi condensation realm it would be much better. But it really is boring.'
The old Zhang Wuji woke up early in the morning after seven hours of sleep, trained for four hours, attended classes for six, spent around two hours on eating and other necessities, took a three hour afternoon nap leaving around two hours of free time in which he mostly spends daydreaming. Occasionally he painted or went to the library to pass time. Sometimes, very rarely, he even practiced some martial arts.
In body refinement realm even with all the healing herbs training more than once in a day is detrimental to the body. Which leaves a body refinement realm cultivator ample time to do other things. Old Zhang Wuji wasted all that precious time. Zhang Wuji was determined to change that.
Forgoing the three hour afternoon nap he has five hours of free time. He decided to spend some time at the library, some practicing martial arts and some to socialize.
Old Zhang Wuji in his four years in the sect made no acquaintances. That had to be changed or he would go mad from boredom. First he has to have a target. The third class disciples are busy with their jobs and therefore unavailable. First class ones are talented and would therefore have their faces facing backwards with their heads upside down and would be difficult to talk like that. That leaves second class.
'I'll go to the city next Sunday. I'll definitely meet someone passable. I gotta be careful in selecting the target. Not pretty, not arrogant, non righteous, non evil and a whole bunch of criteria exist. I need to make sure to not get myself a trouble magnet. Haiz... what a headache.'