Chapter 420: Orientation Period Over
Chapter 420: Orientation Period Over
After finishing their lunch, they returned to the class on time, where Elder Hong Lie had arrived long ago to make the required preparations for the practical classes.
A cauldron filled with boiling water was placed underneath a blazing red flame on the teacher’s podium.
Beside it on the table, several herbs were neatly organised by Elder Hong Lie, who just gestured for the incoming students to take their seats.
A while later, he was finally done with the preparations and addressed the disciples who had all returned by now.
"For the practical session, I’ll be preparing a mortal pill for everyone to witness. It’s a sleep-inducing pill and helps one sleep soundly, though when it comes to cultivators, it becomes useless starting the Qi Absorption Stage..."
Realising that he had strayed a little away from the main topic despite being short on time, Elder Hong Lie let out a short cough and steered the lecture back toward its intended direction.
"So, the reason I’m preparing a mortal pill instead of an immortal pill is largely that that’s the first thing you’ll have to learn how to refine if you want to enter the path of pill refining. So, everyone, pay close attention to all the details that I’m going to show you."
With that said, Elder Hong Lie reached for an herb while explaining how to handle and process it, practically demonstrating it to the class.
Like this, he processed all the herbs one after the other before mixing them in the boiling water one after the other.
It was an extremely slow process, especially because Elder Hong Lie wanted to ensure that the basic steps in pill making were clear to everyone present in the room.
’So that’s how it’s made...’ Yi Chen thought while focusing on Elder Hong Lie’s actions with great interest.
Almost two hours later, after stirring and mixing in the required proportions, all the water inside the cauldron had dried up, leaving a brownish condensate at the bottom of the cauldron.
Scraping a big spoonful of the condensate out of the cauldron, Elder Hong Lie showed it to everyone. "Now, you just need to roll the condensate into a pill, and the mortal pill is ready. It’s a time-consuming process, especially when you’re creating a large batch, but since you all are in the Meridian Refinement Stage, that’s the only option you have.
Later, in the Qi Absorption Stage, when you have sufficient control and amount of spiritual energy, you’ll be able to coalesce several pills together with its aid without needing to manually create pills out of them."
Hearing Elder Hong Lei’s explanation, several pairs of eyes lit with understanding.
Seeing this, Elder Hong Lie conducted a doubt session for half an hour before finally ending the class.
As the crowd of disciples left the classroom, many of them had already decided in their minds that they were going to take up Pill Refining as their occupation.
However, Yi Chen wasn’t among them.
’Although I hated chemistry back on Earth, reading about pill refining had always been fun for me back then...’ he thought with a nostalgic expression before forming a bitter smile, ’but as Elder Hong Lie said...the high depletion of spiritual energy will indeed decrease my progress rate considerably.
Especially when I will need to use my spiritual energy for my cultivation as well after entering the Qi Absorption Stage. Yeah... It’s still too early to make a decision.’
Yi Chen shook off those thoughts, and after bidding Zhou Mei and the other girls goodbye, he went towards his quarters alongside Qin Yao and Dong Yun since he had no other plans.
"Brother Chen, what are you going to do now?" Qin Yao asked curiously, a little regretful that he wasn’t able to spend more time with Feng Min.
"What else? I’m going to train." Yi Chen answered as if it was only natural, and after advising the two of them to do the same, he soon went to his room to change into training robes so that he could train his swordsmanship just like yesterday.
After dinner, he devoted himself to cultivation and going over what was taught about Pill Refining in today’s class before finally calling it a night.
In a similar fashion, the next day also elapsed, which was soon followed by the day after and the one after that...
Beast Taming, Talisman Writing and Array Formations.
With each passing day, the information Yi Chen had with respect to these occupations expanded greatly before it was finally the last day of the Orientation.
"So that’s how you successfully create a Basic Treasure Artefact." Elder Hong Lie stated with a smile as the fishbowl in his hand, which had been glimmering with blue runes a few seconds earlier, came back to normal.
However, the very next moment, everyone witnessed the bowl being filled with water on its own.
Seeing the bright glimmer in the eyes of several disciples, Elder Hong Lie let out a chuckle and said, after placing the bowl in his storage ring, "Alright then, this marks the end of your six-day-long Orientation classes. I hope the classes will be of help to you in deciding what occupation you should take.
Take your time and think carefully over it tomorrow, as you don’t have any activities planned before registering yourself in your respective occupation’s hall.
Do remember that you can only register in one occupation and will only be able to switch or learn another after an entire year. Therefore, do pick your occupation carefully. That’s the very reason you’ve been given the whole day tomorrow to make the decision.
Also, if you want to learn more about the occupations than what has been taught in the classes, then I suggest you go and check the library during that period.
All the facilities that require contribution points to take benefit of will also open up for you from tomorrow onwards, which naturally means that you’ll be able to take up missions from the mission hall starting tomorrow.
Don’t be in a rush and choose wisely. That’s what I’ll suggest. Goodbye then."
With that said, Elder Hong Lie’s figure instantly vanished from the keen gazes of everyone present, which made many realise only now that he was already at the Core Building Stage.
"Senior Brother Chen! All the familiarity classes are finished, so which occupation are you planning to take?" Dong Yun, who was sitting right next to Yi Chen, asked with anticipation apparent in his eyes.
"I-I..." Yi Chen pursed his lips hard in thought before answering, "...still haven’t decided yet. I’ll thoroughly think over it tomorrow."
He had initially thought that after hearing details about other occupations, he would definitely be able to decide which one would be more suitable for him.
However, that wasn’t the case. The more information he received, the more confused he became, as from one lens he found he was able to see the pros in all the occupations, and from the other he could see the cons in all of them.
"I see...It’s okay, Senior Brother Chen, take your time. However, remember to take me with you when you go to register yourself at the occupation hall," Dong Yun answered with a relaxed smirk, for he had already handed the responsibility of decision-making to Yi Chen.
The next moment, Dong Yun turned towards Qin Yao and asked, "What about you, Brother Qin? You’re also following Brother Chen, right?"
"Well..." Qin Yao forced a smile when he heard that question and answered, "Well, since Feng Min is planning to take up Talisman Writing, I was planning to do the same..."
’Oho...’ Yi Chen’s eyes couldn’t help but glimmer when he heard this, and he couldn’t help but mutter, "Is that so? Then you better understand it in as much depth as possible and help Feng Min out."
"I-I..." Realising that Yi Chen had already figured out his thoughts, Qin Yao felt a momentary wave of embarrassment as he responded energetically the very next moment, "...I will, Brother Chen!"
"Good." Yi Chen nodded with a proud smile when he heard his answer.
’Ah, it feels so good to see children growing up.... Just a few years ago, he would always cling to me and look at him now, already leaving me in order to pursue his love interest. As they say... birds truly leave their nest after growing up,’ Yi Chen thought while reminiscing about his imagined version of the past.
Asking each other the same questions, they finally made their way out of the classroom and headed outside the Learning Pavilion’s gate.
However, they had only taken a few steps outside the gate when their path was blocked by two familiar-looking disciples.
"You guys..." Yi Chen’s eyes narrowed as he remembered their identities the very next moment.
Not caring the least about what Yi Chen was thinking, one of them took out a scroll from his storage ring and declared.
"Yi Chen, you bastard! It’s time to pay for your deeds, so listen up! Brother Liu Shen officially challenges you to a duel! The duel will be held at the Outer Sect’s Duelling Ground in the forenoon, so you better not be late!"
With that said, he threw the scroll in Yi Chen’s direction.