Seeing her astonished gaze fixed on his hair, the young man smiled: “I am Si Yan, your senior brother.”
Chi Yu snapped back to attention: “My name is Chi Yu.”
“Junior Sister Chi is quite impressive. Among this batch of disciples, you are the first to pass the Cloud Ascension Stairs.”
Chi Yu scratched her head.
She felt that the Cloud Ascension Stairs weren’t particularly difficult.
Likely sensing her thoughts, Si Yan said: “Junior Sister has a steadfast mind. The Cloud Ascension Stairs are nothing to you, but many disciples still cannot relinquish their inner greed and struggle to pass the assessment.”
Chi Yu nodded, that was true.
If she hadn’t transmigrated into this book, she probably would have failed too—after all, who could resist handsome men and money?
Si Yan’s smile remained unchanged: “Since Junior Sister has passed the assessment, why not choose a cultivation specialization now?”
Chi Yu was taken aback: “Specialization?”
She instinctively asked the System: “Why is there this? Are you sure this is the Cultivation World?”
Why did it look just like a modern university?
System: “Host, this is the world, all according to the original book’s setting.”
Seeing her confusion, Si Yan gently explained.
The Taixu Sect established the four major pavilions: “Heavenly, Earthly, Mystic, and Yellow.”
Among them, the Heavenly Pavilion held the highest status, the Earthly Pavilion was next, and the Yellow Pavilion was the lowest.
Heavenly Pavilion disciples were rare geniuses, so there were very few of them.
They had excellent aptitude and high abilities, personally taught by the Sect Leader and the four great elders, with unrestricted access throughout the Taixu Sect.
If there were any good resources, they were prioritized for them.
Yellow Pavilion disciples received average treatment, with many restrictions in daily life.
Chi Yu asked: “Then how do I enter the Heavenly Pavilion?”
Since it’s all cultivation, of course she wanted the best treatment.
Si Yan smiled: “New students all start uniformly in the Yellow Pavilion upon enrollment. At the end of each year, the sect holds an assessment. Those who pass can enter the Mystic Pavilion, then from the Mystic Pavilion, test into the Earthly Pavilion, and so on.”
The Taixu Sect adopted this policy to ensure disciple quality.
If you fail the test, you honestly stay in your appropriate tier, strive to improve, and try again later.
Those who consistently fail are advised to withdraw.
Chi Yu: “…”
Isn’t this just like modern university final exams?
She asked again: “Then what about the cultivation specialization you mentioned, Senior Brother?”
Si Yan: “The so-called cultivation specialization refers to your direction in cultivation, such as Talismans, Elixirs, Sword, Body, Arrays, etc.”
“Everyone’s talents are different. For example, if Junior Sister excels in Elixirs, then enroll as an Alchemy Cultivator.”
“After choosing a specialization, in the morning you attend basic mantra and heart method classes with all new students, and in the afternoon you can go independently to specialized alchemy classes.”
“The Taixu Sect requires new disciples to choose at least one specialization course. Of course, you can choose more. The final assessment relates to both basic courses and specialization courses.”
Chi Yu understood.
Si Yan brought over the sign behind him, where the words “Spirit Pills and Miraculous Medicines” were particularly eye-catching.
“I see Junior Sister has extraordinary bone structure. Why not join our Alchemy Cultivators? Our specialization coursework is simple. Any elixir you refine that doesn’t poison people can pass the final assessment.”
“And Alchemy Cultivators can casually sell Spiritual Elixirs to earn tens of thousands of Spirit Stones monthly, making it the fastest choice for wealth accumulation.”
Chi Yu’s eyes lit up.
Honestly, she was very tempted.
Since she’s already come to the Taixu Sect, she definitely needs to choose a specialization—why not pick one that can make money?
Thinking of this, she was about to nod when suddenly a female voice rang out: “Hey, Si Yan, are you tricking a child again?”
Chi Yu instinctively looked up and saw a colorful cloud suddenly flying in from the sky.
On the cloud stood a woman dressed in blue, her features as beautiful as a painting, strikingly bright and charming. She held a brush in her hand and carried a signboard behind her, with the words “Talisman” written in bold, flowing strokes.
At the same time, many disciples emerged from all directions, each holding up their own signboards.
The woman descended from the cloud: “Little sister, the cheapest alchemy furnace for Alchemy Cultivators costs at least a thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and it’s prone to exploding. Not to mention, various materials are even more expensive. If you can’t buy them, you’ll have to travel everywhere to find them.”
As she spoke, she pointed her brush at Si Yan: “Don’t listen to this guy’s nonsense. If you fail to produce elixirs of acceptable quality by the end of the term, or if the Spiritual Herbs you planted are stolen, your assessment results will be invalidated.”
“Low-grade elixirs don’t sell for much money, while high-grade elixir materials start at a thousand Spirit Stones—and they’re Mid-grade Spirit Stones.”
Chi Yu: “…”
Si Yan’s smile vanished instantly: “Xing Zhao, are you really going to undermine me like this?!”
Everyone is just trying to earn some assessment points by recruiting new students for their own specialties—isn’t he struggling enough?!
Xing Zhao sneered, ignoring him: “Little sister, are you wondering why he has short hair and two different colors?”
Chi Yu nodded, then heard her say: “Because Alchemy Cultivators must test their own elixirs by consuming them first. Si Yan ended up like that because he poisoned himself.”
“If you attend Alchemy Cultivator classes, you’ll see even more disciples with colorful appearances.”
“In recent years, the number of Alchemy Cultivator disciples has sharply declined because they’ve all poisoned themselves to death.”
“You might become one of them too.”
Chi Yu: “…”
Holy shit, that’s truly chilling.
Xing Zhao noticed the horror in her eyes and smiled: “Why not join our specialty instead? Talisman Cultivators have a very relaxed routine—just writing and drawing every day. If you have talent, your strokes can instantly form Talismans.”
She blinked: “Talisman Cultivator final assessments are easy. Buying Talisman paper is expensive at first, but you can quickly earn back the money.”
Si Yan snorted coldly, grinding his teeth: “Don’t listen to her.”
Xing Zhao glared: “Get lost!”
Si Yan said: “Little sister, Talisman Cultivators have up to sixty books of coursework. If you go to the back mountain late at night, you’ll see Talisman Cultivators who died from overstudying.”
“Low-grade Talismans don’t earn much money, while high-grade Talisman ink is specially made from spirit beast blood, priced at eight hundred Mid-grade Spirit Stones in the market.”
“After Talismans are crafted, you also have to test them on yourself. Last year, a Talisman Cultivator disciple used his own levitation Talisman, instantly flew up, and still hasn’t been found.”
“Think carefully.”
Chi Yu: “…”
This, this is all so terrifying?
Xing Zhao gritted her teeth, wishing she could kill him.
Si Yan felt the same, their eyes meeting with sparks flying.
While the three of them stared wide-eyed at each other, a senior patted Chi Yu’s shoulder: “Little sister, why not join us sword cultivators?”
System: “Host, a gold spiritual root is suitable for learning sword techniques. In the original text, Shen Yanzhou was a sword cultivator—you could try it too.”
Chi Yu stroked her chin.
Sword cultivators seem pretty good too, and they’re flashy, perfect for showing off.
Xing Zhao sneered: “Sword cultivators are famously poor because any money they have goes toward maintaining their swords. Starving nine times in three days is normal. Senior brothers and sisters are all combat enthusiasts, often starting fights over the slightest disagreement.”
Si Yan concurred: “Sword cultivators must swing their swords tens of thousands of times daily, their arms practically smoking from exertion. They have to learn numerous sword techniques regularly, all of which are tested during final exams.”
At this point, they exchanged glances and simultaneously declared: “More importantly, sword cultivators are prone to becoming targets for Joyful Union Major disciples, who treat you as subjects for their coursework.”
“If you inadvertently fall into a Joyful Union disciple’s trap, you’ll Fall into Demonic Ways and be hunted across the entire Cultivation World.”
Over the following period, Chi Yu deeply realized the importance of choosing a major.
When she saw the handsome men and beautiful women of the Joyful Union Major, she nearly drooled.
Their promotional slogan was equally captivating: “Alchemy Cultivators, Talisman Cultivators, sword cultivators, and artifact cultivators—none compare to dual cultivation.”
But soon, Si Yan dampened her enthusiasm: “The Joyful Union Major doesn’t accept those who’ve been single since birth. Their final assessment requires you to seduce a disciple of the Path of Emotionlessness, and you’re highly likely to be killed for their enlightenment.”
Chi Yu instantly sobered up.
After pondering for a moment, she cautiously inquired: “How about artifact cultivators?”
“The material costs for artifact cultivators are ten times those of Alchemy Cultivators. Even if your family owns mines, it’s not advisable.”
“Array Cultivators consume their own Spiritual Qi when setting up arrays, making them extremely prone to physical weakness. If an array is broken, their vital energy suffers damage, requiring at least a month of recovery.”
“Ghost Cultivators are divided into righteous and evil paths. Taixu Sect’s are righteous, but nowadays cremation is prevalent, so there’s no need for corpse driving—hence no prospects. For finals, you must craft a Jiangshi yourself, and if careless, you might get bitten.”
“Beast Taming majors involve spirit beasts with poor temperaments and picky eating habits; they only consume expensive Spirit Fruits. If not properly cared for, they may kill their masters.”
“Music Cultivators rely on talent; those tone-deaf shouldn’t go. Various musical instruments are expensive.”
“For the vampire hunting major, you must capture a vampire to pass the final assessment. They’re extremely hard to find, and you also need to buy land to study garlic cultivation to prevent counterattacks. The vampire hunting senior you just saw has been repeating for nearly eighty years.”
…
Chi Yu: I’m numb.
In these times, it’s truly difficult for poor folks to find a good cultivation direction.
Xing Zhao, being a girl, was more considerate.
Seeing Chi Yu’s attire was rather plain, she deduced her financial situation wasn’t great and said: “If you’re not interested in these, you can check over there.”
She pointed, and nearby, two or three seniors sat idly on the steps.
“Those are Body Cultivators, Dream Cultivation, Buddhist cultivators, and divination cultivators. Though strenuous, they offer little opportunity for spending money.”
Upon hearing this, Chi Yu immediately felt energized.
She thanked Xing Zhao and turned toward that area.
The recruiting seniors were somewhat surprised to see her approach, as they typically couldn’t recruit anyone in previous years.
Chi Yu inquired one by one and learned that Buddhist cultivators only accepted males, not females.
For divination cultivators, inaccurate predictions could lead to being beaten to death by clients, while accurate ones revealing heavenly secrets might result in being struck dead by lightning.
Too risky, not an option.
After contemplating briefly, she walked to the innermost part: “What does Dream Cultivation mean?”
She had read countless novels in the modern era but never encountered such a Cultivator.
That senior yawned and succinctly replied: “Cultivate by sleeping.”
Chi Yu: “…”
That’s too easy.
She excelled at sleeping; sometimes she could sleep twelve hours a day.
Chi Yu immediately decided: “I want to enroll in Dream Cultivation.”
The senior paused: “Are you serious?”
Did he hear correctly?
He thought it was just a formality, but someone actually wanted to enroll?
“Seriously, I want to enroll in Dream Cultivation.”
The senior brother was so excited his hands trembled as he quickly handed her the registration form: “Fill it out quickly.”
Chi Yu swiftly completed the form. The senior brother took her identity token and stamped it, officially enrolling her in Dream Cultivation.
This senior brother with a baby face was brimming with enthusiasm: “I’m Chen Beiting. Little junior sister, I look forward to your guidance in the future.”
Chi Yu: “Hello, senior brother.”
That “senior brother” brought tears to Chen Beiting’s eyes.
Dream Cultivation finally had a new recruit.
He no longer had to endure training alone.
Without hesitation, Chen Beiting pulled a pouch of Spiritual Elixirs from his pocket: “Junior sister, take this as a welcoming gift.”
System: “Host, these are Refining Spirit Pills. Each one is worth four thousand Spirit Stones on the market. They can make your Spiritual Root more transparent and speed up your cultivation.”
Chi Yu’s eyes instantly lit up.
She promptly accepted it: “Thank you, senior brother!”
Wow, this senior brother is incredibly generous.
Chen Beiting lost himself in the repeated calls of “senior brother.”
He sat on the steps himself, pulled out a stool for Chi Yu, and even brought out many snacks for her to eat.
As more and more people gathered on the Star-Gazing Platform, Chi Yu decided not to bother looking for Shen Yanzhou and the others.
She took out her Qiankun Order and sent them a message, informing them of her location.
“Chi Yu!”
Jiang Jiuming finally found her, waving excitedly. Beside him, Shen Yanzhou smiled when he saw her.
Chi Yu stood up and walked over to them.
Just as in the original story’s plot, Jiang Jiuming chose the Talisman Cultivator major, while Shen Yanzhou went for sword cultivators.
Upon learning she had enrolled in Dream Cultivation, Jiang Jiuming widened his eyes: “What? How dare you choose that?”
“Isn’t it just sleeping and cultivating? I’m best at sleeping.”
Jiang Jiuming pulled Chi Yu aside and whispered: “Didn’t you check Taixu Sect’s Dream Cultivation on the Qiankun Order before coming? I heard it’s a disastrous major, completely unreliable.”
Chi Yu swallowed nervously: “Really? Why is that?”
Jiang Jiuming: “The founder of this major is the only elder in Taixu Sect who came from a rogue cultivator background. He once clashed with the sect leader, and they fought fiercely.”
“Since then, this elder has never participated in any teaching. Ten years ago, he founded the Dream Cultivation major, and his only disciple is a youth he rescued while descending the mountain.”
“The Cultivation World always looks down on rogue cultivators. Plus, Dream Cultivation is his own creation—no one outside has heard of it. Given his conflict with the sect leader, even if he recruits disciples, no one enrolls.”
“And Chen Beiting never participates in Taixu Sect’s Trial Experiences. All he does every day is sleep. In disciple competitions, he gets instantly defeated and always ranks last. Naturally, even fewer people enroll.”
“So this major has no future.”
Hearing this, Chi Yu breathed a sigh of relief.
No future is fine—as long as Shen Yanzhou is around, her financial prospects are secure.
Chi Yu: “I’ve already enrolled; I can’t change it now.”
Jiang Jiuming sighed: “Alright. If you have time in the future, you can audit Talisman classes or go find Shen Yanzhou to audit sword cultivator classes. That way, you can still make progress.”
Chi Yu nodded: “Okay.”
Since they would be taking basic classes together anyway, Chi Yu wasn’t worried about being unable to make her presence felt around Shen Yanzhou.
New student registration soon concluded.
Chi Yu and the others headed to their accommodations.
Before leaving, Chen Beiting smiled at her: “Little junior sister, tomorrow morning you’ll attend basic classes. Remember to come find me in the afternoon for our major classes—I’ll be at Northern Peak.”
As he spoke, he slipped a packet of dried fruit into her hand.
Chi Yu beamed with joy. “Thank you, Senior Brother. I understand now.”
She watched as Chen Beiting walked away.
Jiang Jiuming’s eyes widened.
Wasn’t that a Qionghua fruit?
Those things cost three thousand Spirit Stones each, and he used them to make dried fruit?
Was Dream Cultivation this extravagant?
He recalled that he had only received one Earth Escape Talisman from his senior sister and immediately felt envious.
But since he liked talismans, he didn’t say anything.
All Yellow Pavilion disciples lived in the same area, each with their own small cottage.
Chi Yu’s cottage was in the middle. Shen Yanzhou lived next door to her, while a girl lived on the other side. As soon as she arrived, she closed her door and didn’t speak to them.
Jiang Jiuming lived across from her, and the room next to his was empty.
Dusk fell.
The scorching sun of the day now resembled a shy maiden, slowly hiding behind the mountains.
After tidying up her cottage, Chi Yu brought out a stool and sat under a tree by the door.
When Shen Yanzhou stepped outside, he saw her relaxed and contented appearance, so he also brought a chair and sat beside her.
This was already his sixth time entering the Taixu Sect, and he was very familiar with the environment here. Compared to the excitement of others, he felt no particular emotion.
Gazing at the sunset on the horizon, Chi Yu was filled with emotion.
On such a beautiful day, how wonderful it would be to have some sunflower seeds to snack on and play a round of King’s Glory.
Just as she was lost in her thoughts, several servants dressed in uniform walked over, carrying luggage and hurriedly delivering it to the empty cottage next to Jiang Jiuming’s.
After they cleaned the cottage, a few maids brought in various pieces of furniture, including even a golden-threaded recliner and a writing desk.
Watching the bustling activity of people coming and going, Chi Yu instinctively straightened her posture.
Seeing this, Jiang Jiuming asked curiously, “Who is this, making such a grand entrance?”