NOVPUB
Chapter 1117: Chapter 1027: Training_2
Cultivators’ experience-seeking journeys are mostly purposeful, and Li Zhirui was no exception; he also wanted to quickly enhance his cultivation level.
After giving it much thought, Li Zhirui decided to venture into the secular world to refine his heart with the help of the mundane experiences.
There was no helping it, ordinary great battles were too insignificant for his improvement, and if he were to seek danger, such as provoking a Great Vehicle Cultivator, or deliberately getting himself surrounded, it would be far too risky. A slight carelessness could lead to injury or even death.
So, this plan was considered the last resort in Li Zhirui’s mind, something he would not choose unless he had no other options.
Li Zhirui completely concealed his aura, and he appeared just like a young swordsman, handsome, with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, as well as a unique temperament.
It’s easy to conceal an aura, but temperament is not something that can be changed so quickly.
With the Three-feet Qingfeng sword by his side, Li Zhirui walked into a certain mortal city, planning to stay here for a short while. 𝘯𝑜𝘷𝘱𝘶𝑏.𝘤𝘰𝑚
He seemed to have truly become a chivalrous swordsman, upright and brave, willing to lend a hand whenever he encountered injustice. As a result, within just a few months, Li Zhirui’s reputation had spread throughout the entire city.
But in the process, he had nearly offended all the local powerhouses!
There was hardly any local powerhouse who wouldn’t want to dispose of Li Zhirui, the interfering troublemaker, to vent their frustrations.
Nonetheless, even though Li Zhirui had sealed his cultivation, his physical strength remained. The difficulty for ordinary martial artists to capture or kill him was imaginable.
"Damn it! Where did that bastard Feng Qingyang come from? His martial arts are so powerful!"
Mortals without Spiritual Roots cannot practice cultivation, but they yearn for power, hence they have adapted Body Cultivation Methods to temper their bodies and created a form of mortal martial arts.
Regrettably, even the most powerful martial artist would be at a disadvantage when facing a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
"Is he really not a Cultivator?" doubted a Clan Leader of a local powerhouse.
"No, I had someone specially investigate; he’s merely a swordsman," another person replied with certainty.
Even though the Spiritual Energy of the Great Thousand World exists in most State Domains, and some even reach the level of First-rank Spirit Vein, in comparison to the Cultivation World, it’s still way behind.
In such circumstances, how many Cultivators mingling within a mortal city could have high cultivation levels?
Unless it’s a mortal city belonging to a powerful Cultivation family, where descendents and blood relatives of the family reside, and thus, the family would send some strong Cultivators to guard the place.
But clearly, this was just an ordinary mortal city.
Those few Cultivators with unstable auras, how could they possibly discern Li Zhirui’s identity?
"If that’s the case, then arrange a troop of two hundred soldiers; I refuse to believe he can escape from such a tight net," one said decisively.
"Good! Let’s do as Brother Qian says."
In less than half an hour, a troop of two hundred soldiers formed an array and completely surrounded Li Zhirui’s residence, leaving no opportunity for escape.
"You’re really overestimating me," laughed Li Zhirui as he looked out the window.
"Feng Qingyang, just surrender peacefully, and you can spare your own life. But if you continue to be stubborn and unrepentant, don’t blame us for being ruthless!" shouted a strong and formidable man who looked like he possessed considerable martial arts skills.
"After dealing with this group of soldiers, it’s about time to leave," Li Zhirui thought silently. He didn’t plan to stay in one place for too long because that would defeat the purpose of refining his heart through worldly experiences.
Clang——
Like an immortal descending from the heavens, Li Zhirui with a Treasured Sword in hand, directly charged into the crowd.
Sword Light flashed in all directions, and the soldiers who had formed the array were quickly scattered by him, creating a small space. The ground was littered with blood and flesh, making Li Zhirui seem like he had emerged from the depths of Asura hell.
The nearby soldiers were terrified and shaking so much that they couldn’t even stand steadily, none daring to confront Li Zhirui. The scene suddenly reached a deadlock.
"Haha, it seems that your plan has failed," Li Zhirui said to a powerhouse hiding behind the crowd.
"Damn it! Attack! He’s only one person, even if all of you die, you must capture him for me!" That person, driven by rage and without any rational thinking, blurted out something that offended everyone.
"Noisy!"
Li Zhirui snorted coldly as a gleam of cold light shot out. Before the man could react, it pierced through his heart, and he fell to the ground instantly.
"Do you all wish to continue the fight?"
Upon hearing these words, all the soldiers fled chaotically into the distance, fearing that even a moment’s delay would result in Li Zhirui striking at them with his sword.
"What a pity."
No one knew what he lamented over. They only saw him, clad in blood-stained robes, slowly walking outside the city, unhindered along the way. As he approached the city gate, all the mighty families breathed a sigh of relief — they had finally sent away this god of slaughter.
Li Zhirui seemed to have truly become an ordinary person, carrying a pack on his back, slowly heading towards the next city.
It took him a day just to see the city gate.
Yi City was its name, and together with the county city Li Zhirui was previously in, plus several dozen more counties, they all belonged to the domain of a small dynasty here.
This dynasty was quite small, with its territory spanning only a thousand miles in radius, not even the size of a State Domain.
But on reflection, this seemed quite normal. After all, this was a mortal dynasty, and the Primal Spirit Realm was dominated by cultivators. Furthermore, with the thick Spiritual Energy, it was easy for Devil Beasts to be nurtured.
Even the lowest rank of Devil Beasts represented a disaster for mortals.
Under such circumstances, mortal dynasties simply lacked the power to control vast territories, leading to the formation of many small dynasties.
And these small dynasties were actually run by cultivators as proxies to control and nurture mortals, sparing themselves the trouble of dealing with those mundane tasks.
So long as the dynasty remained stable, cultivators could continuously obtain new mortals. The more there were, the more people with a Spiritual Root there would be.
But to get back to the point!
After entering Yi County, Li Zhirui did not disguise himself as a knight-errant, but as a scholar.
Yet, no one dared to underestimate him.
A frail scholar wandering the world? Without some measure of strength, who would dare such a feat?
With the money at hand, Li Zhirui bought a large mansion in the cheapest part of the south city and transformed it into an academy, enrolling students.
Passersby were astonished at the sight of the signboard marked "Inquiry Dao Academy," especially as the South City was where commoners lived, with hardly any extra money to educate their children.
But upon hearing the subsequent announcement, they were instantly driven to frenzy.
Because this Quest for Dao Academy only charged a minimal tuition fee, so low it could almost be considered free.
Despite numerous restrictions such as not including meals, monthly assessments, and advising the exit for those who fail thrice and the likes.
But they overlooked all of it, understanding only that their children now had hope of climbing the social ladder. They would not have to remain illiterate like them, toiling every day for a meager subsistence.
And the news of the establishment of the Quest for Dao Academy spread throughout the entirety of Yi City in just a single morning.
"Heh, courting popularity. He’s just one man, enrolling so many students, he’s simply leading them astray!" the other academies scoffed in disdain upon hearing the news.
Wealthy and influential families and officials didn’t care either. It was just an academy, after all, not affecting their status or standing.
Of course, there was another reason: they did not wish to provoke Li Zhirui, a mysterious scholar who dared to travel alone.
Several days later, Li Zhirui stood at the entrance of the academy, looking at the densely packed crowd of around five to six thousand people, all crammed into this narrow space.
"Children below the age of six, please go back. It’s not too late to come to the academy when you’re of age."
As for the upper age limit, Li Zhirui did not mention it.
"Of eligible age, follow me inside. Parents can only accompany one child."
Having said that, Li Zhirui turned and entered the academy.
After being busy for several hours, he finally managed to deal with all these trivial matters.
Though troublesome, for Li Zhirui, it was also a form of experience.
Looking at the over two hundred students before him, he said: "Go back for today. Come to the academy tomorrow at 7:00."
