Chapter Eighty-Eight: The Immortal Village Notice

“My young friend, you need not worry. For common cultivators like us, spiritual root potential usually hovers around ten points—very low. If it’s above twenty or thirty, that’s already quite decent for someone of our background. With your spiritual roots, you’re the equivalent of eight ordinary cultivators combined; among us, you’re truly outstanding.”

The elderly shopkeeper withdrew the magic stone, stroked his beard, and pondered for a moment before speaking. “If you’re choosing a cultivation technique, I suggest you pick one without any elemental attributes.”

“A technique without attributes? What’s special about that?” Ye Mo snapped out of his thoughts and immediately asked.

“All cultivation techniques are designed to improve the speed of training. The effectiveness of an elemental technique depends on the potential of a cultivator’s spiritual roots—the higher the potential, the faster the progress. Attribute-less techniques also speed up cultivation, but their effect is fixed and unrelated to your spiritual roots’ attributes. Frankly, my friend, having too many spiritual roots isn’t necessarily a good thing if you choose a multi-attribute technique. Techniques like the Icefire Method, Greenwood Art, or Gold-Earth Technique often suit those with two or three roots. But there’s no method that covers all eight attributes.”

The shopkeeper explained this to Ye Mo.

“Then I’ll choose an attribute-less technique,” Ye Mo decided after some thought. He approached the counter to select a technique. There were many elemental methods, but very few without attributes.

Ye Mo skipped over the lowest-tier manuals. After much deliberation, he finally chose a mid-tier manual priced at one hundred spirit stones, titled “Primordial Unity Technique.” Any cultivator, regardless of spiritual root, could train in it.

The shopkeeper smiled. “‘Primordial Unity Technique’ may not be extraordinary, but its singular advantage is its suitability for all spiritual roots, without any adverse interactions.”

The shop’s prices were fixed, leaving no room for bargaining. Ye Mo’s stash of over a hundred spirit stones was quickly reduced to just a dozen.

“These ten-odd days of running a street stall, selling my black iron swords to scrape together some spirit stones, and they’re gone in an instant. Never mind. After nearly two months as a cultivator, I finally have a proper manual for training,” Ye Mo said with a wry smile. Carrying the Primordial Unity Technique, he left the shop and made his way toward the docks.

...

“Brother Wang, is it true that the City Lord’s Mansion has posted a notice saying that the Azurecloud Immortal City’s academy is recruiting ‘City Lord Candidates’?”

“Would the City Lord’s Mansion joke about such a thing?”

“The notice is right outside the mansion, just posted. I only heard about it from a fellow cultivator. Let’s hurry over and see what the requirements are to enter the Azurecloud Immortal Academy!”

“Azurecloud Immortal City is one of the thirty-six most powerful principal cities in the East Sea archipelago—a core member of the Immortal Cities Alliance. The Azurecloud Academy is also one of the finest institutions, authorized to train City Lord Candidates. Graduates in the top ten become official city lords of the alliance and can establish their own immortal villages.”

“Azurecloud is a true ‘main city’ among immortal cities. Our Donglai Immortal Village is merely a ‘village-level’ city by comparison, far inferior and dependent on Azurecloud.”

“If any of us can join the Immortal Cities Alliance as a city lord, we’ll have made it!”

“Let’s go—quickly!”

Several cultivators, faces alight with excitement, chatted animatedly as they hurried past Ye Mo, heading towards the City Lord’s Mansion.

Ye Mo, on his way to the docks, stopped in his tracks as he overheard them.

“Azurecloud Immortal City recruiting City Lord Candidates? Entering Azurecloud Academy could make one a city lord?!”

Ye Mo was stunned by this news.

...

At the gates of the Donglai Immortal Village’s central mansion, a dense crowd of curious cultivators had gathered. A massive notice was posted outside the City Lord’s Mansion.

“Notice from Azurecloud Immortal Academy: To consolidate the human race’s position in the East Sea and expand our presence on the islands, Azurecloud Academy is recruiting ‘City Lord Candidates and Assistant Candidates’ from all human cultivators. Application deadline: the first of next month.

Requirements:
First: Any Qi Refinement cultivator, regardless of age or aptitude, with no limit on numbers.
Second: City Lord Candidate application fee: 1,000 spirit stones. Assistant Candidate fee: 100 spirit stones. Assistant Candidates may only serve under City Lord Candidates and are not permitted to establish cities of their own.
Third: The expenses for City Lord Candidates in the academy are substantial. Cultivators without ample resources are discouraged from applying.
After one year of study at Azurecloud Academy, the top ten City Lord Candidates in the graduation assessment will be granted official city lord status by the Immortal Cities Alliance, receiving a ‘City Lord Token’ and a set of village-level city blueprints, enabling them to establish an immortal village and become alliance city lords.”

Ye Mo, standing behind the throng, craned his neck to read the notice.

“A thousand spirit stones just for the City Lord Candidate application fee?!”

“How many Qi Refinement cultivators could possibly afford such an enormous sum? With fees so high, is Azurecloud Immortal City trying to cultivate city lords or just rake in spirit stones?”

“Exactly! I work as an apprentice in Donglai’s workshop, and after a year of hard labor, I still can’t save up even a few dozen spirit stones. Even after thirty or fifty years, I wouldn’t have enough for the application fee!”

“Even the Assistant Candidate fee is a hundred. You’d have to toil for five or ten years to scrape together that much.”

Several poorly dressed itinerant cultivators grumbled discontentedly.

“Hmph, the Azurecloud Academy is training new city lords—it’s only natural they charge a high fee. If they didn’t, anyone could join, and the academy would be swamped by the destitute! If you can’t afford it, then don’t apply,” sneered a well-dressed cultivator nearby.

“So these conditions are just meant to exclude people like us?” another itinerant cultivator protested.

“What use would the academy have for wandering cultivators? For our kind to take root in the East Sea is already difficult enough. Every village, town, and city needs guardians and residents. But you lot refuse to be bound, won’t become village residents, and won’t defend the cities. When disaster strikes, you’re the first to run for safety elsewhere. Why would the academy want you?”

A middle-aged scholar in the crowd mocked them coldly.

“Hmph, how righteous you sound! Why would we refuse to become village residents? Do you know how many conditions there are to join a city? We sacrifice cultivation time to labor for you in peacetime, and serve as cannon fodder in war. Yet all the resources and benefits of the village are hoarded by the City Lord’s Mansion and core cultivators like you. You won’t even spare us the scraps! No one’s a fool—why should we risk our lives for you?

“Fellow Ceng, you’re the city lord’s confidant, of course you side with him. You come up with all sorts of schemes to squeeze us itinerants and villagers dry—don’t think I don’t know!”

A burly man in the crowd shouted at the scholarly cultivator.

“Huang the Artificer, you—enough of your nonsense! I can’t reason with a brute like you. If you’re so dissatisfied, just go to Azurecloud Academy and become a city lord yourself if you’ve got the ability!”

The scholar’s face darkened at once, and he stormed off in anger.

“Bah! That Ceng fellow is the city lord’s right hand. All these new taxes in Donglai are his doing! You can barely make a living running a stall,” an elderly itinerant spat heavily on the ground.

A chorus of curses spread through the crowd.

Ye Mo wasn’t familiar with Donglai’s situation—he’d only recently arrived and had spent most of his days in the mines. Still, he’d experienced the taxes himself; his night-market stall had been taxed heavily by the city guards.

“A thousand spirit stones to apply as a City Lord Candidate! If I sell off some of my black iron stock and the finished swords, I might just have enough. I must go to Azurecloud Academy!”

Determination flashed across Ye Mo’s face.

Not far from the crowd—

“The academy is recruiting City Lord Candidates, Yiqing. When we get home, I’ll discuss it with your uncles and see if we can arrange for you to apply. This is an opportunity for our Zheng family,” Zheng Hongjun said seriously after scanning the notice.

“Really?” Zheng Yiqing was delighted, but hesitant. “But a thousand spirit stones—isn’t that too much? Will the elders agree?”

“With you, the Zhengs have a handful of cultivators, but we’ve never managed to grow. To become a true cultivation family, founding a city is essential. Among our younger generation, your talent is the best—you’d be our top pick for the academy. Don’t worry, I’ll persuade them!”

Zheng Hongjun’s thoughts had already drifted from the notice, his gaze deepening.

In the homeland, the Zhengs of Zheng Kingdom were royalty. There were many more Zhengs than just Zheng Hongjun—a vast royal clan, with several already cultivating in the East Sea. But here in Donglai, the Zheng family was nothing—not even a proper cultivation family yet.

To become one, they would either have to produce a city lord and become independent, or serve as assistants to one and become a subordinate power.

Naturally, becoming a city lord was the best outcome. Any ambitious cultivator would dream of it. Yet, the path was so difficult that among thousands, only a handful ever succeeded.

“Your spiritual roots are excellent, and you have the courage to take risks—more driven than those who stayed behind in our homeland. We’ve been in the East Sea for decades and have little hope of advancing further, but you’re still young; your future will far outshine your uncles’. The whole Zheng family’s hopes rest on you.

“I’ll support you with everything I have. If you graduate in the top ten and become an official city lord, establishing a Zheng Immortal Village, you’ll be the pride of our clan for generations.”

Zheng Hongjun’s eyes brimmed with expectation as he looked at Zheng Yiqing.

“Thank you for your guidance, Uncle. I will become a city lord and found the Zheng Immortal Village! If I succeed, I will never forget the kindness of my uncles,” Zheng Yiqing said, struggling to contain his excitement.