Duosheng Danyuan

Despite the complaints, it's undeniable that this treacherous Qian Zhe has provided us with some additional information.

"Why were Chen Yu and Wang Hao able to sit down immediately after asking their questions without any problems, but Qian Zhe had to say 'thank you'? It's impossible that Elder Huaizhen was deliberately picking on Qian Zhe. Could it be that this is the key to judging whether our questions are important?"

Just as I was pondering this, Tang Anran also began asking questions: "Then, are we two in the same safe situation as the other eight?"

"Tsk." Upon hearing Tang Anran's question, Elder Huaizhen clicked his tongue in displeasure once again.

"Wh-how..." The timid Tang Anran was about to speak again when Zeng Yixi grabbed her wrist, signaling her to shut up.

"I told you, I hate people who try to be clever. Too bad it's you... Oh well. Your situation is quite different from the other eight, though one of them is somewhat similar to you. As for safety, heh... in the Shengdan Academy, no one is safe."

"Thanks..."

"..." This silence lasted much longer than before, but Huai Zhen didn't urge us, as if he was waiting for us to digest the information in his words.

"Then, can we escape from here?" Zhang Muyun asked.

"I don't know," Huai Zhen blurted out without even lifting her eyelids.

"......Thanks."

"Yesterday we were still in the Qi Refining stage, and today after passing the 'Heart Refining and Purification Pool,' we're already in the Foundation Establishment stage. Isn't that too fast?" Zeng Yixi asked.

"Too fast? I think... a bit slow. This cultivation speed is normal in the Shengdan Academy, so there's no need to worry."

"..."

"Aren't you going to sit down?"

Hearing Elder Huaizhen's urging, Zeng Yixi slowly sat down.

"..." Then another moment of silence.

"Anyone else have questions? If not, we can begin the lesson."

Hearing Elder Huaizhen say this, I glanced at Xie Qinghan at the four-person table. She was sitting upright in her seat, showing no intention of asking any questions.

Seeing that Elder Huaizhen was about to speak again, I quickly raised my hand, stood up and said, "When I first learned about the name 'Refining Heart Purification Pool,' I noticed that the prefixes of 'Refining Heart Hall' and 'Refining Heart Purification Pool' were the same, as if there was some kind of connection. Later, after listening to Elder Jianshan's words, I also discovered that 'Refining Heart Purification Pool' seems to be a kind of screening for disciples. Finally, through your explanation just now, Elder, I discovered that 'Refining Heart Purification Pool' seems to have some kind of punishment for those who do not pass."

However, what I want to ask is not what they are, but whether they exist.

So, my question is, does punishment actually exist in the "Purification Pool of the Mind"?

"..." I remained silent, and I noticed that Elder Huaizhen's gaze was full of hostility, which made me feel very uneasy.

After a while, Elder Huaizhen clicked his tongue and said, "There is a punishment for existence."

"..."

"Thank you?"

"Thank you." After saying that, I sat back down and gave Su and Lin a look.

Understanding immediately, Su Wanqing stood up and asked, "Is there a connection between the 'Heart-Refining Purification Pool' and the Heart-Refining Hall?"

"..." Elder Huaizhen's hostility towards Su Wanqing was even stronger than when he had looked at me earlier, but to my surprise, Su Wanqing did not seem to be frightened. He sighed and then said, "There is a connection."

"..."

"Thank you?"

"Thanks."

Finally, Lin Xu stood up and asked, "Is there a selection process for disciples within the 'Heart Refining Pool'?"

"No filtering is available."

"..."

"..."

Seeing that Elder Huaizhen did not speak, Lin Xu sat down awkwardly.

In the end, out of the ten of us, only Xie Qinghan remained without asking any questions.

"Elder Huaizhen, how dare you harm us at will?"

"...cannot."

"Thanks."

After asking her question, Xie Qinghan sat down, her expression intriguing—neither composed nor timid, but a strange one that defied description. Perhaps "conflicted" would suffice.

"Alright, all the questions are over. Let's begin the formal lesson. Oh dear, I didn't expect Lao Busi to actually find a treasure. A rough gem, a rough gem. A sharp sword is easily broken if it's too sharp, and a rough gem that's too dazzling will make people covet it..." While grumbling, Elder Huaizhen took out twenty booklets from his sleeve. With a flick of his sword finger, two booklets were placed on each of our desks.

Before we officially begin the class, I'd like to mention a few things to keep in mind.

First, your innate attributes have all been calculated at the 'Heart Refining Pool' and, after verification by the current sect leader, you can begin practicing advanced techniques. However, this means that before the sect leader verifies your talents, you will still need to practice beginner-level techniques here, which is what we commonly refer to as the first training cycle.

Secondly, my name is Huaizhen, and I have no surname. I sincerely wish that everyone here will also be surnameless in the future. My current cultivation level is at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. I will discuss the classification of cultivation levels in this lesson.

Thirdly, and finally. The two booklets before you, one is about theoretical knowledge of cultivation. There's not much to say about this book; just follow along with me. The other is extremely important; it's the cultivation code of the Sheng Dan Academy disciples. It contains many rules, each one inviolable and unquestionable. You must remember them carefully. There's no need to be so nervous. After the Foundation Establishment stage, the potential of your primordial spirits has been fully unleashed; photographic memory is just commonplace.

"..."

"Alright, I've covered everything you need to know. Now, let's begin class."

As Elder Huaizhen summoned the chalk and began writing on the blackboard, we all noticed that above his head, in the center of the blackboard, a series of rules began to appear, just as they had yesterday at the Jingxi Lodge.

——Refining Heart Hall: Basic Rules——

Rule 1: Within the Refining Heart Hall, cultivation is at your own pace, techniques are arbitrary, effects follow, and success or failure is random.

Rule Two: The weak are born with original sin in the face of survival, and all fear stems from insufficient firepower.

Rule 3: The techniques taught by the teachers are all subjects that are strictly conducted in accordance with the regulations of the Shengdan Academy.

Rule Four: Knowledge may be acquired in stages, skills may be specialized, and those who have reached the pinnacle are teachers. The techniques taught by teachers are all based on their own unparalleled abilities.

Rule Five: Where there's a will, there's a way. Sincerity leads to success.

Rule Six: One who possesses both a complete and perfect three souls and seven spirits can be called a human; one who is soulless, broken, and incomplete is considered a true being. Defying Heaven is true; following Heaven is human.

Rule Seven: If you are full of energy and spirit, please earnestly seek the Dao from the elders. The Refining Heart Hall never wants you to be as useless as ordinary people, but only hopes that you can refine your heart and become a true immortal.

——Divider——

Another set of rules appeared, and after reading it carefully, I began to ponder its deeper meaning.

Elder Huaizhen is right. As a Foundation Establishment cultivator, my memory of things seems to have undergone a tremendous change compared to when I was an ordinary person. Looking at the Refining Heart Hall rules in front of me, I can easily imagine the Quiet Breath Pavilion rules in my mind and start comparing the two sets of rules out of thin air.

First and foremost, the most undeniable change is the prefix "basic" in the rules of the Refining Heart Hall. This indicates two things. First, the Refining Heart Hall definitely has more rules, but it's unclear when they will appear—perhaps triggered by certain conditions, or perhaps they will have to wait until a specific time. Second, the rules of the Tranquil Rest Pavilion may not change further; otherwise, they should also follow the same format as the Refining Heart Hall's rules.

Secondly, the meaning conveyed by these rules is very subtle, even ambiguous. Compared to the traditional rules of Jingxilu that only require compliance, the rules of Lianxintang are more like hints; they hardly contain anything that we are required to follow.

Finally, there's the deeper meaning of each rule. It's clearly insufficient to interpret these rules literally. In the Quiet Abode, the rules explicitly state that family members are not allowed, yet a dream simulating family members still occurred. This shows that the rules aren't about things that can't happen, but rather things that shouldn't happen. When things that shouldn't happen do happen, we need to follow the rules to avoid the dangers they pose.

As I was pondering, Elder Huaizhen on the podium stopped writing with the chalk, turned around to face us, and said, "For today's first lesson, we will focus on explaining the definition of cultivation and the philosophy of the Shengdan Academy."

"It feels so familiar." For some reason, Elder Huaizhen's tone of voice reminded me of my easy-going professor in college.

"So-called cultivation is the process by which humans with spiritual roots absorb and exhale the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, retaining the essence of nature in their physical bodies to produce some wondrous changes. Most of these wondrous changes will enhance our physical bodies to a certain extent, but a very small number are purely side effects. The trouble is that even though the vast majority of changes are amplifications, due to the diversity of the changes themselves, the physical condition of each cultivator at the same level is extremely different, making it very inconvenient to pass on knowledge and skills, and there are simply no uniform rules to speak of."

As he spoke, Elder Huaizhen paused, circled the four characters "Peak Daoist" on the blackboard, and linked him to the "Primordial Era" and the "Hongmeng Era".

"However, all of this happened in the primordial era. At the end of the primordial era, the first ascendant of the Immortal Realm—the Peak Daoist—established the unified Heavenly Dao Immortal Path. From then on, cultivation had a broad and smooth road, which was also a sign of the beginning of the Primordial Era. Later, countless eras changed, and the cultivation paths other than the Heavenly Dao Immortal Path became increasingly obscure. Until today, when people talk about cultivation, they only think of this one path. The various heterodox paths have disappeared from the minds of cultivators."

As he spoke, Elder Huaizhen shook his head and drew a long horizontal line under a line of words on the blackboard.

"This is the Heavenly Dao Immortal Path, hailed as the orthodox path of the Immortal Realm. Its method of dividing realms has been remembered and adopted by all cultivators of later generations. Inhaling and exhaling spiritual energy is called Qi Refining; forming a Jade Palace is called Foundation Establishment; the Jade Palace transforms into a pill, which is called Core Formation; the pill is golden in color, which can be called Golden Core; breaking through the pill and emerging into an infant is called Nascent Soul; the Nascent Soul connects with the divine, which is called Deity Transformation; the two divine beings communicate with each other, which is called Body Integration; the two bodies communicate with each other, which is called Mahayana; above Mahayana, there is only Immortal Transformation; once you pass Immortal Transformation, thunder rises, people cross over, the body is tempered, the soul is refined, and then you ascend."

"..."

Seeing our silence, Elder Huaizhen grinned, sighed, and said, "The path to immortality is long, so watch your step. I have eight hundred years of cultivation and I am only at the Nascent Soul stage. You are all twelve or thirteen years old. There is plenty of time ahead. Perhaps one day you will comprehend the Great Dao? Who knows? Don't underestimate the potential of a young person."

For some reason, after Elder Huaizhen finished speaking, for a moment I genuinely felt that he was just an elder who imparted knowledge and skills, rather than a part of this strange world. Of course, it was just a fleeting feeling.

I will never forget the look in the eyes of this red-eyed elder when he first appeared, looking at Qian Zhe and Tang Anran who were lying on the ground. It was a greedy and unsatisfied look, as if a sadist who had committed a violent act was admiring the toys he had abused. It was cunning and ugly, cruel and insane.