Chapter 487: Chapter 13 Li Yao! I’m Coming to the Academic Palace_3
This Thousand Autumn Hall, accompanying generation after generation of Academic Palace disciples, has also witnessed countless disciples evolving from insignificant figures to influential individuals.
Outside the Thousand Autumn Hall.
There is a huge square paved with thick bluestone. On one side of the square, a large beast stable is built.
The stables are designed to accommodate the mounts of Academic Palace disciples. For a small amount of study points, mounts are professionally fed and taken care of. Students who do not own mounts can rent Spirit Mounts from the stables in their quests to complete tasks or visit home, which make their journeys faster.
The variety of beast mounts ranges from the majestic and elegant spirit horses of all kinds to the gigantic and stable spirit cows of various colors, including camels, elephants, and even turtles, as well as the extremely rare flying mounts.
Each spiritual platform and sect occupy vast territories scattered throughout the Sacred Mountain. Ordinary horses can’t adapt to complex terrains nor do they meet the speed demands of Academic Palace disciples. Due to these reasons, Spirit Beast mounts have become their first choice for travel.
However, the price of spirit beast mounts is prohibitive, making them unaffordable for most disciples.
Under such circumstances, Academic Palace disciples can rent spirit beast mounts from their school. One study point allows a month-long rental, which can save a lot of time.
However, some student disciples are so strapped for cash that they can’t even afford to rent a spirit mount, leaving them with no choice but to rely on their own movement techniques to travel.
Lu Xianghui hails from a small and insignificant 9th Rank Aristocratic Family in Guard City.
After hundreds of years of development, the land within Guard City is home to many prominent families. The lowest-ranking families fight a hard battle for survival due to entrenched class structures and clearly allocated interests. Most of these lesser families are somewhat reliant on 8th Rank families and act as part of their production chains, taking charge of planting and supplying raw materials in order to survive.
Similarly, the 8th Rank families are often dependent on 7th Rank families, forming a part of their production chains.
This clear hierarchical structure leads to distinct higher and lower classes.
For lower-ranking families to climb the social ladder, it’s significantly more challenging than in remote cities like Changning.
Therefore, for many lesser families, the Academic Palace becomes a path to prominence. If someone from their family manages to secure a high position in the Academic Palace, the entire family will have more opportunities for social mobility.
Since he was little, Lu Xianghui had an outstanding bloodline talent and ranked at the peak of lower Class A. Due to this, his family scrimped and saved to provide whatever support they could to cultivate him.
Fortunately, Lu Xianghui didn’t disappoint everyone’s hopes. Four years ago, he made his way through the selections in Guard City and passed successfully. Later, he passed the retest in Purple Abode Academic Palace, becoming an honored general student in the Academic Palace.
Lu Xianghui used his movement technique to traverse the steep mountain road at an impressive speed.
Every stride he took covered several yards, his body dragging along a faint blue shadow.
This was a top-quality movement technique of the Tian Lake School from the Purple Abode Academic Palace – the Water flow shadow method.
This wasn’t a speed-based technique but when practiced to a high degree, it could make one appear formless like flowing water, even creating illusory shadows of running water – an incredibly powerful method of movement.
In the years since enrolling in the Academic Palace, Lu Xianghui worked hard to cultivate while also actively taking on tasks from the school. From running errands to the simple tasks of tilling, harvesting, and repairing spirit fields, he earned about thirty to forty study points per year.
However, don’t underestimate these thirty to forty study points. In accordance with the value of the Academic Palace study points, each point is worth about ten Qian Gold. Lu Xianghui managed to secure a foothold in the school with his study points and the annual allowance of about 200 Qian Gold provided by his family.
In addition, he saved some study points to exchange for Tian Lake School’s Qi Refining Chapter of the True Verses of Primordial Water and the first two layers of the Water flow shadow method and Spirit Shield techniques.
At his current rate, he is expected to complete the long road of Qi Refinement by the age of 38 or 39, and then eligible to apply for breakthrough materials like the Heavenly Spirit Pill from the school.
Of course, this precious breakthrough supply won’t be granted for free, and the Academic Palace offers it on credit in the form of study points. But once reaching the Spirit Platform Realm and significantly improving his abilities, earning study points should be easier and he should eventually be able to pay off the debt.
By then, he would be able to discreetly support the development of his family. As his family continues to prosper, the support they can provide him would increase, creating a virtuous cycle.
Consequently, Lu Xianghui’s life at the school is filled with ambition and drive.
Among various tasks, he enjoyed taking on errand tasks the most, as they compensated him while simultaneously helping him to practice his Water flow shadow method.
Since Tian Lake School is quite a distance away from the Thousand Autumn Hall, his fellow students often asked him to take care of their errands when they want to exchange something.
When he was seven or eight yards away from the Thousand Autumn Hall’s square, Lu Xianghui’s speed suddenly surged, and a long light blue water-like shadow was drawn out as he landed steadily on the thick bluestone floor.
Lu Xianghui exhaled deeply, revealing a satisfied smile. After more than two years of diligent practice, he had fully mastered the first layer of the water flow shadow method. Now, his focus would shift to practicing the second layer, which would enhance his speed for errand-running.
“Lu Junior Brother, congratulations. Not only has your cultivation base reached the mid-level of the seventh rank in Qi refinement, but you’ve also mastered the first layer of the water flow shadow method,” a tall and robust young man not too far off spoke cheerfully.