Chapter 156: Life 68, Age 25, Martial Master 1
Over the following weeks, while I spent my mornings in classes learning how to teach Disciples, most of my time was spent in the soul cultivation library.
The Academy’s technique library contained several small rooms, and its contents were carefully partitioned so that someone who was granted access to Rank 1 martial fire techniques could only view those specific techniques. If one wanted to look at a different Rank, technique type, or element, they would need to pay separately for access to each different room.
In contrast, the soul cultivation library was a large, open building with dozens of bookshelves, tables where students could study, and small private reading rooms. Every soul cultivation technique the school offered and all the related philosophical texts were available freely to anyone taking the right courses.
From what I could tell, four classes other than ours were studying soul cultivation. This led to the library being busy, but there were more than enough books to go around. There were at least a hundred different volumes for each of the four paths Instructor Yuan had introduced us to.
While my classmates and I all studied at the same table, we silently agreed not to comment on the books anyone else read. This was to prevent us from influencing the path that others would choose to walk.
As for myself, while I was in the Nine Rivers Sect, I took the Test of Soul as a Grandmaster and was able to pass with ease. This was clear evidence that my soul was far stronger than it needed to be for the moment, so I could and would take as much time as I needed before making any decision about how to proceed.
Even after copying every available text on soul cultivation into my mental library, I remained in the Academy’s library to show any watchers how seriously I was taking this decision. If I had returned to my room and used my mental library to peruse these books in private, any spies would have certainly misunderstood my actions. Without knowing who may be watching or why they were doing so, I had to be careful with the narrative I crafted for them.
The four paths that the school advocated were all interesting in their own unique way. The more I read, the more I came to understand the underlying principles of these different philosophies and how they would guide a cultivator’s actions.
I felt as if these different paths had some connection to the different tiers of cultivation. The Daoist ideal of separating oneself from the mortal world in the pursuit of cultivation and enlightenment seemed to mesh well with the Warrior Tier. The Legalist notions of everything benefiting those in charge fit with the Ruler Tier. The Traditionalist concepts of ritual and filial piety could easily be connected to the Bloodline Tier. I had no notion of what was above Bloodline, but the name ‘Saint’ had implications that could connect it to the Universalists.