Chapter 9 – Little Stone Pool Village
Little Stone Pool Village, beside the primal hearth.
"Brother Lin, you've come a long way and may not know much about our village."
The two of them sat warming themselves by the fire. Tian Sheng began his introduction: "We have three Second-Turn Transcendent Cultivators in the village—the old village head, Talisman Master Jiang, and the Commander-in-Chief."
These three powerhouses are the village's greatest guarantee of safety, but apart from the village head the other two rarely show themselves.
Levels 1–10 are First Revolution, 11–20 Second Turn, and so on; that's how cultivation ranks work in this gameworld.
As everyone knows, NPCs can't grind mobs and level up like players, so the locals have to rely on cultivating techniques to break through realms and grow stronger.
Yet cultivation demands aptitude—talent.
Most natives simply don't have it, so they're stuck at level 1 for life, like the Spirit-rootless mortals in novels who can never enter Qi Refinement.
The Refugees who had traveled with Lin An were mostly such people.
Those who do possess cultivation aptitude are collectively called cultivators.
Still, before level 10 a cultivator is only a potentially gifted mortal; only upon reaching Second Turn does one truly step into the Transcendent ranks.
'Little Stone Pool Village's security force is divided into four teams.'
Captain Tian looked at Lin An and went on: "The Hunting Team, the Scout Team, the Patrol Team, and the Guard Team. The Patrol and Guard Teams keep order inside the village, so they're relatively safe."
"The Hunting and Scout Teams hunt for food and gather resources; the Iron Fist Rabbit is one of the beasts we hunt most often."
"We also have to investigate and clear out any strange Evil Spirits that might threaten the village. It's dangerous, but the pay is correspondingly higher."
Hearing this, Lin An fell into thought.
If he wanted to kill monsters and level up, joining the Hunting Team was clearly the best choice.
But in this game death meant deletion of the character and wiping of memories—the price was simply too steep for a player to ignore the risks and charge in recklessly.
"No need to answer me now."
Tian Sheng seemed to sense Lin An's hesitation and said gently, "This kind of decision needs careful consideration. Even if you don't join a team, there are plenty of other jobs in the village."
"It's just that those jobs pay little; for a cultivator it would be a bit of a waste of talent."
While they were chatting, a militiaman hurried over.
"Captain Tian, Master Jiang sent me with a message."
"Oh?"
Tian Sheng was slightly surprised and asked, "What does the Talisman Master want?"
"Master Jiang heard there's a Pseudo-human corpse here. He's quite interested in the material and is willing to trade an opportunity to study a skill manual for it."
"A Pseudo-human corpse is worth that much?"
Tian Sheng looked astonished, then turned to Lin An and said, "Though our Library Pavilion doesn't have many arts, some of those skills are quite useful."
"I remember the most expensive manual costs three thousand Ruin Coins just to study once—that's my whole month's salary."
"Of course, I'm not sure of the corpse's exact value, so whether to trade is entirely up to you, Brother Lin."
Lin An didn't hesitate; he simply nodded in agreement.
After all, dissecting the Pseudo-human would only yield a single pseudo-core, whereas a usable skill was obviously far better than a one-off item.
A guard took the corpse back to report, and Tian Sheng led Lin An toward the Library Pavilion.
The Library Pavilion was not far from the primal hearth.
To be precise, every important place—school, clinic, and so on—was built close to the primal hearth, the core of the settlement.
Thus, in moments they arrived at what looked like a library.
"Books on the first floor can be read free of charge; the schoolteacher often brings children here. They're mostly histories, arithmetic, and works on cultivation and Evil Spirits."
"Starting from the second floor you need certain permissions; most people must apply in advance."
As he spoke Tian Sheng chuckled, "But I still have some face, so Brother Lin can come straight in this time."
Lin An nodded in thanks.
Yet his gaze swept over the first-floor books; he lacked common knowledge about this world, and the interface could only supply so much. If he had the chance he'd come here to read more.
Not only would it deepen his understanding of this Transcendent world, it would also help prevent accidentally exposing his identity as a player.
On the second floor the collection was noticeably smaller, and every book was protected by a transparent cover of unknown material.
"Skill manuals differ from ordinary books; they carry the intent left by their creators."
"Each reading consumes a portion of that intent, which is why manuals are so precious."
Tian Sheng looked at Lin An and continued, "Brother Lin, while higher-grade manuals give better effects, they're also harder to comprehend."
"So know your limits—you only get one chance."
"I myself have read many of these skills more than once, yet truly mastered only a few."
"Thanks for the advice, Captain Tian."
Lin An nodded to show he understood.
But inwardly he opened his interface and searched for the conditions players needed to learn skills.
[After reading a manual once, a player can consume part of its intent to gain quick entry-level proficiency.]
[Further improvement can come from practice or by consuming more of the manual's intent.]
Perfect—as expected of the Fourth Calamity!
Lin An kept his lips from curling in delight as he scanned the descriptions above the manuals.
[Sprint – Common grade: briefly increases movement speed.]
[Berserk – Fine grade: lowers Spirit, greatly boosts constitution and primal power, but induces weakness afterward.]
[Raging-Fire Spear Art – Fine grade…]
Skills, like gear, are divided into five grades: Common, Fine, Superior, Excellent, Perfect.
But unlike equipment, manuals have no realm tiers such as First Revolution or Second Turn.
Most of the pavilion's manuals were Common or Fine. After reading every description, Lin An finally stopped before one tome.
[Tiger-Bird Technique
Grade: Superior!
Effect 1 – Passive: strengthens kidneys and bones; as proficiency rises the player's immunity, bone density, and stamina increase.
Effect 2 – Active: like a tiger possessed, greatly boosts constitution and combat power; at higher proficiency can expend energy to briefly beastify organs or even fully transform into a tiger!