darknovel Chapter 7 The landlord's family had no surplus grain
Chapter 7 The landlord's family had no surplus grain
Shen Qing nodded in satisfaction, then turned around and wrote the characters for "heaven and earth" on the blackboard again.
"Today, we'll learn these two characters."
An hour later, the literacy lesson ended.
These two simple characters are written crookedly by most people, barely legible by a few, but Zhong Xiu's are the most neat.
After lunch break, we went to the back mountain of Qingyun.
Thirty-odd disciples, carrying hoes and shovels, stood in front of a large expanse of wasteland, looking at each other in bewilderment.
"Sect Master, what is this...?"
"Clearing the land".
Shen Qing spoke succinctly, pointing to the twenty-acre plot of wasteland before him: "From today onward, every afternoon, all disciples will cultivate this wasteland. Turn the soil, remove weeds, break up stones, and draw water. I will work alongside you."
Wang Ergou scratched his head: "Sect Master, we came here to cultivate immortality, why are we farming?"
"Yes, Sect Master, what's the use of farming?"
Shen Qing did not rush to answer.
He bent down, picked up a stone, and weighed it in his hand.
"Do you know why the truly powerful figures in the cultivation world can stand atop the clouds?"
No one answered.
"Because they endure hardship."
Shen Qing tossed the stone aside. "You think cultivating immortality is just about meditating and chanting scriptures? You're wrong! Cultivating immortality is defying the heavens, it's fighting against fate. You can't even cultivate a few acres of land, you can't even endure this little hardship, what do you have to fight for?"
Shen Qing patted the dirt off his hands: "This wasteland is the first test I'm giving you. Clear it out, grow crops, and become self-sufficient. This is your first step in establishing yourself in the Qingyun Sect. It's also the first hurdle on your path of cultivation."
"I will not force anyone. Those who want to stay, stay; those who don't, you can leave now."
Perhaps the disciples couldn't accept the idea that immortals still needed to farm, and for nearly a quarter of an hour, not a single one of them moved, nor did anyone choose to leave.
Just as Shen Qing was feeling uneasy, thinking that he had been too hasty, Wang Ergou was the first to pick up a hoe and stride into the wasteland.
"The sect leader is right! If you can't even farm, what kind of immortality are you trying to achieve? I, Er Gouzi, have been carrying bags at the docks for ten years, what am I afraid of?"
As soon as he made that move, the others followed suit.
Seeing this, Shen Qing immediately took a bite, picked up a hoe, and walked into the wasteland.
He didn't stand by and give orders; instead, he worked alongside his disciples, putting in real effort.
The hoe fell, the soil turned up, sweat and dust mingled together, and the dignified leader of the sect worked harder than anyone else.
True leadership is never about words.
It was achieved through hard work.
By evening, everyone was exhausted and had aches and pains.
But Shen Qing noticed that no one complained.
It's not because he's afraid, it's because he's doing it himself.
Dinner consisted of coarse grain porridge and mixed flour pancakes, which everyone devoured.
After dinner, during evening class time.
Shen Qing stood on the podium, his gaze sweeping over the tired but spirited faces below.
"During tonight's evening lesson, I have something to announce."
Shen Qing reached into his robes and took out a small porcelain bottle.
"This is a Qi Gathering Pill."
All eyes were fixed on the porcelain vase.
"Qi Gathering Pill, a pill used by Qi Refining stage cultivators to sense spiritual energy and break through bottlenecks. In the cultivation world, such a pill is worth at least ten low-grade spirit stones."
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd below.
Spirit stones—these things sound high-end and classy. Ten low-grade spirit stones! For ordinary people like them, that's an astronomical figure they wouldn't even dare to dream of.
Shen Qing's gaze fell on Wang Ergou.
"Wang Ergou".
Wang Ergou jumped to his feet: "Sect Master!"
"Since you joined the Qingyun Sect, you have recruited twelve disciples, and your Immortal Affinity Points rank first in the entire sect. I have said that Immortal Affinity Points can be exchanged for cultivation techniques, elixirs, and magic weapons. Today, I fulfill my promise."
Shen Qing stepped down from the podium and handed the porcelain bottle to Wang Ergou.
"This Qi Gathering Pill is yours."
Wang Ergou was completely dumbfounded.
He took the porcelain bottle with trembling hands and knelt down with a thud.
"Sect Master! From this day forward, my life, Wang Ergou's life, belongs to the Qingyun Sect! It belongs to you, Sect Master!"
Shen Qing helped him up and patted him on the shoulder.
"There's no need for that. You deserve it."
Shen Qing turned around and looked at the others.
"You all saw that? Immortal Affinity Points aren't just empty words. As long as you contribute to the sect, the sect will never treat you unfairly."
Everyone's eyes were red; it would be a lie to say they weren't jealous, but more than that, they were filled with longing.
Shen Qing pressed his advantage: "After the evening lessons, the top ten disciples in terms of Immortal Affinity Points will stay behind. I will personally guide your cultivation. The duration of the guidance will be determined by your Immortal Affinity Points—from a quarter of an hour to half an hour."
"Now, let's begin tonight's evening class."
After the evening class, the ten disciples stayed behind.
As the senior disciple of the sect, Zhao Shitou had the highest affinity with immortality and received half an hour of private guidance.
Shen Qing explained to him the parts of the revised version of "Qingyun Qi Guiding Technique" that were suitable for him.
Zhao Shitou listened with rapt attention, and his eyes were red when he left.
Then there's Lin Xiaoyue, Chen Gou Dan, Wang Er Gou...
When it was Zhong Xiu's turn, Shen Qing only gave her fifteen minutes.
It's not because her affinity with immortals is low; it's because her affinity with immortals is indeed not high. She didn't bring anyone along, nor did she take the initiative to show off.
Shen Qing could certainly make an exception and teach her more, but he didn't.
Shen Qing felt that winning over this proud and arrogant girl's heart would be difficult with just special care.
A genius like her being treated specially might actually breed contempt.
Shen Qing's guidance, delivered in a quarter of an hour, was concise and to the point, each sentence hitting the nail on the head regarding the key to cultivation. Zhong Xiu listened in silence for a long time.
As she was leaving, she suddenly turned back.
"Sect Master, is the only way to gain Immortal Affinity Points... by recruiting others?"
Shen Qing looked at her and smiled slightly.
"No. Recruiting others is just the fastest way. Besides that, you can also gain Immortal Affinity Points by breaking through cultivation barriers, making contributions to the sect, and completing sect missions."
Zhong Xiu nodded, turned and left.
A system prompt pops up:
[Disciple Zhong Xiu's loyalty +8, current loyalty: 68]
Shen Qing's lips curled up slightly; the proud and aloof girl was actually not difficult to get along with.
In the following days, life at Qingyun Sect returned to normal.
Early morning lessons, reading after meals, land clearing in the afternoon, and evening lessons after dinner.
The thirty-odd disciples spun around like tops, but no one complained of being tired.
Because Shen Qing was more tired than them.
He is the first to get up every day and the last to rest.
He gave the morning lessons, taught literacy, led the land reclamation work, and personally guided the evening lessons. By the end of the day, he was more tired than if he had spent the entire day in ascetic practice.
But Shen Qing had to grit his teeth and persevere. He knew very well that everything is difficult at the beginning. As long as he could get through this crucial beginning, the rules would be established, people's hearts would be won over, and loyalty would be secured.
The system's feedback was even faster than he had expected.
On the fifth day, during literacy class, Wang Ergou wrote the characters "人之初，性本善" (At the beginning of life, people are inherently good) in a crooked and messy hand. Shen Qing praised him in front of everyone.
At that moment, Wang Ergou's loyalty level jumped from 85 to 90.
On the seventh day, Su Xiaomei's hands developed blisters while clearing the land, and Shen Qing personally applied medicine to them.
The little girl cried her eyes out, and her loyalty level jumped from 78 to 88.
On the tenth day, Shen Qing left behind the top three disciples with the highest Immortal Affinity Points after evening class and gave each of them an extra bowl of meat porridge as a midnight snack.
After the news spread, the competition for Immortal Affinity Points intensified.
Zhongxiu's loyalty level also reached 75.
Her cultivation level also quietly broke through to the second level of Qi Refining.
It is still the fastest in the entire clan, and it is still unknown to anyone except Shen Qing.
Everything is developing in a good direction.