Chapter 216: Chapter 213: Disturbance in the Cultivation Room (Part 1)
Standard Fighting Cultivation Rooms were divided into three levels of difficulty: high, medium, and low.
Each level had a limited number of rooms. If Imperial Academy disciples wished to use one, they generally needed to book it in advance.
But above the standard Fighting Cultivation Rooms, there were also three special-access rooms.
The cultivation effects of these three rooms were undoubtedly far superior to those of the standard ones.
What did "special-access" mean?
It meant they were specially provided for the use of disciples with exceptional talent.
So, what kind of disciple was classified as having exceptional talent?
It was simple: words were meaningless. Fists did all the talking.
Since these were Fighting Cultivation Rooms, whoever had the strongest fighting skills was qualified to use these three special-access rooms.
As a result, these three rooms didn’t require booking. Anyone who wanted to cultivate inside simply had to defeat the current occupant.
"Elder, may I ask which cultivation room is the best?" Mo Qi asked, looking at the Elder in charge of registration.
The registration Elder was a drowsy-looking middle-aged man, lying on a long bench with his eyes half-closed, appearing utterly lethargic.
Without lifting his head, he pointed at the tabletop in front of him. "You know the rules, don’t you? Register yourself and get in line. Come back when it’s your turn. Of course, you can also go inside and wait."
Mo Qi revealed the tattoo on his thumb. "Elder, someone told me that this lets me skip the registration process."
"Nonsense!" the middle-aged man waved his hand impatiently. "The Imperial Academy has strict rules. Even a Prince’s son would have to get in line. Either register or get lost!"
As he spoke, he glimpsed the Jade Ring tattoo on Mo Qi’s hand. His face went pale with shock. He tried to flip over but lost his balance and rolled right off the bench.
’My god, that’s... that’s the Empire’s Ring of Blessing!’
’That thing actually has an owner?!’
’Didn’t he say I could skip the formalities? Dammit, Li Shimu screwed me over again!’
Mo Qi gave a wry smile and turned to leave. He had already scanned the registration roster out of the corner of his eye. Even for the lowest-level cultivation rooms, the waiting list was a month long.
He didn’t have a month to waste.
Just as he was about to leave, a powerful force clamped down on his left wrist, holding him in place.
At some point, the registration Elder had appeared beside him.
He grabbed Mo Qi’s hand and carefully examined the Jade Ring tattoo.
"It’s real... It’s really real!"
The Elder let go of his hand and studied Mo Qi for a long moment.
"Go on in," the Elder said calmly, his expression returning to normal. "The farther back you go, the higher the grade of the cultivation room. Go pick one for yourself."
Mo Qi was overjoyed. ’Li Shimu didn’t lie to me after all!’
But that brought up another question.
"But aren’t they all full?" Mo Qi asked, confused. ’He doesn’t expect me to just stand around and wait, does he?’
The Elder chuckled. "They’re full for *other* people. But since you have that..."
The Elder gestured with his chin toward the ring tattoo. "...I can open one of the reserved high-level Cultivation Rooms for you."
Mo Qi was gloating internally. ’Having special privileges feels amazing!’
’No wonder so many people are obsessed with power and status.’
"Thank you, Elder," Mo Qi said, cupping one fist in his other hand.
The Elder smiled. "I’m just doing my duty."
With that, he lay back down on the bench and paid Mo Qi no further mind.
As Mo Qi walked into the Cultivation Area, the Elder’s eyes suddenly snapped open again.
’Did I forget to tell him something? About those last three rooms... Ah, whatever. He probably knows.’
...
The Cultivation Rooms were built into the mountainside, nestled between two peaks and divided into left and right wings.
A very wide path ran down the middle.
After Mo Qi entered, he found many people sitting cross-legged on both sides of the path.
There were at least a few disciples in front of nearly every Cultivation Room.
Mo Qi was startled and surprised at the same time. ’People really wait here?’
His arrival didn’t attract anyone’s attention. The others continued to go about their business, completely ignoring him.
Mo Qi wasn’t one to try and cozy up to a cold shoulder, so he ignored them in turn and headed deeper in, just as the Elder had told him.
Since the rooms got better the farther back he went, Mo Qi was naturally going to choose the very best one.
But when he reached the very end, he discovered there was more than just the reserved high-level Cultivation Rooms.
Beyond the high-level rooms were three more that looked even bigger and better.
’What’s this about?’
Mo Qi didn’t hesitate for long. He walked straight to the very end, stopping at the door of the largest and most luxurious Cultivation Room.
’Whatever. I have the Jade Ring, what’s there to be afraid of?’
’Besides, Li Shimu said all the facilities were open to me.’
’This is the one.’
Just as he was about to push the door open, the disciples who had been ignoring him all turned to stare in astonishment.
"Hold on!"
A youth dressed in white called out, stopping Mo Qi.
"Is there a problem?" Mo Qi asked, pausing.
"Do you know whose Cultivation Room this is?" the youth asked, surprised.
"Can these Cultivation Rooms be privately owned?" Mo Qi asked, even more surprised than the youth.
The information from the Jade Ring had clearly stated that the Cultivation Rooms were a public resource, to be used on a first-come, first-served, rotational basis.
"You’re new this year, aren’t you?" the youth asked, eyeing Mo Qi suspiciously.
"I am," Mo Qi nodded.
"That explains it. Let me tell you, these three rearmost rooms are special-access!"
The youth then went on to explain the details of the special-access rooms.
He finished with a warning, "Right now, these three rooms belong to the Young Prince of the Kaosan, the Mu Family Siblings, and the Eldest Princess of the Empire."
"Going in there now is basically a declaration of war against one of them. You know what the consequences will be."
Mo Qi paused. ’What do I know?’
’I don’t know anything!’
’What consequences could there possibly be?’
’It’s just a fight.’
’No big deal.’
"Thanks for the heads-up. Here, this is a little something for your trouble."
Mo Qi took out a Medicinal Pill and pressed it into the youth’s hand.
In any case, the youth had warned him out of goodwill, so Mo Qi felt he owed him a favor and had to show his appreciation.
The youth accepted the dark, lumpy pill, a look of confusion on his face.
’What is this thing?’
’It doesn’t look like an Elixir, and it’s not a Spirit Stone. It feels... springy.’
’It’s not a toy ball, is it?’
"Eat it if you’re ever seriously injured or trying to achieve a Breaking Realm," Mo Qi said, patting the youth’s shoulder. Then, under the crowd’s stunned gazes, he pushed open the door to the final room and walked inside.
The next second, the crowd erupted.
"He’s finished. That’s the Young Prince of the Kaosan’s Cultivation Room."
"The moment that door opened, the Young Prince of the Kaosan would have been notified. He’s a neat freak and hates it when anyone else uses his room. He’s definitely on his way here right now."
"A newborn calf doesn’t fear the tiger. This kid’s got guts!"
"Now we’ve got a good show to watch. I remember a few years ago, another new disciple who didn’t know his place insisted on using that room. The Young Prince of the Kaosan beat him so badly his Dantian was destroyed. It was a miserable sight!"
The youth in white casually tossed the Medicinal Pill aside, not taking Mo Qi’s words to heart.
He had warned Mo Qi out of a basic sense of decency, but that didn’t mean he trusted him.
Besides, he couldn’t bring himself to eat such a dark, lumpy thing.
