Dragon Heart. Land Of Magic. LitRPG Wuxia Saga. Book 6

Mentor Jean looked at the disciples knowingly. It had taken them only a few minutes to realize that joining 'The Holy Sky' School wasn't a blessing that had been granted to them by the Heavens themselves, but only the beginning of a difficult and complicated path.

In the entire history of the School, there were only a few thousand ordinary disciples who had been able to rise from the bottom and become fully-fledged disciples. One hundred and seventy of those had made it to the rank of inner circle disciples and... none had become personal or core disciples. There were a great many reasons for this, and most of them had little to do with a disciple's power.

"Now let's go to the Hall of Fame," he said, turning around and heading for the exit.

Hadjar and Einen hurried after him. Neither of them had taken anything from the first floor, unlike a lot of the others. Many had ignored Mentor Jean's advice. Some had spent all of their one hundred and fifty points on various ingredients, alchemical pills, and potions.

Judging by their appearance, these disciples were from distant provinces. Big fish in a small pond. Back home, they were considered geniuses, but here they were worthless commoners. Maybe Einen and Hadjar were the same. However, they had a lot of life experience and steely willpower hardened by countless battles. Hadjar, who had passed the crucible of war, might've had more military experience than all the other disciples here, except Einen.

After leaving the first floor, Hadjar already knew what goal he would work toward in the near future. All these pills, Techniques, and artifacts, if Hadjar understood anything about the Empire, were nothing compared to those on the next floor. That meant he needed to-

"We need to become fully-fledged disciples." Einen voiced his thoughts. "That's the only way we can get up to the other floors."

"You took the words right out of my mouth." Hadjar clapped his friend on the back and added, "I'm also sure that some of the lectures, training sessions, and practical demonstrations can only be attended if you have the required token."

"Makes sense." Einen replied.

The islander was silent once again. He liked pondering, and while he was pondering, he hated being distracted by idle talk. Hadjar sometimes appreciated this and sometimes he hated it.

They walked down another yellow stone road and found themselves in front of a tall building. It had white stone walls, multicolored stained glass windows, and a marble porch. 'The Holy Sky' School was clearly not poor.

Mentor Jean, as always, was the first to enter. The interior was filled with an abundance of velvet, gold, carpets from the Sea of Sand, armour from various cultures, and other luxurious things. And once again, there were no people here.

"The six days of exams are always a holiday," Jean explained. "The disciples either take advantage of their unrestricted access to the city or seclude themselves in solitary meditation. Well, as you've noticed, many also attend the training sessions and lectures they can. The parade grounds usually aren't that busy."

"The ones they can?" Hadjar asked.

He already knew the answer, but he wanted to confirm his guess.

"Yes, young warrior, that's right." Hadjar was the only one whom Jean turned and looked in the eye. "You need to have a high enough status to access the upper library floors, as well as to attend classes. Actually, you'll see your schedule in the hall of Knowledge. That's where we're going next."

They went through many corridors and found themselves in a wide hall. The floor was decorated with various drawings, the ceiling was very high, and a huge number of stands stood on either side. Parchment and paper sheets were attached to them:

Training (12) by Master Dai Sho — only available to fully-fledged and inner circle disciples. 600 Glory points.

Lecture (7) 'The Art of War' by Mentor Bagini — only available to inner circle disciples. 999 Glory points.

…

"The numbers in brackets are the number of lectures or training sessions," Jean explained.

Hadjar, along with the others, continued to study the list carefully. As he had previously suspected, no lectures or training were provided for the ordinary disciples. The most expensive, of course, were the lectures that concerned artifacts and alchemy. However, despite the high price tags, they were many who wanted to attend them. About a hundred people were interested in the six spots one Mentor was offering.

"Well, let's go take a look at what you're all undoubtedly interested in," Mentor Jean half-smiled, like a circus barker, and moved on to the next room. "Welcome to the Hall of Fame!"

This room was almost identical to the Hall of Knowledge. There were also various stands with parchment and paper sheets attached to them in here as well. But instead of specifying how many Glory points were required, they explained how many Glory points you could get:

The core of an Air element monster no weaker than the middle of the King Stage — 65 Glory points

Ten kilos of Moon Metal — 105 Glory points

An artifact at the Heaven level — 45 Glory points

One kilogram of the Sliding Drops Glass — 12 Glory points

…

The lists were huge. In fact, Glory points could be obtained for any tangible benefit that a disciple brought to the school. So, the process of learning here was more like an exchange. A disciple gave something to the school, and the school gave something back to the disciple. Such rules were in accord with the principles of the world of martial arts, where nothing was free.

"Why is everything so cheap here while the prices in the Tower are incredibly steep?" One of the disciples protested.

His outraged tone kindled a spark of discontent in Jean's eyes, but the Mentor quickly extinguished it. He was walking on a razor's edge. Many of his colleagues were just waiting for a chance to expel Jean. Maybe no one would normally protest if he turned an impudent ordinary disciple into a cripple, but he wouldn't risk it in his current situation.

"If you don't like it, disciple, you can return your token and leave."

That was Jean's answer. At first, the young man wanted to argue, but he stopped. A person had to be an idiot to argue with a man whose aura, even hidden, could take the life of a mere mortal.

The disciples spent more time studying the lists. There were some items here that could earn one thousands of Glory points or more. For example, the core of a Lord Stage beast, which was equal to a human at the Lord level in strength. Or bringing back an Imperial level Technique or an artifact at the same level. Or the root of a Star River Flower older than fifty thousand years. This plant alone granted the amount necessary to take the exam to become a fully-fledged disciple. The higher the reward, the crazier the demands. However, this didn't bother Hadjar or Einen. On the contrary, there were half-mad smiles on their faces. If the rarest Techniques, ingredients, monsters, and artifacts were listed here, then all of them, with due diligence and luck, could be found within the territory of the Empire!

"We'll soon reach the area where the ordinary disciples live. Our introductory lecture ends there. You'll have to find out the rest on your own. The motto of 'The Holy Sky' School is: 'The strongest of weapons tempers itself!'"

Hadjar chuckled. The school provided an opportunity, but wasn't responsible for the results. Just like a casino: maybe someone would win a large sum, but the house always won in the end. The cursed world of martial arts was consistent…

They came out of the building, first walking along a paved road, then a path. The farther they went, the more wild and unkempt the place became. The mown grass gave way to weeds, the neat gardens to woods, and the plains and parade grounds to endless hills and pits. Half an hour later, they arrived at the edge of the clearing. It was clear that someone cut the trees here often and thoroughly.

"This is where the ordinary disciples live," Jean said.

"Where?" One of the disciples asked him confusedly.

"Wherever you want," the Mentor shrugged. "This is the Forest of Knowledge. It's the territory of the ordinary disciples. This is where we part ways."

Before he left, Jean added:

"I hope all of you survive today."

After those parting words, the disciples tensed. Hadjar and Einen, who'd already gone through a similar trial in Underworld City, drew their weapons. Soon enough, other holders of silver tokens began to emerge from behind the trees. They were armed, wearing ragged, old clothes, their eyes burning with excitement and greed.

"Newbies!" A tall, broad-shouldered man of about… forty appeared in front of them. Apparently, he'd joined the school a long time ago. "We're happy to welcome you to our friendly ranks. Don't be afraid, Jean is always messing with everyone. No one will harm you in the Forest of Knowledge."

The others breathed a sigh of relief, but Hadjar and Einen didn't sheathe their weapons. They didn't like the look of this.

"Let me explain the rules." The giant of a man said. "In this forest, everyone is on their own. You can cut down any trees you like, and as many as you like. They'll grow again in a week. Using that wood, you can build a house, or even a palace if you have enough skill. 'The Holy Sky' School has several territories in the vicinity of the capital assigned to it. That's what the Schools are fighting for."

The more the giant spoke, the more worried Hadjar became. In this world, information was an invaluable resource, and no one ever shared it just like that…

"There are six such areas, but, alas, we ordinary disciples are only allowed to enter the Forest of Shadows and the Valley of Swamps. There isn't a lot of prey there, but if you aren't lazy, you'll earn enough to pay for your studies." The giant chuckled. "That's everything. You can ask for a map of the area in the Glory Tower. They'll give you one for free."

"Thank you!"

"Thank you very much!"

"We owe you!"

"Oh, don't thank me," the man said, waving his hand dismissively. "You see, this information isn't free, and it costs... all the Glory points you have. I forgot to say that if you take someone else's token, you can transfer all the Glory points from it to yours. For this bit of information, I'll charge you... forty more points."

Those who'd come out of the forest laughed, but the newcomers murmured nervously.

"But you said you couldn't touch us here," a girl said timidly.

"Yes, that's right. However, you'll have to go hunt for Glory points sooner or later, and that's where the rules don't prohibit fights."

The forty-year-old man stood there, looking at the group of children who'd once considered themselves blessed by the Heavens. Every year, it gave him great p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e to pull this trick off. Seeing the faces of these 'geniuses' lowered in meek submission was an amazing feeling. In addition, even after the points were divided between him and all his helpers, it was still a very profitable venture. No one had ever refused before…

"Have a good day and thanks for the instructions." Two newcomers, one bald and the other shaggy and with ornaments in his hair, saluted and went into the forest.

Both the old-timers and newcomers alike were taken aback by their impudence. They watched the two friends leave in absolute silence.

"Where should we go first, my friend?" The baldy asked. "The Forest or the Swamps?"

"I don't know," the other shrugged. "But I think we'll find someone willing to part with their lives and their tokens in both places."

"I don't doubt it, my barbarian friend, I don't doubt it."

They both laughed in a horrid, demonic manner.