When Lin Xiao first arrived at the Cultivation Hall, he was surprised to find that only a few people were present. He wondered if the new disciples weren't very enthusiastic about their first day of cultivation lessons.
However, after scanning the living quarters with his spiritual sense, he realized the truth and couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
It seemed that the issue of not knowing how to do their hair was something they had overlooked. After all, everyone in the Lingxian Sect had been able to handle their own grooming. Even Mo Yuanjiao, who hailed from the prestigious Mo General's Manor in Pusi Kingdom, had been trained in basic self-care skills since childhood.
Thus, no one had thought this might be a problem.
As the disciples finally trickled in, Lin Xiao greeted them with a small smile and said, "Now that everyone is here, let's begin."
Once everyone had taken their seats, Lin Xiao lightly waved his hand, and from his sleeve, books flew out in all directions. The books landed gently on the desks of each new disciple.
"Today, we'll begin with this foundational technique," he said.
The disciples looked down and saw the title on the cover: Taoyuan Void Technique.
Even Baishu recognized it. Not because he had some miraculous encounter that allowed him to learn how to read during his thirteen years as a beggar, but because Lin Xiao and the others had anticipated this issue when they had planned for recruiting new disciples.
After all, it wouldn't be practical for every illiterate disciple to start by learning how to read before beginning their cultivation. That would put them behind their literate peers.
To minimize this gap, Lin Xiao had implemented a feature in the Path of Heart test. Within the dreamworld of the test, all illiterate disciples would automatically learn to read.
It wasn't meant to make them scholars, but simply to ensure they could recognize common characters, especially those found in the sect's techniques and manuals.
Thus, none of the new disciples were illiterate anymore.
Though, many of them hadn't realized this until they opened the book.
Baishu was one such disciple. When he first saw the title Taoyuan Void Technique, he froze in surprise, recognizing the words.
Only then did he realize he had learned to read during the Path of Heart trial.
Gratitude swelled within him. The sect hadn't looked down on him for being illiterate or for being a beggar. Instead, they had found a way to teach him in a dream.
Now, here he was, able to read, eat his fill, and live comfortably—things he could never have imagined in his previous life.
With his head lowered, Baishu reverently ran his hands over the book's cover, and following the sect master's instructions, he opened it to the first page.
Lin Xiao had chosen the Taoyuan Void Technique for this first lesson instead of techniques like the Benyuan Heart Sutra or others.
The reason was simple—this was the sect's first foundational technique, born from the quiet contributions of an elder, the Ten Miles Peach Blossom Tree.
In terms of grade, it was not low, and in terms of content, it was one of the easiest techniques in the sect to master. Lin Xiao believed it was the perfect choice for the new disciples' first introduction to cultivation.
Now that he was at the Nascent Soul stage, Lin Xiao was no longer the confused young man who had once struggled to understand the techniques. He sat gracefully at the front of the hall, explaining the first chapter of the Taoyuan Void Technique with ease to the new disciples.
Perhaps it was due to the vastly increased spiritual energy concentration within the sect, or maybe it was because they had a Nascent Soul cultivator as their lecturer, but by the end of the morning, a few of the new disciples were already showing faint signs of beginning to draw spiritual energy into their bodies.
Though none of them had successfully achieved this yet, the mere hint of progress made Lin Xiao extremely pleased.
The faster the disciples progressed, the faster the sect could develop, after all.
In his excitement, Lin Xiao extended the lesson, carefully emphasizing the process of drawing spiritual energy into the body before finally announcing the end of the class.
Outside the Cultivation Hall, Liu Yunan and Hu Liang had been waiting for some time. When the new disciples finally emerged, they wasted no time in ushering them back to the straw huts.
As they walked, Liu Yunan guided the disciples in practicing seated meditation to help digest the knowledge they had just learned. He also addressed any minor questions the disciples had, though Lin Xiao had already answered most of the major ones during class.
Liu Yunan, in his role as head of the Miscellaneous Hall, naturally took on these additional responsibilities of helping the new disciples settle in.
Hu Liang, meanwhile, had been brought in to help lead the disciples in the construction of their living quarters. Originally, Liu Yunan had intended to ask Hu Liang's father, Uncle Hu, for help, but Uncle Hu had been too embarrassed to come, so he pushed his son forward instead.
Over the years, Uncle Hu had taught Hu Liang many of his building skills, so Liu Yunan accepted the arrangement without complaint.
After an hour of meditation, it was time for the new disciples to officially start their construction tasks.
Planning was the first step, and materials needed to be gathered.
Liu Yunan gave the new disciples the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn to discuss their housing plan. However, given that there were over a hundred of them, one disciple pointed out that if everyone spoke at once, they wouldn't have a plan by the end of the day, let alone by the time the incense burned out.
Someone then suggested selecting five people who were good at making decisions to lead the planning, while the rest would simply listen and follow along.
After spending the past few days together, the new disciples had gotten to know each other somewhat, so it didn't take long for them to select five representatives.
The first was Baishu.
The others had all come to respect him after learning that he was the first to pass the Path of Heart test, and he had done so nearly half a day before anyone else.
The other four chosen were the cultivators Liang Zhonghuai and Yuan Jinsheng, the insightful and well-mannered young lady, Xuanyuan Haoyue, and the knowledgeable and well-regarded Master Pei, who had taught at Lingxian Academy for three years.
These five did not disappoint, managing to draft a basic plan in less than the time it took for the incense to burn out.
Liu Yunan didn't interfere. He simply informed them that once the plan was finalized, they needed to begin construction and gather materials.
With over a hundred disciples ranging in age, figuring out how to assign the tasks would require careful planning as well.
Liu Yunan left this entirely to them, only offering occasional reminders and safety tips.
Hu Liang, on the other hand, was there to assist with any technical issues related to construction and to teach them building techniques.
Everything else—the coordination, the planning, and the execution—was left for the new disciples to handle on their own.