Chapter 9 – Seeking Shelter in a Storm

The next day, after finishing his cultivation and chores, Ren headed to the Hall of Contribution to pick up his stipend. While there, he searched for any interesting tasks that might have been posted. It was an adequate way to get a sense of things.

There were some tasks about going out of the sect to slay beasts. There were also requests to solve problems by those cities and villages that relied on the sect for protection. Even within the sect, the growing beast tide in the southern mountains was being used as a training event, calling for group expeditions. Another elder was raising a particularly untamable beast and needed assistance. It was the fourth time this task had been posted, and Ren noted to himself to stay far away from it.

He also tried looking for tasks that had a fixed duration with stable income. There were tasks like cleaning, maintaining formations, feeding tame spirit beasts, manning a desk, crafting assistance, tending the gardens and medicinal fields of the sect or other elders, and many others. Except for the very basic tasks, they all had high requirements, with the lowest being 3rd layer qi gathering and knowing certain techniques like beast taming or herb nurturing or certain formations.

Ren tried talking to a receptionist, but the line behind him didn’t let him chat for very long after picking up his stipend. He did manage to understand from the receptionist’s attitude and hints that cushy jobs like manning desks were jealously guarded by disciples. They would usually hand their tasks over to someone of their choice when they moved on.

Ren gave up on it for now and went to find a thick thigh to hug for help, his uncle. His uncle had told him the general area where he lived, so we went there and asked around. After what felt like hours of pointlessly being ignored or told they had no idea who Zhao Tai was, he actually spotted his uncle in the distance heading into a courtyard.

He ran up and was about to knock on the gate, but it occurred to him that this might not be his uncle’s courtyard. He checked the nameplate outside and was relieved he had waited. It was someone else’s courtyard. He waited outside for a short time, and his uncle soon exited, looking at him in surprise.

“Greetings, Uncle.”

“In trouble already?” Uncle Tai said with a slight frown.

Ren smiled ruefully, “Trying to prevent it actually. Can we talk?”

“Let’s go to my courtyard.” They both walked a decent distance and finally arrived at their destination. Ren memorized the route in case he needed to come by again. Once they sat and his uncle poured some tea for him, Ren first offered the pouch he had received as a stipend.

“Here, Uncle, a greeting gift.”

His uncle observed his unusually respectful manners and quietly accepted the pouch.

Ren began explaining what had happened the day before. Getting the wrong kind of attention was always dangerous, and he didn’t know much about Jian Feng’s family or background. He suspected from his arrogant mannerisms and his 2nd order spirit roots that he had a strong backing. Upstaging someone like that was sure to create a grudge.

After hearing the entire explanation, his uncle spoke slowly but calmly.

“If it’s the Jian family I know, then you did the right thing, nephew. You were already being followed just now, so they likely sent someone to learn your background. They would have seen me exit Xi Yao’s courtyard. That’s a misunderstanding that can work in your favor. Nobody messes with the Xi family lightly. And it’s not much, but I am still a peak qi gathering realm cultivator.”

“Stay here for a stick of time or so and then head back. Try not to stand out in your next class. However, I should congratulate you. That was impressive, though, to earn the reward from those initial classes. Keep working hard, but keep your head down. You know how much our family depends on you.”

Ren tried to ignore the reminder and asked, “While I wait, can I ask you a few questions, Uncle?”

When his uncle gave an approving nod, he asked the most pressing question he had. “Do you know of any stable methods to earn contribution?”

“You can try impressing an elder by learning the right technique for a job or try and bribe someone about to leave their post. If they have a good impression of you developed over time, you’re far more likely to inherit their task. I don’t have many connections like that; as you probably realized, I hunt beasts to earn my points. Also, the sect only accepts disciples every 6 months, so that’s not an option. Sorry, I can’t help much on this matter. Just keep your eyes and ears open, and you might find a good task.”

Ren accepted that and then asked him about any particular techniques he could learn, but his uncle gave only vague answers, saying things like, “Cultivation is a lonely path.” and “You have to make your own choices.”

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Ren realized his uncle was unwilling to influence his thinking with ideas or instructions, so he asked about more general things like the market and which shops to keep an eye out for and when time-sensitive missions he had heard about but never seen would appear.

Again, Uncle Tai remained mostly vague. Ren gave up on those matters and instead talked about his own experiences and his new friends. This seemed to please his uncle more. He engaged in a lively fashion and told some amusing stories of his own. How one time they had been on the hunt for a Blaze Bear and thought they had lost it, only for it to barge into their camp later that night, roaring and setting fire to his companion’s pants.