WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Dionysus
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◈ Cultivating Underground ◈
Chapter 6
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Nerves and excitement flickered across the faces of the children gathered in the hall.
Meanwhile, the two who still hadn’t reached the first layer of Qi Refining sat cross-legged behind the folding screen, their faces pale.
A little later, Steward Wang Jin entered the hall.
An outer-sect disciple followed Wang Jin, carrying a wooden box filled with small pouches.
Wang Jin slowly looked over the new recruits.
“A hundred days have passed as of today. Most of you have succeeded in drawing qi into your bodies. Not a bad result.”
Wang Jin turned their gaze toward the folding screen.
“Ju Myeong.”
A young boy flinched and stood.
“Yes.”
“You’ll be sent to the laborers’ compound. If you succeed in drawing qi into your body within half a year while working there, I’ll allow you to join the outer sect.”
The boy’s face brightened.
“Thank you, Steward!”
“There’s no need to thank me. The work there will be much harder than what you do now.”
“I’ll work hard.”
Wang Jin turned their head.
“Go Taek.”
This time, a young adult rose.
“Yes.”
“You are to leave the mountain.”
The color drained from the young adult’s face.
“Steward, please give me one more chance. I promise...”
“Enough! Ju Myeong cultivated diligently. He lacks talent, but that doesn’t mean he has no potential. You, however, lack both talent and effort. Leave the mountain.”
The young adult bit their lip but said nothing more.
The outer-sect disciple who had accompanied Wang Jin led the two out of the hall.
Wang Jin opened the register.
“Those whose names I call will now be formally appointed as outer-sect disciples of Cheongha Valley.”
The atmosphere in the hall changed. The children straightened their backs.
“Outer-sect disciples receive one low-grade spirit stone, ten Fasting Pills, and a small number of contribution points each month. You can earn additional contribution points by producing outstanding results in your assigned duties or completing separate missions. Contribution points can be used to borrow or purchase cultivation methods, spells, pills, magical implements, and other things. This month’s supplies are already in the storage pouches you’ll receive today, and your contribution points have been recorded on your new identity tokens.”
Wang Jin called their names one by one.
Each disciple stepped forward, handed in their old wooden token, and received a new identity token and a storage pouch.
Then it was Yi Hyeon’s turn.
“Yi Hyeon.”
“Yes.”
“You’ve been assigned to assist with the management of Spirit Field No. 73 on Herbfield Peak.”
Yi Hyeon’s expression brightened.
“No Baek-san manages Spirit Field No. 73. He’s been doing spirit-plant work in the outer sect for a long time, so you’ll have plenty to learn from him.”
“Understood.”
Yi Hyeon received his new identity token and a storage pouch that looked like a small bag, then returned to his seat.
The new identity token was made of dark blue wood. It was about the same size as the old one, but Cheongha Valley’s emblem was finely carved into the front. His name, Yi Hyeon, and the words “Outer Sect” were written on the back.
He had no idea how to use the storage pouch, though.
Soon, the last disciple received their things and returned to their seat.
After putting away the wooden box, Wang Jin took an old storage pouch from their waist.
“This will be the first time most of you have seen a storage pouch, so I’ll explain how to use one.”
They touched a finger to its opening.
“Feed spiritual power into the formation inscribed around the opening, then send your consciousness inside along that flow. You don’t need much spiritual power. A thread’s worth will be enough.”
Like the other disciples, Yi Hyeon placed his storage pouch on his palm.
From the outside, it was nothing more than a gray cloth pouch. A black cord was tied around the opening, and faint silver patterns were embroidered on its surface.
He drew a little primordial unity true qi from his dantian and fed it into the patterns.
At first, nothing happened.
When Yi Hyeon closed his eyes and focused his consciousness on the pouch, the patterns glowed faintly. At that moment, an empty space appeared in his mind.
It was dark on all sides, with indistinct boundaries. A transparent stone and a wooden bottle lay inside.
‘Oh... That’s amazing.’
Yi Hyeon thought about taking out the stone. A cold sensation immediately touched his palm.
The transparent stone was about two finger joints long. Something like whitish mist moved slowly inside it, as though alive.
Gasps of wonder came from around him.
“Is this a spirit stone?” a boy sitting in the front row asked.
“That’s right. A low-grade spirit stone.”
Wang Jin took an identical stone from their own storage pouch.
“Spirit stones form when the spiritual qi of heaven and earth condenses over many years. They can be found naturally in mineral veins or produced artificially near spirit veins.”
One boy clasped his spirit stone in both hands and tried to draw out the spiritual qi inside. As soon as the mist within the stone stirred slightly, Wang Jin scolded him.
“Don’t absorb it carelessly.”
Startled, the boy let go.
“You can hold a spirit stone and draw spiritual qi directly from it. But as you are now, you can’t properly refine the spiritual qi it contains. You’ll end up losing more than half of it to the air.”
Wang Jin rolled the spirit stone between their fingers.
“The most common use for spirit stones is powering formations. The same applies when cultivating. If you obtain a portable Spirit-Gathering Formation and fit spirit stones into its formation disk, it will draw the surrounding spiritual qi into a small area. Cultivating inside it is several times more efficient than absorbing spiritual qi directly from a spirit stone.”
Some of the children’s eyes lit up.
“Where can we get a portable Spirit-Gathering Formation?”
“You can buy one at the Equipment Hall with contribution points or spirit stones. Even a crude one will cost at least fifty low-grade spirit stones.”
The hopeful children quickly looked dejected.
As though they had expected that reaction, Wang Jin continued.
“If your spiritual power runs dry in battle and your life hangs by a thread, you may have to absorb it directly. Unless you’re in that sort of situation, don’t waste it. Spirit stones are the most widely used currency in the cultivation world, so keep them safe.”
Yi Hyeon put his spirit stone back into the storage pouch.
The wooden bottle beside it contained ten bean-sized Fasting Pills. When he focused his consciousness on his identity token, the words “Contribution Points: 10” appeared faintly beneath his name.
“Don’t try to put living animals or people into a storage pouch. Even if you try to force them inside, the formation won’t work.”
The children repeatedly put things into their pouches and took them out again.
Yi Hyeon also practiced with his identity token, spirit stone, and Fasting Pills several times. Once he grew used to it, he could store and retrieve things with a thought, without opening the pouch by hand.
...
Once their duties and living quarters had been assigned, the new outer-sect disciples dispersed from the hall.
Most returned to their old lodgings to pack. From now on, they would have to live at their workplaces or move into the outer-sect quarters on the various peaks.
Yi Hyeon also returned to his room and gathered the clothes, bedding, and books he had been given.
When he put the bulky bedding and wooden dishes into his storage pouch, the belongings that had filled a corner of the room vanished in an instant.
Wang So was crouching in front of his bed, completely absorbed in putting things into his storage pouch and taking them out again.
“Brother, look at this.”
He opened his hand, and a wooden dish appeared. When he turned his hand over, the dish disappeared.
“I feel like I’ve seen that dozens of times already.”
“But isn’t it amazing? If I buy several storage pouches later, I could even carry a house around.”
“Can you put one storage pouch inside another?”
“I tried it with another friend earlier, but it doesn’t work. The opening closes as though they’re pushing each other away.”
“Where were you assigned?”
“The Spirit Beast Garden.”
Wang So’s voice grew a little quieter. Thinking he was unhappy with his assignment, Yi Hyeon tried to comfort him.
“I hear not many people get the work they want right from the start. If you work hard at the Spirit Beast Garden, you should be able to learn swordsmanship later.”
Wang So shook his head.
“That’s not it. I asked around, and apparently, aspiring sword cultivators often get sent to the Spirit Beast Garden when they first join.”
“Why?”
“A disciple who’s only just reached the first layer of Qi Refining isn’t much use, right? We’d only be a burden on missions for the Dharma Protection Hall. So we start by carrying feed for spirit beasts and cleaning their pens to build up our strength. We also learn how not to get scared when facing spirit beasts.”
Unlike a moment earlier, Wang So now looked excited.
“I’ve been assigned to the place that looks after blue-horned deer, which are tier-one spirit beasts. They’re gentle, so it’s not dangerous.”
Wang So looked as though he had already found some incredible opportunity to learn swordsmanship at the Spirit Beast Garden.
“That’s good. Still, be careful not to get hurt.”
“I told you, they’re gentle. I’m more worried about you, Brother. You might end up doing nothing but pulling weeds in the fields all day.”
“That’s what I wanted to do, so it’s fine.”
Wang So tied his storage pouch firmly to his waist.
They had shared the room for a hundred days. Depending on how one looked at it, that was either a long time or a short one. Wang So talked a lot, but his chatter had helped keep Yi Hyeon from getting bored.
“Let’s meet again in the inner sect.”
“I keep telling you, I don’t intend to join the inner sect.”
“You never know what the future holds. You might make a great contribution in spirit-plant cultivation and catch an elder’s eye.”
“Then you get into the inner sect first and establish yourself there.”
“Of course.”
Wang So held out a fist. Yi Hyeon bumped it with his own.
“Take care of yourself.”
“You too, Brother.”
...
Yi Hyeon headed for Herbfield Peak.
The whole mountain had been carved into enormous steps.
Countless spirit fields spread out in tiers from the foot of the mountain to its middle slopes. Low stone walls and waterways divided the fields, each of which held different spirit herbs.
Some plants had silver patterns running across their green leaves. Others had red roots like human fingers sticking out of the soil.
A scarecrow woven from rice straw turned its head on its own to chase away birds.
Small clouds drifted slowly through the air above the spirit fields. When a cultivator in gray robes formed a hand seal, a fine rain fell from one of the clouds.
In another field, slender silver needles darted between the leaves, piercing tiny insects.
‘Looks like I’ve come to the right place.’
The higher he climbed, the stronger an indescribable fragrance became amid the smells of earth and grass.
Some spirit fields gave off a sweet floral scent, while others smelled so sharp that his nose tingled. Formation patterns were carved into every stone wall, and his identity token trembled slightly whenever he approached one.
Most of the senior cultivators paid him no attention.
Checking the signs at the junctions, Yi Hyeon made his way toward his assigned field.
...
Spirit Field No. 73 lay at the edge of Herbfield Peak.
It was about as large as several fields combined in Baengmok Village, where Yi Hyeon had settled when he first arrived in this world.
Neat rows of green plants grew within a low stone wall. A small pond and a single-story building with earthen walls and a tiled roof stood in the middle of the field.
The building wasn’t grand, but it seemed more than adequate to serve as both a workshop for tending the spirit field and a home.
Bamboo drying mats for spirit herbs were spread out on one side of the front yard. Beside them, earthenware jars containing soil and medicinal ingredients stood in neat rows. Potted medicinal herbs whose names Yi Hyeon didn’t know lined the edge of the pond.
An old man was bent over in the field, pulling weeds.
More than half his hair was white, and deep wrinkles lined his sun-darkened face.
Yi Hyeon approached and greeted him.
“Are you Senior Brother No?”
The old man raised his head.
His gaze passed over Yi Hyeon’s face, then the identity token hanging at his waist.
“A new recruit?”
“Yes. My name is Yi Hyeon. I’ve been assigned to assist with the management of Spirit Field No. 73.”
No Baek-san straightened.
“Follow me.”
He led Yi Hyeon toward the building in the middle of the field. Up close, Yi Hyeon could see bundles of dried medicinal herbs hanging beneath the eaves. Muddy boots and bamboo baskets of different sizes stood beside the wall.
No Baek-san opened the door.
“Come in.”
The inside was larger than it had looked from outside. All sorts of farming tools, including hoes, sickles, and watering cans, hung on one wall. Scrolls showing pictures of various spirit herbs and descriptions of their characteristics lined the opposite wall.
A long table stood in the center of the room. Several small pots containing young spirit herbs sat on it alongside worn books and a teapot. Farther inside were a kitchen and two rooms, suggesting that the building served as both a workshop and living quarters.
No Baek-san gave his hands a light shake. A faint light flashed, and all the dirt on them vanished. He sat behind the table and took a sip of the cooling tea.
“Sit.”
When Yi Hyeon sat across from him, No Baek-san asked,
“What cultivation method have you learned?”
“The Primordial Unity Single-Qi Art.”
No Baek-san looked at Yi Hyeon for a moment, then clicked his tongue.
“Tsk. Steward Wang has recommended that method again.”
“Is there something wrong with it?”
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