"We're here," Lan Yin announced as they moved from the busy street packed with mortals to one that seemed exponentially calmer. A few people were watching them closely, seemingly situated like guards, and they were all cultivators of a higher realm.

William could still see the crowd of mortals going about their daily lives, but none of the sounds reached him. He tried to find what could be blocking the noise as he walked with Lan Yin to an old woman who was dozing off on a chair inside a wooden structure that was barely big enough for her.

[Name: Li Meiying | Level: ?]

Seeing grassy land in the middle of a city was jarring, causing it to stick out like a sore thumb when surrounded by opulent buildings.

"Greetings, Senior Li," Lan Yin said as she reached into her robes to pull out a familiar card made out of red jade. The old woman blinked her eyes open tiredly to see the pass before lazily pointing her finger up, making an opening in the ground.

"Thank you," Lan Yin bowed before motioning for William to follow her down the steps into a well-lit chamber. In contrast to the nearly empty area outside, the chamber was packed, with people clustered in groups while chatting casually.

William blinked rapidly at the burst of light before shutting off the system's auto-reveal to avoid the blue text from irritating his eyes. He had already done that for mortals but hadn't needed to for cultivators since he had never seen them packed into such tight spaces. If he had to guess, he would say around a hundred people were in the chamber.

Lan Yin glided through the crowd, nodding at a few people here and there before reaching what seemed to be a reception. “My Junior Brother would like to rent a room. Wei Liang, how long do you want to cultivate?"

[Name: Zhang Xuanlong | Level: ?]

"Is it possible to practice my Martial Skills instead?" William asked hopefully, getting strange looks from Lan Yin and the man behind the counter, Zhang Xuanlong.

"Are you sure?" Lan Yin asked, "The cultivation rooms here are equivalent to what our Sect offers for Outer Court disciples."

That reinforced his decision. William had zero interest in cultivation when the room was at that level. Learning one of the Martial Skills he had picked would equal five hundred hours of cultivation.

"I'm sure, Senior Sister."

"Very well," Lan Yin nodded, before addressing the man who continued to stare at William in confusion, "Do you have a room with an illusionary array available?"

"Of course," Zhang Xuanlong sounded as if the question shouldn't even be asked, "However, this little brother should reconsider. Martial Skills are not at all important this early in your cultivation."

"I didn't ask for you to give my Junior Brother a lecture," Lan Yin warned with narrowed eyes.

Zhang Xuanlong immediately lowered his eyes in acquiescence before stepping out from behind the counter to lead them to the room.

"The next time you want to visit, you can use your Sect pass to gain free entry, along with the pick of the room you may want."

"… I can pick whichever one I want?" William repeated, more than a little surprised, "How long can I use them?"

"As long as the Qi inside that room is sufficient for your needs," Lan Yin gave him a slight smirk, "There are plenty of benefits you will find for being a member of our Sect, Junior Brother."

William wondered if prospective disciples were given a brochure of these benefits or if it was simply a known fact. If it was the former, he needed to get one as soon as possible, but it was likely the latter. With the massive scale of the Jade Healing Sect's operations, it would be hard not to know of them.

"Here we are," Zhang Xuanlong spoke for the first time since Lan Yin told him off, "Little brother, this room had enough Qi to power the array for eight hours."

"Thank you, Senior," William bowed slightly, making the man step to the side quickly to avoid the bow.

"That's not necessary!" Zhang Xuanlong said nervously while glancing at Lan Yin, "If you have anything you require, I'll be at your service."

William gave a questioning look to Lan Yin when the man practically ran away after showing them the room.

"Ignore him," Lan Yin sneered, "The last time he gave out advice, he caused multiple young cultivators to have Qi deviations, and two were permanently crippled. He's bad luck. The only reason he still dares to work here is the family behind him."

This was where William should scoff and put it aside as superstition. But there's something that could literally quantify his luck.

Luck: 30 (24)

He believed Lan Yin and wasn't in a rush to take pity on the man to have that bad luck affect him. "Thank you for the warning, Senior Sister."

"Good," Lan Yin patted his head again, making him wonder if this was going to be common before she continued, "Now, which Martial Skill do you want to learn first?"

William blinked as he followed Lan Yin into the room. It was as sparse can be, with no decorations whatsoever other than the array that covered the entire floor.

"You're going to help?"

"Of course," Lan Yin was matter-of-fact, "It'll be my gift to you before I leave. My brother won't be there to protect you on the mission, so I would feel reassured that you can protect yourself."

The more time William spent with Lan Yin, the more he liked her. Of course, that required him to disregard what happened before he joined the Sentinel Path. While she seemed to view mortals as little more than annoyances, that certainly didn't apply to him. Not with the effort she was making to ensure his well-being.

"Thunderous Palm," William said with a smile, "I want to learn that first."

"Good," Lan Yin shut the door and stood outside the array, "Stand in the center. The array will activate automatically once you're in place. It will seem like you have been transported to another area but don't panic. I'll be able to guide you with my voice."

William did as Lan Yin told. The array immediately lit up, drawing the Qi required from the stones powering it before he got an alert.

[External force is affecting User's mind]

That was the last message William saw before the bland room disappeared to be replaced by an elevated stage with a faceless man standing at the other end.

"The array provides a target to test your skills on. You can set the level as high as the ninth level of Qi Gathering Realm."

William thought it was strange that Lan Yin's voice sounded like it was coming from the illusionary sky, but it worked well enough. "So, do I just start?"

"I assume you have the steps of the skill memorized? It is fairly simple."

"I do," William confirmed. There really wasn't much to the skill other than the ability to instantly shift his Qi to his palm right at the moment of attack.

"Good, focus your Qi to your palm, but do not attack!"

William nodded to himself and closed his eyes, grasping the energy slowly circulating through his meridians. A significant advantage he had found about his cultivation technique was the ease at which he could command his Qi. The fact that it was all concentrated into his lung meridian seemed to be helping with that greatly.

"Very good, Junior Brother!" Lan Yin praised, "There is a consistent flow of Qi focused in your palm. That level of control will help you greatly with more complex skills. Now, attack!"

With a rough grunt, William thrust his palm forward, releasing the gathered Qi in an explosive burst, or at least, that was his intention.

[-5 Spiritual Energy]

[-25 HP]

He yelped in pain as the Qi was expelled in areas other than his palm. A close look at his hand showed no damage, but that was only on the surface. It was likely the damage was underneath.

"That was a good first try, Junior Brother. Your Qi was a little volatile at the moment of the attack, but you almost have it. Try again."

His arm felt like it was on fire, but after the pain William had learned to push through, it was nothing. He commanded his Qi and prepared to attack.

Once more, William thrust his hand forward with his palm open. He maintained his Qi at the level approved by Lan Yin to ensure the desired outcome was achieved.

The air in front of his palm shimmered as a small explosion was heard from his palm, with slight wisps of Qi slowly leaving his hand like steam.

[-5 Spiritual Energy]

[Side Quest Completed | Learn the Martial Skill - Thunderous Palm]

[+500 XP]

[Cultivation Info Added | Martial Skills]

William blinked in shock, unable to believe this was all it had taken. With the skill only having a twenty percent compatibility, he imagined that learning it would be a long and painful grind.

"That's odd. You have clearly learned it, but the attack is so weak…."

William heard Lan Yin's muttering and instantly understood what that compatibility meant. It wouldn't stop him from learning a Martial Skill, but it would be horribly underpowered. However, he had to admit his attack seemed plenty powerful in his eyes.

It didn't matter in the end. The three skills William picked will have to do until he could get something that fits him better.

"Senior Sister, could you help me with the other two as well?"