Martel rode the Season Bear through another turn in the mountain path.

Why did I leave through the Autumn portion of the Sect’s land? I should have known it would have changed the Season Bear.

The beast he rode currently appeared as if someone had covered a stone bear statue with brown leaves. As he got rocked back and forth on the decidedly uncomfortable ride, Martel couldn’t help but keep complaining mentally.

What the hell is wrong with Elder Shen? I should be back at the Sect helping brother Felix.

It had been over a week since the elder had appeared in front of him and gave him a second errand.

He didn’t even let me finish the first task he sent me on. When I pressed him for more answers, he simply said 'you will hog all the fertile ground and prevent other stuff from taking root.' Crazy old man.

Martel sighed as he and his ride finally made it out of the mountain into the low-lying hills. He paused when a scream split the air.

That sounds like a woman!

Martel jump off his mount and unclasped his polearm from his back. After he landed, he shot in the direction of the sound.

This better not be a man with a girlish scream. Felix is already up in the bragging contest. Saving a damsel is just what I need to catch up. Maybe bandits or a spiritual beast. Oh wait, he doesn’t remember the contest, does he?

As Martel considered inflating his score, he burst onto a scene of bloodshed. The circumstances before him were very similar to his guess with a lone woman surrounded by bandits. Unfortunately for Martel’s bragging rights, the women wasn’t the one in distress.

Martel watched as the women smashed a bandit’s leg with a club and then spun to throw the club at the back of a fleeing bandit. The club impacted the bandit with a sickening crunch followed by the man crumpling to the ground.

“Come back you pieces of shit! You think you can just try to rape me and get away with it!”

Martel stared for a moment.

Maybe I can just stretch the truth a little bit. Nobly assisting a damsel in distress. Let’s go with that.

Senior Xue and Felix appeared in a small clearing surrounded by trees decorated in the colors of fall. The floor beneath was bare earth. Xue turned to Felix.

“Now Felix, I know you are not cultivating falling earth anymore, but this section of the formation should still have an increased density of earth attuned spiritual energy. You have been given permission to stay here until you reach qi gathering 3.”

With a wave of her hand, some food and water appeared. Then she pointed to a break in the trees at the side of the clearing.

“When you have reached that cultivation level, simply follow the path. Your disciple identity token will allow you to get back to the mountain.” She said.

“Um, Senior Sister Xue. Could I see your manual?”

Felix had to admit he had not given up on seeing a manual that used three different elements. Xue rolled her eyes and with a blast of chilly air, she was gone.

With a shrug, he walked up to a tree and sat down cross-legged with it to his back. He took out the jade slips he had been allowed to take and his notes from a small cosmic sac sister Xue had loaned him.

I should spend most of my KE points on the cultivation manual. It is clear that cultivation, whatever the type, is what makes someone powerful. The higher your level, the more powerful you are. The techniques are just how to use that power. With that said, the Heavenly Earth manual seems to rely on sword essence and learning techniques will help this. It helps with the how as Senior Sister Xue would call it.

He frowned at the stack of technique slips.

I need more points. Wait, don’t I have that quests?

He mentally queried the system.

[Quest: Establishing bonds]

[Learn the names of your Sect’s twelve elders. Meet some of your other disciples excluding the disciple known as 'Martel']

[Rewards: Stabilizes Pillar of the Sect System, KE points variable]

[You have finished the base criteria of the quest; do you wish to activate the quest completion mechanism?]

[ Yes or No?]

What a weird wording? Quest completion mechanism? Huh…. Well, I suppose I could wait to submit this quest since it does say the result is variable. Xue introduced me to several disciples as she dragged me around a week ago. If I want to maximize my gains, shouldn’t I meet every disciple?

Felix considered the idea of barging in on disciples in order to ‘meet’ them. He shuddered at the very idea.

Yay, I am just going to turn in the quest.

He answered Yes.

[Answer accepted]

[Quest Rewards Achieved: 78 KE points. Pillar of the Sect System slightly stabilized.]

Felix waited for an explanation of what the stabilizing did. No further info was supplied. When mental prompting didn’t yield any information either, he decided to focus on the manuals. He took out the three slips that Xue described as generic sword wielding techniques,

[Sword Wielding for Idiots (Mortal 1)]

Power: Trash

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

[My Sword and Me (Mortal 1)]

Power: Trash

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

[Don’t Grab the Pointy End (Mortal 1)]

Power: Extremely Weak

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

Why do these feel more like self-help books?

He picked up Sword Wielding for Idiots, trying to fight the idea that by reading this slip he was confirming something.

Huh, this seems to be about the very basic types of ways to use the sword. Chop, stab, etc.

After a bit, he moved on to the other two slips. My Sword and Me went into depth about the human side of the sword wielding equation. Don’t Grab the Pointy End wasn’t even a real technique but discussed the practicalities of wielding a sword. He set the three slips to his left and took a look at the next three.

[Piercing the Earth (Mortal 1)]

Power: Extremely Weak

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

[Blade of Stone (Mortal 1)]

Power: Extremely Weak

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

[Sensing the Earth (Mortal 1)]

Power: Trash

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

Well, these three seem to be techniques on stabbing with earth energy, creating an earth energy blade and sensing with earth energy. There are a ton of more nuances beyond that but I can see how these relate to the Ragnarok Technique.

Then Felix reached for the Style Manuals.

[Shattering Sword Style (Mortal 1)]

Power: Trash

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

[Mountain Sword Style (Mortal 1)]

Power: Trash

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

[Feather Sword Style (Mortal 1)]

Power: Trash

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

Much more about the way to fight coherently with a few manual specific attacks. They even seem like a type of philosophy.

With a Sigh, Felix looked at the final technique manual about using a remote energy sword and the Ragnarök manual.

[Swift Sword (Mortal 1)]

Power: Trash

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

[Ragnarök (Mortal 1)]

Power: Extremely Weak

Comprehension: Beginner (0/10)

Stage: Qi Gathering

Huh, that’s weird. As he went over the word Ragnarök, he realized it wasn’t actually the Norse word for the end of the world. In fact, it was in this world’s language. The meaning, however, felt so similar. Well, Ragnarök sounds cooler. I will keep mentally labeling it as such.

He brought all of the slips back out in front of him

Well, let’s begin manual learning. 1 KE point for each one, for a total of 11.