Year 1034 of the Zhang Dynasty - Outlands of Heavenly Phoenix City - Road to checkpoint

While traveling, I teach Maria about the city.

(Heavenly Phoenix City is composed of five circular sections)

(In the center there is the city lord domain)

[The Nie family, right?]

(Yes, after that comes the secondary sects section were all cultivators live)

[What happens if a commoner enters there?]

(He is killed on the spot)

[...lets not enter there for now]

(Third is the training grounds, here the commoners can enter to do chores)

[Can they train there?]

(No, they will die immediately after)

[...]

(Fourth is the Commercial section, here commoners are free to move as they like)

[Did you also come to sell here?]

(That is right, this and the farm are all the world I know)

[For now]

(...the last one is the Outlands)

[Where we are]

(Here we have farms, commoners houses and garbage dumps)

[Garbage dumps? why don't throw it outside the city]

(That will lure spiritual creatures, or so they say)

[Aren't the walls and the city lord array there to keep spiritual creatures out?]

(Maybe they like to look down on us)

[Maybe, most of the cultivators in the novels are that kind of people]

(Right now we are in the southwest part of the city and we need to reach the northeast part of the Commercial section before tomorrow)

[Are we good on time?]

(Yes, we will reach there at night)

[Look there is the checkpoint, try to appraise the guards]

The pair of guards are armed with spears and wore green uniforms.

“Appraisal“

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-Wang Xiong Silver Rank grade 2-

HP 100%

SP 33/33

Stamina 128/131

Brawn 33

Awareness 31

Endurance 16

Resistance 15

OTHER

30 years old

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-Wang Han Bronze Rank grade 9-

HP 99%

SP 19/19

Stamina 90/120

Brawn 18(-1)

Awareness 18(-1)

Endurance 9(-1)

Resistance 10(-1)

OTHER

Slight hangover (Brawn, Awareness, Endurance and Resistance -1)

19 years old

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(SP?)

[Interesting, the Book of Appraisal shows me that the cultivators have spiritual power instead of mana power]

(What is the difference?)

[The mana power originates from your soul, but spirit power derives from absorbing external remnants of a soul]

(External remnants of a soul?)

[With the death of the host, the soul cleans out the memories and experiences creating the remnants of a soul]

(They feed on dead people?!)

[In the cultivation novels they are always looking for softer words like spirit particles or spiritual energy]

I cant believe it, how can they still be called humans?

[Basically, you gain mana power by training your soul with the stimulus of experience while they gain spiritual power by consuming the remnants of souls and enslaving them into a single point inside their bodies]

The guard in front of me spoke.

“Ten spirit coins to enter the Southwest section of the Commercial section“ Wang Xiong

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After surrounding the training grounds and paying twenty spirit coins more in tolls we reached the northeast part of the city.

(It is night already, we should look for an inn)

[Wooden carts, Wooden houses, the shit smell, stone streets. After five thousand years of civilization this is unacceptable]

(...)

[The clothes are all the same, only bath robes of bright colors for men and woman]

She really don't like this city.

[The only food is rice with roots of some kind or boiled chicken meat]

(Stop it)

[And...]

(An inn, look for an inn)

[Okay]

After that we find an inn and stayed the night for 20 spirit coins.

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Year 1035 of the Zhang Dynasty - Commercial section of Heavenly Phoenix City - Northeast inn

[The first match is about to start, hurry]

(The stadium is not far from here, don't worry)

[It is a shame that commoners cant participate, you right now could beat a couple of bronze cultivator without doubt]

(That would be a bad idea, most cultivators at my age are already silver rank)

[But as a commoner you are the strongest]

(No one wants to see a battle between commoners, lets go)

The wooden stadium has 40 meters of height with the eight floors visible from outside.

“A spectator ticket, please“

I said to the receptionist lady sitting behind a desk in the entrance.

“It will be 100 spirit coins“

I pay for it.

“There you go, have a nice day“ receptionist lady

The ticket was an orange rectangular paper of about 10 centimeters.

[They really like orange, there is a lot of decoration of that color in here]

(It is the color of the Nie family)

I take a seat in the fourth floor.

[Appraisal will do fine from here]

My eyes can easily see the center of the hollow building were an announcer steps in.

“Dear guests, in celebration for the ascension of the emperor Zhang Wei 1035 years ago my establishment presents this Crouching Tiger Tournament“ Announcer

(So, that was its name)

[You didn't know? Was the name not on the entry?]

(Have in mind that I only can read the language you taught me, nothing else)

“For the first segment of the day, the younger generation will show us their peerless spirits“ announcer

Two children that don't even have facial hair entered the arena while the audience applauds.