There were many different courses:

The four main academic arts - Instrument, chess, literature, and painting.

The four secondary academic arts - conversation, dance, song, and hosting.

All of them were researched and studied with extreme focus.

Over here, martial strength is unnecessary. With a good head and a gilded tongue, one could reach the top of the world.

“The four main academic arts and the four secondary academic arts, all of them are important. However, there are sequence to everything,” the instructor for the basic lesson said.

Alan and the rest nodded their head and listened. The four were the only students in the class, but the instructor continued seriously.

“Qin (琴), the musical instrument is placed first because in music, one’s composition cannot be hidden. Refined or coarse, honest or phoney, passionate or indifferent, a single play will reveal everything about you and a strum can stir emotions in others.

Qi (棋), the game of war is placed second.

Within it one can learn the great affairs of kingdoms. It can determine the future in the movement of marble pebbles.

Shu (書), calligraphy and poems, it expresses one’s character and true nature.

In the brush you can mark your thoughts and influence many with few words.

Hua (畫), painting is the greatest measure of one’s creativity.

It can show both realistic and abstract view of the world. By viewing a painted scroll often, your target can gain great compassion or descend into madness.”

It may only be an introductory course, but the importance of the four main arts were greatly imprinted on them. The instructor took a breath then continued to the next part.

“The secondary arts are secondary only because they are skills that everyone could learn, whereas the main arts belong to the rich. However, do not think little of them, they are not less important.

Tan (談), the art of the words is the head of the secondary arts.

Its importance I do not need to explain. A person can have no background, real skills, or martial prowess but simply through the way of the words he will be invincible under the heavens.

Wu (舞), art of movement.

The way to carry oneself is a show of status. One can mingle into the upper echelons or mix with commoners with the correct steps. Never underestimate its importance, many movement techniques are learned through dance and show.

Ge (歌), art of the voice.

It is arguably the sub-branch of two main arts. A mixture of Qin and Hua.

When used properly it can send soldiers to their deaths or pacify an angry crowd.

Dai (待), the art of entertaining and ceremonies. It is a vast study that includes tea making, flower arrangement, cutlery etiquette, and other life skills to make one feel welcomed.

In the simplest of tasks and the smallest details, you will forge your character through repeating the mundane. When you master this, you can be a prince while wearing rags, an emperor while working for others.”

The things they need to learn in this place are far too extensive and it requires a certain amount of talent to pick up.

However, they could tell the Dance Hall’s importance and the value of the books in its vaults. Kairos excused himself to the library while the rest went through the different lessons.

He might not be able to read through all the things but there are certain runes he can use to make copies of books, and he set to work immediately.

Unfortunately, they had no time to stay for long. They absorbed all they could, gathered as much information as possible and after staying here for a week, the group left for the second training hall.

The Silent Hall, a place where one learns patience.

Considering they did not complete the training in the previous hall, they can only take a look around the place.

There were many rooms in this hall. Each small and confined. They are without light, and the walls and door are padded to reduce any sound to the minimum.

On the wall of the Silent Hall was a board that wrote down the names of those currently in training.

Those that managed to stay a week would’ve passed, those that could stay for longer would’ve their names recorded.

On the side is a separate list writing down the names of those who had fell into lunacy.

Sometimes, the most suffocating thing is absolute stillness, but those who can still their thoughts will gain incredible willpower.

After touring the place, they turned and left without ever meeting the Ghost of the Silent Hall.

The next hall they went to is the Thoughts Hall. A sensible reinforced glass door made to withstand the erosion of time stood before them. The material had been tinted black and they had to open it to see anything.

It slide smoothly out of the way as they approached using a spirit gathering formation as energy source.

Before them, there appears to be two rooms for them to choose. A large signboard accompanied each door, the one on the left displaying the words: Common Sense, while the one on the right displayed: General Knowledge.

They looked at each other for a moment and then entered the rooms one after another.

What they found behind those doors was that common sense aren’t that common, while general knowledge aren’t general.

The Thoughts Hall is made to help people to learn how to think using the most common things around to deduce sharp analyses.

It sounded simple, but it is something practical, valued, and rarely displayed because of its counterintuitive nature.

Common sense dedicates that the more chaotic a situation is, the more one should remain calm and only then could one carefully find the way out.

Yet how many people could?

Common sense dedicates that the less detail one could leave out, the earlier one can identify danger signals.

Yet how often do people develop tunnel vision when in peril?

No. Before one enters a situation, it is exactly then that one requires to fully take in everything in the surrounding to make the best out of things.

Common sense dedicates that the place where one falls is the exact place one needs to get up. Only then could a person move on victoriously.

Yet how many stumbled and never recovered?

Common sense isn’t that commonly seen on people.

Likewise, the same could be said for having general knowledge.

It is said that poisonous stuff will appear near their cure, yet many perished not knowing this.

It is said that the more beautiful a creature is, the more dangerous it is, yet how many died because they touched a colourful, dainty, and cute looking beast or ate a pretty mushroom?

The truth about this world is that Gaia is never a merciful mother.

She may be majestic to look at, generous to her children, but never mistake her for being weak.

A tree might be her child, but would a lumberjack have a different parent?

Gaia’s love had always been brutally fair. Any who had the strength to acquire may do so, although, the rule is that one does not bite the hand that feeds it. Should one tries to rob the Earth Mother, she can easily reclaim the lives she had given.

The lessons here also covered the different viewpoints.

Pulling a person’s stance to the top, he could understand a ruler’s thoughts, bring a person’s to the bottom he could tell the direction of the nation.

Of course, the group didn’t have the time to train here and they left once understood the training’s purpose.

At the next stop, the Knowledge Hall, they found a room busied with many people. Before they reached the place, they were greeted by the smell of books.

Young boys and girls are carrying scrolls that are stacked up taller than them to a large room. In that place, there are people sitting at different levels taking the scrolls and putting them into different boxes after reading.

More children are taking the scrolls placed in the different boxes to a different room.

The scrolls are all information that the Dark Hall gathered and are classified in four different levels of urgency.

Heaven, Earth, Xuan, and Huang.

For most information gathered, they will collect dust in the Huang Room, but that doesn’t mean they are worthless. When people need to know something, this is the place to buy the news they are looking for.

The Xuan Room holds intelligence that could be sold for a fortunate, things that determine the fate of a large clan or the shady business of top cultivators.

The Earth Room kept dangerous information while the Heaven Room kept knowledge that are forbidden to be known.

In this place, the recruits will learn how to decipher what is useful from a massive sea of information and learn to master them.

The next place is the Combat Hall.

They took a quick look then left. Most of the time spent in this place is in the library where covert skill manuals and a few cultivation methods are kept.

Besides the training halls, they are barred from entering the Invitation Hall, more for the purpose of keeping unnecessary people out of the way than keeping any real secrets. The Jade Hall was also locked up. Every member of the Dark Hall can only enter this place once in their life, and it was the most fortified for good reason. After all, it is a vault that keeps Soul Slips. It is even more fortified than the Head of the 9 Halls where all the ghosts and the Hall Master meets.

The group spent two months training in this place and at the same time they made a copy of all the books they could access. But without having any time to practice, the uses are limited.

After they are done, they went to the Death Hall for their mission briefing.

There are merely four months left, and although they wouldn’t have to fear for their own lives now, they are burdened with the lives of their families.

No matter what, they must finish this suicidal mission successfully.