I Outworked the Entire Cultivation World

Chapter 252: Chapter 222: Exchange? Gamble! (Yue Ticket 400 Bonus)

East of the city, Kong Clan City.

Jiang Yuebai followed alongside Lii Jiuchuan, entering this city within a city led by an elder from the Kong Family.

Walking slowly along a straight path, the ten-zhang high walls on either side were carved with philosophical texts, and the sound of reading echoed softly. Jiang Yuebai observed and listened, feeling a sense of inner peace.

”Master, is there some mystery on this path?” Jiang Yuebai asked softly.

The guiding elder heard this and turned to glance at Jiang Yuebai, explaining with a steady and composed voice.

”This is the ’Straight Path.’ One must enter the Kong Family through this path, so the world knows that those of integrity follow the path, act in accordance with reason, are fair and selfless, and do not pursue goals wantonly or act carelessly in times of danger. The texts on both sides were left by virtuous scholars of the past. Reading them can help calm one’s mind and cultivate one’s character.”

Jiang Yuebai’s head unconsciously mimicked the elder’s, nodding in circles, until Lii Jiuchuan lowered his gaze to her, urging her to compose herself.

The Straight Path was lengthy, and the guiding elder walked very slowly. Jiang Yuebai, influenced by the Fire Evil, felt a bit impatient, wishing she could use Sky-Breaking Flash to reach the end immediately. The elder took a full quarter of an hour to walk them through it.

Jiang Yuebai turned to look at her master, who remained calm and unhurried, showing no signs of impatience.

Clang—

The bell tolled, resonant and melodious, its echoes lingering in the air.

Several children with cloth headbands, dressed in white as snow, came laughing and playing from a nearby gate, adding a touch of liveliness to the somber old city.

”Ahem!”

The elder coughed forcefully, abruptly halting the children’s noise, and they stood obediently to the side, bowing respectfully.

”Greetings, Teacher.”

The elder sternly approached the children, ”Within the Kong Clan City, you must not walk in haste or speak loudly. You have just been dismissed from class and engage in such unruly behavior. What decorum is this? Each of you must copy the writings on both sides of the Straight Path as a warning.”

The children looked distressed, their mouths turned down in near tears, but remained respectful and responded in unison.

Jiang Yuebai shivered involuntarily, finding it terrifying!

Though she loved learning, she did not enjoy copying texts, especially those she had already memorized. Copying them felt like a waste of time and self-torture.

”I apologize for the disturbance.”

The elder bowed slightly, then continued to lead them onward. Jiang Yuebai noticed her master remained silent and kept her own mouth tightly shut.

This place, for someone like her who was both a disciple and student, exerted a kind of bloodline pressure that made her shiver involuntarily.

After passing the Straight Path, Jiang Yuebai saw ancient and heavy gray tiles, white walls, and grand gateway towers, exuding solemnity and majesty.

Further inside, there were pavilions, towers, water pavilions by the ponds, lush vines, and green bamboos by a jade-like lake.

The male disciples of the Kong Family all wore snow-like white clothes, exuding a cool and elegant demeanor.

They gathered in groups of three or five, either engaging in loud discussions by the lake pavilions or competing in poetry and battle methods outside the bamboo grove, giving off the air of a grand and prosperous clan.

Unlike other families Jiang Yuebai had seen, the Kong Family made her truly feel the deep cultural heritage of a great family.

However, along the way, all she saw were men.

As a child, her grandfather told her there was no division between men and women in the Cultivation Realm, but that was only what he had seen within the Sect. Now, she had experienced more than her grandfather, combined with what Xie Jingshan told her.

Jiang Yuebai realized that in cultivation families, women’s status remained low because the families relied on women to maintain the bloodline and prosperity. If they allowed women to cultivate and become stronger, to broaden their knowledge and experiences, they would not want to be confined to the inner quarters, reduced to mere childbearing.

The female cultivators in the sect were like this—dedicating themselves to the path, striving for strength, and even if they formed a Daoist companion in the future, they rarely bore many children, at most having one to experience parenthood.

As long as childbearing abilities resided with the female cultivators, cultivation families would continue to oppress their female cultivators, unlike the more equitable Cultivation Sects. Lu Nanzhi was one such case, subjected to the Lu Family’s disciplines to ensure she would gracefully marry and become a wife. She refused to accept such teachings and fled to the Heavenly Interence Sect.

”The Clan Leader and Elder Huaide are inside.”

The guiding elder led them to a building nestled among green pine and cypress, indicating for Lii Jiuchuan to take Jiang Yuebai inside himself.

”Thank you.”

Before arriving, Lii Jiuchuan had submitted a greeting card to explain his identity and purpose. Given that the Clan Leader and the Great Elder of the Kong Family agreed to meet personally, Jiang Yuebai felt hopeful about the situation.