Nian Jiaojiao felt a bit surprised and asked,
"Why does this music have such an effect?"
"This is the wonder brought by the art of music," Lei Juan replied.
Nian Jiaojiao understood.
For scholars to study was not just about reading, but also included mathematics, Bagua, music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, among other things.
And all of these, upon reaching a certain realm, could be cultivated.
There was the Way of Literature, and the Way of Music.
Of course, the methods of using power differed for different ways.
Like Elder Qiu, who was a literary cultivator, thus his method of using extraordinary power was through brush and ink, while Miss Wushuang playing the zither in this steaming tea house was a music cultivator, and thus used the zither, an instrument, as a medium for wielding extraordinary power.
After the three of them finished breakfast, Nian Jiaojiao had someone pack some of the decent-tasting tea snacks. As they passed the courtyard where Nian Jiaojiao currently resided, Xuan Yi alighted from the carriage with these packed snacks.
In the carriage.
Nian Jiaojiao and Lei Juan sat facing each other.
Lei Juan then handed over a small booklet.
"My master asked me to give this to you. It contains introductory cultivation methods. Although this book only covers the most basic theories and cultivation methods, people like us are unknown to the world, so remember not to reveal it."
Nian Jiaojiao took the booklet solemnly and asked in confusion,
"Logically speaking, cultivators hold extremely high status, so why can't ordinary people know about it?"
Lei Juan was silent for a moment before looking at Nian Jiaojiao and saying,
"Never mind, you will join our sect sooner or later. It's better to tell you some things in advance so you can be prepared."
After speaking, Lei Juan explained some of the causal relationships to Nian Jiaojiao.
The Great Yue Dynasty was not as peaceful as it appeared on the surface; in fact, it could be said to be fraught with danger.
Crisis One: External Threats.
Outside the Great Yue Dynasty were other dynasties, countries, and forces. Among these were forces friendly to the Great Yue Dynasty, and naturally, there were also forces hostile to the Great Yue Dynasty. These hostile forces launched wars against Great Yue from time to time.
And the ones manipulating behind the scenes were scholars who possessed extraordinary power.
Crisis Two: Internal Strife.
In fact, this internal strife was not unique to Great Yue; many dynasties harbored this hidden danger.
The struggle between female dominance and male dominance had existed since ancient times. Although all dynasties had concluded with the complete victory of female dominance, some men were still unwilling. They organized themselves and caused disturbances in various places from time to time.
Just like the "Black Lotus Sect" that Nian Jiaojiao knew of now.
Crisis Three: Human Calamity.
Human calamity referred to the threat from demons from beyond the heavens.
Lei Juan did not elaborate on the demons from beyond the heavens. It was not that she didn't want to, but rather that even she only knew fragments of information.
After listening to Lei Juan, Nian Jiaojiao seemed to gain some insight.
All power had its necessity for existence, and when such power was incredibly important and precious, it possessed supreme authority.
However, rights and responsibilities were relative.
Ordinary people were burdened by the trivialities of daily life, but they had the advantage of relative peace. Scholars who embarked on the path of cultivation had to constantly strive, bear their responsibilities, and protect their territories.
The carriage traveled for about an hour, and the driver said into the carriage,
"My lady, Baichuan Academy has arrived."
After the two alighted, Lei Juan pointed at the gate of Baichuan Academy and said,
"This place belongs to our sect. On one hand, the academy helps us with some secular matters. On the other hand, we observe whether there are any talented individuals within the academy that can be absorbed. It's a pity..."
Lei Juan shook her head and continued,
"It's a pity that the academy has not had any disciples join our sect for seven years."
The requirement to enter the sect was first to pass the imperial examination for Jinshi (special talents could be moderately relaxed).
This condition alone stumped the vast majority of scholars.
And after passing the Jinshi examination, one also had to undergo the sect's trials, which resulted in only a handful of scholars being able to join the sect.
Under Lei Juan's guidance, Nian Jiaojiao met the Dean of the academy. Upon seeing Nian Jiaojiao, the Dean was very courteous and said,
"When will Child Scholar Nian enroll?"
Nian Jiaojiao thought of the "Cultivation Manual" she had just obtained and suddenly did not wish to enroll immediately. Thus, she replied,
"May I ask when the academy has its holidays, and for how many days?"
The Dean of Baichuan Academy said,
"In five days, it will be the academy's holiday. Our academy has two days off per month."
Nian Jiaojiao heard this and felt that she could use these seven days to familiarize herself with Qingzhou and the "Manual."
So she said,
"Then I will simply wait until after the holiday to formally enroll."
If it were an ordinary student answering this way, the Dean would have already kicked them out. However, the person before her was brought by Lord Lei, so naturally, she had no objections.
The Dean quickly found a female teacher and asked her to handle the enrollment procedures for Nian Jiaojiao, so that she could enroll directly upon her next visit.
Nian Jiaojiao followed the female teacher into the academy. Along the way, the female teacher kept trying to ascertain her relationship with the Dean.
Because ordinary female teachers in the academy were unaware of the sect matters, and the disciples who went to the sect from the academy did so in secret, the female teacher only thought that Nian Jiaojiao had gotten in through the Dean's connections.
Therefore, Nian Jiaojiao could only feign ignorance and pretend not to understand.
...
The Nian Family.
After returning from the academy, Nian Jiaojiao eagerly opened the booklet Lei Juan had given her.
The first point in the booklet was the source of power for scholars' cultivation.
Nian Jiaojiao understood it to be:
There were two channels for scholars to acquire power.
One: To gain the recognition of heaven and earth, and receive power bestowed by heaven and earth.
Second: The creator's works are widely circulated, evoking resonance from all beings.
The second point was also why scholars placed such importance on their reputation.
If your reputation was good and you were well-known, your works would naturally be more easily known by others.
Of course, mere recognition was not enough; the works had to be excellent, otherwise, power could not be derived from them.
The second point in the booklet was the classification of scholars' extraordinary power levels.
First Level: Transcendent Realm.
This was the introductory realm.
Nian Jiaojiao herself was currently at this realm, having created the widely circulated and recognized "Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai" and exquisite poetry, thus achieving Heavenly Bestowed Transcendent.
Generally speaking, the normal process of becoming transcendent was to pass the imperial examination for Jinshi, obtain the source of power through creation, and then master the cultivation methods to absorb this power.
However, Nian Jiaojiao's source of power was too profound, which caused her to be forcibly transcendent through a direct infusion, even without mastering the cultivation methods.
This was also known as Heavenly Bestowed Transcendent in the sect!
Second Level: Object Manipulation Realm.
Scholars at this realm demonstrated mastery of methods for utilizing this extraordinary power.
For example, playing gentle music could cleanse the spirit and make people radiant, while playing music filled with killing intent could cause one's blood to flow backward, and in severe cases, even kill a person directly.
The booklet Lei Juan gave Nian Jiaojiao concluded with the introduction to the second level of realms.