Chapter 409: Occupations

"Occupations..." Yi Chen’s eyes glimmered when he heard the next topic, and it was the same with almost everyone who was present in the class.

Seeing everyone’s enthusiasm, Elder Hong Lie nodded with a smile and continued, "Now, before I start my explanation, as most of you might have already guessed, here’s a question for everyone.

What led to the creation of the various cultivation occupations that we have today? As cultivators, our sole purpose should be to keep focusing on our cultivation in order to attain the next layer, the next stage, isn’t that right?

Then why is it that instead of focusing our entire time and energy on cultivating, we end up using them on learning an entirely new thing like an occupation? Any guesses?"

"I-It’s to get stronger!"

"It’s to increase our combat and mental abilities!"

"To gain an edge over others!"

"It increases cultivation efficiency!"

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Several enthusiastic answers came one after the other, and Elder Hong Lie nodded at each of them until all those who wanted to answer had answered.

"Alright. I’ve listened to everyone’s answers, and all your reasoning is correct. All these points that you mentioned are naturally the benefits one gets because of the various cultivation occupations that are available.

However, the initial reason that led to the birth of these occupations wasn’t these grand reasons but was a very simple one. It was borne from a cultivator’s desire to use his time more effectively."

Elder Hong Lie smiled, looking at the interested yet confused expressions on many faces, and continued, "As everyone here would be aware, one cannot focus on cultivating throughout the day.

After a certain point, our minds reach a saturation point, and any more will result in such great mental strain that it will make us collapse if we keep going on for any longer."

Several heads, including Yi Chen’s, nodded when they heard these words. It was something they had grown familiar with after entering the Meridian Refinement Stage.

"...Therefore, it’s obvious that everyone here tries to make the best use of this additional time by investing it in their weapon skills, Qi Absorption Art comprehension, or, for those who are at the Ninth Meridian Refinement Stage, learning the spirit guiding technique during that time period.

However, as time passes and you get stronger, the progress rate in all these areas plateaus, especially when you enter the Qi Absorption Stage and continuing to devote more of your time to them feels like bashing your head on a stone.

To fill the void created by this regained free time, cultivation occupations saw the light of day in order to keep the minds of the cultivators engaged in this long journey of cultivation.

All the secondary benefits stemming from these occupations were discovered later, making many feel that they were the primary reason for their creation, but if they did a little research, they would soon realise that initially there were no such grand intentions behind the creation of these occupations."

Elder Hong Lie let out a soft chuckle, amused by the story which he had shared several hundred times by now.

Recovering his bearing, the next moment he held up five fingers and said, "Five. There are exactly five major cultivation occupations in the entire continent.

Along with these, there are several specialised occupations as well that are formed using the knowledge of the main five as a base in higher-ranked kingdoms.

However, for our classes we’ll be keeping the discussion limited to only the five major ones, which are:

1. Pill Refining

2. Beast Taming

3. Talisman Writing

4. Array Formations

5. Artefact Refining

These are the only ones you should be aware of for now based on your current requirements."

With that said, Elder Hong Lie took a deliberate pause to let his words sink in.

’Beast Taming, huh...’ Yi Chen muttered inwardly when he heard this while thinking of the enormous winged beast that the Imperial Family was in possession of.

’If I were to master it to a high level, then won’t I also be able to command such beasts in the future?’ he thought, clearly remembering Elder Feng Lei’s fearful expression while he was describing the beast to him when narrating the past events about Feng Yu’s parents.

"These occupations which I have just mentioned are extremely lucrative options for cultivators after you have gained sufficient proficiency in them, as they become an additional source of income for you.

As for which one you should choose? That’s based on your interest and abilities. However, keep in mind that each occupation has a different starting difficulty level.

For example, it’s easier to enter Pill Refining and Beast Taming if you are ready to pour in a lot of money in the starting phase. On the other hand, Talisman Writing requires minimal resource investment but asks for a lot of patience in return, as its failure rate is extremely high.

As for the other two, which are Array Formations and Artefact Refining, they require moderate amounts of investment and a very deep understanding of the basics to even start the first refining and array formation process."

When Elder Hong Lie finished speaking, he saw a disciple in the first row raising her hand. Seeing this, he gestured for her to speak her mind.

"Elder Hong Lie...which among the five occupations is the best?" the female disciple asked the question that was present in everyone’s mind.

To her question, Elder Hong Lie let out a soft chuckle and answered, "The question you just asked has been discussed for several decades before it was unanimously agreed upon that all the occupations hold an equal footing on the continent and have their own importance.

In the starting phases, there might be a few obvious advantages and disadvantages, but as one’s expertise increases, they come to a realisation that all the occupations carry an equally important role."

With that said, Elder Hong Lie clapped his hands to attract everyone’s attention.

"That’s all for today’s class. Starting tomorrow, your familiarity classes will begin. For the first session tomorrow, I’ll teach you the theoretical basics of pill refining, followed by the practical lessons in the afternoon.

And the day after, I’ll do the same for Beast Taming, and this will go on until all five occupations have been covered, which will mark the end of your six-day-long orientation classes.

The goal of these familiarity classes is just as its name. By the end of these classes, we expect you all to be familiar enough with the five occupations so that you can choose an occupation for yourself.

Therefore, pay close attention to everything that is going to be taught, irrespective of whether you find it interesting or boring, for if you don’t pay enough attention, then you might just end up missing the very occupation you’re naturally good at. Understand?"

"Yes, Elder Hong Lie!"

Everyone responded with glimmering eyes.

"Mhm, class dismissed." Elder Hong Lie nodded and, after rewarding the female disciple with the promised contribution points, left the class.

The moment that happened, several discussions burst forth among all the disciples. With excitement and curiosity evident in their eyes, they discussed the occupations they were planning to explore more during the familiarity classes.

"Hmm, I think I’ll take Array Formation," Feng Ning said after a brief thought.

"That sounds too complicated. I’m thinking of taking Pill Refining instead," Feng Min responded with a bitter expression.

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Looking at Zhou Mei, who was wearing a contemplative expression on her face, Feng Ning asked the next moment.

"What about you, Sister Zhou Mei? What are you planning to take?"

"Me? I’ll go with Beast Taming." Zhou Mei answered with a serious expression the very next moment.

"Beast Taming, huh...Good luck!"

A forced smile appeared on Feng Ning’s face when she heard this, but she still wished her luck. She wasn’t expecting Zhou Mei to choose that since Beast Taming was a highly male-dominated occupation.

"Senior Brother Chen, which occupation are you planning to take?"

"Yes, Brother Chen, which one are you interested in?"

Both Dong Yun and Qin Yao asked one after another, which also made the rest look in Yi Chen’s direction, with curiosity evident in their eyes.

"Mhmm. There are still a lot of things I have no idea about when it comes to these occupations, so I’ll first patiently learn about them in the coming classes before making the decision."

"I see..."

They nodded after hearing him, a little disappointed at not being able to get an immediate answer.

Meanwhile, Yi Chen saw Zhou Mei raising her hand to draw his attention all of a sudden.

"Brother Chen, it’s time, so let’s go and meet my Elder Sister. The bottom of her peak is at a considerable distance, so it’s best that we go right now." Zhou Mei stated the next moment.

"Ah, yes." Yi Chen immediately nodded when he heard those words, and after bidding goodbye to the rest, he left alongside Zhou Mei.

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