I bear witness to immortality in the human world.

Chapter 12 Six Forces
Wu Village.

Located in the center of the village is a much more spacious courtyard. This courtyard is also distinct from other houses. Instead of being enclosed by a fence, it is built with grass, wood, mud, and mortar, about two meters high, which covers the inner courtyard.

This is the home of clan chief Wu Qu.

As the clan chief of Wu Village and the only martial arts master in Wu Village to achieve secondary blood clotting, Wu Qu's family background was naturally quite different from that of other villagers. He owned his own piece of land and an orchard, which were usually managed by the villagers.

A warrior who has achieved blood clotting once can only be exempted from the poll tax and housing tax, but not from the land tax. However, if he can achieve blood clotting a second time and is certified by the imperial court, he can be exempted from the land tax on ten acres of land. Therefore, only warriors who have achieved blood clotting a second time are qualified to own their own land. Ordinary people cannot afford the heavy land tax and other troubles.

If one goes further and achieves the third stage of blood clotting, in addition to being exempt from the tax on a hundred acres of land, one is also qualified to open a 'mansion' in the city, take in servants, and so on. At this point, one can be considered a true tycoon in the city.

In the courtyard.

"...In short, this is the situation in Jingye City. You are already a Blood Condensation Warrior, so you can choose any force to join. However, the Cautious Punishment Division and the Demon Suppression Division are too difficult to join. To join a division, you either need to have a background or have extremely high talent. The Blood Blade Tower is not suitable...Therefore, among the alliance, the two divisions, and the three sects, the Seven Martial Alliance is the most suitable for you."

Wu Qu was telling Wu Ming about the various forces in Jingye City.

After Wu Ming's martial arts skills were made public, he wanted to learn about things in the city. He had previously consulted his two uncles, Wu Yang and Wu Sanbai, who were also martial artists. However, Wu Qu also came over, and Wu Yang and Wu Sanbai both smiled and told Wu Ming to go with Wu Qu.

Wu Qu was no longer as taciturn as before. Instead, he led Wu Ming to his home, first praising him, and then took the initiative to tell Wu Ming about Yong Kingdom, Jingye City, and his life after becoming a warrior.

Wu Qu's account of the Yong Kingdom is very brief, only stating that the Yong Kingdom was based on the system of 'cities' and was divided into fifty-four cities, of which Jingye City was one.

Wu Qu's description of Jingye City is much more detailed.

According to Wu Qu, there are six major powers that truly hold power in Jingye City, known as the One Alliance, Two Offices, and Three Sects.

The "Alliance" refers to the "Seven Martial Alliance," which is formed by seven powerful martial artists, each holding a hall. Essentially, it is an alliance of several loose forces. Initially, it had a very low status in Jingye City, but as time went on, due to the Seven Martial Alliance's extensive recruitment of people, accepting almost anyone who came, it gradually surpassed the other major forces in terms of the number of martial artists, and thus became very important in Jingye City.

The two departments need no further explanation; they are the Demon Suppression Department and the Penal Discipline Department, two major government offices directly under the Yong Kingdom's court, holding high positions and wielding great power. Although Jingye City also has government offices in charge of household registration, salt transport, and so on, their status and power are all below those of the Demon Suppression Department and the Penal Discipline Department.

As for the three sects, the 'Black Fiend Sect' and the 'Mysterious Jade Sect' are local sects within the territory of Jingye City. Both have been passed down for hundreds of years and are said to have existed since the founding of Jingye City. They made great contributions to the city's construction, so the Yong Kingdom court allowed the two sects to establish their own sects within the territory of Jingye City. Furthermore, the successive sect leaders of the two sects all inherited the title of fourth-rank marquis to show their respect.

The last one, 'Blood Blade Tower', is the most mysterious. The one located in Jingye City is just a branch. Even Wu Qu doesn't know how powerful the main sect is. Moreover, when talking about Blood Blade Tower, Wu Qu is very evasive and only mentions it briefly.

These six forces are intertwined and not clearly defined, making it difficult to understand them one by one.

For Wu Ming, having initially condensed his blood and stepped into the realm of martial arts, he needed to find a force to join. On the one hand, this was to earn silver as a martial artist to meet his daily expenses and cultivation needs. On the other hand, after condensing his blood, he also needed to find the most suitable guidance from a sufficiently large force.

According to Wu Qu's explanation, the Black Fiend Sect and the Profound Jade Sect are relatively closed off and have their own channels for recruiting disciples. They generally do not accept idle martial artists like Wu Ming. It is also difficult for the Demon Suppression Division and the Cautious Punishment Division to accept them. Although the Blood Blade Tower does not restrict background and any martial artist can join, it does 'underground' business and is even less suitable for Wu Ming, who has just begun to condense blood.

Therefore,

For a free-spirited martial artist like Wu Ming, the most suitable place would be the relatively loosely organized Seven Martial Alliance, which has many avenues to explore.

"Compared to the other forces with strict rules, the Seven Martial Alliance is the most lenient, with almost no mandatory rules. If you join the Seven Martial Alliance, you can not only find suitable work there, but also hone your martial arts skills."

Wu Qu gave Wu Ming a brief introduction to the Seven Martial Alliance. From Wu Qu, Wu Ming quickly learned about the structure of the Seven Martial Alliance. Rather than a force, it was more like an organization. The Seven Martial Alliance had connections with almost all the forces, large and small, in Jingye City. In addition, it was close to neutral. Therefore, any job that required hiring martial artists would almost always be sent to the Seven Martial Alliance first.

even,

Even the Demon Suppression Division and the Cautious Punishment Division would hire martial artists from the Seven Martial Alliance when they encountered incidents and did not have enough manpower.

Therefore, the most suitable place for idle martial artists is the Seven Martial Alliance, because here, if they want to make money, they can immediately receive all kinds of suitable jobs, without having to slowly search for them themselves.

In addition, the Seven Martial Alliance has a complete business structure, where you can buy rice, flour, meat, and even various medicines and powders needed for cultivation. It also has internal martial arts training halls where you can practice your fist and foot techniques.

If one has enough talent, they may be recruited into the 'inner hall' of the Seven Martial Alliance. Compared to the large and loose external structure of the Seven Martial Alliance, the seven inner halls are the core of the Seven Martial Alliance, and their treatment is completely different from that of the loose outer halls.

"By the way, your brother-in-law's older brother, Xu Hao, joined the 'Huishan Hall,' one of the inner halls of the Seven Martial Alliance."

As Wu Qu spoke, a slight ripple appeared in his voice.

He joined the Seven Martial Alliance under the guidance of the older generation of martial artists in Wu Village, but he failed to enter the inner hall of the Seven Martial Alliance. Despite doing his best to complete the second blood coagulation, he stopped there and had no chance to go further.

In comparison, Xu Hao's talent and aptitude are naturally higher than his, and he may even have the opportunity to coagulate blood three times in the future. This is undoubtedly a rare talent that is hard to come by in a hundred years for the surrounding villages.

Wu Ming sensed the subtle shift in Wu Qu's tone, and naturally wouldn't ask, "Then, clan leader, which guild have you joined?" He simply pondered for a moment before asking:

"So, joining the Seven Martial Alliance only has benefits?"

"If you could join the inner hall, there would naturally be benefits, but as for the outer hall..."

Wu Qu shook his head and said, "For all the outer hall martial artists, 20% of the money they earn from all the jobs they take through the Seven Martial Alliance will be deducted. This is the commission that the Seven Martial Alliance takes from the various jobs its martial artists undertake."

Upon hearing Wu Qu's words, Wu Ming understood perfectly.

In essence, the inner hall of the Seven Martial Alliance should be considered the true core of the alliance, while the outer hall is more like a kind of 'business' of the Seven Martial Alliance, only with a very wide scope.

Admittedly,

If Wu Mingruo only wanted to earn money, he could find some jobs in the inner city such as 'guarding the courtyard' or 'escorting goods' without having to pay the Seven Martial Alliance's commission. However, finding jobs on a small scale was troublesome unless he found a long-term job. On the other hand, only by joining the outer hall of the Seven Martial Alliance could he receive further guidance on martial arts cultivation.

This includes various martial arts skills, but more importantly, it includes the path to the second blood clotting!
"I listen to the clan leader."

After weighing the pros and cons, Wu Ming spoke to Wu Qu.

Upon seeing this, Wu Qu immediately nodded slightly and said, "Alright, then pack your things tomorrow and come into the city with me."

(End of this chapter)