After hearing these words, Han Li naturally committed them all to memory.
"Since you've collected everything, come with me now to meet the Transmission Disciple!" Uncle Wang said, then once again summoned his flying tool and took to the air with Han Li.
This time the flight was much shorter—within the blink of an eye they descended at the foot of a nearby mountain. A massive stone building had been constructed against the slope, and before it stood a stone plaque inscribed with three gilded characters: "Transmission Hall." A number of young disciples were milling about the entrance, coming and going, making the area quite lively.
This time Uncle Wang said nothing and strode straight inside, with Han Li following close behind. Several disciples clearly recognized Uncle Wang and repeatedly bowed and greeted him, and Uncle Wang responded with a nod and a smile each time. It seemed his popularity within Yellow Maple Valley was genuinely quite good.
Once inside the stone building, Han Li was surprised to discover that the rear half of the Transmission Hall extended deep into the mountainside, the interior vast and spacious. The moment he entered, a row of stone doors stood before him in a line, and disciples were passing in and out of them.
Han Li was about to take a closer look, but Uncle Wang had already pushed open the third door on the right and walked in on his own. This left Han Li hesitating, unsure whether he should follow right behind.
"Come in!" Uncle Wang didn't keep Han Li waiting long—after only a short while he reappeared at the doorway and beckoned for Han Li to enter.
There weren't many people inside, just a single disciple in blue robes, roughly thirty years of age, standing respectfully at Uncle Wang's side. Upon seeing Han Li enter, the disciple offered him a friendly smile.
This is Wu Feng, who is specifically responsible for the cultivation techniques of new disciples. In the future, if you have any questions about techniques, you can consult him. In the mastery of basic techniques, Wu Feng is certainly ranked among the top ten of the younger generation!" Uncle Wang's words showed great appreciation for this person.
"I ask Senior Brother Wu to give me much guidance in the future!" Han Li said respectfully. He was very clear that this was the person who would be his technique instructor for the upcoming period, and he couldn't be negligent at all!
"Hehe! Uncle is too kind, I really only know the basics of lower-level techniques. I can simply discuss and explore them together with Junior Brother Han!" Senior Brother Wu replied modestly.
"Nephew Wu, I am very clear about your skill with techniques, no need to be so modest! This Nephew Han's technique matters are now in your hands. I am only bringing him now so you two can meet, and then I still have to take him elsewhere to make the rounds. I won't stay long here!"
Uncle Wang was quite direct. After saying these words, he and Han Li took their leave of the room, escorted out respectfully by Senior Brother Wu.
Over the next period of time, Uncle Wang dutifully took Han Li to several other necessary places. He separately introduced several managing disciples to him and explained some daily matters to note. Only then did he bring Han Li back to the cluster of stone houses where the grey-robed elder was located, allowing him to choose any stone room as his residence before leaving him there alone.
Han Li stood before the stone house he had selected, looking at the crude dwelling with a bitter smile.
By now he knew that any disciple who cultivated the basic technique to the tenth layer could leave this place and move to a location called Profound Trigram Mountain. There, the sect disciples had much more freedom! Not only could they freely build their own residences on the mountain, but there were also no restrictions on the type or size of the houses, which made Han Li greatly long for it.
However, although his technique had not yet reached the tenth layer, Han Li had no real intention of staying long in this stone house.
He chuckled softly, then took out the green leaf flying artifact from his storage pouch. After pouring spiritual power into the artifact, he tossed it into the air and jumped on.
At first, Han Li wobbled unsteadily through the air, dipping low and swooping high in a jerky, erratic flight, since he wasn't yet familiar with the artifact. But before long, he got the hang of it and could even fly back and forth with a carefree flair, his hands clasped behind his back, just like that Uncle-Master Wang.
Although this flying artifact was easy to pick up and simple to control, its speed was clearly nothing impressive — only marginally faster than an ordinary horse. No wonder every disciple in the valley had one. The green leaf artifact might be mediocre, but this was Han Li's first time soaring through the air, so he spent a good while toying around with it in high spirits.
"Haha!" With a hearty laugh, Han Li finally had his fill of flying and steered the artifact toward his destination.
Along the way, he brushed past several other disciples who were also airborne. Perhaps because Han Li's face was so unfamiliar, most of them studied him with considerable curiosity — but the moment they sensed that his cultivation was only at the ninth layer, they turned away with undisguised disdain.
Han Li took in every bit of their behavior. His face betrayed nothing, but inwardly he let out a few cold laughs. It seemed these so-called disciples of a great cultivation sect were no different from ordinary mortals in the mundane world — equally and thoroughly snobbish.
While his mind was still turning over these thoughts, he arrived before a sprawling complex of buildings. He descended in front of a grand hall bearing the sign "Hall of a Hundred Arts" and strode inside.