7 The Library

"Damn… That's one grand library." Xin Feng muttered.

"Uhu!" Liu Lue said while munching on a piece of bread she bought earlier.

"I recommend you to look for the language section, since you forgot many words. Hehe, the moment you spoke with your father, he immediately confirmed that you had a memory loss. I mean like… What did you even mean with 'Chin Cheng Hanji' before greeting him?! hahaha!"

"Hehe, I thought that's how someone's supposed to indicate their presence." Xin Feng replied embarrassingly while scratching his head.

"Hahaha, you know… I really like you. Sadly, you're only a mortal, so our relationship wouldn't last. Tch. Tch."

"Pff! Screw you, old hag!"

"Hehehe! You were the one who thought I was around your age, okay. Anyway, I'll see you later. You can just sleep in the library if you're scared of walking in the dark. The library is open twenty four seven. See you soon, darling~"

"Hmph!" Xin Feng sounded as he turned around while blushing.

'So cliché, thinking that she can actually tease me.' He thought in amusement before he entered the library.

When he entered the library, he saw an old woman who seemed to be devoid of life, sitting behind a reception desk.

The old woman pointed at a sign that said "Books are not for take out!" before softly saying, "I see everything in this library."

Xin Feng simply nodded to her threat, before walking to the language section.

The library was a five-story building that had its information sorted in five categories. The lowest floor was where sect disciples would be able to find basic information like history, language, geography, basics of professions, discovered beasts and plants, and even poetry.

The second floor and higher, was where the information about cultivation of specific ranks were stored. The rankings were beginner, advanced, profound, and nascent.

'Oh, the higher floors don't seem to be restricted to specific rankings… It seems that they're using the only read tactic in this sect.'

'Liu Lue mentioned that the language we speak is called Shùnjin...' Xin Feng continued his thoughts while holding a piece of paper that had that word written on it.

After walking past a good amount of book shelves, he found the bookshelf that had the character Shùnjin carved in on its flat side.

The library didn't have any reading tables or seats, so one had to stand or sit on the floor while reading.

The first thing Xin Feng picked was the dictionary, since he was already able to read the characters, which were similar to mandarin. The dictionary wasn't as big as the ones he had on earth, so it didn't take him more than two full days to finish the book.

...

Xin Feng's eyelids were now black, and his head felt as if it had turned into lead from all the reading. Thankfully, the receptionist had provided him some water and a bathroom when he asked. The only exception was food, which he didn't mind, since food wasn't too important for him like water.

Reading the dictionary wasn't too difficult for him, since he had the language mastery talent. With the language talent, he only needed to read the word and its definition once to remember it.

Since Xin Feng hadn't eaten for two days, he decided to visit a restaurant before it closed. The restaurant was just across the library. It was made out of wood, and it was an open-air type of restaurant.

Xin Feng ordered a simple egg and tofu soup, and a jar of milk with the money that he had received from his father. After he had satisfied his stomach, he returned to the library to learn the other Shùnjin books which focused on grammar and vocabulary.

...

After half a day had passed, he had finally succeeded mastering the Shùnjin language. Finishing the grammar and vocabulary wasn't too difficult, since the information wasn't too much, and the information was nearly identical to the ones from mandarin.

Since he had already finished gaining knowledge from one section, he went off to sleep beside the shelf.

The next day, he woke up refreshed and ready to take in more knowledge. He went to eat fried eggs in the restaurant first, before he returned to start with the new section, which was "discovered beasts and plants".

After another two to three days of reading, eating, drinking, sleeping, and bathroom use, Xin Feng closed a book that had the information about beasts and animals. The information that he received this time, was even more than the amount of information within the dictionary.

Having read so much for almost a week, he decided to take a break, and focus on something else instead. He felt that he might actually turn insane if he kept reading detailed information continuously.

...

Xin Feng was quite satisfied with the treatment he received in the week that he had been reading continuously. The technology was actually not very behind compared to his previous world. It was only on a different approach.

Technology in this world was mostly created for and by cultivators. An example of that is the water-system that the cultivators have and the mortals don't, due to their inability of creating inscriptions.

The technology was of course one of the things that made Xin Feng very satisfied of this world. He was happy that he was able to cleanse his teeth, take a shower, and flush away his feces. He really didn't want to imagine himself in a society where people would simply take a dump near him on a corner of a street.

Realizing that such technology existed, and that his position became a high-standing one, made Xin Feng feel even more relieved. His uncomfortable life of having to take a bucket of water every day to wash his bottom, was simply getting too tiring for him.

...

*Sigh* 'This system-like thing really saved me from a hellish life…' Xin Feng thought, before he entered the manor that used to belong to Xin Ling.

Walking towards this mountain already took a lot of time and energy for Xin Feng, so when he entered the building, he immediately took a hot bath before sleeping on a comfortable bed that was made out of sheep's wool.