I’ll Take That Opportunity Chapter 2 - Zhang Liang's New Opportunity

An hour after Ye Lin left, a burly man approached the stone stele at the back of the mountain. This man was none other than Zhang Liang.

“Not bad, not bad. Tonight’s moon is perfect.” He remarked, nodding in satisfaction as he gazed at the massive full moon glowing in the sky.

Zhang Liang had chosen this remote, desolate spot for a specific reason. A few days earlier, during a robbery of a newly admitted handyman disciple, he had stumbled upon a high-grade basic-tier cultivation method—the Spirit Moon Method.

This cultivation method required both spirit qi and moonlight qi for cultivation, enabling rapid progress.

High-grade basic-tier methods were privileges reserved for inner disciples. Knowing that treasures often invited trouble, Zhang Liang opted to cultivate in secret, coming to this deserted part of the mountain every night when it was quiet.

Just as he was about to settle down and begin his routine, something caught his eye.

“What’s this?”

Curious, he pushed aside the weeds, revealing a yellow pouch. His heart skipped a beat. At a glance, he recognized it as an item exclusive to inner disciples—proof of their status.

Zhang Liang’s mind raced. Whatever was inside had to belong to an inner disciple, and nothing of theirs would be ordinary.

Eagerly, he opened the pouch, only to find a dark mass inside.

“What is this? Strange...”

Zhang Liang reached into the pouch, and a foul stench immediately hit his nostrils. He quickly tossed the pouch aside, recoiling in disgust at the black and yellow substance on his hand.

“Crap! What rotten luck.”

Muttering curses under his breath, Zhang Liang used his spirit qi to cleanse his hand of the demonic beast feces. He then sat down cross-legged and began to cultivation.

Meanwhile, Ye Lin stared at the Spirit Stones in his hands, troubled. He had overlooked one critical issue—he didn’t possess a cultivation method and had no idea how to absorb the spirit qi within the stones.

Spirit Stones were categorized into four categories: low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and top-grade. Each grade was exponentially more potent than the last, with one mid-grade Spirit Stone equaling 100 low-grade Spirit Stones, and so on.

“Forget it. But I think novels describe it something like this…” Ye Lin muttered to himself.

Taking a leap of faith, he placed a Spirit Stone into his mouth. Almost immediately, wisps of spirit qi began flowing into his body. However, without a proper method to guide it, the spirit qi dispersed throughout his body, strengthening every part of his body.

Feeling the subtle changes in his body, Ye Lin’s face lit up with delight. It worked.

A night passed in the blink of an eye. When Ye Lin finally opened his eyes, he glanced at the remaining nine Spirit Stones, a wry smile crossing his face.

Without a cultivation method, he had relied purely on instinct, barely absorbing a single low-grade Spirit Stone over the course of an entire night. However, the effort hadn’t been in vain—his body had grown noticeably stronger.

[Name: Ye Lin]

[Cultivation base: 1st layer Qi Refinement]

[Fate grade: black (fraught with calamity)

[Fate trait: shrouded in misfortune, transcendental perception]

[Fate prediction: in half a month, you will participate in the handyman competition and contend for the position of handyman overseer. During the competition, you will face Zhang Liang and be beaten to death by him.]

[Upcoming opportunity: none]

[Shrouded in misfortune: you are prone to accidents and betrayals.]

[Transcendental perception: you possess an incredible ability to grasp cultivation methods, mastering in days what others take months to learn.]

Looking at his panel, Ye Lin felt a surge of joy—he had reached 1st layer Qi Refinement. However, his elation quickly gave way to unease as he read his fate prediction.

The differences between the handyman disciples were minimal. All of them had incomplete spirit roots and started from the same baseline. To manage them more effectively, the sect held an annual competition half a month after new disciples joined.

This competition involved all handyman disciples, including 1st and 2nd layer Qi Refinement experts. In the end, ten were selected: nine as handyman team leaders and one as the handyman overseer.

Becoming the handyman overseer brought significant benefits—not only would the overseer manage all the handyman disciples, but they would also gain access to a mid-grade basic-tier martial skill.

This system simplified management, as it was more efficient for the sect to have the strongest among the handyman disciples oversee their peers. However, new disciples like Ye Lin stood virtually no chance against the veteran handyman disciples, who dominated these coveted positions.

Spirit roots, a key factor in cultivation, were divided into five categories: incomplete, low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, and top-grade. As an incomplete spirit root cultivator, Ye Lin knew his path was fraught with challenges.

“Phew…” He exhaled, “I’ve already reached 1st layer Qi Refinement. If I can acquire a cultivation method from the sect and absorb the remaining nine Spirit Stones, I might even reach the 3rd layer—or higher.”

“But, it's still not enough. I have to secure the position of handyman overseer.” Ye Lin muttered to himself.

The overseer position was more than just a title; it represented access to the mid-grade basic-tier martial skill and a degree of freedom within the sect.

His immediate priority was clear: acquiring a cultivation method. Without one, he could only absorb 20% of the Spirit Stone’s spirit qi, with the remaining 80% going to waste.

“Get out here! What time do you think it is? Still sleeping? This isn’t your home!”

The fragile wooden door rattled violently under Zhang Liang’s relentless pounding, his angry shouts echoing outside.

Inside, Ye Lin quickly gathered his belongings, tucked his token securely into his clothes, and opened the door.

“Come out.” Zhang Liang barked. He glared at Ye Lin before grabbing him and dragging him outside.

They arrived at an open field where five other handyman disciples were already waiting.

“Alright, the five of you, stand in line, and you, go join them.” He ordered, gesturing toward Ye Lin.

Ye Lin nodded and took his place among the others.

“Welcome to the Azure Cloud Sect.” Zhang Liang began, “As new handyman disciples, your first task is to harvest medicinal herbs from the medicinal field. Now, let’s move.”

With that, Zhang Liang strode off, and Ye Lin, along with the others, hurriedly followed.

"Team leader, does the sect provide cultivation methods?" At this moment, Ye Lin approached Zhang Liang and asked quietly.

Zhang Liang shot him a sideways glance before scoffing, “Cultivation methods? You wish. The sect isn’t your nanny. If you want one, go to the Scripture Pavilion and trade for it yourself.”

Hearing this, another disciple stepped forward, “Team leader, what do we use to trade? Silver?”

“Silver?” Zhang Liang sneered, “The sect has no use for mortal currency. Everything here—cultivation methods, martial skills, weapons, pills—requires points. Points are earned by completing tasks for the sect.”

He smirked before adding, “Of course, working for me is your privilege, so there’s no reward.”

The disciples exchanged frustrated glances but said nothing, knowing that showing dissatisfaction would only earn them a beating.

Zhang Liang continued, “If you’ve got treasures like Spirit Stones, you can trade those too. Five low-grade Spirit Stones will get you a low-grade basic-tier secret method.”

Ye Lin’s eyes brightened at that—he had five Spirit Stones. Meanwhile, the others could only lower their heads in disappointment, having none to their name.

“Don’t lose heart. If you work hard and stay diligent, you’ll have earned enough points to trade for a cultivation method.”

The group soon arrived at a sprawling medicinal field. Spirit qi roiled in the air, invigorating the body and clearing the mind with every breath.

“Alright, listen up.” Zhang Liang barked, “Carefully harvest these medicinal herbs and place them into this basket. Don’t you dare damage a single one. If you do, not even your life would be enough as compensation.”

His words sent a shiver down the spines of the new disciples.

“Now, get to work.”

As the group diligently began their task, Zhang Liang observed them with a satisfied expression.

Typically, new handyman disciples weren’t required to work during their first half month in the sect. However, the handyman team leaders had long found a loophole in this arrangement.

They accepted tasks from the Task Pavilion and then forced new disciples to complete them, reaping all the rewards without lifting a finger. After all, who wouldn’t take advantage of free labor? As for anyone who dared to resist? No worries, no one was that bold.

When Ye Lin stepped into the medicinal field, his chest tightened with unease. Narrowing his eyes, he cast a glance at Zhang Liang, and in the next instant, a transparent panel materialized before him.

[Name: Zhang Liang]

[Cultivation base: 3rd layer Qi Refinement]

[Fate grade: white (damaged)]

[Fate traits: minor luck, astonishing bladesmanship]

[Fate prediction: in half a year, while accompanying outer disciples on a devil subjugation, a 5th layer Qi Refinement deviant devil will drain all your lifeblood, and you will die.]

[Upcoming opportunity: while wandering the medicinal field, you will discover a variant spirit fruit at the very back. Consuming it will propel your cultivation base to 5th layer Qi Refinement.]

[Minor luck: you will occasionally stumble upon opportunities during outings.]

[Astonishing bladesmanship: you possess exceptional talent for the blade, progressing rapidly along the path of bladesmanship.]

Ye Lin froze, his mind racing, “A spirit fruit hidden in the medicinal field?”

His eyes then flickered to Zhang Liang’s fate grade, which had changed to damaged. Furthermore, his fate prediction had also changed.

“Could it be? Seizing another person’s opportunity weakens their fate grade?” Ye Lin thought to himself.