Transmigration with Cheat Codes Chapter 2.2: The Search for Resources

Meng Jintang had finished reading the four basic martial arts handbooks, and it appeared as though they had fulfilled their life’s purpose, their pages aging swiftly into a rich yellow tint. With just a touch, the pages crumbled into pieces, carried away on the wings of the wind.

The official explanation for this occurrence was that the force exerted while learning martial arts would inadvertently disperse outward, leading to the fragmentation of the pages.

However, more experienced and pragmatic players knew that it was simply because the durability of the martial art books had been reduced to zero after a single use.

When Meng Jintang pressed "F1" to open the martial arts interface again, the content displayed was no longer blank.

[Learned Martial Art Techniques:

“Basic Internal Skills”: 0/1000 (total level 1, current level 0);

“Basic Qinggong”: 0/1000 (total level 1, current level 0);

“Basic Sword Techniques”: 0/1000 (total level 1, current level 0);

“Basic Palm Techniques”: 0/1000 (total level 1, current level 0).

In the game "Martial Arts Ascension", martial art techniques were categorized into different levels. Basic martial arts, which were transitional skills in the early stages of the game, could only be upgraded up to level one.

On the other hand, top-level martial arts, such as the "Tianhua Heart Scripture" taught in the Tianhua Sect, a major sect in the martial world, could be upgraded up to a maximum of fifteen levels.

Some players verified that basic martial art techniques could still be cultivated even after they have reached the maximum level.

For example, if a player persisted and continued training their basic internal skills, their internal energy would still increase slowly. However, for higher-level players, this growth rate was completely inadequate.

Meng Jintang thought for a moment and opened the box to read the "Linchi Sword Art" book. But before she could even flip through a couple of pages, she felt dizzy, and her energy dropped by two points.

[System: The content of this book is too complex to comprehend for now…]

If a player was unable to learn higher-level martial arts at the time, they could practice lower-level martial arts of the same type. This way, they could achieve the beneficial state of [Analogical Reasoning], which would help increase the success rate of reading higher level martial art handbooks.

With Meng Jintang’s current appraisal skill level, she couldn’t read the detailed information of the "Linchi Sword Art '' book.

However, this was proof that the sword techniques taught by this handbook were at least a third-level sword art. With proper use, she could rely on this teaching of the "Linchi Sword Art'' to get through the beginner stage.

The minerals in the box could not be used for the time being. As for the cloth bag, it contained a total of 3000 copper coins. in the game, 100 copper equaled to 1 silver, and 100 silver equaled to 1 gold.

It was already noon. Meng Jintang strapped the copper short sword to her waist and took a quick look at the thatched hut she resided in.

The thatched hut, if designated as the sect's base, could not even have been described as substandard and it would have been generous to call it barely functional.

Meng Jintang had not held high expectations for the hut's basic functions, but she had searched around because the game designers had not only done their job of torturing the players but had also placed some supplies in the starting point residence—a last bit of conscience on their part.

However, out of some evil sense of humor, regardless of the starting point randomly assigned to players, the precious supplies were always hidden very deeply. In fact, even after “Martial Arts Ascension” had been launched for half a month, no player had been able to locate the hidden supplies.

After searching for half an hour, Meng Jintang discovered a fishing rod beneath an empty rice barrel in the kitchen, and a bottle of Small Revitalizing Pills that she found inside the rotting sausage chunks.

She also found a pocket with 100 copper coins in an old shirt, which seemed to be used as a rag, by the sink.

As for the small plot of land behind the house, she found a sickle, which was normal. However, while digging in the vegetable garden, she discovered a pottery jar containing a cotton skirt, which made her experience the frustrating aspect of the game turning into reality.

After all, in the virtual world, it was common to find treasures and pottery jars anywhere, but burying a perfectly good dress underground made the people who hid it seem weird, no matter how you looked at it.

Meng Jintang used the qinggong she had recently learned to climb onto the roof beams of the house in the end. From the gaps in the rotten wood, she pulled out a cloth bag with fifteen compartments and activated its portable storage function.

[System:

This hut is about to collapse and lose its function as a sect headquarters. Please choose to repair or rebuild.

Countdown to complete destruction: 47 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds.

Note: Looking at the collapsing thatched hut, Meng Jintang suddenly remembered that the sect covenant and the secret handbooks left by her elders were still hidden inside the hollow roof beam.]

Meng Jintang felt speechless.

Looking at the note, Meng Jintang was unsure whether to marvel at the genius of the system for hiding things or to be amazed that the items were hidden in the top beam. It’s no wonder the house was about to collapse...

The inside of the top beam had been a blind spot in Meng Jintang's search. Without the system notification, finding the books would have been quite difficult. Meng Jintang patiently chiseled the wood for a while and finally managed to pull out an oilcloth bag that was sealed very well.

Inside the bag, there were two books: "Hanshan Sword Art (Incomplete)" and "Basic Internal Skills".

[System:

Meng Jintang had heard her elders explain "Hanshan Sword Art" before and had a special understanding of the secret technique.]

"..."

In the game, players could often obtain various low-level martial art handbooks that could be sold to shops or donated to their sect for contribution points.

Meanwhile, for high-level martial art techniques that players were temporarily unable to practice due to not meeting the cultivation requirements, there might have been a special state such as [Master's Guidance] that significantly lowered the required level of comprehension for reading the handbook.

Meng Jintang threw the two books into her bag and started thinking about her next step in this game.

She definitely couldn’t stay in this thatched hut anymore. However, she needed to collect more basic information before she could decide if she should fix the hut or build a new place.

Meng Jintang concentrated and was just about to press the virtual “K” key to check the sect information when she suddenly felt a surge of energy in her lower abdomen. The next moment, her internal energy went from full value to 45/50 and the interface for sect information opened.

—So it turned out that not only could physical strength be used to open the virtual interface, but the same effect could also be achieved by using internal energy.

[Sect Information Interface:

Sect Name: Hanshan Sect

Sect Level: 1 (an obscure small sect that almost no outsider would think of besides its own members)

Sect Leader: Meng Jintang

Sect Structure: Not established

Number of Disciples: 1

Reputation Value: 0

Headquarters Bonus: -5%

Headquarters Status: [Exposed to Wind and Rain (due to the impending destruction of the house, losing all cultivation bonus effects. Prolonged stay will affect normal cultivation progress)]

Note: Although it is not a branch of Beggar's Sect, it has a similar appearance to that of a Beggar's Sect branch.]

Meng Jintang looked at the "-5%" behind the "Headquarters Bonus" and fell silent.

In the game, under the same conditions, cultivation within the sect is faster than cultivating in the wild due to the existence of the “Headquarters Bonus”.

Meng Jintang had previously seen posts on the forums where the worst conditions were at 0%, so this was her first time discovering that the “Headquarters Bonus” could drop to a negative number.