Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

Zhou Qingfeng didn't understand what Butler Qiu said, and neither did the other eighteen people.

What does it mean that entering the City Lord's Mansion doesn't guarantee you can stay there indefinitely?

Everyone looked puzzled.

Seeing this, Steward Qiu bluntly said, "Of the 19 of you, at most only two or three will remain in the manor a year from now."

"The rest of the people will be sent out of the city."

"So, cherish this year."

"I want to continue working in the manor after a year."

"You not only need to improve your individual abilities, but also make outstanding contributions to the first company."

"One year from now, I will make a comprehensive evaluation based on your contributions and abilities to determine who stays and who leaves."

Zhou Qingfeng and the others exchanged glances. Their mood, which had just started to improve, was suddenly filled with immense pressure again. They had finally made it into the city, and no one wanted to be sent out again. The monsters and demons in the wild were so numerous that it was despairing.

"Come with me." Butler Qiu led the new servants to the residence where the servants lived, then arranged for four people to share a room, and distributed bedding for both hot and cold seasons, two sets of servant uniforms, and two sets of toiletries.

Of course, none of these were the most important things; what really mattered was that the kitchen delivered a hot lunch.

Steamed white flour buns, pork stew with cabbage, and potato stew with chicken—it had meat, vegetables, and buns, and the flavors were heavy on oil, salt, and spice. It was so delicious that some of the newly arrived servants burst into tears on the spot.

"My God, this is food for humans!"

"Mmm... It's so delicious, so incredibly delicious."

"The lady is too kind to us. She even provides pork and chicken. We are just a group of servants. Do we eat such luxurious food?"

Zhou Qingfeng ate and drank heartily, filling his stomach, and had no time for idle chatter.

He just silently thought to himself that the city lord's family was really extravagant, even the food served to a group of servants was so good, not inferior to the food in the university cafeteria.

Sure enough, even if you're going to be a lackey, you have to choose the most powerful one, because the pay is so good.

Butler Qiu watched them eat and drink, arms crossed, smiling faintly: "While you're eating, let me formally introduce myself. My name is Qiu Chengde, the butler of the outer courtyard, in charge of all affairs of the outer courtyard."

"Since Madam has entrusted you to my personal training, I will certainly do my best to cultivate talents for the First Family."

"You've just entered the manor, so you can learn the rules and do things gradually."

"But cultivation cannot be neglected. No one in my family is allowed to be a useless person."

"Therefore, I will give you one day to use the secret manuals and resources bestowed by the lady to begin your cultivation as soon as possible."

"I will come to inspect at this time tomorrow."

Upon hearing this, everyone was shocked and lost their appetite: "Huh? So fast?"

"Cultivate diligently." Butler Qiu didn't say much more and turned to leave. He didn't want to waste words on these new servants who had entered the manor, because they hadn't yet shown enough value for him to patiently teach.

Everyone panicked when they saw Steward Qiu leave. They hurriedly ate their meal and then went back to their rooms to start thinking about cultivation, fearing that they would not be able to start practicing before tomorrow.

Zhou Qingfeng quickly finished his meal, took a shower, dried himself off, and changed into clean servant's clothes before returning to his room. His three roommates were engrossed in studying the secret manual.

Seeing this, Zhou Qingfeng returned to his bed and lay down, taking out the cultivation manual to examine it carefully.

A comprehensive introductory guide to the fundamentals of ingesting turbid qi, turning to the first page of the prologue.

[In this defiled and evil world, we suffer the torment of eight kinds of pain.]

People's hearts are wicked, and they do not cultivate virtue.

[When knowledge and understanding are incorrect, wrong views increase.]

All living beings suffer harm.

Zhou Qingfeng didn't read it carefully; he just thought the preface was well-written, so he continued turning the page.

If you want to cultivate by consuming impure energy, then you need to understand what impure energy is and why you should consume it.

[Turbid energy is the inexhaustible negative energy in this turbid and evil world. It is a general term for all dark energies, including miasma, poisonous gas, corpse energy, anger, malevolent energy, resentment, and the smell of incense, etc.]

In this wicked world rife with corruption, the pure spirit has vanished, and the path to immortality through consuming pure substances has been utterly severed.

Since that's the case, we will completely abandon the path to immortality, not seeking ten thousand years, but seizing every moment.

The ancient cultivators forged a new path, reopening the Great Dao of Qi Refining by using their weak physiques to consume the impure energy of heaven and earth.

[When demons are evil, humans become even more evil; when ghosts are ferocious, humans become even more ferocious. All things in heaven and earth are resources for my cultivation.]

From this day forward, we cultivators shall be the most ferocious, wicked, poisonous, and filthy terrifying beings in this evil world. What do immortals or Buddhas matter? In this turbid and evil world, immortals and Buddhas are forbidden to roam.

If immortals and Buddhas dare to enter this wicked mortal world, we cultivators will feed on them.

"Hiss... How domineering." Zhou Qingfeng couldn't help but gasp when he saw this. Just from the opening, he had already witnessed just how terrifying a cultivator who practices the consumption of turbid qi could be.

This also made him realize that the cultivation methods in the Five Turbid World were extremely unique.

To think that they could feed on immortals and Buddhas—such arrogance is truly terrifying.

Perhaps after cultivating to a certain stage, one might truly have the ability to cross the world barrier and travel back to Earth.

Thinking of this, Zhou Qingfeng was greatly encouraged and couldn't wait to turn the page.

[The body absorbs impurities, and these impure energies return to the heart.]

Only by transforming impure energy into magical power within one's heart can one be qualified to practice magical arts and supernatural abilities.

However, cultivating by absorbing impure energy is not so easy.

[The foul air is poisonous; consuming it will cause madness.]

The foul energy contained in the turbid air not only pollutes the physical body but also the mind.

[Note: When practicing the Absorption of Turbidity, use the Turbidity Absorption Array to gather a massive amount of turbid energy from heaven and earth, allowing this energy to pollute your body, and then supplement it with the Purifying Heart Pill to purify your mind.]

[During the duration of the drug's effects, allow the turbid energy to contaminate every inch of your body's flesh and blood.]

Finally, all the stagnant energy in the body is guided back to the heart.

From that moment on, a bridge was built between the heart and the heavens and the earth.

As long as the heart remains undying, the turbid energy will never cease.

[Once the refinement is complete, the gate to cultivation will open, and one will enter the Devouring Turbidity Realm.]

Zhou Qingfeng continued to flip through the book. The manual not only contained words but also corresponding illustrations, and it detailed a large amount of basic cultivation knowledge, making it quite beginner-friendly.

However, precisely because of this, there is too much content, and it is simply impossible for beginners to memorize it all in one night. They can only pick out important knowledge such as the basics of cultivation first, and then study it in detail later when they have time.

I read for an hour.

He reached out and took out the three small bags that the First Lady had given him.

Inside were 10 magic coins, a purification pill, and a folded diagram of a purification array.

Magic coins are a special and rare form of currency forged from metal. They can be used in any city in the Five Turbid World because they can be used to forge magical artifacts and store magical power.

The Purifying Heart Pill and the Turbidity Absorption Array Diagram need no further explanation; they are simply necessary resources to aid beginners in cultivation.

Zhou Qingfeng unfolded the pure black array diagram for absorbing turbidity, which was about one meter long and wide.

The surface of the array seemed to be decorated with a ring of mysterious, unreadable patterns drawn with the blood of some kind of animal.

He sat cross-legged on the array diagram, spread out the secret manual, took out a Cleansing Heart Pill and swallowed it in one gulp. Then, he formed the Absorbing Turbidity Hand Seal as shown in the diagram, slowly closed his eyes, and began to absorb turbidity into his body.

The omnipresent turbid air, attracted by the turbidity-absorbing array, quickly converged into a black, foul mist.

The black mist, like the source of all evil, was slowly polluting and eroding Zhou Qingfeng's flesh and blood.