seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years III

- Three to Ten- 

'It has been quite some time that I am now in this world. I do not complain, for I have benefitted many times. Even my thoughts sound more noble and polite nowadays. I have been learning a lot and honestly am a bit surprised but also happy to have landed in this world. I do enjoy everything till now, no matter how tedious or annoying the things were. I just wonder… WHY THE HELL IS EVERYTHING SO BORING OMG??? Like okay, I get it, I'm allat polite little eunuch a few old people have set their hope in… but like… y'all know that I'm still a child and stuff, right? Like, look at these two little eunuchs behind me, they play the WHOLE day, and no one is complaining. But when I for once want to take a small break from pretending and just chill dat ass, they be coming with more to learn- ' 

Ji Li complained in his thoughts for quite some time, which apparently showed a bit in his eyes, as Hua Jing who was just before him, turned around and looked at him while smiling "Oh, is little jade happy we go to the cultivation room to learn? The density of Essence in that room is very high, so it's beneficial to stay there at an age where you can't cultivate just yet. The pressure also makes it slightly more difficult to read and learn, but fighting against the pressure gives you great benefits."

Hua Jing looked a bit longer on Ji Li, and he reached out shortly to pat him, but stopped midway through, which seemed a bit weird. To not make the situation awkward, he reached behind Ji Li and tucked in the ear of a young eunuch slightly taller, with a darker complexion and more build that Ji Li and complained "Look at you! Ji Shixuan (Obsidian Mountain), I already see in your eyes that you want to sneak out! Do you think no one will see you sneaking out? Where do u want to hide even, behind the bamboo? With how you look, it would need at least a forest for it to hide you!"

Then Jing looked to the right side of Ji Li, where there stood an eunuch even thinner than Ji Li, he still had a relatively tall complexion and looked very flexible when he tried shortly to dodge Hua Jing's fingers, which he of course didn't achieve, given that Hua Jing is at a much higher cultivation stage and awakened long ago "Ji Qianyu (Fluttering Feather)! Don't you think you can escape just because you are behaving like a little monkey! You and Shixuan will come with me and Ji Li to the cultivation room and cultivate if u can till u fall off! You can't deviate at your stage; at most it will hurt a bit and you will fall asleep. From how I know you both, you will probably use this opportunity to sleep! Don't you know that it's a big opportunity for you to be able to follow Ji Li and cultivate there, barely anyone can go in there, if they are not in their last years of training."

Ji Shixuan and Ji Qianyu were a bit upset for being called out, because they for sure knew that Ji Li didn't enjoy cultivating either! Just look at him smirking behind Hua Jing, acting like he planned for them to get an earful of scolding. They grew up with him, more closely than even their mentor. They witnessed firsthand how loudly and rudely Ji Li behaved whenever no one was there besides their group, they heard him use words they never understood and look even more menacing than Hua Jing sometimes. At first, they tried to tell Hua Jing because they were upset, but later they understood that it was for nothing. As they grew older, it didn't bother them anymore… besides it obviously being annoying, because Ji Li took upon himself the role of an elder brother and thought them a variety of lessons and tricks to get extra food and have fun!

Hua Jing stomped a bit away from both and positioned himself just shortly in front of Ji Li as he looked at him sideways and said "We are soon there, Ji Li, teach your junior brothers a bit. They aren't as bright as you, but they are still better than most other new eunuchs, from what I have seen. In the future, they can be your helpers, it's always better to be prepared than to be sorry."

Laughing internally as he witnessed the two getting scolded, Ji Li remained fully polite on the outside as he replied "Yes mentor, I will teach them to behave properly and wisely. I am sure that they are just a bit wild because of their young age, I hope mentor doesn't mind."

The three listeners, Hua Jing, Monkey and Stone, didn't know what to say. Clearly Ji Li was just as young, but they couldn't say that because they knew how much better he behaved and how mature he was. It wasn't fully wrong, but it still made them feel awkward, seeing a young ten-year-old child acting like he's a fully grown adult.

…

After walking a small distance, the quartet arrived at a corridor that led to a deeper part of the trainees yard, which was closed off to most. Even the eunuchs guarding it aren't trainees but Junior Eunuch's that took the liberty to stay longer after finishing their training just a few years ago, to solidify their relationship with the Eunuch's in training, wait for certain friends or just use the opportunity to stand guard before special rooms, such as the cultivation room. Even from the outside one could feel the abundance of Essence.

All four entered through the guarded gate without talking or even looking at the eunuch's, seemingly accustomed to coming in and out of the room. The medium-sized room was decently designed with a few chairs, tables, beds and of course a mini-library with all kinds of books and some caskets.

There were also several glass pillars in each corner of the room, filled with stones which shined brightly, making the pillars seem like they were made of light.

Ji Li learned two of the seven important arts previously, and slowly but surely strengthened his knowledge over the course of several years. He wouldn't say that it's perfect, but he knew all the important heroes if the past, some minor ones, and knowledge bound to those heroes. His etiquette could rival royalty, as he would most probably somewhere in his future life encounter them.

As he grew older, he was allowed to practice two more arts, which required practical training and not just theoretical knowledge.

3. The Court art which is the combination of the three cultural arts: Painting, Poetry, and Calligraphy. Painting and Calligraphy might have been put in the same caste in his past world in the country that has some similarities with the Empire he is currently in. Yet it's different here, because there are many professions in the cultivation world which needed calligraphy, while painting was also used but by different professions. Poetry in comparison was an extension of etiquette, but as it had a wide range of influences, it wasn't included. Being a cultural art made it join the ranks of the court arts.

4. The art of Music, which might surprise some, as it formally would also count as a cultural art. It wouldn't be wrong to include it in the court arts, if only music was a field even larger than calligraphy and painting. Not only were there a large variety of instruments, with the Qin and Flute being the most used, there was another reason music was such a big thing. In the Emerald Brilliance Empire, the nature and harmony of all beings are the key points of their cultural image. Now they weren't peaceful, but in cultural hindsight, the empire enjoyed nature a lot. Greenery could be found everywhere in the imperial city, making it seem very abundant and rich. Music became a very popular way to convey the empires love for the nature, especially so when unorthodox influences came from outside the empire and transformed the instrument from being a just an entertainment tool to an actual weapon. Music-cultivators could be found everywhere in the empire after several centuries. Of course, it didn't overflow and there are many others, but on the cultivation list, it is third place. The first are the Nature's Attributes and Nature's Talents cultivators, which mainly focus on their awakened abilities. Second place are the Weapon faction, which learn a weapon, mostly sword, spear, and bow, and master these weapons to the best of their abilities. Then on the third place is music, which is partially of the weapon faction as could be seen as a weapon, but also partially Awakened Abilities faction, as the instrument can't show its full potential without them. In the end, because of its popularity and its differences, it wasn't included in either and was just put on the third place, not shrieking anyone off, as the largest part still remained in the two factions, the third faction just being a few steps higher than the minor and sub-factions.