A week passed by in a flash.
During this time, Damien did his best to explore every corner of the sect that he had access to as an outer disciple, and it was much livelier than he expected.
After that woman's explanation of the outer court, Damien's view of it changed, seeing it as a rat race to reach the better resources of the inner court, but he was sorely mistaken.
Most people didn't mind staying at such a low tier. They were able to enjoy themselves and live comfortably with just the 100 spirit stones a month they were given.
He realized the reason for this, though. While the sect promoted competition, they only wanted those who were worthy to thrive. By giving the outer court disciples a comfortable living environment, they could automatically weed out those without the drive to move forward.
These people still had value to the sect. They'd always fulfill their mission quotas to keep their status as a sect disciple, and they'd take all the odd jobs necessary to keep the environment clean and friendly.
These odd jobs also counted as missions, but they were more long-standing. Damien learned that even those disciples guarding the sect walls did so while earning spirit stones for their efforts.
The buildings Damien found to be most useful for him were the Mission Hall, the Grand Library, and the Star Plaza. While there were other facilities, the ones that would help him progress in cultivation all cost more spirit stones than he currently had.
The Mission Hall was structured similar to the adventurers guild but without all the unnecessary parts. There was a large board spanning the entire back wall of the hall that was filled with different quests and missions.
There were disciples who regulated who could take which quests and a few elders that cataloged everyone who left the sect.
There was also a disciplinary hall where the law enforcers of the sect gathered. However, selection for this position was harsh and only a few were able to maintain it. Being a part of the disciplinary hall was something that could gain one plenty of adoration from fellow disciples.
As for the Star Plaza, it covered a large part of the central area of the city. In the plaza, one could buy almost anything they'd ever need. Resources, beast companions, and even cultivation techniques were for sale at the various stalls that made up its area.
The rest of the city was mainly housing and entertainment, functioning like any other city. The housing for outer disciples wasn't bad, but it couldn't be considered good either.
Damien's room was about the size of a one-bedroom apartment. He didn't know if everyone was able to live alone or if it was a privilege granted to him because of his master, but he didn't mind either way. The living space was still nothing special.
As for his favorite area, it was either the woodland areas surrounding the city or the grand library.
He enjoyed the atmosphere that both areas had, and with the forest, he could go hunting if he ever wanted to. It was common for disciples to hunt within the mountain, and they could even sell the beast corpses back to the Mission Hall for spirit stones.
As for the grand library, it helped him learn many things that he didn't previously know. He learned about the holy lands where every major sect was located. Star Mountain was one of them, and each was something akin to a mana hotspot. They were points in the world where the mana density peaked and ambient mana was drawn towards.
He also learned much more about meridians and the cultivation system here. Based on his educated guess, meridians were actually another form of mana circuits. The difference was that people in the Cloud Plane were born with them rather than having to create them later.
It was an interesting concept, but since the knowledge was only regarding meridians and didn't touch on the systems of other worlds, he wasn't able to test the veracity of his conjecture.
Since he was waiting for the first lesson from his new master, he chose not to research anything on his elements. He wanted to see what he could learn as a clean slate when he went into that lesson.
The Grand Library had 3 floors, and he only had access to the first one, with the second and third floors being open to inner and core disciples respectively. Although it was located in the outer court, it was a location where disciples of all three ranks gather.
If there was one more location Damien was particularly excited about, it was the Star Tower.
The Star Tower, from what Damien had understood, was a massive treasure. He didn't know who owned it or who put it on Star Mountain, but it was said that it was there since the sect's beginning.
The Star Tower was a place where one could be challenged and in return receive great rewards. He didn't know much else about it, since he didn't try to do any in-depth research, but he definitely wanted to try it at some point.
With his exploration of the sect finished, Damien didn't really have anything to do. He spent his time in his small dorm room in meditation, attempting to comprehend more of that elusive new element he had been gaining small enlightenments about.
At this point, he was very clear on its identity. It had begun after his long meditation during the trip through outer space, but he had been perceiving its flow in much more detail recently.
It should have been obvious from the start what its identity was, considering how close of a relationship it has to his space element, but he didn't think he'd actually gain it. After all, having control over both of them was too op right?
But his thought process was always logical when it came to comprehension. He knew that the element would have many drawbacks if its power was vast, or there'd be many limitations on what he could do with it.
It was only natural, since disrupting its flow could potentially lead to dire consequences.
But he still wanted to comprehend it. He didn't leave meditation even for the smallest convenience, submerging himself entirely within his consciousness.
And his perception was much stronger there. If space felt like a stable seafloor that made a home for everything to live, time was like the waves that allowed things to live and grow.
With both of them working together, the universe would cease its function. Without time, even if things lived, they would be robotic, in total stasis. And without space, where would they live in the first place?
Damien based plenty of his knowledge on the books he had read on earth since he had already confirmed that they were based on truth. And if that truth extended to the truths of the universe…
Even Nihility could exist. That nothingness that existed before even the concept of existence. If there was one place that existed outside of space and time, it was that.
Still, that wasn't his focus. After another entire week he spent focusing on meditation, Damien felt a vibration from his disciple token.
