Far away, a set of four powerful Wu Tong leaves flew out from the Phoenix Island of Wu Tong. One leaf landed in the Celestial Palace, while the other three traveled directly to the Demon Realm, each reaching the Cold Spring Palace, Silent Secluded Mountain, and Hao Yue Hall, respectively.
The Wu Tong Martial Banquet, a grand event for the three realms, was approaching. Immortals and demons alike awaited it eagerly, and even distant Miao Miao Island bustled with anticipation. It had been centuries since an Immortal Lord emerged from the island, and now that Chong Zhao was eligible to participate, Song Feng ordered a selection at month’s end to choose new disciples to accompany Chong Zhao. The inner disciples of Miao Miao were already sharpening their skills, hoping to distinguish themselves and witness the splendor of this grand event.
But this lively preparation had nothing to do with Bai Shuo. Every day, she led her simple-minded disciple around the herb garden, happily passing her days. However, the increased demands for elixirs for the competition raised the usual quota threefold, leaving Old Turtle working tirelessly with all four limbs, yet still unable to keep up. Bai Shuo had no choice but to wake up at dawn and toil with her clueless disciple, tirelessly gathering herbs and refining medicine, becoming as busy as a spinning top.
“Mu Mu, over here, pick some Dragonweed—this stuff is great for foundation building.”
Under the dark night sky, Bai Shuo tossed a handful of beans into her mouth and directed her disciple, who was carrying a small herb basket on his back. “Once we’re done here, let’s check somewhere else to see if we can find more good medicinal herbs.”
In the dim moonlight, little patches of spirit grass glowed faintly between cracks in the rocks, and the young man diligently picked them with unwavering patience.
“No wonder no one on this island has become an Immortal Lord in centuries if they’re relying on elixirs instead of their own cultivation,” Bai Shuo grumbled, watching her disciple bent over and working all night, only to fill a shallow basket. She pouted in annoyance.
The inner island disciples kept demanding spirit pills without a thought for Miao Miao’s limited resources. Spirit herbs couldn’t just appear out of nowhere. They’d already gathered everything on the island, so Bai Shuo had to expand their search to the nearby islets, but even then, the harvest was minimal.
Her diligent disciple carried his basket, while Bai Shuo, with a blade of wild grass between her lips, muttered, “Listen, my disciple, there have been a lot of people coming by the herb hut lately, so you need to stay hidden. Don’t come out during the day. Miao Miao is a prestigious sect, and spirits like you aren’t usually allowed on the island. It’s only because I took pity on you that I’m keeping you here. If anyone finds out, your master here will be punished too…”
Receiving no response, she turned to find her disciple looking at her with bright, wide eyes, holding out a freshly picked spirit peach that he’d carefully wiped clean.
“Master… tired. Eat.”
Despite spending so much time with his chatterbox fox of a master, her young wooden disciple still couldn’t form complete sentences, only managing one word at a time. But his simple words filled Bai Shuo with joy.
“Good boy.” She took the peach. “Oh, and remember, if you happen to see anyone, just turn into a little locust tree…”
She took a bite of the peach mid-sentence, and a surge of spirit energy rushed down her throat, giving her a start. Looking down, she saw that the peach was brimming with life force—its radiance rivaled even the sacred peaches hidden on Miao Miao’s inner island.
“Where did you find this?” she asked excitedly. With such abundant spirit energy, the tree that bore these peaches must be a sanctuary filled with precious herbs!
Her disciple blinked, not understanding why she was happy, but feeling happy himself because of it. He pointed to a spot just a few paces away. “There. All… there.”
What? Bai Shuo squinted in the direction he pointed, seeing nothing but shadows.
“There’s nothing there!” She waved her hand in front of his face. “Disciple, are you seeing things?”
Her disciple frowned, looking very serious. “There. I show… you.”
The young man took her hand and reached out toward the dark spot in mid-air. Bai Shuo suddenly felt a chill as it dawned on her.
How could she forget? This was no ordinary tree spirit in front of her—it was a powerful demon! If Fan Yue could see something she couldn’t, it had to mean there was a barrier there!
“Wait! Stop!”
She was too late. Her disciple had already grasped her hand and reached into the air. A flash of light tore through the darkness, illuminating the surroundings with a blinding brightness that made Bai Shuo squeeze her eyes shut.
0 Comments