Learning he hadn’t been poisoned, Li An was overjoyed.
Zhang Susu’s eyes filled with envy. She’d been with Fan Jie for a year, breaking through to the Second Layer of Qi Refining months ago, but her sacrifices were far greater than Li An’s.
Wang Zilin sulked, sighing and grumbling to himself.
A few days later, Fan Jie approached Li An with a wide smile.
“Li An, I want to discuss something with you.”
Li An acted flattered. “Immortal, just tell me what to do.”
“Here’s the deal. The spirit fields are nearing harvest, but Wang Zilin’s plot is poor, and its yield is always low.”
Fan Jie smiled at Li An. “You’ve reached the Second Layer of Qi Refining and have the best Cloud and Rain Technique. I’d like you to take over and improve it.”
“Of course, I won’t shortchange you. I’ll add half a spirit stone to your monthly rations. How’s that?”
Li An’s heart sank.
The trouble he’d feared was here.
Before, with his damaged spirit root and no future, Fan Jie didn’t care about him.
But now, with his spirit root mostly fixed and a breakthrough to the Second Layer, Li An had a shot at becoming a registered disciple.
Fan Jie absolutely didn’t want anyone from Spirit Plant Mountain to rise to registered disciple!
If that happened, his secrets on the mountain might come to light.
He wanted Zhang Susu, Li An, and Wang Zilin to stay menials forever—easy to control and manipulate.
Li An had long expected Fan Jie to block his cultivation path!
Fan Jie’s tactic was simple: put Li An on the worst fields.
It seemed like a bonus with the extra half spirit stone, but it would cost Li An time and energy.
Wang Zilin now worked like an ox just to maintain yield, with no chance to advance his cultivation—a pure tool.
“Thank you for your kindness, Immortal,” Li An said, shaking his head. “But I’d rather have more time to cultivate.”
Fan Jie’s smile vanished, replaced by a cold glare.
Li An dared to refuse?!
“Immortal, this is a Spirit Gathering Talisman I made a few days ago. It’s a small token of respect.”
Li An pulled out a Spirit Gathering Talisman and offered it with both hands.
Fan Jie’s expression shifted. “You made this?!”
“Yes.”
“How many papers did you use, and how many succeeded?”
“Forty papers, three successes, but… the quality’s still shaky.”
Li An had made six but hid three.
If he hadn’t wasted a dozen papers on Flame Talismans, he could’ve made around ten Spirit Gathering Talismans.
Fan Jie’s eyes flickered with thought.
A one-in-ten success rate qualified as a talisman master in the sect.
If Li An passed the sect’s test, even with low cultivation, he’d become a registered disciple.
Talisman Masters were special talents. Even making Low Grade First Rank Talismans earned favor.
Li An’s success rate was close to one-in-ten.
Becoming a registered disciple was only a matter of time.
Fan Jie felt puzzled. This sickly kid, in just a year, had such crazy luck…
With this skill, blocking Li An further was pointless.
“Making talismans isn’t easy. How could I take your talisman?” Fan Jie’s face warmed with a kind smile. “Alright, if you don’t want to, I won’t force you. Keep cultivating.”
He left.
Li An watched him, a cold glint in his eyes.
Trying to block my path… I’ll repay this grudge tenfold someday!
He noted Fan Jie’s name in his heart.
…
For the next month, Li An stayed put, focusing on strengthening and improving himself.
One day, in an empty forest, mating season had two Stink Rat Wolves cozying up.
Suddenly, two water arrows shot through the air.
The wolves panicked. The female couldn’t get up and was hit instantly. The male, quick on its feet, leaped and twisted mid-air, dodging the first arrow.
But before it landed, another arrow struck it.
Both wolves fell dead!
Fifty meters away, Li An stepped out from the bushes, smiling with satisfaction.
“My Water Arrow Technique has improved. I can fire three arrows at once, with a range of 50 meters!”
This could threaten Third Layer Qi Refining cultivators.
“Training with the Super Sense Technique has sharpened my senses. My hearing and eyesight are much better, picking up animal breathing from 50 steps away!”
He collected the wolves’ bodies, removed the Spirit Gathering Talisman from his body, and replaced it with a new one.
The month was up, and the old talisman had expired.
Spirit Gathering Talismans slightly boosted cultivation speed. Over the month, his Life Seed’s second leaf had started to unfurl.
“My lifespan’s probably around 150 years now,” he murmured, then headed back.
At his hut, he brewed several pots of pest-killing soup for Zhang Susu and Wang Zilin.
Pests kept spreading, and for the past year, Li An’s “stinky bug soup” had kept him raking in shares.
Midway, Wang Zilin, desperate to escape Li An’s steep cuts, tried brewing his own.
He went to great lengths, catching Stink Rat Wolves and digging camphor roots, but his brew only half-killed him with the smell and didn’t touch the bugs.
He guessed Li An was holding back a key step and had no choice but to keep paying the 95% cut.
…
On the last day of the month, Li An took leave to go out.
…
Months ago, Li An had noted where Xu Qiuhui lived—Nurture Path Residence.
Official disciples lived there.
He waited outside all morning but didn’t see Xu Qiuhui.
Luckily, the outer sect had many task halls, and menials passed by often, so his loitering wasn’t odd.
He spotted Mu Qingwan, now even prettier after a year, walking into Nurture Path Residence with a charming young man.
Li An stayed back, not greeting her.
She wouldn’t notice a mere menial in the corner.
In the afternoon, Xu Qiuhui finally appeared.
Li An stepped forward, bowing. “Immortal Xu!”
Xu Qiuhui was surprised. “What brings you here?”
“I came to thank you, Immortal!”
He presented two Spirit Gathering Talismans respectfully. “Thanks to your brush and papers, I managed to make four Spirit Gathering Talismans. I’m so grateful. Please accept these two as a small token.”
Xu Qiuhui was stunned. “Four?”
She recalled selling him about 40 papers.
Four successes meant a success rate near one-in-ten.
“I didn’t expect you to have such talent in talismans.”
She nodded, pleased that her brush and papers had helped create a talisman maker, potentially changing a menial’s fate.
She also liked Li An. Each time he sold her “100 pounds” of spirit rice, it was closer to 120!
“Your success is your own fortune. Besides, you bought that brush and paper with spirit stones, not a gift.”
Li An insisted, “Immortal, you’ve done me a huge favor!”
“If you hadn’t guided me, my spirit root would never have healed…”
Excited, he explained the Prime Spring Grass mix-up.
Xu Qiuhui was surprised. This menial had some serious luck.
But she wasn’t too shocked. Such things weren’t rare in the Clear Sun Sect. Low Tier disciples sometimes got lucky with Second Grade herbs.
Spring Essence Grass and Prime Spring Grass were famously hard to tell apart, and others in the sect’s history had made the same mistake.
Still, she started to take Li An more seriously.
Before, she’d thought he had a good character but never paid a menial much mind.
They were destined to have little in common.
But with his spirit root healed and potential as a talisman maker, he might be useful later.
“Alright, I’ll take one.”
She didn’t refuse, accepting one talisman as a gesture.
This signaled she now saw Li An as someone worth knowing.
Beyond his growing value, Li An’s way of handling things made her feel at ease.
Otherwise, as the outer sect’s top disciple, with countless registered disciples vying for her favor, a menial wouldn’t get this treatment.
“Going to the market, Immortal?”
“Yes, you too? Let’s go together.” Xu Qiuhui nodded.
Li An was thrilled.
They headed to the market together.
As they arrived, a middle-aged registered disciple rushed from a stall, grabbing Li An’s collar, furious. “You little menial, give me back my Prime Spring Grass, or I’ll kill you!”
Zhou Xin!
His eyes were red, practically ready to eat Li An.
He’d somehow heard about Li An’s Prime Spring Grass.
It broke him.
A Second Grade spirit herb—likely the greatest opportunity of his life.
Gone, handed to a menial for nothing? How could he not be enraged?
Onlookers gathered, pointing and whispering.
“Let go!” Xu Qiuhui said coldly.
Zhou Xin saw her, his face shifting. He stepped back and bowed. “Greetings, Senior Sister Xu!”
“Senior Sister, this menial bought my Prime Spring Grass at Spring Essence Grass prices. I just want fairness…”
Xu Qiuhui’s voice was icy. “Where was your fairness when you jacked up prices on his Spring Essence Grass? Don’t go too far.”
Her words were brief.
Zhou Xin’s face flushed and paled, his anger stifled.
Xu Qiuhui… he couldn’t afford to cross her!
“Fine!”
He shot Li An a venomous look, then stormed off.
“Thank you, Immortal. I wouldn’t have known what to do…” Li An said, deeply grateful.
Xu Qiuhui was unfazed. To her, this was nothing.
…
At the market, Li An sold three Spirit Gathering Talismans for one spirit stone.
Then, he spent two spirit stones on 100 low-grade talisman papers.
“By the way,” Xu Qiuhui said before parting, remembering something. “Spirit Plant Mountain’s range borders the Spirit Beast Mountain Range. Be careful lately.”
Li An’s heart stirred.
…
(Chapter End)