Chapter 143: Visiting the Green Wood Sect
This novel is translated and hosted only on BCatranslation
“Yu Zhao, why are you alone? Didn’t Senior Sister Jin Yue come with you?” Mu Ye asked, quickly wiping away the tears that had welled up in her eyes earlier. She feigned curiosity as she spoke, trying to sound casual.
Yu Zhao smiled gently. “I’m traveling alone this time, not with Senior Sister Jin Yue, so it’s just me. You aren’t saying I’m not welcome, are you?”
“Of course not! I’m thrilled you’re here,” Mu Ye puffed out her cheeks in a playful manner, trying to lighten the mood. “Come on, let me show you around the Green Wood Sect. You haven’t been here before, right?”
“No, this is my first visit,” Yu Zhao replied, her curiosity piqued.
“Perfect! There are a few beautiful spots in the sect you simply can’t miss. Follow me!” Mu Ye, always eager to share, grabbed Yu Zhao’s hand, pulling her out of the guest hall and toward the inner sect with excitement.
As they walked, Mu Ye began to explain the layout of the sect. “There are two main peaks within the Green Wood Sect,” she said. “Pill Peak, where the disciples of the Alchemy Hall refine their pills, and Medicine Peak, where the disciples of the Medicine Hall cultivate spiritual herbs. The Martial Hall disciples live in the valley between these two peaks.”
Yu Zhao listened attentively as Mu Ye provided a brief overview of the sect’s structure. This information wasn’t a closely guarded secret, so Mu Ye had no qualms about sharing it.
While Mu Ye talked, Yu Zhao was deep in thought. She needed to ask Mu Ye for a favor—she wanted to borrow the alchemy room, a space specifically designed for refining pills. However, Yu Zhao had something different in mind, and she worried that her request might offend the alchemists.
In truth, Yu Zhao could have hired a master craftsman to do the work for her, but her cultivation technique was unique, and the materials she needed to use had a strong hallucinogenic effect. She feared that the process might end up harming the craftsman, so she figured it would be safer to do it herself. Even if she failed, at least no one else would be at risk.
What troubled her now was how to bring up this request to Mu Ye.
“Yu Zhao, we’re coming up on Pill Peak and Medicine Peak. Which one would you like to visit first?” Mu Ye asked, pointing ahead at the two towering mountains.
“Let’s start with Medicine Peak,” Yu Zhao answered without hesitation, wanting a bit more time to think.
Mu Ye nodded happily. “That works out perfectly. I need to pick up some herbs from Medicine Peak anyway.”
As they continued their journey, Mu Ye shared more details. “No alchemist can guarantee a 100% success rate with their pills; even a 50% success rate is impressive. The most skilled alchemists often go through countless herbs in their work. I, for example, use herbs worth over a hundred mid-grade spirit stones each month—an amount I couldn’t possibly afford on my own. Fortunately, the sect provides most of the herbs I need.”
Every month, disciples of the Alchemy Hall could collect a certain amount of herbs from the Medicine Peak, though it wasn’t free. At the end of the year, they were required to submit a portion of their pills as payment to offset the cost.
As Mu Ye and Yu Zhao chatted, they walked along the main path up the Medicine Peak. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Yu Zhao noticed that the surrounding spiritual energy had grown much denser. A familiar scent of herbs filled the air, stirring memories of the time she had spent tending the herb fields on Lone Moon Peak for Cui Jué.
In truth, Yu Zhao didn’t mind tending herb fields. As long as she took good care of them, the fields would reward her with abundant herbs in return. Unlike certain people who ignored her efforts, acting as though she hadn’t done enough, the herb fields were always honest in their response to her care.
Moreover, when she was working in the fields, no one would come and berate her for no reason. She could enjoy a peaceful, solitary time. The familiar, comforting scent put Yu Zhao at ease, her tension easing with every step.
“Yu Zhao, are you ready? What you’re about to see is going to blow your mind,” Mu Ye suddenly stopped and looked back at Yu Zhao, a proud glint in her eyes.
Yu Zhao smiled and nodded, her curiosity growing.
With a mysterious grin, Mu Ye took out her disciple token from her waist and waved it in front of her. The air shimmered violently, and the dense forest beside the road parted, revealing a hidden path.
“Hurry, this passage will only stay open for five breaths,” Mu Ye said as she grabbed Yu Zhao’s hand, pulling her through the newly opened path.
As they entered, Yu Zhao felt like she had stepped into a divine realm. The spiritual energy here was so thick that it surged around her, and she instinctively began to absorb it, every pore in her body greedily drinking in the energy.
“Wow…” Yu Zhao couldn’t help but sigh in contentment. But then, she quickly snapped out of it, forcefully halting the cultivation technique she had unconsciously activated. This wasn’t an ancient secret realm; it was the Medicine Peak herb fields. By absorbing the spiritual energy here, she was essentially stealing the nourishment meant for the herbs—an extremely rude thing to do.
“Mu…”
“Hmm, you stopped so quickly?” Mu Ye asked, clearly surprised. Yu Zhao had intended to apologize, but before she could, Mu Ye waved it off with a smile. “I know what you’re going to say. Don’t worry. The amount of spiritual energy you absorbed is like a drop in the ocean compared to what this entire herb field produces. Sometimes, when disciples from the Alchemy Hall or Medicine Hall hit a bottleneck, they come here to cultivate. As long as they don’t get in the way of the Medicine Hall disciples tending the fields, no one minds.”
Although the Medicine Peak herbs were tended by the Medicine Hall disciples, the grand spiritual array that powered the fields was built with the combined efforts of the entire Green Wood Sect, so it didn’t exclusively belong to the Medicine Hall. The disciples didn’t mind if others came to cultivate here, and Mu Ye was no exception.
Still, the fact that Yu Zhao had the self-discipline to stop herself in the face of such temptation, out of respect for Mu Ye, made Mu Ye smile even more brightly.
They continued walking and soon came upon vast, flat fields filled with herbs. The fields were divided into several sections, each growing a different kind of herb, and there were a few Medicine Hall disciples tending to the plants.
Looking at the endless expanse of herbs, lush and thriving, Yu Zhao felt a deep sense of joy and a satisfaction she couldn’t quite put into words.
“Impressive, right?” Mu Ye raised an eyebrow with a grin.
“It truly is,” Yu Zhao agreed, nodding sincerely.
This novel is translated and hosted only on BCatranslation
“Come on, let’s go check out the herb warehouse. I need to pick up my herbs anyway,” Mu Ye said, leading the way.
The herbs harvested by the Medicine Hall disciples were typically stored in the herb warehouse first, where they would then be processed according to different needs. To make things easier, the location for Alchemy Hall disciples to collect their herbs was also at the warehouse.
The warehouse was built into the eastern side of Medicine Peak, nestled against a cliff. Just as Yu Zhao and Mu Ye were about to enter the warehouse, someone stepped out from within. Their eyes met, and both parties froze.
“It’s you?” Wang Qian exclaimed in shock.
He had never expected to run into Yu Zhao at the Green Wood Sect. As memories of Yu Zhao’s impressive feats flashed through his mind, his face turned pale, as if he had just seen a ghost.
Mu Ye, unaware that Wang Qian was referring to Yu Zhao, assumed he was addressing her. Her brows furrowed in annoyance, and she snapped, “Why wouldn’t I be here? The Medicine Peak doesn’t belong to you alone!”