Chapter 58

Chapter 58: The Madman in the Forbidden Ground

Heaven’s Evolution Sect, the forbidden ground.

Before Rong Shu even stepped inside, she had to undergo layer upon layer of inspection; even the contents of her storage pouch were emptied out for checking, and anything prohibited could only be left outside.

Fortunately, before coming over, Rong Shu had learned these procedures from the Task Pavilion, so she paid a temporary fee at the Task Pavilion to rent a storage room and placed inside anything she preferred not to show others.

The storage rooms, set up specifically for disciples and located within the Task Pavilion, are guarded at all times by a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator. So long as no one tries to smash a room open by force, whatever is stored within is absolutely confidential and secure.

After the inspection, Rong Shu was allowed in and escorted personally by a sect elder.

Mist hung everywhere in the forbidden ground, visibility less than ten meters. The guide, a Golden Core Stage sect elder, even with his familiarity with this stretch, remained on full alert and warned Rong Shu: “Within the forbidden ground, all kinds of formations and traps are laid down. Do not wander at will. If you stray from the safe zones and die in here, no one will collect your corpse.”

Rong Shu answered obediently: “This disciple understands.”

After giving the customary instructions, the Golden Core Stage elder fell silent. At last he said: “We’re here.”

He stopped and pointed ahead at a line of black stone slabs half sunken into the earth, only their surfaces exposed, square and extending onward. He said: “Follow the black stone slabs and you will reach the location of your assignment.”

Seeing the elder turn to leave, Rong Shu cupped her fists and thanked him: “Many thanks, Elder.”

When his figure vanished, Rong Shu walked on in the direction of the black stone slabs.

She had not gone far before an Inner Sect male disciple came striding toward her.

His expression was twisted with anger as he cursed under his breath: “Damn it! I’m done with this! Let it be whatever it wants to be! So they’re docking spirit stones? Dock them!”

“Shi…” Rong Shu had only uttered the first syllable when the furious Inner Sect disciple strode off in long steps, not sparing her a glance.

“Uh?” Rong Shu drew back the hand she had half extended and scratched her head.

She had wanted to ask about the situation inside…

Rong Shu followed the black stone slabs for a stretch and finally reached the end.

It was a ring-shaped valley with only a single narrow crack for an entrance.

Before the mouth of the valley stood a bare old tree. Beneath it sat a set of table and chairs, and a gray-haired old man was asleep on a reclining chair, snoring like thunder.

In the forbidden ground of Heaven’s Evolution Sect, apart from personnel stationed here, even figures at the elder level cannot set foot here without special circumstances.

Before taking this task, Rong Shu, as a personal disciple, only knew that within the forbidden ground there were the Hall of Offerings and the Hall of Life Souls; beyond that she knew nothing.

Now, Rong Shu had learned that the forbidden ground of Heaven’s Evolution Sect also held a madman who alternated between lunacy and frenzy, imprisoned right here in this valley.

The man’s identity was unknown, his cultivation unknown. There was not the slightest ripple of spiritual energy from his body, as if he were an ordinary mortal, and he spent his days in derangement.

This madman was Rong Shu’s task target. She was responsible for delivering three meals a day on time. Whether he ate or not was not her concern, so long as she set the food in front of him.

It sounded simple, but the key point was that the target was a madman whose mind was unclear. Although his wrists and ankles were shackled and he seemed to have no cultivation at all, Rong Shu, as a cultivator, had no reason to fear him.

However, so many Inner Sect disciples before her had been unable to stand this madman, so this feeding assignment was certainly not so simple.

Rong Shu reached the edge of the old tree and hesitated, wondering whether to wake the old man or wait a bit longer, when he suddenly opened his eyes and the snoring stopped at once.

His gaze was clear, even carrying a hint of sharpness. When he saw Rong Shu’s face, he clicked his tongue and said with a tease: “Yo? Another little miss?”

Rong Shu handed over her task token. After inspecting it and finding no problem, the old man casually tossed it back to her.

With the same teasing tone, he said: “Little miss, you were tricked into coming here, weren’t you?”

Between the choice of truth and falsehood, Rong Shu hesitated only half a heartbeat, then blinked innocently and asked in all sincerity: “Tricked how?”

She chose to play dumb.

“Hahaha…” Something about Rong Shu’s words must have tickled the old man, for he burst into laughter.

But the laughter lasted only a few seconds. He gathered it up in an instant, his expression turning cold as he flicked a jade slip to Rong Shu and said icily: “These are the precautions. Memorize them. If anything happens, I won’t be responsible for you.”

Rong Shu received the jade slip and sent her spiritual sense into it:

1. Do not speak with the madman.
2. Do not respond to any words or behavior of the madman.
3. Do not give the madman anything resembling a blade.
4. You must persist for at least half a month. Those who quit midway will be docked 6,000 contribution points or 2,000 spirit stones.

When Rong Shu saw the final penalty, even with her small coffer a bit fuller than before, she still felt a stab of pain.

Disciples with resources and spirit stones would never take on such thankless labor. Those who did were mostly mid- to lower-tier disciples short on resources.

After all, for this half-month assignment, the reward was 4,000 spirit stones, or the equivalent in contribution points.

Gulp. Rong Shu swallowed nonexistent saliva and chanted to herself: [I’m here to slack off and cultivate, I’m here to slack off and cultivate, I’m here to slack off and cultivate… picking up some cultivation resources on the side is not too much, right?]

“Respected senior, may I go see my task target now?” Even restrained, the starlit brightness in Rong Shu’s eyes remained.

The old man had seen plenty of disciples who let the generous reward go to their heads at the start, so he was not surprised. Give it a day or two and this little miss would likely be begging through tears to leave.

“You may,” the old man said, pointing at the valley mouth. He yawned and settled back onto the reclining chair.

Seeing this, Rong Shu cupped her fists in thanks, turned, and stepped into the valley mouth.

The valley within was quite large, like a self-contained little world. She saw sheer cliffs all around, with flowers, grasses, and trees between them, a waterfall and a lake, and from within the valley came faint rustling, as if from small animals.

For a moment, Rong Shu felt she was not within Heaven’s Evolution Sect at all, but had entered a mortal place in the secular world.

Unwittingly, Rong Shu walked into a narrow path.

The path looked as if the rock on both sides had been split by something, leaving a thin crack down the middle, just wide enough for one person to pass.

Just as Rong Shu was about to reach the exit, a human head tangled with long hair suddenly protruded from beyond the rock wall. Caught off guard, Rong Shu locked eyes with the head!