Chapter 12: Unexpected Encounter

 Under Tianman Peak, pavilions and towers were built against the mountains, forming a continuous array, resembling a small city.

Tao Fengnian personally led Jiang Yuebai into the Menial Tasks Hall, where it was crowded with people. All of them were young children of about the same age as Jiang Yuebai, clamoring while holding their Menial Tasks tokens to report and register.

The five steward disciples were busy and overwhelmed, shouting at the top of their lungs, "Don't rush, don't push! We'll make sure all of you are registered today."

Jiang Yuebai blinked her eyes. She didn't expect so many people to come for registration on the last day. Could it be that they all broke through to the first level of Qi refining only today?

Looking around, she recognized some of the children. They all had five spiritual roots, except for a few with four spiritual roots, all of them being Menial Task disciples.

It seemed that the one-month limit had indeed compelled everyone to make progress.

A familiar girl caught her eye. She was dark-skinned, and Jiang Yuebai didn't know her name. They were ranked together during the Immortal Ascension stage, so she had a strong impression of her.

She clearly had three spiritual roots, and she was still an Outer Sect disciple. How come she only broke through on the last day?

Jiang Yuebai's gaze caught the attention of the girl, and their eyes met briefly. The girl quickly looked away and fiddled with her bangs.

Jiang Yuebai understood immediately. She was probably just like her, concealing her true strength.

"Isn't this Senior Tao? What brings you to the Menial Tasks Hall?" The older steward with a moustache recognized Tao Fengnian and warmly greeted him. Although he was a steward in the Menial Tasks Hall, he still wore the Menial Tasks token around his waist.

Tao Fengnian remained calm, patting Jiang Yuebai's head. "Register and report for my apprentice. This is Senior Hu, Brother Hu, who has some connection with me."

Jiang Yuebai obediently nodded, "Senior Brother Hu."

Hu Brother, Senior Brother Hu, inspected Jiang Yuebai for a while, and a slight twitch appeared at the corner of his eyes. As a Spirit Cultivator, Tao Fengnian should have taken a more talented apprentice.

Although the little girl looked clever, she only broke through to the first level of Qi cultivation on the last day. What good could her talent be?

"Junior Sister is lively and cute. It's obvious that she has great potential. Cultivating the Foundation Establishment and Nascent Soul stages should be within reach. Tao, you have a good eye. Give me the token, and I'll register her."

Hu Brother chuckled, and Jiang Yuebai handed over her Menial Tasks token.

Tao Fengnian rubbed Jiang Yuebai's head and quietly whispered, "Grandfather doesn't need to worry. I am better than him at saying flattering things. I won't get carried away with praise."

Tao Fengnian touched his nose. Jiang Yuebai had been praising him and flattering him every day. She could even say things like how majestic and robust he looked while walking, using all kinds of idioms to describe him.

She said it all with clear and sincere eyes, making him feel like singing.

The registration was quickly completed, and Jiang Yuebai's name was added to the token. Tao Fengnian still had things to discuss with Brother Hu, and the inside of the hall was noisy, so he asked Jiang Yuebai to wait outside for a while.

Outside the courtyard, Jiang Yuebai strolled around and recited scriptures. As she looked up, she saw Hong Tao, whom she hadn't seen for a month, walking into the courtyard with a serious face. Two menial disciples followed him, bowing and reporting something.

Jiang Yuebai's eyes curved, and she didn't dare to disturb them, just quietly observing. She later learned that Hong Tao was also a perfected Qi refining cultivator. She should address him as Senior Hong.

Hong Tao seemed to sense something, looked up, and his gaze fell on her Menial Tasks token at her waist. He stared at it for a moment.

Jiang Yuebai's heart shrank, seeing a hint of disappointment in Hong Tao's eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, but Hong Tao turned and walked away.

Jiang Yuebai's eyes gradually dimmed as she tightened her clothes.

"If you want to tell him, you can go. Hong Tao is a trustworthy person."

Tao Fengnian walked out and witnessed the scene just now.

Jiang Yuebai shook her head, "Even if you're a young genius like Fang Zhongyong (wiki) , without 9-effort, you'll still be an ordinary person. You've taught me that cultivation is a long road, and talent can only determine the starting point, not the height."

"Grandfather, rest assured, one day, I will make everyone look up to me instead of looking down on me."

Tao Fengnian affectionately rubbed Jiang Yuebai's head. He didn't know if it was right or wrong to hide her talents at the beginning. He always felt like he had treated her unfairly.

Risking her life to gamble on an opportunity to be noticed by a Core Formation cultivator and taken as an apprentice was too uncertain.

Breaking through in just one day and two nights showed that her aptitude was high, probably reaching nine, which was considered a natural spirit body. In spiritual roots, nine was the highest.

Maybe some single spiritual root or dual spiritual root cultivators might look down on her aptitude, but in Tianyan Sect, there were plenty of people with stagnant aptitudes.

What did it matter if they had to resort to soul possession? For the sake of survival, for continuing to move forward, someone would always take risks. Even he had been tempted for a moment, and that was his biggest worry.

However, he also knew that from now on, this little girl would surely shine brightly and not be able to hide anymore. All he could do was teach her more skills.

"Come, let's go to the Library."

Tianyan Sect had thirty-six peaks named after the thirty-six stars of the Tian Gang constellation. The Menial Tasks Hall that managed the menial tasks and the dining place for the Menial Task and Outer Sect disciples were located at the foot of the peak.

The Foreign Affairs Hall, which dealt with external affairs of the sect, and the Internal Affairs Hall, which handled internal affairs, were located halfway up the peak.

The Outer Sect's Library and the Lecture Hall for daily teachings were at the summit.

Tao Fengnian took Jiang Yuebai to the Internal Affairs Hall, where he introduced her to a familiar senior sister and briefly explained how to receive tasks from the sect.

Jiang Yuebai was currently Tao Fengnian's disciple, and she had no compulsory tasks within the next three years. If she lacked contribution points, she could come to the hall to receive tasks without any restrictions.

The internal tasks were divided into four levels: A, B, C, and D. Among them, the D-ranked tasks were the most miscellaneous, ranging from simple tasks like cleaning a Golden Core cultivator's cave to major tasks like exterminating demons and ghosts, countless in number.

Currently, there were only three A-ranked tasks hanging in the main hall of the Internal Affairs Hall. At a glance, Jiang Yuebai saw one of them.

[In the Qingzhou Lin'an County of the Yun Nation, a drought demon has been causing havoc for three years. Ancient Spring True Immortal will be heading there to exterminate it and requires five Foundation Establishment disciples to assist. Reward: 50,000 contribution points.]

[Note: This drought demon is elusive and difficult to trace, controlling hundreds of corpses. It is extremely difficult to deal with, causing the death of over a hundred disciples from various sects. All disciples are advised to be cautious.]

Qingzhou Lin'an County, wasn't that her hometown?

So, it was true that the drought demon during the troubled times caused a great drought, and there really was a drought demon?

Jiang Yuebai was still looking at it when a group of five people walked into the hall. The one at the front was a tall red-robed woman, standing at eight feet tall and had a strong and powerful aura, even taller than the two male cultivators behind her.

Although her appearance was ordinary, she had an air of standing tall and proud like a lone peak. With a sword sheathed on her back, she directly took the drought demon mission and led the four others away.

"That is Yu Qiuchi, the direct disciple of True Immortal Canghuo from Tianxiong Peak. She possesses both Gold and Fire spiritual roots, and her cultivation is at the late Foundation Establishment stage. She is skilled in refining tools and carries thirty-six different treasures in her treasure chest. She ranks first in the Foundation Establishment stage combat power list within the sect."

Jiang Yuebai's heart stirred. She really wanted to personally exterminate the drought demon to avenge her parents and younger brother. At this moment, she sincerely hoped that Senior True Immortal Ancient Spring and Senior Yu Qiuchi would return victorious, and the drought demon would no longer harm innocent people.

As they climbed higher, the distant mountains and nearby ridges became hazy and indistinct.

"Symbols are the origin of all things. Pangu opened the heavens, and the Dao is indescribable. Cangjie created writing, and the Dao has methods to follow. The Honghuang turtle shell characters and ancient cloud seal characters are the symbols closest to the Dao. If you want to learn the art of symbol-making, start with the turtle shell and cloud seal..."

Outside the Lecture Hall, a clear and forceful voice lectured in a rhythmic manner.

Jiang Yuebai stood outside and saw that the square in front of the hall was full of sect disciples, and there were also dozens of people inside the hall.

The disciples inside were wearing blue clothes, indicating that they were Outer Sect disciples, while those outside wore gray clothes, indicating they were Menial Task disciples. The middle-aged male cultivator at the top was wearing white clothes, indicating he was an Inner Sect disciple at the Foundation Establishment stage.

Jiang Yuebai was captivated after listening to just a few sentences. Recently, she had also been studying turtle shell characters and cloud seal characters, and she had many questions she wanted to figure out. Unconsciously, she walked towards the hall door, but Tao Fengnian grabbed her by the collar and pulled her back.

"The lectures are held daily. Take the lecture schedule next time and come again. We have already delayed for quite some time today, and the Library will close in half an hour."

Jiang Yuebai was reluctant to leave. She had thought that Huaxi Valley was already vast, but now she realized that the world beyond the valley was even more boundless.

In this place, she couldn't hide her insignificance. The world was vast, and there were countless Dao methods. She wished she could learn them all.

Inside the Library, there were nine tall towers, and many Outer Sect disciples were entering and leaving the towers.

Tao Fengnian told Jiang Yuebai that the books on the first floor were miscellaneous and disorganized, containing travel records, strange tales, cultivation experiences, and agricultural techniques.

"Reading on the first floor doesn't require contribution points. You can come here often to broaden your horizons. You might find some unexpected gains."

"The second floor contains Qi cultivation techniques and Dao methods from the Foundation Establishment stage, ranging from ninth-grade to seventh-grade. There are also some martial skills, and the contribution points required for exchange vary. You currently have one chance to exchange for a ninth-grade Qi cultivation technique. Have you decided on what to exchange?"

Tao Fengnian patiently looked at Jiang Yuebai. Along the way, he probably introduced her to the basic ninth-grade Qi cultivation techniques within the sect, waiting for her to make her own choice.

Jiang Yuebai scanned the rows of bookshelves inside, with tens of thousands of books and jade slips. She had too many options to choose from.

After thinking it over, Jiang Yuebai said, "I'm young and inexperienced. Grandfather, please help me choose."

In fact, Tao Fengnian already had a plan in mind, but he didn't want to take away Jiang Yuebai's right to choose. So, he asked her first.

If she had an idea, he would go along with it. Even if she chose the wrong ninth-grade Qi cultivation technique, he would cover for her.

"In that case, I'll choose 'Five Elements Rotation Method.'"

Hearing this, the elderly steward in charge of copying jade slips cast a glance at Jiang Yuebai and said, "Are you sure you want this one? It's not exactly a cultivation technique. Although it's listed among the ninth-grade techniques, it consists of scattered methods of manipulating the five elements and is not systematic. It can't be cultivated."

Before Tao Fengnian could explain, Jiang Yuebai said, "Grandfather said I should have this one, so I want this one."

Tao Fengnian swallowed the words he was about to say. This little girl could just casually say a few words and make him feel content.

The elderly steward shook his head and went inside to find "Five Elements Rotation Method" for her.

"I'll wait here. Since there's still time, you should explore the first floor first."

Hearing this, Jiang Yuebai was delighted and dashed downstairs, flipping through the books on a nearby bookshelf.

She picked up a book titled "Collection of the Five Flavors," which was a travelogue written by a self-proclaimed Five Flavors Mountain hermit who had traveled around Yun Nation.

"In my life, I fought for Yun Nation with all my heart and soul. However, treacherous and wicked people disrupted the court, forcing me to abandon my position as a minister and travel around."

"On my journey, I witnessed the vastness of mountains and rivers, the boundlessness of the sky and earth, making me realize the insignificance of the court. Half of my life was wasted in political struggles, akin to child's play. Fighting against others was not as satisfying as fighting against the heavens. Only by doing so can one gain enlightenment and use martial arts to enter the Dao..."

"You wretched girl! I bumped into you here!"

Jiang Yuebai was engrossed in reading when she suddenly heard an unpleasant female voice. A shadow loomed over her, and Lin Suiwan appeared before her, forcefully snatching the book from her hands.

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