Li Xue was deeply surprised by Bai Fenghua’s decision. She wondered if something truly monumental was about to happen; Bai Fenghua wouldn’t have made such a drastic move based solely on her previous words. He must have sensed something himself, and she was certain it was related to the Jade Profound Sect. Li Xue felt a surge of vigilance; from now on, she would need to be more cautious in all things.
Li Xue, Li Lin, Yu Ming, and Ji Rufeng were received by a group of the Bai family’s young elite disciples, most of whom belonged to the Xing generation.
Li Xue was already familiar with Bai Xingyu, a Golden Core cultivator. She had long heard of her reputation as a woman of steadfast will and liked her immediately. Bai Xingyu had a serene temperament and a faint smile that was neither cold nor overly welcoming.
Bai Xingyi, at the late stage of Foundation Establishment, was quite arrogant and did not seem to get along well with her sisters.
Bai Xingqian, also at the late stage of Foundation Establishment, was shrewd and capable, though a glint of calculation often flickered in her eyes—something that did not escape the notice of Li Xue, who was already at the middle stage of the Golden Core realm.
Bai Xingnuo, a Golden Core cultivator from a branch of the family, was passionate and uninhibited. She had a straightforward personality and spoke without hesitation; she seemed like a decent person.
Bai Shuang, an elite disciple at the early Golden Core stage, was as cold as her name suggested—frosty and aloof.
Bai Fei, another elite disciple at the late Foundation Establishment stage, was cheerful and talkative, constantly chattering away.
There were many others whose names Li Xue couldn’t quite recall. The reason she observed them so closely was simple: as these female cultivators of the Bai family conversed, their eyes frequently drifted toward the other side of the room.
Standing there were the elegant and dashing Ji Rufeng, the calm and steady Yu Ming, the deceptively harmless-looking Dongfang Jing, and the coolly handsome Li Lin. How could such exceptional young men fail to attract the gaze of female cultivators? Li Xue knew that Li Lin likely had no interest in finding a dual cultivation partner yet, but she wasn't so sure about Ji Rufeng, Dongfang Jing, or Yu Ming. She decided to vet the candidates for them.
"Sister Li, is Planet Jinxing really that large?" Bai Fei asked, unable to contain her curiosity after hearing about the prosperity of Jinxing.
"Oh, Xiao Fei, Jinxing has three major sects and five great families. Of course it’s huge!" Bai Xingqian interjected.
"Sister Li, I heard that the Purple Warbler is a high-grade spirit beast. Is that true?" Bai Xingnuo asked curiously. At this, everyone else turned their burning gazes toward Li Xue.
Li Xue didn't hesitate and directly summoned Zi Feng. With a crisp cry, Zi Feng circled the hall once before landing on Li Xue’s shoulder.
This immediately drew the attention of the male cultivators from the other side. Soon, the men and women of the Bai family were gathered together, discussing the Purple Warbler with envy.
Bai Xingnuo stepped forward generously to strike up a conversation with Ji Rufeng. Soon, Bai Xingqian and Bai Fei joined the circle. Even Bai Xingyu, Bai Xingyi, and Bai Shuang listened intently, to say nothing of the other female cultivators.
Ji Rufeng remained as smiling as ever, answering the enthusiastic questions of the ladies without a hint of impatience. Li Xue noticed that some of the women took the initiative to talk to Yu Ming, Dongfang Jing, and Li Lin. Yu Ming would nod and offer a few polite words with a smile, but Dongfang Jing and Li Lin maintained an air of cold indifference that kept people at a distance, making Li Xue shake her head in resignation.
Eventually, the overwhelming enthusiasm of the Bai family became too much for Li Xue. She found an excuse and slipped out of the hall.
She hurried to the side of Li Yuhong and Bai Ruihua, intending to accompany them to tour the spirit herb gardens.
Just as she reached the entrance, Li Lin, Yu Ming, Ji Rufeng, and Dongfang Jing emerged as well. Li Xue was surprised; how had they managed to shake off that flock of chattering beauties from the Bai family?
Li Xue sent them a voice transmission, asking, "Xiao Feng, do you have any plans to find a dual cultivation partner? I think a few of those Bai family girls are quite good." As they walked, she began to analyze the information she had gathered from her observations.
"Sister Li, hearing you put it that way, the choice seems quite obvious," Ji Rufeng joked.
"Oh, Xiao Feng, so you really do have such intentions? Then don't be in a hurry; we need to consider this carefully!" Li Xue said.
"Sigh, Sister Li, there’s no rush for this," Ji Rufeng replied.
"How can you not be in a hurry? We have to observe them first. One should marry for virtue; this is a partner for a lifetime!" Li Xue said seriously.
Ji Rufeng felt helpless, while Yu Ming, Dongfang Jing, and Li Lin looked on with schadenfreude.
"Xiao Ming, what about you? Do you want to take this chance to find someone?" Li Xue asked Yu Ming.
Yu Ming’s lip twitched as he hurriedly replied, "I’m not looking. At least not until I reach the Nascent Soul stage!"
Li Xue then looked at Dongfang Jing, who waved his hands frantically. "Not me, definitely not me!"
Li Xue understood then that aside from Ji Rufeng, the other three hadn't even begun to think about such things. However, she made a mental note of the matter.
The group arrived at the spirit garden base on the outskirts of Lu City. They looked out to see a massive valley stretching before them. Rows of neat courtyards were arranged in an orderly fashion, and the spiritual energy was incredibly dense.
Li Xue did a rough mental calculation. This valley alone contained over two thousand spirit herb plots. And this was just one garden; Lu City had five such gardens, Bai麓 Continent had five major cities, and Danxia Star had four major continents. Adding it all up resulted in a staggering number, and that wasn't even counting the medium and small cities. No wonder the Jade Profound Sect placed such importance on Danxia Star; it was an absolute monopoly.
They entered one of the plots, a garden about the size of a football field. It contained ten beds of lush green spirit herbs. Beside the beds stood three houses built of blue stone, elegant and ancient in style. Several large, unknown trees provided shade for stone tables and benches. The entire garden was saturated with spiritual energy.
This plot primarily grew Yin Spirit Grass, one of the main ingredients for low-grade Gathering Spirit Pills. It was the most common herb used in alchemy and the one with the highest consumption rate, as most cultivators who were new to alchemy used the refinement of Gathering Spirit Pills for practice.
Yin Spirit Grass takes five months to mature. The gardens in Lu City mainly focused on this type of herb. Yin Spirit Grass has a cold attribute, but Gathering Spirit Pills require the grass to be of a temperate nature. Therefore, Fire Cloud Fruits were planted between every row of Yin Spirit Grass to temper its cold spiritual energy. Consequently, in addition to producing vast quantities of Yin Spirit Grass, Lu City also produced a massive amount of Fire Cloud Fruits. The Fire Cloud Wine brewed from these fruits was a local specialty, famous throughout Danxia Star.
These spirit herb plots were managed by cultivators at the fifth level of Qi Condensation or higher who were recruited for the task. As long as they managed the herbs according to the regulations, they received spirit stones as a monthly wage.
Li Xue and the others were stirred by the sight. With layer upon layer of herb plots and waves of spiritual energy, spirit herbs here were mass-produced like common cabbages. Not a single superior sect would look upon this without envy.
A thought suddenly flashed through Li Xue’s mind, so fast she almost missed it. Wait—if every superior sect would be envious, had Bai Fenghua heard some rumors? Were other superior sects coveting Danxia Star? It was highly possible. Such a vast quantity of spirit herbs, even low-grade materials, would be enough to drive people mad. But with the Jade Profound Sect standing behind them, surely no other superior sect in this star domain would dare to seize it?
Chinese | English | Notes
--- | --- | ---
白行铱 | Bai Xingyi | A junior of the Bai family, Foundation Establishment stage.
白行钎 | Bai Xingqian | A junior of the Bai family, Foundation Establishment stage.
白行锘 | Bai Xingnuo | A junior of the Bai family, Golden Core stage.
白霜 | Bai Shuang | An elite disciple of the Bai family, Golden Core stage.
白绯 | Bai Fei | An elite disciple of the Bai family, Foundation Establishment stage.
紫凤 | Zi Feng | The name of Li Xue’s Purple Warbler spirit beast.
紫莺 | Purple Warbler | A species of high-grade spirit beast.
麓城 | Lu City | A major city on Danxia Star known for its herb gardens.
阴灵草 | Yin Spirit Grass | A cold-attribute herb used for Gathering Spirit Pills.
火云果 | Fire Cloud Fruit | A warm-attribute fruit used to balance Yin Spirit Grass.
火云果酒 | Fire Cloud Wine | A specialty wine made from Fire Cloud Fruits.
聚灵丹 | Gathering Spirit Pill | A common pill used to aid cultivation.
玉玄门 | Jade Profound Sect | The powerful sect overseeing the Danxia Star region.
上门 | Superior Sect | Refers to high-ranking or top-tier cultivation sects.
