The abandoned cannon fodder girl's path to immortality

Chapter 237 The Opportunity of the Pill Gathering
The color drained from Liu Qingchen's face in an instant. He stared intently at his nephew, who was wailing like a rag doll on the ground, his chest heaving violently.

Today, Liu Qingchen's reputation has been completely ruined by this fool.

He suppressed the urge to immediately kill Liu Qingyuan with a single palm strike, stiffly turned around, and spoke to Chen Jinshu in a kind tone:
"Fellow Daoist! I, Liu, am truly ashamed."

"What a misfortune for our family, to produce such a wicked child! He has offended a fellow practitioner; even death could not atone for it!"

"I hope you won't take it to heart, fellow Daoist."

Although Chen Jinshu was furious upon hearing this, he also knew that this place was the territory of Medicine King Valley.

If she causes bloodshed, it will be difficult to control; it would be better to do something more practical.

This Golden Core outer sect elder in front of us must still have some influence in the outer sect, so it would be better to let him use the Enlightenment Technique as compensation.

Thinking this, a cryptic smile flashed in her eyes, and she said slowly:

"Elder Liu, you flatter me. Such a mindset is nothing more than a stumbling block; just kick it away. It only adds to the bloodshed, which is not my intention."

"However, although your 'plant and tree enlightenment' technique is a closely guarded secret, Elder Liu would surely be generous enough to share his insights on cultivating spiritual plants, just to smooth over this farce today?"

Liu Qingchen's heart skipped a beat, and his gaze sharpened slightly.

After hesitating for a moment, he took out a palm-sized, warm and translucent cyan jade slip from his storage ring and handed it over.

"Fellow Daoist, please calm down! This is some of my experience in tending to spiritual plants over the years, called the 'Hundred Herbs Heart Sutra.' Although it is crude and far from elegant, it may be of some help to you in identifying the medicinal properties of spiritual plants, regulating the spiritual energy of water and soil, and some minor techniques for cultivating and promoting the growth of common spiritual plants."

Liu Qingchen spoke with a hint of arrogance. He had made his fortune through the art of spiritual plants and had reached his current position. He believed that no one in the outer sect could rival him.

Although this book is mediocre, it is still a rare find for outsiders.

Upon hearing this, Chen Jinshu reached out and took it, then probed it with his divine sense.

In an instant, a flood of textual and graphic information rushed into my mind. Various illustrations of spiritual plants came to life, and the descriptions of their growing environment, companion spirits, and medicinal conflicts were so detailed that they were astonishing.

The general cultivation techniques for dozens of spiritual plants below the second tier are clearly listed; there are even some miniature array layouts that regulate earth element and gather water and wood spiritual energy.

It encompasses a wide range of topics and its content is undeniably rich.

However, her expression did not show much joy; instead, it gradually darkened.

This method, though good, doesn't address what she truly wants.

There is absolutely no information about enlightening the spirits of plants and trees.

This "Hundred Herbs Heart Sutra" is nothing more than her years of accumulated planting experience. It is indeed rare, but it is of little use to her.

"This 'Herbal Heart Sutra' is indeed detailed and exquisite in the identification of spiritual plants and the conditioning of spiritual soil, which has broadened my horizons."

Liu Qingchen had just managed a forced, relieved smile when Chen Jinshu's next words left him frozen in place.

"Is the elder trying to fob me off with this? Does he think I'm ignorant and don't understand the true methods? Or does he believe that today's matter can be overlooked with just some common knowledge about spirit cultivation that can be found everywhere?"

"What I want is the true essence of the secret technique to enlighten the spirits of plants and trees and command them as servants! Elder Liu, is this all the sincerity your valley has shown?"

Liu Qingchen's face turned from ashen to red, her lips trembling as she tried to explain, but she fell silent under the other person's dark gaze.

He did indeed intend to deceive her, thinking that even though this female cultivator was a Golden Core cultivator, she was still young and from an outer sect, so she might not be able to discern the true secrets of Medicine King Valley's cultivation methods.

"Fellow Daoist, you've misunderstood! It's a huge misunderstanding!" Liu Qingchen hurriedly waved his hand.

"It is not that I, Liu, am hiding anything, nor am I trying to evade the issue! It is simply that the method of 'enlightening plants and trees to awaken their spirits and serve as attendants' is the supreme secret technique that my Medicine King Valley has used to establish itself in the Eastern Region for thousands of years."

This is an ironclad rule of the sect. Let alone someone as mere outer sect elder as Liu, even inner sect deacons, or some peak masters, might not be able to see the whole picture. Anyone who leaks this information without authorization will have their soul extracted and be condemned to eternal damnation!

"Fellow Daoist, you are wise. Even if I had the audacity to do so, I would never dare to joke about the foundation of our sect!"

His tone was urgent, and a few cloudy tears even welled up in his eyes. His emotions were genuine and sincere, not at all fake.

Chen Jinshu stared at the fear in his eyes and realized what was going on. It seemed that what the uncle and nephew had said was not a lie.

Medicine King Valley's defenses against this technique are so tight that it seems there's no hope of forcing it.

There was a long silence.

"That's enough...that's enough!"

Liu Qingchen finally let out a long sigh and said to Chen Jinshu:
"It seems that fate has its own destiny. This item and you may truly have a chance to meet."

He stopped beating around the bush, his voice regaining the composure of an elder, but also carrying a hint of solemnity: "A message was sent from the valley not long ago that, in order to celebrate the Valley Master's 800th birthday and to select promising young alchemists, the 'Hundred Herbs Alchemy Gathering' will be held in the 'Hundred Herbs Secret Realm' of Medicine King Valley three months from now! This is a grand event for our valley in a hundred years!"

Chen Jinshu's thoughts stirred slightly, but his expression remained unchanged:
"Oh? The Dan Association? What does that have to do with me?"

"This is extremely serious!"

"This alchemy gathering is unlike any other! To celebrate this grand event and inspire all the wise men, the Valley Master and the Supreme Elders have bestowed generous rewards! The ultimate winner will receive not only a vast amount of spirit stones and rare alchemy formulas, but also a piece of 'Five-Colored Spirit-Nourishing Divine Soil'!"

Upon hearing this, even with her resolute will, Chen Jinshu couldn't help but be moved.

She had seen a few words recorded on the fragments of an ancient alchemical text of the Xuanming Sect: "The Five-Colored Spirit-Nourishing Divine Soil is formed by the convergence and sedimentation of the five elements of heaven and earth in a special ley line over thousands of years, containing incredible creative vitality."

This soil not only doubles the growth rate of spiritual plants and transforms their medicinal effects, but it is also rumored to have miraculous effects on breaking through the bottlenecks in the art of medicine.

Its value is so great that even a Nascent Soul True Monarch would be moved.

Liu Qingchen keenly caught the fleeting ripple in the depths of Chen Jinshu's eyes, and the last trace of doubt in his heart vanished.

He stroked his beard, a smile on his face, and continued:

"And the most important reward, as personally promised by the Valley Master, is that the champion can use this honor to request a secret technique of my Medicine King Valley from the Valley Master himself!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Jinshu's clear eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.

"Elder Liu, is what you say true? Is there any limitation to that 'path'?"

Seeing Chen Jinshu moved, Liu Qingchen's smile widened. "The Valley Master's words are law, how could they be false? Of course there are no restrictions! As long as it is a technique recorded in the Medicine King Valley's secret treasury, the champion can request it."

"Of course, whether or not we can obtain it depends on a face-to-face meeting between the leader and the valley master. However, with your abilities, fellow Daoist, as long as you seize the position of leader, this matter is very promising."

He then added, "The Pill Gathering is open to all Golden Core stage alchemists in the Eastern Region, regardless of their background. Within two months, alchemists only need to bring their best Grade 3 or higher pill to the 'Welcoming Pavilion' in Medicine King Valley to verify their identity and obtain the 'Hundred Herbs Token.' On the day the Pill Gathering opens, they can use the token to enter the secret realm and participate in the competition."

He pointed to the depths of the market, "The Welcoming Pavilion is right next to the entrance of the inner market. If you are interested, you can go there now."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jinshu had already calmed down and nodded slightly to Liu Qingchen: "Thank you for your guidance, Elder Liu. I will certainly go and give it a try at the 'Hundred Herbs Pill Gathering'."

"However, we cannot let the matter of the elder nephew's rudeness to me go so easily."

A cold smile curled at the corner of her lips. This old man was trying to use the Hundred Herbs Pill Gathering incident to cover up the matter of Liu Qingyuan's offense against her earlier.

That's quite a cunning and calculating mind.

"Uh, fellow Daoist, I am ashamed to say this. I am merely an elder of the outer sect, and I possess no secret techniques." Liu Qingchen looked embarrassed.

I thought the matter was over, but the other party brought it up again.

It seems impossible not to offer some tangible compensation.

"I am new to Medicine King Valley and need a quiet place to cultivate. I imagine Elder Liu has some influence in the valley. Why not send me a cave dwelling?"

“Fellow Daoist, you are mistaken. This place in Medicine King Valley is extremely valuable, with every inch of land worth its weight in gold. Even I, Liu, only have one private residence and cave dwelling. This puts me in a bit of a dilemma!” Upon hearing this, Liu Qingchen was momentarily surprised.

"However, with Liu's recommendation, it might be possible to help you purchase a house at a low price."

"Then it'll be hard work."