Shuning was now extremely grateful that Li Zhuoran did not supervise their sword practice every single day.
Today was a good day.
Her very first day off.
What should she do?
Oh, she remembered.
Yesterday was the day the sect distributed provisions. Having been summoned by the Eldest Senior Brother for lessons every day recently, she hadn't yet found the time to go collect them.
As a direct disciple, Shuning was entitled to ten high-grade spirit stones, one bottle of Qi Gathering Pills, and one bottle of Bigu Pills every month.
Since one high-grade spirit stone was equivalent to one thousand middle-grade spirit stones, and one middle-grade spirit stone was equivalent to one thousand low-grade spirit stones—paired with two bottles of medicinal pills—the Baixuan Sect's treatment of its direct disciples could be described as exceptionally generous.
Although spirit stones were currently the last thing Shuning lacked, who would ever complain about having too many?
With that thought, she decided to set out, taking the opportunity to wander around the Baixuan Sect and experience the local customs of an immortal cultivation sect.
Stepping out of her courtyard and leaving the bamboo forest, she paused in her tracks.
Oh no. Oh no, no, no.
She had no idea how to get to Qizhu Peak, which was in charge of the sect's daily affairs and logistics!
"System, is there a map of the Baixuan Sect?"
The next moment, a system interface popped up:
[Cost: 1 integration point]
[Confirm payment?]
[Yes] [No]
So integration points could be used this way! Shuning finally felt that the system was actually useful, rather than just existing to issue her quests.
She stared at [Yes] for three seconds, and the integration point balance in the upper right corner changed from 8 to 7.
[Baixuan Sect map is downloading...]
[Download progress: 87%]
[Download complete. Please click to claim.]
Shuning tapped the virtual system interface before her, and a moment later, the layout of the entire Baixuan Sect appeared.
[Please select your destination]
She tapped Qizhu Peak, zoomed in on the map, and clicked on the Supply Hall, where provisions were distributed.
At that moment, a faint, translucent dashed line extended outward from her feet.
[Please follow the dashed line guidance to reach your destination]
Shuning smiled with satisfaction. It was quite high-tech, pointing out the route for her directly.
She smoothly descended Qianze Peak and reached the foot of the mountain. Looking back, she saw that the entire peak was shrouded in ethereal, wispy clouds and mist, obscuring everything from view.
She had read about this in the side stories of the original novel: Qianze Peak contained an abundance of spiritual plants, which inevitably caught the eye of the disciples from Pill Peak. At first, Pei Yuan hadn't paid much attention, until a quarter of Qianze Peak was shaved completely bald—at which point he had no choice but to care.
Back then, looking at Qianze Peak with a quarter of it stripped bare, Pei Yuan had let out a long sigh toward the heavens:
So ugly!
Yes, Pei Yuan was obsessed with appearances. In fact, the initiation gifts he had given his first three disciples were all dharma artifacts he had forged himself, which simply weren't very aesthetic. Throwing them away would have been a waste, so using them as initiation gifts for his apprentices was just right, and he had handed them out accordingly.
For the sake of Qianze Peak's appearance, Pei Yuan had gone to settle accounts with the master of Pill Peak, transplanting a quarter of Pill Peak's spiritual plants to fill in the bald spots on Qianze Peak. Afterward, he placed his newly forged dharma artifacts around the peak to shroud it in mist.
The last time Shuning had been brought here by Mo Shiyu, the jade slip she carried must have been able to bypass this layer of mist, which was why she had been able to see the entire peak clearly at the time.
Come to think of it, ever since she woke up, her sequence of events had been clashing with Chu Qing first, then entering Qianze Peak, only to be summoned by the Eldest Senior Brother for lessons—meaning she hadn't even collected her direct disciple attire yet.
She could just as well collect everything together now.
*
Qizhu Peak
Following the guidance, Shuning arrived at the Supply Hall. Since the designated days for collecting provisions had already passed, she was the only one there.
Stepping inside, she saw an elder sitting in the main hall.
Shuning walked up to the elder, bowed respectfully, and stated the purpose of her visit: "Greetings, Elder. I am Shuning, a newly appointed direct disciple of Qianze Peak. I have come to collect the attire for direct disciples and this month's provisions."
Usually, direct disciples held their noses high in the air; even newly appointed ones loved looking down at people through their noses. Elder Yu had never seen such a polite direct disciple before, and a wave of favorable impression rose in his heart.
"Wait here. I'll go get them for you now."
With a flurry of hurried movements, he headed into the back room.
Shuning waited outside, and shortly afterward, Elder Yu reappeared carrying the items she needed.
Handing the items over to Shuning, he stroked his beard and asked gently, "Take a look and see if anything is missing."
Without opening the bundle, Shuning replied, "Since Elder handled this, of course this disciple trusts it completely."
Not bad at all. Elder Yu felt that Shuning suited his tastes entirely. He detested those disciples who insisted on inspecting everything down to the last detail right in front of him, hoping to catch him in a mistake. Had he spent all these years being an elder for nothing?
Wait, something wasn't right. Was there something else?
Elder Yu pondered for a moment and instantly remembered: "You're a direct disciple now. Hand me your jade slip so I can update your identity information."
There was even this step; Shuning truly had no idea. "Thank you, Elder." She removed the jade slip from her waist and handed it over to Elder Yu.
A moment later, the identity information on the jade slip was updated, and Elder Yu handed it back to her.
Shuning accepted it with both hands, cupped her fists, and said, "Farewell, Elder."
Just as Shuning walked two steps away, Elder Yu received a message on his jade slip from someone.
"Pill Peak's Qiuyao urgently needs mugwort. Send it immediately!!!"
There was only Elder Yu in the Supply Hall right now; if he went to deliver the items himself, it would be dereliction of duty. However, Elder Qiuyao was a master alchemist, and this was a rare favor to earn.
Shuning hadn't walked very far yet.
Elder Yu tugged at his beard and thought: *Isn't there still a disciple right here?*
"Shuning, wait a moment." He hurried after her.
Hearing someone calling her, Shuning stopped, turned around, and saw Elder Yu hurrying toward her, coming to a halt a foot away.
"Could you do me a favor?"
Before Shuning even had time to ask what kind of favor, the quest interface popped up:
[Quest issued: Help Elder Yu]
???
She hadn't planned on refusing anyway, especially since Elder Yu had just helped her, but now that the quest had popped up, it was essentially free integration points being handed to her.
Suppressing a smile, Shuning said, "Elder, please go ahead."
"It's very simple. Just help me deliver this mugwort to Pill Peak and give it to Elder Qiuyao."
"Alright."
While Elder Yu went back to fetch the mugwort, Shuning selected Pill Peak's location on the map, and a faint, reappearing dashed line materialized under her feet once more.
*
Pill Peak
Qiuyao was standing in a medicinal field at the foot of the mountain when she spotted Shuning holding a large bundle of mugwort, making her extremely conspicuous.
"Over here." She transmitted her voice directly into Shuning's ears using spiritual power.
Shuning had just been worrying about how to ask Elder Yu how to find Elder Qiuyao, but seeing the mugwort in her hands, Qiuyao must have recognized it, saving her the trouble of searching.
Looking in the direction of the voice, she saw that Elder Qiuyao possessed striking looks and an extraordinary, refined temperament. Every word and action carried an imposing aura that made one hesitant to offend her casually.
Shuning walked over briskly and handed the large bundle of mugwort to her with both hands.
The quest interface popped up:
[Quest evaluation: Excellent]
[Quest reward: 1 integration point]
[Please claim your reward]
After claiming her reward, she turned to leave.
"Stop right there."
???
Ah, these familiar words.
Hearing the voice from behind her, Shuning spun around quickly and bowed: "Elder Qiuyao, do you have any instructions?"
"I am going to alchemy now. Help me tend to the medicinal field."
Shuning: "?"
*I don't know how to do that.*
Maintaining as much calm as she could on her face, she refused righteously: "Elder, I don't know how to do this."
"If you don't know, learn." Qiuyao pulled a book from her robes, tossed it toward Shuning, and turned away directly.
Shuning looked at the cover, which read: *Insights into the Characteristics of Every Spiritual Plant in the Cultivation World*.
[Quest issue: Tend to Elder Qiuyao's medicinal field]
Why could literally everyone trigger the quest mechanism???
Fine, she would do it.
Shuning opened the book. The insights detailed the appearance of every spiritual plant, its medicinal value, how to care for it starting from when it was just a seedling, and so on.
Guided by the text, she began tending to the medicinal field meticulously, adapting her methods to suit each plant.
An hour later, she had carefully groomed every single spiritual plant and received the system reward of [2 integration points]. Qiuyao still hadn't returned.
The book also contained many spiritual plants that weren't even in the medicinal field. Elder Qiuyao must have spent a long time writing these insights, yet she had handed them over to her so casually.
She truly was a woman of strong character.
Having finished her work, Shuning felt somewhat bored for a moment. Since she couldn't just wander off casually, and the only thing she had in hand was this book of insights, she began reading it with great relish.
When Qiuyao returned, she first checked her medicinal field. Every single plant had been cared for exceptionally well, exactly matching her own standards—not a single bit different from her personal touch. Then, she looked at Shuning, who was engrossed in reading her insights with joyful enthusiasm.
A wave of warmth and satisfaction washed over her; to think a disciple possessed such patience! Her view of Shuning improved considerably.
In fact, this was already the second time Shuning was reading through it.
"Jade slip."
Hearing the voice, Shuning knew Elder Qiuyao was back. Lowering her head immediately, she held her hands high above her head to offer the book of insights back.
Qiuyao hadn't expected her reaction to be so intense. Clearing her throat lightly, she softened her tone: "Jade slip."
Though puzzled, Shuning honestly produced her own jade slip.
"Ding—"
The jade slip emitted a crisp chime. Bringing it up to her eyes, Shuning saw that it now displayed an addition of five hundred and fifty contribution points.
"Fifty contribution points were given by Elder Yu for me to pass on to you. The other five hundred are from me; you tended the medicinal field very well."
Contribution points were the universal currency within the sect. If disciples used spirit stones to trade with one another, it easily led to disputes. Furthermore, contribution points could be used to redeem medicinal pills, spirit stones, dharma artifacts, and more within the sect. In addition, using spirit stones to purchase contribution points was strictly prohibited.
Contribution points could be earned through sect quests; a standard medicinal field-tending quest usually yielded two hundred contribution points.
However, Shuning was unaware of this and expressed her sincere gratitude: "Thank you, Elder. Here are your insights."
"If you haven't finished reading it, you may continue."
"I've finished it."
Hearing this, Qiuyao couldn't help but be startled. Then, noticing that she was wearing the standard inner sect attire, an idea of taking her on as an apprentice instantly crossed her mind.
She opened her own jade slip, navigated to the sect disciples column, and pulled up Shuning's information to check.
The very first line was her identity information.
Shuning: Direct Disciple of Qianze Peak
She let out a helpless sigh, then reached out, took back her insights, and said in a flat tone, "You may leave."
"Farewell, Elder." Shuning bowed to her and turned away.