northernbook Chapter 217 The Orchid Gathering
Chapter 217 The Orchid Gathering
Upon returning to the sect, Cheng Jiu did not go to find Qin Che, but instead went back to Canglan Peak.
The courtyard, neglected for months, was lush and verdant. Nourished by the medicinal pearl, the spiritual herbs planted by Cheng Jiu grew exceptionally well. Instead of returning to the courtyard, Cheng Jiu harvested a batch of these herbs first.
Sitting in the courtyard, Cheng Jiu felt a familiar sense of security; this was probably what home felt like.
"Xiao Jiu, you're back?"
Not long after Cheng Jiu sat in the courtyard, Immortal Lord Qingxu appeared in the courtyard, smiling as he looked at Cheng Jiu.
"I'm back!"
Cheng Jiu felt a pang of sadness as he looked at his master, and for some reason, he suddenly became sentimental.
"It's good that you're back!"
Immortal Lord Qingxu didn't ask his disciple what had happened in Hailian City. He believed that Cheng Jiu could handle it on his own, and he only needed to be his disciple's most reliable support.
"Master, have you finished your work?"
"The sect leader and the others will handle the rest. As an elder, I don't need to take on so much work."
Immortal Lord Qingxu said matter-of-factly, "I've finally finished dealing with the things at hand and can return to my leisurely elder life: 'In recent years, the demon race has been very active and has invented a little gadget in response. I think it's quite good and very suitable for you.'"
"What?" Cheng Jiu looked at Qingxu Immortal Lord. He was quite looking forward to something that even his master called good.
"Hands out!"
Cheng Jiu stretched out his hand, and Qingxu Immortal Lord's fingertips became knives, cutting a line in Cheng Jiu's palm. The crimson blood was drawn out by his spiritual power and fell onto a golden round stone.
"If you encounter danger in the future, crush this stone, and it will automatically be sent to the nearby city lord's mansion."
Recently, training for Nascent Soul stage disciples has been quite unsafe, with a high mortality rate.
To this end, the sects jointly researched and developed this formation, and set up the corresponding formations in the city lord's mansions of various cities, so that they could be moved to the nearest city lord's mansion at any time in case of danger.
It's convenient to seek help from the sect or ask the city lord's mansion for assistance, but this is limited to the inner disciples and personal disciples of the five major sects. This jade stone has been specially forged and can be reused.
As Qingxu Immortal Lord spoke, an icy blue light appeared in his palm, and a cool sensation swept across his hand.
Cheng Jiu shook hands; the wound on his palm had already healed. How amazing!
There are minor healing spells, but her master has an ice spirit root. No matter how you look at it, ice spirit root and healing are not related.
With his hand outstretched, Cheng Jiu looked at the golden jade stone floating in his palm, moving at will, which was quite convenient.
More importantly, having experienced the banishment of spirits, Cheng Jiu discovered that the golden jade stone does not require spiritual power to drive it, but can be summoned with just his will.
If the same situation occurs again, there's no need to try to lower the guard's guard's guards' vigilance; just find a way to destroy the pink jade.
How convenient! The person who invented this formation must be a genius!
Cheng Jiu asserted, "Master, wouldn't it be fine if that city lord was from the demon race?"
Isn't this no different from a lamb being led to the wolves' den?
Immortal Lord Qingxu tapped Cheng Jiu on the head: "Nothing is perfect, and there are bound to be many rats. I believe in the five major sects' ability to control their subordinates, and the sects will also monitor them in real time."
Cheng Jiu covered his head. Okay, okay, compared to before, this jade pendant greatly improves the safety factor.
"Come on, Master will teach you how to draw talismans!"
"Drawing talismans?" Cheng Jiu looked at Qingxu Immortal Lord, wondering why they had come up here again.
“I think runes are also very necessary.” Immortal Lord Qingxu looked at the rune on the jade floating in Cheng Jiu’s hand: “It has been a long time since I practiced, and I feel that I have become rusty. It’s good that you are here. You can study with me.”
In the cultivation world, the mainstream runes are still talismans, or a combination of talisman arrays like Cheng Jiu's. However, because both are required, the threshold is high, and very few people know how to do them.
For a powerful being like Immortal Lord Qingxu, talismans offer very little help, and since Immortal Lord Qingxu is not short of money, he had no intention of selling them.
Since becoming a ninth-rank talisman master, Immortal Lord Qingxu has rarely used it.
And now we see the magical effects produced by the combination of those simple runes and jade.
Immortal Lord Qingxu felt that he probably didn't understand the art of runes yet.
Now that he has broken through to the Mahayana stage, with many years to go, Immortal Lord Qingxu has plenty of time and energy for further research.
You can also teach apprentices while you're at it.
Seeing that he couldn't refuse his master, Cheng Jiu could only follow along and "review" the talismans.
Who practices calligraphy to review runes?! Hey!
Rather than learning from his master, it was more like being guided through a review. Cheng Jiu's cultivation level hadn't reached that level yet; he had already reached the pinnacle of the Talisman Dao, and he would naturally be able to comprehend it at the next level, the Divine Transformation Realm.
After reviewing the seventh and eighth grade talismans and finding them completely incomprehensible, Immortal Lord Qingxu said, "Since there's nothing else to teach Cheng Jiu, let's practice calligraphy!"
Runes are inseparable; practicing calligraphy more might even lead to some insights.
Take another step forward in the path of talismans.
So, in front of Cheng Jiu were various exquisite calligraphy copybooks from the literary sages of the mortal realm.
Cheng Jiu was a little puzzled. She was someone who had been reborn into the cultivation world and was very good at using talismans and arrays. Now she was actually starting to practice calligraphy.
And where did the master collect so many different types of calligraphy copybooks from?
I have a feeling that my master had planned this all along!
Cheng Jiu dared not refuse the Immortal Lord Shangqingxu.
You can only have ten sheets a day to hand over to your master to complete the task.
Immortal Lord Qingxu was very pleased to see Cheng Jiu calmly and meticulously copying the characters stroke by stroke. He thought that practicing calligraphy was good because it could cultivate one's character.
Xiao Jiu has been feeling restless lately.
After spending three months by her master's side, enduring a grueling life of cultivation, Cheng Jiu's mind had become detached from worldly affairs, and nothing could stir her emotions anymore.
However, the benefits were obvious; Cheng Jiu felt he had made progress!
It's important to understand that since entering the Nascent Soul stage, Cheng Jiu hasn't felt any significant progress for a long time.
The Nascent Soul stage is truly exhausting!
Gongcheng and Gongyu have not returned yet. It is obvious that the two will stay in the demon realm for quite some time, since Qingyang Immortal Lord has not returned to his sect either.
Immortal Lord Qingxu did not intend to keep his disciple confined until the sect competition, so he gave Cheng Jiu a half-month break.
Just then, the Orchid Gathering in Orchid City arrived, and Cheng Jiu had previously obtained a seed.
Thinking of this, Cheng Jiu thought of Lan Xian from Youlan City.
The seed that was planted earlier blossomed into a flower of nine grades under the nurturing of the medicinal pearl.
Cheng Jiu himself hadn't paid much attention to the other party. When he was cleaning up the spiritual herbs, he accidentally discovered that the other party had actually grown a small cluster. Not to mention the other flowering orchids, the main plant in the very center was a ninth-grade plant.
Cheng Jiu reaffirmed that the medicinal bead was definitely not an ordinary item. Putting everything else aside, just using that medicinal bead to cultivate a ninth-grade orchid would make him rich, wouldn't it?
Thinking of this, Cheng Jiu sent a message to Yingyue. She had indeed planted it, but the flowers were of four colors, as she hadn't taken much care of it.
Cheng Jiu was determined to bring his own orchids to Youlan City, but he was torn between showing off or keeping a low profile.
In the end, Cheng Jiu chose to compromise and brought a seven-colored orchid.
This is the only orchid in that secluded place with a flower of seven grades, and a plant of nine grades.
Cheng Jiu transplanted it into a flowerpot and rode the little cloud beast to the sect gate.
Upon arriving at the main gate, Yingyue and Wen Sishu were waiting for her. The three of them had agreed to go together. As for Senior Brother Qin Che, Cheng Jiu had previously asked him and learned that he had gone down to the secret realm with Senior Brother Huo Yan, who had finally managed to escape.
This time, Senior Brother Huo Yan's master didn't go into seclusion for too long!
Youlan City is located near the Guiyuan Sect, and Cheng Jiu and his group had been there before.
After the beast tide ended, the teleportation arrays in various places also stopped working, so people could only travel there by spirit beast or by flying on a sword.
"Senior sister, didn't you bring any orchids?"
Cheng Jiu looked Yingyue up and down.
"I won't bring it along and embarrass myself!"
Yingyue was also very guilty. When she received the orchid seeds, she vowed to plant them well, but she forgot about them when she got busy. The orchids grew so wilted that Yingyue didn't have the courage to bring them to the Orchid Festival.
"Junior Sister, your orchid is quite beautiful!"
"I haven't really taken care of it. I had the Myrrh Bead before, and it just grew like this on its own!"
"That medicinal bead is truly a treasure! By the way, that brother and sister, the sister has some talent in alchemy and successfully passed the outer sect assessment to enter the inner sect, becoming an inner sect disciple of the Pharmacy Sect!"
An elder within the peak thinks she's quite good and is currently testing her. If she passes, she might even become an elder's personal disciple!
"That's truly a stroke of good fortune for her! Senior sister, what about that younger brother?"
"He's not as talented as his sister, but if he improves his skills, he might be able to work as a manager outside."
Yingyue only paid some attention to the siblings because of her junior sister, Xiao Jiu.
However, it was precisely because of this attention that these two disciples who suddenly entered the outer sect of Medicine Peak were not ostracized.
"Junior Sister, the pregnancy pill you gave me before was very effective. I am already pregnant, and according to the imperial physician who examined me, it's a girl."
At this point, Wen Sishu beamed with joy. With the child and his family's influence, his brother's future was clearly bright and prosperous.
"Brother would also like to ask you for some elixirs that can make the child healthy and strong," Wen Sishu said as she handed Cheng Jiu the ring.
Cheng Jiu accepted it knowingly. The elixirs given to mortal infants were mostly of the first grade or even lower grade. Any higher grade would be too much for the infants to handle, so they were of very low value. Wen Sishu could refine them himself.
The reason I entrusted her with this task was simply to use this as an excuse to purchase more treasures.
In mortal terms, it would be a reward, but since she was a disciple of the Guiyuan Sect and a direct disciple of Qingxu Immortal Lord, doing so would be too offensive. So she found another, less impressive reason.
Cheng Jiu glanced at the storage ring space and, sure enough, found a pile of dazzling treasures, far exceeding the value of the commissioned pills.
"Senior brother, I will give you the pill after the Orchid Gathering!"
"it is good!"
Wen Sishu was well aware of the situation. As for the pills to protect the pregnancy and the pills for the fetus, Wen Sishu had already sent them over as soon as he received the letter. There was no need to tell his junior sister about it separately!
After the beast tide subsided, Guiyuan Sect returned to its usual bustling state. Apart from their small space, senior brothers and sisters would occasionally take off to go out for training on this platform.
Of course, no one paid attention to the three little ones; they were all too busy to notice what people were saying around them.
Moreover, asking around without any connection to the person you're close to can easily offend them.
Wen Sishu and Yingyue both reserved cranes. While the three of them were chatting, the two poor cranes were amused by the little cloud beast. If it weren't for the fact that the beast had the virtue to know not to abandon its employer, they would have been in trouble.
Cheng Jiu had complete faith in the other party and was certain that he would fly away without stopping.
Cheng Jiu couldn't help but rub his forehead slightly and gently restrain the little cloud beast.
The little cloud beast looked at Cheng Jiu with a pitiful expression. It was very well-behaved and did not leave. It was the other two that were too timid!
Cheng Jiu ignored its pitiful look and said, "You need to see if you keep making movements to get closer to the crane."
It was precisely because the other party kept provoking them that the two cranes became so agitated, clearly traumatized.
On the way to Youlan City, the crane flew very fast, seemingly eager to complete the job quickly and get away from the chubby white guy behind it.
The little cloud beast looked at the two cranes, and a cunning glint flashed in DouDou's eyes. However, before it could put its idea into action, Cheng Jiu stopped it. The two cranes were carrying Senior Sister Yingyue and Senior Brother Wen.
If it does that, not only will the two cranes get all pricked up, but the senior brothers and sisters riding on its backs will definitely not have a good experience.
Let them go! Poor Senior Brother Wen and Senior Sister Ying.
The little cloud beast listened to Cheng Jiu quite well and obediently gave up its idea.
The journey was peaceful, and the two cranes were very courteous, waiting for the person on their backs to dismount and give a five-star review before flying away quickly.
Cheng Jiu also jumped off the little cloud beast. Youlan City is a medium-sized city, and it was quite lively today.
A seemingly endless line of caravans stretched out at the entrance, each caravan's spirit beast wagons laden with goods.
It's obvious they're meant to be taken into the city to sell.
The procession was divided into three routes: one for merchants, one for rogue cultivators with no money or power, and one for ordinary people who came to the city to shop or do small business.
The last one is clearly visible: the carriages are pulled by powerful spirit beasts, and the people sitting inside are either strong or noble.
It is exclusively for these powerful and wealthy individuals.
Cheng Jiu and the other two were disciples of the Guiyuan Sect, so they naturally didn't have to queue. It was another day of disciple privileges!
As people passed through the city gate, they saw that the city was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, even more lively than when Cheng Jiu and his group had arrived. Beautiful orchids were displayed in front of all the shops, and on the steps at the very front, pots of orchids tied with red silk ribbons were neatly arranged.
Along the separated street, people occasionally admire and appreciate these orchids.
When a person sees a favorite orchid, they will take out a colorful ribbon inlaid with a spiritual stone from their pocket or ring and tie it to the ear of the orchid pot.
The label includes the owner's name and bid for the orchid; this is just a bonus, the exact amount is kept secret and only the owner knows.
By evening, all the orchids will be collected and counted. The orchids that were not marked will be returned to their owners, while the marked orchids will be awarded to the highest bidder.
This is a winning lottery ticket!
There are hundreds of thousands of orchids displayed throughout the city; how could one possibly see them all in a single day!
Its secrecy and randomness greatly test the eye of the person selecting the orchids; you might just find a hidden gem among hundreds of thousands of pots.
This kind of thing has happened before in previous years.
It was also an interesting event at the Orchid Gathering!