Chapter 15: Lingfu Pavilion

The next day.

The golden crow rose, and the jade rabbit retreated.

Golden sunlight spilled into the canyon, filtering through the windows to cast mottled spots of light across the room.

Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Cheng Buzheng remained as motionless as a clay statue. When a ray of sunlight struck his face, his eyelashes flickered slightly, and he opened his eyes.

Sensing the spiritual power within his dantian space, which no longer felt weak, he knew his foundation was solid and the danger of a regression in his cultivation realm had passed.

Cheng Buzheng let out a soft breath.

"Whew!"

He stood up. His gray robe was somewhat disheveled from a night of sitting cross-legged, but after a light pat, the exceptionally smooth fabric became as pristine and wrinkle-free as new.

Opening the door and turning around, he extended his long, fair right hand to flip the wooden sign hanging on the door. The original words, "Seclusion," were replaced with "Outward Bound."

He walked along the path in front of the door. Passing several nearby houses, he glanced at them and noticed that the doors of several teammates were still hanging with "Seclusion" signs.

Cheng Buzheng speculated to himself

"Nan Ye will likely reach the first level of Qi Refinement within a few days at the latest; the other three will probably need more time!"

Without further delay, he followed the road, passed through the residential area for outer disciples, and once he exited the canyon, he kicked off the ground. The crushed stones beneath his feet turned to powder, leaving a deep footprint behind.

Instantly, the air exploded. Like an arrow released from a bow, Cheng Buzheng shot forward, leaving a trail of flying dust behind him like a long serpent of smoke.

Half an hour later.

At the foot of Immortal Spring Peak.

Cheng Buzheng looked up at the mountain peak before him, which stood over three hundred zhang high. From time to time, streaks of spiritual light flashed past as people traveled to and from the peak, a sight that filled him with envy.

However, he knew that he was still a long way from being able to fly on a tool; he still needed to grow and develop.

Cheng Buzheng did not linger to watch. Instead, he sprinted up the winding mountain stairs.

Fifteen minutes later.

Cheng Buzheng saw an ancient-style pavilion before him. The pavilion was five zhang high and three stories tall, constructed entirely of a certain type of black spiritual wood. The faint spiritual glow emanating from it suggested it was quite costly.

The pavilion doors were wide open, and a plaque hung above the entrance engraved with three gilded characters: "Command Talisman Pavilion." This was the place where the sect issued tasks and disciples accepted them.

Spells of spiritual light rose and fell from time to time, and groups of senior brothers and sisters constantly entered and exited, indicating how bustling the place was.

Cheng Buzheng took a look and, without hesitation, walked slowly along the roadside toward the main hall. He had no desire to offend any narrow-minded seniors before he had even accomplished anything.

In all things, one should not fear the unlikely, but one must guard against it.

Moreover, he was currently nothing more than a small fry at the first level of Qi Refinement; anyone could step on him. He had no capital to fall out with others.

Cheng Buzheng had come today to gather information and to prepare for selecting free spells. Since his cultivation resources were currently scarce, every step had to be meticulously calculated and thoroughly considered to lay a good foundation for his future path to immortality.

He followed the roadside and entered the hall.

The entire hall was approximately five zhang square. On the northern wall hung a massive jade wall that occupied the entire surface. Rows of words scrolled across the jade wall like a projection screen from his previous life.

To the west was a long counter that occupied most of that side. Made of spiritual wood, the counter emitted a faint, refreshing fragrance that helped calm the mind.

Behind the counter were two senior sisters dressed in gray robes. Though they were not stunningly beautiful, their features were quite delicate. The spiritual pressure emanating from their slender bodies told him that these two were definitely not mere ornaments, but powerful cultivators.

At that moment, the two senior sisters were each engaged in conversation with a senior brother.

To the east was a room that occupied a small portion of the area, shrouded in a layer of spiritual light.

In the northeast, near the small room, was a staircase entrance, which was also encased in spiritual light. He knew that was where the Foundation Establishment uncles accepted tasks.

The senior brothers and sisters who came here all watched the scrolling text on the northern jade wall. No one paid any attention to him; a mere Qi Refinement level cultivator who had just joined the sect was not even qualified to be cannon fodder.

Cheng Buzheng stood silently in the distance, quietly observing the tasks on the jade wall, acting like a ghost in the hall.

"Task No. 12: Tend to Medicine Garden No. 8 for one year. Requires proficiency in Golden Needle Technique and Spiritual Rain Technique. Production must not decrease during this period. Reward: 50 spirit stones."

"Task No. 83: Guard the entrance to the sect's formation for two years. Requires cultivation to the sixth level of Qi Refinement. Negligence of duty is prohibited. Reward: 30 spirit stones."

"Task No. 95: Refine ten bottles of high-grade Tier 1 Qi Gathering Pills, along with fifteen sets of spiritual herbs. Reward: 500 spirit stones. Exercise caution when accepting this task. If the task fails and pills are insufficient, spirit stones must compensate. If spirit stones are insufficient, sect rules will be applied."

"Task No. 321: Refine eight pieces of mid-grade Tier 1 Dharma Tools (Giant Turtle Shields), along with twelve sets of spiritual materials. Reward: 400 spirit stones. Exercise caution when accepting this task. If the task fails and tools are insufficient, spirit stones must compensate. If spirit stones are insufficient, sect rules will be applied."

After standing and watching for a long time, Cheng Buzheng noticed that new tasks appeared occasionally. The high-reward tasks that were simple would often trigger a scramble among the seniors, often being snatched up in less than a breath.

As for the difficult tasks with meager rewards, the seniors present wouldn't give them a second glance.

Occasionally, the rewards for tasks that had remained unaccepted for a long time would change.

From time to time, a task would disappear. A disappearing task meant it had been accepted; it would only reappear on the jade wall if the task failed.

Cheng Buzheng watched quietly for a long time and gained some experience. He noted that the four categories of tasks—Alchemy, Weapon Refinement, Talisman Making, and Formations—offered the highest rewards and appeared most frequently.

However, the glamorous side of such tasks inevitably had a downside: if the success rate did not meet the minimum requirement, one could lose everything.

The second category consisted of outward expeditions: searching for and gathering spiritual herbs or hunting demonic beasts.

These tasks were more dangerous or perhaps more dependent on luck. If one was lucky enough to gather high-grade spiritual herbs, the spirit stones obtained could not be compared to those from alchemy or weapon refinement. It was even possible to obtain enough resources to cultivate all the way to the Foundation Establishment stage.

If luck was poor, one was essentially just delivering meals to demonic beasts—"sending warmth" to them.

The third category consisted of hard labor, such as mining spiritual ores in spirit veins. Depending on the difficulty of the mining, the rewards varied, but generally, the differences were not significant.

The fourth category consisted of miscellaneous chores, such as guarding the entrances to sect formations, tending to medicine gardens, or performing duty shifts. The rewards varied, but most were quite generous, and the simplest tasks usually fell into this category.

Cheng Buzheng silently analyzed the various types of tasks, weighing the pros and cons of each while considering his own cultivation level.

Otherwise, without a doubt, the first category would be the best choice.

But at this moment, he had only just ascended to the first level of Qi Refinement. He certainly could not complete those types of tasks; he could only blame his low cultivation level.