Chapter 101: The Lingtian Sect Recruits Disciples

"No problem, fellow Daoist, please take a look."

The middle-aged man surnamed Liang, who had introduced himself, appeared remarkably generous. As he spoke, he waved his hand to retrieve two jade boxes from his storage pouch and placed them on the counter, opening them gently.

Inside the box on the left lay a segment of purple vine, surrounded by a faint, lingering spiritual aura. In the box on the right was a half-foot-long, blood-colored ginseng, its top slightly curved like the horn of an antelope.

Indeed, these were the Purple Vine and the Antelope Blood Ginseng, and judging by their quality, they were certainly over three hundred years old.

After confirming the authenticity of the spiritual herbs, Chu Xin'er maintained a calm expression, though she was truly delighted inside. Pretending to observe for a moment, she gritted her teeth and said with a look of feigned reluctance: "Fine, I will take them. I wonder if I might use other spiritual herbs to offset the cost."

"Of course, that is no problem. Please, fellow Daoist, bring out your herbs. I, Liang, will certainly offer you a satisfactory price..."

Hearing that Chu Xin'er intended to trade spiritual herbs for spirit stones, the middle-aged man immediately beamed. This was, after all, his true profession, and he could easily double his profits by doing so.

Chu Xin'er did not waste time; she produced six or seven jade boxes containing various spiritual herbs and handed them over to the counter.

"Hmm, Purple Cloud Herb, Heavenly Frost Branch, Ink Sun Flower... excellent, excellent. These are all spiritual herbs and flowers over a century old—five types, seven stalks in total. I have calculated it for you; it comes to over fifteen hundred spirit stones. Let’s do this: I will take a small loss and trade the Purple Vine and Antelope Blood Ginseng for these."

The man surnamed Liang called out the names of each of the seven herbs and, after a moment of deliberation, made his offer. The price was fair, and since Chu Xin'er had no use for these particular herbs, she nodded in agreement.

With the price settled, the transaction was mutually satisfying. However, not long after she gathered the two jade boxes and walked out of the shop, the smile on the middle-aged man’s face turned cold and sinister.

"Hmph... to produce so many spiritual flowers and herbs so easily, and to possess a mid-grade storage pouch—this stranger’s wealth is clearly substantial. She is well worth the trouble of taking action..."

In the world of cultivation, killing for treasures was an everyday affair. Chu Xin'er had average cultivation but possessed significant wealth. As the man thought this with a cold sneer, he gripped two sound-transmission talismans in his hand.

Liang Fan was from the Spirit Herb Sect and was not particularly skilled in combat. He felt his chances against Chu Xin'er, who was of the same cultivation rank, were merely average. However, having spent years navigating the Luoping Market, he had at least one or two close companions he could call upon. Shortly after the talismans were sent, two other cultivators arrived together.

"Brother Liang, where is this 'fat sheep' you spoke of?"

A moment later, in the secret room at the back of the shop, a man with a rugged face couldn't help but ask first.

No sooner had he finished speaking than an elderly man with greying temples and a glint of greed in his eyes interjected: "Indeed, Fellow Daoist Liang, you mentioned that the target was a stunning beauty. Are you trying to trick us, old man?"

"Brother Bao, Elder Hua, please be patient. Given our friendship, would I speak without cause? The woman with the treasures is still in the market. I have already left a tracking mark on her; we simply need to tail her and intercept her later..." Liang Fan explained, a ruthless glint in his eyes.

"Sigh... still nothing."

After leaving Liang Fan’s shop, Chu Xin'er visited several smaller stores selling pills and spiritual herbs, but she was unable to find the Moying Cloud Grass she needed, and she couldn't help but sigh.

Just then, the conversation of two cultivators ahead of her caught her interest.

"Brother Li, have you heard? In half a year, the Lingtian Sect will open its mountain gates to recruit disciples..."

"Is that true? The Lingtian Sect only holds entrance trials every twenty years. The last one was only ten years ago; why would they start another recruitment so soon?"

"I don't know the specifics, but who cares? This is a good thing for us rogue cultivators. If we can join the Lingtian Sect, achieving Foundation Establishment or even Golden Core will no longer be a mere pipe dream..."

"True, I heard that the requirements this time are quite lenient. As long as one's spiritual root aptitude is decent and one isn't too old, there is a chance to be selected..."

"Really? That’s fantastic! Let’s go try our luck together."

Initially, the conversation was between two high-spirited young men, but the mention of the Lingtian Sect—one of the four major powers in the Northern Region of Pingzhou—drew in others. As another young man joined the discussion, many low-level cultivators on the street became interested, with a few deciding to set off for the Lingtian Sect immediately. Since the sect was over one hundred thousand miles away, the six-month window was not very generous for ordinary Qi-refining cultivators who weren't using teleportation arrays.

Hearing this good news, Chu Xin'er felt a stir of excitement. If she could join the Lingtian Sect, it shouldn't be difficult to use the spiritual herbs she had collected to trade with a sect elder for a Foundation Establishment Pill. Perhaps she might even be lucky enough to be taken as a disciple by a Golden Core or Nascent Soul expert, and she would never have to worry about cultivation resources again.

However, unusual events always have a hidden agenda. Chu Xin'er believed that a long-standing sect like the Lingtian Sect would not change its rules so rashly. Their sudden mass recruitment felt like a move to prepare cannon fodder; could it be that the long-peaceful world of cultivation was about to descend into chaos?

Calming down quickly, Chu Xin'er did not follow the excited low-level cultivators toward the Lingtian Sect. Instead, she headed toward another merchant building that sold pills and herbs.

This building was larger, and since a single stalk of herb, useful only to Qi-refining cultivators, was not a rare item, Chu Xin'er easily exchanged a few of her remaining surplus herbs for two stalks of Moying Cloud Grass.

Of course, this building was large enough that they also stocked the Purple Vine and Antelope Blood Ginseng, but Chu Xin'er did not want to attract attention, so she didn't buy them there. She went to yet another building to finish gathering all the materials for two batches of Foundation Establishment Pills. With this, she only needed to find a suitable alchemist, and the pills would be within her grasp.

Because the news of the Lingtian Sect’s recruitment had spread like wildfire, there were few low-level cultivators in the hall, and Chu Xin'er was able to complete her transaction with the young shop assistant without drawing any attention.

In the Northern Region of Pingzhou, the best place to refine pills was the Spirit Herb Sect. Although it was not one of the four top powers, it was far superior to ordinary sect families. To refine pills there, one simply had to provide the raw materials and pay a certain fee to commission their alchemists.

For pills of the caliber of the Foundation Establishment Pill, even mid-level alchemists within the Spirit Herb Sect could handle the task. The fee for one batch was about five thousand spirit stones, and regardless of how many pills were successfully refined, they would take half of the yield.

The conditions sounded harsh, and it seemed the alchemists were being paid handsomely, but due to the Spirit Herb Sect's reputation, there was an endless stream of cultivators seeking their services every day.

Chu Xin'er had been keeping an eye on such information, so she was already aware of the situation at the Spirit Herb Sect. The problem was that after gathering both sets of materials, she only had about six thousand spirit stones left, which was not nearly enough to pay for refining two batches of pills.

Therefore, after tucking away her spiritual herbs, Chu Xin'er did not leave the market but instead turned toward the buildings that sold magical artifacts and treasures.