Chapter 31

While Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan were distracted, Li Mengze reached into the thorns and selected a flower—supposedly the most delicate, dewy, and pure as a lotus among the small white blossoms—and gently stroked it. Of course, since she truly couldn’t distinguish which of the little white flowers was the most exquisite, she simply touched each one in turn.

After entering, likely because they’d taken a shortcut, they soon saw a courtyard up ahead. The three exchanged glances and quickened their pace. Li Mengze tucked back Xiaohei and Xiaobai, who had poked their heads out from her arms. These two, perhaps because they’d been hungry as youngsters, now showed an extraordinary interest in anything edible. Moreover, the little pair seemed to exhibit signs of atavism, having already awakened their own spatial abilities. She didn’t know how large their inner spaces were, but the two had already learned to hoard their own treasures. Whenever she gave them something, they’d habitually set some aside, stash it in their space, and take it out to count at leisure—though she rather doubted when exactly they’d learned to count.

Now, as they poked their heads out, they’d surely detected something desirable in the medicinal garden ahead. If she were teamed up with others, she wouldn’t mind letting them have a little taste first, but not this time. If they wanted something, they’d have to exchange honestly—her senior brother and sister wouldn’t refuse them, and she would never do anything against her conscience.

High walls surrounded them, flickering with traces of lightning—clearly shielded by an array. Li Mengze produced the secret key she’d obtained upon entering the secret realm and pressed it to the garden gate. A flash of green light, the barrier shimmered, and she slipped inside. Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan followed suit. Even as elite disciples, they couldn’t help but gape in awe. This was worthy of an ancient inheritance, a gathering place for a sect, and all the spiritual herbs here were over a thousand years old. Any one of them would be fought over by the outside world.

The excitement in Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan’s eyes was obvious. The inheritance outside was an elusive thing—no one could say where it would finally fall—but this medicinal garden was right before them, theirs for the taking. Even if they had to surrender a tenth to the sect, their needs for spiritual herbs before Nascent Soul stage would be amply covered.

Li Mengze took out a spirit-sealing box that could hold a thousand plants and began collecting herbs, calling out to the two who were still stunned, “Why are you just standing there? If you don’t move, who knows whose hands these will fall into when others arrive!”

As she spoke, she unobtrusively released her two little companions to the ground, instructing them firmly not to forage near Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan, before letting them roam free.

A sect’s medicinal garden was nearly inexhaustible. The three of them alone could never gather everything, and to prevent outsiders from profiting, any extra help was welcome. Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan clearly thought the same way—for as soon as she glanced away, two rare spirit beasts appeared on their side. Bai Yicheng’s Blazing Qilin, which Li Mengze had seen before, was a branch of the divine beast Qilin. Though the bloodline was faint, a divine beast remains a divine beast. Its gathering speed was no less than Li Mengze’s, those chubby little paws moving with surprising dexterity; with each swipe, a spiritual herb vanished. By contrast, Wen Yuanyuan’s pet, a beautiful white peacock, was less impressive—more interested in stuffing its own mouth than collecting. If not for the fact that peacocks weren’t known for innate spatial abilities, Li Mengze would have been deceived by its haughty demeanor.

Wen Yuanyuan was clearly overwhelmed and hadn’t yet noticed her spirit beast’s antics. Otherwise, she’d be hard-pressed to accept that her silly companion was eating on the spot instead of packing things to take home and eat at leisure.

Li Mengze was methodical in her gathering, taking only the rarer herbs or those absent from her own collection. Occasionally she’d pick one or two particularly old specimens lacking in her space. Everything else she left untouched. One should always leave something behind; as long as she could keep herself fed and had reserves, that was enough. Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan did much the same, leaving the younger or self-replicating herbs. In a hundred years, when the secret realm reopened, these would become fresh resources for the next batch of disciples.

When Li Mengze had nearly finished, the outer wards signaled a disturbance. The three quickly summoned their spirit beasts, stowing them in their bags and pretending to casually search for rare herbs. Li Mengze had just tucked Xiaohei and Xiaobai into her arms; the two stubbornly refused to enter their space. Judging by their sparkling eyes, they’d collected plenty of treasures. Li Mengze didn’t press the matter—fortunately, she was still young, and though tall, her figure was flat enough that carrying two palm-sized creatures was barely noticeable. Besides, no one would stare at a female cultivator’s chest, especially one as thin as a bamboo pole.

The newcomers weren’t righteous cultivators, but two demonic cultivators who’d entered earlier. They said nothing, merely set about collecting herbs. Clearly prepared, they used special bags instead of spirit-sealing boxes. However, these bags only preserved herbs for a short time; if not properly stored soon, they’d lose their vitality and damage the roots, so such bags were not recommended.

As more people arrived in the garden, Li Mengze decided she’d gathered enough. She sent a secret voice message to Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan, and the three slipped away. With more people and fewer herbs, disputes would be inevitable—it was best to leave early. Besides, Li Mengze planned to take them to the Earthfire Cave next, where treasures left by ancient alchemists or artifact refiners might be found. Even if not directly useful, they could serve as valuable references for future cultivation.

The Earthfire Cave wasn’t far from the medicinal garden—it all depended on whether one could find it. Li Mengze’s knowledge came from the boredom of her previous confinement; the book she’d read described the precise locations of the main hall, medicinal garden, and transmission hall, but glossed over the Earthfire Cave. She had drawn a detailed map then, trying to deduce the exact location of the alchemy and refining rooms, so now it took little effort to find them.

The Earthfire Cave was directly behind the main hall, aligned in a straight line, set at a forty-five degree angle from the medicinal garden. From the garden, one could teleport directly to the cave. The teleportation array was in the caretaker's hut.

Without further ado, Li Mengze led her senior brother and sister to the hut, politely accepting the seeds stored within. Given their age, who knew whether they could still be cultivated? The teleportation array was easy to locate—just insert spirit stones, and it was ready. Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan were no fools and were even more familiar with such short-range arrays than she.

They wasted no time activating the array, even modifying it to self-destruct after use, preventing others from following before they’d finished their search. Li Mengze was privately amazed by these two bandits—did it never occur to them this might be a two-way array, with no exit on the other side? Still, she couldn’t help but feel satisfied with their decision.

A flash of white light, and they appeared elsewhere. Though it was a short-range teleport, they were still left dizzy and disoriented. Wen Yuanyuan, however, seemed unaffected—her senses sharp and her energy robust—a clear difference in cultivation.

Ahead of them lay the Earthfire Cave. Even standing outside, they could feel the searing heat pouring forth. In her arms, Xiaobai wriggled uneasily, and the usually dormant artifact spirit was suddenly excited: “There’s something good inside! If we can put it in the space, the space will upgrade, and many new features will be unlocked. Hurry! Hurry!”

Li Mengze didn’t know exactly what treasure was inside, but anything that could excite the artifact spirit and make sensitive Xiaobai restless had to be extraordinary. Yet, with three of them present, any sentient treasure might not choose her—she was, after all, the lowest in cultivation. She couldn’t possibly turn on her senior brother and sister, even if she wanted to—besides, she wasn’t strong enough.

Should she abandon all dignity and throw a tantrum? The idea of herself rolling on the ground in a fit of pique made her cringe. Absolutely not.

Her thoughts were, of course, unknown to Bai Yicheng and Wen Yuanyuan, who were still riding the high of their success. This had all gone so smoothly—never before in their forays into secret realms had everything fallen into place so effortlessly. No wonder their master always said that luck was a form of strength. In the future, they’d certainly bring their little junior sister along—she was clearly a lucky star.

Li Mengze had no idea that she had already been marked as a bringer of great fortune, and that others were already planning to take her along on their next adventure.