Who let him join the Sword Sect!

Chapter 403 Love, Textured Skin, and Black Stone

Although the relationship between the Li siblings is somewhat complicated, one thing is certain.

That means the older sister is her biological sister, but the younger brother is not necessarily her biological brother; it's more like they were adopted.

Most of the harm Li Jue suffered from growing up came from his older sister.

Strictly speaking, Li Jue has been living life to the fullest until today.

and so.

Tomorrow will be no exception.

……

The following evening, at Linglu Valley.

After a long day of work, Master Li took a breath, as if his body had been completely drained.

His legs went weak, and leaning on his shovel, he stood at the edge of the field, gazing at the view that stretched as far as the eye could see, his heart filled with the joy of a bountiful harvest.

"I'm really amazing. I managed to pick so many elephant manure in just half a day." Li Jue thought to himself as he looked at the spirit field that had turned into a sea of ​​elephant manure.

In the spirit field, strange spirit plants, resembling radish heads, sprouted from the soil. Their roots and stems looked plump and white, comparable to white jade. However, the little faces growing on them were wrinkled and looked like those of an old person who had just turned one month old.

On either side of that small face, two thin stems grew, drooping down as they absorbed nutrients from the surrounding area.

Each spiritual plant occupies a square foot of land, and the unrefined, pure elephant manure is carefully piled around them.

Nourished by fertilizer, they lay comfortably on the ridges of the field, looking as if they were soaking in a hot spring.

This is Spirit Deer Grass, a newly cultivated specialty spiritual plant. Like most specialty spiritual plants, it currently only grows in Spirit Deer Valley.

These small grasses are magical; when they gather together, they form an effect similar to a forbidden spiritual land. When cultivators enter, not only will their spiritual energy be constantly consumed, but their physical strength will also be rapidly depleted due to the toxins they passively release.

Unless one is exceptionally gifted, even an ordinary physical cultivator would have to crawl through the fields.

Li Jue was no ordinary person; he walked on a squat.

Looking at the strange-looking spirit deer grass in the field, Li Jue carefully opened his palm.

Like butterfly wing scales, tiny fragments floated up and down in his palm, reflecting the setting sun from every angle.

This small handful of things is the harvest of Master Li's day's work.

All of them were carefully rubbed off by Li Jue from the spirit deer grass that was comfortably soaking in "spiritual fertilizer".

Although the collection process resembles rubbing and chapping, these fragments have very high medicinal value and many amazing effects. In addition to being taken orally, they can also be used as high-grade materials for casting spells or drawing talismans.

He carefully put the fragments away in a brocade box and took out the notes he had received from his sister.

Looking at the bold, sweeping handwriting and the chaotic cultivation and harvesting methods recorded therein, Li Jue felt a deep sadness.

"How tragic, my foolish sister."

"Such a miraculous spiritual plant has been left to its own devices, a treasure right beside you, yet you are unaware of it. Fortunately, you have your younger brother, a prodigy, by your side. Ha."

"What will happen to this family without me..."

Li Jue gloated for a while, then picked up his pen and wrote on it.

[Foolish sister, the newly sprouted spirit deer grass hasn't been nurtured properly. Go and fetch some white elephant fertilizer; perhaps it will yield some results. If you don't understand, come and ask me again.]

After finishing writing, he closed his notebook and sat down cross-legged by the field, completely satisfied.

The area of ​​the forbidden zone created by the Spirit Deer Grass is limited. Unless they move together, it will not expand indefinitely. Because of this, the spiritual energy around the place where they grow becomes even more refined.

Use it for cultivation; it will make your efforts twice as effective.

"This is a wonderful place. There's even a soundproof barrier around it, perfect for cultivation."

System Home.

Xiangxiang went on a trip, and now the old folks are managing this place.

Increasingly unrestrained, they began to decorate the place according to their own preferences.

Those numerous pendant lights that look like pig testicles are their masterpieces.

Inside a certain room.

Beneath the egg-shaped pendant light, two crystal screens displayed different images.

On the right is the surveillance camera, showing footage of Li Jue meditating and practicing meditation.

The left side displays three pieces of information, namely:

The newly sprouted spirit deer grass has not been properly nurtured. Please obtain some white elephant fertilizer; perhaps it will yield a good harvest.

[In recent nights, a bell has been ringing in the Forgotten Valley behind Jianmen Pass, seemingly related to the legendary Silver Bell Beast that disappeared a thousand years ago.]

[The jade sea bream of Qinghe has returned to its homeland, and a mysterious person is offering a large sum of money to buy it, in exchange for a body-strengthening elixir.]

The first piece of intelligence was provided by Li Yueqi, the second was fabricated by Zhang Ze, and the third was written by A Li.

After learning from Li Yueqi that the unlucky guy number 09 in Qingjing was Li Jue, Zhang Ze and A Li sighed at the cruel twist of fate.

As a good brother, Zhang Ze didn't want to see Li Jue being manipulated by his sister for nothing, so he had to include him in the mix.

So he made a bet with Li Yueqi.

Let's bet on whose intelligence Li Jue will choose.

Zhang Ze replaced the two pieces of information—helping Fu Ji take care of the poisonous mushrooms and jumping off a cliff to find treasure—leaving only the one about picking up manure.

The two replacements were provided by A Li and Zhang Ze.

The two of them also prescribed the right medicine for the right disease.

Zhang Ze planned to use false information about spirit beasts to deceive him. If Li Jue chose to explore the Forgotten Valley at midnight, he would be startled by Zhang Ze ringing the bell.

As for Ah Li, it didn't intend to trick anyone; it was just simply craving something.

He wanted to take this opportunity to get Li Jue to catch fish for him.

If Li Jue really chooses to go fishing, then Ah Li will really give him the spiritual medicine that she has treasured like sweet water.

The only good person is him.

Unfortunately, both Ah Li and Zhang Ze lost, and Mr. Li resolutely chose to go to Linglu Valley to collect manure.

Having lost the bet, Zhang Ze handed over his and A Li's chips to Li Yueqi.

"You clearly have three pieces of intelligence, so how do you know that Li Jue will definitely use the ancient method to fertilize the spirit deer grass you are raising?"

Zhang Ze was puzzled. He felt that Li Jue, as a disciple of the Beast Taming Sect, should be more interested in spirit beasts.

“Because I’m his sister, I know him.” Li Yueqi put away her chips and continued, “Besides, no matter how unreliable he is, he is still the young master of the Beast Taming Sect.”

"He has eaten and seen a lot since he was a child, and ordinary things are not good enough for him."

"Compared to new spirit beasts and body-tempering elixirs, he's definitely more interested in the fact that he can take advantage of me."

"So I deliberately created a weakness."

"But to be honest, I really didn't expect this silly boy to be so strong. He took only half a day to tend to that spiritual field."

As she spoke, Li Yueqi took out a notebook, the same one as the one in Li Jue's hand, but the contents of which were much more detailed and thorough.

Of course, the handwriting was also bold and unrestrained, as if it had been torn apart by five horses.

This is her diary of observing spiritual plants.

In order to avoid developing into a muscular, hunchbacked monster like her grandfather, Li Yueqi chose to become an exchange student at Medicine King Valley. These days, besides taking care of the little dinosaur, she's been learning to grow vegetables all by herself.

Those spirit deer herbs were part of her project, considered part of her graduation thesis.

To appease those living ancestors, Li Yueqi ordered a batch of equipment from the Thousand Machine Pavilion, using purely mechanical methods to circumvent the effects of spirit suppression and toxins.
It achieves fully automated fertilization, fully automated collection of scales and powder, and after collection, it provides a fully automated massage service for each Linglu grass.

Of course, if it were merely a matter of being difficult to care for, these spirit deer herbs wouldn't be enough to test her younger brother in Li Yueqi's eyes.

Besides being delicate, they are actually a very dangerous type of spiritual plant.

The Spirit Deer Grass is half plant and half beast. It likes to eat carrion. Because it moves slowly, it usually disguises itself as ordinary grass and hides its true form underground. When someone approaches, it will use its power to create a spirit-free zone and release toxins to drain the prey's energy.

After trapping their prey, they crawl out, drag the prey to the ground, and slowly digest it until not a single bone remains.

However, due to their semi-animal, semi-beast nature, the methods of training dogs used by the Beast Taming Sect are equally effective for them.

With the right cultivation methods, and through a combination of kindness and strictness, Li Yueqi has successfully raised these rascals to be completely obedient.

They have been successfully domesticated and are no longer a deadly threat.

But non-fatal dangers still exist.

So, having decided to teach Li Jue a lesson, Li Yueqi took action. First, she returned to the spirit field behind her residence and put away all the mechanical devices. Then, she scribbled something in a notebook and casually let Li Jue see both the notebook and the spirit field.
After listening, Zhang Ze clapped his hands, praising Li's wisdom while expressing sorrow for Li Jue's future.

Having a sister like that is a blessing in this lifetime.

Meanwhile, Ah Li was intently reading the booklet, enjoying the baptism of knowledge.

Halfway through reading, it tugged at Li Yueqi's trouser leg, "What does 'Eastern Continent War Chariot' mean? Those little rascals can drive cars?"

“Oh, this is the name of a band.” Li Yueqi took the notebook and looked at Zhang Ze. “I heard it from him.”

Zhang Ze, "Me?"

"Yeah, I remember when I was playing the erhu before, you said what I was playing wasn't erhu, it was death rock, and you even told me about a lot of bands."

"I thought it was quite interesting... so I had those little greenhorns form an East Continent Chariot Band."

“Cultivating new hobbies and expending their energy is also part of domestication.”

After saying that, Li Yueqi looked up at the time and said, "Hmm, it's almost time for rehearsal."

As soon as she finished speaking, the image on the crystal screen in front of her changed.

……

Linglu Valley.

Li Jue was still happily cultivating, reveling in the scene of being treated like a savior in front of his older sister the next day.

It must give a powerful jolt.

However, just as he was about to start the earthquake ahead of schedule, Li Jue suddenly smelled a pleasant fragrance.

The scent was familiar; he had smelled it when he was applying the styling agent to the deer grass.

It is the toxin released by the spirit deer grass that they use to exhaust their prey's strength.

Li Jue suddenly opened his eyes and discovered that, without him noticing, the spirit deer grass had crawled out of the soil. Their lower bodies were not radishes, but rather crawled like beetle larvae.

They slowly wriggled and crawled towards Li Jue.

Li Jue wanted to leave, but found that he had no strength left and could barely stand up.

Helpless, he could only crawl forward, imitating the spirit deer grass, towards the sister's hut by the field.

That's a safe house; the sign on the door clearly states it.

"Don't go, listen to us sing..." A clear, childlike voice rang in Li Jue's ears.

"Sing...sing a song?"

Li Jue didn't understand.

But the spirit deer grasses didn't care about any of that. Li Jue, their only listener, was surrounded by them. They straightened up, held hands, and began to sing.

"Please enjoy the song, Rotten Carnival."

Li Jue, "?"

Li Jue understands now.

The spirit deer grasses began to shake, their sweet, childlike voices turning into roars like raging waves, interspersed with desperate cries like a rooster being stuffed into an elephant's rear end.

The roars and screams, accompanied by unknown instruments, formed an indescribable vortex, tormenting the body and soul of every listener from the inside out.

……

Inside the System Home, in the room.

Although he couldn't hear anything, Zhang Ze could tell from Li Jue's expression that those little radishes' songs must be a bit too niche.

“Let’s say, why don’t we stop? Aqi, it doesn’t have to be like this. You only have one brother.”

Seeing Li Jue barely alive as he crawled back to the safe house, Zhang Ze offered some words of advice.

But Li Yueqi shook her head.

"How could it not be necessary? I just want to teach him a lesson."

"It's only because we have no intention of harming anyone, and I've tamed these spirit deer grasses, that this message would have been sent by someone with ulterior motives, and he would be nothing more than fertilizer by now."

"Let this kid learn a lesson, so he won't pick up anything or believe everything in the future."

"Alright then." Zhang Ze thought about it and realized that made sense.

Even the Qi Sect Master, who had already died in Jingzhou, despite his meticulous preparations, was still frozen in ice.

"So how should we play tomorrow?" Zhang Ze readily agreed.

"Let's see if he can react. If he can't, send him to the underground city," Li Yueqi said.

After returning from the Northern Territory, the Thousand Machines Pavilion's dungeon underwent a major upgrade, integrating with the Illusionary Realm and its overall layout was completely rearranged.

The entire dungeon has been reinforced and expanded several times in size. All scenes are interconnected, allowing for free movement. The boss room has been transformed from the original sword spirit puppet into a small illusion, including some deadly traps that strive for realism and are meant to teach people a lesson.

Furthermore, because the elders of the Six Sects got involved, the boss in this illusion was infused with many of the Six Sects' ingenious ideas.

For example, the Beastmaster Sword Saint who rides a pig.

For example, a bald, muscular guy who holds Buddhist scriptures in his left hand and a gun in his right.

For example, the faceless Taoist whose lower body is a tree and whose surrounding starlight is distorted.

For example, there's the half-demon alchemist with a withered upper body, beast-like legs, and countless limbs sewn onto his body.

Anyway, they're all pretty weird; none of the bosses seem like good guys, and they're full of the old Dengs' wicked sense of humor.

Not only were the evil desires of the old Dengs satisfied, but Zhang Ze's were too.

Some latrines and underground corridors that Zhang Ze had always longed for but which he hadn't been able to build before, have now all been completed.

This dungeon is much more fun than before.

However, due to the rushed preparation time, this dungeon is not yet open to the public.

Currently, only a few rounds of simple internal testing have been conducted, and many aspects are still being adjusted.

Zhang Ze thought about it and felt that the underground city was still somewhat dangerous. If Li Jue were to walk in there alone, something might go wrong.

“I’ll go with him tomorrow. Some parts of that underground city aren’t very safe,” Zhang Ze said.

Li Yueqi looked at the safe house she had prepared for Li Jue in advance on the screen and remained silent.

……

Linglu Valley, where the moon is bright and the stars are few.

The East Continent Chariots rock band finished their rehearsal for the day and returned to their respective spots to resume their free practice.

After crawling into the safe house, Li Jue was finally free from the torment of the spirit deer grass. He lay on the ground, staring blankly at the beam.

Only then did he realize that the purpose of the soundproof barrier was not to eliminate external noise and assist cultivators in their cultivation.

Instead, they prevented the sounds inside from being transmitted out.

After rubbing his ears and recovering, Li Jue got up from the ground.

The Dragon King's confidence and joy upon his return had been shattered by reality. He recalled the terror of his sister and the fear of being controlled by her.

Composing himself, Li Jue took out his sister's notebook from his pocket, turned to the last page, erased his previous arrogant words, and rewrote:
【My dearest sister, while tending to your sacred field today, I made a small discovery that might offer you some small inspiration. If you wish to know more, please come find me.】

After finishing writing, Li Jue respectfully placed the notebook on the table, then sat down on the floor and took out a small cloth bag from his pocket.

Li Jue was still lucky; during his year of wandering, besides the Star God, he also found other things.

Opening the bag, one black stone after another fell into his palm, the same material as the one in Lily's hand...

This is a treasure he found in the mountains when he passed through Changzhou, and he has kept it carefully ever since.

"I wonder if tomorrow's intelligence will be just as dangerous."

"However, as long as we have these black stones, it should be fine."

Still unaware that he had been tricked, Li Jue looked at the small stones that gave him a sense of security for a long time before carefully putting them away and starting to meditate again.

Unlike Lily's black stone, Li Jue's items didn't give the impression that they were very valuable.

On the contrary, no matter who sees these stones, two words will come to mind.

Invincible!

These stones are invincible.

(End of this chapter)