Starting as a Talisman Master

Seeing that Lu Chi agreed so readily, Yun Zhi assumed he was just an ordinary rogue cultivator with only a superficial understanding of the subject, and did not entirely believe him.

Her expression softened slightly, and she truthfully replied, "Fellow Daoist, don't be too happy yet. The rules of my Taiqing Palace are strict and not to be taken lightly."

"If one wishes to bypass all the tedious trials and directly join the sect, only a peak master at the Golden Core stage can grant an 'Ascension Token.' I am merely a Foundation Establishment disciple and do not possess such means."

"All I can do today is use the favor of returning my elder brother's remains to ask for a stepping stone for you. Later, I will take you to Hundred Herbs Peak to meet Senior Brother Gu, who is in charge of the outer sect's spiritual fields."

"Only if you can truly demonstrate some skill in the way of spiritual plants and pass his rigorous examination can you be truly recorded in the sect's jade register and become an outer disciple."

"If it doesn't pass..."

Yunzhi paused slightly, but the meaning was already self-evident.

Taiqing Palace does not support idlers. If one does not have real talent and learning, the favor of sending bones can only be exchanged for some spirit stones and pills, and that will be the end of it.

Lu Chi understood the implied meaning from the music, showing no sign of fear, and said in a deep voice:

"I am already deeply grateful for the incredible opportunity bestowed upon me by the fairy. As for whether I can seize it, that depends entirely on my own destiny. I would never dare to cause the fairy any trouble."

Yun Zhi didn't say much. She raised her hand slightly and took out a flying carpet with water and cloud patterns from her sleeve.

The magic carpet grew longer in the wind, transforming into a width of about ten feet. As the spiritual light flowed, it carried Lu Chi into the air, piercing through the clouds and mist, heading straight for Hundred Herbs Peak.

The terrain of Baicaofeng is flat and gentle, with neatly cultivated spiritual fields covering the entire mountainside.

As soon as they landed, a rich and refreshing medicinal fragrance wafted over them, and the abundance of wood-elemental spiritual energy in the surrounding area far surpassed that of other places.

The two descended into the Light in front of a quaint thatched cottage.

An elderly man with white hair was leaning against a rattan chair in front of the hall.

This old man, with his white hair and youthful face, was indeed a true Foundation Establishment cultivator, despite his advanced age. His aura was vast and profound, and his spiritual pressure was hidden yet not dissipated.

Upon seeing that it was Yun Zhi, the old man slightly lifted his eyelids, a mischievous smile appearing on his wrinkled face:

"Oh, isn't this Yun'er from Shuiyun Peak? Why aren't you out chasing chickens and catching birds all over the mountains today, but instead have time to crawl into this old man's dreary medicine pot?"

"Senior Brother Gu, please don't tease me. Junior Sister is here today to discuss serious matters." Yun Zhi composed herself and led Lu Chi to her side.

She did not hide anything, but recounted in detail how Lu Chi had encountered the Yi Mansion by chance and how he had traveled thousands of miles to escort Yun Chen's remains back to the family.

He then explained that Lu Chi was proficient in the art of cultivating spiritual plants and intended to recommend him to become an outer disciple of Hundred Herbs Peak.

Old Gu sat up straight, a sharp glint flashing in his cloudy eyes. He looked Lu Chi up and down several times, his eyes revealing undisguised admiration and respect.

"To be able to uphold one's principles in the face of legacy, and to brave dangers to return one's remains to one's ancestral home, I deeply admire your integrity and trustworthiness."

Old Gu stroked his long, white beard, nodded slightly, and spoke sincerely.

However, as soon as he finished speaking, his tone changed, and his expression became stern again:

"However, gratitude is gratitude, and the path of cultivation is the path of cultivation. My Hundred Herbs Peak bears the foundation of the sect's elixirs, and the spiritual fields are planted with extremely precious high-grade spiritual herbs. The slightest carelessness would be a waste of resources, and we cannot tolerate the slightest negligence."

"Since you wish to take on the task of tending the spirit field, I must personally examine you according to the rules."

"If you truly possess some skill and pass my test, I will spare no effort to secure your status as an outer disciple; if your skills are lacking, then I will have no choice but to inform the sect and find other abundant spiritual rewards to repay your kindness in sending my bones. What do you say, young friend?"

Lu Chi showed no sign of backing down. "That's only right. This junior is not very knowledgeable, so I would appreciate it if you, senior, would give me a test."

Old Gu nodded slightly, said nothing more, turned around and led the way, taking Lu Chi and Yun Zhi towards the vast spiritual fields below the peak.

The three of them then arrived at a wide terraced field filled with spiritual energy.

A dozen or so Qi Refining stage cultivators dressed in gray robes were busy working in the fields, all of them outer disciples of Hundred Herbs Peak who had been registered in the roster.

Old Gu ignored the disciples who noticed the commotion and were about to bow in respect, walked straight to a row of spirit fields, pointed to a spirit herb with narrow leaves that gleamed with a faint cold light, and suddenly asked:

"What is this substance? What are its medicinal properties and characteristics?"

Lu Chi glanced at it briefly.

He had already thoroughly mastered this type of first-tier spiritual plant when he studied "The Essentials of Herbs and Trees" in Qingque Mountain in his early years. He immediately picked it up and answered questions about the plant's habits, preferences, and even the best time to harvest it in an orderly and accurate manner.

Old Gu neither agreed nor disagreed, but kept walking, and led him to identify more than a dozen first-order spiritual herbs in this spiritual field that were extremely similar and easily confused.

Lu Chi answered calmly and fluently.

After listening, Old Man Gu stroked his beard and nodded, his expression softening slightly: "He does indeed know some tricks of the trade, and his basic skills are quite solid."

He didn't show it on his face, but he was secretly amazed.

Although this level of spiritual herb is basic, this rogue cultivator not only answered fluently...

He has a keen eye for even the most obscure customs, which shows that he has a very solid foundation.

"It seems that ordinary questions won't be enough to test this kid's abilities." Old Gu's thoughts shifted slightly, so he changed his mind and led the two through the first-tier area, directly to a second-tier spirit field that was protected by an array.

Beside the ridge of the field, a disciple at the eighth level of Qi Refining was squatting with his body bent over.

This person was slightly chubby and had a round face that should have been pleasing, but at this moment his face was contorted in distress, and he was sweating profusely. He was completely unaware that the hem of his neat gray robe was covered with half-dried mud.

He held a jade-necked bottle in both hands, bowing repeatedly before a withered, yellowed, and curled second-tier spiritual plant in the field, muttering pleas like an old mortal woman:

"My dear ancestor, please have mercy! Just one more breath of this spiritual spring water! If you really die, not only will my monthly allowance of pills be completely deducted, but I'll also be punished by having to mine for half a year at the fire vein in the back mountain! I beg you, I'll kowtow to you, please..."

Just then, a mountain breeze swept by, and instead of reviving, the spiritual plant trembled and shed half a withered leaf, which landed right on the nose of the fat disciple holding the jade bottle.

"You shameful bastard!"

Seeing this, Old Man Gu felt utterly humiliated. He snorted coldly and launched into a tirade:

"This 'Fire Spirit Sunflower' was entrusted to you as your homework for this month, and now you've managed to leave it in such a half-dead state! Go and reflect on your actions!"

The chubby disciple was so startled by the shout that he nearly dropped the jade bottle in his hand.

He quickly came to his senses, apologized repeatedly, and slunk away to the side.

Old Gu turned around, pointed at the obviously malfunctioning second-tier Fire Spirit Sunflower, and stared intently at Lu Chi:

"Young friend Lu, please take a look. What is the root cause of this spiritual plant's illness? Can you correct its pathology and bring it back to life?"

Before Lu Chi could answer, Yun Zhi, who was standing to the side, frowned slightly.

How could Senior Brother Gu make such a difficult request?

Even his own disciples were helpless against this second-tier spiritual herb; it was clearly a dead end. To use such a thorny problem to trouble a newcomer like himself was nothing short of deliberate harassment.

In reality, Yunzhi was so concerned that she misunderstood the situation.

As the person in charge of Baicao Peak, Old Man Gu was certainly not an unreasonable person.

Seeing that Lu Chi had considerable skill in first-tier spiritual plants, he had already developed a desire to test him. This move was simply to find out just how much depth this young man possessed.

This second-tier Fire Spirit Sunflower is terminally ill, so it's understandable that Lu Chi would be helpless.

Old Gu had already prepared a backup plan. If all else failed, he could simply back down and re-examine the herb using an ordinary second-tier spirit herb.

Faced with such an almost embarrassing "difficult situation", Lu Chi's expression remained completely calm.

Instead of being intimidated, he replied gently, "Senior, please don't be in a hurry. Let me take a look."

He slowly stepped forward and squatted down in front of the ridge of sacred field.

His gaze fell on the half-dead Fire Spirit Sunflower. His eyes were slightly closed, and as his thoughts turned, the [Listening to Plants] root nature deep within the [Spirit Farmer] panel quietly began to operate.

In an instant, all the surrounding noise disappeared.

A faint, extremely thin thought, yet imbued with pain and suffocation, traveled along the veins of the withered leaf and directly entered his consciousness.

Although these second-tier spiritual plants have not yet developed sentience, they already possess instinctive emotions such as joy, anger, and illness.

Lu Chi clearly sensed a bone-chilling pain, as if a flame were being drowned in icy water, revealing an extreme thirst for the earth's yang fire and a deep fear of the cold water.

He slowly opened his eyes, stood up, and said firmly, "Reporting to Senior Gu, this Fire Spirit Sunflower is not due to its source being depleted, but rather to the clash between water and fire, causing cold energy to block its orifices."

"The Fire Spirit Sunflower is of pure Yang nature, prefers dryness and dislikes dampness, and its roots should be nourished by the warmth of the earth's fire veins. Just now, this senior brother forcibly watered it with spiritual spring water of Yin and cold attributes, which is tantamount to adding insult to injury."

"Now the cold water has accumulated in the roots, damaging the source of the fire veins, which has caused the leaves to wither and curl, showing signs of dying."

Old Gu's hand, which was stroking his beard, suddenly stopped, and a look of extreme surprise flashed in his cloudy old eyes.

He gave Lu Chi a deep look, clearly not expecting that this unassuming rogue cultivator could pinpoint the pathology with just one glance, and with such perfect accuracy!

Yun Zhi, who was standing to the side, was also slightly taken aback. Her beautiful eyes sparkled with surprise as she looked at the calm and composed young man in front of her with some surprise.

Upon hearing this, the chubby disciple who was standing on the edge of the field couldn't help but look up.

He still clutched the clean bottle containing the spiritual spring water tightly in his hand, his chubby face flushed red, and he muttered something under his breath in resentment:

"This... I saw that its leaves were so dry and crumbling, and I thought it was extremely thirsty. Who would have thought that a plant like this would be afraid of water..."

The world of cultivation is vast and boundless, with countless strange and wondrous herbs and species. It is common for their natures to be mutually reinforcing and mutually restraining, and for yin and yang to be reversed.

This chubby disciple, a member of the Hundred Herbs Peak, actually judged second-tier spiritual herbs with the eyes of ordinary flowers and plants. Such a shallow understanding is truly not something to be proud of.