Chapter 98: Once I Stood Like a Minion

Chapter 98: Chapter 98: Once I Stood Like a Minion

"A Talisman Artifact or a Magical Artifact?"

Li Changsheng watched with envy as Steward Ma toyed with the Jade Ruyi, then quickened his pace to follow.

And just then, two bestial silhouettes flew in from the horizon, landing in the plaza with a gust of wind.

"ROAR..." "SCREECH..."

As the roars and cries echoed, the dust settled.

A crane with a ten-foot wingspan and pure white feathers, and a twin-winged tiger-leopard, landed in the plaza. Their gazes swept around, striking terror into the hearts of the Spirit Farmers in the plaza, who quickly departed.

Steward Ma turned to look, his eyes instantly brightening. He was no longer in a hurry to enter the Spirit Field Hall. He crossed his arms and watched them with a smile.

Li Changsheng and the others also stopped and turned to look.

’Why is it them...’

But when he saw the scene in the plaza clearly, Li Changsheng was puzzled.

As the figures of the two beasts vanished, Jin Fang and Tan Hu appeared in the plaza.

Following behind Jin Fang was a young man in his twenties with a stiff, purplish-red face.

"Heh..."

Jin Fang sneered at Tan Hu, mouthed a silent word, and strode toward the main hall with the young man. As he passed Steward Ma, Jin Fang glanced at him before turning his head and quickly walking inside with his follower.

Tan Hu’s expression was incredibly grim, and he was furious. The veins on his fists bulged; he wished he could rip out Jin Fang’s heart with his bare hands.

Just then, another streak of rainbow light shot across the sky and landed in the plaza.

Ke Jing emerged from the rainbow light with a foul expression. His gaze swept around, passed directly over Tan Hu, and settled on Li Changsheng and the two men with him, standing before Steward Ma.

’Three of them?’

Ke Jing looked at Steward Ma in disbelief, a sense of absurdity welling up inside him.

For over two years, he had exhausted himself, even neglecting his own cultivation, yet not a single Spirit Farmer in B Zone had successfully mastered the spirit plant cultivation arts.

Looking at Li Changsheng’s group of three, Ke Jing’s eyes flickered. He suddenly took a few leaps and landed beside Steward Ma.

Steward Ma smiled. "Junior Brother Ke, is something the matter?"

’Junior Brother?’

Ke Jing’s heart twitched. He forced a smile and cupped his hands. "Senior Brother Ma, I must ask for your help."

"Oh?"

Steward Ma raised an eyebrow. "And how can I help you, Junior Brother?"

Ke Jing’s mouth moved, but no sound came out.

Steward Ma’s expression suddenly changed. He looked at Ke Jing with surprise and suspicion, and then his own mouth moved slightly.

A few breaths later, Ke Jing’s mouth twitched, and he nodded at him.

Seeing him nod, Steward Ma’s previously stiff face softened slightly. He looked at Li Changsheng’s group of three, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Xu Li, go and follow Steward Ke."

Xu Li was the large man with the indigo face and crooked features. Upon hearing this, he nodded silently and walked over to stand behind Ke Jing.

As Xu Li stepped forward, Steward Ma’s mouth moved slightly. He then took out a jade vial and pressed it into Xu Li’s hand.

Ke Jing nodded at Steward Ma and led Xu Li into the Spirit Field Hall.

Just as Steward Ma was about to take Li Changsheng and the other man inside, a loud shout came from behind them.

"Senior Brother Ma, wait a moment."

The group turned at the sound of the voice.

They saw Tan Hu striding over. He cupped his hands at Steward Ma and said, "Senior Brother Ma, I must also ask for your help."

Steward Ma was stunned for a moment, then the corners of his mouth slowly curled up. A wave of satisfaction washed over him.

’So what if you’re from the main branch? You still have to come begging me now!’

Of course, he only thought this to himself; he would never dare say it aloud.

He knew his limits. Although they were both at the Mid-Meridian Condensation realm, his own legacy was weak, and he was no match for Tan Hu.

Steward Ma cupped his hands. "Senior Brother Tan, you’re too kind. If there is something you need, please speak freely to your junior brother."

Hearing this, Tan Hu’s expression softened slightly, and his mouth moved.

A few breaths later, to Steward Ma’s delighted surprise, Tan Hu took out a storage pouch and handed it over.

Steward Ma carefully tucked it away and cupped his hands. "Senior Brother, please, choose for yourself."

Tan Hu was clearly prepared. Without a moment’s hesitation, he pointed at Li Changsheng and said, "Him."

Steward Ma nodded and handed a jade vial to Li Changsheng.

Then, Steward Ma’s voice sounded in Li Changsheng’s ear.

"The vial contains a Spirit Fusion Pill, a pill that boosts cultivation for those in Late-Stage Qi Cultivation."

"In a moment, you will follow behind Steward Tan. Remember, you are a Spirit Plant Master that he cultivated in C Zone."

Li Changsheng nodded, put away the medicinal pill, and walked silently to stand behind Tan Hu.

Tan Hu turned his head and gave him a friendly smile. After a moment’s thought, he took out another jade vial, handed it to him, and sent a voice transmission: "Junior Brother Li, congratulations on becoming a true Spirit Plant Master."

Li Changsheng looked at the benevolent Tan Hu with some surprise. He hesitated for a moment before accepting the vial and cupping his hands. "Changsheng thanks Steward Tan."

Tan Hu pretended to be displeased. "What’s this ’Steward’ business? Just call me Senior Brother."

"Senior Brother Tan," Li Changsheng said, stunned for a moment as he cupped his hands.

"Haha, Junior Brother Li, if you have any trouble in the future, don’t hesitate to find me. While I may not be good at growing Spirit Plants, I’ve still got some muscle."

Tan Hu laughed heartily, clapped him on the shoulder, and walked with him side-by-side toward the Spirit Field Hall.

Li Changsheng nodded, a feeling of amusement suddenly rising within him. ’After all this time, three years later, I’ve ended up with Tan Hu again.’

However, he was no longer the Cultivator that Tan Hu couldn’t even be bothered to glance at. Now, he could walk shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

Dong Xing watched Li Changsheng’s retreating back with an envious expression, then turned his gaze to Steward Ma.

Steward Ma produced a jade vial with a flip of his hand, pressed it into Dong Xing’s, and said with a smile, "Come, it’s time for us to go in."

"Thank you, Steward Ma."

Dong Xing accepted the vial with pleasant surprise and followed him into the main hall.

「In the rear hall.」

Jin Fang glanced at the other three, his mouth twitching involuntarily. ’Well, I’ll be damned,’ he thought.

’One for each of you, is that it!’

Looking at Li Changsheng behind Tan Hu, he was suddenly filled with regret. ’If I’d known, I would have just recruited Li Changsheng myself. It would have been a perfect way to make Tan Hu suffer a silent defeat.’

Tan Hu, all smiles, was engaged in a lively discussion with Li Changsheng.

For the most part, Tan Hu did the talking while Li Changsheng chimed in from time to time, but he learned a great deal nonetheless.

For example, to become an Inner Sect Disciple of the Cyan Yang Sect’s miscellaneous branches, one had to reach the Vein Condensation Realm, become a Spirit Plant Master like himself, or become a Tier One High-grade Alchemist or a Tier One High-grade Artifact Refiner, among other paths.

It could be said that becoming an Inner Sect Disciple brought about a world-shaking change in one’s treatment and benefits.

The most basic benefits included receiving a Condensing Vein Realm Technique compatible with one’s Spirit Vein, as well as two Second-Order Magic techniques.

Moreover, since he was becoming an Inner Sect Disciple as a Spirit Plant Master, if he were within the Cyan Yang Sect, he would also be granted a one-mu Tier Two Spirit Field that was completely his. The only condition was that the Tier Two Spirit Plants he grew must be supplied to the sect on a priority basis.

Other benefits included robes of the Talisman Artifact level, a high-grade Talisman Artifact, and so on...

It was no exaggeration to say that since becoming a Spirit Plant Master, his status, position, and benefits had all undergone a monumental change.

Li Changsheng was bursting with joy as he listened. He wished he could return to the Cyan Yang Sect right then and there to start living a life of ease and luxury.

While the two were talking, faint footsteps could be heard from outside the door.

Tan Hu stopped speaking and looked up.

Li Changsheng turned around and looked toward the hall’s entrance.

A refined and gentle-looking young man walked in slowly. When he saw the faces of the people standing behind the four Stewards, his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly before a smile suddenly bloomed on his face.

"Greetings, Steward Lan." "Greetings, Lord Steward."

Lan Cai Shen sat in the main seat and waved his hand with a smile. "There’s no need for such formalities. Please, sit."

"Yes, sir."

The four Stewards sat down one after another, but Li Changsheng and the others remained standing.

Tan Hu tugged on Li Changsheng’s sleeve and sent a voice transmission: "Junior Brother, you are different from them. You may sit."

After a moment’s hesitation, Li Changsheng sat down next to Tan Hu.

The other three Stewards all frowned upon seeing this, clearly not believing that Li Changsheng was qualified to sit among them as an equal.

Dong Xing and the others also stared at Li Changsheng in shock. Dong Xing, in particular, blinked at him repeatedly in a panic.

Lan Cai Shen looked at Tan Hu in astonishment. How could such a small gesture escape his notice? His curiosity grew about why Tan Hu was treating this masked man with such favor.

’He’s just a Spirit Plant Master with a flawed meridian structure...’

After the men had put away their Spirit Pills.

Lan Cai Shen focused his thoughts and said in a solemn voice, "The Ring Mountain Spiritual Land is now mostly cleared. Only the core area remains."

"But that should only take a few more years."

At his words, everyone’s expression shifted slightly. They looked at him, waiting for him to continue.

Lan Cai Shen continued, "Tomorrow, the four of you, along with the four Spirit Plant Masters, will accompany me to the Ring Mountain Spiritual Land. We will strive to open up a Tier Two Spirit Field within ten years."

"Yes, Steward Lan." "Yes, Lord Steward."

The four Stewards clearly already knew of this matter, and their expressions remained unchanged.

Dong Xing and the other new masters, however, grew uneasy and grave upon hearing the news.

Li Changsheng, however, felt a surge of irritation.

’What does this Steward Lan mean? I haven’t even received my Cyan Yang Sect benefits yet!’

’Why are we going directly to a new Spiritual Land?’

’What about the benefits? The rewards? He didn’t mention a single one!’

Tan Hu seemed to sense his thoughts. A flash of delight crossed his eyes as he patted Li Changsheng’s shoulder in a gesture of consolation.

Then, to the astonishment of the other three Stewards and Lan Cai Shen, he pulled Li Changsheng to his feet.

After scanning the room, he said to Lan Cai Shen, "Steward Lan, please wait two more days. It won’t be too late to go after my junior brother has registered as an Inner Sect Disciple!"