The appearance of the Hidden Spirit Cloak and the Xun Lei Sword Pill, both third-grade treasures, boosted Lu Xuan's confidence significantly. He felt full of energy while cultivating spiritual plants.
One day, a gentle voice suddenly called from outside the courtyard.
“Is Daoist Lu in?”
Lu Xuan opened the courtyard door to find two high-level Qi Refining cultivators standing outside. The first was a refined scholar with a warm smile, while the other had an ordinary appearance with a centipede-like scar on his face, giving off a faint aura of menace.
“Are you Daoist Lu Xuan?” the scholar asked with a smile.
“Yes, that's me.”
“Daoist Lu looks even younger than I expected. At such a young age, you have deep knowledge in spiritual plants. Your future is limitless.”
“May I ask who the two of you are?” Lu Xuan asked, puzzled.
“I am Wang Ruhai from the Linyang Wang family, and this is my friend Li Jianfeng, a guest elder of the Wang family.”
“We've come to seek your assistance, Daoist Lu. We would like to invite you to a newly discovered secret realm.”
The refined scholar continued with a smile.
“I usually keep a low profile. How did you find me?” Lu Xuan frowned at this.
“Daoist Lu is too modest. With your skills in cultivating spiritual plants, it's hard to remain hidden in the market,” Wang Ruhai explained. “The Wang family was looking for a spiritual plant cultivator in the market and learned from a pill master at the Hundred Herbs Hall that you excel in this field, so we came directly to invite you.”
Hearing this, Lu Xuan sighed inwardly. The pill master from the Hundred Herbs Hall might have recommended him to the Wang family, either to curry favor or to gain some benefit for himself. Regardless of the motive, it conflicted with Lu Xuan's original intentions.
“As far as I know, the Wang family has already mostly explored the new secret realm. Is there really a need for a spiritual plant cultivator?”
“The family discovered a unique area in the secret realm where many rare second-grade spiritual plants grow. However, they are mixed with some malevolent plants, making them hard to identify. Additionally, there are strange insects infesting them, so we need high-level spiritual plant cultivators to identify, separate, exterminate the pests, and harvest them.”
Lu Xuan nodded and pretended to ponder, a hint of hesitation appearing on his face.
“I appreciate the Wang family's regard for me, but I am just a wandering spiritual plant cultivator with low cultivation. I fear I might not be able to…”
“Daoist Lu wouldn't want to refuse the Wang family's invitation, would you?” Wang Ruhai interrupted him, his tone carrying a hint of pressure.
As a high-level Qi Refining cultivator in charge of Linyang Market Town, he usually had his way, and no one dared to oppose him.
Seeing Lu Xuan's serious expression, he softened his tone.
“Daoist Lu need not worry about safety. The destination is in the central area of the secret realm, where the beasts and malevolent spirits have already been cleared out. There will also be at least two high-level Qi Refining cultivators to protect you.”
“Moreover, many of the invited spiritual plant cultivators come from prominent families and powerful factions in the market. If something were to happen to a few of them, it would be difficult for the Wang family to explain.”
Wang Ruhai seemed to sense Lu Xuan's hesitation and assured him of the safety of the trip.
“Let me think it over inside.”
Lu Xuan replied.
“Of course, we will wait here for your response,” Wang Ruhai said, standing outside with a look that suggested he wouldn't leave until he got an answer.
Once inside, Lu Xuan's expression shifted between uncertainty and contemplation.
The Wang family's invitation to enter the secret realm and harvest special spiritual plants left him with only two choices: to go or not to go.
If he refused, he would likely offend the Wang family, losing their favor, making it hard for him to stay in the market as a wandering cultivator. More importantly, there were two high-level Qi Refining cultivators waiting outside.
If he wanted to escape, he could either sneak away quietly or eliminate the two.
The first option had some feasibility with the Hidden Spirit Cloak, but he wasn't very confident. After all, his Qi Refining level was only at the seventh stage, which could only be maintained for a short time. During that time, he would be slow-moving, and being in a busy market, he risked being discovered by the two high-level cultivators when his spiritual energy ran out.
As for eliminating the two, Lu Xuan was confident he had many treasures at hand and could defeat them easily. However, that alone wouldn't be enough; he would need to strike swiftly and silently, which he also wasn't very sure about.
“If I go…”
“If it’s just as that Wang family cultivator said, to handle spiritual plants in the central area of the secret realm, it shouldn't be a big problem.”
“There will be other spiritual plant cultivators from different families. If something were to happen, it would be hard for them to cover it up.”
Lu Xuan felt his decision starting to tilt in favor of going.
“Once in the secret realm, I must avoid causing trouble, not be overly competitive, stay away from the core area, and not fight fiercely over resources with other cultivators.”
“But I also can’t restrain myself too much. If something happens, I can’t just endure.”
Lu Xuan had his own set of principles and reminded himself.
With high-level Qi Refining cultivation, the Gengjin Sword Art, the second-grade Red Cloud Needles, the Red Armor, Sword Grass, second-grade talismans, third-grade Pure Jade, the Hidden Spirit Cloak, the Xun Lei Sword Pill, and the Blood-Burning Arrow Technique, he felt quite confident.
“Then I’ll go to the secret realm as a well-known spiritual plant cultivator from Linyang Market.”
He walked into the spiritual field and looked around at the many spiritual plants.
With a thought, he quickly harvested the remaining ninety-five Spirit Firefly Grasses.
He didn’t worry about others seeing the white light orbs; he discreetly stored the rewards from the talismans and pills into his storage bag, while his cultivation level directly increased, the spiritual energy fluctuations hidden by the Hidden Spirit Cloak.
Since it wasn’t the right time yet, the quality of these Spirit Firefly Grasses was mostly ordinary and good. Lu Xuan didn’t mind, as he didn’t know when he would return. It was better to harvest early and increase his strength a little.
The ninety-five light orbs brought him over ten years of cultivation rewards, allowing Lu Xuan to break through to the eighth stage of Qi Refining.
At the same time, he also obtained dozens of first-grade talismans of various types, over ten Cultivation Pills, and several Earth Summoning Technique experience packs.
As for the remaining spiritual plants, the third-grade ones were too precious. He transplanted the Flood Dragon Vine and the Phantom Smoke Fruit into his life-preserving bag to keep them alive.
The remaining Pure Snow Lotus, Copper Bone Bamboo, and other first and second-grade spiritual plants were left in the spiritual field.
“Do you want to come with me?” he asked the Cloud Stepping Leopard by his side. “If we go out, you might have to stay in the life-preserving bag often.”
The young leopard nodded without hesitation, and Lu Xuan placed it into the gray-black bag that had previously made it very uncomfortable.
“I’ll need you to take good care of the spiritual field while I’m away. Remember not to let those iron-clawed crabs escape.”
Lu Xuan stuffed three spiritual stones into the large lump on the straw puppet's head.
With his mind focused, the straw puppet kept repeating his command.
Feeling a bit more at ease, he sent a sound transmission talisman to Steward He, asking him to check on the courtyard more often.
He activated the Mist Concealment Array, enveloping the courtyard in thick white mist.
Lu Xuan stepped out of the courtyard and lightly nodded to Wang Ruhai and the other person waiting outside.
“I hope you two will take care of me.”
(End of Chapter)