This process was incredibly painful.
Chen Ye felt as though his meridians, bones, and even internal organs were being continuously torn apart and restructured.
"Damn... Why does it hurt so much?"
Chen Ye gritted his teeth tightly, and his mind sank into his sea of consciousness, arduously guiding the medicinal power.
...
It had been three days since Master entered the Quiet Chamber for healing.
"Senior Sister! Qing Jun has reached the Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer! She’s caught up with Senior Sister!"
The little girl was surprised to discover that she had reached the Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer!
Could it be that she really was a genius?
Zhiwei looked at her junior sister with a gleeful expression, genuinely happy for her.
But she still felt that something was off.
How could her junior sister break through so quickly?
Ever since they returned from East Valley that day, her junior sister could eat and sleep better than before.
Moreover, it seemed her talent was improving as well.
Now she had even... caught up with herself.
Thinking about this, Zhiwei couldn’t help feeling a bit frustrated, for she was the senior disciple... so, she had to be Master’s most outstanding disciple!
Zhiwei was about to praise her junior sister when she suddenly felt something, sharply raising her head to look in the direction of the Master’s residence.
She saw the wooden door, closed for three days, slowly open in the morning sunlight.
Chen Ye’s figure emerged from inside.
"Master!"
The two little girls’ eyes lit up upon seeing Master come out, and they quickly ran up to him.
"Master, look! Qing Jun has reached the Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer!" Qing Jun was the first to boast, her little face lifted, waiting for Master’s praise.
Zhiwei closely observed her Master, noticing that his eyes seemed much deeper, and though his aura was restrained, he gave off an imposing and majestic presence.
"Master, your injury..."
"It’s not a major issue anymore."
Chen Ye smiled and ruffled the heads of his two disciples tenderly, his gaze falling on this Medicinal Garden.
Ever since Granny Li’s family moved in, the Messy Medicinal Garden had been organized pristinely; it was clearly just two people, yet they managed it better than eight Outer Sect disciples.
It’s only natural.
Disciples only cared about the spirit plants, but Granny Li’s family treated Lisong Valley as their new home, naturally putting more heart into it.
"After delaying for so long, it’s time to manage the Medicinal Garden and that mysterious Cold Flame Cultivator."
Chen Ye called Dark Old Man and the two apprentices to him, explaining his plan to recruit loose cultivator orchard farmers from the market in detail.
Dark Old Man showed a troubled expression after hearing this: "Brother Chen, this... won’t be easy. Most of those orchard farmers are heavily controlled by the Wei Family, so how would they dare offend them and come to us?"
He was a local loose cultivator from Yunxi District and had some understanding of Peach Mountain District, which was why Chen Ye had brought him along.
Chen Ye thought deeply: "Under heavy reward, there are always brave men. Given the current situation of Peach Mountain District, those orchard farmers aren’t out of options and might choose Lisong Valley."
By evening, Chen Ye and Dark Old Man returned to Peach Grove Collection.
Following closely behind Chen Ye was a little girl curiously looking around.
The little girl insisted on coming along when she heard Master was going to Peach Grove Collection. The reason was simple; last time, the Spiritual Peaches were all given to Master, and the little girl only ate a few, far from satisfying her craving!
Dark Old Man held up a wooden sign next to Chen Ye, which displayed the recruitment conditions:
"Lisong Medicine Garden is recruiting ten Spirit Plant Cultivators, providing meals and accommodations, with a daily wage of forty Spiritual Sand, settled daily without delays. Furthermore, anyone who applies may receive an advance of three days’ wages."
As this announcement was made, the entire Peach Grove Collection was instantly abuzz.
Forty Spiritual Sand per day!
That amounts to twelve Spirit Stones a month!
Such terms were simply unheard of!
Chen Ye had anticipated this reaction.
He deliberately set generous terms, and with the sect’s backing, as long as the compensation wasn’t too outrageous, it could all be reimbursed.
However, after a brief commotion, these orchard farmers retreated a few steps as if a tide was rolling back.
They whispered among themselves, but none dared to approach the wooden sign.
Some, more timid, were even starting to pack up their stalls, preparing to leave early to avoid any association with Chen Ye.
Time ticked by, second by second.
The sun gradually sank westward, and the crowds in the marketplace began to thin out.
Yet, in front of Chen Ye’s desk, it remained empty.
The wooden sign advertising generous terms stood there lonely, like a joke.
"Master, they are so strange," Qing Jun swung her little legs idly and asked, puzzled, "They don’t even want to earn Spirit Stones; are they stupid?"
Dark Old Man, tirelessly holding the sign, sighed: "Brother Chen, it seems the Wei Family’s influence here is significant. Even if they don’t appear, their invisible intimidation is more effective than swords or sabers."
The little girl was puzzled: "But no matter how powerful the Wei Family is, can they be compared to Lingyin Sect? Lisong Valley is Lingyin Sect’s property!"
"It’s not that simple... These orchard farmers, their families have lived in Peach Mountain District for generations, and the Wei Family is involved in all aspects of their lives. Even though the Wei Family wouldn’t dare openly oppose me, their intimidation has already made these loose cultivators wary of associating with me."
Chen Ye’s tone was calm, unperturbed.
...
Peach Mountain District, the west market.
Unlike the hustle and bustle of the marketplace, this area was a residential zone for loose cultivators, with rows of houses built from bluestone, simple yet clean.
Inside one small house, a dim yellow oil lamp was lit.
The room was not large, and the furnishings were extremely simple, but it was kept spotlessly clean.