Li Ban offered a genuine compliment. "Valley Master Tan's mastery of elements has truly reached the peak of perfection."
Tan Qiyue gave a slight nod, unable to hide a touch of pride.
But she did not realize that Li Ban was actually thinking about something else entirely.
No wonder the Tan Qiyue of this period couldn't write the Divine Control Needle Technique, he thought. After becoming a master physician, she seemed to have shifted her attention to other matters. It was only when she fell into the Recycling Station with nothing else to do that her focus returned to medicine, allowing her to author the manual.
Did the Tan Qiyue in the Recycling Station ask me to hand over this medical book hoping her current self wouldn't fall into the Recycling Station again, or did she want to reawaken her devotion to medicine right now?
Judging by her reaction, however, a medical book dropping from the sky might not be enough to change her mind.
For things like this, verbal persuasion was useless.
Tan Qiyue pushed open an iron door and led them inside.
The moment they entered the room, Cat Girl's ears perked up.
As a Spirit Practitioner, there was no one who didn't fear this material.
Having been chained by the Obscuring Sun Locks for two years, Little Cat had an especially deep impression of it.
"There is no need to worry, Lady Cat. This Sun-Obscuring Spirit Iron is actually here to protect us. Please, look at the floor."
Tan Qiyue pointed to the center of the room.
The stone building was not large, less than twenty square meters in size. Most of the floor was made of stone as well, but right in the middle sat a square iron grate measuring one meter across.
The bars of the grate were spaced widely enough for an adult's fist to pass through the gaps.
As Li Ban looked toward the grate, the noise of their entry seemed to awaken the thing beneath it.
A brownish-red vine carefully crept out from between the bars, as if trying to sense what was happening up above.
But the moment the tip extended half a meter past the grate, it trembled as if electrocuted, then instantly retracted with a swish.
Sure enough, the Sun-Obscuring Spirit Iron in this stone room was used to imprison the vine below.
Even though he had only seen it for a brief second, Li Ban was already certain that the vine was an element.
"Is this the plant-type element you cultivated, Valley Master? Its vitality is incredibly strong." Li Ban offered a polite word of praise.
He walked forward to the center of the room, looking down through the iron grate.
Possessing his "Right Eye," Li Ban could see clearly even in very dim lighting without needing a spell for additional illumination.
Inside the iron cage, the vines were tangled together in a mess of countless branches, but neither leaves nor a root system could be seen.
Perhaps in such a dark, sunless place, it simply didn't need leaves for photosynthesis, causing them to degrade and vanish.
The tangled vines continuously twisted and rolled like dozens of writhing earthworms.
It was an uncomfortable sight, but the three people present had weathered enough storms to not care in the slightest about such minor grossness.
Tan Qiyue followed closely at Li Ban's side to introduce it to them.
"This is the plant-type element Mist Valley has focused on cultivating for the past ten years—the Xuanji Vine. Although it is only a good-grade element, it is extremely powerful. It is a special type of plant with a clear internal transport space and extremely fine particles inside. The tip of every vine has sensory spores that can gather a general understanding of its surroundings within a hundred meters, and it can send this information back to the main stem through that internal space."
As Li Ban listened, he felt an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
He didn't interrupt, quietly listening to Valley Master Tan's explanation.
"As the two of you just saw, it immediately retracted upon discovering people outside. But this is actually just a stress response; it does not possess an independent consciousness."
"Its branches are very tough, and its growth ability is extremely strong. If it possessed an independent consciousness, it would be an excellent-grade element at the very least."
Cat Girl couldn't help but say, "With such a formidable element, shouldn't it be an excellent-grade element even without an independent consciousness?"
Using a plant to covertly gather information—if utilized properly, one could obtain a powerful intelligence network.
This was far more useful than a simple thug.
With such powerful functions, how could it not even be considered an excellent-grade element?
Cat Girl expressed her lack of understanding.
Tan Qiyue smiled bitterly and shook her head. "We also hoped it could become an excellent-grade element. Unfortunately... To tell the truth, this isn't our first time cultivating a Xuanji Vine to near-maturity. But all the previous Xuanji Vines withered and died the exact moment they matured."
"It wasn't until an expert pointed it out that we realized the power the Xuanji Vine possesses upon maturity is simply too great, requiring a substantial amount of energy. The vine itself is unable to replenish that much energy, so it completely drains its own life force the moment it matures."
"Later, that same expert helped us come up with a solution. But the price was that due to its inherent flaws, the Xuanji Vine could never become an excellent-grade element."
"How was it resolved?" Li Ban asked.
Tan Qiyue pursed her lips. This was originally their secret, but since she had always intended to give this vine to Li Ban as a return gift—and to curry favor with this powerful Priest of the Myriad Ancient Pagoda at the same time—there was naturally no need to keep it a secret anymore.
As for Cat Girl?
Seeing that the two of them still hadn't let go of each other's hands, she knew that even if she made Cat Girl leave now, they would definitely share the secret once they went back.
There was naturally no need for her to play the villain right now.
"By improving how the Xuanji Vine absorbs energy, changing it from relying solely on its roots to absorbing with both its roots and the tips of its branches."
Li Ban cast a glance at the vines below. "If it's just that, its energy absorption efficiency is likely still limited. It wouldn't be able to be deployed on a large scale."
"Yes—" Valley Master Tan crossed her hands, pressing her fingertips against her knuckles, seemingly a bit nervous. "The tips of its branches don't absorb nutrients from the soil. They directly absorb the flesh and blood of living creatures."
So that was it!
Li Ban's spirits lifted; he felt he had finally discovered the crucial point.
He already knew that the vines cultivated by Mist Valley were far from simple.
Just now, upon hearing Valley Master Tan's introduction and finding that the Xuanji Vine's functions were different from what he had imagined, Li Ban had actually thought his perception was wrong.
It wasn't until he heard Valley Master Tan describe the method used to improve the Xuanji Vine that he confirmed his perception was completely accurate.
This newly added ability—wasn't this the exact same ability as the Blood Demon Vine?
The Blood Demon Vine, the powerful vine cultivated in the underground water dungeon of the Hundred Flowers Pavilion.
It had been altered by someone, changed from a defensive vine into a blood-sucking one.
And the one who modified it was highly likely to be the black-robed Xiao Suo, who had once visited the Hundred Flowers Pavilion at night and been spotted by Li Ban.
The corners of Li Ban's mouth curled up slightly. "Very good. When can this element be fused?"
Tan Qiyue relaxed a bit.
She thought Li Ban said "very good" because he was satisfied with the vine's functions.
During the introduction, she had been afraid that Li Ban would feel the vine cultivated by Mist Valley was too murderous and violated the laws of nature, leading him to reject or even obliterate the Xuanji Vine.
But she didn't know that the "very good" coming from Li Ban's mouth was not directed at the element right in front of them.
Rather—
Very good, he had found a clue about Xiao Suo!