Chapter 51: Inner Sect Retinue
Chapter 51: Inner Sect Retinue
"Really?"
Hearing that Gu Mo was willing to use Water Spirit Rice as payment, Chu Feifei's heart pounded with excitement. This was a treasure that couldn't be bought with spirit stones alone. Apart from exchanging sect contributions for a small amount, there were almost no other ways to obtain it.
The Water Spirit Rice produced by the Spirit Plant Hall was almost entirely reserved by the inner sect disciples, leaving no chance for the servant disciples. Even outer sect disciples found it difficult to acquire without leveraging certain connections.
"Of course!"
Gu Mo nodded. What was extremely precious to others was nothing special to him. He didn't need Water Spirit Rice to enhance his cultivation. As for its effects in nourishing the meridians and body, it couldn't possibly be stronger than his perfected-level Cleaning Technique.
At most, he would keep some to try its flavor.
With Gu Mo's promise, Chu Feifei immediately retrieved the formation plate buried in the spiritual field. She then took out various tools and focused entirely on repairing it for Gu Mo.
Meanwhile, Yao Shifeng had returned to the mission hall of Talisman Peak.
"Senior Brother Yao!"
As soon as Yao Shifeng arrived, several servant disciples eagerly approached him. If Gu Mo and his group were the team Yao Shifeng had built in the servant disciples' area, then these disciples were the ones he had recruited on Talisman Peak.
His purpose for forming a second team was clear—gathering investments. On the surface, Gu Mo and the others believed he only had the 100 spirit stones they provided, but in reality, Yao Shifeng had financial support from both teams. This allowed his cultivation speed to soar.
Moreover, his Talisman Peak team helped him complete daily tasks, allowing him to focus entirely on cultivation. The tasks he had fallen behind on due to the recent gathering? He simply had others handle them.
Taking the blank talismans handed to him by a servant disciple, Yao Shifeng submitted his daily task and then led his team away from the mission hall.
Since he benefited from this arrangement, he naturally had to give something in return. However, his contributions were guidance in cultivation and talisman-making—an invaluable resource for newly recruited servant disciples.
Having a senior brother willing to mentor them, these new disciples naturally chose to follow Yao Shifeng.
Their confidence in him only grew when he broke through to the second level of Qi Refinement. Many were now convinced that following him would lead to a promising future.
"Everyone, I have gained sudden insights today. Let's talk after I exit seclusion." Yao Shifeng clasped his hands in farewell. He needed to absorb his insights quickly—missing this opportunity would be a great loss.
"No problem, Senior Brother Yao! Your cultivation is more important!" The servant disciples responded hastily.
After bidding them farewell, Yao Shifeng returned to his residence, took out a pill, and swallowed it. A surge of violent medicinal power erupted, turning his face pale.
To accelerate his cultivation, he had purchased an extremely potent pill from a rogue cultivator in the market. Though cheap and several times stronger than regular pills, its violent nature damaged the meridians.
Meridian damage was no small matter—it weakened a cultivator's foundation.
For example, Yao Shifeng had reached the second level of Qi Refinement in just two years thanks to this pill, but the price was his injured meridians, reducing his spiritual power to only 90% of an average Qi Refinement Level Two cultivator.
And that was with relatively minor damage. If he continued using such pills, his meridians would deteriorate further. Even if he reached Qi Refinement Level Three, his spiritual power would only be 70-80% of the norm.
Yet, he chose to persist. He refused to remain a mere servant disciple. He wanted to break free from his lowly status and prove his strength to everyone.
Only by growing stronger could he obtain more resources—he could worry about repairing his meridians later.
Taking a deep breath, Yao Shifeng suppressed the pain from his battered meridians and focused on cultivating.
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"Phew, it's done!"
Chu Feifei wiped the sweat from her forehead and handed the repaired formation plate to Gu Mo. Taking it, Gu Mo buried it back in the spiritual field and activated it.
First, the illusion formation was triggered, covering the field in a hazy mist. Then, the defensive formation on the plate activated, forming a thin, translucent barrier over the field.
Though it appeared fragile, this barrier could withstand attacks from late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators. While it would consume all its spirit stone energy after a few hits, its defensive capability was undeniable.
Against early-to-mid Qi Refinement cultivators, it could last even longer. If Gu Mo replaced the spirit stones in time, he could keep intruders at bay indefinitely.
"Miss Chu, your craftsmanship is truly impressive."
After testing the formation's effects, Gu Mo nodded in satisfaction. "Once the Water Spirit Rice is ready, I'll set aside a few pounds for you."
"It's a deal!"
Chu Feifei beamed. This was the first time she had earned a fortune using her own skills. Though Gu Mo had provided significant help, even sponsoring her, it still filled her with pride. After all, this meant she could rely on herself to obtain cultivation resources in the future.
With her work complete, Chu Feifei departed. She had her own tasks to complete and couldn't stay too long. Servant disciples were bound by strict quotas and had to finish daily assignments—unlike outer sect disciples, who had more freedom.
Gu Mo, meanwhile, resumed his routine of farming, cultivating, and exploring the Black Mist Space.
Now that his spiritual field had an additional layer of protection, he planned to increase his Sunflowers from 10 to 15. Currently, his existing 10 sunflowers could gather enough Solar Essence for a single flower in five days, and this time frame would only shorten as he planted more.
While Gu Mo quietly trained in his spiritual field, a piece of news spread rapidly among the sect's servant disciples.
The Sect Master's newly accepted personal disciple, a genius with superior spiritual roots, was recruiting a few retinue members from the servant disciples to assist with daily affairs.
This revelation ignited a frenzy.
It was common for inner sect disciples to recruit retinue members—handling mundane tasks for them allowed the disciples to focus entirely on cultivation. Wasting precious cultivation time on trivial matters was an unacceptable loss.
Becoming a retinue member for an inner sect disciple was an immense opportunity for most servant disciples.
Even many outer sect disciples were eager to compete.
For them, serving an ordinary inner sect disciple might not be too enticing—but serving the Sect Master's personal disciple? That was an entirely different story.
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