Chapter 8

As the wooden sword fell into the pot, there was no special change. Bai Xiaochun let out a light exclamation, unwilling to give up, he opened his eyes wide and stared intently at the wooden sword.

After waiting for a long time, nothing extraordinary happened. Bai Xiaochun thought for a moment, looked at the patterns on the turtle-patterned pot, and then at the ashes in the stove. He seemed to have an idea, turned around, and left the room. A moment later, he returned with several pieces of wood similar to those in the stove.

This wood was not particularly unusual in the stove room, and he had to ask Zhang Dapang for some.

After lighting the wood, Bai Xiaochun immediately saw the first pattern on the turtle-patterned pot brighten again. The wood burned rapidly and gradually extinguished. As Bai Xiaochun's mind stirred, the wooden sword in the pot suddenly emitted a blinding silver light.

Bai Xiaochun took a few steps back. After a while, the light dissipated, and he immediately felt a sharp aura emanating from the pot.

He took a deep breath, approached cautiously, and saw the wooden sword in the pot. A silver pattern, similar to the one on the spirit rice, appeared, gradually dimming and eventually turning dark silver.

The entire sword body was slightly different from before, still wooden, but giving a metallic sharpness. Bai Xiaochun's eyes lit up. He approached cautiously, took out the wooden sword, and felt it was heavier. When he brought it close, it even had a chilling aura.

"It worked, the wooden sword has successfully undergone one spirit refinement." Bai Xiaochun was overjoyed, holding the wooden sword lovingly. He then looked at the pot, pondering what to do with it, and finally decided to leave it there, thinking that the less attention it drew, the better.

As for the spirit rice, he would just eat it, and the wooden sword should not be easily seen by others. Bai Xiaochun thought about using some dyes to cover it, which might reduce the brightness of the spirit pattern.

With this in mind, he tidied up, left the room, and acted as if nothing had happened. A few days later, he applied various colored liquids from the stove room to the wooden sword, making it look colorful and shabby. After manipulating it, he found that the spirit pattern was indeed covered, no longer so obvious, and nodded in satisfaction.

In the following days, Bai Xiaochun felt at ease in the stove room, getting along well with his fellow disciples. He became familiar with the work, especially the different types of fire needed for different spirit foods, such as one-color fire and two-color fire. He also understood that the wood under the turtle-patterned pot was the spirit wood that produced one-color fire.

Zhang Dapang was particularly fond of Bai Xiaochun and took good care of him. A few months later, as Zhang Dapang had said, Bai Xiaochun gradually gained weight.

He was no longer as thin as when he first entered the sect. He had gained several rounds of weight and became even fairer, looking increasingly harmless, and was gradually approaching the name "Bai Jiupang."

As for the extra meals, they happened a few more times, but what troubled Bai Xiaochun was that his weight increased, while his cultivation progressed slowly. Eventually, he stopped worrying about it, spending his days eating and drinking with his fellow disciples, living a carefree life. He also learned a lot about the sect from Zhang Dapang over these months, gaining a certain understanding of Lingxi Sect.

He learned that the sect was divided into inner and outer disciples, and if a servant could cultivate to the third level of Qi Condensation, they could attempt the trial paths on the various peaks. If successful, they could become outer disciples of the peak they had tested, and only by becoming an outer disciple could one be considered to have entered the threshold of Lingxi Sect.

However, this was like a fish leaping over the dragon gate. The trial paths on the various peaks opened monthly, accepting only the top three, so the number of people who became outer disciples each year was fixed.

One day, it was originally supposed to be the seventh fat one's turn to go down the mountain to purchase supplies, but he was delayed. Zhang Dapang waved his hand and sent Bai Xiaochun down the mountain. Bai Xiaochun hesitated for a moment, thinking that Xu Baocai hadn't come for several months, so it should be fine, but he still felt uneasy. He returned to his room, took out seven or eight kitchen knives, and put on five or six leather coats, almost becoming a ball.

But he still felt unsafe, so he found a sturdy pot and carried it on his back, finally feeling secure. He wobbled out of the stove room and went down the mountain.

Walking on the blue stone path of the sect, Bai Xiaochun looked at the beautiful courtyards and pavilions around him, and a deep sense of superiority arose in his heart.

"Time flies, life is like a dream. I, Bai Xiaochun, have been cultivating for several months. Looking back at the mundane world, I am filled with nostalgia for my village." He sighed to himself, hands behind his back, with seven or eight kitchen knives hanging from his waist, a black pot on his back, and layers of leather coats, looking like a shabby ball. Many servants passed by and glanced at him.

Especially a few female disciples, who were amused by Bai Xiaochun's appearance, covered their mouths and laughed, their laughter like silver bells, very pleasant to hear.

Bai Xiaochun's round face turned slightly red, feeling more and more heroic. He coughed dryly and walked forward with his head held high.

Before long, he hadn't even left the servant area of the third peak when he suddenly saw many servants, all excited, running in one direction. That was the mountain path of the third peak, where outer disciples usually appeared.

Gradually, more servants ran excitedly, which made Bai Xiaochun pause. He quickly grabbed the thinnest young man passing by.

"Little brother, what's happening? Why are they all running there?" Bai Xiaochun asked curiously.

The young man, caught by someone, looked displeased, but when he saw the large black pot on Bai Xiaochun's back, his eyes immediately showed envy, and his expression softened.

"It's the senior disciple from the stove room. You should go and see too. I heard that the geniuses Zhou Hong and Zhang Yide from the outer disciples are dueling in the trial field at the foot of the mountain. They have some personal grudges and are both at the sixth level of Qi Condensation. This is a rare sight, and you might gain some insights and benefits." The young man explained and, fearing he would be late, ran forward quickly.

Bai Xiaochun was very curious and ran over, following the crowd. Soon, he left the servant area and reached the foot of the third peak, where he saw a huge platform.

The platform was a thousand feet wide, surrounded by countless servants, and there were also many figures on the mountain, dressed in more luxurious clothing, all outer disciples, watching.

On the platform, two young men were dressed in equally luxurious robes. One had a scar on his face, and the other was as fair as jade. They were moving back and forth, and a loud rumbling sound was heard.

Both had a radiant aura around them. The scar-faced young man had a small flag in front of him, moving without wind, as if an invisible hand was waving it, forming a misty tiger that roared deafeningly.

The fair-faced young man, on the other hand, moved swiftly, a blue small sword cutting through the air, leaving spiritual traces, and whistling flexibly.

Bai Xiaochun watched with wide eyes, taking a deep breath. He could also control a wooden sword, but compared to the fair-faced young man, it was incomparable.

Especially when the two attacked without much restraint, their killing intent was intense, and they were in danger several times, with multiple wounds on their bodies, though not in vital areas, it was still shocking to watch.

This was the first time Bai Xiaochun had seen cultivators dueling, and it was very different from his impression of immortals. The ferocity and hostility made him feel uneasy.

"Cultivation is for longevity, why do they fight and kill each other? What if they lose their lives?" Bai Xiaochun swallowed a mouthful of saliva. When he saw the scar-faced young man's flag transform into a ferocious misty tiger, about to devour the other, Bai Xiaochun wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling that the outside world was too dangerous and it was safer to return to the stove room.

With this thought, he quickly retreated, but just as he was retreating, a loud shout came from nearby.

"Bai Xiaochun!"

Bai Xiaochun turned around and immediately saw Xu Baocai, who had written the blood letter, grinning maliciously and charging towards him. A wooden sword in front of him emitted an unusual light, clearly not at the first level of Qi Condensation, and it drew an arc, emitting a strong spiritual pressure, heading straight for Bai Xiaochun.

Seeing the wooden sword approaching, Bai Xiaochun's pupils dilated, and he immediately felt a strong sense of life and death.

"He's trying to kill me!" Realizing this, he let out a shrill scream and ran.

"Murder! Murder!" The volume of his scream made many servants nearby hear it, and they all looked over in surprise. Even Zhou Hong and Zhang Yide, who were dueling on the platform, paused for a moment, showing the power of his voice.

Even Xu Baocai was startled. He had just called out Bai Xiaochun's name and chased after him, and the sword hadn't even touched him, but Bai Xiaochun's scream was as if he had been stabbed several times.

"Bai Xiaochun, if you have the ability, don't run!" Xu Baocai's face turned green with anger, and he chased after Bai Xiaochun.

"If I had the ability, I would have killed you long ago. Why would I run? Murder! Murder!" Bai Xiaochun's scream was very loud, and he ran extremely fast, like a fat rabbit, quickly disappearing from sight.

At the same time, at the top of the mountain, there was a suspended pavilion where two cultivators, one middle-aged and one old, were sitting opposite each other, playing chess. The middle-aged one was Li Qinghou, and the old man had white hair, a ruddy complexion, and eyes that sparkled, clearly extraordinary. He glanced at the scene below and laughed.

"Qinghou, the little boy you brought back is quite interesting."

"Please don't laugh, Sect Leader. This child's character still needs more tempering." Li Qinghou, a bit troubled, placed a chess piece and shook his head.

"The children in the stove room are all proud, but this child can get along with them, which is not simple." The old man stroked his beard, his eyes showing a teasing look.

Brothers and sisters, new book, please collect.