Chapter 3

Although it was good to be able to learn the art of the Sleeve of the Universe from Senior Sister, Lu Xiaodeng still had some doubts. Why were people who were not formal disciples also allowed to study at the Zhichu Hall, while she and her senior sister could not go there?

Perplexed, she asked, "Senior Sister, I saw some attendants studying at the Zhichu Hall. They are just like us, so why can they go there?"

Lu Yaohxiang glanced at her and walked past the stone slab where herbs were dried, coming to the edge of the mountain cliff. From there, one could see the Zhichu Hall halfway up the mountain, which was densely populated and much livelier than the desolate Wu Yao Hall.

Looking down, she coldly said, "Our master is only a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, while those attendants who can listen in at the Zhichu Hall serve people whose cultivation is at the Golden Core stage or higher. Only those who have reached the Golden Core stage have the authority to arrange for their attendants to study there. Our master, not only has no chance of advancing, but he only has a little over a year of life left."

"Master is going to die?" This was the first time Lu Xiaodeng had heard about this. Death seemed like a permanent disappearance, just like that person. After disappearing, he never appeared again, and even the connection she could feel before he was human had vanished.

If Master also dies, he will disappear too!

She said in horror, "No, Master can't die. Senior Sister, if Master dies, we will be homeless."

Thinking of such a problem, Lu Yaohxiang didn't even look at her and said coldly, "You, a grass-eater, I can still support even if Master dies."

"Ah!" Lu Xiaodeng said somewhat blankly, "Senior Sister, you mean you will still support me even without Master?"

Lu Yaohxiang rolled her eyes, "Since you came here, haven't I been the one supporting you? Master is too busy trying to save his own life to have time to take care of you. If you want me to support you for a few more years, you'd better be more clever and not make me die of anger too soon."

Then she turned and left, needing to deliver the refined medicines to the storage room. The monthly supply of medicines for the sixteen peaks was making her feel quite depressed. If Master could live longer, he could come out and help, using his magic to allocate the quantities of medicinal herbs, which would be much easier than her doing it.

However, looking up at the small building Master had built against the mountain wall, the door was tightly closed. Lu Yaohxiang helplessly shook her head. The four-hundred-year-old Immortal-Inducing Grass she found when picking up Xiaodeng was the key to whether Master could survive.

As long as it was used with other spiritual herbs to refine the Fifth Rank Ascension Pill, Master would have a chance to advance to the Golden Core stage. Thinking of Master's mediocre talent and his cultivation-restricted alchemy skills, whether he could refine the pill was still a question.

Lu Xiaodeng looked at her senior sister's back and realized a serious matter. If Master couldn't advance to the Golden Core stage, her senior sister couldn't go to the Zhichu Hall to study. Then her senior sister wouldn't learn magic, wouldn't become powerful, and wouldn't be able to take care of her for life.

She shifted her gaze to the small building where Master lived. As long as Master advanced to the Golden Core stage, everything would be fine. If she remembered correctly, Master had a strand of Immortal-Inducing Grass and a formula called the Ascension Pill, which could be used to try.

Thinking of this, she decided to act. To help her senior sister go to the Zhichu Hall, Lu Xiaodeng decided to help Master advance to the Golden Core stage.

When she was a spirit, she had refined countless pills. The Ascension Pill, which required a small amount, had only been refined in three batches. But this didn't affect her ability to recall the refining process. As long as she followed the steps, there would be no problem.

First, she needed to get the Immortal-Inducing Grass from Master, as well as other spiritual herbs. But the Immortal-Inducing Grass was stored in Master's Sleeve of the Universe, and she had no way to get it.

"I can only wait for Master to take it out himself," Lu Xiaodeng thought for a long time, and besides waiting, there was no other way.

She didn't have to wait long. Five days later, Master suddenly came out of his seclusion, looking particularly spirited. His face was rosy, indicating that he was in his best condition, and he might have taken some tonics.

"Yaohxiang, today I will process the astringent fibers of the Immortal-Inducing Grass. You will process five portions of spiritual herbs. Don't let your junior sister touch the spiritual herbs; give her a crystal bean to play at the small market in the sect," Yu Xiudan had already decided to refine the Ascension Pill. The most important Immortal-Inducing Grass needed to be processed to remove the toxic astringent fibers, or it would affect the efficacy.

He didn't trust Lu Xiaodeng and instructed Lu Yaohxiang to take her away, or there would be trouble.

Lu Yaohxiang's heart sank. It seemed Master was really going to refine the Fifth Rank Ascension Pill himself, but he had only successfully refined a Fourth Rank pill once. She really didn't want to see the look of despair on his face if the pill was destroyed.

"Xiaodeng, here's a crystal bean. Take it to the small market in the sect and buy something you like," she called Lu Xiaodeng over and took out a pea-sized, transparent crystal bean and handed it to her.

"Wow, Senior Sister is so generous, it's actually a crystal bean!" Lu Xiaodeng, who had never received any wages, happily took the crystal bean. This could buy many interesting little trinkets.

She didn't ask why she was suddenly given money and happily went down the mountain with the cauldron. Lu Yaohxiang finally breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't want Xiaodeng to see the processing of the spiritual herbs, as that girl never ate anything but the soup made from spiritual herbs and other plants.

High-quality spiritual herbs were a delicacy for Lu Xiaodeng. If she saw them, she would lick them, and if she ate them, it would be a disaster.

The Immortal-Inducing Grass didn't need to be processed by Lu Yaohxiang. She received five portions of good spiritual herbs from Master and went to the medicine room to process them. Yu Xiudan took out the Immortal-Inducing Grass and planned to process it in his room.

He placed the jade box containing the Immortal-Inducing Grass on the table and was about to open it when he suddenly felt uneasy. He scanned the room with his divine sense but found nothing unusual. Still, he wasn't at ease and took out a set of array flags to set up a small array in the room to prevent the spiritual energy from the Immortal-Inducing Grass from dispersing.

The array flags needed to be placed in specific spots. Yu Xiudan was setting them up in the room when he heard a sudden sound behind him. He turned around and was shocked.

Lu Xiaodeng had somehow entered through the window. This time, she wasn't carrying the cauldron. In her hand, she held half of a greenish-white spiritual herb, and the other half was already in her mouth.

The jade box on the table was wide open, and it was empty. Yu Xiudan was horrified and shouted, "Don't eat it!"

"Hmm?" Lu Xiaodeng tilted her head curiously and looked at him, but she quickly stuffed the remaining part of the spiritual herb into her mouth, chewed it quickly, and swallowed it.

"Yaohxiang!" Yu Xiudan roared, startling Lu Yaohxiang, who was in the medicine room. She quickly threw down the spiritual herbs and ran out. She saw Master holding Lu Xiaodeng by the collar, his face ashen.

Seeing this, her face also changed. The best scenario was that Xiaodeng had just caused some trouble, but she hoped she hadn't eaten Master's herbs, just licked them.

She silently looked at Master, hoping it wasn't as bad as she thought. The spiritual herb was something Master couldn't afford, and if it weren't for finding Xiaodeng, he would never have had the chance to get the Immortal-Inducing Grass.

"Master, what's wrong?" Lu Xiaodeng tilted her head, confused, and asked.

Yu Xiudan pointed at her, so angry he couldn't speak clearly, "You! Me!"

Lu Xiaodeng smiled innocently, "Master, what are you saying? I don't understand at all."

Staring at her for a long time, Yu Xiudan suddenly let go, closed his eyes, and said despondently, "It's over. I gained hope from here, and I will lose it here."

"Master, what's wrong?" Lu Xiaodeng felt something was off and asked with concern. In this world, Master and Senior Sister were the closest to her. Master couldn't be so listless.

Yu Xiudan just smiled bitterly. Even if the Immortal-Inducing Grass hadn't been eaten by Lu Xiaodeng, it might have been destroyed during the refining process. He reached out and touched Lu Xiaodeng's head, sighing, "Why aren't you a spiritual herb? If I could eat you, I would gain the power of heaven and earth and become a mighty cultivator."

Eat me?

Lu Xiaodeng answered seriously, "Master, eating me won't help you advance. Besides, you have to be able to chew me. How about I cook some soup for you to replenish your energy? Your face looks terrible."

"Xiaodeng, Master is not well. Don't disturb him," Lu Yaohxiang pulled her away, not wanting to upset Master further. It was clear that the Immortal-Inducing Grass had been eaten.

"Okay," Lu Xiaodeng obediently stepped back and clenched her fist, saying to Master, "Master, don't worry. I'll make you happy soon."

Lu Yaohxiang glared at her. This was just trying to make Master even more upset. She quickly added, "Master, we can find another Immortal-Inducing Grass. If we can't buy it, we can steal it. We can even sell ourselves to other alchemists to get an Ascension Pill. We can't let a little thing like this stop us!"

Surviving was more important than anything. Advancing to the Golden Core stage was the most important thing now. If necessary, they could borrow crystal fruits from the peak leaders to buy spiritual herbs. Although the Immortal-Inducing Grass was rare and could only be used to refine the Ascension Pill, it wasn't impossible to find.

Living with hope for the last year was better than waiting to die in despair.

"Right, Master, just be happy. I don't understand what you're talking about, but it sounds powerful," Lu Xiaodeng said, walking out of the medicine room while eating.

Yu Xiudan and Lu Yaohxiang stared at her mouth, and finally, Lu Yaohxiang couldn't help but ask, "What are you eating?"

"It's the spiritual herb that Senior Sister put in there. It tastes good, much better than what I usually eat," Lu Xiaodeng smacked her lips, patted her stomach, and asked, "Senior Sister, do you usually feed me grass?"

Lu Yaohxiang was speechless. So this was how she was trying to cheer Master up!

"I'm going to seclude myself. Don't disturb me," Yu Xiudan couldn't hold back any longer. He swayed, held his forehead, and walked into the room, slamming the door shut.

Lu Xiaodeng swallowed the last bit of the spiritual herb, nodded, and said, "Master's health is really bad. I will definitely make him better."

"You should just eat quietly," Lu Yaohxiang said coldly, marveling at Master's patience. He didn't even slap Xiaodeng to death. It seemed his heart was already dead, filled with despair.