In the Herb Garden

Yue Ying had other things to attend to. Seeing that Jiang Lu had no issues, she returned to the front courtyard. She wasn't worried about any cultivators who passed the test being unable to find her.

The other apprentices would tell them to wait if they saw them. Besides, not many cultivators were lucky enough to pass; having two or three was already considered quite good.

The next day, Jiang Lu followed Yue Ying to the courtyard and saw three people already standing there.

Seeing one of them, Yue Ying walked over warmly to greet them. It seemed that person was also an apprentice leading the newcomers, just like her.

The other three were the other recruits, two of whom possessed fire spiritual roots. Upon seeing Jiang Lu, they nodded.

Jiang Lu returned the greeting and then stood to the side in silence.

Chi Li and Cang Chen were not very large right now, so she had taken the opportunity to make a cloth pouch and hang it from her waist. Currently, the two of them were quietly nestled inside, poking out two pairs of curious eyes.

After all, everyone had already seen them. To the outside world, she didn't possess a storage bag or a spirit beast pouch. If the spirit beasts suddenly vanished, it would naturally arouse suspicion.

Therefore, she did not bring them into her space.

Moreover, remembering how they had rushed at her when they first met, she knew these two beasts were quite mischievous. She couldn't afford to take unnecessary risks right now and decided to wait until she understood them better.

Furthermore, although she was weak and unnoticed, it was always better to be cautious. Who knew if opening her space would cause spatial fluctuations that powerful cultivators might detect?

There were many powerhouses in the city, and she dared not underestimate anyone. She would decide what to do once she had a better grasp of her surroundings.

Before long, a cultivator in his late forties or early fifties walked over. He wore a brown robe, had fine wrinkles on his face, and possessed clear, sharp eyes.

As he stood before them, a powerful pressure washed over them, causing fine beads of sweat to break out on Jiang Lu and the others' foreheads.

The three of them grit their teeth, forcing themselves not to make a sound.

After a long moment, the cultivator nodded in satisfaction. Their willpower was quite decent.

“Since you have been recruited by the Medicine King Pavilion, it proves your strength is decent. Now, I will explain the rules of the Medicine King Pavilion.”

“As apprentices, the Medicine King Pavilion will allow you to learn, but you must also put in the corresponding effort. The Library in the backyard houses cultivation techniques, mental methods, and other books. You will have half an hour each day to study there. If you are illiterate, you may ask the disciples on duty.”

“For those who choose not to study, you will receive two low-grade spirit stones daily instead.”

“Of course, this is on the premise that you complete your assigned tasks. Next are the general rules of the Medicine King Pavilion...”

“Alright, I have said what needs to be said. You two, lead them to their respective sub-halls.”

“Yes.”

Yue Ying and the other cultivator acknowledged the command, then led them away.

Jiang Lu looked at the separate courtyards with curiosity. Yue Ying explained to them:

“These are the sub-halls of our Medicine King Pavilion. Inside, there are disciples sorting spiritual herbs or refining elixirs. However, those tasks are performed by official disciples of the Medicine King Pavilion. We are merely here to help with odd jobs.”

At one point, Jiang Lu saw the other three recruits walk into a courtyard, while she continued forward behind Yue Ying.

They eventually reached an herb garden. Yue Ying placed her token against the gate, and as it opened, she led Jiang Lu inside.

“Master Wen, this is the new apprentice, Jiang Lu. She will be working under you from now on.”

Hearing this, a figure inside the herb garden stood up, glanced at the two of them, and nodded.

“Alright, girl Yue. Go tend to your work; this girl will stay here.”

“Understood, Master Wen.”

With that, Yue Ying nodded to Jiang Lu and departed.

Jiang Lu walked over. “Master Wen, you can just call me Jiang Lu.”

“Alright, girl Jiang. The work here is very simple. Just till the soil, weed the plots, and notify them to harvest once the herbs are mature.”

As he spoke, he lifted the spiritual plant in his hand and waved it in front of Jiang Lu.

“Do you know what this is?”

Jiang Lu shook her head. Master Wen chuckled softly. Indeed, of the rogue cultivators who came here, how many would actually recognize them?

“Very well. Your task for today and tomorrow is to memorize the appearances and characteristics of these spiritual plants. Are you literate?”

Jiang Lu shook her head.

Seeing this, Master Wen said it was fine and that he would teach her. He pulled a book from his robes, handed it to her, and waved her off to study to the side.

“Yes, Master Wen!”

Taking the book, Jiang Lu walked over to a nearby ridge, suppressing the excitement in her heart. Isn't this the perfect opportunity to learn?

She then opened the book and began reading. It contained the illustrations, names, characteristics, and uses of various spiritual plants. All of these had to be memorized one by one; otherwise, it would be easy to make mistakes when handling spiritual plants or refining elixirs in the future.

After reading a few pages, Jiang Lu realized she seemed to possess a photographic memory. Wanting to test her theory, her reading speed gradually increased.

Before long, she finished the entire book. She covered the text and looked only at the illustrations; the corresponding information immediately popped into her mind.

She turned to look at the spiritual plants in the herb garden and instantly knew their names and current growth states.

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly, but she quickly suppressed the smile.

She then took the book and began comparing it with the plants in the herb garden one by one. She couldn't very well tell Master Wen that she had already finished reading and memorized everything in such a short span of time.

For a disciple whose spiritual root was either multiple or mixed, learning so quickly was definitely not a good thing.

Seeing Jiang Lu checking the spiritual plants while studying, Master Wen nodded in satisfaction. She was quite eager to learn, seemingly a promising prospect.

Over ten days later, Jiang Lu returned the book to Master Wen. After testing her knowledge, Master Wen nodded.

“Not bad, your foundation is solid. Follow me and watch how I do it once. From now on, you will be responsible for the spiritual plants in this area. If there's anything you don't understand, just come and ask me.”

As he spoke, he led Jiang Lu to a section of the herb garden.

“Yes, Master Wen.”

During the day, Jiang Lu tended to the spiritual plants, and at night, she went to the Library to read. Although there weren't many books here—only a few thousand—aside from basic information about the cultivation world, there were also some mental methods and cultivation techniques. The remaining books were mostly related to spiritual plants and elixirs.

The Medicine King Pavilion allowed disciples to read the books, but they were not permitted to take them out. With only half an hour each day, ordinary disciples couldn't learn much, especially since they also had to balance their cultivation.

This was precisely why they allowed disciples—and even apprentices—unrestricted access to study.

However, there were always exceptions.

With her photographic memory, Jiang Lu read incredibly fast. In less than two months, she had finished reading every single book. Because she flipped through the pages so quickly, the disciple guarding the Library only assumed she was searching for specific information and didn't suspect a thing.

The cultivation world was different from the novels she had read on Blue Star. Here, the cultivation world utterly detested the demonic path and evil cultivators. The spells of the orthodox path had long been unified, only differing by sect.

If someone was an evil cultivator, it could be recognized at a glance.

The top factions of each domain had established an alliance specifically to handle matters regarding demonic cults and evil cultivators. If one was discovered, a cultivator could report it and claim a reward based on the severity.

As for harming fellow disciples or sect members, sects and aristocratic families dealt with such matters with extreme severity.

Narrow-minded individuals lacked a sense of the bigger picture. Even if they were powerful and highly talented, sects and clans would not dare trust them. Moreover, such disciples were more prone to inner demons, making it difficult for them to advance in the future.

However, when adventuring outside, killing others to seize their treasures was completely normal among different factions. It was a matter of survival of the fittest.