After all this was done, Lin Ping'an returned to the Sect.
"Junior Martial Uncle, you're back! The person arranged by the Second Elder has arrived, you should go quickly!" Xue San said upon seeing Lin Ping'an return.
"Master sent someone, so fast?" Lin Ping'an frowned slightly.
Returning to the Spirit Field, he used his token to activate the Formation.
He saw a figure, irrigating the Illusionary Heart Grass Spirit Field.
The person was a young man. With a casual wave of his hand, the water from the irrigation ditch beside the Spirit Field transformed into dozens of even streams, watering the roots of each Illusionary Heart Grass.
The young man saw Lin Ping'an, stopped his work, and walked over to size him up.
While the young man was sizing him up, he was also sizing up the other party.
The other party was thin, with a sallow complexion, appearing to lack nutrition.
Only a pair of eyes flickered with a faint glow, making him seem somewhat extraordinary.
"You must be Lin Ping'an!" The young man smiled, a little shyly. "I am Mu Jingyun, a Spirit Medicine Master from Xiao Yun Peak. The Second Elder ordered me to come and guide you in looking after the Spirit Field."
"Spirit Medicine Master?" Lin Ping'an had never heard this title, nor was it mentioned in the Cultivation World.
"Actually, we're just people who look after Spirit Medicine. We call ourselves Spirit Medicine Masters. Our Aptitude isn't good, so we can only do this kind of thing in the Sect," Mu Jingyun said self-deprecatingly.
"No, no! I think you're amazing. Was that the Water Dragon Spell you used?" Lin Ping'an praised.
"Yes, it's just practice makes perfect! If you only use one spell for a long time, it's hard not to become proficient."
"Brother Mu, please teach me quickly!"
"..."
Although Mu Jingyun knew Lin Ping'an's talent wasn't good, the other party was, after all, a Named Disciple of the Second Elder.
His status was countless times higher than his own, but he had not expected the other party to be like this.
Facing Lin Ping'an, he felt like they were conversing as equals.
This made him open up, and the two talked very congenially.
It was their first meeting, yet Lin Ping'an felt a strong sense of familiarity, as if they were old friends after just a few sentences of conversation.
Mu Jingyun diligently taught various knowledge about cultivating Spirit Fields. Lin Ping'an was very eager to learn, and good at asking questions, even learning the Water Dragon Spell along the way.
Having practiced it for over a decade, the other party's research into the Water Dragon Spell was almost at its peak, and a few casual pointers greatly benefited Lin Ping'an.
Mu Jingyun came for three consecutive days, and he found that he had nothing more to teach.
Lin Ping'an was incredibly intelligent, able to infer other things from one point for any problem, and some questions even surprised Mu Jingyun, the Spirit Medicine Master.
He also had to admit that some people were born Geniuses.
If not for that, how could he have passed the imperial examination at such a young age?
"Ping'an, I have nothing more to teach you. You've thoroughly grasped all the details of cultivating these three types of Spirit Medicine. I'll come back when it's time for harvest," Mu Jingyun said.
"I will personally invite Elder Brother Mu then!"
"Alright, I'll be there whenever you call!"
Although it had only been three days, the two had become friends who could talk about anything.
Lin Ping'an also learned some things about Mu Jingyun and greatly admired him.
After seeing off Mu Jingyun, Lin Ping'an took out a Spirit Stone and began to Cultivate the Xuan Yuan Spell.
"Whoosh!"
In less than an hour, the Spirit Stone in his hand was completely absorbed, turning into a pile of dust.
"Alas! There are too few Spirit Stones, and that guy, copper coin, absorbed ninety percent! I estimate I'll need at least a dozen Spirit Stones to reach the second level of Qi Condensation? What a torment!" Lin Ping'an sighed repeatedly.
"copper coin, oh copper coin! How long are you going to keep absorbing?" Lin Ping'an held the copper coin in his hand, turning it over and over.
"Eh! You seem to have changed!" Lin Ping'an then noticed that the color of the copper coin had changed slightly.
It had originally looked somewhat old, but now it seemed to be faintly glowing, as if it had just been minted.
With a thought, he aligned his eye with the square hole in the middle of the copper coin.
He still remembered everything he had dreamed of.
A dizzying sensation surged up, and Lin Ping'an felt himself being pulled by a force, instantly falling into a pitch-black abyss.
"Ah! My head hurts so much!" He couldn't help but cry out in pain.
Immediately after, a blurry light flew out from between his eyebrows, directly into the square hole of the copper coin.
Lin Ping'an felt as if he had returned to his dream, falling into boundless darkness.
He didn't know how long passed, but suddenly, his vision brightened, and he appeared in a small space.
This space was entirely a kingdom of water. He floated lightly on the water's surface, as if he had no weight at all.
"This... could it be a Grotto-Heaven?" Lin Ping'an couldn't help but guess. "No! My body is ethereal now, I can't feel any weight. Could it be my Mental Energy world?"
After reading "Cultivation World," he had gained some understanding of Cultivators.
Everyone has their own Mental Energy; this is Innate, some are strong, some are weak.
This is actually an important talent for Cultivation.
When some super-power recruit Disciples, they consider it an important factor.
However, a declining Sect like Xuan Yuan Sect was not qualified to demand such talent.
He circled this water kingdom and found it was only a few feet in size, surrounded by pitch-black Chaos space, which he couldn't approach.
The water wasn't deep, only reaching an adult's knees.
He studied it for a long time but couldn't find any difference between it and an ordinary pond outside.
"copper coin! What does this mean? Why did you bring me in here?" Lin Ping'an felt a headache coming on.
Crucially, he didn't know how to get out. One or two days would be fine, but ten or eight days, and the three acres of Spirit Field would be ruined.
It was well known that the Spirit Medicine planted in the Spirit Field were most susceptible to being targeted by Spirit Insects; just one could destroy three acres of Spirit Field.
The copper coin obviously wouldn't respond to him.
"Don't worry, let me think this through carefully." Lin Ping'an calmed down and began to ponder.
With a thought, he formed a hand seal and began to activate the Water Dragon Spell.
The Water Dragon churned up and down under his control, moving and transforming at will.
"It really is like this!" He was overjoyed, practically beside himself.
In this world, he couldn't feel the flow of time.
He didn't know how long passed, but Lin Ping'an felt extremely tired, as if he was about to fall asleep.
And the world of water in front of him suddenly collapsed and disintegrated.
"Ah!"
Lin Ping'an was greatly alarmed, but the next moment he found himself back in reality.
"I see! This must be a world constructed based on my Mental Energy. When my Mental Energy is exhausted, this world naturally collapses!" Lin Ping'an felt this was the logical explanation.
"But what's the use of this?" He couldn't help but look at the copper coin in his hand, and then an incredible thought popped into his head, "Could it be time? There was no time in that water world!"
He excitedly rushed out of the small house, activated the Formation, and dashed down Xiao Yun Peak.
When he returned again, his eyes were bright, like stars.
According to what Xue San said about the time, there was indeed no passage of time for him in the water world.
He rushed towards the irrigation ditch next to the Spirit Field, and with a thought and a hand seal, he began to control the Water Dragon Spell.
"Indeed!"
A look of ecstasy appeared on his face.
The Water Dragon Spell, which had been somewhat obscure before, he could now control at will.
A Water Dragon rose from the irrigation ditch, its Dragon horns ferocious, long whiskers flying, scales distinct, and four claws suspended in the air, vividly lifelike.
"Haha..." Lin Ping'an burst into laughter.
It seemed he could Cultivate the Water Dragon Spell in that space, and as long as his Mental Energy was not exhausted, he could continue to Cultivate.
It now seemed that the strength of his Mental Energy determined the length of his Cultivation time.
How could he increase his Mental Energy?
Lin Ping'an once again rushed down the mountain in a flurry.
Xue San wondered if this new Junior Martial Uncle was out of his mind.
One moment he'd rush down to ask about the time, the next he'd burst into laughter, and now he was asking where the Scripture Pavilion was.
Lin Ping'an arrived at the Scripture Pavilion and found it to be a majestic, towering building.
It had a total of nine floors, each with a different color.
"A newly admitted Disciple?" Outside the Scripture Pavilion, a young man in a green Daoist robe sized him up.
The color of the Daoist robe distinguished a Disciple's identity: grey for Outer Sect, green for Inner Sect, blue for true Legacy, and purple for Elder or Sect Master.
The Daoist robe carried the character 'Dao', representing the Legacy of the Dao.
As for Utility Disciples and Spirit Medicine Masters, they were not qualified to wear Daoist robes.
He was currently wearing a grey Daoist robe, and although he was the Second Elder's Disciple, he was still just an Outer Sect Disciple.
"Yes! New Disciple Lin Ping'an." He handed over his token.
"So you're that Lin Ping'an who was taken in by the Second Elder as a Disciple!" The young man said with a hint of mockery, "I heard you were sent to Xiao Yun Peak to look after the Spirit Field. If that's the case, then just be content being a Spirit Medicine Master and don't harbor any illusions!"
There were quite a few people outside the Scripture Pavilion, and many of them became intrigued when they saw this scene.
"What's wrong with Gu Aoyue? Why is he targeting this person?"
"You don't know, Gu Aoyue's sister couldn't become a Disciple of the Second Elder because of this person!"
"Gu Mingyue? That Inner Sect Prodigy? Wasn't she already designated by the Second Elder?"
"The Second Elder went into seclusion in the back mountain! It's said to be because of this kid."
"So that's it, now there's a good show to watch."
"Who are you?" Although Lin Ping'an was a scholar, he was not one to be bullied.
He believed in the principle of 'I won't offend if not offended; if offended, I'll retaliate tenfold.'
Upon hearing the other person's mockery, his expression immediately darkened.
"Gu Aoyue, Inner Sect Disciple of Suzaku Peak!" The young man said, head held high.
"Aoyue, what a good name! I remember there was a popular courtesan in Jizhou Prefecture with that name!" Lin Ping'an sneered.
"You... how dare you!" Gu Aoyue's eyes instantly turned cold, and his killing intent was palpable. "You, a mere Outer Sect Disciple, dare to speak to me like this. I can take this as a provocation against me! Let's go! To the Life and Death Stage."
"Outer Sect Disciple? Heh! Although I am an Outer Sect Disciple, I know that the Peak Masters of your Six Peaks all have to call my Master 'Junior Martial Uncle,' and since you are just a Disciple of Suzaku Peak, shouldn't you also call me 'Junior Martial Uncle' according to seniority? Our Xuan Yuan Sect values seniority the most. If you dare to provoke your Junior Martial Uncle, shouldn't you face the Sect Master!" Lin Ping'an was a scholar; he could make an unreasonable argument sound reasonable, and now that he had the moral high ground, he became relentless.
