This was a place Martial Uncle Wang had just had hurriedly visited with Han Li. This was an Honored Disciple Han Li had just met. That was why when he saw Han Li return, he was greatly surprised.
“Senior Martial Brother Yu, when I arrived here a moment ago, I heard this was the place where one could receive chores work, right?”
“That’s right! Could it be that Junior Martial Brother wants to receive an assignment so quickly? Junior Martial Brother Han is a new disciple. According to the rules, you can first familiarize yourself with the circumstances within the sect for a month before you receive a task. There is no need to feel so anxious!” The Honored Disciple spoke in astonishment.
“Hehe! That’s no issue! I currently want to find something to do. Are there any plant-growing jobs that currently lack manpower?” Han Li faintly smiled.
“That is not how it works. All the missions that disciples receive are randomly distributed. Regardless of what you’re up to, no one is allowed to select their duties! Only if they can prove that they truly have some respective ability in the field would they be given consideration!” This Honored Disciple replied, embarrassed.
When Han Li heard this, he creased his brow. Could it be he truly had to find Martial Uncle Ye?
“It doesn’t matter. Have Martial Nephew Han choose as he wishes!”A somewhat familiar voice came from behind Han Li, slightly frightening him. He turned his head to look. It was unexpectedly that Old Man Ye; he did not know when he had stood behind him. He was smiling toward Han Li.
“Hall Master has returned!” When the middle-aged Honored Disciple saw the old man, he immediately greeted him.
“En, I have returned!” The old man flippantly said.
“Martial Uncle Ye!” Han Li immediately greeted him with respect.
“Hehe, Martial Nephew Han came here quite quickly! I returned here to give my subordinates an explanation to let Martial Nephew Han select his tasks at will!” He half-jokingly mentioned. It seemed that this Martial Uncle Ye’s mood was pretty good.
“I am thankful for Martial Uncle’s concern! I also came to take a look. Could I inconvenience Martial Uncle to find a suitable task?” Han Li asked, apparently bashful.
“I am the one in charge here. What inconvenience is there? Honored Disciple Yu, take out all the plant-growing tasks and let Han Li choose as he wishes!” The old man magnanimously waved his hand, signalling his subordinate to follow his orders.
This Honored Disciple Yu was dumbstruck by those words. After he took a deep glance toward Han Li, he hurriedly looked for the scrolls that recorded the chore tasks. In his mind, he could not help but think that he had some sort of relationship with his superior.
“The plant-growing tasks are all listed here. Take a careful look, Junior Martial Brother Han!” Honored Disciple Yu offered him the azure jade slips he returned with.
Han Li said a word of thanks and took the slips. He earnestly looked through them.
“Look after the thirteen Five Flower Trees. Every year, each of them produces two white fruits.”
“With great care, take care of the 300 year-old Fire Cloud Ginseng. Ensure that its spiritual nature is not lost.”
“Grow a field of Moon Plum Grass. Hand over a hundred jin of its hay every season.”(TL: Jin ? = .5kg)
“Look after the Yellow Jade Bamboo Forest,….”
…………
The slips had all kinds of plant-growing work. There was truly a great amount! However, there were still a few that had yet to be read by Han Li. When he rummaged through the rest of the slips, a task much to Han Li’s satisfaction was found.
(TL: The ? Kun in ??? Mysterious Earth Mountain is one of the Eight Trigrams ?, it representing Earth. )
Chapter 150: Reluctant Consent
“Take over the Azure Stone Mountain Range’s Hundred Medicine Garden. Requires a set amount of rare drug ingredients to be handed over every year.”
When Han Li saw the gold characters written on the slip, Han Li was extremely joyful. He raised his head toward Honored Disciple Yu and pointed to the slip, saying, “I desire this task. Senior Martial Brother Yu, could you present this to me?”
After he heard Han Li’s words, Honored Disciple Yu pieced together a smile. But once he clearly saw the task Han Li had picked, the cheerful smile on his face became forced.
“Junior Martial Brother, please pick another task. This garden task is extremely difficult. It doesn’t suit Junior Martial Brother!” Honored Disciple Yu very sincerely said. However, when he saw Han Li’s puzzled appearance, he further explained, “Ever since the task was hung here several years ago, many have already attempted to compete it. However, all of them failed. Not only did they fail to receive an award, they were fined a great number of spirit stones. It could be said to be one of the most difficult tasks here. Even if Junior Martial Brother Han is joking, each disciple I assigned this slip to were quite talented in growing plants!”
After Han Li heard these words, he inwardly laughed. However, after some contemplation, he did not plan to give up. He modestly asked, “Could Senior Martial Brother tell me, in what way is this task difficult? How could there be no Senior Martial Brother that completed it? Isn’t it just supervising the medicinal herbs in the garden? How is this hard?”
“Could it be that Martial Nephew chose Senior Martial Brother Ma’s medicine garden assignment?” The nearby Old Man Ye after heard these two’s dialog, did not wait for the middle-aged Honored Disciple to reply. He wrinkled his brow and rushed to interrupt them.
“That’s right! Junior Martial Brother Han took a fancy to Senior Martial Uncle Ma’s extremely difficult assignment.” The middle-aged Honored Disciple did not know whether to laugh or cry.
After the old man heard this, he wore an enigmatic smile.
“Haha! Martial Nephew Han truly knows how to choose! He actually fancied the most troublesome task! However, this task truly causes one’s head to ache! There have already been a great many who were forced to receive this assignment and complained to me before. However, because Senior Martial Brother Ma was not willing to easily alter the conditions of rewards and penalties, I could not do anything! If Martial Nephew Han wishes to know the details of this task, he can follow me into the hall and take a look at the relevant files. It is much more compelling than hearing from the word of mouth!” It was unknown why this Hundred Opportunities Hall’s Hall Master Ye was so forthright toward Han Li. He went as far as to open the door for him in passing.
Han Li inwardly wrinkled his brow. This Martial Uncle Ye was a bit too enthusiastic! Although he had given his Foundation Establishment pill to him, it had seemed to be an equal trade. Why was he acting so intimately toward him?
Han Li strongly pushed aside the suspicions in his mind and put up an appearance of being overwhelmed by Martial Uncle Ye’s favor toward him. Then he followed the old man who took the slip to some room at the back of the main hall. All sorts of files were piled up in the room.
The old man lightly waved his arm with the slip in his hand. Then the slip flashed, and a scroll flew toward into his hand. He offered the scroll to Han Li.
Since he was already being offered, Han Li impolitely took the scroll and quickly rifled through it.
The scroll’s contents weren’t long. It simply contained the written accounts of the disciples who were assigned to take care of the medicine garden. That was why Han Li looked through them quickly. A short moment later, he mostly understood the details and difficulty of the assignment.
“How about it? You should change to another assignment! Although this task’s rewards are quite generous, it isn’t something an ordinary disciple can accomplish.” Martial Uncle Ye said with great concern.
After Han Li heard those words, he muttered to himself for a moment. He firmly shook his head, “Many thanks to Martial Uncle Ye! However, this task is much to my liking. I don’t need to switch to another assignment, because I am picking it!”
When the old man heard the d
etermination in Han Li’s words, he felt somewhat amazed. However, he said nothing else and nodded, giving his consent. He then immediately brought Han Li out of the room. After a moment of hesitation, he somewhat unnaturally added, “Martial Nephew Han, with regards to the goods agreed from our deal with the Foundation Establishment Pill, could their delivery be slightly postponed? Martial Uncle has been recently wanting to refine a Qi Gathering Pill. What I have at hand is truly rather limited. I fear it wouldn’t be too convenient for me. However Martial Nephew, please feel at ease. I will be able to repay my debt in full within a year.”
When Han Li heard these words, he was surprised for a moment. However, he immediately smiled.
“What is Martial Uncle Ye saying? Since it is inconvenient for Martial Uncle, I can give as much time as he needs. There is no need to bring up the matter of repayment in the future. This could be considered filial respect given to Martial Uncle from the younger generation.”
Han Li felt that currently he was acting truly falsely. His heart was undoubtedly depressed, and he loathed the other party’s breach of their promise. However, his face wore a smiling expression and said the words that would make the other party happy. ‘This is probably brought about by the young one’s grief!’ Old Man Ye bitterly thought.
“What meaning do Martial Nephew’s words hold? Could it be that you believe this elder is one who breaks his promises and doesn’t keep his words? This elder won’t cheat Martial Nephew of the promised items even the slightest!” When Old Man Ye heard Han Li’s words, not only was he unhappy, he had also stiffened his face and wore an expression of honor. His appearance expressed that he wouldn’t do such actions of lowly character.
Hearing this, Han Li’s reluctant smile nearly fell apart!
This elder’s face was quite thick. He obviously intended to renege on the majority of goods; even so, he insisted on keeping up the false appearance of uprightly keeping his promise. He was truly a typical hypocrite!
Han Li repeatedly restrained himself and incessantly cursed inwardly. However, his face’s smile was slightly delayed. He changed his expression to one of sincerity, and used a tone of voice even he found sickening to say, “Martial Uncle is blaming this younger generation wrongly! Actually, Martial Nephew thought that since Martial Nephew had just entered the sect, the promised items were far too extravagant for this junior. As a result, Martial Uncle would temporarily withhold the majority of goods so that this junior would not use waste them.”
After hearing Han Li’s empty words, Old Man Ye’s expression was eased. He faintly nodded his head and said, “Martial Nephew Han’s words truly have some sense! If a newly admitted disciple became too dependant on these mere worldly possessions, it would truly hinder his cultivation! Then let us act according to your words. The majority of the goods will temporarily be left with me. If you have a need for them in the future, do not hesitate to come take them!”
“Then thank you for your trouble, Martial Uncle!” Han Li wore a strong smile and consoled his heart repeatedly. These were merely worldly possessions. He couldn’t afford to offend the old man in front of him! Later, when there was an opportunity, he would definitely return to collect both principal and interest.
“Hehe, this is nothing! Let us go!” The old man’s mood seemed to turn for the better.
The following matter was much easier. With this Martial Uncle Ye’s assistance, Han Li smoothly went through all the formalities and took the jade medallion, representing his assignment. Then he was enthusiastically led by an Honored Disciple to the Azure Stone Mountain Range’s Hundred Medicine Garden.
Old Man Ye stood at the entrance of the Hundred Opportunities Hall and saw Han Li’s figure gradually fly off to the distance. His complexion was gloomy as he remained silent. It seemed he was thinking of something.
“Has Junior Martial Brother Ye’s heart gone soft?” A deep voice suddenly came from behind him.
“It is not a question of whether my heart has gone soft. Rather, using these methods to deal with a disciple that had just entered the sect feels somewhat improper. Not only does this Martial Nephew Han say one thing, he inwardly thinks another. He may report this to Sect Master!” The old man didn’t say anything else, but his words carried a faint unease.
“Hehe, report?” The person behind him sneered.
“What? Is Senior Martial Brother Wu not uneasy?” Old Man Ye eventually turned around, saying these words to a somber Senior Martial Brother Wu.
“What is there to worry about? This boy is not aware of the arrangements we made beforehand. Say that the goods were left with you. Don’t say that you won’t give it to him but that they were temporarily in your care! What reason would there to be to report?” Martial Brother Wu said, having thought it out.
“However, I quite admire this boy! His age is young, yet he understands when to advance or retreat. This is remarkable! If he didn’t have such poor aptitude with his false spiritual roots, I would have truly felt the notion to have him enter the sect!” Martial Brother Wu continued, his face exposing an appearance of regret.
“Luckily, this person doesn’t have a rigid way of thinking, otherwise we would have to use a different trick. That would be far more inconvenient!” Old Man Ye said leisurely.
“Enough, these is nothing to be uneasy about this boy! Us two will pinch our noses and think of him like we would think of an ant. Junior Martial Brother Ye need not waste so much money. However, don’t forget what we agreed on in advance!” Senior Martial Brother Wu suddenly changed the topic. His words also held some hidden meaning.
“I will not forget. I will give you half of this newly refined Qi Gathering Pill. Ke! To tell the truth, if my grandnephew wasn’t in the middle of becoming Foundation Establishment and required the assistance of large quantities of precious medicine pills, I truly would not have such thick face to trick a junior in this way!” Old Man Ye lightly shook his head, looking like he lost his integrity with age.
When Old Man Wu heard these words, he smiled and did not speak. With great satisfaction, he thought to himself, “Since this Junior Martial Brother Ye has just committed an underhanded act, it could be considered something I could use to handle him. I don’t have to worry about discussing business with him in the future. He will not oppose me.”
Chapter 151: Hundred Medicine Garden
Even though Han Li didn’t know what Martial Uncle Ye and the Old Man Wu talked about after he left, he felt extremely upset!
Ever since he went through with what happened with Doctor Mo, it was the first time he encountered a situation where he knew there would be trouble ahead but had no choice but to jump into the mess. This made Han Li very annoyed, but also reinforced his opinion that the weak were also the prey to the strong in the cultivating world.
“If you have a need for them in the future, do not hesitate to come and collect them!” The thought of this made Han Li laugh coldly. In the future, he would make sure to let Martial Uncle Ye know that his belongings would not be taken away that easily!
He stood on the ground and looked afar as the Honor Disciple turned to the Hundred Opportunities Hall. Because the Hundred Medicine Garden was not far ahead, the owner of the medicine garden set up some small restrictive formations on the small valley in between the two hills to keep outsiders from intruding.
Han Li came across some of the nearby restrictions after walking for a small distance. His path was blocked by a white light.
However, he didn’t panic. Instead he raised a piece of jade tablet and shined it in front of him. A green light immediately shot out from the tablet and into the restrictions. Han Li then waited patiently.
“Come in!” A dry voice came from inside, but it sounded if the source was right by Han Li’s ears. Then, the restrictions in front of him all disappeared, melted away like snow.
Seeing this, Han Li didn’t dare to linger and walked inside with haste.
Following the small path in front of him, Han Li stopped at a courtya
rd with a plaque that read “Hundred Medicine Garden.” The courtyard was at least a few acres large. Before he even entered the courtyard, a thick smell of medicinal herbs came from inside and aroused Han Li’s spirit.
“What are you doing standing outside like an idiot? Hurry up and come inside, I still need to go out for errands!” Han Li was startled, but immediately followed the order and walked in.
Standing inside, Han Li was then able to clearly see the situation inside the garden.
In the center of the garden stood a few cottages built from hay and bamboo. The garden itself was surrounded by trenches that were squared out evenly. Each field were filled with greens, and there were many medicinal herbs that Han Li knew of or was familiar with, and some that looks like strangely-shaped plants, making the entire garden’s Spiritual Qi overflow. Even when a cultivator like Han Li took a deep breath, it felt extremely refreshing.
“Come into the house!” The owner of the voice saw him dawdling and seemed to become a little impatient.
Han Li smiled lightly, and didn’t take it to heart as he walked into the cottage.
Inside the cottage stood a short, skinny old man. He looked at Han Li, who had just come in, with dissatisfaction. From the old man’s looks, he seemed to be around fifty years old. He had a withered and yellow small mustache and a pair of cloudy, small eyes that were rolling around. At first glance, he truly looked like a big rat that had successfully become human.
“You’re the disciple that the Hundred Opportunities Hall sent to take care of the garden? You’re too young, and your skills are too poor! Is the fellow surnamed Ye brushing me off? How come the people he sent are worse and worse every time?” The small, skinny old man’s face darkened when he saw Han Li’s appearance, and he started ranting.
“Disciple Han Li greets Senior Martial Elder Ma!” Han Li already knew from the records about the small, old man’s strange temper, so he wasn’t too surprised about it, and immediately went up and bowed.
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality c1-2248 Page 72