Hua Jian did not know who ultimately won that fight.
However, a few days later, when she arrived at the Wanling Sect base as a guest, she noticed several fading bruises on Luo Yingying’s face.
It seemed the fight had been quite intense.
“Good sister, you mustn’t learn from that fellow. She’s crooked and has no sense of propriety,” Luo Yingying muttered helplessly while rubbing a particularly obvious bruise.
She had guessed what Hua Jian was thinking the moment she saw the girl’s eyes.
She had indeed lost the physical fight a few days ago, but outside the ring, she had won a total victory.
Du Xiaoyue had been sent directly into solitary confinement and would not be able to come out for days, which provided Luo Yingying with much-needed peace.
“Sigh, why does she always like to find trouble with me? Doesn’t the Jian Sect have a Direct Disciple here too?”
‘Probably because the Jian Sect’s Direct Disciple is harder to deal with,’ Hua Jian thought to herself.
Between a Direct Disciple of the Wanling Sect and one from the Jian Sect, anyone with a brain knew which one was easier to get along with.
“Forget it, let’s not mention that disappointing person. I’ll introduce you to our Wanling Sect base.”
Luo Yingying led Hua Jian through a quiet, lush forest. This was the Wanling Sect’s base within the Inner City of Ascension City.
The Wanling Sect had essentially created a miniature mountain range inside the Inner City, complete with smaller versions of their various peaks, showcasing the unique characteristics of their sect.
“Aside from the private lands of each peak, the rest of these areas are public, so you can see many things here.”
Luo Yingying pointed to a small, delicate spiritual flower under a nearby tree to illustrate her point.
“For instance, this flower was planted here by a Junior Sister from Lingcaifeng.”
Just as she finished speaking, a snow-white rabbit hopped out of the woods and nibbled the small flower away.
“That rabbit belongs to Baishou Peak. Honestly, why did those guys let these things out?”
No sooner had the rabbit finished its meal than a dark shadow descended from the sky, snatching the rabbit and carrying it into the air.
Hua Jian looked closely and saw it was a sharp-featured, dangerous-looking black eagle. The aura it emitted had even reached the Ling Wang Realm.
Undoubtedly, this was a Spirit Beast partner contracted by a Cultivator of the Wanling Sect.
“That eagle is from Feiyu Peak… Hua Jian, do you know how many peaks the Wanling Sect has?”
Hua Jian had done her homework before coming.
When asked, she answered confidently, “I do. Lingcai, Wudu, Baishou, Feiyu, and Youlin—five peaks in total!”
Aside from Lingcaifeng, which focused on plants, the other four peaks covered almost all types of Spirit Beasts that Cultivators could contract.
Within the Wanling Sect, Baishou Peak was undoubtedly the most populous, and the Sect Leader usually hailed from there.
Feiyu Peak and Wudu Peak were comparable in strength, both weaker than Baishou but stronger than Youlin Peak.
Youlin Peak was the most unfortunate. Since the main Wanling Sect was not near the ocean, it was difficult for them to use their unique skills.
Consequently, most Youlin Peak disciples did not live at the main sect but maintained a branch on the coast, which served as their primary base.
As for Lingcaifeng, its status within the Wanling Sect was somewhat unique.
Since everyone else studied Spirit Beasts, it was a bit strange to have one group focused solely on spiritual plants.
If the relationship between Youlin Peak and the others was distant, Lingcaifeng’s was even more so.
While other Peak Masters might secretly dream of competing for the position of Sect Leader, the Lingcaifeng Master never harbored such thoughts.
In the many years since the Wanling Sect’s founding, Lingcaifeng’s motto had remained consistent: “I don’t care how much you stir things up, just don’t cut off my resource supply.”
“Exactly. You’ve done your homework, Sister Hua Jian,” Luo Yingying praised happily.
Even though this was common knowledge, hearing Hua Jian speak so fluently made her very happy, giving her the feeling that she was being prioritized.
‘She knows my name; she cares about me!’
“Master will be coming personally for this Ascension Gathering. I’m just here to lead the way for her,” Luo Yingying added.
Having known Luo Yingying’s identity, Hua Jian had expected this. Now that it was confirmed, she felt a bit troubled.
Once the Lingcaifeng Master arrived, she would be caught between two Venerables and two Saint Sects again.
‘Ah, whatever. I’ll take it one day at a time. There’s always a way through, and at worst, I’ll just crash into the mountain!’
With that thought, Hua Jian followed Luo Yingying into the Lingcaifeng area of the base.
Lingcaifeng’s territory was easy to recognize. One side featured primitive forest scenery, but a few steps away was a clear boundary line.
Beyond that line, a vast array of colorful flowers bloomed.
Undoubtedly, this was Lingcaifeng.
“Senior Sister Luo, does Lingcaifeng focus solely on these spiritual flowers and herbs?” Hua Jian asked, looking at the flowers lining the path. She was starting to feel a bit confused.
The Wanling Sect was a sect that used Spirit Beasts to fight. Logically, Lingcaifeng should be the same, but it felt like they focused more on gardening.
“You could say that. It’s a bit complicated, but our ultimate goal at Lingcaifeng is to cultivate special spiritual flowers and herbs. As for combat ability, it isn’t actually our main focus,” Luo Yingying explained, not hiding their weakness in combat.
They were research-oriented Cultivators. While others grew stronger through battle, they grew stronger through research.
“Our method involves a Natal Spiritual Flower.”
Hua Jian’s ears perked up. She had heard a term that was unfamiliar to her. “Natal Spiritual Flower?”
“It’s the unique method of our Lingcaifeng. You can think of it like the Spirit Beasts other Wanling Sect Cultivators contract. However, the spiritual flowers we contract are condensed by ourselves. In the end, we undergo the Tribulation together with the Natal Spiritual Flower we’ve formed.”
Hua Jian was a bit dazed. The idea of reaching immortality was too far off for her, and since she hadn’t truly studied Lingcaifeng’s techniques, she couldn’t fully grasp Luo Yingying’s explanation.
The one thing she did understand was that Lingcaifeng was self-sufficient.
The spiritual flower you contracted had to be condensed by you, not just something you picked up on the side of the road like other Wanling Sect Cultivators.
Seeing Hua Jian’s interpretation, Luo Yingying laughed. It didn’t mean they couldn’t contract other things.
The Natal Spiritual Flower was for reaching higher stages of cultivation.
Ordinary Lingcaifeng Cultivators could still contract Spirit Beasts if they had the ability.
After all, contracting a Spirit Beast wouldn’t hinder a Cultivator’s progress.
“So that’s how it is. But…” Hua Jian scratched her head and asked in a very low voice, “What if I am already a spiritual flower?”
“Huh?” Luo Yingying was stunned. What did she mean by “already a spiritual flower”?
Then she saw Hua Jian open her hand, and several colorful flower vines sprouted from her palm.
As a Ling Emperor, she could tell at a glance that these vines were different from those summoned by normal Wood Element Cultivators.
These vines were growing directly out of Hua Jian’s body!
Recalling what Hua Jian had just said, her mind felt like it was about to short-circuit.
‘Sizzle… Master, you didn’t tell me about this!’
‘How can my Junior Sister not be a human? Can our Lingcaifeng Cultivation Method even be used by a flower?’
‘Is it possible that Hua Jian’s role in Lingcaifeng shouldn’t be a disciple, but a flower planted in the fields?’
“Sister Hua Jian, how old are you exactly?” Luo Yingying couldn’t help but ask a somewhat impolite question.
The conditions for a spiritual flower to take human form were much harsher than for a Spirit Beast.
Without hundreds or even a thousand years of accumulation, it was impossible.
Could it be that Hua Jian was an old antique who was over 1,000 years old?
“Sixteen. I’m really only sixteen years old. My situation is very special; it only became like this recently.”
Hua Jian quickly recounted her experience of merging with the Illusory Dream Flower.
After listening to the explanation, Luo Yingying rubbed her temples hard. In all the world, this was the first time she had heard such a bizarre story.
Merged with an ancient spiritual flower seed from a Secret Realm and then turned into a humanoid spiritual flower?
It was unbelievable, yet she didn’t feel like Hua Jian was lying.
‘As expected of the Junior Sister Master is so focused on. She really does have secrets that are hard for ordinary people to understand.’
“I don’t quite understand this, but if Master thinks it’s fine, then it’s fine!” Luo Yingying decided to stop overthinking. After all, her Master was the one taking the disciple, not her.
Since her Master believed Hua Jian could join Lingcaifeng, then she could.
However, the things she originally planned to teach Hua Jian might be impossible now.
Seeing Luo Yingying give up on worrying, Hua Jian had no choice. Her situation was indeed a bit of a mess, and Luo Yingying’s reaction was within her expectations.
As they talked, the two had gone deep into Lingcaifeng’s territory.
Hua Jian turned her head and could see many Lingcaifeng Cultivators working hard in the flowerbeds by the road.
Watering, fertilizing, and recording the growth of the spiritual flowers—it was a scene of bustling activity.
The gender ratio in Lingcaifeng was slightly unbalanced.
The number of girls was more than double that of boys, and the Direct Disciple circle was practically a kingdom of women.
From the Lingcaifeng Master to her various disciples, all were female.
While admiring the people and scenery of Lingcaifeng, Hua Jian quietly listened to Luo Yingying provide more details.
Although the Lingcaifeng Master and her disciples were female, the Master’s own teacher had been a very kind old man.
The Master was not his only disciple; there were several others of her generation.