Tang Jie looked over and saw a white grass about three feet long with four cloves, its roots like twisted vines. Nodding, he said, “Correct, it’s Whiteroot, and one that’s been growing for at least thirty years. I can’t believe that there’s so many! Where did you find them?”

Yiyi was holding at least seven stalks. For Old Crow Ridge to be home to a swath of Whiteroot, and thirty-year Whiteroot at that, was practically a miracle.

Yiyi pointed into the distance. “Over by the spring.”

“By the spring”?

Tang Jie was surprised.

The stream was not hidden away, and it wasn’t far from Fragrant Store Cave. There was no reason for them to have remained for that long.

He activated the Illuminating Eye and looked where Yiyi was pointing. Mist churned over the stream, and water spruce grew next to it, exuding a white energy. This mixed with the mist from the stream, creating a white fog that obscured all.

Tang Jie realized what was going on. “Mist of Water and Wood managed to form a natural formation. No wonder!”

There were always some things in the world that implicitly grew in accordance with the principles of formations, resulting in special effects. The stream Yiyi was pointing at had many water spruces growing next to it. This tree excreted a sort of sap that would sublimate on contact with the wind and make people dizzy, and the addition of water would strengthen the effect. This sort of energy fog should have slowly dissipated, but the grove of water spruce had grown up in such a way that they created a formation that locked down the area, filling it with this dizzying mist, and when coupled with the mist from the stream to obscure vision, they created a natural illusion formation.

A person who went in would lose their sense of direction, so it was no wonder that they wouldn’t be able to find the Whiteroot. Yiyi had been able to find the Whiteroots because she was a sprite and could communicate with the water spruces, who had pointed her the way to them.

This illusion formation wasn’t actually difficult to break through. All it required was spell arts blasted at it from a distance to destroy a few of the supporting water spruces. But natural formations were difficult to find, and there was no harm in appreciating the view. Moreover, it was not good to destroy nature without a good reason.

Tang Jie had an idea when he saw this grove, feeling like he could use it somehow.

He took out the Alarm Gate Banner and gave it to Yiyi. “Yiyi, you see that short water spruce? Right, that shortest one surrounded by the others. Stick this banner on top of it.”

Tang Jie took out a block of Softscent Jade. “And then put this Softscent Jade in the stream where it can be closest to the tree that the banner is on.”

“Why?” Yiyi didn’t get it.

“That’s a natural formation, and if we strengthen it, we can use it as a path to escape. But this illusion formation only has Water and Wood, so it’s too easily broken. It’s only been able to last for so long because nobody can be bothered to deal with it, not because nobody is capable. Softscent Jade represents Earth and can be used to solidify the foundations and grant self-recovery. With this thing, it won’t be that easy to break the illusion formation. Do you get it now?”

When with Yiyi, Tang Jie had never minded teaching her about various things. While she still wasn’t a true expert when it came to formations, under Tang Jie’s guidance, she understood many basic concepts.

As for Softscent Jade, some materials were consumed and some materials were not. Softscent Jade was the kind of material that wasn’t consumed, so Tang Jie wasn’t worried about losing it. It was just that when the formation activated, some of the spirituality in the jade might be absorbed, reducing the value of the Softscent Jade. But if this could save his life, then it was worth it.

Yiyi firmly nodded after hearing Tang Jie’s explanation, taking the banner and jade and going.

After giving Yiyi her mission, Tang Jie turned to inspect his Yi Wood Azure Heaven Formation. As he was performing this final inspection, he realized something with a start.

He hadn’t realized it when he was getting the Softscent Jade, but he now realized that he had apparently seen only two blocks of Softscent Jade in the Mustard Seed Bag.

Tang Jie had refined 4.2 blocks from the Jade Pearl Stone. One block had been divided into two and given to Wei Tianchong and Shi Meng, and he had sold off the partial block for money that he used to buy ore. Thus, he still had three blocks left unused.

He hastily opened up his Mustard Seed Bag and looked again. Everything else was there, all except that Softscent Jade. After he had taken out that one block, there was only one block left.

Shocked, Tang Jie looked again, and he finally found a little white rock in the corner of his bag.

He took it out and found that it was that missing Softscent Jade, but for some reason, all of its spirituality was gone. This brick-sized block was now nothing more than an ordinary rock.

Five thousand coins, gone! Just like that!

Tang Jie thought back, and he recalled how he had stuffed that black pearl into the Softscent Jade.

Was it that pearl’s doing?

This… What in the world was this thing, that it could suck a block of Softscent Jade dry of its essence?

A chill traveled up his spine and throughout his body.

Tang Jie knew that he had obtained some incredible treasure, but this treasure was just too bizarre and wicked. He did not dare to mess around with it.

At this moment, points of starlight appeared in the distance. This was the Green Hill Sect’s signal to gather.

Tang Jie put away the pearl and headed back down the ridge.

Down below, Qin Zhou and his disciples were whispering about something. From how animated their faces were, it seemed like they had had a good harvest.

As Tang Jie came over, Qin Zhou said, “Brother Tang, how did it go?”

“Not bad.” Tang Jie turned his hand over, revealing the handful of Whiteroots.

“So many?” the Green Hill Sect disciples cried out in unison.

They had searched the entire afternoon, and the five of them had only managed to find ten-some stalks, but Tang Jie had, alone, brought back eight.

“And they’re thirty-year Whiteroots.” Even the taciturn Ling Jing couldn’t help but comment.

Whiteroots weren’t easy to find, and thirty-year Whiteroots were even harder to find. The Green Hill Sect disciples were stunned by Tang Jie’s harvest, Zhang Chengyun even saying, “With these thirty-year Whiteroots, we should be able to refine two furnaces’ worth of Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pills!”

He reached for the Whiteroots, but Tang Jie drew his hand back and put the Whiteroots away. Zhang Chengyun snatched at empty air and angrily said, “What are you doing?”

Qin Zhou lightly coughed. “Junior Brother Zhang, these aren’t ours.”

Zhang Chengyun remembered that Tang Jie wasn’t part of the Green Hill Sect and blushed in shame. On the side, Luo Yin and Ling Jing giggled.

Qin Zhou asked Tang Jie, “Brother Tang, congratulations on getting so many Whiteroots. This spirit grass is extremely useful to us, as Brother Tang knows. Would you be willing to part with them?”

Tang Jie casually asked, “Did you find any Blazeraven Essences?”

“This…” Qin Zhou exchanged looks with his comrades, but all of them shook their heads. It was clear that none of them had found any.

It was hard to blame them. They were all focused on the things they needed, with no attention to spare for what they didn’t need. If not for Yiyi, Tang Jie wouldn’t have gotten these Whiteroots. Regardless, they didn’t have anything to trade to Tang Jie.

In truth, Tang Jie didn’t even need more Blazeraven Essences. He had asked because he was testing to see if they had the ability to trade with him. And if they didn’t, that was wonderful.

Sure enough, Qin Zhou said, “We don’t have any Blazeraven Essences, but if Brother Tang is willing to give us the Whiteroots, we are willing to pay in cash or medicine.”

“Right, right!” Luo Yin shouted. “Our Green Hill Sect has lots of medicines that we can trade to you!”

Tang Jie immediately said, “That’s good. I want three Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pills.”

“What?” The Green Hill Sect disciples were aghast.

Grimacing, Qin Zhou said, “Can Brother Tang ask for something else? The Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pill is a secret medicine of our Green Hill Sect that is not lightly given to outsiders.”

Tang Jie chuckled. “So Horizon Ocean Pavilion doesn’t count as outsiders? ‘Not giving to outsiders’ is just something one says to raise one’s social status. Moreover, while the Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pill can assist in breaking into the next realm, even without it, it doesn’t mean one can’t enter Mortal Shedding.”

For cultivators, the greater the realm, the harder it was to break into it. While Mortal Shedding wasn’t easy to break into, it wasn’t some enormous barrier, only a matter of whether one spent a long time or a short time. Those lacking the talent might need several years, while those with good talent might only need a few months to half a year. Thus, while the Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pill could muster spiritual energy to assist in breaking into the realm, increasing the chances of reaching the Mortal Shedding Realm by a lot, this was only valuable for ordinary students. It was basically worthless for students like Qi Shaoming. A person like him wouldn’t have much to worry about before Celestial Heart.

Why else would it be said that someone with a nine-cycle Jade Gate even had a hope at Immortal Platform?

Thus, Qin Zhou’s words were merely an excuse to try to lower the price.

Chen Yao then said, “While that’s true, a Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pill doesn’t only require Whiteroot. A large number of materials are also needed, so asking for three in one go is too much.”

Tang Jie replied, “But Whiteroot is the most important, or else you wouldn’t have risked coming here. Twenty furnaces’ worth of pills will be twenty-some pills if you’re lucky. Asking for three isn’t too much!”

To be frank, Tang Jie asking for three pills for the Whiteroots he had on hand truly wasn’t going overboard. It was just that a business transaction without much profit really wasn’t very tempting.

Tang Jie wanted to make a trade of equivalent value, so the Green Hill Sect had been celebrating just a little too early.

Zhang Chengyun snorted and said, “He was able to get the Whiteroots because we escorted him here. Without us, where would he have gotten them? Moreover, even if he weren’t here, we might have found these Whiteroots anyway. And he still has the nerve to ask us for three Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pills.”

He almost said out loud, Tang Jie, you’re just a puny student, so you’re lucky that we won’t just steal from you. And you still have the guts to try to take from the lion’s mouth? You really think that the world is full of good people like us? Really, people don’t know the dangers of the world until they experience it for themselves.

Tang Jie heard what had been left unsaid and smiled. “So you’re saying that you want to take a bodyguard fee for keeping me company?”

“You…” Zhang Chengyun froze up, angrily gesturing at him.

Qin Zhou frowned. Just when he was about to explain, Tang Jie said, “In truth, taking a little bodyguard fee isn’t too excessive.”

“Huh?” Everyone was surprised, wondering what Tang Jie meant.

Tang Jie replied, “But the price needs to be negotiated first. Right, so how many Harmonic Threshold Breaking Pills are you willing to trade for the Whiteroots?”

Qin Zhou was about to speak when Zhang Chengyun impatiently said, “One at most!”

“So it’s one life for two pills.” Tang Jie nodded. “Not expensive at all.”

Everyone grew excited upon hearing this, as it seemed that Tang Jie had agreed to their conditions. Only Qin Zhou felt like there was something wrong, saying, “Tang Jie, what are you trying to say?”

“It’s nothing. It’s just that since you’ve agreed to protect me, then please prepare to do so,” Tang Jie nonchalantly said.

“‘Prepare to do so’? Do what?” The disciples were flabbergasted.

“To deal with fiend beasts, of course. Have you not noticed?” Tang Jie chuckled.

“They’re already here!”