Chapter 162: Chapter 157: The Reason for the Breakthrough
"Huh?"
Hearing that Zhao Lin had found a Top Grade medicinal herb, Elder Huoyu was stunned for a moment before asking suspiciously, "Five Finger Mountain is a Second Grade herb mountain. Where would a Top Grade herb come from?"
Elder Water Mirror, however, sighed in relief. As long as Zhao Lin hadn’t fled in the middle of the task, the grade of the herb didn’t matter.
’What? A Top Grade herb!’
He suddenly snapped to his senses and waved Zhao Lin over. "Bring it here and let me see."
Zhao Lin acknowledged and strode over to Elder Water Mirror, opening his herb box.
Water Mirror’s eyebrows shot up in pleasant surprise. "A Yin Erosion Lotus!"
At this, the other elders could no longer remain seated. They crowded around to look, clicking their tongues in amazement.
"It really is a Yin Erosion Lotus! Water Mirror, your disciple has really brought you honor!"
"Who would have thought Five Finger Mountain would have a Top Grade herb."
"Strange. This Yin Erosion Lotus looks to be at least 120 years old. How has no one discovered it after all these years..."
Feeling smug, Water Mirror shot a sideways glance at Huoyu and asked calmly, "Zhao Lin, where did you find this Yin Erosion Lotus?"
"I found it in a cave on Index Finger Peak..."
Zhao Lin recounted the situation in the cave in great detail, leaving out the parts about the Cold Ice Silkworm and the Xiang brothers.
The elders looked at each other, stunned. They never imagined there was such a large cave inside Index Finger Peak.
Elder Gold Stone pondered for a moment before speaking. "No wonder Index Finger Peak has always been colder than the other areas. So there’s a cold leyline underground. In that case, it’s not so surprising that a Yin Erosion Lotus would grow there."
’And a Cold Ice Silkworm, too,’ Zhao Lin added silently.
Elder Huoyu said, "Could there be a second one? Should we go take a look?"
Elder Gold Stone waved his hand dismissively. "Don’t even think about it! A Top Grade herb like this is always one of a kind. The disciples are still in the middle of the Autumn Harvest. We can send someone to investigate afterward."
Seeing his disciple bring him such credit, Water Mirror looked at Zhao Lin approvingly. "Very good. I’ll have someone send this to the sect for safekeeping. You may return to the Autumn Harvest."
As he spoke, he glanced at the bundle on Zhao Lin’s back. "How was your harvest?"
In truth, by finding the Yin Erosion Lotus, Zhao Lin had basically locked in the top spot for the individual Autumn Harvest rankings. Water Mirror was asking this purely to show off a little.
"I’ve only had a small harvest; nothing to boast about," Zhao Lin said modestly.
Elder Huoyu’s eyes widened. Watching the two of them play their parts, he felt a wave of irritation and turned his head away. Out of sight, out of mind.
Elder Water Mirror was smiling as he sized up Zhao Lin when his eyebrows suddenly shot up, a look of surprise on his face.
’When did this disciple break through to the Second Layer of the Qi Realm?’
In the eyes of a Primordial Realm martial artist, the difference in Qi and Blood between the First and Second Layer of the Qi Realm was negligible—like the size difference between an ant and a bee to a lion or a tiger.
But Water Mirror was Zhao Lin’s instruction elder and was naturally very clear about his cultivation level.
’During the last assessment of his progress, Zhao Lin still had twenty or thirty acupoints left to open. How did he conquer them all in the blink of an eye?’
Zhao Lin, reading the elder’s expression, knew he had been found out. He said in a low voice, "Elder, there is one more thing."
Elder Water Mirror understood and stepped away from the Welcoming Pine.
Zhao Lin followed and delivered his prepared explanation. "Elder, in preparation for this Autumn Harvest, I trained bitterly day after day, hoping to break through to the next realm. Unfortunately, I was still short by a few acupoints."
"Today, while picking the Yin Erosion Lotus, I unexpectedly discovered that the karst cave seemed especially suitable for cultivation. So, on a whim, I tried circulating my Sea Return Skill."
"I never expected to break through just like that!"
When an Essence Soul entered his body, its energy was at its peak and could only be released slowly afterward. Zhao Lin hadn’t had time to think it through back then, and with a mind to raise his strength as quickly as possible, he had chosen to break through to the next realm in one go.
He had come up with this explanation afterward.
The explanation wasn’t perfect, but its beauty lay in the fact that it was impossible to verify. After all, the Yin Erosion Lotus had already been picked, so there was no way to test it again.
"Is that true? Such a thing can happen?"
Elder Water Mirror stroked his beard and fell into deep thought, pondering the truth of Zhao Lin’s words.
"Elder, I’d like to know what’s going on," Zhao Lin suddenly asked, a look of earnest inquiry on his face.
"Well..."
Elder Water Mirror coughed, choosing his words carefully. "The Sea Return Skill is of the water element, which seems to be similar to yin and cold energy."
He glanced at Zhao Lin and saw his half-believing expression, then said sternly, "Don’t be a skeptic. When we cultivate Inner Strength, we sometimes have to consider the resonance between man and nature."
"It’s possible that at that specific time and place, you happened to align with the cosmic timing and the terrestrial advantage, and thus broke through all at once."
"So that’s how it is!"
Zhao Lin feigned a look of sudden realization, thinking to himself, ’As long as you believe your own explanation, that’s all that matters.’
...
After taking his leave of the elders, Zhao Lin returned to Index Finger Peak.
Zhao Lin still felt uneasy, so he returned to the cave.
He dragged the corpse of the Cold Water Silkworm out from the rock crevice, crushed it with the handle of his shovel, wrapped it in his sweat towel, and took it outside, where he scattered the remains into a small stream.
As for the crack the Cold Water Silkworm had crawled out of, Zhao Lin had inspected it and found nothing special. It seemed the silkworm had simply dug a hole next to the Yin Erosion Lotus and hibernated inside.
Night had fallen. Zhao Lin spent the night in the same tall spruce tree as yesterday.
「On the third day, at noon.」
Ring Finger Peak.
"Do you think anyone can find such a hidden spot?"
"That’s where you’re wrong. A place that’s too conspicuous makes people suspicious on sight. This spot is perfect; it makes people lower their guard."
"Then why hasn’t anyone come? We’ve been waiting for an hour already."
"Be patient. A fish will take the bait sooner or later."
In a hollow on Ring Finger Peak, a Silver Calamus grew in the crevice between two large boulders.
This type of herb had a slightly spicy fragrance, like a mix of chili peppers and chrysanthemums.
Zhao Lin had followed the scent here, but he didn’t rush forward to pick it.
It was already the third day. Except for herbs buried underground, basically every nook and cranny had been turned over by the disciples.
For this Silver Calamus to have survived until now was highly unusual.
Zhao Lin sent out an ultrasonic wave and listened for a moment. Sure enough, he detected a dozen or so breathing patterns in the nearby woods and grass.
From their conversation, he learned that the people lying in wait were all outer court disciples, playing the old ambush game.
If someone were careless enough to fall for it, they would surely be robbed of everything.
Someone whispered from the thicket, "Shh... someone’s coming. Be quiet."
Zhao Lin knew they were talking about him, so he turned and walked away.
His own harvest was already plentiful; it wasn’t worth the risk to fight over a mid-to-low-grade herb.
In fact, Zhao Lin had already found quite a few herbs that morning, and his herb box was full.
He had to move the more durable root and stem herbs out to make room, trying his best to avoid fights. It wouldn’t be worth it if the herbs got damaged.
"Hey, why’d he leave..."
A frustrated voice sounded out from behind Zhao Lin.
After noon, as the sun began to drift west, people started to head down the mountain in ones and twos.
By mid-afternoon, the number of people descending the mountain had increased.
At this time, Zhao Lin also arrived at the base of the peak, joining the stream of people heading towards the mountainside.
