Girl, do you want to be a sword holder?

Xiao Ran returned to Sword-Wielding Mountain in the early afternoon.

His master had gone to the Imperial Capital to buy wine and hadn't returned yet. Knowing her temperament, Xiao Ran wouldn't be surprised if she stopped by a brothel to listen to a tune, rolled some dice at a gambling den, or flirted with someone in the palace.

The autumn scenery at the top of Sword-Wielding Mountain was rich, but not hot.

Standing on the edge of the cliff and looking at the Zongzhi Mountains, it was like a timeless and elegant ink painting, with excellent scenery.

Looking at Sword-Wielding Mountain under his feet, it was bald and ugly like a childish doodle.

My master is always rejecting this and rejecting that, but the place where she meditates, sleeps, and pees is the ugliest. Did she drink too much fake wine and damage her eyes? Xiao Ran thought.

He was determined to completely transform Sword-Wielding Mountain, making it even more beautiful than Hundred Herbs Peak, and turning it into the most livable famous mountain in the Zongzhi Mountains.

Today was a great harvest.

Xiao Ran started by brewing wine.

He took out two stone vats.

One stone vat was used to hold crushed Black Yeast Mushrooms to extract natural yeast.

The other stone vat was used to hold Malt Mold, Hops, and crushed wheat grain starch.

Half an hour later.

The first vat, yeast extraction was complete.

The second vat, the wort was squeezed out using gauze.

The two vats were mixed, filtered with Diatomaceous Earth, semi-sealed with bamboo strips, and then buried in the warm ground where the spiritual vein passed, to begin fermentation.

Fermentation initially entered the high foam stage directly. When the wort was particularly vigorous, a rustling sound could be heard, and the aroma of wine could be smelled at the same time.

If the spiritual energy was abundant, the geothermal heat was stable, and the luck was good, Malt clear rice wine could be drunk before midnight.

With the wine brewing finished, all that was left was to wait for the malt to ferment.

Next, Xiao Ran planned to open up some wasteland.

The area at the top of Sword-Wielding Mountain was about the size of four or five football fields.

The disciple quarters and the Broken Sword area in the middle were slightly higher, and the rest was flat ground.

After a field investigation of the peak top, Xiao Ran made a perfect plan.

South side.

The south side was the direction the disciple quarters door faced.

The south side had the flattest terrain and the largest space, accounting for about one-third of the peak top.

A sea of flowers, medicinal fields, and wheat grain fields would all be arranged there.

When the door opened, the empty, rich, and continuous valley connected with the sea of clouds.

Therefore, the positioning of the south side was: Planting Area! East side.

On the east cliff, there were rocks and solitary pines, which was where his master often drank.

The east side also had a node of cool underground water, so a deep pool could be dug, diverting water to form a stream, flowing into the strange rocks to form a small waterfall.

The landscape of strange rocks and solitary pines would immediately become artistic.

In addition, fish could be raised in the pool, and fishing was also possible.

Pavilions and chess tables could be built around it, making it comfortable enough.

The vegetation covered pine, maple, and cherry blossoms, making it quiet enough.

Therefore, the positioning of the east side was: Leisure Area! West side.

The west cliff was where domestic water was discharged, so waste could be recycled, and vegetable gardens and orchards could be built on the west side, or some spiritual beasts could be raised.

Therefore, the positioning of the west side was: Fruit and Vegetable Area! North side.

The north side was slightly higher in terrain, and large Mao bamboo could be planted to create a sense of the back mountain.

In the bamboo forest, some shade-loving flowers and plants could be planted, attracting some small animals such as rabbits and squirrels, which could occasionally be eaten.

The North Cliff is steep, facing the Hundred Herbs Peak where True Person Yinyue resides.

This place happens to be where warm currents converge, perfect for digging a hot spring pool.

Sky light, sea of clouds, misty vapors, after a hard day's work, soaking in a hot spring here in the evening to relax body and mind, tsk tsk...

Therefore, the positioning of the north side is: health and wellness area! Planning complete.

Xiao Ran checked his storage space.

Tools, seeds, trees, seedlings, fertilizer, all are complete.

Unfortunately, he is still a Mortal, the amount of work is too large, it cannot be done in a day, it will take at least a week to complete.

The time has reached evening.

The sunset dyed the western half of the sky red.

He came to the west side.

Because he has to eat and drink every day, Xiao Ran chose the most important vegetable plots to start with.

Daily vegetable planting and yeast mushroom cultivation must be arranged as soon as possible.

He took out a hoe.

Bathed in the sunset, Xiao Ran began to cultivate the wasteland hoe by hoe.

After a while, he suddenly heard a soft, icy female voice from behind.

"Jiang Chuyan from Little Qiong Peak, seeks to see Elder Ling Zhou."

Jiang Chuyan? Xiao Ran was slightly stunned.

Is that the girl who was rejected by his master because of her high talent?

Good heavens! The Disciple Challenge only starts tomorrow, is she coming to make trouble today?

If Chen Gongxing was an accidental encounter, then this Jiang Chuyan is taking the initiative. What kind of surprise will Ye Fan bring him? Xiao Ran only felt a headache, continued to cultivate the land, and without turning his head, said:

"Master has gone out on a long trip, please go back."

Unexpectedly, the soft female voice behind him suddenly became excited.

"That's just as well—I'm here to find you!"

There was no avoiding it.

Xiao Ran turned around, leaning on the hoe. In the sunset, he couldn't see her face clearly, only vaguely saw a petite figure.

Her height was probably only about one meter fifty, a pair of slender legs stuck in the air, but they were straight and long.

Is she a child?

Xiao Ran suddenly had the mentality of an elder.

"Looking for me? Call me Martial Uncle first."

The girl's voice was soft and nuo, with a hint of faint hoarseness, but her tone was cold.

"You killed my Xiao Hong, and you still want me to call you Martial Uncle?"

Xiao Ran was stunned.

"Xiao Hong refers to the Red Spotted Tiger?"

The soft, icy voice trembled slightly.

"So it was you who killed it!"

Good heavens! Today is too coincidental, isn't it? If it weren't for the girl's suppressed anger in her tone, and her not-so-smart figure and voice, he would have suspected that the other party was using the tiger as bait to deliberately lure him.

"It wanted my life, should I not kill it and keep it as an ancestor to worship?"

Xiao Ran said bluntly.

"You—"

The girl was speechless. Now that things have come to this, the Red Spotted Tiger is gone, but she must seize this opportunity and swear to stay on Sword-Wielding Mountain, so she put on a straight face and pretended to be unreasonable:

"You have your reasons, and I have my stance. You killed my Xiao Hong, so naturally, I can't let you off."

Facing the blood-red sunset, Xiao Ran smiled.

"How do you intend to not let me off?"

In an instant, the Spirit Pressure of the Golden Core Realm slowly enveloped Sword-Wielding Mountain. The girl's expression darkened, and she feigned coldness, saying, "Considering you are temporarily a senior, I'll allow you to make the first move—draw your filthy and vulgar sword. This is the last time you'll ever possess it!"

Huh? How is it that when good words come out of your mouth, they just don't sound right?

Xiao Ran's original plan was to limit their Cultivation during the Disciple Challenge, only comparing swordsmanship, a fair duel to see who had the higher talent.

But this Jiang Chuyan actually took the initiative to come to his door on the grounds that the Red Spotted Tiger was killed. With the master not around, she could completely act first and report later.

Even if she didn't dare to hurt him, she could easily defeat him with her Golden Core Cultivation, humiliate him in various ways, and then spread it far and wide, making it impossible for him to gain a foothold in Zongzhi Mountain.

He was about to be finished!

Xiao Ran remained calm, holding the hoe as if it were a sword, and began his journey of deception.

"Young lady, do you want to become a Sword Holder?"

Although the girl was in the throes of youth, she was meticulous and didn't fall for it at all.

Trying to deceive me because you can't beat me? Do you take me for a fool?

"The Sword-Wielding Elder has always been ruthless. As long as I break your sword, the Elder will definitely abandon you ruthlessly. Looking at the entire sect, is there anyone more suitable to be a Direct Disciple than me right now?"

Ruthless?

His bizarre vocabulary has increased again!

Xiao Ran remained calm, his expression serene.

"Do you know why the master rejected you?"

"Because of prejudice, because I am a woman."

When she said this, Chuyan trembled with anger, cold sweat all over her body in the middle of autumn, her hands and feet icy, and tears almost flowed uncontrollably.

Xiao Ran shook his head.

"No, it's because you can't guess the master's intentions."

The girl rubbed the corners of her eyes to prevent tears from actually flowing.

"What intentions?"

Seeing that the other party was interested, Xiao Ran spoke unhurriedly.

"Let me give you an example. Your Red Spotted Tiger has delicious meat that can be soaked in the Dantian to nourish the skin, which is excellent for a woman's body. What's more, the master likes to drink. Have you heard of tiger penis wine? If I had a Red Spotted Tiger, I would have slaughtered it to show my respect to the master. Why would I raise it to such a size?"

The girl was stunned, almost believing Xiao Ran's nonsense! "This is a female tiger, what can you use to make wine!"

Xiao Ran was embarrassed for a moment, regretting not checking the tiger's body.

"That's not important, what's important is filial piety."

Not giving the girl a moment to think, Xiao Ran used all his ventriloquism skills.

"What the master values is not talent, nor beauty, but filial piety. Look at what I did—on the first day I came to the mountain, I changed the master's house, and prepared warm bathwater in the evening; early the next morning, I used skillful shoulder-rubbing techniques to massage the master until she exploded with spiritual energy; seeing that the master was out of wine, I ran around looking for materials and started brewing Malt clear rice wine. If there are no accidents, the juice will be ready tonight; next, I will plant trees, farm, and dig hot springs, transforming the bare Sword-Wielding Mountain into the most beautiful place in the Zongzhi Mountains... Do you understand? What the master wants is not a talented but clueless child, but a filial disciple who can help her with her daily life. Think carefully, do you have my abilities?"

Although Xiao Ran's words were harsh, they were all true and not fabricated.

The girl subconsciously scanned the entire peak.

She didn't understand house techniques, but the house was indeed built to a high standard. The positions of the eight foundations subtly contained the Great Dao, which was more reasonable than the best houses in the Imperial Capital.

The underground brewing was also fermenting crazily at a strange speed.

She had only seen the hoeing technique in Chen Gongxing's uncle's valley...

She suddenly remembered the words of Lin Yunzi, who taught in the Outer Sect.

Such a person should only exist in the heavens, how often can one hear of him in the mortal realm!

Really?

This was clearly just a Mortal, how could he possibly have such a realm?

Or perhaps someone else did it for him?

She couldn't be one hundred percent certain that Xiao Ran had done all of this, but she had a test that could expose him on the spot.

"You just said that you massaged the Elder's shoulders to the point where she couldn't control herself, leading to her self-detonating her Spirit Qi?"

Finally, he took the bait! This girl wasn't as naive as her petite figure suggested, nor was she as simple as her soft voice sounded.

Xiao Ran narrowed his eyes slightly, looking up at the petite figure bathed in the setting sun, and said quietly, "Do you want to try it too?"