Gather and Appraise

"Coo~ coo~"

In the afternoon, as sunlight peeked through the gaps in the dark clouds, the carrion-eating strange owls, which had been keeping their distance from the corpse-burial wasteland, were the first to fly back, circling restlessly and searching for a meal.

Du En and the others had been busy all day, filling the graves in an orderly fashion. With the last shovel of dirt, they declared the day's work complete.

Huff...

The corpse-buriers let out sighs of relief and dispersed in a single breath. They all looked exhausted, more tired than usual. Ning Caize coughed weakly.

The danger of the Yin Evil's dark energy was truly significant. Even though they had changed their strategy to avoid it as much as possible, they were still inevitably more affected than usual.

Their already scarce and sparse Magic Power had been over-consumed. Coupled with a day of labor, their hands were numb by the end of the shoveling, feeling like blocks of frozen meat.

Only Du En still had the surplus energy to cast his gaze towards the mountain forest bordering the wasteland.

He was the first to walk out of the wasteland, removing his headscarf. His eyes, sharp as a falcon's, scanned the surroundings.

With a casual swing of his shovel, clang, he knocked out a particularly impatient strange owl that had flown right to his doorstep.

They hadn't had a proper meal today. Although there were some remains on the path, how could they compare to the corpse-buriers, whose scent was now more thoroughly permeated and, to their senses, ten times more delicious?

Then, as expected, they used the lives of their own kind to verify that these two-legged corpses were, as always, very difficult to deal with.

Amidst the clamor, they had to settle for the next best thing.

"These damn birds are so noisy!"

Wei Ming couldn't help but get angry listening to the chirping sounds. He really wanted to rush over and make them all shut up, but his body couldn't support such an action.

The shovel in his hand felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, and his legs felt like they were filled with lead. Although they had finished work earlier than usual, at his current pace and strength, he figured he'd be no different from usual by the time he got back to their lodging.

Then, they saw a nimble and diligent figure leaving the path and darting through the trees in the mountain forest.

"As expected of the boss!"

Wei Ming exclaimed with genuine admiration again, then, a moment later, "Huh? What's the boss doing?"

He looked towards Ning Caize, instinctively.

Don't just look at me whenever you encounter something you don't understand!

I'm just prematurely aged, not actually forty or fifty years old!

Ning Caize was just as confused, not understanding what Du En was up to.

He then looked at where Du En had been standing. A strange owl, its neck twisted, lay there unconscious.

Amazing!

This guy actually dropped the free food he just got on the ground!

Everyone was astonished and stopped in their tracks. Leaning on their shovels to rest and catch their breath, they all watched Du En, wanting to see what he was doing.

He, who was being watched, paid no mind.

His gaze swept over the mountain forest where the sunlight filtered through. In these illuminated spots, he easily found what he was looking for.

Ginseng, goji berries, and wild red dates.

This Southern Border mountain forest was indeed wild and abundant, especially around the corpse-burial wasteland. It was rarely frequented by people, so many medicinal plants grew there freely.

Although none of them were ranked and not spiritual items, they were not ordinary goods either.

The ginseng could easily be decades old, the goji berries were bright red and the size of a finger, and the wild red dates hung heavy on the branches, allowing him to pick and choose.

He gathered a pile, weighing several pounds, and wrapped it in a clean cloth he had brought from the morning, walking back to the group.

"These... medicinal herbs?"

Everyone was a little stunned.

Du En nodded slightly and explained, "Yes, medicinal herbs. I want to try making some Spirit Cuisine. I overheard something related to it near the Elegant Courtyard before, and after pondering it for days, I've gained a little confidence."

As soon as the place name "Elegant Courtyard" was mentioned, the faces of Ning Caize and the other three elders changed drastically. They became reticent and avoided the topic altogether.

In any case, Du En's motive was now clear.

Wei Ming was baffled but knew better than to say anything inappropriate at that moment. So, he changed the subject, "Speaking of which, these ginseng and such, growing around here, can they even be used?"

This corpse-burial wasteland was not a good place!

"We'll know if we try."

Du En simply replied.

The Three-step Poison Test!

The first step was to mash them and apply them to exposed skin, carefully observing and comparing them with the culinary principles.

The second step was to mash them and apply them to the lips, mouth, and other areas, continuing to observe and compare.

The third step was to chew them thoroughly and swallow a small amount into the stomach, still observing and comparing.

Simultaneously, he would circulate his Cultivation Technique and mobilize his Magic Power as an aid.

This methodical approach made the others a bit nervous.

So, as soon as they saw Du En react, they couldn't help but ask, "How is it?"

"Good, no Yin-cold strange pests, but rather the opposite extreme, all exhibiting Yang-warm medicinal properties."

Du En reached this conclusion.

Upon hearing this, everyone else's eyes immediately lit up.

Yang-warm medicine, could that be used to treat Yin evil seeping into the body?

Otherwise, relying solely on boiling ginger soup after returning would be useless, merely a form of self-comfort.

At once, they forced themselves to get up and search for some to eat, to see if there would be any better effects.

Seeing this, Du En didn't stop them, merely adding, "If you're going to pick them, go for the ones growing in the sunlight."

He had only chosen those types just now, and he couldn't guarantee that similar medicinal herbs growing in shaded areas would have similar properties.

Ultimately, these common herbs were easily influenced by their environment.

Even for ranked spirit herbs, their medicinal properties could differ depending on how they were cultivated.

Seeing that the others were listening, Du En carefully packed the herbs, hung them on himself, and then picked up a shovel in one hand and the Strange Owl in the other.

With a thought, his status panel appeared.

Nothing much had changed, except for one new entry.

[Hundred Arts: Gather and Appraise (Beginner's Practice 1/10)]

"Gather and Appraise? That makes sense. Appraising various spiritual items is indeed a craft, giving rise to many professions like ore prospectors and herb gatherers."

Unlike the purely physical labor of corpse burying, this could be classified under the Hundred Arts of Cultivation.

This was an unexpected bonus.

It also indirectly proved that the herbs he found here were not misidentified.

In his mind, he was already contemplating how to cook them.

The few pages Luo Heng had contributed didn't contain specific recipes, only theoretical foundations. The specifics would depend on Du En himself.

However, based on his experience with Gather and Appraise, it could be inferred that starting with non-ranked items for the Hundred Arts was indeed a feasible approach.

The others soon returned.

Their mouths were stuffed with food, mainly wild red dates, which were large, sweet, and juicy, easier to find than ginseng and more conspicuous than goji berries.

The main issue was that they were too dirty. Unlike Du En, who had come prepared, they could only use their hands, which they had hastily wiped clean, to stuff the food into their mouths.

They were eating with relish now, and after it entered their stomachs, it felt warm, far more effective than drinking a large pot of ginger soup, making them feel quite comfortable.

Although the effect was limited to this, it was already quite good.

"Du En, it really has to be you! If it were us, or even the seniors before us, we wouldn't dare to touch the wild herbs here. We could only watch them grow and rot season after season."

Unlike ginseng, these wild red dates and goji berries were all fruits. They would fall when ripe and rot after a long time on the ground.

Ning Caize felt quite emotional about this.

The others, busy chewing, could only nod repeatedly, full of admiration for Du En.