The year's end finally passed, and the New Spring festival arrived. Qingxiao Mountain was decorated with lanterns and banners, stretching from the foot of the mountain to its summit and adding color to the pure white world.
Within a forest stood a medicinal garden—Li Sijin's medicinal garden—filled with spirit plants she had created herself.
At that moment, Li Sijin crouched at the edge of a herb field, staring intently at a spirit herb. Snow could still be seen in the soil beneath it. Even though she had people clear it away every day, they could never remove it all, mainly because the disciples feared damaging the spirit herb.
She could sense the faint spiritual energy within the herb, and her heart was tense.
She had tried many times already. Even when many herbs were cultivated to contain spiritual energy, the moment they left the soil, that energy rapidly leaked away and could never be preserved.
Today, she would try once more.
Seeing that the timing was about right, she took a deep breath and carefully picked the spirit herb.
She laid the herb flat on her palm and began waiting nervously. As time passed, her unease only grew.
"Excuse me, which way should I go if I wish to join the Qingxiao Sect?"
A voice came from behind Li Sijin, nearly making her jump. She glanced sideways and saw a scholar standing outside the medicinal garden, looking at her through the fence.
The scholar appeared to be in his twenties or thirties. His clothes were clean, his complexion slightly sallow, and his features unremarkable, but the smile on his face was very approachable.
Li Sijin said impatiently, "Follow the mountain path. There are signposts along the way."
After hearing that, the scholar did not leave immediately. Instead, he asked curiously,