True Friendship Forged in Adversity

Gu Xiaoyun's subordinate, following closely behind him, said, "Senior Brother, how are you planning to deal with that guy surnamed Qin next?"

"Deal with him? What a joke!" Gu Xiaoyun cursed under his breath. "Didn't you see the Purple Seed next to him? We'll have to plan this carefully. Let's see if we can do something about the other two Purple Seeds..."

"Then what about when you were talking to Junior Brother Zhang Yang just now..."

"Heh heh... Does Zhang Yang really think I'm stupid? He thinks a few words can provoke me into going after Qin Haoxuan? That guy has a Purple Seed backing him! If I hadn't shown anger towards Qin Haoxuan at that moment, wouldn't he have found other opportunities to provoke me? Haven't I embarrassed myself enough already? By acting angry at Qin Haoxuan just now, he won't try to provoke me and make me lose face for now."

Gu Xiaoyun quickened his pace as he spoke, his mind still racing with how to get his hands on the field with the Spirit Spring that Qin Haoxuan possessed. A field with a Spirit Spring could grow high-grade Spirit Medicine. The hundred-year-old Blood Ginseng he held in his hand would no longer grow any further in his current field; even after two, three, or five hundred years, its medicinal efficacy would remain the same.

Unless he had a high-grade Spirit Land! Gu Xiaoyun knew very well that it was even harder to obtain a good Spirit Land from other fellow disciples. If he were to borrow a seed there... he would have to share a portion with others in the future. Currently... Qin Haoxuan's field was the best option!

"Brother Haoxuan, once I've cultivated successfully, I'll throw them all into the Ice Fire Prison as punishment!"

Xu Yu said with a hint of indignation. Qin Haoxuan could only offer a wry smile. Although Xu Yu and Murong Chao's support had prevented a direct conflict with Gu Xiaoyun, Xu Yu and Murong Chao couldn't support him forever, and he didn't like relying on others to live. In this treacherous Taichu Sect, he had to speed up his cultivation. Only with strength could he protect what rightfully belonged to him! Otherwise, he would be devoured until nothing was left.

After this incident, Qin Haoxuan's drowsiness had largely dissipated. Seeing others desperately carrying Spirit Springs to irrigate their fields and striving to upgrade their Spirit Lands, he learned from Gu Xiaoyun that Spirit Lands were indeed divided into different grades. He immediately stopped being lazy and picked up the empty buckets on the ground to fetch water.

Although carrying water was arduous labor, it could temper the Dao Heart. For Qin Haoxuan, who urgently needed to improve his strength and enhance himself in all aspects, this was also a good form of cultivation. Cultivating immortality wasn't just about meditating and circulating spiritual power. In recent days, Qin Haoxuan had been paying more attention to tempering his mind, because the accumulation of spiritual power could be compensated by Spirit Pills, heavenly treasures, and rare materials, but the cultivation of one's state of mind couldn't be improved by consuming any amount of Spirit Pills or heavenly treasures.

After carrying nearly a hundred loads of water, it was nearing noon. Even Qin Haoxuan, a Witch Cultivator, was starting to feel the strain. He sat on the ground, exhausted, to rest. At this moment, Murong Chao approached, also setting down his carrying pole and plopping down on the ridge.

"Senior Brother Qin, thank you for helping me loosen the soil and carry water yesterday."

Although he had been getting closer to Murong Chao these past two days, Qin Haoxuan hadn't communicated much with him and didn't understand Murong Chao's intentions.

Qin Haoxuan looked at the young master from a noble family and offered a gentle smile. "Thank you for helping me out of a tight spot this morning."

Murong Chao also smiled, and with that smile, his earlier hesitant expression vanished. "Senior Brother Qin, let's be friends from now on, shall we?"

"Friends?" The word coming from Murong Chao surprised Qin Haoxuan somewhat. He smiled and asked, "Why?"

"Being with you and Junior Sister Xu, I feel very relaxed. There's no need for scheming or deception. Moreover, you have an indescribable charm, a charm that even those three Purple Seed disciples lack. Among the two hundred disciples in our batch, I think you are the closest to the Dao."

"Dao?" Qin Haoxuan looked bewildered, as if muttering to himself, "What is Dao? What is the meaning of Dao?"

He fell silent for a long time, his eyes gazing at the vast sky as if in deep thought. After a while, he came back to himself and said apologetically, "Sorry, I was lost in thought."

"No, Senior Brother Qin, your every word and action seems to contain philosophy. I can see it from the way you've been carrying water these past two days. Even Li Jing and Zhang Kuang can't compare to you, and we are even further behind."

Murong Chao's eyes held sincerity, a stark contrast to the ruffian he appeared to be on the night they first arrived at the Taichu Sect, fighting over a quilt. Perhaps the rumors and taunts he had faced these past few days had led to a profound realization.

"Senior Brother Qin, I come from a noble family and received education in ethics and morality since childhood, but those are merely the rules followed by ordinary mortals. From you, I have learned about equality and respect, and I understand what it means to be unyielding. A cultivator must be unyielding towards heaven to achieve great things. If one cannot even be unyielding towards others, how can they speak of being unyielding towards heaven?"

Qin Haoxuan smiled slightly upon hearing Murong Chao's words.

"Senior Brother Qin, although your aptitude is not as good as mine, you can interact with Xu Yu as an equal, you found the Spirit Spring field, and you even helped me with kindness when I wronged you! These past few days, including those from Li Jing's faction, have been mocking me for not having rooted yet. You and Junior Sister Xu are the only ones who haven't mocked me behind my back. I truly hope to become friends with you. If my cultivation surpasses yours in the future, I will never let villains like Gu Xiaoyun bully you. If I have the ability, I will even help you improve!"

Qin Haoxuan smiled again, a hint of emotion flashing through his heart. Judging by Murong Chao's expression as he spoke these words, they were indeed from the heart.

"Friends are people who help and support each other, share hardships and joys, and absolutely do not kick someone when they are down during times of crisis. If you can do that, we are friends!"

Hearing Qin Haoxuan's solemn words, Murong Chao nodded earnestly. As they looked at each other and smiled, their palms met and clasped tightly.

In the following days, all the new disciples tended to the crops in the fields in the morning and cultivated on their own in the afternoon. By the afternoon of the fifth day, a faint fluctuation of spiritual power emanated from Murong Chao's room.

Murong Chao had rooted!

Rooting in fourteen days, while not as fast as Zhang Yang, was six days earlier than the current Sect Master, True Lord Huang Long, who took twenty days to root! All five special Immortal Seed disciples had rooted, which naturally pleased Elder Chu. After Murong Chao rooted, he rushed to Murong Chao's room to offer him encouragement.

After rooting, as Murong Chao walked out of his room, he felt the gazes of those from Li Jing's faction, who had mocked him before, darting away evasively. Li Jing even walked up with a smile, congratulating him on successfully rooting. Murong Chao remained indifferent to this smiling tiger, replying with the same cool detachment that Qin Haoxuan often used.

Li Jing had initially wanted to exchange pleasantries, but Qin Haoxuan and Xu Yu, who had also heard the news of Murong Chao rooting, arrived. The moment they appeared, Murong Chao stopped paying attention to Li Jing, who was enthusiastically trying to engage him in conversation, and turned with a smile to greet Qin Haoxuan and Xu Yu.

If he hadn't still been planning to win over Xu Yu, Murong Chao's public snubbing of Li Jing would have already caused Li Jing to fall out with him. But even now, Li Jing was secretly vowing, "Murong Chao, Murong Chao, just you wait. Once I win over Xu Yu, I'll make sure you can't live and can't die, and make you pay the price for betraying me. I'll warn everyone else, I, Li Jing, am not Zhang Kuang!"

"Congratulations," Qin Haoxuan said with a smile. Though these two words were not flattering or sweet, they were filled with sincerity.

"Senior Brother Qin, I've finally rooted! I won't be looked down upon by those snobbish people anymore. Come, let's go to my room for a bit. I'll share some of my rooting experience with you."

Qin Haoxuan accepted Murong Chao's invitation without hesitation. Although Xu Yu had also shared some of her rooting experience, Xu Yu was a Purple Seed disciple, and her aptitude and comprehension were far superior to Qin Haoxuan's Weak Seed. While her experience was valuable, it wasn't suitable for Qin Haoxuan. Murong Chao, a Gray Seed, would have rooting experience that would be more applicable to Qin Haoxuan.

Under Li Jing's cold, angry gaze, the three of them walked into the room together, further fueling the prideful Prince's secret vow to make Qin Haoxuan and Murong Chao suffer immensely in the future!

Time flew by again. Another five days passed in the blink of an eye. Five days ago, Murong Chao had generously shared his rooting experience, which had greatly enlightened Qin Haoxuan. He had been feeling as if he was about to root for the past few days, but like a woman in difficult labor, the sensation of rooting had been present for a long time, yet the Immortal Seed showed no signs of movement.

That night, Qin Haoxuan sat in the bushes, digesting the pill given to him by Gu Yunzi. After Gu Yunzi left, he examined himself internally and discovered that his Immortal Seed was already entwined with tiny rootlets, which made him feel greatly puzzled.

Didn't the Immortal Root normally send a main root into the Dantian? Why did his Immortal Seed have so many small lateral roots, yet the main root was nowhere to be found?

Qin Haoxuan pondered for a long time but couldn't find the cause. Afraid to ask anyone, he could only continue to be puzzled.

He meditated and circulated spiritual power for a while longer, channeling the spiritual power within him into the Immortal Seed. The Immortal Seed, which had repeatedly shown signs of rooting in the past few days, began to stir again. Having been misled by the Immortal Seed numerous times, Qin Haoxuan paid it no mind and continued to infuse it with spiritual power.

Just as he was concentrating on absorbing spiritual power and neutralizing the residual medicinal effects of the One-Leaf Golden Lotus in his body, he suddenly felt a jolt in his heart. His Immortal Seed began to tremble violently.

What was happening? Qin Haoxuan stopped injecting spiritual power into the Immortal Seed, but the trembling intensified. Based on the rooting experiences shared by Xu Yu and Murong Chao, there was no mention of the Immortal Seed trembling violently during rooting. Could this be a sign of his Immortal Seed mutating, or was it mutating again after absorbing the toxicity of the Corrosion Pill for so many days?

However, indulging in wild thoughts at this moment was futile. Qin Haoxuan's heart skipped a beat. If he continued to dwell on this, it would turn into a heart demon, which would be troublesome. He quickly banished all sorts of distracting thoughts from his mind, embraced his original nature, calmed his heart, and quietly observed the changing Immortal Seed.

During the trembling, fine rootlets, numbering a hundred, sprouted from the cracks of the Immortal Seed. After encircling the entire Immortal Seed, these hundred fine rootlets began to spread towards Qin Haoxuan's Dantian.

I've always believed that people should grow, not just in strength. A sixteen-year-old child goes up the mountain to cultivate the Dao. Everyone has different aptitudes and opportunities, and their state of mind will grow in different directions, but everyone should grow. Murong is the first... everyone will be, but everyone's path is different, their direction is different, and their relationships are different.