Chapter 36 (continued)

When they saw Shan Heyuan return, enveloped in fragrance and carrying the Verdant Dwelling Grass, everyone showed expressions of surprise.

Shan Heyuan walked through the crowd and into the dean's office.

The others followed behind, standing guard outside the dean's room.

Under the watchful eyes of the seniors, Shan Heyuan took out the Verdant Dwelling Grass from his storage bracelet.

These two Verdant Dwelling Grass were well-cultivated, their emerald green color overflowing and their shimmering light reflecting off the entire Dean's office, making it appear as if there were a clear spring beneath them.

With such a Verdant Dwelling Grass, there's no need to examine its Spiritual Power; everyone can tell at a glance that this spiritual herb has been successfully cultivated.

Upon seeing the Verdant Dwelling Grass, Huai Liu lit up with joy. He exclaimed "Good!" three times to Shan Heyuan, raising his voice, "Truly, heroes emerge from among the young! This Verdant Dwelling Grass is usable; the two poisoned disciples can be saved!"

Shan Heyuan: "I'm glad I could be of help."

Huai Liu laughed heartily, "You've been a great help."

Seeing that Huai Liu was beaming with joy and his happiness was evident in his words, Shan Heyuan felt it was not appropriate to stay any longer and took his leave.

Huai Liu was in a hurry to make the antidote from the Verdant Dwelling Grass, so she didn't keep him any longer. She just patted his shoulder, conveying silent encouragement.

After Huai Liu left, Shan Heyuan was immediately surrounded by the teachers and teaching assistants who followed behind.

"Assistant Instructor Shan is truly remarkable; I never expected him to actually cultivate the Verdant Dwelling Grass."

"Assistant Instructor Shan's skills are truly outstanding and admirable."

"Assistant Instructor Shan, how exactly did you grow this? Could you share some of your experience with us?"

After all the questions people asked, the one they were most concerned about was actually the last one.

Shan Heyuan answered only the parts he could, "I planted the Verdant Dwelling Grass in the soil before, but as it grew, it began to rot, even though the outer hard outer layer remained tightly sealed..."

The scholar nodded repeatedly. "Yes! The Verdant Dwelling Grass I planted also started to rot before it even sprouted. So what did you do? How did you save it?"

Shan Heyuan: "I thought to myself, since it's all rotten, I should open it up and see what's inside the seeds of the Verdant Dwelling Grass, so I broke open the hard outer shell."

"And then it started to sprout?"

"Of course not. It's still rotting, so I have to use spiritual liquid and Spiritual Power to cleanse it day and night, carefully maintaining its vitality." Shan Heyuan added, "I'm cultivating the 'Spring Transformation Art'."

The teachers and assistants surrounding him, who had initially had questions, mostly looked enlightened upon hearing about the Cultivation Method he practiced.

"So it's the 'Spring Transformation Art'. The 'Spring Transformation Art' is indeed special, but unfortunately it's too difficult to master."

"Is this Cultivation Method truly effective in planting Spirit Plant? I'll have my nephews and nieces try it."

"I also practiced the 'Spring Transformation Art' when I was a child, but unfortunately I got stuck on the second move and couldn't make any further progress, so I had to switch to Cultivation Method."

The Verdant Dwelling Grass that Shan Heyuan planted had already been handed in, but one seed hadn't even sprouted. Everyone chatted around him for a while, but couldn't get any more information out of him, so they gradually dispersed.

Jiang Zhi, Li Jian, and several teachers and teaching assistants from their Lanzi school stayed until the end.

Jiang Zhi put his arm around Shan Heyuan's shoulder. "I told you, if anyone in the academy could grow Verdant Dwelling Grass, Brother Shan would definitely be among the most promising. See, I wasn't wrong, was I?"

Shan Heyuan: "It's also luck. If I had to plant it again, I might not be able to grow it."

Jiang Zhi patted him on the shoulder. "Come on, stop being so modest. You planted two seedlings in one go, and you still say you might not be able to grow any more?"

Li Jian laughed from the side, "Brother Shan, there's no use in being modest. This meal is on me."

Shan Heyuan agreed, "Please! We'll go to whichever restaurant everyone suggests!"

After Verdant Dwelling Grass was handed over, everyone was watching and observing.

Two days later, news came from the courtyard that the antidote for the Verdant Dwelling Grass had been prepared, and the two disciples had regained consciousness after taking it.

At first, no one knew whether the news was true or false, until the contribution points from the institute were distributed.

The academy gave Shan Heyuan fifty contribution points, Huai Liu gave him twenty points privately, and the Lan clan gave him ten points, which was more than previously promised.

Shan Heyuan suddenly received eighty contribution points, more than many old masters.

This brought him another wave of attention, making him the envy of many, and also the target of jealousy.

That day, he went to the office of the Mei family on business and overheard people inside talking about him:

"... This time the contribution points are really generous. I've been in the department for ten years and I've only managed to get eighty contribution points. Dean Huai has really done a great job supporting young people since he took office."

"Those involved are disciples of the Sword Reverence Sect, so they will definitely receive more contribution points."

"If you ask me, that Assistant Instructor Shan's disadvantage lies in his Root Bone. If he had a slightly better Root Bone and were a little younger, he would probably already be being groomed for special training by the Sword Reverence Sect. It's a pity there's no Dan Fan."

"No one is perfect. He has good comprehension but poor Root Bone. If you even things out, he's just an ordinary cultivator. Who among us here isn't more skilled or better at cultivation than him? In terms of luck, everyone here is a bit better off."

"It's quite remarkable that someone so young can become a teaching assistant in our department. While they may not be as exceptional as the cream of the crop, they're more than capable of surpassing the average person."

"Ha, now that we're in this area, who cares about comparing themselves to ordinary people?"

Shan Heyuan waited patiently for the person inside to finish speaking before knocking on the door and going in.

When the people inside saw it was him, most of them changed their expressions, while a few remained indifferent and even smiled at him.

Shan Heyuan didn't pay much attention and went back after finishing his business.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhi became indignant. "They say the Plum Blossom school has no outstanding young teachers or teaching assistants, yet they criticize our Orchid Blossom school for its clamor. Do they really think our Orchid Blossom school has no one?"

Li Jian said calmly, "We've already gotten our contribution points, so what if someone says something? If you complain to the leaders, they'll probably just think you're being nosy."

Jiang Zhi rolled his eyes slightly and said to Shan Heyuan, "Contribution points are valid indefinitely. If you haven't decided what to exchange them for, you'd better save them up. Maybe you can exchange them for something better later."

Shan Heyuan: "I've got it."

Li Jian: "I think when you have time, you can go to the library and check out the exchange catalog. Some good items are limited and will be gone once they're gone, so if you see something you like, you'd better act fast."

Jiang Zhi: "Yes, that's something to be careful about too. You should also take some time to look at some books about treasures; some of them are quite useful."

With eighty contribution points in hand, Shan Heyuan suddenly became very wealthy.

He hadn't yet decided whether to exchange his contribution points for treasures, or if so, what to exchange them for. The two rescued young disciples approached him first.

Both disciples were tall and handsome, possessing the unique aura of disciples from a major sect—gentle and polite, yet unlike ordinary people.

Both disciples were sword cultivators, and both were at the Core Formation Stage. The taller one was named Hu Gu, and the shorter one was named Yan Liang.

The two teachers adopted a very humble attitude towards Shan Heyuan, their assistant instructor who was only at the Foundation Establishment Realm: "Thanks to the Verdant Dwelling Grass cultivated by Assistant Instructor Shan, our lives were saved. We will remember your great kindness. Assistant Instructor Shan needs anything in the future, just let us know."

Shan Heyuan was surprised by their politeness and quickly said, "I accepted a training mission from the academy, and the academy has already given me contribution points. You two don't need to worry about it."

"Yes, we will." Hu Gu cupped his hands and said solemnly, "If you don't even remember the life-saving grace, you might develop inner demons when we advance in the future."

Yan Liang nodded. "Exactly."

Yan Liang took out a jade box. "I heard that Assistant Instructor Shan is particularly fond of Spirit Plant, so we exchanged two Core Formation grade seeds for this. This one is a seed of Earth Origin Grass."

Hu Gu also took out a jade box. "This one contains the seeds of the Corpse Insect Grass. It's been stored in our sect's treasure vault for some years. Assistant Instructor Shan, do you think it's still useful?"

These two young disciples actually produced two Core Formation stage seeds with their very first move.

Shan Heyuan was startled and quickly waved his hand, "This is far too valuable, how can I accept it?"