Chapter 89 The Genius Cultivator Used as Cannon Fodder (18) Due to three...

Because of the Third Elder's unreliability and the preciousness of the spirit stone mine, the First Elder, who had just been promoted to the Nascent Soul stage, ended up going along.

Of course, it was also because the Grand Elder wanted to see Lin You and Ye Zhen, who had changed the fate of the Ye family.

These two kids are just too lucky!

If it weren't for the fear of making too much of a fuss and alerting the demonic cultivators hiding in some unknown corner, the others, including the Ye family head, would have wanted to go and take a look.

The most convenient thing about traveling in the cultivation world is that you can travel incredibly fast without having to queue for tickets or wait for a bus.

The First Elder and the Third Elder arrived quickly. They didn't need to fill out any mission forms or register. Ye Xinghan sent the message in the morning, and before they even had lunch, they had already arrived.

Lin You dug up all the exceptionally lush Moonflower Grass around the entrance of the cave where the spirit stone was dug, and also caught rabbits and pheasants from the valley. She dug a pit in a sheltered spot, set up a pot, and prepared to cook a hot pot.

The firewood was dry branches gathered from the nearby mountains, and the water was sweet mountain spring water. To show that he wasn't just eating for free, the wolf cub personally fetched about ten buckets of water and collected a storage bag full of dry firewood.

The wolf cub was very fast; it collected everything in no time and also picked up a lot of mushrooms and wood ear fungus in the mountains.

Ye Zhen wasn't very good at cooking, but she was very efficient at processing prey. Whether it was a rabbit or a pheasant, she would chop off its neck, skin it, bleed it, and throw away its internal organs, leaving only clean, edible meat.

It was a bit of a waste. Although there was plenty of prey in Moonflower Valley and you could easily catch several, Lin You still looked at the rabbit head, chicken heart, and chicken gizzard with some regret. These things would be delicious if cooked in a hot pot!

Ye Zhen casually found a place without moonflower grass, dug a hole and buried the pile of things, and only then did Lin You turn around and seriously process the ingredients.

Hot pot doesn't require much skill; it's mainly about the side dishes and the broth. In modern times, she specifically asked Shen Zechen to pack a whole box of hot pot base for her.

Ye Xinglan, who was inside the formation, had already woken up and was looking through a book. Ye Xinghan no longer needed to stay by her side.

He squatted in front of the ordinary-looking pot, watching Lin You boil a large pot of water and then throw in a strange red cube.

In an instant, an incredibly powerful, spicy and savory aroma wafted over, and Ye Xinghan sniffed and couldn't help but secretly swallow.

Ling Ye, who was in Ye Zhen's arms, was craning his neck to look into the pot when he was immediately hit by the smell and couldn't help but sneeze several times.

Knowing that Lin You had brought hot pot base, Ye Zhen had her eye on it. She had specially bought a lot of ingredients when she was in Chunxiao City, and now she took them out one by one and cleaned them.

A whole basket of green vegetables was washed, and more than a dozen plates of various meats were cut up. There were also fish, shrimp, and crabs, and a whole basket of mushrooms and wood ear fungus that the wolf cub had picked himself.

Lin You also prepared a variety of dipping sauces, including sesame sauce, minced garlic, chive blossom sauce, chili sauce, and fermented bean curd sauce, catering to a wide range of tastes.

The three of them sat around the pot on the small stools that Lin You had brought out. The pot was surrounded by a large array of ingredients, making it look quite abundant.

Moonflower grass was specially added to the pot. The bright white grass leaves melted into the pot as soon as they were put in, instantly doubling the already tempting flavor.

The three people and the wolf smelled the aroma and swallowed hard. It smelled so good, anything cooked in it would be delicious!

They made a point of greeting Ye Xinglan, but she was too engrossed in her book to pay any attention to them, so the three of them didn't dare to disturb her too much and had to give up.

"When eating hot pot, you should put the meat in first, then the vegetables, so that it tastes better," Ye Zhen explained to the wolf cub who had never eaten hot pot before, while picking up a large plate of meat.

The meat had just been picked up and hadn't even been put into the pot yet when the First Elder and the Third Elder arrived. Seeing the three of them gathered around the pot, looking very much like a family, they didn't know what expression to make.

Ye Xinghan silently turned his head away. He had thought that the person coming would be his eldest sister or one of the other disciples, and that after the mission was confirmed, they would have to come by almost dark.

Who knew that two elders would come! And the Grand Elder, who had just come out of seclusion, was also there!

He has always maintained a cool and serious public image, so it must have been a bit embarrassing for him to be caught cheating by his elders.

Ye Zhen, being the more thick-skinned one, naturally greeted them, "Elders, would you like to sit down and have some food? This hot pot is delicious!"

Lin You glanced at the First Elder, who was dressed in white and exuded an air of otherworldly grace, and the Third Elder, who had a serious expression. She quietly moved closer to Ye Zhen and then took out two small stools to make room for the two of them.

The elder, who had only been invited to tea tasting before, hesitated for a moment as he looked at the bubbling hot pot, but still sat down after lifting his robes. "Alright, let's eat some together then."

Seeing this, Ye Xinghan hurriedly handed over new bowls and chopsticks, and Lin You prepared several new sauces for the two elders.

Ye Zhen started putting three full plates of mutton rolls into the pot.

This mutton was from a lamb she bought in Chunxiao City. She used magic to freeze it into chunks and then cut it into mutton rolls.

Because her and Lin You's swordsmanship was too poor, Ye Xinghan personally cut the meat. Of course, he resolutely refused to use his own natal sword and used Ye Zhen's sword to cut it.

The mutton, as thin as cicada wings, was cooked in just a few dozen seconds. Ye Zhen was the first to scoop up a piece with her chopsticks, dip it in the sauce, and then devour it in one gulp.

The mutton was soft and tender, fresh, fragrant, spicy, and numbing. The familiar taste exploded in her mouth, and Ye Zhen's nose tingled, almost bringing tears to her eyes.

Seeing her eat a piece of meat and become so moved that her eyes welled up with tears, Ye Xinghan couldn't help but pick up a piece of meat with her chopsticks, dip it in the sauce like she did, and as soon as she put it in her mouth, her eyes lit up immediately.

The Third Elder, always a connoisseur, though he had never seen hot pot before, also reached out with his chopsticks. After swallowing a bite of meat, he immediately grabbed a second bite.

Lin You had only taken one bite when she realized that all the sliced ​​meat in the pot had been snatched up. She was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly put more meat back into the pot.

In their scramble for the meat, the Third Elder and Ye Xinghan exchanged dozens of chopsticks around the pot, while Lin You and Ye Zhen, the two little rascals, couldn't even get their chopsticks in.

The First Elder couldn't stand it anymore, so he took a third of the meat from the pot and gave it to Lin You and Ye Zhen each.

Then, Ye Xinghan and the Third Elder started fighting even more fiercely with their chopsticks.

Ye Zhen bought more than 20 jin of mutton and more than 20 jin of beef, plus the six rabbits and three pheasants she caught, totaling more than 60 jin of meat, and that still wasn't enough to eat.

Rabbits and pheasants are not usually used as ingredients for hot pot, but wild game that grows up eating moonflower grass has an exceptionally tender and delicious flavor, many times better than beef or mutton.

Upon hearing this, the Third Elder turned around to catch the rabbit, but the First Elder grabbed him by the back of his collar and pulled him back, saying, "Stop fooling around, let's get down to business!"

The Third Elder, who was forced to sit down, casually picked up a piece of mushroom cooked by Ye Zhen, took a bite, and then stopped making a fuss. He then quietly threw the other ingredients into the pot.

Ye Zhen glanced at Lin You and, seeing that she had no intention of speaking, recounted in detail the spirit stones they had dug up and the fact that the Moonflower Grass might be a by-product of the spirit stone mine.

The hot pot was located not far from where the two elders had dug the pit. The fact that the two elders did not notice the fluctuations of the spirit stone showed that the spiritual energy it emitted had been absorbed by the surrounding moonflower grass.

Looking at the moonflower grass covering the valley, the Third Elder stared at Ye Zhen in disbelief: "According to you, wouldn't the entire valley be full of spirit stones?!"

The two girls discovered the spirit stone mine, and since they were only in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, we couldn't bear to let them do any work. The Grand Elder, dressed in a long robe with wide sleeves, didn't look like someone who would do any work either.

The main workforce for mining consisted of the Third Elder and Ye Xinghan, one in the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm and the other in the late-stage of the Foundation Establishment realm, so their speed was relatively fast.

The two of them worked diligently for half an hour, and the number of spirit stones they dug up was more than what Lin You and Ye Zhen had dug in half a day.

The First Elder didn't do the work himself, but he was in charge of supervising. Ye Xinghan was an honest boy and wouldn't slack off in such matters, but the Third Elder wasn't so conscientious.

Lin You and Ye Zhen helped for a while before Ye Xinghan sent them off to cultivate. As the Moonflower Grass was gradually harvested, the spiritual energy in Moonflower Valley increased significantly. With the addition of the Spirit Gathering Array, the conditions were no worse than when they were at the Ye family's residence.

Seeing that the two had set up the spirit-gathering array with great skill, the Grand Elder, having nothing better to do, imparted some experience in array setting to them.

Lin You was an obedient student who always did whatever the teacher said, while Ye Zhen liked to ask questions. After listening to the class for half a day, she started discussing the connection between mathematics and formations with the elder.

"It's a pity you've already become an apprentice, otherwise I would have snatched you back and made you my disciple." The elder stroked his beard with a sigh.

At the same time, he flicked his sleeve and released a burst of spiritual energy, which struck the Third Elder, who was slowly mining. The Third Elder, who was dawdling, immediately increased his speed fivefold.

This supervisor is quite dedicated and responsible.

After digging for seven or eight days, and all the spirit stones had been dug out, Moonflower Valley was completely unrecognizable.

Although Moonflower Grass was just a condiment, knowing that the two of them liked it, the Third Elder and Ye Xinghan specially sorted out and stored the herbs.

In the end, Lin You and Ye Zhen each received two storage bags of Moonflower Grass and two storage bags of Spirit Stones.

Looking at the three more storage bags that had appeared on her, Lin You gave Ye Zhen a resentful look, which made Ye Zhen rub her nose involuntarily. "Okay, okay, I'll try my best to find them for you, alright?"

Not long after the spirit stones were dug up, Ye Xinglan also emerged from seclusion. This time, she had an epiphany, and her cultivation had broken through to the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm.

Ye Xinglan emerged from seclusion at a very opportune time; with only a few days left before the opening of the small secret realm, she decided to take her apprentice and younger brother to continue their trip to Rain City.

The First Elder and the Third Elder took all the spirit stones from the valley back to the Ye family. These spirit stones were of very good quality and were enough to cover the salaries of the dispatched personnel for several decades.

The project was progressing smoothly, and Lin You, who was still looking forward to the trip to the secret realm, did not notice that her task progress had quietly changed to five percent complete.

Upon arriving in Rain City, Lin You and Ye Zhen learned that it was a city where most of the residents were cultivators, and even the roadside stalls sold various cultivation materials.

"The secret realm of Rain City is said to be a legacy left by a great master in the Tribulation Transcending stage. Only cultivators below the Golden Core stage and under the age of fifty can enter, as it was used to select disciples for the great master."

As soon as Ye Xinghan finished explaining, Lin You and Ye Zhen immediately grabbed Ye Xinglan's arm on each side, saying in unison:

"Master, we will absolutely not take anyone else as our master!"

“Even the most powerful beings won’t do!” Ye Zhen emphasized again.

Lin You chimed in, "Our master is the best master!"

A passing cultivator, upon hearing this, couldn't help but sneer, "Two early Foundation Establishment cultivators, yet you dare to speak so arrogantly, as if entering a minor secret realm guarantees you'll be able to successfully become a disciple!"

Before Ye Zhen could retort, Ye Xinglan had already unleashed her full power: "You're over forty and only at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage? Who gave you the audacity to mock my disciple?"

The pressure from the mid-stage Golden Core cultivator immediately turned the cultivator's face pale. Only then did he realize that he had offended someone he shouldn't have, and he hurriedly bowed and apologized.

After Ye Zhen indicated that she would not pursue the matter further, the cultivator scrambled away.

Lin You pursed her lips and glanced at Ye Zhen. Long Aotian's aura was indeed peculiar; he could be ridiculed even on the street. Yet, she didn't look like a pushover.

Unfortunately, before Ye Zhen could even make a move, her master had already helped her regain the upper hand.

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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2t024-02-07 17:51:52 and 2024-02-07 23:53:48!

Thank you to the little angels who irrigated with nutrient solution: Qiu Dieyu (41 bottles); 49065318; and Donglin (1 bottle);

Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!