Wu Ying winced. “Did no one beat her?”
“Eh, a few. Then she dragged them out on quests through the dirt. Not very romantic.” Chao Kun’s lips twitched. “After that, we started heading off the newcomers. It doesn’t help with her family aspirations though…”
Wu Ying nodded. Even if it did not seem it sometimes, the members who joined the Sect were all the elite. No untalented noble who could not enter the Sect had a chance of beating Li Yao.
“And so, she’s a bit sensitive about this being her dao. Even if she doesn’t really know which way she’s going, she isn’t going to admit it to you. Or me,” Chao Kun said. “The rest of us are more accepting. Some of us might even pursue a variation.”
“Variation?”
“Guardians. Soldiers. Judges,” Chao Kun said, placing a hand on his chest. “Combat is part of such professions, and there is nothing wrong with a dao that encompasses such beliefs.”
“I never…”
“I know.”
Wu Ying smiled in relief, and taking up Li Yao’s suggestion, he hesitantly asked, “Li Yao mentioned there might be missions available?”
“Missions?” Chao Kun brightened. “I was wondering if you had been scared away.”
“Not at all,” Wu Ying said. “But I’m not exactly enthusiastic about fighting.”
“Yes. It isn’t your dao. But eating is not most of our daos and we still all do it,” Chao Kun said. “Come see me this evening. I’ll find something for you.”
Wu Ying brightened up at the easy help, even if he was not entirely happy about the idea of becoming a fighter. But since he had few ideas of what else to do to increase his take of contribution points, this would do. Looking into the sky, Wu Ying noted how the morning was fast fading. After making sure he had Chao Kun’s residence location, Wu Ying took off to wash up. He still had to make it to Elder Li’s gardens.
“Senior Goh,” Wu Ying said as he found Ru Ping in the orchards, hands on his hips and stretching out his back. Or staring at the fruit of the tree above him. Wu Ying’s steps stuttered when he spotted the six glowing pears in the branches of the tree. As he neared and the dense spiritual energy around the tree penetrated his aura, Wu Ying shivered. Quickly enough, Wu Ying spotted the formation flags that boosted the spiritual energy for this section of the orchard. “How…?”
“Starborn Heaven Pears,” Ru Ping answered. “The trees flower every year but produce a very small number of fruit. In most conditions, it takes over seven years for the fruit to ripen. As Elder Li has set up the optimal conditions, we are hoping to increase it to once every five years. Part of my job is to check on them every day.”
Wu Ying looked up, eyeing the pears. He had never even heard of this fruit, but it was not particularly surprising. There were more fruits, herbs, and plants under heaven than there were leaves in the tree above him. As Wu Ying stared at the pears, the glow shifted, the pinpoint of light moving along the edges. Wu Ying opened his mouth to inquire about the phenomena before realizing he might not be allowed here.
“Did you want something?”
“Yes, Senior Goh. I—”
“Ru Ping.”
“My apologies, Ru Ping. I wanted to inform you that I might not be present in the next few days.”
“Oh?” Ru Ping turned his head, raising an eyebrow.
“I will be speaking with Senior Ge later tonight,” Wu Ying said. “He will be assigning me an external assignment which suits my ability.”
“The martial specialist?” When Wu Ying nodded, Ru Ping arched an eyebrow. “I did not realize you’ve chosen to join them.”
“I have not,” Wu Ying said. “But I have been training with them, as you know.”
“Huh.” Ru Ping looked Wu Ying up and down then smiled. “Good.”
“Good?”
“Yes. Do you know why Elder Li chose you?”
“Because I’m a man. And an ex-farmer,” Wu Ying said. They’d already had this conversation.
“You’re no wilting flower.” Ru Ping gestured to the workers in the gardens. “Most of our recruit see our work as gardening. That this is all there is to it. Not acquiring.”
“Acquiring?”
“Think about how you attracted Elder Li’s attention,” Ru Ping commanded.
“I traded the Night Blossoms into the sect.”
“Exactly,” Ru Ping said. “You went out and acquired Night Blossoms, something we do not grow here.”
“You don’t?” Wu Ying said.
“No. They require too much metallic yin chi to properly grow. We can keep them for a short while, but if we tried to cultivate them here, it would require a significant adjustment of the gardens.” Ru Ping gestured around. “These gardens are carefully balanced to ensure we extract and return all the available chi we collect. Any addition or subtraction from the garden has to be carefully weighed.”
“Like crop rotations and fertilizers,” Wu Ying said.
“Exactly,” Ru Ping said, flashing Wu Ying a smile at his fellow ex-farmer’s quick uptake. “Unlike the herb garden cared for by the other sect members, Elder Li’s personal garden is extremely delicate. I have dedicated my life to learning the details of gardening in this format. It will be my dao.”
Wu Ying looked at Ru Ping, who glowed when he talked of the topic. Wu Ying felt himself smiling before he shifted the conversation back to the original topic. “So Elder Li wants people who go out and acquire herbs?”
“The sect wants cultivators who are willing to do so,” Ru Ping corrected. “Few of those we teach are willing. As you can guess, few refiners have the knowledge to care for the plants properly. And even the more adventurous recruits always require guarding, which increases the cost of acquisition. Individuals who can travel, guard themselves, and pick the herbs are rare.”
Wu Ying stroked the hilt of his jian in thought. It made sense. It made a lot of sense. And also explained why he and Tou He had received such a high return on the Night Blossoms. If a gardener had gone out to acquire them, even knowing where the graveyard was, they would have required at least two others. In that case, Tou He and he had received the price meant for at least three, if not four, cultivators. A very decent return. A sudden flash of greed ran through Wu Ying as he considered how profitable it would be if he’d managed to collect it all himself.
“Now, you don’t have your mission yet, do you?”
“No, Senior.”
Ru Ping smacked Wu Ying’s arm for his formality. “Very well. Then you’ll be with me this afternoon. It’s unlikely you’ll go far. And, being winter, what is harvestable will be limited. We will go over the most common and in-demand plants you might encounter near the sect. If you have time, come back and we will narrow it further.”
Wu Ying opened his mouth to protest. He knew how busy Ru Ping was. “But—”
“Just remember to tell them you are a disciple of Elder Li when you turn in the collected herbs. We will gather credit that way too,” Ru Ping said, cutting off Wu Ying.
Wu Ying relaxed as the reasons for Ru Ping’s offer made themselves known. Still, Wu Ying made sure to remember this act. If he did manage to acquire a few useful herbs, he would have to treat his senior.
Senior Ge’s mansion was humongous. Unlike Wu Ying’s abode, Senior Ge’s residence was made of five bays in the main building and three in the wings flanking the main courtyard. The main entrance gate was made of cherry wood with stylized gate sculptures and plated with gold and silver. Located at the edge of the border between normal cultivators and the Elders’ residential district, the house gave a clear indication of Senior Ge’s importance to the sect as a Core disciple.