Chapter 200: Mission from the Hundred Blossom Sect
With the growing demand for Solar yang pill, Gu Mo had no choice but to expand the planting area of the Sunlight Glazed Flowers. Fortunately, with the Sun Essence at his disposal, cultivating these flowers was no trouble at all. What's more, with Xiaohua and Xiaoli looking after them, he didn't need to spend much effort.
All Solar yang pill sold externally were refined using Solar energy. As for those made with Sun Essence, Gu Mo rarely brought them out—especially the fourth-tier version.
With the fourth-tier Torch Stump, refining a batch of ordinary third-tier Solar yang pill was an easy task for Gu Mo. However, using such a valuable fourth-tier material for a third-tier pill felt wasteful.
"Hmm, better to hand over the task of refining ordinary Solar yang pill to Elder Liu's lineage," Gu Mo thought, ultimately deciding to delegate the task to Liu Shulan's faction.
Refining Solar yang pill wasn't particularly difficult; the only challenge was acquiring the main ingredient—Solar energy. As long as Gu Mo provided that, the alchemists under Liu Shulan could manage the rest.
This way, Gu Mo could free up his time to work on higher-tier pills or focus on cultivating techniques and secret arts.
With that decision, Gu Mo's figure flashed as he used his perfected Wood Element Technique to arrive at the sect's alchemy division. By observing Xiaohua's innate wood-element teleportation talent, Gu Mo hadn't yet grasped the true essence of the Wood Escape Technique, but his own mastery of wood-element arts had improved dramatically.
At this point, Gu Mo had already cultivated his Wood Element Technique to the perfected level. Just like the Wind Escape Technique, once fully mastered, there was a chance of comprehending a trace of the Wood Escape's mysteries.
By relying on this perfected wood technique and observing Xiaohua's talent, Gu Mo had a high chance of unlocking that profound ability.
Among the Five Element Escape Arts, mastering even one provided an excellent life-saving trump card. That was why Gu Mo had always been diligently training both the Wood and Wind techniques, never slacking.
Upon arriving at Shennong Valley's alchemy division, the area seemed untouched by the recent war atmosphere and operated just like usual.
"Sigh. Our alchemy division doesn't have any exclusive pills. The ones we can make, other sects can also produce. And those sects have more people dedicated to alchemy, allowing them to keep costs lower," Liu Shulan said with a helpless expression when Gu Mo inquired.
In theory, Shennong Valley had its own herb farms, so their costs shouldn't be higher. However, those rival alchemy sects were far more aggressive—especially those with proprietary pills. They often sold their exclusive pills alongside common ones, boosting their competitive edge.
Shennong Valley's alchemy division wasn't weak—they had a fourth-tier alchemist like Liu Shulan—but they had yet to develop any standout, exclusive pills.
While Liu Shulan was certainly capable of minor innovations, such pills rarely gained widespread acceptance.
As a result, while rival alchemy sects received large orders during this righteous-vs-demonic war, Shennong Valley's alchemy division had no such luck.
And it wasn't just alchemy; their artifact refining division was in a similar state.
That said, Shennong Valley's main business—spiritual herbs—was booming. The rising demand for pills led to skyrocketing demand for herbs.
"Exclusive pills? Elder Liu, don't we already have one?" Gu Mo said with a smile.
"What pill? Why don't I know about it?" Liu Shulan blinked in confusion. As the head of the alchemy division, she knew her resources well.
"The Solar yang pill," Gu Mo replied casually.
Only he could supply Solar energy, so only Shennong Valley could refine Solar yang pill.
He then explained his intention to delegate the refinement task to her faction.
"Excellent, excellent!" Liu Shulan was overjoyed.
Just as Gu Mo said, the Solar yang pill was a Shennong Valley exclusive—and its ability to dispel demonic qi made it highly valuable.
With such a pill in hand, Liu Shulan was confident they could compete with the other alchemy sects. She had long dreamed of elevating Shennong Valley's alchemy division—and now the opportunity had come. Of course, she wouldn't forget Gu Mo's help.
"You were the one who gave me the Solar yang pill's formula in the first place, Elder Liu," Gu Mo said warmly, remembering her past support. This was his way of repaying that kindness.
After finalizing the delegation details with Liu Shulan, Gu Mo left.
Watching him go, Liu Shulan was inwardly stunned. From the Solar energy allotment Gu Mo promised, it was clear he had already cultivated a significant number of Sunlight Glazed Flowers.
Those flowers—difficult for most spiritual herb cultivators to grow—were now being cultivated on a large scale by Gu Mo in just a short span of time.
And considering he had asked her to study the formula for the fourth-tier Solar yang pill earlier, Liu Shulan suspected it wouldn't be long before that formula was put to use.
Little did she know that Gu Mo had already used it.
Returning to his leaf-covered courtyard, Gu Mo spotted Hou Chunyu waiting outside and quickly invited him in.
"Where's that girl Xiaohua?" Hou Chunyu asked as he entered, sensing the strong spiritual energy in the courtyard. His heart soured—ever since Xiaohua became an elder, she'd been living in Gu Mo's courtyard and hadn't visited him in a long time.
Since Xiaohua didn't come visit him, Hou Chunyu had come over himself—only to find she wasn't there.
"She's probably tending the Sunlight Glazed Flowers in the spiritual field. Would you like me to call her over, Elder Xiaohua?" Gu Mo offered politely as he poured tea.
With the expansion of their herb fields, Xiaohua now had more work, which delighted her—more Solar energy meant more tasty snacks from Gu Mo.
"No need. Rare to see her so focused on something," Hou Chunyu waved him off.
He had come not only to visit Xiaohua but also to deliver a mission to Gu Mo.
"There's been an issue with the Condensed Fragrance Grass at the Hundred Flowers Sect. They've requested aid, and our faction has accepted the task. You'll be coming with me," Hou Chunyu informed him.
"The Hundred Flowers Sect?" Gu Mo's interest was piqued.
He had long wanted to visit that sect but never found a suitable mission. It was notoriously difficult for male cultivators to gain entry.
This healing-focused mission was the perfect excuse. If the Hundred Flowers Sect proved promising, he could even recommend it to Chu Feifei.
"Their Tranquil Fragrance Incense stabilizes the soul and is highly effective against the soul attacks of demonic cultivators. It's a crucial resource in this war," Hou Chunyu explained, noting Gu Mo's interest.
Many male cultivators were curious about the Hundred Flowers Sect—after all, dual cultivating with a disciple from there could greatly boost one's cultivation speed.
Gu Mo's talent in alchemy and herbology was undeniable, and Hou Chunyu worried it might distract him from his main cultivation. After all these years, Gu Mo was still only at the first level of the Core Formation stage.
So Hou Chunyu figured this trip could serve two purposes—if Gu Mo met a compatible disciple and dual cultivated, it might accelerate his progress.
Unaware of his elder's thoughts, Gu Mo was instead mulling over the Tranquil Fragrance Incense. It could counter the soul attacks that demonic cultivators excelled in, so it wasn't surprising they'd try to sabotage its key ingredient, the Condensed Fragrance Grass.
In fact, any pill or artifact that could hinder the demon sect would naturally become a target.
The same covert battles were already being fought from the shadows on both sides. Though Solar yang pill had yet to become a focus of the demon sect, that was largely because they didn't realize how quickly Gu Mo had cultivated Sunlight Glazed Flowers.
In the demon sect's intelligence network, even if Gu Mo had succeeded in cultivating the flower, it would still take centuries to reach production scale—after all, third-tier spiritual plants weren't easy to grow.
With such limited supply, they didn't see it as a threat worth infiltrating Shennong Valley over.
In truth, only Xiaohua, Xiaoli, and perhaps Liu Shulan knew the real scale of Gu Mo's progress. Even Hou Chunyu was in the dark.
And that secrecy was precisely why their operations had remained secure—once too many people knew, leaks became inevitable.
"Get ready—we leave in one hour," Hou Chunyu said before departing. This mission involved several of his disciples, as the Condensed Fragrance Grass issue needed to be resolved urgently to avoid delays in incense production.
"Understood," Gu Mo nodded.
He then headed to the spiritual field and placed two fourth-tier Sunflowers into the Black Mist Dimension. He left the rest to Xiaohua and Xiaoli.
Recently, he had focused on upgrading Torch Stumps, Potato Mines, and Hot Peppers, so there were only two fourth-tier Sunflowers available. He'd need to prioritize their growth soon.
After reminding Xiaohua and Xiaoli to look after things, Gu Mo made his way to the assembly point.
"Junior Nephew Gu Mo!"
Seeing Gu Mo arrive, Wei Yang greeted him warmly. He was one of the few people Gu Mo was familiar with in the sect.
After all, Gu Mo was in an awkward spot: a third-generation disciple at the Core Formation stage, while most of his peers were Foundation Establishment cultivators. Second-generation disciples were the ones typically at his level.
This made it hard for him to bond with others—what interested Foundation cultivators felt childish to him, while his cultivation level made him seem out of place among the second-generation.
Wei Yang, at least, was someone he could talk to.
"Senior Uncle Wei," Gu Mo replied with a smile. After some small talk, he went off to wait by himself.
"Senior Brother Wei, this Junior Nephew Gu Mo really is…" Several second-generation disciples shook their heads. They could sense Gu Mo's social isolation. "Geniuses are always lonely," they sighed.
"When our junior brother finishes his seclusion, I think the two will get along well," Wei Yang said with a smile, referring to their lineage's only true disciple.
Given Gu Mo's talent, had he joined the sect earlier, he'd already have been made a true disciple.
Even now, the sect had already softened their stance on that matter, a testament to his astonishing potential.
"The war's coming—he'll likely emerge soon," another disciple added.
The righteous-vs-demonic war was the fastest path to resources. The sects would offer great rewards to those who distinguished themselves, so despite the risks, many cultivators saw the war as an opportunity.
"Of course, and I'll be joining too," Wei Yang added.
His cultivation had long been stagnant, and the battlefield might offer the breakthrough he needed—whether through inspiration or earned merit that could be exchanged for pills.
Of course, the risk was real: if the tides of war shifted, death was a distinct possibility.
"Haha! If you're going, Senior Brother Wei, then I'm in too. My Rejuvenation Art is at the mastery stage—good enough to serve as a healer," another second-generation disciple joked.
Many in Shennong Valley practiced wood-based arts, making them ideal for healing. Being a battlefield medic was well within their abilities.
"Hmph, with your mediocre skills, you'd be walking into death," came a sudden voice.
Hou Chunyu had arrived unnoticed and was clearly displeased by their talk.
He knew all too well how dangerous the battlefield was—especially for healers. Despite being in the rear, they were always high-priority targets. If the demon sect launched a surprise attack, most of his disciples would be slaughtered before they could even react.
"Master!" the disciples greeted him quickly.
"Let's go," Hou Chunyu said, waving a hand. His disciples were grown now and had their own ideas. He couldn't stop them.
After all, he'd once snuck off to the battlefield himself and only gained his current status through a lucky encounter there.
(Show your support and read more chapters on my Patreon: [email protected]/psychopet. Thank you for your support!)