Chapter 8: The Cow and Horse Cultivation Chronicles

"Fine, I'll just work then!"

Lu Yang quickly adjusted his mood.

"Strictly speaking, I could kill myself and restart right now, but the Hundred Generations Book has limited pages; restarting directly would be too much of a waste."

Although he had now become a formal disciple, Lu Yang still knew little about the Initial Holy Sect, and his knowledge of the entire cultivation world was limited to what he had read in books; although he had already entertained the idea of a restart, to accumulate advantages for his next life, he should still prolong this one.

Within Buxian Peak, there were countless cave dwellings, yet only two places stood out prominently: one was naturally the peak master's cave dwelling, the other a tall tower.

The tower had nine stories and was named "Merit Hall."

Formal disciples exchanged goods, posted bounties, and accepted sect tasks mostly at the Merit Hall, under the protection of the Holy Sect.

Lu Yang entered the Merit Hall and arrived at a counter.

"Senior brother, may I ask if sect tasks are obtained here?"

"Of course they are—wait, what?"

As he spoke, the young Daoist behind the counter lazily glanced at Lu Yang, then his eyes brightened upon seeing his handsome face.

The next instant, the young Daoist's face broke into a warm smile.

"Why call me senior brother? I'm Zhao Xuhe, an attendant disciple of the Merit Hall. You must be new, right? I've never seen you before."

"I am Lu Yang, honored to meet you, senior brother."

Lu Yang hurriedly bowed and activated his disciple token to verify his identity.

Zhao Xuhe examined the token, his expression softening further, his smile growing even brighter: "Excellent, excellent—Disciple Lu, you're a fine-looking fellow, truly excellent."

Zhao Xuhe then regarded Lu Yang with a gaze that made him deeply uncomfortable, before suddenly saying: "Disciple Lu, since you want a sect task, I happen to have one—or rather, a fortune I can give you. If you succeed, it will guarantee you a vast immortal path ahead."

"Really?"

Lu Yang's face showed signs of interest, but internally he grew wary.

"Absolutely true! More true than true!"

Zhao Xuhe grinned and pointed toward the peak's summit: "The current peak master intends to find a son-in-law for his daughter. I think you're quite distinguished-looking..."

Lu Yang: "???"

I came here to find a sect task so I could earn money through my own hard work and effort, and now you're suggesting I live off my wife's wealth?

"What, not interested?"

Seeing Lu Yang's stiff expression, Zhao Xuhe pressed harder: "This is a fortune beyond measure! If you enter the peak master's cave dwelling, you'll instantly become a Foundation Establishment disciple—with merit points, cultivation techniques, resources—all at your disposal. Get this right, and you'll save sixty years of detours..."

Despite Zhao Xuhe's lavish promises, Lu Yang remained unmoved.

In truth, if it were truly about living off a woman's wealth, Lu Yang wouldn't mind.

But where was this? The Initial Holy Sect! The orthodox demonic sect! With Liu Xin's precedent, how could he possibly believe Zhao Xuhe's talk of a son-in-law arrangement?

There must be something wrong!

Thinking this, Lu Yang sighed and said: "Senior Brother Zhao, it's not that I don't want to be a son-in-law—I simply have a deeply private matter I cannot reveal."

Zhao Xuhe blinked in surprise: "A deeply private matter?"

"To be honest," Lu Yang looked embarrassed: "I suffer from a venereal disease..."

At these words, Zhao Xuhe's eager expression instantly cooled.

Venereal disease wasn't serious—he could cure it easily—but the question was why he had contracted it? The underlying reason was the key.

"Ah, what a pity."

Zhao Xuhe shook his head; even if Lu Yang's appearance was perfect, the peak master would never allow his daughter to become a cultivator partner with a man who could give himself such a disease.

Lu Yang bowed respectfully: "Thank you for your concern, senior brother."

One doesn't strike a smiling face; Lu Yang's respectful demeanor improved Zhao Xuhe's mood somewhat, and he said: "In that case, I'll pick you a good task."

"What kind of task do you want?"

Lu Yang said: "High merit points, relatively safe."

Zhao Xuhe's smile didn't fade—he had expected this, since all new disciples wanted such tasks: "I do have one."

He then handed Lu Yang a jade slip.

"The Yin-Yang Immortal Flower requires a Qi Condensation cultivator to nourish it with essence blood and true qi to survive. Buxian Peak buys it at the highest price: 150 merit points per flower."

Zhao Xuhe said warmly: "This is a task issued by the peak master himself—no limit on quantity; you grow as many as you can, and we'll buy them all. You don't even need any cultivation plant skills—the Yin-Yang Immortal Flower is extremely adaptable. Just plant it in your cave dwelling, and it won't easily wither."

At first, Lu Yang was tempted, but soon shook his head.

Zhao Xuhe frowned: "What's wrong?"

"Thank you for your guidance, senior brother," Lu Yang looked pained: "But I still have to pay next month's cave dwelling rent—I simply can't afford the Immortal Flower seeds."

"I see."

Zhao Xuhe sighed as well: "I've been through this stage myself—I know how hard it is... Fine, I'll help you."

Then Zhao Xuhe extended his hand: "Give me your disciple token."

Lu Yang obediently handed it over; moments later, he was astonished to find 500 merit points had suddenly appeared on the token!

Zhao Xuhe smiled faintly: "These are your backup merit points from the Sanhe Alliance—you can use them anytime as needed. Go buy the Immortal Flower seeds."

Lu Yang frowned: "Senior brother, isn't this just like a technique loan? I'm worried..."

"The Sanhe Alliance is a major force within the inner sect. New disciples can borrow with thirty days of zero interest—much cheaper than the Holy Sect's technique loans."

"And you want to buy Immortal Flower seeds, right?" Zhao Xuhe's tone was gentle and kind: "One of our Sanhe Alliance senior brothers specializes in selling them. Since you've borrowed from us, I'll speak a word for you—he'll sell you the seeds at cost price."

"There's such a good deal?" Lu Yang looked delighted.

"It's because I have a good feeling about you, junior brother," Zhao Xuhe laughed heartily: "If it weren't for that, I wouldn't tell just anyone!"

Saying this, Zhao Xuhe pulled out another jade slip and handed it to Lu Yang: "This is the communication jade slip of that senior brother. May you become wealthy soon."

"Thank you, senior brother!"

Lu Yang bowed repeatedly and left, overflowing with gratitude.

Watching his back, Zhao Xuhe curled his lips into a cold sneer, then immediately resumed searching the Merit Pavilion for his next prey.

Lu Yang did not rush to find the "reliable senior brother" Zhao Xuhe had mentioned to buy the Yin-Yang Immortal Flowers; instead, he first returned to his cave dwelling and then did some calculations.

"A loan of 500 Contribution Points can buy ten Immortal Flower seeds, with an annual interest rate of 36%, the same as the Method Loan."

"Working from dawn to dusk, watering with essence blood and nourishing with spiritual energy, it is estimated to take a full year for them all to ripen, earning 1,500 Contribution Points."

"After paying the rent, only 1,140 Contribution Points remain."

"The Method Loan principal plus interest is another 460, leaving 680 Contribution Points, then the Immortal Flower principal of 500 plus 180 interest is due."

"Gone!?"

Where did my money go?

With this doubt, Lu Yang calculated again, then stared blankly at his own hands for a long time before coming to his senses, suddenly laughing in anger.

Good heavens, they've calculated everything, not even leaving me money for food!

Truly the First Saint Sect!

As a disciple of the Saint Sect, one starts with debt, then gets stretched to the limit by the Saint Sect on the capital chain, with Contribution Points earned from missions barely covering expenses.

To earn more and save money, one must work more overtime and take on more missions.

Otherwise, with the slightest carelessness, if the capital chain breaks, the several huge loans on his back will instantly become the straw that breaks the camel's back.

As long as you are willing to endure hardship, you will have endless hardship to endure.

Simply put, they use rigid necessities to hold the lower-level disciples hostage, forcing them to work themselves to death, thereby adding bricks and tiles to the glory of the First Saint Sect.

"Beasts!"

Thinking of this, Lu Yang could not help but curse loudly, then comforted himself:

"I work for the Saint Sect, the Saint Sect issues Contribution Points, loans and cave dwellings charge Contribution Points; it is equivalent to the Saint Sect producing and selling for itself, while I sit back and enjoy the fruits!"

Immediately, Lu Yang recalled the kind and eager Zhao Xuhe from before, then looked at the additional 500 Contribution Points loan on the disciple token in his hand, sneering inwardly.

"And since you are unrighteous, do not blame me for being unjust."

"Usury? I'm a deadbeat!"

Despite these words, the ox-and-horse situation of the Saint Sect disciples still made Lu Yang feel stifled; the more he thought about it, the worse it felt, and a nameless anger surged upward.

"Demon?"

Just then, the curtain was lifted; it turned out that Yun Miaoqing had heard Lu Yang cursing loudly, so she got up from the bed and came over to check the situation.

(End of this chapter)