He was slightly chubby and not very tall.

But the golden crown on his head, the white jade waistband around his waist, and the pair of cloud-patterned deer shoes on his feet all indicated his extraordinary family background.

Seated cross-legged opposite him was an elder whose build was almost identical to Wang Wenbai's.

His hair was half white, but his facial skin was incredibly delicate, as if carved from jade.

Upon hearing Wang Wenbai's words, he suddenly opened his eyes, with anger flickering within them.

"Utterly foolish!

If you hadn't previously threatened him publicly in the Corpse Forest, I could have found an opportunity to act in secret. Now that everyone knows your intentions, how can this be executed?

Don't think that just because I'm an elder, I can act recklessly. The sect's laws are there, and not even the Sect Leader can openly defy them.

Not to mention, a few old fellows in the sect have never been fond of me, just waiting to catch me slipping up!

How did I, Wang Yizhi, a hero all my life, raise such a fool like you?"

Listening to his grandfather's scolding, Wang Wenbai only kept his head down, not daring to utter a single word.

Seeing that his objective was hard to achieve, he left in a huff.

Upon leaving Elder Wang's cave residence, he saw a tall male cultivator in a dark blue Daoist robe waiting outside, ready for an audience.

"Senior Brother Yan!" Wang Wenbai called out upon seeing the person.

"Young Master." The cultivator named Yan's eyes lit up as he strides over, "You've joined the sect, since when? Why didn't you let me know so I could arrange a banquet?"

"I've only joined the sect recently, been busy with cultivation.

Sigh, I just got reprimanded by my grandfather." Wang Wenbai complained.

"Elder Wang has always been fond of you, how come he's like this?" the cultivator named Yan asked in surprise.

"Hey, don't mention it. My innate spirit corpse was snatched away by a lower-grade spirit root disciple, I've been losing sleep these days..."

While complaining, Wang Wenbai's eyes darted around: "Senior Brother Yan, could you help me find Steward Xie?"

"Young Master, you intend to..." The man named Yan hesitated, "Doing this might create a mortal feud."

"What waves can a lower-grade spirit root stir up?" Wang Wenbai scoffed, then whispered, "Senior Brother Yan, help me this time, and I promise to speak well of you in front of my grandfather, and have him allocate resources to help with your breakthrough..."

"Alright, I'll help you with this!" The man named Yan chuckled.

...

Time flew by, and three days passed, arriving at the day for land allocation.

Over a hundred newly inducted disciples gathered at the foot of Disciple Peak.

Lou Yi turned his head to observe around.

Noticing that You Qingyi, Wang Wenbai, and Rong Xuejian, those with medium to upper-grade spirit roots, were indeed absent, the sect must have other arrangements for them.

Wei Jian quickly arrived, taking on the role of guide for the new recruits, handling seemingly all matters for nearly three months.

He resembled Lou Yi's college counselor from his previous life to some extent.

"Fellow disciples, today I'll take you to receive your Spirit Fields, there are some dos and don'ts to inform you in advance." Wei Jian led the group, giving pointers to the disciples as they walked.

"Selecting a Spirit Field is done by drawing lots. Once selected, you cannot regret it or change it..."

"The Rain Technique must be practiced well, as the yield of the Spirit Field depends largely not only on its quality but also on nurturing with magic..."

"Each quarter, the outer disciples have a cultivation assessment, with Spirit Field yields accounting for a significant portion.

If you achieve a top ten ranking among your peers, there are substantial contribution points rewarded... the importance of contribution points is something you should all be aware of."

The many newcomers silently listened to Wei Jian's words, and occasionally someone would ask questions, which he generally answered.

Soon, the group arrived at the foot of Guest Welcoming Peak and began their climb.

The institution responsible for land assignment was called the Spirit Field Pavilion, located next to the Name Pavilion, an ancient three-story wooden structure with flying eaves.

The person in charge of the pavilion was a middle-aged man in a dark blue Daoist robe, his face slightly pale, with a corpulent build of about two to three hundred pounds.

"Steward Xie, the new batch of disciples are here, sorry to trouble you." Wei Jian saluted the person.

"No need to be so polite, Junior Brother Wei. Your cultivation is becoming increasingly profound, just a step away from a breakthrough to the later stage." Steward Xie glanced at Wei Jian, forcing a rather awkward smile, "I might even have to rely on your support then."

"Steward Xie, don't flatter me." Wei Jian repeatedly said he's not worthy, shifting to the side to give space to the disciples behind him.

The first disciple stepped forward, handing over a token.

Then, taking the dark bamboo drawing tube handed by Steward Xie, they nervously shook it.

After about ten breaths, a bamboo slip fell out with writing on it, which read:

'Zone Ja-Six.'

"Hahaha, I drew land in Zone Ja!" The disciple left, excitedly shouting while others looked on enviously.

"Sigh, I got land in Zone Yi." The second disciple responded with dejection.

Wei Jian had previously explained the differences between the lands.

Zone Ja land is upper-grade Spirit Field, Zone Yi land is middle-grade Spirit Field, and Zone Bing land is lower-grade Spirit Field.

Better fields have higher Spirit Rice yields. The output of upper-grade land compared to lower-grade land can easily differ by two or three times.

"Brother Wu, how is it?"

"Don't mention it, Zone Yi-Five."

"Brother Zeng, seeing how happy you are, you must have drawn land in Zone Ja!"

"If I hadn't drawn it, your mother's grocery price would surely rise tomorrow!"

As each disciple walked out of the Spirit Field Pavilion, the quality of the lands they drew became apparent to the others.

Most got Zone Yi land, a minority got Zone Ja or Zone Bing.

Lou Yi also spotted Xu Junyi, the younger twin sister.

The once lively Primordial Qi girl now appeared pale, lips purple, eyes hollow, and her aura had grown somber.

In front of him stood a round-faced chubby boy, his face devoid of the usual nervousness of other disciples, instead showing a hint of excitement and eagerness.

Lou Yi had a thought and asked: "Brother, why aren't you nervous at all?"

The chubby boy hesitated but, seeing Lou Yi's expectant gaze, whispered: "Ahem, my luck has always been quite good."

"Oh?" Lou Yi feigned disbelief.

The chubby boy, about fifteen or sixteen, at the age when he couldn't conceal his thoughts.

He took a deep breath, lifted a corner of his Daoist robe on the right side, showing a bulge, and quickly let it down.

Lou Yi understood instantly, thinking he should have borrowed some silver from You Qingyi.

He currently didn't have a penny to his name, one of the poorest times in his life.

Indeed, when the chubby boy came out, he winked at Lou Yi excitedly, and Lou Yi understood he had hit his target.

Subsequently, Lou Yi entered the Spirit Field Pavilion, handing his disciple token to Steward Xie.

"Lou Yi?" Steward Xie glanced at the name on the token, showing no change in expression.

A moment later, he handed Lou Yi a brand new drawing tube.

Lou Yi casually shook it a few times, and a bamboo slip flew out, its front inscribed with the words: 'Zone Wujiu.'

...

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.