T/N: This chapter was translated by Elysian Pit. I DO NOT own the translation and all credit goes to the original translator. I’ve picked up this novel to continue from where the previous translator left. Thank you ❤️❤️
After filling out the application form, Qin Wanwan’s group made some preparations. The next day, the Tian Jian Sect sent a disciple to inform them to gather at the back mountain.
Qin Wanwan woke up early to put on her makeup to ensure that her appearance wasn’t similar to Qin Wan. She put on her veil and tilted her head to Jian Xingzhi who was leaning against the door, “How is it? Can you tell that I am Qin Wan?”
“With that prominent mole on your forehead,” Jian Xingzhi was genuine in his answer, “I really can’t tell.”
Qin Wanwan was satisfied with the answer. She moved away from the mirror, “Then, are you ready?”
“Ready.”
Nan Feng arrived with a big bag on his back, “Ready at any time!”
Qin Wanwan was pleased. Together with Jian Xingzhi and Nan Feng, they tailed behind the Tian Jian Sect’s disciple to the open area on the back mountain.
Halfway down the hill, a sea of people greeted her sight. The disciple led them to the open area and after that, they went to join the other disciples in another place.
Qin Wanwan scurried around and caught sight of Bai Suiyou. He was talking to someone beside him, Qin Wanwan waved her hand and greeted him, “Fellow Daoist Bai!”
Bai Suiyou turned around when he heard Qin Wanwan’s voice. When his sight fell on Qin Wanwan, he froze momentarily. After making sure he didn’t recognize the wrong person, he offered up a smile, “Fellow Daoist Qin.”
“When did Fellow Daoist Bai arrive here? Does Fellow Daoist have any idea when we can enter the secret realm?”
“I arrived here not long ago.”
Bai Suiyou glanced at the back of the mountain not far away and pointed there, “The entrance of the secret realm will be opened there. I heard that in a few minutes, Daoist Monarch Xie will be opening the secret realm.”
“Daoist Monarch Xie will be the one opening the secret realm?” Qin Wanwan was curious, “Will he also enter with us?”
“That’s how it should be,” Bai Suiyou smiled, “Tian Jian Sect is not like Guicheng. Guicheng will not care about our lives once inside. In contrast, Tian Jian Sect is an influential sect with a long outstanding history, even outsiders that come to look for swords from their Sword Mound will be well-protected.”
“That’s pretty admirable of them…”
Qin Wanwan and Bai Suiyou talked a lot before a loud ‘dong’ from a gong resounded in the open area. Their gazes simultaneously landed on the sound source. Not far away, Xie Gutang hovered mid-air with his sword beneath his feet.
Behind him were the young disciples. One was a woman, with a beautiful appearance. She was carved in the same mold as Xie Gutang, with her dress as white as snow. But her expression was cold, like that of an ice sculpture. Another disciple standing beside her, wearing a moon-white brocade robe with red edges, held a gong in his hand. He wore a wide smile on his chubby face.
“Master.”
Nan Feng, knowing Qin Wanwan was clueless, whispered to introduce them to Qin Wanwan, “That woman is the daughter of Tian Jian Sect’s Sect Leader, she also holds the title of the World’s Top Beauty, Su Zhenxue. The one holding the gong is Daoist Monarch Xie’s Junior Martial Brother, Zhu Chi.”
Qin Wanwan nodded and glimpsed around, many men were openly and secterly admiring Su Zhenxue. It seemed that her title was deserving.
“Welcome to the Tian Jian Sect to participate in the Sword Test Conference,” The crowd hushed down the moment Zhu Chi beat the gong. Zhu Chi saw most of the people had gathered their attention on him and announced with a smile on his face, “This year’s Sword Test Conference is hosted by my Senior Martial Brother, Xie Gutang. During the process, Tian Jian Sect will provide basic protection. Shall any of you encounter danger, crush the nameplate given to you and you will be transported outside the secret realm. However, keep in mind that it means you will fail the test. So, please be careful inside the secret realm. Listen to our advice and don’t swing your sword around unreservedly.”
Zhu Chi put the gong back to his Qiankun pouch. He took a scroll out and unfurled it with his other hand.
While Zhu Chi opened the scroll, Xie Gutang drew out a bronze mirror and threw it mid-air. It took no time for the mirror to expand into a door.
“Soon, I will call your name. The one who gets their name called, please come forward to enter the secret realm. The test will begin once you enter the secret realm. You are free to roam around, and the task to win the chance to enter the Sword Mound will be given after you enter the secret realm,” Zhu Chi called their names one by one as listed on the list, “Wen Xin Sect. Twelve People. Please line up.”
Upon hearing the name, Qin Wanwan and Jian Xingzhi straightened their shoulders and swept a glance at them. There were twelve young cultivators below the Golden Core Realm who came from the Wen Xin Sect. Qin Wanwan didn’t recognize most of them and was glad for that. She lifted her hand to hook off her veil properly.
Zhu Chi counted the people and started to move on to the next sect.
After some time, Qin Wanwan noticed that the Tian Jian Sect prioritized those with a Sect first. Loose cultivators and those who signed up without bringing their Sect’s name, were put at the back of the list.
As the roll call commenced, few and fewer people remained in the open space. When there were not many people left, Qin Wanwan eventually heard, “‘No Door No Sect’ Sect. Qin Wanwan, Long Aotian, Nan Feng.”
The remaining few people’s eyes were plastered on them when they heard it.
Qin Wanwan was a bit embarrassed about being the center of attention. She wanted to clarify that she filled the form with ‘Without Sect, Without Faction’, and not a Sect called ‘No Door No Sect’ but she chose to give up on it so as not to delay time.
She quickly led Jian Xingzhi and Nan Feng into the secret realm. They entered the secret realm and were transported somewhere that appeared to be a forest. ‘Appeared to be a forest’ because, unlike ordinary forest, in the place where they were, the trees, grass, and vines were several times larger than that of an ordinary forest.
They just surveyed the area when scrolls descended upon them.
Qin Wanwan grabbed the scroll.
On the scroll was written, “Task Details”.
She spread the scroll and skimmed it first, verifying that the task was not some murderous task of killing each other. After she got the assurance, she could discern the knife hanging on her heart vanished. She relaxed and trekked to the side to carefully read the details.
The task did not look difficult; either catching spiritual beasts or picking spiritual grass. The points differ for each beast and grass. 100 points or more were required to be deemed as completing the task, The first ten to reach 100 would get the pass to the Sword Mound.
Tian Jian Sect made the detail to the dot. They indicated the characteristics and points for each beast and grass on the scroll and put a variety of peace clauses, such as ‘No Killing’, ‘No Inflicting Life-threatening Injury’, and so on. In a way, the task was not complicated.
But Qin Wanwan sensed something was off. How could the Sword Test Conference which gathered many talents only engage in such a basic task?
Qin Wanwan had her doubts about the task, but she still searched for the best solution under their current situation.
Low-grade spiritual grass was 1 point, low-grade spiritual beast was 5 points; Middle-grade spiritual grass was 5 points, middle-grade spiritual beast was 10 points; High-grade spiritual grass was 10 points, high-grade spiritual beast was 20 points. For the highest-grade spiritual beast and grass, each was 50 points.
To get the pass to Sword Mound, the key was not only to score enough, but also fast enough.
If the power was enough, the most effective way was to directly catch the highest-grade spiritual beast and spiritual grass.
“What does the puppy think?”
Qin Wanwan asked Jian Xingzhi. She must verify whether he had received some odd tasks from his System.
Jian Xingzhi understood what Qin Wanwan was asking him when she mentioned the word ‘puppy’.
“There is nothing to worry for the time being.”
Qin Wanwan was relieved at his answer. Jian Xingzhi finished reading the scroll and clapped, “Then let’s split up. I will go catch the spiritual beast, you go pick the spiritual grass. Let’s assemble here in half an hour.”
Qin Wanwan: “Eh?”
Jian Xingzhi’s words had just fallen and Qin Wanwan still hadn’t understood, but he took a big stride. Only a stride, but immediately, a red warning box with neon-red fonts blinked blindingly in his mind.
[Warning: Do not snatch the Female Lead’s Plot! Do not steal the Female Lead’s Task! Lie flat well!*]
[T/N: 躺平 – tǎng píng. Giving up hard work to live a comfortable life; do nothing; be a salted fish; enjoy the fruit of other people’s efforts.]
Jian Xingzhi: “……”
666 haggardly sighed, “Master. Don’t be presumptuous. Remember the persona set on your character.”
Jian Xingzhi held his breath and retraced his steps to Qin Wanwan, “Go, you go catch the spiritual beast, and I the spiritual grass.”
“Brother Aotian really has the courage.”
Bai Suiyou, who entered the secret realm not long ago, remarked on Jian Xingzhi’s words. He gave a smile as he shut his scroll, “But, courage alone is not enough. The highest-grade spiritual beast in this secret realm is not easy to capture, even for someone at the peak of the Golden Core Realm. Let alone you two have suppressed your cultivation to that of Foundation Establishment, haven’t you? Why don’t we work together to capture the spiritual beast?”
“Fellow Daoist Bai is wise.”
Another cold voice intercepted. Qin Wanwan rotated her head to find the owner of the voice.
Su Zhenxue stood on a side, closing her scroll.
Nan Feng’s antennae straightened up as soon as Su Zhenxue’s voice sounded, and he reacted within a beat, “Immortal Su is wise!”
[T/N: 仙女 – xiānnǚ. Female Immortal; Fairy; Celestial Being.]
Su Zhenxue paid no attention to Nan Feng. She placed the scroll in her sleeve and strolled to Qin Wanwan, “There are ten places reserved for entering the Sword Mound. Forming a team will increase our efficiency. As we work faster, our probability of entering the Sword Mound will also be higher. How does that sound?”
“No…”
The word ‘Need’ was not yet out of Jian Xingzhi’s lips when Qin Wanwan cut him off, “No Problem! No Problem! We can work together!”
The matter was settled just like that. Su Zhenxu and Qin Wanwan began to formulate a plan.
“It’s too risky at our level to take on the highest-grade spiritual beast.”
Su Zhenxue pointed at the scroll directory and discussed with Qin Wanwan, “There are five of us, so how about we encircle some high-grade spiritual beast together? Anyway, it’s common for spiritual grass at their grade to grow near their dens. Because we are a team of five, we need a total of 500 points. So, at least we need to defeat 25 high-grade spiritual beasts.”
“I agree.” Qin Wanwan was not stingy in her praise, “Fellow Daoist Su is extremely intelligent and impressive.”
“Then, let’s start with the spiritual beasts near us to the farthest.”
Before Su Zhenxue could go to discuss it with the others, Qin Wanwan made a suggestion, “Why don’t we pick the spiritual grass first?”
“Pick the spiritual grass first?”
Su Zhenxue was puzzled by her suggestion, Qin Wanwan forced out an awkward smile, “This is our first time in this secret realm and we haven’t figured out the overall situation. Unripe persimmon is hard to pinch, we should pinch the soft ones instead*. Therefore, we should start with the spiritual grass, after all the spiritual grass can’t run away.”
[T/N: 柿子先捡软的捏 – shìzi xiān jiǎn ruǎn de niē. Pick up a soft persimmon (to pinch). Choosing things that are not difficult and easier to accomplish.]
Her suggestion was approved by everyone but Jian Xingzhi. However, with four against one, he could only tolerate the outcome with great reluctance. He fished out the map and located the nearby spiritual grass.
Qin Wanwan peeked at the map and cross-checked the location and species of the spiritual grass with the one in the directory. They moved on after they confirmed their target.
Cactus.
Reading the familiar name, Qin Wanwan was a little moved. Different places; different degrees of preciousness. The cactus she once knew was only an ordinary plant, but in this Cultivation World, cactus was considered as high-grade spiritual grass.
Bai Suiyou expressed his concern when he saw that it was a cactus, “Is there something special about this ‘cactus’? How should we deal with it?”
“As a matter of fact,” Qin Wanwan displayed an absolute assurance, “I have seen it and I am familiar with it.”
As they moved towards their target, the group felt a fluctuation in the surrounding aura, and Jian Xingzhi frowned, “There is an array here.”
“It seems like the cactus has a spiritual consciousness and will do what it can to protect itself.”
Bai Suiyou also observed the surrounding area.
“It’s a high-grade spiritual cactus, after all.” Su Zhenxue was not shaken because of the change.
Qin Wanwan was also not disturbed in the slightest, “Fear not,” she reassured, “Isn’t it nothing more than just a cactus?”
With that, the group entered the inner location marked on the map.
The place was a huge mountain, with a comparably huge cave on it. The cave vaguely produced some strange but familiar noises.
The crowd eyed the area, but there were only ordinary plants around. Su Zhenxue muttered to herself, “Seems like the only way to capture them is to look inside.”
“We can’t go together at once. If there is an ambush inside, we will be at a disadvantage,” Bai Suiyou pondered, “I will go first.”
“No!”
Qin Wanwan volunteered bravely, “Let me!”
“Since when have you been so brave?” Jian Xingzhi could hardly believe his ears. Qin Wanwan was brimming with conviction, “Just a cactus, what is there to be afraid of.”
“Then Fellow Daoist Qin may go in first,” Bai Suiyou was not without worry to let her volunteer alone, “Please be careful.”
Qin Wanwan accepted his worry with a nod but Jian Xingzhi was still uneasy, “I will go with you.”
Thus, Qin Wanwan and Jian Xinghi entered the cave together.
There was only a glimmer of light inside the cave. The dim environment made Qin Wanwan timid, so Qin Wanwan fumbled for a night pearl to illuminate the path.
Jian Xingzhi crossed his hands in front of his chest and gave her a sidelong glance, “What got into you that make you actively risk yourself this time?”
“You agreed on forming a team, even if reluctantly. So, it implies there must be many dangers lurking here.”
Qin Wanwan heard strange noises coming from the depth of the cave. She instinctively leaned over to Jian Xingzhi and grasped a corner of his sleeve. Jian Xingzhi just looked at her small movement but didn’t comment on it.
Qin Wanwan gulped before continuing her explanation, “In due course, we will take turns in volunteering. Cactus has no lethality, the only threat is its thorns. Rather than exploring things I am not familiar with, why don’t I show my exemplary conduct and nobility of character by volunteering to take the lead with something I am familiar with? In this way, I won’t need to volunteer again for the next turn.”
“Now that sounds more like what you would do.” Jian Xingzhi was correct to suspect her when she volunteered.
As they went deeper, the noises became louder. Jian Xingzhi knit his brows, “What’s that noise?”
Qin Wanwan listened vigilantly and tentatively answered, “It sounds like… Mahjong?”
“Mahjong?”
Jian Xingzhi was skeptical. Before their eyes, torches appeared on the side of the caves, followed by a door taller than a meter. Qin Wanwan’s heart began beating a little quicker. She moved closer to Jian Xingzhi, whispering to herself and Jian XIngzhi to muster up her dying courage. “There must be people living here. We must keep a good attitude. Don’t be intimidating. Let’s ask the way to where the cactus is planted.”
Qin Wanwan’s voice was like an ant, but the clatters of mahjong inside the room stopped when she started speaking. Qin Wanwan was too nervous to notice it and resumed, “When the time comes, let’s find a hoe or a shovel, you are good at digging things, aren’t you? In the case of cactus, start digging to the bottom before uprooting it. Cactus grow in pieces and we can share the points.”
They reached the door after she finished speaking.
Jian Xingzhi seemed to anticipate something. He hooked the corner of his lips as he glanced at Qin Wanwan who was quivering like a quail and clenching his sleeve in a death grip, practically hanging onto him, “Knock it.”
Qin Wanwan inhaled deeply. She gathered enough courage before knocking on the door, speaking politely, “Um… Hello… Sorry for disturbing you, we are on our way to…”
The door directly opened, shoving her words back to her throat.
When the gust of cold wind swept past her, the first thing Qin Wanwan saw was a pair of green legs full of thorns, which worryingly looked similar to a cactus.
Her whole body froze. She mechanically looked up, her gaze moved slowly from bottom to top. In front of her, a huge, muscular cactus stood with a spiked mace in its hands.
The cactus in front of her was not alone. Inside the room, she could faintly see humanoid cacti sitting on several mahjong tables. The cacti carried weapons in their hands, with fierce eyes glaring at them threateningly.
“Just before,” The cactus at the doorway played with the mace on its shoulder. The magnificent muscles bulged up as the mace moved, appearing aggressive. He stared down at Qin Wanwan menacingly, “It was you who said you want to uproot us?”
Qin Wanwan swallowed her saliva. She stepped back calmly and earnestly bowed to show her apology, “Please pardon me.”
After that, she flung away Jian Xingzhi’s sleeve and ran like there was no tomorrow.
She didn’t forget to inform the people outside, who were enjoying a snack as they waited for them, and shouted,
“The cactus is humongous!!!! Retreat!!! Run for your life!!! AHHH!!!”
I can’t help but imagine Cactuar from Final Fantasy 😂