"Junior Sister, I know you still have questions."

"Are you wondering why your senior brothers and sisters... are so encouraging?"

"Because this is the ’tradition’ of our Guixi Sect."

’Of course, this "tradition" was established today. When it will be rescinded depends on the situation.’

"We are simply passing on the ’conviction’ we ourselves had when we walked this path."

"We want you to understand that on this lonely path of cultivation, you are not alone."

"The entire sect is your staunchest support!"

"Do you understand now?"

Lin Qingfeng spread his arms as if to embrace the world, his dark robes fluttering in the wind.

The light and shadows fell at just the right angle, making the Eldest Martial Brother seem incredibly grand and noble.

Su Ling’er: "..."

’I understand!’

’Oh, I understand all too well!’

’You’re torturing me! You’re my Life-taking Talismans!’

’And "the entire sect is my staunchest support"?’

’Could you at least make the eyes of the senior brothers and sisters behind you a little more lively?’

’Can’t you make them look like actual human beings?!’

’The entire sect is my support, huh?’

’Is it that you’re afraid I won’t run away fast enough, so the whole sect will team up to catch me and forge me into a "humanoid flying sword"?’

’You fiend! Don’t you have a shred of conscience?!’

’This sect is beyond saving!!!’

Su Ling’er took a deep breath, a look of sudden, profound realization dawning on her face once more.

"Eldest Brother, I... I understand everything now!

You’re all doing this for my own good. I’m truly... truly touched!"

’When will you damn flies finally buzz off?!’

...

And so, the Eldest Brother and Junior Sister, leading a group of idle disciples, finally arrived at the medicinal fields.

Seeing this new task, her taut nerves relaxed ever so slightly.

At least it was better than facing endless fallen leaves and a water vat that could never be filled.

She looked toward the fields and saw that the figures working there weren’t sect disciples, but spirit beasts.

Several burly spirit beasts resembling wild boars were diligently plowing the fields.

The earth they turned over was neatly furrowed, then settled flat on its own.

Beside the field, a lone water monkey with a blade of grass dangling from its mouth supervised the plowing boars, ensuring none of them got any funny ideas about slacking off.

Only then did she see clearly how the Guixi Sect used spirit beasts to work their medicinal fields.

Last time, she had only caught a fleeting glimpse of some spirit beasts in the fields and hadn’t paid attention to what they were doing.

Now, she could see it all perfectly.

But Su Ling’er stopped in her tracks.

She looked down at the jade slip—the task was to till the medicinal fields. Then she looked at her own two hands. A stone seemed to lodge in her chest, and a suffocating panic began to rise.

Why did they get to use spirit beasts to till the fields?

But she had to do it with her own two hands?

’In their eyes, am I no different from these spirit beasts?’

’I’m a Cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining, for crying out loud!’

After a moment of thought, it dawned on her.

’Yes!’

’It has to be!’

’This is all connected to everything else that’s happened in the sect. It’s all one big scheme.’

’First, they make you perform endless, repetitive labor to numb your will.’

’Then, they send you to perform a task in the same place where these beasts work.’

’It’s all to make disciples with cultivation recognize their own position!’

’No matter how high your Cultivation, you’re nothing more than a disposable tool to the sect.’

’Our status is no different from these enslaved spirit beasts.’

’The only difference is that they look like beasts, and we look like humans.’

’Step by step, they tame new disciples, turning them into mindless spirit servants who only obey their masters, stripping them of any sense of self.’

’Eventually, even without a supervisor present, you’d willingly take on that role yourself, overseeing the lower-ranking workers for the good of the sect.’

’I feel like that water monkey watching the boars.’

’No, the water monkey is Eldest Brother.’

’And I’m just one of the boars, plowing the field.’

’Oh, heavens!’

’This sect’s methods for manipulating people are simply too insidious!’

’If I weren’t so perceptive...’

’If I weren’t an undercover agent from Qingxu Temple...’

’If I were just some naive junior sister wanting to join a celestial sect, I would have been completely broken by this demonic sect without ever knowing it!’

’Just how much darkness is hidden behind this demonic sect?’

’How many unspeakable truths lie buried?’

"Junior Sister."

A voice sounded from behind her. Lin Qingfeng had once again appeared there out of nowhere.

The voice sent another cold sweat running down her back.

’Eldest Brother, not this bad habit again!’

’Can you please stop popping up behind people?!’

Su Ling’er felt a sense of resignation.

’For some reason, this Eldest Brother seems to have a particular fondness for sneaking up on me.’

’I don’t get it.’

’As expected. The minds of Evil Cultivators are just this strange and illogical.’

Lin Qingfeng stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the spirit servants, his expression unreadable.

"Are you wondering why they can use spirit servants to do their labor, while you must handle matters personally?"

’Of course I know!’

’It’s your demonic sect’s elaborate plot, a step-by-step method of mentally conditioning new disciples like me!’

But she still put on an expression that said, "This disciple is foolish. I humbly ask for Eldest Brother’s guidance."

Lin Qingfeng gazed up at the sky at a forty-five-degree angle, sighing internally.

’It’s not like I have a choice.’

’Those are the disciples’ private property, things they got after paying up. They were all bought with Spirit Stones, and all the produce belongs to them.’

’Of course spirit servants can do the work, but that doesn’t earn sect contribution points. That’s all for the players’ personal use, for harvesting their own Spirit Grass and Spirit Plants.’

’Your task is a sect quest. You have to till the sect’s public land.’

’Besides, the quest rules state that you can’t use spirit servants or any outside help to grind contribution points. You have to do it yourself, with your own two hardworking hands.’

’Otherwise, how are you supposed to grind out five hundred thousand contribution points?’

’And how is our sect supposed to prosper?’

’Sigh... oh, well.’

’Guess it’s up to me, the ever-reliable Eldest Brother, to spin this tale so you’ll be completely convinced and happily get to work.’

Then, he found the perfect angle, clasped his hands behind his back, and once again gazed at the sky.

He cleared his throat, a look of profound compassion gracing his features.

"You see only the surface, not the substance."

"They command spirit servants to cultivate for ’private gain.’ What is produced is for them alone."

"This is a lesser path. There is nothing wrong with it, but it is a narrow one."

"But you, Junior Sister... you are different."

"With your own hands, you till the sect’s ’public land.’

Every drop of your sweat fortifies the very foundation of our sect.

The Spirit Grass from this land will one day become pills, bestowed upon every meritorious member of our sect."

"They pursue the ’lesser self,’ while you walk the path of the ’greater self.’"

"You are an intelligent girl, Junior Sister. Surely you understand the difference?"

"Rest assured, the sect will not treat you poorly!"

’Just hurry up and finish this job.’

’Once you get back and see the reward, I’m sure you won’t be so dejected anymore!’