The Journey of Immortal Cultivation-Chapter 923 - 506: Hidden Tricks

Among the demons sent by Miluo this time, fox demons, weasel demons, rabbit demons, and weasel demons accounted for more than half. What puzzled her was that the leader’s True Body was actually a large hippo, which had to soak in water every ten or so two hours. Luckily, Hidden Stream had many water areas, but this guy was a master at calculating accounts. Ning Xiaoxian glanced at his big mouth and broad belly and could only sigh that there truly is nothing too strange in the world. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Perhaps Miluo had forewarned them, as all the demons that arrived were deferential and respectful, with their eyes lowered in humility. She casually tested a few, finding them all surprisingly capable and not inferior to the slickest humans. Of course, the most important aspect was that they were all demons—a requirement she specifically mentioned to Miluo. Due to the Power of Ba Snake, any demon staying for a month would become unwaveringly loyal to Hidden Stream, which was not the case for humans. Moreover, Hidden Stream, accustomed to being closed off for years, still disliked humans frequently appearing in their power center. Miluo astutely understood her preferences and sent people that pleased her, a gesture of goodwill.

Ning Xiaoxian was clearly aware of the goodwill, yet these talents were indeed what she urgently needed. Even though Chiming City might face some trouble with this significant loss, Fengtian Prefecture had plenty of talents. Miluo transferring people from elsewhere was just as good.

When the hippo demon team arrived, Ning Xiaoxian was busy in the Immortal Plant Garden.

Initially, Elder He handled most of her work, but after Elder He transformed into the Sect Leader, it was inappropriate for him to continue these tasks. During her absence from Hidden Stream, her duties were delegated to two newly promoted Deputy Garden Directors, both Pill Masters and her old acquaintances. However, since Ba Snake Forest started conducting external business, the entire Immortal Plant Garden was under strain, not only allocating Pill Masters to help but also distributing elixirs according to orders from the Foreign Affairs Hall, leaving everyone extremely busy.

After taking a few turns around the garden, Ning Xiaoxian frowned deeply.

In her view, in the short term, the expansion in the sale of elixirs was beneficial as it increased revenue. But in the long run, the Pill Masters were so busy they had no time to study elixir recipes or cultivate, abandoning their true profession, which was detrimental. Moreover, the surface prosperity of business concealed pressing issues that needed addressing.

She first checked the condition of the Blood Parasol and found that this spirit tree, which nearly exhausted the Soil Spiritual Power, was growing well. But due to its previous catastrophic damage, it was uncertain how long it would take to grow a branch suitable for a Substitute Doll again.

However, the growth of other herbs was less satisfactory. For instance, she saw a Thousand-leaf Ghost Eye Vine, which had to be watered every six hours, but each time couldn’t exceed half a liter, in a semi-desolate state. She even witnessed ripe Dragon Elephant Fruits falling to the ground in front of her, disappearing into the earth without anyone picking them. Finally, Ning Garden Director was furious. Although there were demon children and Lin Wei in the garden, they only knew how to execute tasks assigned from above, and assigning tasks, which requires strong subjectivity, still needed Pill Masters to complete.

She ordered someone to summon the Pill Master guarding the Immortal Garden for inquiry, only to find no trace of them. Ultimately, she learned that instead of being absent from duty, they had been temporarily called to the Foreign Affairs Hall to check recipes and estimate prices for outgoing goods.

So they were summoned by the Foreign Affairs Hall? She gave a cold smile, ready to cause trouble for some people. Just then, the demons sent from Chiming City arrived. With these people in hand, she could finally act without constraint.

When she arrived at the Foreign Affairs Hall, the Pill Master on guard was indeed collaborating with an Artifact Refiner from the Refining Room in the back hall, referencing blueprints to check goods and quotes. Although Ba Snake Forest had a wide variety of medicinal herbs, it wasn’t all-encompassing, and some special herbs still needed to be purchased. The Hall Master from the Foreign Affairs Hall and the guest sat in the front hall, drinking tea and chatting while waiting for the quotation list.

This Hall Master, named Pilu, was transferred from the Refining Room and knew Ning Xiaoxian. When he saw her walking in, he was visibly startled, while she glanced at the guest. Just by chance, it seemed to be the "Master" standing beside Huangfuming when he entered the mountains yesterday, the leader of the Chaoyun Sect team, Liu Yunfeng.

After Pilu finished introducing the guest, she smiled and said: "There are some issues with the Spirit Grass cultivation in the Immortal Plant Garden. Upon inquiry, I learned the Pill Master on duty today had been called here. It’s not feasible for the garden to be without anyone, so I had to come and take them back."