Although there were tasks for gathering herbs, they were usually not too strict. It was just a method to prevent the disciples from slacking off. As long as the disciples did not slack off, they would usually be able to complete the tasks.
For someone like Su Wan 'er, who left early and returned late, and still could not complete her task, there must be something wrong with her. It was impossible for her to be lazy.
After some questioning, Mo Wen found out that Wan 'er's task was much more important than the others. She also needed to continuously gather medicinal herbs for a month. Although nature was a huge treasure trove and there were countless medicinal herbs in the forest, there were many ancient martial arts sects in the Taihang Mountains. In order to support so many sects, no matter how rich the medicinal herbs in the Taihang Mountains were, there would be a day when they would all be collected.
Moreover, those ancient martial arts sects had designated the area within a hundred miles of their sect as their private territory. They forbade other ancient martial arts sects from gathering medicinal herbs there. At the location of the Five Tigers Sect, the distribution of ancient martial arts sects was more concentrated. There were quite a few large sects in the surrounding area. Those sects had marked their territory as kings and did not allow disciples from other sects to gather medicinal herbs there. This resulted in the area where Wan 'er could gather medicinal herbs being reduced by 80%.
The Five Tigers Sect was not a small sect. The area they occupied for gathering medicinal herbs was not small. However, it was currently winter. The number of medicinal herbs was far less than that of spring, when all living things grew. Moreover, Wan 'er gathered medicinal herbs every day. She had visited all the places she was familiar with. The difficulty of finding medicinal herbs also increased every day.
With just the Five Tigers Sect's territory, it was rather difficult to complete the daily task. Unless Wan 'er walked a further distance and entered deep into the primeval forest of the Taihang Mountains, the distance was too far. It would take a lot of time to travel back and forth. These few days, Wan' er had tried her best to walk as far as possible. However, it was still very difficult to complete the task.
The sect had its rules. The Five Tigers Sect stipulated that if a herb-gathering disciple did not complete the standard task five times during the period in which they were in charge of herb-gathering, their cultivation would be crippled and they would be chased out of the Five Tigers Sect. This punishment was very harsh, but in reality, such a situation rarely occurred. The Five Tigers Sect's medicinal herb gathering cycle was seven days. After seven days, they would take turns. Out of the seven days, he didn't complete the mission for five days. That could only mean that this person was especially lazy and irresponsible, so it was reasonable for him to be expelled from the sect.
However, Wan'er's current situation was special. Not only was her task heavier, it was twice as heavy as usual. Moreover, the herb picking cycle was thirty days. As for why, Wan'er was vague about it. She only said that she made a mistake and was punished by the sect.
However, Mo Wen knew clearly that Wan 'er's punishment had something to do with him. It was just that the kind Wan' er did not mention it. Mo Wen furrowed his brows. Under normal circumstances, he would have immediately taken Wan 'er and left. However, he had yet to recover from his injuries, so it would be inconvenient for him to leave. Moreover, he had killed a Blood Kindred Pinnacle Grand Earl. Perhaps there were already Blood Kindred looking for him for revenge. In a situation where his cultivation had yet to recover, hiding in the Five Tigers Sect to recuperate was actually a good choice.
"Big Brother Mo, rest early. I'll go back first. "
After expressing the grievances in her heart, Wan'er felt much better. She wiped her tears, got up, and walked out. She had been tired for the whole day and her body couldn't take it anymore. She still had to get up early tomorrow to go down the mountain to pick herbs, so she didn't have much time to rest.
"Wan 'er, I will accompany you down the mountain to gather medicinal herbs tomorrow," Mo Wen muttered to himself.
"Ah?"
Wan 'er was stunned for a moment, and then her little face became bitter. She guessed that Mo Wen wanted to help her, but gathering medicinal herbs was a technical task. Those who did not know how to gather medicinal herbs would definitely not be able to gather medicinal herbs in the mountains. It's hard to say if Brother Mo can recognize medicinal herbs. One more person might not necessarily be an extra helping hand. Sometimes, it could even be a burden.
"Big Brother Mo, I can do it alone. Sister Wang Qian is willing to accompany me. You are injured, so you don't have to accompany me," Wan 'er said bitterly.
Wan 'er said bitterly. She did not know how to reject Mo Wen.
"Why? You don't believe me? I'm a professional when it comes to gathering medicinal herbs. When I was three, I accompanied adults up the mountain to gather medicinal herbs. I can recognize all kinds of medicinal herbs. When I was seven, I went up the mountain to gather medicinal herbs alone. I can smell the location of medicinal herbs from ten miles away … "
Mo Wen said with a smile. He was not bragging when he said the first few sentences. He came from a medical family and had learned medical skills since he was young. Gathering medicinal herbs was the most basic skill. As for the last sentence … it was impossible for him to smell the scent of medicinal herbs from ten miles away. He was not the Howling Sky Divine Hound, but he had Deified Soul Power. His Deified Soul could cover a range of ten miles in a single direction.
"So, Big Brother Mo is so amazing!" Wan 'er's eyes widened. He could smell the scent of medicinal herbs from ten miles away. Was he bragging?
But she couldn't see any trace of lying on Mo Wen's face. Wan 'er was innocent and pure, but she was very sensitive. She could keenly sense the emotions of others. She could tell from the eyes of others whether they were lying and whether they had good or bad intentions towards her.
"If you don't believe me, you can bring me along to try it tomorrow. If I am a burden to you, you can go gather medicinal herbs yourself. I will return to the sect alone," Mo Wen said with a smile.
Mo Wen said with a smile. His words were so exaggerated that only Wan 'er would believe them. However, he was indeed not lying.
"I … I didn't … mean it that way …" Wan 'er lowered her head. Her face was slightly red.
"Alright, go back and rest. I will accompany you down the mountain tomorrow morning," Mo Wen said in an unquestionable tone.
Although his cultivation had not recovered and there were still many problems with his body, his normal life was no longer a hindrance. His body was so strong that no matter how serious his injuries were, it was not something that a random person could hurt him. An ancient martial art practitioner below the Golden Elixir realm might not even be able to break through the defense of his corporeal body.
"Oh." Wan 'er stuck out her tongue. She realized that in front of Mo Wen, she couldn't even think of resisting. She could only nod her head obediently.
…
The next morning, Wan 'er brought Mo Wen breakfast and medicinal soup as usual. The sky had just started to brighten, but the forest was still pitch-black. Wan' er woke up very early every day, especially recently. She would wake up almost five in the morning.
Usually, Wan 'er didn't want to disturb Mo Wen's rest. She would quietly leave the breakfast and medicinal soup and then leave.
But today, Wan 'er discovered that Mo Wen's room was lit. An oil lamp was on the table and Mo Wen was sitting beside it.
"Big Brother Mo, you are up so early," Wan 'er said in surprise. Usually, Mo Wen would be sleeping at this time.
"Aren't I going to accompany Wan 'er to gather medicinal herbs today?" Mo Wen said with a faint smile. He didn't need to sleep at all. The reason why he was sitting at the table so early was to tell Wan 'er that he was ready. He didn't want her to worry about him not getting enough sleep and deliberately not wake him up.
"Big Brother Mo, you and Sister Wang Qian are both good people." Wan 'er smiled sweetly.
Mo Wen shook his head in amusement at being called a good person by Wan 'er. How could he be a good person? It was just that he was not a bad person. From a certain perspective, even though Mo Wen was a miracle physician, he was not suited to be a doctor. He did not have the qualities to practice medicine to save the world. Wan 'er was the most suitable person to be a doctor.
If he had not been born in a medical family but in an Immortal Cultivator family, then he would definitely only have the Way of Immortals in his heart. He would not have practiced medicine.
After a simple breakfast, Mo Wen and Wan 'er went out together.
The area where the ordinary disciples lived was on the cliff at the side of the valley. So, they had to go down the mountain to go out. The valley was where the Five Tigers Sect's inner sect disciples and core disciples, as well as the sect's upper echelon lived. Looking down from the cliff, one could vaguely see the scenery in the valley. The valley was not big, but it was like spring all year round. The environment was rather good. The buildings inside were also grand and imposing. They were carved with jade, vermilion pillars, and glazed tiles.
The Five Tigers Sect was a very old sect. It had some history and was rather famous in the area around the Taihang Mountains. Its most famous technique was the Five Tigers Breaking the Gate Blade Technique. This technique was not a profound martial arts teaching. It was just a basic technique. However, it was very practical and suitable for some middle and low-level disciples. There were many in the martial arts circle who knew the Five Tigers Breaking the Gate Blade Technique, but the most authentic was the Five Tigers Sect's technique.
The mountain gate of the Five Tigers Breaking the Gate Blade Technique was at the entrance of the valley. It was made up of many large stones. The words "Five Tigers Sect" were written in bold calligraphy. It was rather domineering and grand. Mo Wen and Wan 'er went down the mountain. They had to pass through the domineering mountain gate. Right now, there was a silhouette standing under the mountain gate.
The person was none other than Wang Qian. She was not wearing a skirt. Instead, she was wearing sturdy, coarse clothing. This kind of clothing was suitable for walking in the forest.
"Sister Wang Qian."
Su Wan 'er waved at Wang Qian from afar. Aside from Mo Wen, Wang Qian had also decided to accompany Wan' er into the mountains to gather medicinal herbs. She had the intention of helping Wan 'er through this difficult time.
Although she was also just an ordinary disciple, she needed to complete some of the sect's tasks and even chores. Life in the mountains depended on oneself. Planting, breeding, weaving, carrying firewood, fetching water … Everything had to be done by one's own hands. The upper echelons of the sect and the inner sect disciples that they focused on training would not do these chores. Hence, only the ordinary disciples could do these chores.
Every ancient martial arts sect had a strict rule. They could not interact with the outside world in their daily lives. This rule had been passed down for hundreds of years. No sect dared to violate this rule. It was because this rule came from the Huatian Palace.
Sects could have their own assets in the outside world and could set up companies. However, they could not transport resources and manpower from the outside world into the mountains. Also, the disciples of ancient martial arts sects could not easily go to the cities. If they had relatives outside, they could go home to visit them once every three years. Each visit could not exceed ten days.
That was because if there were no such restrictions, the balance would be destroyed. It was very likely that the whole world would know about it. The ancient martial arts sects would not be able to hide in the mountains anymore. The order of society would also be destroyed.
Hence, although there were many ancient martial arts sects, there were very few ancient martial art practitioners who were active in the cities. Those who were active in the cities either had high cultivation and a certain amount of freedom, or they had good family backgrounds and were not subject to any restrictions. There was also a type of sect traitor who had abandoned their own sect and ignored the sect's rules, escaping to the cities to enjoy life. (To be continued.)
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