The morning wind on White Lotus Peak was thin and cold, carrying the clean scent of dew-drenched pine and wet earth. After the dark, stagnant air of the Withered Valley, the familiar mist-clad peak felt like a different world entirely.
Su Ming stood at the edge of the training courtyard, a standard iron practice sword in his right hand. He did not channel his qi immediately, but stood in silence, aligning his breath with the natural rhythm of the mountain breeze.
Beside him, Lin Yao watched with held breath. Her hands were clasped before her chest, her eyes wide, capturing every subtle shift in his stance. Over the past months, she had learned that when her master stood in such absolute stillness, something worth observing is coming from him.
Suddenly, Su Ming moved.
The sword rose in a slow, coiling arc, tracing the shape of a rising mist. His movements were fluid, soft, and entirely devoid of sharp angles—the classic opening stances of the Cloud Chasing Sword Technique. The air around the blade thickened, condensing into a misty shroud that pulsed with the rhythm of his breath.
With a sudden pivot, Su Ming executed the final move: Ascending Serpent Surge. A gold crimson stream of sword qi erupted from his blade. In his hands, the sword qi did not just form a serpent; it coiled and surged with such precise structural harmony that the crimson light flickered like a dragon soaring through the morning fog. It was silent, efficient, and perfectly controlled—a strike that could redirect the heaviest blow or slip through the tightest defense without wasting a single thread of energy.
Su Ming held the stance for a fraction of a second, then relaxed, returning the practice sword to his side.
'Tenth Perfection is indeed a fascinating state,' he noted internally, looking down at the plain iron blade.
'In terms of raw structure and efficiency, this Cloud Chasing Sword is flawless. But it is still, at its core, a common technique designed for Foundation level disciples. I have pushed it to its absolute limits, but to face the threats of the Core Formation realm and beyond, I need a path that integrates deeper insights. Right now, this is the ceiling.'
He turned to his disciple. "Did you see the final move?"
Lin Yao nodded quickly, her cheeks slightly flushed with focus. "Yes, Master. The transition from the coiling defense to the upward surge was entirely seamless. It felt like... the wind didn't even notice the change."
"The Cloud Chasing Sword is about redirection and flow," Su Ming said, his voice calm and steady. "The sword is merely a vessel to guide the energy. When your opponent strikes with heavy force, you must not meet them head-on. You must act like the cloud, letting their strength pass through you before coiling around their retreat. Try it."
Lin Yao bowed deeply. "Yes, Master."
She withdrew her iron sword and stepped into the center of the courtyard. She cleared her mind, her breath slowing. As she executed the opening stance, Su Ming activated his Essence Sight for a brief half-second, monitoring the flow of qi through her meridians.
The circulation was flawless. The tiny, dormant shadow within her dantian was still silent, but the path she walked was clear and steady.
'Good,' Su Ming thought, a quiet sense of satisfaction settling behind his eyes.
'Her foundation is rock solid. She doesn't need to rush her breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage. In cultivation, a day spent stabilizing the core is worth ten days of forced progress.'
As Lin Yao practiced, her sword slicing through the mist with fluid grace, Su Ming walked toward the stone table under the pine tree, letting his mind review the events of the past two days.
***
Immediately upon their return to the Heavenly Cloud Sect, Su Ming had handled the administrative loose ends with efficiency.
He had submitted the official report of the Withered Valley mission to the Enforcement Hall. The report was a masterpiece of selective truth *chef's kiss*. Su Ming definitely thought so.
It detailed the mutated Bone Serpent, the strange death formation in the basin, and Lin Fan's fall to demonic cultivation. The Enforcement Hall had taken the news of Lin Fan's corruption with grim seriousness; a demonic cultivator hiding within the outer ranks was a direct threat to the sect's face. Lin Fan's name was officially marked on the blacklists of every patrol squad.
What the report cleanly omitted, however, was any mention of the spoils.
The three mystical objects—the calcified scale, the weakened dragon orb, and the crimson blood crystal—remained safely sealed in the deepest corners of Su Ming's spatial ring, alongside the Sealed Jade Box from Patriarch Wang. To the sect administrators, Su Ming was simply an acting Peak Master who had narrowly resolved a localized crisis and brought back a few common resources.
He had sold the mundane beast cores and red-furred wolf pelts and the cores from Lin Fan's storage rings to the Logistics Hall. He had no use for them, and they were far too generic items to draw suspicious eyes. The payout, however, had been substantial: twenty-five thousand contribution points and a tidy chest of five thousand low-grade spirit stones.
The rewards increased due to his encounter with a "Demonic Cultivator."
For a dilapidated outer peak like White Lotus, this was a massive influx of capital. But Su Ming knew that spirit stones in a chest did not yield interest. If he wanted to rebuild White Lotus Peak into a secure, self-sustaining stronghold, he needed infrastructure.And that infrastructure had to start with the Herb Garden.
***
Later that afternoon, Su Ming stood on the southern slope of White Lotus Peak. The slope was blessed with a natural spring that trickled down from the higher cliffs, keeping the soil damp and rich with spiritual mist. It was the perfect location for a medicinal garden.
Beside him stood Elder Liu, a thin, elderly man from the Medicine Hall who oversaw the distribution of common seeds and spiritual soils. Elder Liu was not a grand powerhouse, but he was a veteran administrator who appreciated two things above all else: compliance and respect.
"Nephew Su," Elder Liu said, stroking his sparse white beard as he looked over the slope.
"White Lotus Peak has not requested spiritual seeds in thirty years. Rebuilding a garden is a costly endeavor. The spiritual soil alone requires constant qi nourishment, and the mortality rate of delicate herbs is high."
"I am aware, Elder Liu," Su Ming replied smoothly, offering a small, polite bow. "However, a Peak without its own herbs is like a household that buys its water from the neighbors. We must take the first steps."
Su Ming reached into his sleeve and produced a small wooden box. When he slid the lid open, a faint, cool fragrance drifted into the air. Inside rested several pristine, silver-rimmed petals.
Moon-Bloom Flowers.
Elder Liu's eyes widened slightly. He stepped closer, his nose twitching.
"This... this is a mature Moon-Bloom petal? The Yin qi is incredibly pure, untainted by feral blood."
"This junior and my disciple harvested a small batch during our recent expedition outside," Su Ming replied smoothly.
"I am aware that the Medicine Hall has been struggling to source high-grade Yin herbs for the refinement of the Frost Essence Pills due to recent logistics issues in the northern marshes. I have already submitted the bulk of the harvest to the Vermilion Flame Peak's Alchemy Pavilion as a formal contribution, but I kept these seeds and cuttings."
He closed the box and slid it toward the elder. "This junior would like to trade them for a standard batch of spiritual soil and a selection of basic fire and earth element herb seeds. Additionally, if the Medicine Hall ever finds itself short of hands to process raw Yin herbs, White Lotus Peak has plenty of quiet space and clean air."
"Haha, Nephew Su surely has a sense of humor.", Elder Liu looked at the box, then at Su Ming. A warm, appreciative smile broke through his wrinkled face. "Nephew Su is indeed considerate. The Alchemy Pavilion was indeed complaining about the quality of the recent shipments. To receive such pure Moon-Bloom material... yes, this will make my days much easier."
The elder tapped his storage bag, retrieving several jade boxes containing dark, rich soil and tightly sealed seed pouches. "Here is the high-grade spiritual soil, along with three dozen Crimson Grass seeds and several cuttings of Earth Vines. They are sturdy and easy to grow."
He paused, lowering his voice slightly. "And as for your offer... the Medicine Hall is indeed short-staffed during the season of the grand disciple tournament. If White Lotus Peak has disciples who can handle the cold-tempering of raw herbs, I will keep your peak in mind."
"We are always ready to assist the sect, Elder Liu," Su Ming said, bowing once more.
'Phase one complete,' Su Ming thought as the elder departed.
***
As the sun began to set, casting long, purple shadows across the peak, Lin Yao walked down the slope to join him. She carried a small wooden spade and a bucket of clear spring water.
"Master," she said, looking at the dark patches of new spiritual soil Su Ming had laid out. "Are we planting them now?"
"Yes," Su Ming said, handing her a pouch of Crimson Grass seeds. "Plant them three inches deep, spaced two feet apart. The Crimson Grass will draw the excess heat from the rocks, while the Earth Vines will keep the spiritual mist from dispersing. It is a simple matter of balance."
Lin Yao knelt on the soft earth, carefully pressing the seeds into the soil along with Su Ming. She worked with quiet diligence, her movements precise.
Su Ming watched her for a moment, then looked out over the mist-covered peaks of the Heavenly Cloud Sect. The distant summits of the 9 Grand Peaks glowed like gold in the setting sun, proud and untouchable.
For now, White Lotus Peak was small, weak, and overlooked. But the soil was rich, the seeds were planted, and the ledgers were clean.
Tomorrow, he would enter his cultivation chambers and begin the true study of the secrets he had brought back from the Withered Valley and Lin Fan.
The foundation was laid. Now, it was time to build.