Chapter 119: Trouble Came Knocking

Chapter 119: Chapter 119: Trouble Came Knocking

For the next two days, everything proceeded normally. Sui Sui had been waiting for the bad news to arrive at his door, but nothing happened, he was even starting to wonder if his gut feeling was wrong.

It wasn’t until the third day that someone suddenly came knocking at Elder Shan Li’s gates outside the barrier. Before Sui Sui could react, Elder Shan Li had already gone to see who it was. Sui Sui had a feeling that something was wrong, so he followed him along.

The herb garden was quite large, and the entrance gate was some distance away from the main area where the residence was, so it took them a while to reach it. As soon as they arrived, they could already see a group of people standing outside the barrier.

The person leading them was a familiar older woman.

Sui Sui really couldn’t forget that hateful face even if he wanted to.

It was Madam Jiang.

Seeing them, Elder Shan Li lifted the barrier without hesitation, allowing the group to enter. His gaze swept over them briefly before settling on Madam Jiang.

"What is it that I can help you with?" Elder Shan Li said, his voice was as monotonous as ever, neither looking happy angry.

Madam Jiang’s expression immediately brightened when she saw that he was willing to let them in. However, the moment she noticed Sui Sui following behind him, a brief trace of disdain flashed through her eyes.

However she quickly concealed it and turned back toward Shan Li with a warm smile.

"Junior Shan, it’s nice to see you. It’s such a beautiful day today, isn’t it?" Her tone was unusually amicable from what Sui Sui remembered in the Illusion back then, acting as though she and Shan Li were old acquaintances who were just catching up with each other.

Sui Sui glanced at Elder Shan Li.

The elder’s expression remained completely unimpressed. If anything, he just looked as though he was already beginning to lose patience with this type of roundabout way of talking, not used to the small talks "Please state your business," Shan Li said bluntly. "I still have a lot of things to do today."

Hearing his tone of words, Madam Jiang paused for a brief moment. As the Madam of the Jiang Family, she was accustomed to being treated with respect wherever she went, and very few people in the sect would dare speak to her in such a blunt and dismissive manner, especially without even bothering to hear her out first.

A faint displeasure flashed through her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it, allowing the polite smile on her face to remain perfectly intact. Shan Li’s attitude clearly had not been pleasant to hear, but Madam Jiang was experienced enough to know when it was better to swallow her irritation. She had come here with a purpose, after all, and offending the object of her purpose would not do her any good.

"Since Junior Shan is busy, then perhaps my timing is just right. I’ll get straight to the point."

She turned slightly and gestured toward the young disciples standing behind her, presenting them as though she were offering Shan Li something valuable. "These are several disciples who have only recently entered the sect. I heard that you recently took in a probationary disciple with weak aptitude to help you manage things here."

As she said this, her gaze briefly swept toward Sui Sui. The smile on her lips remained warm and courteous, but there was a faint trace of disdain hidden beneath it. In her eyes, Sui Sui was merely a probationary disciple with poor aptitude. She could not understand why someone like Shan Li would bother keeping him around, much less allowing him to help manage such an important place.

"But how could one measly disciple possibly be enough to manage everything here?" Madam Jiang gave a soft laugh, making the statement sound less like an insult and more like a reasonable concern. "So, out of the goodwill of Acting Sect Master Jiang and myself, we carefully selected several of the most talented disciples among the new generation. They are all hardworking and capable, and we thought they could come here to help you manage things while gaining some valuable experience at the same time."

Her smile became even warmer as she looked back toward Shan Li, her tone carrying an unmistakable air of generosity. "It is only a small gesture of goodwill from the Jiang Family. What do you think, Junior Shan?"

Madam Jiang’s plan was actually quite simple. She wanted to place several of her trusted disciples inside Elder Shan Li’s courtyard, giving them a legitimate reason to stay close to him. On the surface, it was nothing more than a kind gesture from the Jiang Family, but there was actually a much more practical reason behind her sudden generosity.

A few days ago, Her son: Jiang Huan had mentioned that Shan Li seemed to be treating a certain disciple differently from the others. At first, Madam Jiang had not paid much attention to it. After all, what did Shan Li’s affairs have to do with her?

However, rumors soon began circulating. First, she heard that this disciple had been invited to help manage the herbs. Then came rumors that Shan Li was treating this disciple especially well. Finally, she heard something that caught her attention—Shan Li had apparently given three Spirit Jade Fruits to that disciple to consume.

Hearing that immediately made Madam Jiang uneasy.

Among the sect elders, everyone knew that Shan Li was somewhat different from ordinary cultivators. His way of thinking was often difficult to understand, and unlike most people, he had never shown much interest in the treasures others covet, a good example of this is the matter with the Spirit Jade. For Shan Li, he was far more interested in cultivating the tree, studying its growth, and using the process to temper his Soul Force and spiritual energy control rather than in consuming the fruits to improve his own cultivation.

So what happened to the fruits he did not consume?

Naturally, they were given to other people.

Over time, this had gradually become an unwritten arrangement among some of the core elders. Whenever Shan Li’s Spirit Jade Tree produced a harvest, the fruits would be divided among them. After all, who would willingly reject something as precious as a Spirit Jade Fruit?

As the family of the Acting Sect Master, the Jiang Family naturally received a portion as well.

This year’s harvest was supposed to be theirs, and Madam Jiang had already planned to give their family share to Jiang Huan to help improve his cultivation. The Spirit Jade Fruit main ability could assist with breakthroughs, but its benefits did not end there. It could also improve other aspects of a cultivator’s cultivation, making it an extremely valuable resource.

But now she had heard that someone had already been given three fruits at once.

Three fruits.

If Shan Li had already given away three fruits before the official distribution, then wouldn’t that mean there would be fewer fruits left when the harvest was divided for them?

As she thought about it, more and more possibilities began running through Madam Jiang’s mind. What if that disciple continued asking for more? What if Shan Li kept giving the fruits to him until there was nothing left for the others? Wouldn’t the Jiang Family end up with nothing?

Madam Jiang absolutely could not allow that to happen.

So she immediately decided to take action and brought several alchemy disciples she trusted with her. Her goal was simple: get them into Elder Shan Li’s courtyard, have them stay close to him, and find an opportunity to build a relationship with him. If they could gain Shan Li’s favor, they might also have a chance to become a direct disciple, then they can come to ask for some of the Spirit Jade Fruits, maybe if this did succeed they can even monopolize all fruits.

She was not going to sit back and watch some nobody take everything for himself.

Madam Jiang looked at Shan Li expectantly, clearly confident that he would agree. After all, she had already brought several talented disciples with her and presented the matter as a favor from both herself and the Acting Sect Master, plus, she knew Shan Li’s personality very well, he rarely rejects anything others ask for and was easy to convince. She had even taken care to make it sound as though Shan Li would be the one benefiting from the arrangement.

However, the answer she received was completely different from what she had expected.

"No need," Shan Li said bluntly. "I don’t want strangers who don’t know what they’re doing coming here and sullying my garden. If there is nothing else, please take your people and leave." His voice was still calm, but this time, Sui Sui could hear a faint trace of irritation beneath his words.

In Shan Li’s mind, there was only one thought: How dare they bring people here who did not even have the slightest understanding of how to properly care for spiritual herbs, and then expect him to let them into his garden? What if they damaged his herbs or mishandled something? What if they ruined his garden?

Absolutely not.

He would never allow that to happen.

However, Madam Jiang was not so easily dismissed. The smile on her face did not waver as she smoothly continued, "How would you know whether they are suitable if you haven’t even given them a chance to prove themselves? Perhaps one of them might even catch your eye and become a disciple of yours."

Her tone became increasingly warm and flattering as she continued, clearly trying to appeal to Shan Li rather than argue with him directly. "To be honest, we have always been a little worried about you. You aren’t particularly good at socializing, and as cultivators, we can’t always cultivate alone. Taking in disciples is also important. They can stay by our side, become like family, almost like our own children, and accompany us as we continue along the path of cultivation. Don’t you think that would be a good thing?"

Every word was wrapped in concern and goodwill, but Sui Sui could easily see through it. After reading so many novels, he has this radar for white lotuses, and right now his radar was definitely tingling.

Madam Jiang was just greedily doing this to find a reason to insert her trusted people into Elder Shan Li’s courtyard and gain more benefits for herself.

In Madam Jiang’s mind, this should work right? In the past, when they asked something from Shan Li, just showing a bit of thoughtfulness or kindness would make him give in, unexpectedly though, this time, it feels as if he has eaten something and was insistently refusing her.

"As I’ve said, there is no need. Please take your leave," Shan Li said firmly, making it clear that his decision would not change. In the past, maybe he really would have agreed, however after discovering Sui Sui’s talent and seeing that he can manage on his own, there was no reason for Shan Li to find another one.

Seeing that he was genuinely unwilling to compromise, Madam Jiang knew that continuing to pressure him directly would only make him more annoyed. She quickly changed her approach and brought out her last card.

"Alright, how about this? You don’t have to take them for a long time. Just a few days will be enough. Don’t think of it as them coming here to help you. Consider it an opportunity for them to gain some experience. After all, for young alchemists like them, experience is often the best teacher, isn’t it? Surely you wouldn’t be so opposed to giving these young disciples a little guidance wouldn’t you?"

Her tone was gentle and persuasive, carefully avoiding making it sound like she was asking Shan Li to do her a favor. Instead, she framed the arrangement as something beneficial to the disciples themselves, as though refusing would mean depriving them of a valuable opportunity.

She also subtly invoked the influence of the Jiang Family, making it difficult for Shan Li to reject her outright without turning the matter into a direct confrontation.

In the end, Shan Li reluctantly agreed.

However, he only allowed them to stay for three days, and only three disciples were permitted to enter his courtyard. His thought process was like this: He can just allow these disciples to enter for three days, then after that, he will just kick them away. He really didn’t want to bother arguing with these people anymore, it was really not his forte.

Hearing his agreement, Madam Jiang was instantly pleased.

See? Even if he initially rejected her, with enough persuasion, she could still make him agree.

She was not disappointed by the limitation either. She had already handpicked the three disciples herself. All of them were among the most talented young alchemists available, and, more importantly, none of them had a master yet. They were also disciples she personally trusted, so she was confident that they would neither embarrass her nor waste the opportunity she had created for them.