Chapter 94 - 60: Evaluation Criteria

Chapter 94: Chapter 60: Evaluation Criteria

Halfway up Bamboo Forest Peak.

Mu Xiaoyu stared up at Li Yinsheng, her cheeks puffed out in annoyance as he rubbed her head.

*"Bad senior brother! This is the second time you’ve used a demon to trick me!"* she thought.

Faced with her pouting face, Li Yinsheng smiled. "Speaking of which, I almost forgot to tell you. For inviting me to watch over the area this time, Huang Bamboo Temple is offering me some Cultivation Fruits in addition to talismanic coins as a reward. I heard that not only do Cultivation Fruits cleanse the soul and enhance one’s Divine Sense, but they are also incredibly sweet and delicious. Are you interested?"

Mu Xiaoyu’s eyes lit up.

She had just heard the young man from Huang Bamboo Temple mention how delicious Cultivation Fruits were, albeit a bit expensive.

Seeing her sparkling eyes, Li Yinsheng reached into his Qiankun Bag and withdrew a purely white fruit about the size of a walnut.

Naturally, Huang Bamboo Temple had not yet delivered the thousand Cultivation Fruits promised as his reward, but when he was studying the Yin Yang Cave Profound Array with Meng earlier that morning, Meng had shared a few with him.

Li Yinsheng hadn’t asked where she got them. A single Cultivation Fruit only cost a hundred or so talismanic coins anyway. For the Direct Lineage of the Jade Altar Temple’s Temple Master, getting their hands on a few was hardly difficult.

"Is this a Cultivation Fruit?" Mu Xiaoyu asked, her mouth already watering. "Senior Brother, is it really that good?"

"I’ve had two myself. They’re not bad." Li Yinsheng handed it to her with a smile. "Want a taste?"

"Thank you, Senior Brother!" Mu Xiaoyu took the Cultivation Fruit and stuffed the entire thing into her mouth.

"Mmm... delicious... so sweet..." she mumbled.

As soon as she bit into it, a refreshing, sweet juice flooded her mouth, carrying the rich and pleasant fragrance of bamboo.

A moment later, the sweetness dissolved into a cool breath. Even though she clearly felt it slide down her throat, a slight coolness washed over her mind as well, bringing her a renewed sense of clarity.

"Senior Brother, do you have any more? I want another one!" Mu Xiaoyu asked eagerly.

"You’re not angry anymore?" Li Yinsheng teased.

"Angry?" Mu Xiaoyu tilted her head, the picture of innocence. "How could I ever be mad at you? You’re the best Senior Brother in the whole world!"

"Smooth talker." Li Yinsheng raised his hand and lightly tapped the top of her head, producing a crisp THUMP.

Mu Xiaoyu rubbed her head, giggling foolishly.

"Unfortunately, I really don’t have any more Cultivation Fruits on me," Li Yinsheng said, shaking his head.

Mu Xiaoyu instantly wilted in disappointment.

Although the Cultivation Fruit wasn’t quite as delicious as the peach the Sacrificial Spirit had given her, it was easily the second best fruit she had ever tasted.

"However, once I’m done watching over this place, there will be plenty of Cultivation Fruits in the reward from Huang Bamboo Temple," Li Yinsheng said leisurely. "If you behave well, I might just give them to you as a reward."

Mu Xiaoyu understood immediately. "Senior Brother, I promise to train hard!"

Li Yinsheng nodded in satisfaction.

In truth, he had always planned to save the thousand Cultivation Fruits promised by Huang Bamboo Temple entirely for her.

For a Daoist whose soul was already perfectly integrated and capable of independent cultivation, Cultivation Fruits were of little use. But for a cultivator like his junior sister, whose Cultivation was still quite shallow, consuming a thousand Cultivation Fruits would yield incredible improvements to her Divine Sense.

Furthermore, the benefits of Divine Sense extended far beyond mere perception. A cultivator with formidable Divine Sense would find it much easier to cast Magic, and their control over Magical Artifacts would become second nature. This was especially true for the Black Stone she possessed. Once it was refined into an Upper Grade Magical Artifact and combined with a powerful Divine Sense, her sneak attacks would never miss their mark.

However, even though he had already decided to give her the Cultivation Fruits, seeing how much she loved them made it the perfect opportunity. Why not use them as a reward to ignite her passion for cultivation?

This was especially crucial since she was not far from reaching the Fourth Layer. Once she broke through and freed herself from the Quenching Essence Lock, her motivation would likely wane. Dangling the Cultivation Fruits in front of her like a carrot on a stick would ensure she stayed driven. If he gave her five Cultivation Fruits a day, a thousand of them would last for over half a year.

Having thoroughly whet Mu Xiaoyu’s appetite, he turned his attention to the other three people.

"My young friends, I apologize for giving you a false alarm while testing my junior sister’s vigilance just now," he said with a smile. "If you do not mind, you may keep the materials from that Green Velvet Monkey as a gift."

Although the Green Velvet Monkey had decent Cultivation, its species meant it lacked any truly valuable materials. Only its pair of emerald green Beast Eyes possessed a sliver of medicinal value. Such a paltry sum of talismanic coins was beneath Li Yinsheng’s notice; even taking the time to sell the parts would be a hassle. Since these three were his junior sister’s teammates, he decided to do them a favor and offer it as a welcoming gift to the younger generation.

The young man from Huang Bamboo Temple, who had not dared to speak until now, was instantly overjoyed.

While Li Yinsheng might scoff at the few talismanic coins the materials would fetch, to ordinary disciples like them—cultivators without even a proper master to guide them—it was undoubtedly an unexpected windfall.

"Thank you, Senior!"

The young man from Huang Bamboo Temple, along with Wu Mingke and Lu Kuan, hastily bowed to Li Yinsheng, their faces brimming with gratitude.

"There is no need for such formalities," Li Yinsheng said, waving a hand dismissively. "This is my junior sister’s first time out gaining experience, and I’m afraid she lacks it sorely. I hope the three of you can look after her in the future."

"Of course!" the young man from Huang Bamboo Temple replied instantly.

"I plan to track down a few more demons shortly and let my junior sister hunt them herself to gain some practical experience," Li Yinsheng continued. "If you three are interested, you are welcome to tag along. You needn’t worry about your patrol duties, either. With me here, no demon will be able to hide in the shadows."

The three of them nodded enthusiastically.

As they looked at Mu Xiaoyu, their eyes were filled with profound envy. Just because he was worried about her lack of experience during her first trial, he was personally escorting her to help her adapt. They had previously assumed that Mu Xiaoyu was merely favored by her elder. Now, it was clear that she wasn’t just favored—she was completely spoiled!

As the one with the most experience handling demons, the young man from Huang Bamboo Temple volunteered to dissect the Green Velvet Monkey. After carefully extracting its Beast Eyes, he also collected its blood, fur, and even two of its shin bones.

Lacking experience in this area, Lu Kuan and Wu Mingke squatted nearby, seizing the opportunity to observe his handiwork. The young man made no effort to hide his techniques, even offering a few words of explanation as he dismantled the carcass. No doubt, when they sold the materials and split the talismanic coins, he would claim an extra share for his hard work.

However, Li Yinsheng noticed that the Female Cultivator named Wu Mingke didn’t seem entirely focused on the demonstration. Her gaze flickered as she shot occasional glances at him and then at Mu Xiaoyu. He had no idea what was going through her mind.

Li Yinsheng couldn’t be bothered to care. Once the young man had deftly harvested all the mildly valuable parts from the Green Velvet Monkey, Li Yinsheng motioned for the trio and Mu Xiaoyu to follow as he led them on a hunt for more demons.

Since his previous method of crippling the demon and letting his junior sister deliver the killing blow hadn’t quite worked out, he decided to see how she would fare fighting on her own.

Evening fell.

Several Techniques blasted into a stag as massive as a water buffalo. The beast swayed for a moment before collapsing to the ground.

Mu Xiaoyu retracted her Cold Bright Sword and closed her eyes to steady her breathing.

Li Yinsheng had specifically tracked down this stag. While its Cultivation was slightly lower than the Green Velvet Monkey’s, it still possessed about sixty or seventy percent of the primate’s strength. Mu Xiaoyu wasn’t the only one who needed a moment to recover; the other three were also panting heavily after the fierce battle.

Li Yinsheng leaned against a tree, staring thoughtfully at the Golden Character hovering in his vision.

[Current Magic Cultivation Time: 70 Days]

This stag was the third demon he had hunted down today.

In between the Green Velvet Monkey and this stag, they had also fought a Gray-Scaled Python. However, that python’s Cultivation had been rather shallow—weaker even than the Black-Scaled Python his junior sister had encountered previously.

Li Yinsheng had let Xiaoyu fight the Gray-Scaled Python one-on-one. After a brief scuffle, she seized an opening and landed several flashes of Sword Light on the python’s weak spots at its three-inch and seven-inch marks, cleanly slicing it into three pieces without even needing to draw her Profound Evil Sword.

The Gray-Scaled Python’s combat prowess hadn’t even come close to the Green Velvet Monkey’s. Had the two crossed paths, the monkey would have chewed up the snake like a strip of jerky. Yet, despite its weakness, the snake had yielded thirty days of Magic Cultivation Time—three times the amount granted by the Green Velvet Monkey.

Then came the stag. This creature was significantly stronger than his junior sister. Even if she had used her Profound Evil Sword, it would have been a bitter struggle, and victory wouldn’t have been guaranteed.

Since Li Yinsheng had another theory he wanted to test, he had instructed the other three to join the fray. Besieged by the four of them, the stag had fought viciously. It nearly managed to turn the tables and injure them several times, but in the end, it was forced to swallow its resentment and collapse in defeat.

The reward it yielded was exactly the same: thirty days of Magic Cultivation Time.

At this point, Li Yinsheng had practically figured out how this "Cultivation Tribulation" evaluated rewards. It primarily judged the extent of his junior sister’s "effort" and the final result. Merely landing the killing blow offered pitiful rewards.

The Green Velvet Monkey was vastly stronger than the Gray-Scaled Python, but Li Yinsheng had already beaten it half to death. Therefore, even though his junior sister had delivered the finishing blow, she only earned a ten-day reward.

Similarly, the stag was significantly more powerful than the python. However, because his junior sister had fought it alongside three others, the reward matched what she had earned from defeating the python single-handedly.

That made things a bit tricky.