Time flew by, and three months passed.
Just as Qian Shuangshuang had said.
The purple spirit flower, tiger whisker root, and three-colored Spiritual Plant—these three second-grade medicinal plants—had all matured.
Under the diligent labor of Chen Er Zhu and several other Utility Disciples, they were all successfully harvested and then transferred by Qian Shuangshuang and Zhao Hai to Luo Ling.
After staying in the Lingding Immortal Sect for more than three months, Chen Er Zhu gained a comprehensive understanding of the Cultivation world.
At this time, he had already reached Qi Refining Second Layer; although he was still at the bottom of the Lingding Immortal Sect, his Cultivation speed was not slow compared to other Utility Disciples.
Simultaneously, he also acquired six Low Grade Gathering Qi Pills.
This was his total monthly salary for three months of utility work, plus the one Qian Shuangshuang gave him, bringing his total to seven Gathering Qi Pills.
Because Zheng Tuo had forcibly borrowed a Gathering Qi Pill from him, and even now, Zheng Tuo showed no intention of returning it.
When the first monthly salary was distributed to Chen Er Zhu, he was very worried that Zheng Tuo would forcibly borrow it again, so after getting these two Gathering Qi Pills, he found a place to hide them.
What he didn't expect was that despite meeting Zheng Tuo several times, Zheng Tuo never mentioned borrowing a Gathering Qi Pill, which surprised him.
Later, he learned from Hao Lei.
It turned out that this was a prohibition issued by the Sect's high-level officials, strictly forbidding Disciples within the Sect from seizing the monthly salary distributed to Utility Disciples.
If discovered, regardless of Realm or position, the Enforcement Hall would act, abolish their Cultivation, expel them from the Immortal Sect, and forbid them from stepping into the Lingding Immortal Sect for eternity.
Although Utility Disciples have low strength and humble status, the Sect has the most of these Utility Disciples.
To make these Utility Disciples work wholeheartedly, in addition to distributing monthly salaries, it is also necessary to ensure that the monthly salaries reach their hands without incident.
These are valuable experiences left by predecessors, and the Lingding Immortal Sect merely strictly enforced them.
After hearing about this, Chen Er Zhu felt much more at ease.
Without the job of tending to Luo Ling's Spiritual Plant garden, for the next period of time, Chen Er Zhu would have to bear all living expenses in the Lingding Immortal Sect himself.
Previously, he was Luo Ling's dedicated utility worker, so Luo Ling covered all his living expenses.
Furthermore, without a job, bottom-level Utility Disciples like them would not receive a monthly salary.
To continue receiving a monthly salary, one must go to the Mission Hall to take on a task, and after being hired, not only will the monthly salary continue to be issued, but also food and lodging will no longer be a concern.
The Mission Hall is located on Lingding Peak, the main peak of the Lingding Immortal Sect.
Upon entering the Mission Hall, Chen Er Zhu saw a familiar face.
It was none other than Hao Lei, who had also come to the Mission Hall to take on a task.
"Senior Brother Chen, you've also come to the Mission Hall to take on a task?"
Previously, Hao Lei had always called Chen Er Zhu Junior Brother Chen, but after Chen Er Zhu advanced to Qi Refining Second Layer, Hao Lei changed his address to Senior Brother Chen.
Chen Er Zhu nodded and said, "Yes, Master Luo's Spiritual Plant garden has all matured and doesn't temporarily need tending, so I'm unemployed.
Therefore, I came to the Mission Hall to take on a job from the Sect."
Hao Lei quickly said, "Junior Brother Chen, you might not know, but Five Elements Spiritual Roots are actually the easiest to get tasks for in the Mission Hall, because you all have an affinity for the Five Elements Spiritual Roots.
As long as a task doesn't have a Realm requirement, you can take on any task here."
"While that's true, I'm still only Qi Refining Second Layer, my Realm is too low, so there probably aren't many tasks I can take."
"You can take on many more tasks than I can.
Unlike me, I can only take on odd jobs and errands, and many of those jobs can cause significant harm to the body."
Tasks like Alchemy and Artifact Refining usually seek Disciples with Fire Spiritual Roots, because doing these jobs for a long time can cause fire poison damage to the body.
Disciples with Fire Spiritual Roots can effectively neutralize these fire poisons, minimizing the damage.
If Hao Lei were to do such tasks, it would cause immense harm to his body over time.
And this is also why the Lingding Immortal Sect recruits Utility Disciples like Hao Lei and only allows them to work for a maximum of ten years before they must leave the mountain.
"Senior Brother Hao, are there any tasks here that offer long rest periods?" Chen Er Zhu inquired.
He had a total of seven Gathering Qi Pills, and with his miraculous Magic Treasure, the bronze mirror, it was equivalent to having seven Supreme Quality Qi Gathering Pills.
Therefore, if he wanted to advance to Lianqi (Qi Condensation) Level 3, it would be as easy as turning his hand over.
As long as he becomes a Lianqi (Qi Condensation) Level 3 Cultivator, he can become an Outer Sect Disciple of the Lingding Immortal Sect.
The monthly salary for an Outer Sect Disciple of the Lingding Immortal Sect is two Low-Grade Spirit Stones.
Chen Er Zhu had been in the Lingding Immortal Sect for more than three months and had never seen a Spirit Stone, not even a Low-Grade Spirit Stone.
Becoming an Outer Sect Disciple is what Chen Er Zhu wants to do most right now.
His greatest wish is to become a Disciple under a Foundation Establishment Cultivator of the Lingding Immortal Sect, like Senior Sister Qian and Senior Apprentice Brother Zhao, and become an Inner Sect Disciple of the Lingding Immortal Sect.
To become an Inner Sect Disciple of the Lingding Immortal Sect, one must advance to Qi Refinement Fifth Level.
And advancing from Qi Refining Fourth Layer to Qi Refinement Fifth Level has a significant Breakthrough Bottleneck for talented Cultivators, such as those with single or dual Spiritual Roots.
This Bottleneck is simply not an issue.
Even with three Spiritual Roots, it's easy to Breakthrough.
However, for Five Elements Spiritual Root and four Spiritual Root Cultivators, breaking through this Bottleneck is somewhat difficult.
Of course, this is only for ordinary Cultivators with complete Five Elements.
Chen Er Zhu only needs to obtain enough Gathering Qi Pills and use the bronze mirror to replicate enough Supreme Quality Qi Gathering Pills; he can still Breakthrough from Qi Refining Fourth Layer to Qi Refinement Fifth Level.
Cultivating and refining the Medicinal Pill properties of these Supreme Quality Qi Gathering Pills takes a lot of time, which is why he wanted to find a job with ample rest time.
Hao Lei thought for a moment before telling Chen Er Zhu, "There is one job that offers ample time, but it's not a job just anyone can do."
"Senior Brother Hao, what kind of job are you talking about?"
"Senior Martial Uncle Han Zipao of Green Bamboo Peak needs an assistant to help him with Artifact Refining.
The remuneration is quite generous, and the tasks aren't very difficult.
The only downside is that Senior Martial Uncle Han has a bad temper.
If you do even slightly poorly, Senior Martial Uncle Han will either hit or scold you, and he even accidentally killed a Utility Disciple once."
Hao Lei spoke with a lingering fear in his expression.
He continued, "If you know some Artifact Refining, you could give it a try.
If you don't understand Artifact Refining, I advise you not to try, or you might lose your life."
Chen Er Zhu knew nothing about Artifact Refining, and coupled with the risk of losing his life, he no longer considered this task.
After parting ways with Hao Lei, Chen Er Zhu wandered around the Mission Hall alone.
The Mission Hall was not only crowded but also had a wide variety of tasks.
There were tasks issued by Foundation Establishment Cultivators, and quite a few from Golden Core True Person.
The remuneration for tasks issued by Golden Core True Person was much higher than that from Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
Unfortunately, with Chen Er Zhu's current Cultivation of Qi Refining Second Layer, he was completely incapable of handling tasks issued by Golden Core True Person.
"Hmm, this task seems quite suitable for me."
Just then, Chen Er Zhu stood in front of a task board.