Chapter 1: The Return to Cloud Mountain

It is precisely for this reason that Feng Ruo is still very interested in the Snow Spirit Silkworm. However, it is unfortunate that the snow silks produced by the Snow Spirit Silkworm each season have no connection to him, as they are directly taken away by the Qingyun Sect

This is the back mountain of Qingyun Mountain, which is very close to the place where Feng Ruo used to sunbathe, yet also very far away, as these are two completely different worlds.

Stepping out of the woods, Feng Ruo looked around while searching. There were indeed many spirit mulberry trees in the back mountain, and the growth rate of the spirit mulberry leaves was quite fast. However, the problem was that the snow spirit silkworms consumed a lot as well! Therefore, he had to take some protective measures to ensure that the leaves on any particular spirit mulberry tree would not be completely harvested at once

Unfortunately, this long knife, which could consecutively sever more than ten heads while remaining sharp, is now in a pitiable state. Previously, Feng Ruo had built a simple bamboo shed for himself, but unexpectedly, the green bamboo in the back mountain is incredibly hard, requiring dozens of strikes to break. As for the darker-colored bamboo, a single strike leaves not even a mark on the blade.

Since one can fill their stomach, there is naturally nothing to complain about. For instance, right now, Feng Ruo is lazily lying on a large rock after being busy for several hours, basking in the sun while polishing the long knife in hand, which is full of nicks.

At that moment, a strange hissing sound suddenly emanated from the distant woods. Upon hearing this sound, Feng Ruo couldn't help but furrow his brow in distress, muttering a curse under his breath. He then straightened his posture and nimbly leaped down from the giant rock, while the long knife, full of nicks, had somehow appeared on his back.

Indeed, although he is referred to as a menial worker, in reality, Feng Ruo's life is more comfortable than that of most people in the mortal world. Those cultivators hold themselves in high regard and hardly have the inclination to trouble him, a mere ant. For instance, in this ten-acre field of fragrant rice, he only needs to pay a tribute of half the yield; the remainder is more than enough for him to feast for a long, long time

The dusty memories are somewhat chaotic, much like the halo of golden sunlight, which is quite vague. Perhaps this is because there is nothing in Feng Ruo's life that is worth remembering

The nine snow spirit silkworms seemed to sense Feng Ruo's arrival, all starting to hiss. If it weren't for their massive size, they would be quite similar to a few small dogs wagging their tails.

However, Feng merely glanced at him before burying his head and ignoring him. The visitor was Kong Fei, a third-generation disciple of the Qingyun Sect. His sole purpose for coming to this back mountain was to gather spiritual mulberry leaves, as the third-generation disciples of the Qingyun Sect also cultivated fragrant spiritual rice or raised snow spirit silkworms, after all, they too needed to eat. Moreover, the silk from the snow silkworms was an essential resource that needed to be stored by the sect.

It is just so-so! Feng Ruo raised her head to glance at Kong Fei in mid-air, but her gaze fell on the cape fluttering in the wind behind him

At present, Feng Ruo has already become a servant of the Qingyun Sect, not even qualifying as an outer disciple. His daily tasks involve tending to ten acres of fragrant spirit rice fields and gathering sufficient spirit mulberry leaves for nine snow spirit silkworms.

This spiritual mulberry leaf is not produced from ordinary mulberry trees found in the mortal world, but is instead harvested from a type of tree known as the spiritual mulberry tree. The age of these spiritual mulberry trees typically ranges from several hundred to several thousand years, which is why each spiritual mulberry tree is extraordinarily tall

The bright sunlight made Feng Ruo feel somewhat drowsy. He remembered that he had always enjoyed leaning against the hard city wall on such quiet mornings, gazing into the endless towering mountains on the distant horizon, without any particular reason—he simply liked it.

It is known that at the very top and outermost parts of the mulberry tree, the quality and density of the mulberry leaves are often the best. However, no matter how skilled Feng Ruo is at climbing trees, she cannot reach those mulberry leaves. In contrast, Kong Fei and the others have the assistance of the white-feathered crane, allowing them to freely pick the mulberry leaves. Typically, they can complete the harvesting in just half an hour. How can this not disturb Feng Ruo's peace of mind?

Every time Feng Ruo encounters the third-generation disciples of the Qingyun Sect, such as Kong Fei, who come to harvest the spiritual mulberry leaves, she feels an overwhelming sense of jealousy. This jealousy does not stem from their status, nor is it due to their arrogant demeanor; rather, it arises from the fact that they all arrive riding white-feathered cranes to collect the spiritual mulberry leaves. This is in stark contrast to Feng Ruo, who has to jump around the spiritual mulberry trees like a monkey, highlighting the vast difference between them.

Soon, Feng Ruo selected a suitable target, and after spitting a few times into his palm, he swiftly climbed up the spiritual mulberry tree, which was over ten zhang high. For him, climbing trees was quite an easy task; however, picking the spiritual mulberry leaves was far from pleasant. To fill the Qiankun bag, it would take at least two or three hours.

After feeding the nine Snow Spirit Silkworms, the spiritual mulberry leaves in the Qiankun bag were nearly depleted. If Feng had no other choice, he would have to continue harvesting the spiritual mulberry leaves; otherwise, if the Snow Spirit Silkworms were to starve, it would ultimately result in a significant reduction in the quality of the silk they produced. He could not afford to bear that responsibility.

There are restrictions set around this platform, so there is no need to worry about the enormous Snow Spirit Silkworm escaping. In fact, there is no need to be concerned about this matter at all, because although the Snow Spirit Silkworm appears quite fearsome, its temperament is extremely gentle. As long as there are sufficient Spirit Mulberry leaves, they will remain obediently in place.

The snow spirit silkworm requires a substantial amount of spirit mulberry leaves each day, so Feng Ruo spends a significant portion of her time collecting these leaves.

"Hey! Feng Ruo, you seem quite busy!" Kong Fei greeted with a smile. He was only about fourteen or fifteen years old this year, yet he had already reached the mid-stage of Qi Refinement. Dressed in a finely crafted snow silkworm outfit and carrying a brilliantly radiant first-grade sword, he had sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, a slender waist and a strong back. Given some time, he would undoubtedly become a standard handsome man. Coupled with the white feather crane sitting beside him, which exuded an icy and ethereal spirit, he looked like a celestial being.

Thus, in the end, this long sword, which is said to have been forged with fine steel, has taken on this unfortunate appearance

This cyan pocket is issued by the Qingyun Sect and is called the Qian Kun Bag. The space inside is approximately the size of half a small room. Usually, it is used to store the harvested spiritual mulberry leaves, which are then fed to the nine Snow Spirit Silkworms at irregular intervals.

"Hehe! It's nothing much, compared to Brother Qu's Lingyun set, mine is really far behind!" Kong Fei, after all, was just a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy, unable to suppress his self-satisfaction. At the same time, he generously said, "Whenever I collect the complete Lingyun set, I will give you this Snow Silkworm set as a gift!"

This long knife is the only trophy that Feng Ruo obtained after crawling out from a pile of corpses at the age of fifteen. Since then, it has always been by his side, even when he was previously lost in a daze and captivated by books, it was never left behind when he was taken away by the cloud-piercing eagle.

The brutal battle from six months ago remains vivid in memory, yet, unbeknownst to us, everything seems to gradually blur, much like that golden halo

As Feng Ruo perched high on the tree trunk, her hands danced swiftly like butterflies flitting through flowers, a white figure gracefully flew over from the distant sky. Bathed in golden sunlight and contrasting with the green waves of the Ling Sang forest below, this white figure indeed exuded an ethereal quality, as if it were transcending the mundane.

As for the Snow Spirit Silkworm, Feng Ruo has already gained a detailed understanding of it over the past few months. This creature can only be considered one of the most ordinary domesticated spirit beasts in the realm of cultivation. Its temperament is gentle, and as long as sufficient spiritual mulberry leaves are provided, it will produce a varying length of snow silkworm silk every season. This snow silkworm silk is impervious to blades and fire, and garments made from it can reach the standard of low-level magical artifacts.

As for the snow silkworm cloak, it is even more precious, as this item can serve to maintain balance. It can be said that with this snow silkworm cloak that maintains balance, the speed of flying with spirit beasts will be significantly enhanced, especially in combat, where its effect will be even more pronounced

However, as soon as he finished speaking, Kong Fei abruptly changed his tone and said with great regret: "But it would be of no use to you; your level of magical power is far too weak, and you might not even be able to unleash thirty percent of its power!"

Due to the incorporation of a fundamental formation during the production of these garments, once the complete set of the Snow Silkworm outfit is assembled, it effectively becomes a low-level magical artifact. By activating the formation within the set, there will be significant benefits for both self-preservation and attack.

Brother Kong, congratulations! You have actually collected the entire Snow Silkworm set!" Feng Ruo couldn't help but exclaim. In the Qingyun Sect, the treatment of those third-generation disciples is still quite good. For instance, the mount, the White Feather Crane, the first-grade sword, the storage belt, and the Snow Silkworm set are all provided free of charge by the sect. However, the Snow Silkworm set only includes the Snow Silkworm top and the Snow Silkworm leggings, and these two pieces of clothing mainly serve to enhance defense.

Alright, alright, what are you all arguing about! If you have the ability, go climb up the Ling Sang tree and eat it yourself!" Feng Ruo, feeling a bit of a headache, tapped his forehead; the appetite of these Snow Spirit Silkworms was truly impressive

Rushing into the woods, the first thing that catches the eye is nine enormous platforms. Upon these platforms lie nine gigantic creatures, entirely snow-white and measuring several zhang in length. These are the nine Snow Spirit Silkworms that Feng Ruo needs to tend to.

Upon hearing this, Feng Ruo couldn't help but roll her eyes. This Junior Brother Kong was good in every way, but his only flaw was his tendency to act generous, while in reality, he was exceedingly stingy

He took out a palm-sized green pouch from his bosom, and Feng Ruo immediately reached in, tossing handfuls of spirit mulberry leaves evenly into the nine platforms.

Feng Ruo was rescued from the battlefield by a cultivator named Feng Chenzi for a simple reason: his mount, the Cloud-Piercing Eagle, was attracted by the overwhelming scent of blood on the battlefield and attempted to capture the still-breathing Feng Ruo as a meal. Fortunately, Feng Chenzi happened to discover this and intervened to save him

This task must be attributed to that wandering practitioner, for the Qingyun Sect, being one of the foremost cultivation sects in the vicinity, does not permit any mortals to linger on Qingyun Mountain. Moreover, Feng Ruo does not meet the criteria for being recruited as a disciple of the Qingyun Sect. Had it not been for the close relationship between that wandering practitioner and an elder of the Qingyun Sect, he would not even have been able to secure this menial position.