Chapter 3, Iron Pear Wood Spirit Horse

The low-grade spirit steed is particularly docile, does not recognize a master, and as long as a crystal stone is embedded, anyone can ride it. Xie Danzhu smiled as she stroked the strong back of this iron pear wood spirit horse, thinking about how she had been away from home for a year, and riding a tall horse back home would indeed be a matter of great pride

The little fox was extremely agile; with a leap, it landed on the horse's back and nestled into Xie Danzhu's embrace

Although Xie Danzhu disapproved of Fei Tianyue, they were both from the same hometown, so she would not completely ignore him. She replied, "It was borrowed from the senior brother in the neighborhood."

Xie Danzhu was taken aback and quickly reined in her horse, calling out: "Little fox, jump up quickly, don't let anyone see."

Xie Danzhu was momentarily dazzled as a tall, sleek black horse appeared before him. The horse held its head high, towering over Xie Danzhu by a considerable margin, its tail gently swaying, and its hooves fidgeting, eager to gallop.

The little fox stared at Xie Danzhu with its round, glistening purple eyes, shaking its small head continuously. It could understand what Xie Danzhu was saying, but Xie Danzhu did not comprehend the meaning of its head shaking

Fatty Tang Xing looked at Fei Tianyue sitting proudly on the back of the Spirit Kite, feeling quite envious. He said, "A middle-grade bronze crystal is worth one hundred low-grade bronze crystals, and the Wind-Soaring Spirit Kite costs two hundred low-grade bronze crystals to purchase. Tsk tsk, this kid Fei Tianyue is just so wealthy, it's infuriating."

Master Xu Zhi has been very considerate towards Xie Danzhu. Knowing that Xie Danzhu does not have a spirit tool for transportation, he lent his own iron pear wood spirit horse to her. Although the iron pear wood spirit horse belongs to the same lower-grade category as the jujube wood spirit horse, the quality of iron pear wood is far superior to that of jujube wood, making the spirit horse crafted from it naturally more majestic. Its price is one hundred and fifty lower-grade bronze crystal stones, which is three times that of the jujube wood spirit horse

Xie Danzhu and Tang Xing rode their horses to a bend in the mountain path, only to find that they were blocked again. This time, it was not the purple-eyed snow fox, but several burly men, dressed like disciples from the outer sect of Zixia Mountain. They were holding horse snares and spreading out a net to prevent Xie Danzhu and Tang Xing from passing. Following closely behind, four more individuals appeared behind the iron pear wood spirit horse, cutting off their retreat.

The crooked-mouthed man added fiercely: "If you break the rules and do not hand over the crystal stones, then the two of you will have to go home with bruised faces. Moreover, even after being beaten, you will still have to hand over the crystal stones. Hehe, think it over yourselves: is it better to follow the rules and pay the annual fee, or to be taught a lesson before paying the annual fee?"

Another obstructive individual solemnly stated: "This annual fee must be paid by all new disciples. The first year is one hundred, the second year is fifty, and from the third year onward, no fee is required. The benefit of paying the annual fee is that no one will dare to bully you in the future—this is the rule"

Fei Tianyue mounted the Wind-Soaring Spirit Kite, yet did not take off immediately. With a look of satisfaction, he said, "This Spirit Kite is embedded with medium-grade bronze crystal stones, allowing it to fly a thousand miles without needing to replace the crystals." After glancing at Xie Danzhu and the other person, he shouted, "Rise!" The Spirit Kite spread its enormous wings and slowly lifted off the ground, ascending to over two zhang before it began to fly forward.

Tang Xing, seeing that the eight individuals spoke unfavorably, felt somewhat afraid and said, "We truly do not know"

Before they had traveled even ten zhang, a white shadow suddenly sprang out from the thicket by the mountain path, a snow fox with purple eyes blocking the way in the center of the road

Fei Tianyue said proudly: "I originally intended to return together with you, but my Wind-Soaring Spirit Kite flies too fast, and you cannot keep up. I apologize, I will take my leave first. See you in town later"

The crooked-mouthed fellow sternly said: "Hand over half of the spirit stones you have earned as an annual fee. You should have two hundred low-grade bronze spirit stones, so each of you should contribute one hundred."

Xie Danzhu lifted her garment to cover the little fox and asked, "Several senior brothers, I am a disciple of the Spirit Tool Academy. This is my fellow townsman from Linggu Field. May I ask which academy you are from on Zixia Mountain? What rules are you referring to?"

Xie Danzhu urged the spirit horse forward, lowering her head to glance at the little fox in her arms. She thought to herself: "Leaving the little fox at Zixia Mountain poses a constant danger; it would be better to take it back to Shitian, where my younger sister can raise and play with it."

After Xu Zhi left, Xie Danzhu carefully examined the iron pear wood spirit horse. This wooden horse is currently only seven inches long and six inches high, with symbols carved all over its body. The focal point of the symbols is located on the horse's forehead, where there are two parallel hexagonal holes.

Having said that, Fei Tianyue took out a small wooden kite from his waist pouch, embedding it with a piece of bronze crystal. The wooden kite quickly expanded and, in the blink of an eye, transformed into a large silver-gray bird that was as tall as a person

... ...

Annual fee?" Xie Danzhu was taken aback: "What annual fee? https://mhetushucom.com"

The crooked-mouthed fellow straightened his face and said: "You two joined last year, right? You don't even know the rules regarding the annual fee. Didn't your senior brothers in the courtyard tell you?"

You two, do you not understand the rules! One of the four people blocking the way spoke up

Tang Xing cheerfully said: "Not bad, not bad, riding a horse is truly enjoyable"

Xu Zhi smiled and said, "I still need to see you off to avoid any trouble—alright, you should pack up a bit, as I have some matters to attend to in the inner gate"

Xie Danzhu suddenly recalled that yesterday, his senior brother Xu Zhi had mentioned sending him out of the mountain pass, expressing concern about potential troubles. At that time, he did not fully understand, but now he realized that there truly was trouble. Instantly, a surge of indignation rose within him; these people were simply too excessive, demanding that they hand over half of the two hundred crystal stones they had painstakingly earned over the year. This was clearly robbery. They were all fellow disciples; was it really acceptable to bully others like this?

The world is indeed so unfair. Young Xie Danzhu has successfully produced at least twenty jujube wood spirit horses over the past year, yet he himself cannot obtain even one. As for the more expensive wind-riding spirit kite and wind-riding spirit crane, they are even less affordable for Xie Danzhu. Therefore, he has decided to walk home instead, as he originally intended to exercise his body; why spend that money

Xie Danzhu turned her head and shot a glance at Tang Xing: "You fat fool, stop talking nonsense"

Xie Danzhu's first thought was that these people had come to capture the little fox. Having spent more than half a month with the little fox, how could he bear to see it captured, skinned, and sold for money

The one at the front, whose mouth was slightly crooked to the left, chuckled and said: "Are you two going back home to visit your families? Well then, just pay this year's membership fee each, and you can go."

Xu Zhidao: "You are setting off early tomorrow morning, right? I will see you off at the mountain pass"

Originally, Master Xu Zhi had promised Xie Danzhu that he would escort him out of the mountain pass. However, Xu Zhi went to the inner gate at the peak yesterday afternoon and has not returned since. Unable to wait any longer, and with Tang Xing still waiting for him at the foot of the mountain, Xie Danzhu informed his fellow disciples, secured the leather pouch containing over 200 spirit stones tightly around his waist, and led the iron pear wood spirit horse down the mountain. From a distance, he saw the plump Tang Xing standing under a pine tree at the foot of the mountain, talking to a person in purple. Only inner gate disciples are qualified to wear purple robes; who could this person be? Upon approaching, he realized it was Fei Tianyue.

Zixia Mountain is over 100 miles away from Shitian Town. If one were to walk, it would not be possible to cover the distance in a day. However, if one had a spirit tool for transportation, it would be much easier. Yet, even the cheapest jujube wood spirit horse costs 50 low-grade bronze crystals. Moreover, for every 100 miles traveled, the jujube wood spirit horse consumes 2 low-grade bronze crystals, which is equivalent to 80 pounds of rice. This is truly too extravagant for Xie Danzhu, who has grown up in a poor family.

Although these individuals are dressed as disciples of Zixia Mountain, they are not wearing purple robes, indicating that they are not inner disciples. However, among the eight, three individuals have a purple cloud embroidered on their left chest, signifying that they have all reached the first level of the Yingpo realm

Xie Danzhu said: "There is no need to trouble Senior Brother; I have a companion who is from my hometown, an outer disciple of Linggu Garden."

Tang www.hetushu.com.com nodded repeatedly and said, "I understand, I understand, how could I speak carelessly."

Xie Danzhu smiled and said, "Everyone relies on their own abilities, there is nothing to be jealous of." As he spoke, he mounted his horse and pulled Tang Xing up to sit behind him, saying, "Hold on tight, I won't take responsibility if you fall off." With a squeeze of his legs against the horse's belly, the iron pear wood spirit horse began to trot lightly, very well-behaved and steady, requiring no special riding skills at all

Tang Xing expressed his frustration: "I couldn't borrow a horse"

Xie Danzhu said to Tang Xingdao: "It doesn't matter, this iron pear wood spirit horse is very strong, you can ride with me."

In the evening, Xie Danzhu bid farewell to the little fox on the dragon-claw locust tree. He gently patted the little fox's head and said, "Little fox, I will be going home tomorrow and will return in ten days. You must be careful during these days and avoid being seen by others."

Fei Tianyue saw Xie Danzhu leading a horse down and smiled, saying, "Danzhu is quite impressive, having a spirited horse."

Tang Xing, the stout man, stretched his neck to look ahead from Xie Danzhu's shoulder and said, "Wow, Danzhu, you have struck it rich; this purple-eyed snow fox is worth 400 crystal stones. Where did you get it from?"

Xie Danzhu was overjoyed and quickly expressed her gratitude to her senior brother

Xie Danzhu, unable to suppress her youthful spirit, took out two inferior-quality bronze crystals and embedded them into the two holes. Then she held her breath in anticipation. After a moment, she saw the two bronze crystals set in the center of the formation begin to emit a green crystalline glow, which flowed along the patterns of the talisman array. The green light grew increasingly intense, completely covering the wooden horse.

Ahead is the entrance to Zixia Mountain. Upon exiting the entrance and turning left, one will find the main road leading to Wufengyi. Shitian Town is one of the eight towns under the jurisdiction of Wufengyi.