New Functions of the Heavenly Book

Half an hour later, nestled within the Yunxia Mountain range, lay a vibrant expanse teeming with life, where birdsong filled the air and flowers bloomed in fragrant profusion.

A vast medicinal field stretched across this area, cultivated with an array of peculiar herbs, and the entire region was enveloped by a protective formation.

Small houses dotted the perimeter of the medicinal field, where men and women of varying ages diligently toiled, fertilizing and watering the plants, or meticulously pruning branches and eradicating pests.

This was, in fact, the forbidden medicinal ground of the Yunhua Sect, supplying at least half of all the herbs required by the sect.

Those who cultivated the fields like common farmers were the designated medicinal farmers, a type of menial disciple (TL Note: Disciples responsible for miscellaneous tasks within a sect, often with lower status or cultivation levels).

Upon a white jade platform at the southernmost edge of the medicinal field, two streaks of light descended from the heavens, landing steadily.

A closer look revealed them to be none other than Yan Yun and Jiang Yao.

Yan Yun had already changed into the Yunhua Sect’s menial disciple attire, which consisted of a white cloth skirt with purple patterns, notably a knee-length design.

Despite its simplicity, this outfit suited Yan Yun remarkably well, making her appear youthful and vibrant.

Yan Yun’s appearance had not drastically changed; only slight alterations had been made, making her somewhat resemble her former self, yet at first glance, she was distinctly different from when she was a man.

Currently, neither the Immortal Alliance nor the Lin family were aware that Yan Yun had transformed into a woman; they still believed she was merely cross-dressing, given that her masculine appearance had made her almost flawlessly convincing as a woman in the past.

Only Yan Long, Yan Kun, and Jiang Yuan knew of Yan Yun’s transformation into a woman; all others remained oblivious.

Having steadied herself, Yan Yun gazed upon the vast medicinal field before her, her voice brimming with delight.

“What a wonderful place! We came to the right spot; so many herbs, tsk tsk!”

Jiang Yao, however, promptly offered a word of caution.

“I know you’re a poison refiner, but don’t just use the herbs here indiscriminately. Every single plant in this field is registered, and if any are found missing, you’ll be in serious trouble.”

Yan Yun chuckled mischievously.

“Don’t worry, I was just talking. I promise I won’t touch anything.”

Observing Yan Yun’s demeanor, Jiang Yao harbored serious doubts about whether she could truly remain here obediently.

“I’ll believe you when pigs fly. If you genuinely need any herbs, just tell me directly; don’t stir up trouble. Come on, I’ll take you to the medicinal field steward.”

Thus, the two headed towards a rather impressive pavilion.

At the entrance of the pavilion, a middle-aged cultivator lay reclining in an armchair, taking his rest.

Approaching the man, Jiang Yao called out, “Uncle-Master Lin.”

Only then did the middle-aged man open his eyes, and upon seeing Jiang Yao, he promptly rose to his feet.

“Ah, heh heh, it’s Jiang Yao. What brings you to the medicinal field?” the middle-aged man asked with a smile.

Jiang Yao immediately introduced Yan Yun to the middle-aged man.

“Uncle-Master Lin, this is a good sister of mine from the mortal world, named Ziyun. Her family is facing difficulties, so she seized this opportunity to join our Yunhua Sect. I’ve arranged for her to be a medicinal farmer here, and I’d appreciate it if you could look after her.”

The medicinal field steward, Lin Hong, was a cultivator of the Divine Mark Realm.

“Oh, a small matter, a small matter,” Lin Hong replied, agreeing immediately after casting a quick glance over Yan Yun.

Jiang Yao then spoke to Yan Yun.

“I’ll be quite busy these next few days, but I’ll come to see you once I’m done.”

Yan Yun nodded.

“Mm, go on.”

Jiang Yao promptly turned and departed, deliberately creating the illusion that her relationship with Yan Yun was not overly close.

After Jiang Yao had left, Lin Hong turned to Yan Yun.

“Little lass, come in. I’ll assign you a medicinal field and living quarters, and I’ll also explain the rules of the medicinal field to you.”

Yan Yun followed Lin Hong into the pavilion, where her identity information was first registered, before he led her to a small, unoccupied wooden cabin.

This cabin would be Yan Yun’s future residence, and the medicinal field in front of it would be hers to manage.

According to the rules, medicinal farmers received a monthly remuneration of ten spirit stones, which could, of course, be exchanged for mortal world silver.

Menial disciples were also permitted to cultivate, and if one could reach the Cavern Heaven Realm, they would directly qualify to become a formal disciple.

Beyond this, other requirements undoubtedly existed; for instance, if a medicinal plant died, compensation was required, with a maximum allowance of three naturally deceased plants per month.

The daily tasks of a medicinal farmer were straightforward: fertilizing, watering, pruning branches and leaves, and pest control, among other common duties.

Furthermore, medicinal farmers worked one day and rested the next, with another farmer taking over duties on their day off.

Thus, each medicinal field was, in effect, managed by two menial disciples.

This meant working for half a month and resting for half a month; during their rest period, as long as they avoided forbidden zones, they could travel to various locations within the Yunhua Sect via teleportation arrays.

After completing three years of service, menial disciples could either choose to remain in their positions or depart from the Yunhua Sect.

The Yunhua Sect housed approximately five thousand menial disciples, typically recruiting until all positions were filled.

Among these menial disciples, some were ordinary mortals, while others were cultivators with less-than-ideal aptitudes.

The Yunhua Sect offered several avenues for transitioning to formal discipleship, which explained why many cultivators with poor aptitudes were still willing to remain within the sect.

However, menial disciples could not enjoy the same benefits as formal disciples; everything depended on their own capabilities.

After providing Yan Yun with a brief demonstration, Lin Hong departed.

‘Ah! No matter the world, one can’t escape working to earn a living,’ Yan Yun thought.

‘Still, it’s not bad; at least I have a place to stay.’

New menial disciples were allowed three days to rest and prepare before commencing their official duties.

This granted Yan Yun some time to attend to other matters.

Entering her living quarters, she closed the door behind her and realized it was time to test the Heavenly Tome’s new functions.

Based on the additional memories that had appeared in her mind since last time, the Heavenly Tome not only possessed the ability to create and merge conventional cultivation techniques but also allowed for the creation or fusion of other arts related to cultivators, such as artifact refining or pill concoction.

However, the prerequisite was that the user had to be extremely proficient in the art.

Currently, aside from her poison cultivation technique, Yan Yun’s poison refining skills still had room for improvement.

Upon entering the Heavenly Tome’s world, Yan Yun immediately extracted the poison refining art from the Poison Sutra.

As the poison refining art separated, the Heavenly Tome space instantly stirred; one of the books suddenly flew from the bookshelf on its own accord, landing before Yan Yun.

A look of profound joy spread across Yan Yun’s face upon seeing the book.

She gazed at the book floating before her, her face etched with disbelief.

“Haha, just as I thought! Do I truly possess the ability to foresee the future?”

According to the memories in her mind, she had accidentally discovered a new function of the Heavenly Tome after infiltrating the Yunhua Sect.

Naturally, this discovery wasn’t supposed to happen immediately upon entering the Yunhua Sect; it was meant to occur more than a decade later.

Yan Yun had, in effect, accelerated the activation of the Heavenly Tome’s new functions.

With a casual flick of her hand, the contents of the book transformed into golden characters, floating out.

This time, the book was vastly different from the last, which had contained only the cultivation techniques recorded in Yan Yun’s own mind.

This particular book was one Yan Yun had never encountered before.

“Pill Dao Heavenly Tome, Author: Pill Heavenly Venerate.”

Yan Yun fell into deep thought.

“Strange, this isn’t the information from my memories, is it?”

As she began to peruse the Pill Dao Heavenly Tome, her understanding of pill concoction and the Pill Dao (TL Note: The Way of Pills, referring to the comprehensive knowledge and mastery of alchemy and medicinal arts) advanced remarkably within a short span.

The entire book contained the lifelong insights of an exceptionally formidable alchemist, making it an invaluable treasure.

Yan Yun couldn’t shake the feeling that ever since that dream, everything about her had subtly changed.