Starting from iron smelting

Chapter 38 Woodshed

Qingying patted Lu Xiuyuan's shoulder and comforted him, "Don't be nervous, the master will definitely be very satisfied with you."

Qingying's comfort eased Lu Xiuyuan's mood a little, and the two pushed open the master's door. In this room, an old man with white hair and beard sat in the middle, in front of him was an ancient and small alchemy furnace, the bronze appearance of which looked vicissitudes and mysterious.

Xuan Miaozi was staring intently at the incense burner in front of him, as if he was pondering some profound alchemy problem.

Lu Xiuyuan and Qingying stood together at the door and bowed respectfully to Xuanmiaozi: "Master, I have just returned from Xuanji Hall and come to report."

Xuan Miaozi raised his head and a kind smile appeared on his face: "Okay, I already know, get up." Although his voice was kind, it revealed a deep solemnity that made people feel reverence.

After Lu Xiuyuan and Qingying stood up, Xuan Miaozi sighed and waved his hand to signal them to sit down. He glanced at Lu Xiuyuan gently and asked, "What do you think of your return from Xuanji Palace? Have you gained anything?"

Lu Xiuyuan's heart tightened. He knew that the master asked this question to test his performance in Xuanji Hall. After thinking for a moment, he answered respectfully: "I have experienced the profoundness of the sect in Xuanji Hall. I know that knowledge is as vast as the ocean. I feel more and more insignificant as dust."

Xuan Miaozi nodded: "It is profound and extensive, indeed. On the path of cultivation, you need to continue to absorb knowledge and never stop moving forward." His eyes were warm, as if he was an elder who cared about his disciples.

Qingying watched silently from the side, secretly worried about Lu Xiuyuan. At this time, Xuanmiaozi turned to Qingying and asked, "Qingying, how have you been practicing in the outer courtyard during this period? What do you think?"

Qingying replied steadily, "I am practicing diligently in the outer courtyard, trying my best to improve my cultivation. Although my understanding is limited, I hope to reach a higher level under the guidance of the master."

Xuan Miaozi nodded and smiled: "Very good, practice hard and live up to the expectations of your master. You are all the hope of the sect, and the road ahead is still long. You must always keep your original intention and keep moving forward." His voice was melodious and deep, making people feel the infinite mystery of the path of cultivation.

After saying these encouraging words, Xuan Miaozi slowly opened his half-closed eyes, chuckled and asked, "Okay, let's not be polite, tell me what benefits you got from Xuan Jizi, this stingy guy."

Lu Xiuyuan and Qingying looked at each other. The master's question caught them off guard. After all, it involved a gift from a disciple who guarded the courtyard, and the master was always mysterious and hard to figure out. However, since it was the master who asked the question, the two could only answer truthfully.

Lu Xiuyuan spoke first: "Master, I got a black Taoist robe and golden silk soft armor. This Taoist robe is the symbol of the outer courtyard disciples, and the golden silk soft armor was given by Elder Xuanjizi. It can protect the body during training and resist fatal blows in battle."

Lu Xiuyuan paused and added, "There is another talisman, called the Heavenly Thunder Talisman. It was made by a Jindan-stage elder of the sect before his death. He used his own life magic weapon to refine a thunder-attributed talisman. It is powerful and contains a strong force of thunder, which is equivalent to the power of a Jindan cultivator's attack."

"At the same time, he returned me a storage bag, which contained some spirit stones and pills." Lu Xiuyuan added.

Then Qingying said: "Elder Xuanjizi also gave me an ice fluorite, which can be inlaid on the Zixiao sword to increase the sword's chill."

Xuan Miaozi smiled, his tone slightly humorous: "Okay, okay, Lu Xiuyuan, don't you want to ask why I didn't give you any treasure?" He raised his eyebrows and looked at his disciples.

Lu Xiuyuan smiled calmly: "It doesn't matter whether the master gives it to me or not, I will work hard to practice and win glory for the master."

Xuan Miaozi was unmoved. He chuckled and said, "You are quite good at talking. Do you really think that Xuanjizi gave you these things because he really thinks highly of you? The wool comes from the sheep. These things are all prepared by me for you, but Xuanjizi didn't prepare them at that time, so I can only borrow flowers to offer to Buddha."

Lu Xiuyuan was stunned. He didn't expect that so many gifts were carefully prepared by the master for him. Each one was carefully considered and tailored for him. He was filled with gratitude. It turned out that the master was not only obsessed with alchemy, but also cared and valued him as an outer disciple. He had always thought that the master only accepted him as a disciple because of his temperament and occasionally on a whim. He didn't expect that the master still valued him very much.

Lu Xiuyuan suddenly felt a sense of responsibility. He cupped his hands in gratitude and said to Xuan Miaozi sincerely, "Master, I will not let you down and will bring honor to our school in the future."

Xuan Miaozi smiled calmly and said, "Okay, okay, it's getting late. You should hurry up and go to your room to rest. Your room is next to the woodshed. Qingying will lead you there."

"Disciple obeys your order." Lu Xiuyuan and Qingying said together. A surge of gratitude welled up in his heart. The master's care and expectations made him more determined to cultivate immortality.

Just as he turned to leave, Lu Xiuyuan suddenly remembered a key question: "Master, is there a cafeteria in our sect?" Xuan Miaozi was amused by this question and shook his head helplessly.

"We cultivators don't need to eat. We can increase our skills by absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth." Xuan Miaozi explained. Most of the cultivators in his sect focus on cultivation, so spiritual food is more important.

Lu Xiuyuan said with a look of grievance: "I'm so hungry, my stomach is rumbling, and I haven't eaten for a long time." This complaint made Xuan Miaozi touch his head helplessly and couldn't help wanting to laugh.

"Well, you are still a mortal, and you happen to live near the woodshed. You can make a fire and cook for yourself when you have nothing to do. Just don't make too much noise. I have some meat here, you can cook it tonight." As he said that, Xuan Miaozi handed Lu Xiuyuan a piece of meat. The meat was pink and crystal clear, with a perfect blend of fat and muscle, giving off a milky aroma.

Lu Xiuyuan took the meat, feeling overjoyed, and quickly thanked the chef and left. He held the fragrant piece of meat and walked towards the outer courtyard with gratitude.

Under the guidance of Senior Sister Qingying, Lu Xiuyuan walked through the layers of paths, through the shadows of the hedges and trees, and came to the firewood room of the Juling Sect. Although the firewood room here is not a magnificent building, it is still clean, and the wood inside is piled up in rows to form a wall, neatly arranged.

At this time, the supervisor of the woodshed came over. She was an old lady with a hunched figure. She walked over with difficulty, leaning on a cane full of knots. Her white hair was combed into a simple bun, and she was wearing a simple cloth dress, but there was a kind light in her eyes.