Wait a minute, where is my master?

Hearing there were rewards,

Little White's eyes shone with two beams of light, and whoosh—she darted in front of the mutant calf.

The Gathering Spirit Grass that had transformed into the calf quietly stepped back half a step, its single horn flashing as a small light screen materialized out of thin air in front of the Husky.

"You can choose your reward from above, just take a look for yourself,"

said the "mutant" calf, then flicked its tail and waited quietly.

Little White's face showed delight as she looked towards the light screen.

But after only a glance, her light brown pupils filled with a thick sense of disappointment.

At that moment, the little Taoist also came over. Seeing the emotional swings of his demon pet so quickly, he stroked Little White's head and asked softly, "What's wrong?"

"Temple Master, I thought this list would include that pack of wolves and pack of dogs."

Little White sounded disappointed, she had truly hoped to pull a couple more groups of followers out of the Qingmu Secret Realm!

"...That was an illusion generated by the Secret Realm based on what you were thinking about; stop being fanciful, and quickly see if there's anything on the list that could help you,"

the little Taoist said while glancing at Yu Yaoer, who was still immersed in the illusion and hadn't come out yet.

He missed the days when Little Fish Demon looked after his demon pet for him.

"Oh, alright, Temple Master,"

Little White replied, her tone carrying a hint of reluctance as she carefully started to survey the items on the list.

While the Husky was making her selection, Jin Xu approached the mutant calf.

He handed over a black waist token inscribed with 'First Class.'

"Give me the Seven-orifice Exquisite Heart Fruit first, my other two companions might take a while longer to wake up."

The little Taoist's voice was gentle. Now that he understood what the second layer of the Secret Realm was testing for, it was time to get the important things done first.

The "mutant" calf didn't talk nonsense, after all, it had already arranged this with Jin Xu beforehand.

Its horn flashed, and within the gazebo, two vines, one black and one white, intertwined and ascended next to the little Taoist's feet, each supporting a jade box.

"The fruit is in this box, you can take it yourself,"

the calf said, nodding its head towards the jade box, signaling Jin Xu to help himself.

"Thank you,"

the little Taoist responded, bowing slightly and then bending over to open the jade box.

Inside the box lay a Seven-orifice Exquisite Heart Fruit, as translucent as crystal and seemingly alive, quietly resting at the bottom.

Jin Xu reached out, taking the fruit from the box with utmost care.

As soon as he held it in his hand, he felt a very regular pulsating sensation coming from within the fruit; this rhythm continued unceasingly, strong and vigorous.

If the little Taoist closed his eyes, he could even feel as though he was holding a living person's heart.

"The jade box can preserve the medicinal efficacy of the Spirit Fruit without it dissipating, just take the box with you,"

the Gathering Spirit Grass-turned-calf timely reminded.

Upon hearing this, Jin Xu placed the Seven-orifice Exquisite Heart Fruit back into the box and carefully stored it in his storage artifact.

After he completed this set of actions,

the Husky came over, holding a withered vine emitting bursts of cold air.

"Temple Master, I've made my choice too!"

Upon hearing the call, the little Taoist turned to look at Little White approaching and the withered vine in her hands, examining it closely for a long while.

Eventually, Jin Xu realized he didn't recognize this thing...

Perhaps seeing through the little Taoist's lack of knowledge, the "mutant" calf once again explained in a timely manner.

"This item is called Winter Wisteria, and it is extremely beneficial for Cultivators with Ice Attribute Spirit Roots when taken raw. If it can be refined into an Ice and Snow Bi Yao Pill, it can transform the Ice Attribute Spiritual Power within the Cultivator's body, increasing its might even further,"

"Yes, Little Yu has told me about this pill. She said that if I could find this Winter Wisteria, she could help me refine the Ice and Snow Bi Yao Pill,"

At this moment, the disappointment in the Siberian Husky's light brown eyes vanished, and it became lively again.

Another half a cup of tea's time passed.

Yu Yaoer and Zhao Dabao woke up from the illusion one after another. Without any surprises, the choices they made in the illusion test were the same as Little White's.

Therefore, both of them also obtained a chance to directly select Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

The Little Fish Demon chose a section of Spirit Bamboo, saying she planned to plant it when she got back.

Fatty Zhao wanted to choose a petal of the Eternal Lotus, but the "variant" calf told him that such a thing could only be found on the fourth layer of the Qingmu Secret Realm.

It was not listed here.

So Zhao Dabao had to settle for a second choice, selecting a Fire Attribute Spirit Fruit, planning to see if he could trade it with his fellow disciples from the Blazing Sun Sword Sect when he returned.

Once everything was settled, the calf, which was transformed from the Gathering Spirit Grass, started pulling out a new black and white chessboard from the void while ceasing the illusion disguise around the pavilion.

The little Taoist saw that the other party had pulled out another chessboard and couldn't help but marvel at the mass production of such things.

He turned again to look at the entrance of the Secret Realm's Second Layer, the light curtain, and found that there were Cultivators dressed as Confucian Practitioners nearby.

They appeared to be disciples of the Qingmu Academy.

With a brief scan, Jin Xu noticed that most of the Confucian Practitioners were gathered around a man in green, and there were no acquaintances among the crowd. He then called out to the two women and Zhao Dabao, preparing to head to the Third Layer of the Secret Realm.

However, before the little Taoist could step out of the pavilion, an old man with an honest face, dressed in a deep brown robe, with hair as black as ink, appeared in the pavilion without making a sound.

The pavilion was once again enveloped by Wood Spirit Power, and the previous illusion camouflage rose again. The Cultivators outside were unaware of the changes inside the pavilion, while the Loose Cultivators were quietly complaining about why the chessboard trial had not yet started.

The little Taoist had a keen sense of the anomaly, his brows furrowed slightly, and he looked puzzledly towards the "variant" calf.

The two women instinctively ran to stand behind Jin Xu at the first sign of trouble.

Fatty Zhao was a step slower but followed suit, standing next to the little Taoist.

"Grandpa Liangmu! What brings you to the Second Layer?"

Before Jin Xu could say anything, the calf exclaimed, and then turned to the puzzled little Taoist, saying,

"This is Grandpa Liangmu, the caretaker of the Qingmu Secret Realm, the owner of the Qingmu Blessed Land, and the most respected being among all of the Ten-thousand-year-old Treasure Medicines."

Listening to this long introduction, Jin Xu was a bit stunned; then he quickly realized that this was the very person whom the Old Dean had asked him to exchange the Token for Wood Spirit Liquid with!

Meanwhile, the old man in the deep brown robe nodded at the "variant" calf to calm it down, then turned to the little Taoist with a solemn voice and said,

"This is not a place for conversation. Would you be willing to accompany me to the Qingmu Blessed Land for a discussion?"

As he spoke, he drew his hand across the void, opening a rift to an unknown destination.

The little Taoist scratched the back of his head at the sight and then nodded in agreement.

Although he did not know why the other party had appeared here,

his purpose for coming here was the Wood Spirit Liquid and the sap of the Che Liang Wood. Now that the person in charge was inviting him personally, Jin Xu had no reason to refuse.

Seeing the little Taoist agree, the old man in the brown robe stepped into the rift in the void first.

Jin Xu called the two women to accompany him, and he also asked Zhao Dabao if he wanted to come along, as he wasn't sure whether the Qingmu Blessed Land had the petals of the Eternal Lotus.

Without hesitation, Fatty Zhao chose to accompany the little Taoist.

So, the party of four entered the rift in the void, heading towards the Qingmu Blessed Land.

...

Outside the pavilion.

The two avatars controlled by the Third Elder of the Demon Sect had just happened to step out of the entrance to the Second Layer of the Qingmu Secret Realm.