A Hundred Flowers Scattered

“What?”
As soon as Chu Liang spoke, everyone was taken aback.
In a jungle teeming with demons, where true energy cannot be replenished, danger could strike at any moment. If something unexpected occurred, the more cultivation one conserved, the greater the chance of escaping peril.
Naturally, none of them wished to waste their true energy on clearing the path. That was why Fang Ting had suggested the fair plan of rotating the task among the three.
When Chu Liang voiced his objection, they assumed he wanted to shirk responsibility or involve Fang Ting and Xu Ziqing as well.
Yet, to their astonishment, the gentle-smiling youth before them volunteered to shoulder the burden alone.
He was but at the early stage of Divine Will Realm, so his willingness was truly remarkable.
“Brother Chu, this is no joke,” Lin Bei was the first to advise, “And this path might take more than an hour to traverse. If you exhaust your true energy, it will hinder our later efforts to harvest the Human-Faced Jade Essence Flower. Let’s stick to our rotation.”
Chu Liang smiled, “It’s all right, I am confident. If my energy runs low, I’ll naturally step back and let someone else take over. My cultivation is modest, so there are few ways I can contribute. Let me do what I can here.”
His words were sincere, his expression earnest, and everyone was somewhat moved.
“If you insist, then you shall lead the way first. Dusk is approaching, we must hurry into the mountains,” Fang Ting turned and added, “Remember, if your energy drops below half, switch immediately. If you wait until it’s depleted, it’ll be too late.”
“I understand,” Chu Liang nodded.
Little Xu Ziqing pouted as she watched him.
In truth, Xu Ziqing’s spirit companion—the white bird—was not gifted by her brother but by her master. Wang Xuanling had doted on her since childhood, so her feelings for her master were deep. Naturally, she held a poor impression of Silver Sword Peak, which bore enmity with Wang Xuanling.
Upon hearing Chu Liang was the disciple of Emperor Daughter Phoenix of Silver Sword Peak, she harbored a secret hostility. When he boarded her white bird, she felt indignant and deliberately sat up front to isolate him.
But the girl’s heart was soft, and seeing Chu Liang willingly take responsibility for the group—clearly to foster camaraderie—she suddenly felt her earlier isolation of him was wrong.
Moreover, this Brother Chu…
Quiet, handsome, with a pleasant smile—he seemed a truly good person.
Xu Ziqing tugged at her sleeve, hurried a few steps to Chu Liang, and produced a small vial, “Brother Chu, here are three Gathering Qi Pills. Keep them for yourself.”

Gathering Qi Pills, which quickly restore true energy, were invaluable in such circumstances. However, their main use was to aid cultivation after ingestion, and without subsequent cultivation here, using them solely for energy restoration felt somewhat wasteful.
“Xu Ziqing, this—” Chu Liang started to decline, but the girl gazed up at him with large, watery eyes full of apology. She looked as if she might cry if he refused.
Perplexed, he accepted the vial, “All right, thank you very much.”
“Hehe, it’s nothing. I have plenty more,” Xu Ziqing beamed as he took it.
Chu Liang stepped forward and transformed his flying sword, grasping it in hand. As for the inner thoughts of the Jade Sword Peak disciples, he had no time to ponder. His reason for volunteering was simple.
The one leading the way got to fight monsters.
…
“Hiss—”
The vast mountains were filled with towering ancient trees, their crowns and knotted vines blocking all sunlight.
Fang Ting carried a lantern-shaped magical artifact, casting a gentle glow over the group and illuminating the path ahead. At the very front, Chu Liang extended his divine sense several yards forward, cautiously advancing with each step.
Just as his divine sense detected a hint of demon aura, a strange sound came from up ahead.
Among the tangled vines wrapped around a thick ancient tree, one suddenly sprang forth like a giant blue-marked python! At its tip, a red bud the size of a fist, vivid and sinister, bloomed.
A flower demon!
As the vine lunged, the red bud snapped open with a hiss, revealing a maw filled with sharp teeth!
Within those beautiful petals lurked a ravenous mouth.
“Careful,” Chu Liang warned.
He lunged forward, his long sword gleaming with three feet of sword light, thrusting forcefully into the heart of the flower—
The blade pierced the soft core, then was swiftly withdrawn, splattering foul-smelling juice. The crimson petals opened wide, exposing a dark gaping hole, and wilted, unable to close again.
In just half an hour, Chu Liang had already dispatched four such flower demons. The Southern Domain mountains were indeed teeming with monsters; even the outermost forests were fraught with peril. The camouflage of these vine and flower demons was impossible to discern by sight alone. Without the divine sense of a Divine Will Realm cultivator, one would barely step into the woods before meeting a grisly end.

“Let’s rest a bit,” Fang Ting called from behind.
Though Chu Liang alone cleared the path, the others kept their divine sense spread out, vigilant. Even if their energy and stamina were conserved, maintaining divine sense for prolonged periods was tiring.
For cultivators, essence, energy, and spirit were all essential.
“Retract your divine sense and rest for a while; I’ll handle the vigilance.” Once everyone sat cross-legged, Fang Ting, showing his Golden Core-level responsibility, guarded the surroundings alone.
Lin Bei came forward, “Brother Chu, are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” Chu Liang nodded.
He spoke truthfully; thanks to Xu Ziqing’s Gathering Qi Pills, his true energy remained full. He had no intention to economize with the pills—after all, fighting a lantern monster would restore the cost.
As long as the rewards from the White Tower kept coming, fighting monsters would always be a profitable venture.
With this thought, he closed his eyes and entered the White Tower with anticipation.
Inside the iron prison of the White Tower, four cells held golden flower-shaped shadows. Chu Liang stepped forward and pressed the “Refine” button.
Boom—
A red glow flashed, and Chu Liang caught the light drifting into his palm. It was an oil-paper packet containing what appeared to be medicinal powder.
With a thought, information appeared.
[Hundred Flower Powder]:
An antidote refined from the essence of many flowers, half to be taken internally and half applied externally, capable of curing all poisons. After using Hundred Flower Powder, a floral fragrance lingers: jasmine as the top note, rose as the middle, and hawthorn as the base, rich and lasting.