Chapter 2237

Zhu Yanyi spoke calmly. "We all know the Qixia Secret Realm exists for our Sage Academy students to train. Although there are many herbs inside, it is unlikely that we would see endless herbs the moment we enter. If it were that simple, the quota for this realm would have little value."

She did not need to say more. The others understood her meaning immediately. If it were truly that easy, everyone would not have come to the Qixia Secret Realm. Herb gathering could be done elsewhere. The Sage Academy would not need to hold a competition. This meant there were unexpected opportunities hidden within.

Of course, Zhu Yanyi knew there were still plenty of herbs here. She had asked Silver Fox about this before.

Silver Fox knew the Qixia Secret Realm of the Sage Academy very well. It was said that the realm was originally intended to be thrown into the fire. However, after observing it for a while, Silver Fox decided it was better to keep it for himself and gave it to Zhu Yanyi.

Although Silver Fox’s words were not entirely accurate, Zhu Yanyi learned one thing from him: besides herbs, there were also spirit pets in the Qixia Secret Realm. However, these spirit pets were not easy to obtain. One needed a certain amount of luck to get them.

Zhu Yanyi had no expectation of obtaining a spirit pet just by coming here. That was unrealistic. Besides, she already had Flame, which was enough. However, this did not mean the other students did not have such thoughts.

"The Qixia Secret Realm is basically a training ground for our Sage Academy students where there is danger but no real harm. Why is it like this? It is not just because this place belongs solely to our academy. More importantly, the training here involves factors we cannot imagine. If it were just about getting ordinary herbs, the academy would not be so tense about this secret realm," Zhu Yanyi explained.

Sikong Xuran listened and asked, "According to Elder, is there something else here?"

"Since we know there is danger but no real harm, what is the 'danger'? I have thought about it and guess there might be spirit pets here," Zhu Yanyi said. She did not reveal the definite news from Silver Fox, only offering a guess.

"Elder, is this true?" Zhuo Yue asked curiously.

Zhu Yanyi shrugged. "I said it is just a guess. We are fifty people. You can form groups of five and act separately. But remember, the time here is six months. You must return then, or you might stay in the secret realm forever." Actually, the chance of staying was very small, but she could not speak absolutely, so Zhu Yanyi reminded them.

"Yes," everyone agreed.

Zhu Yanyi waved her hand. "Alright, go form your teams. You can have five, four, three, or two people. It is up to you. If you are brave, you can go alone. Anyway, it is basically safe. Just be careful. The danger here likely comes from some spirit pets. If you encounter a powerful spirit pet that you cannot tame, leave quickly. Opportunities are everywhere, but first, protect your lives."

"Yes, Elder," everyone said.

"Of course, hide the powder I gave you well. Use it if you really encounter danger," Zhu Yanyi added. She felt confident letting them act separately because she had prepared for them.

So, everyone bid farewell and left.

Zhu Yanyi was the last to leave. She did not team up with anyone and left alone.

After watching everyone leave, she departed by herself.

She came here to gather herbs. Since she already had a spirit pet, gathering herbs and finding medicinal materials was the most important thing for these six months.

Zhu Yanyi did not rush. She walked slowly and searched gradually.

The Qixia Secret Realm was very large. One could easily get lost. However, Zhu Yanyi and the others had compasses. They were specially made by the academy’s refining teachers, so they did not worry about getting lost.

Zhu Yanyi entered a place.

It was a small forest. The forest area was not large, and most of the trees were peach trees. Zhu Yanyi did not understand why there was such a peach grove here. However, the peaches here were mostly ripe. She picked one, washed it, and took a bite.

Each peach was as big as a small bowl. Each weighed at least one jin. So, after eating one peach, Zhu Yanyi’s stomach was very full.

Moreover, the peach felt juicy and sweet in her mouth. Although she had never eaten immortal peaches, Zhu Yanyi felt like she was eating one. Especially since these peaches contained a lot of spiritual energy.

Zhu Yanyi directly collected ten such peach trees. She also picked many peaches and stored them in her space.

While picking peaches, she noticed that there was a lot of peach gum on these trees.

Looking at these peach trees, Zhu Yanyi knew they were rare. Naturally, this peach gum was many times better than ordinary peach gum. So, she started picking the peach gum.

There were over a hundred peach trees. It took her four days to finish picking the peach gum here.

After picking the peaches and peach gum, Zhu Yanyi continued walking forward.

Gradually, Zhu Yanyi found that the medicinal materials here were becoming more numerous, and their age was quite high.

No one had gathered herbs here for nearly a thousand years. So, most of the medicinal materials here were a thousand years old.

Zhu Yanyi did not hesitate. She collected all medicinal materials that were over eight hundred years old. For those between five hundred and eight hundred years old, she picked some. For those under five hundred years old, she picked about fifty to sixty percent. She did not touch those under one hundred years old.

Zhu Yanyi was very picky about medicinal materials now. Younger herbs were mostly for giving to people casually in the future. Older herbs were for her own use.

Zhu Yanyi was naturally lazy, but sometimes very diligent. This was the case with herbs. Zhu Yanyi would leave the roots or seeds of some good herbs and water them with spiritual water to ensure their growth here.

In the following five months, Zhu Yanyi’s movements became faster. Her main goal was to find medicinal materials. Of course, she also had to complete the Sage Academy’s task. She filled a storage bag for the academy.

Zhu Yanyi checked the time. When it was about right, she did not stay long. She did not encounter any spirit pets on her way here. It was not a regret, but she felt it was good this way. So, Zhu Yanyi’s time here was very peaceful.