Starting with 50 Spirit Stones and 2 Hours with My Senior Sister as Daoist Consort

Li Chuan grinned but didn’t say much—just one jab: “Didn’t realize Senior Brother was already tenth level. From those two slaps, I thought you hadn’t even hit Qi Refining yet.”

He patted Chu Mengyou. “Let’s go, Senior Sister. I’ve got to hit Seventh Elder Peak to see Senior Sister Chu Xuan—no point wasting time here.”

As they flew off, Cao Tianyang’s face flickered between gloom and grit.

Li Chuan’s dig meant he’d gone too soft.

But he wasn’t from the Discipline Hall—couldn’t exactly swing hard.

Now Li Chuan had laid it out—his move.

Not like Li Chuan was dead-set on hassling him later anyway.

After a bit of flying, he and Chu Mengyou split. That line about finding Chu Xuan? Not just a scare tactic for Cao Tianyang.

Connections needed tending. Plus, he wanted the scoop—was it a spirit stone mine or a spirit vein He Fenglin had stumbled on?

Running into Cao Tianyang’s crew wasn’t a shock—he’d just figured it’d take a fight. Cao caving so fast saved him the hassle.

What’d he swap those contribution points for—a treasure robe and sword—if not to prep for a scrap?

At Seventh Elder Peak, though, he hit a snag—none of Mu Yuling’s disciples were around.

Word was, not just them—every elder, their disciples, the sect leader’s crew, and most of the inner sect had mobilized to wipe out a faction.

The target? Some outfit called the Mysterious Fire Sect.

Reason? They’d roughed up He Fenglin—time to settle the score.

That’s the line for disciples, anyway.

Li Chuan knew better. That spirit stone mine—or vein—was likely under Mysterious Fire’s thumb.

Given the Yin-Yang Sect’s turnout, he’d bet on a vein.

Leaving Seventh Elder Peak, he zipped to the outer sect’s Mission Hall. He had 1,500 spirit stones earmarked for Mo Xiangling.

But surprise—she wasn’t there either.

“Senior Sister Mo got tapped to inventory Tier 1 stuff—won’t be back for a while,” Zhou Hanhe told him.

Turns out, a bunch of Tier 1 Spirit Planters had tagged along to Mysterious Fire. Mo Xiangling wasn’t one, but she was management—sent to wrangle them.

“Your Spirit Planter exam? Senior Sister Mo’s got it lined up. I’ll grab the examiner now,” Zhou Hanhe said, all eager.

He and Hu Min had been itching for Li Chuan lately.

Plan was to tail him and snag leftovers, but he’d vanished for half a month.

Hu Min was stuck—couldn’t take other gigs, scared he’d pop up.

Dragging her feet, she’d been idle at the Mission Hall for weeks.

When boredom hit, she’d pick up warehouse sorting tasks—low pay, exhausting. She’d nearly quit waiting.

Today, she was at it again. Zhou Hanhe didn’t fetch the examiner first—he ran to tell her Li Chuan was back.

By the time Hu Min reached the Mission Hall, she caught Zhao Mingxuan whispering with Li Chuan. She played it cool, sauntering to Zhou Hanhe’s desk.

She didn’t know Zhao Mingxuan had started trash-talking her the second she walked in.

“Junior Brother Li Chuan, something big—keep it hush,” Zhao Mingxuan said, voice low.

“Spill it, Senior Brother,” Li Chuan replied, his eyes drifting to Hu Min per Zhao’s glance.

She stood sideways, bent slightly, elbow on the desk, hand propping her face—half her body curved into a damn fine arc. Easy on the eyes.

“Watch out for Senior Sister Hu Min,” Zhao Mingxuan warned, snapping Li Chuan’s gaze off her hips.

“Watch her how?” Li Chuan asked, surprised.

“You might not know—Hu Min tails weaker disciples with sharp Spirit Plant Identification skills, swiping herbs they just dug up.”

He rattled off how Zhou Hanhe and Hu Min had teamed up to rip off others’ finds.

Li Chuan listened, wide-eyed, then praised, “Hell of a quick-cash scheme. Senior Brother Zhou’s a genius—coming up with that?”

Zhao Mingxuan snorted. “Zhou and Hu Min raked in plenty with it. Without that, she’d still be stuck at Qi Refining sixth, early stage.”

“My advice? Next time you hunt spirit plants, bring a guard.”

“If you’re short on options, I’ve got a recommendation.”

Li Chuan knew Zhao Mingxuan wasn’t just being nice—here came the pitch.

“Oh? Who’s that, Senior Brother?” he asked, curious.

“My Dao companion, Junior Sister Ziling,” Zhao Mingxuan said.

“She’s only sixth level, but her brother’s inner sect. With her watching you, Hu Min wouldn’t dare touch you.”

“Just give her twenty percent of your haul. I’ll talk her into it.”

“She doesn’t usually do guard gigs, but with me vouching, she’ll bite.”

Li Chuan nearly laughed. Spirit stones that easy? Twenty percent off the bat?

“Lemme think it over,” he said, faking hesitation.

No way he’d cough up that much. He didn’t shoot it down flat—wanted to meet Zhao Mingxuan’s Dao companion anyway. His circle of sisters was thin; he couldn’t just ask every one he met for an immortal bond, right?

Like back in his old world—walking up to every woman asking for a hookup? Even pros would chew you out.

Mid-chat, Zhou Hanhe rolled in with three old guys.

These were the Spirit Planter exam crew—way older than Li Chuan, real geezers, not just worn out from a fading lifespan like him.

He followed them to the exam hall.

Test was a breeze—identify spirit plants, answer stuff on spirit land, seed cultivation, and planting.

No sweat for him. He nabbed the Tier 1 Spirit Planter badge smooth as silk.

With that, he could hit up spirit plant-focused small worlds for tasks.

Small worlds varied—beast-heavy, plant-heavy, mixed, inhabited, or “other.”

Inhabited ones were big—too big for the Minshan branch to claim. Rare as hell, though.

“Other” types were a grab bag—chaotic, barren, toxic, spiritless. All junk, basically.

The Minshan branch controlled Tier 1 and 2 worlds; Tier 3s were shared with nearby powers.