Lima murid baru yang terpilih untuk merancang rencana pembangunan menjadi tim pemimpin untuk proyek ini. Setelah rencana rampung, mereka membahas cetak biru terperinci dengan seluruh murid baru lainnya.
Rencananya cukup sederhana: mereka akan memagari halaman luas di tanah datar yang paling dekat dengan aula kultivasi. Di dalamnya, mereka akan membagi area tersebut menjadi dua puluh dua halaman kecil. Setiap halaman kecil akan berisi enam kamar dan satu bak air dalam, dengan ukuran tiap kamar sekitar dua belas meter persegi. Satu kamar untuk satu orang sudah cukup untuk menampung 132 orang.
Mengenai bak air dalam di setiap halaman, mereka telah sepakat: enam orang yang tinggal di sana akan bergantian menimba air bersama. Bagaimanapun, ini adalah gunung, dan menggali sumur akan sangat sulit. Bibi Liu juga menyarankan agar mereka menimba air setiap hari, katanya itu bisa menjadi bentuk olahraga fisik. Lagipula, ada kolam air kecil tepat di samping gunung, jadi mengambil air tidak akan terlalu melelahkan.
Setelah rencana keseluruhan ditetapkan, saatnya untuk mempraktikkannya. Untuk membangun apa pun, mereka membutuhkan bahan. Tim beranggotakan lima orang itu belajar dari Hu Liang cara menghitung jumlah bahan yang dibutuhkan. Kelima orang itu cerdas, dan tak lama kemudian, mereka memahami prosesnya. Mereka tidak mencoba menghitung dengan presisi sempurna; mereka hanya butuh perkiraan kasar untuk memberi semua orang tujuan yang jelas. Penyesuaian bisa dilakukan selama pembangunan.
Setelah tugas mengumpulkan bahan bangunan dibagikan, mereka segera bekerja. Murid-murid baru itu terdiri dari berbagai usia, meski sebagian besar adalah dewasa muda dan remaja—tulang punggung tenaga kerja. Selain itu, Aula Urusan Lain-lain telah memberi mereka masing-masing kantong penyimpanan khusus untuk membawa tanah dan batu, sehingga proses pengumpulan bahan berjalan cukup lancar. Murid yang kuat berinisiatif membantu yang lemah secara fisik. Yang muda mungkin kurang tenaga, tapi mereka penuh energi dan bisa bolak-balik lebih sering. Murid yang lebih tua dan lemah menangani komunikasi dan pencatatan. Singkatnya, semua orang melakukan apa yang mereka bisa. Tidak ada satu pun yang berniat bermalas-malasan.
Liu Yunan diam-diam mengikuti mereka sepanjang waktu di bawah teknik penyamaran. Melihat mereka, dia merasa sangat terkesan. Murid-murid baru yang dipilih melalui Jalur Penanyaan Hati benar-benar memiliki karakter yang luar biasa. Keadaan mereka berbeda dengan Liu Yunan dan yang lainnya. Dia dan Saudara Xiao telah tumbuh bersama, berbagi kesulitan selama lebih dari satu dekade. Namun, orang-orang ini baru mengenal satu sama lain selama dua atau tiga hari.
Sementara murid-murid baru sibuk hingga kelelahan, anggota sekte yang lebih tua juga tidak tinggal diam. Setiap malam, Jiang Youfu menyiapkan makan malam lezat untuk murid baru, lengkap dengan warna, aroma, dan rasa yang menggugah selera. Dia mengemas makanan ke dalam beberapa baskom besar dan mengirimkannya ke lokasi pembangunan menggunakan keranjang sayur terbang. Liu Shengsheng juga ikut serta. Masternya memasak, sementara dia bertugas membagikan makanan.
Setiap kali ini terjadi, murid-murid baru yang kelelahan setelah bekerja seharian akan membawa kotak makan siang mereka yang sudah dicuci bersih, mengisinya dengan makanan, lalu dengan gembira membawanya ke samping untuk makan. Pada saat yang sama, memiliki lebih dari seratus mulut tambahan berarti ladang roh adalah tempat pertama yang merasakan tekanan. Selama tiga tahun terakhir, hasil ladang telah meningkat pesat dibandingkan dengan segelintir butir padi roh saat mereka baru mulai. Namun, panen mereka tidak akan sanggup memenuhi permintaan jika dimakan dengan bebas. Untuk menjaga benih, mereka terus mengonsumsi nasi biasa untuk makan malam setiap hari. Nasi roh hanya disiapkan sesekali saat ada perayaan besar.
Namun sekarang, pendatang baru telah tiba, dan mereka harus memastikan para pendatang baru itu mendapatkan makanan terbaik. Karena itu, beberapa hari terakhir, Kakek Lin mengertakkan gigi dan mengambil cadangan dari ladang roh, setuju membiarkan Jiang Youfu mencampur nasi roh dengan nasi biasa untuk makan malam murid baru. Meskipun para tetua merasa kehilangan, mereka sepakat bahwa nasi roh ini tidak boleh dihemat. Murid baru baru saja tiba; bagaimanapun caranya, mereka harus memberikan makanan yang enak.
Akibatnya, anggota ladang roh bekerja lebih keras setiap hari dan membuka beberapa petak tanah lagi. Untuk meningkatkan panen, berbagai aula yang bertanggung jawab atas empat seni kultivasi juga tidak bisa diam. Kakek Lin membawa Lin Dayou dan yang lainnya ke Aula Empat Seni setiap hari, mendesak mereka memproduksi lebih banyak formasi, alat, dan talisman yang bermanfaat bagi pertanian. Dia juga mencari tahu apakah mereka telah mengembangkan sesuatu yang baru untuk membantu kultivasi.
Dia bahkan tidak melewatkan ruang alkimia. Dia masuk, menepuk bahu Sun Yigao, dan berkata, "Nak Sun, pil ini bukan hanya untuk dimakan manusia. Coba pikirkan, bisakah kau membuat sesuatu yang juga bisa dimakan oleh rumput?" Sun Yigao merenung, lalu mencari di buku-buku, dan mulai menulis beberapa rumus pil sederhana untuk dipelajari. Ketika Liao Pantu mendengarnya, dia bergegas ke ruang alkimia. Awalnya dia ingin melarang Sun Yigao mendengarkan omong kosong orang tua itu. Namun, saat melihat muridnya mempresentasikan penelitian terbarunya dengan serius, lalu membuat eksperimen dengan pil setengah jadi, Liao Pantu menelan kata-katanya. Setelah itu, guru dan murid itu mengurung diri di ruang alkimia dan menolak keluar. Bahkan saat giliran mereka mengajar murid baru di aula kultivasi, Liu Yunan harus pergi ke ruang alkimia, menyeret mereka keluar, dan mengawal mereka sendiri.
Selain nasi roh, pengeluaran terbesar kedua adalah daging binatang roh. Tidak ada yang tahu apa yang dikatakan Kakek Lin kepada Little Luan, tapi Little Luan, yang biasanya sangat pelit, sangat dermawan soal makanan murid baru. Ini membuat Jiang Chengtian sangat terkejut. Biasanya saat dia pergi ke kebun binatang untuk meminta daging, dia harus berdebat selama setengah hari. Dia bahkan sempat berpikir untuk memanfaatkan suasana hati Elder Xiaoluan yang tidak seperti biasanya untuk meminta ekstra, tetapi jelas, Elder Xiaoluan telah menghitung jumlah yang dibutuhkan untuk setiap makan malam dengan presisi yang menyakitkan. Tidak ada satu potong pun yang tersisa. Rencana kecil Jiang Chengtian tentu saja gagal.
Aula Keuangan juga tidak pernah diam. Sekte Lingxian selalu menjaga perdagangan dengan dunia fana dan dunia kultivasi. Terlebih lagi, dengan bertambahnya jumlah murid, pengeluaran mereka akan terus meningkat. Oleh karena itu, sambil menstabilkan saluran perdagangan yang ada, Qin Jianghe terus mempelajari cara untuk memperluas bisnis mereka. Memikirkan hal itu, masalah yang mereka diskusikan sebelumnya—meminta keluarga kekaisaran menghubungi negara lain—tentu membutuhkan waktu, tetapi keluarga kekaisaran seharusnya sudah mengirimkan tanggapan sekarang.
Mereka yang kebetulan tidak memiliki pekerjaan mendesak, sebagian besar segera ditarik oleh ladang roh atau Aula Urusan Lain-lain untuk bekerja. Bahkan Fang Tuantuan, yang biasanya paling santai, dibawa untuk membantu bertani. Untuk sementara waktu, seluruh Sekte Lingxian tidak bisa menemukan satu orang pun yang menganggur.
Sebagai master sekte, Lin Xiao akhirnya ingat, setelah keluar dari pertapaan selama beberapa hari, bahwa dia masih memiliki urusan yang belum selesai sebelum dia masuk pertapaan. Dia mengunci diri di sebuah ruangan kecil di Aula Penempaan Artefak dan tidak keluar selama berhari-hari. Bahkan Lin Yun, yang menghabiskan setiap hari di Aula Penempaan Artefak, tidak tahu apa yang dia lakukan. Namun, meskipun dia sendiri tidak pernah muncul, makan malam harian dari Jiang Youfu dikirimkan kepadanya tanpa gagal.
The five new disciples chosen to discuss and devise the plan became the leading team for this construction project.
Once they had finalized their plans, they went over the detailed blueprints with all the other new disciples.
The plan was actually quite simple: they would enclose a large courtyard on the flat ground closest to the cultivation hall.
Inside, they would divide it into twenty-two smaller courtyards. Each small courtyard would contain six rooms and one deep water basin, with each room measuring roughly twelve square meters.
One room per person would be enough to accommodate all 132 people.
As for the deep water basin in each courtyard, they had already discussed the arrangement with everyone: the six people living in each courtyard would take turns drawing water together.
After all, this was a mountain, and digging a well would be extremely difficult.
Elder Hu had also suggested that they draw water every day, saying that it would serve as a form of physical exercise.
Besides, there was a small pool of water right beside the mountain, so fetching water would not be particularly exhausting.
With the overall plan settled, it was time to put it into practice.
To build anything, they first needed materials.
The five-person team learned from Hu Liang how to calculate the quantities of materials they would need. All five of them were clever, and before long, they understood the process.
They were not trying to calculate everything with perfect precision, after all. They only needed a rough estimate to give everyone a clear goal and get things moving.
Any finer adjustments could be made during construction.
Once the task of gathering construction materials had been assigned to each new disciple, they immediately got to work.
The new disciples ranged from young to old, though most were young adults and teenagers—the core of the workforce.
In addition, the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall had given each of them a storage pouch specifically for carrying mud and stones, so the process of gathering materials went fairly smoothly.
The strong and sturdy disciples took the initiative to help those who were physically weaker.
The younger ones lacked strength, but they were full of energy and could make more trips back and forth.
The older and frailer disciples handled more of the communication and record-keeping.
In short, everyone was doing whatever they could. Not a single person had any intention of slacking off or taking advantage of the situation.
Liu Yunan had been quietly following them the entire time under the concealment technique. Watching them, he felt deeply impressed.
The new disciples selected by the Path of Inquiry truly had impeccable character.
Their circumstances were, after all, different from those of Liu Yunan and the others. He and Brother Xiao had grown up together, sharing hardships and experiences for more than a decade.
But these people had only known one another for two or three days.
While the new disciples were busy enough to be practically running themselves ragged, the older members of the sect were not idle either.
Every evening, Jiang Youfu prepared a delicious dinner for the new disciples, complete with enticing colors, aromas, and flavors. He packed the food into several large basins and delivered it to the construction site in the flying vegetable basket.
Liu Shengsheng went along as well.
Her master did the cooking, while she was responsible for distributing the food to everyone.
Whenever this happened, the new disciples, exhausted after a full day’s work, would bring over their thoroughly washed lunch boxes, fill them with food, and then happily carry them off to the side to eat.
At the same time, having more than a hundred additional mouths to feed meant that the spiritual fields were the first place to feel the strain.
Over the past three years, the fields’ output had increased tremendously compared with the handful of spiritual rice grains they had started with. But even so, their harvest could not withstand the demands of eating it freely.
To preserve seeds, they had continued to eat ordinary rice for dinner every day.
Spiritual rice was only prepared occasionally, when everyone happened to be present or when there was some great celebration.
But now that new people had arrived, they had to make sure those newcomers were given the best food they could provide.
Thus, in recent days, Old Master Lin had gritted his teeth and dipped into the spiritual fields’ reserves, agreeing to let Jiang Youfu mix spiritual rice with ordinary rice when preparing dinner for the new disciples.
Although the elders felt the loss keenly, they unanimously agreed that this small amount of spiritual rice could not be spared.
The new disciples had just arrived, after all. No matter what, they had to do their best to give them something good to eat.
As a result, the members of the spiritual fields worked even harder every day, and they opened up several more plots of land.
To increase the harvest, the various halls responsible for the four cultivation arts could not remain idle either.
Old Master Lin took Lin Dayou and the others to the Four Arts Halls every day, urging them to produce more formations, tools, and talismans that could benefit farming. He also took the opportunity to see whether they had developed anything new that might help with cultivation.
He did not even spare the alchemy room.
He wandered into the alchemy room, patted Sun Yigao on the shoulder, and said, “Sun boy, these pills aren’t just for people to eat. Put some thought into it and see if you can make something that grass can eat too, eh?”
Sun Yigao pondered this. Then he turned around, carefully searched through the books, and began writing down a few simple pill formulas to study.
When Liao Pantu heard about it, he hurried to the alchemy room.
At first, he had intended to tell Sun Yigao not to listen to that old man’s nonsense. But when he saw his disciple presenting his recent research with complete seriousness, then producing a bottle of freshly refined half-finished pills and conducting an experiment for him, Liao Pantu swallowed the words he had been about to say.
After that, master and disciple buried themselves in the alchemy room together and refused to come out.
Even when it was their turn to teach the new disciples at the cultivation hall, Liu Yunan had to go to the alchemy room that day, drag them out, and escort them there himself.
Apart from spiritual rice, the second greatest expense was spiritual beast meat.
No one knew what Old Master Lin had said to Little Luan, but Little Luan, who was usually so stingy, was remarkably generous when it came to the new disciples’ meals.
This left Jiang Chengtian extremely surprised. Whenever he went to the beast garden for meat, he usually had to spend half a day arguing for it.
He had even thought about taking advantage of Elder Xiaoluan’s uncharacteristically easygoing mood and asking for a little extra.
But clearly, Elder Xiaoluan had calculated the amount needed for each dinner with painstaking precision. Not a single extra piece was available.
Jiang Chengtian’s little scheme naturally came to nothing.
The Finance Hall had never been idle either.
The Celestial Ridge Sect had always maintained trade with both the mortal world and the cultivation world.
Moreover, with the recent increase in the number of disciples, their expenses would only continue to grow. Therefore, while stabilizing their existing trade channels, Qin Jianghe had also been constantly studying ways to expand their business.
Come to think of it, the matter they had discussed before—having the imperial family contact other countries—would naturally take time, but the imperial family should have sent back a response by now.
Those few people who happened to have no immediate work to do were, for the most part, promptly seized by the spiritual fields or the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall and put to work.
Even Fang Tuantuan, who was usually the most carefree of them all, was carried off to help with the farming.
For a while, the entire Celestial Ridge Sect could not find a single idle person.
As the sect master, Lin Xiao finally remembered, after emerging from seclusion for several days, that he still had unfinished business from before he had entered seclusion.
He locked himself in a small room in the Artifact Refinement Hall and did not come out for many days. Even Lin Yun, who spent every day in the Artifact Refinement Hall, had no idea what he was doing.
Still, although he himself never appeared, Jiang Youfu’s daily dinner was delivered to him without fail.
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