Chapter 493: Chapter 493: 491 Acceptable Pair (Third update - seeking monthly ticket~)_1

After obtaining the Level 5 Treasure of the Clear Mind Sword, Lu Xuan noticed a significant improvement in his innate talent for swordsmanship. Areas that once left him drained and puzzled could now be understood effortlessly.

As a result, his proficiency in the “Peacock Sword Array” and “Blue Lotus Sword Canon” was rapidly growing. He no longer needed to be as cautious as before, and his efforts in cultivating Sword Grass were significantly more effective.

This steadily justified his title as a ‘Sword Tao genius’.

As his thoughts trailed off, he made his way into the Sword Temple Main Hall.

“Hello Brother Lu.”

“Junior Brother Lu, have you come to the Sword Hall?”

The Sword Hall disciples who greeted him were all extremely enthusiastic and seemed eager to please upon seeing Lu Xuan.

Among them, Lu Xuan’s skill in cultivating Sword Grass had become widely known in the Sword Hall.

Cultivating Sword Grass was a challenging task as the level of sword Qi enrichment needed careful balancing. Too much could break the plant, but too little would hinder its growth. Therefore, the failure rate was much higher compared to other spirit plants.

But Lu Xuan’s success rate in cultivating Sword Grass was an astonishing 100%. He even improved the variety of third-grade sword grass by creating a unique breed called the Wind-Thunder Sword Grass. This innovation made a considerable contribution to diversifying the third-grade sword grass found within the Sword Hall, thus providing the Sword Hall disciples with more options to choose from.

They’d also heard from various sources that Lu Xuan had acquired several fourth-grade sword grasses.

For sword cultivators, fourth-grade sword grass was equivalent to an innate sword instrument. Therefore, if Lu Xuan could cultivate them, he had every right to dispose of them as he wished.

These factors contributed to why the Sword Hall disciples were so friendly and enthusiastic towards Lu Xuan.

Lu Xuan kept smiling and nodded continuously, making his way effortlessly towards Shen Ye.

“Brother Shen, why did you reject my application to cultivate sword grass?”

“I’ve already applied three times!”

When he reached the entrance, he heard an intense voice.

“Junior Brother Zhong, although your swordsmanship has reached the Transformation Stage, your ability in cultivating spiritual plants still needs improvement. Given the nearly 30% failure rate when you cultivated third-grade Sword Grass before, how could I entrust you with fourth-grade Sword Grass Spirit Seeds?”

Shen Ye gently stroked the black Sword Box in front of him and spoke softly.

“But how am I to improve my skills in cultivating spiritual plants if I don’t try? Brother Shen, I’ve already mastered several corresponding fourth-grade sword techniques, I assure you I’ll succeed this time.”

Standing at the entrance, Lu Xuan hesitated for a moment before quietly entering.

The disciple arguing with Shen Ye was an acquaintance of Lu Xuan, Zhong Bai Yu, who was currently at the Foundation Establishment Late-term stage, and they had once entered the Sword Pool together.

Shen Ye noticed Lu Xuan’s figure, slightly nodded his head, then turned to look at Zhong Bai Yu and smiled helplessly.

“Junior Brother Zhong, even if I were to approve your application, given your past record in cultivating Sword Grass, I doubt Elder Uncle Gu Jiankong would grant his permission.”

“Sigh.”

Zhong Bai Yu sighed and turned away. Upon seeing Lu Xuan, he merely nodded his head without saying much.

“Junior Brother Lu, please have a seat. We haven’t seen each other for a while.”

Upon seeing Lu Xuan, Shen Ye’s gentle face bore a trace of a smile.

“Brother Shen, I spent some time in the Ten Thousand Beast Cave Blessed Land previously, which is why I rarely visited the Sword Hall. I came here today to deliver the Sword Thousand Owls I acquired earlier.”

Lu Xuan took out the Sword Thousand Owls Spirit plant and handed it over to Shen Ye.

“Oh? It has matured so smoothly?”

Shen Ye, who was known for his calm demeanor, couldn’t hide his surprise as he accepted the Sword Thousand Owls Spirit plant.

With a casual swing, the owl-shaped sword intents standing quietly at the top of Sword Thousand Owls unfolded their long, sword-like feathers like a fan, exuding a strong sword Qi.

The many owl-shaped sword intents played around the room under the control of Shen Ye, with swords’ Qi crisscrossing where they passed.

“Good, excellent quality, pure sword Qi. It’s a rare and splendid Sword Grass.”

Shen Ye, who recalled the owl-shape sword intents, couldn’t stop praising.

“Junior Brother Lu, I must admit I am impressed by your skill in spiritual plant cultivation. You were able to perfectly grow a fourth-grade Sword Grass on your first attempt. Its quality is flawless, and its excellence is only one step away from being exceptional.”

The higher the rank of the sword grass, the more difficult it is to cultivate, and the easier it is to break. It is common for Sword Hall Disciples to produce inferior sword implements when cultivating fourth-grade sword grass. It is extremely rare for someone to successfully cultivate high-grade sword grass the first time they try.

“In all things in the world, nothing can compete with sincerity. I simply used the time others spent on cultivation to cultivate sword grass,”

Lu Xuan calmly stated.

“Hahaha, that’s true. Without a heart full of sincerity, it would be difficult to cultivate such a fourth-grade sword grass.”

“What do you plan to do with this Sword Thousand Owls of yours, Junior Brother Lu?”

“If you want to keep it for yourself, it shouldn’t be much of an issue. It’s the first fourth-grade sword grass you’ve successfully cultivated.”

“To get a second or third one, you’ll need to apply to the Sword Hall. However, considering your contributions to the Sword Hall, you should still be able to get them.”

“And if you don’t want it, the Sword Hall will give you a generous reward,”

Shen Ye gently looked at the Sword Thousand Owls, speaking to Lu Xuan.

“I’ll take the reward for now.”

Lu Xuan preferred the Sword Peacock still in the cultivation phase, so he said without hesitation.

“Okay, here are four hundred sword imprints, which are your reward for cultivating the Sword Thousand Owls.”

A pile of sword imprints floated in front of Lu Xuan.

“This many… this could almost be exchanged for a fourth-grade spirit seed.”

Lu Xuan silently marveled at the generosity of the Sword Hall, but quickly understood.

Fourth-grade sword grass, being of superior value to most magic artifacts of the same rank, is the core competitiveness of the Sky Sword Sect. All sword cultivators covet it, and given its high cultivation difficulty, such a reward is indeed fair.

“By the way, Junior Brother Lu, are you interested in cultivating another fourth-grade sword grass after cultivating this Sword Thousand Owls?”

“Not long ago, the Sword Hall condensed three Sword Peacock seedlings. There are two left. You can take one.”

Shen Ye brought it up on his own accord.

“I’d be more than happy to, but don’t we need to apply to the Hall again?”

Lu Xuan asked, thinking back on the scene he had witnessed when he first entered.

“Didn’t I just apply for you?”

A playful smile appeared on Shen Ye’s face.

“…”

Damned double standards!

Lu Xuan thought about Zhong Bai Yu’s treatment just now and inwardly complained.

“However, if I’m the beneficiary of the double standards, then I guess it’s not such a bad thing.”

“Wrong, it’s more than acceptable!”

The fourth-grade sword grass spirit seed that other disciples are eager to have was voluntarily offered to him by Shen Ye, which made Lu Xuan secretly pleased.

“Thank you, Brother Shen.”

Lu Xuan laughed and expressed his gratitude to Shen Ye.

“By the way, Junior Brother Lu, a fifth-grade sword grass spirit seed is currently being nurtured in the Sword Pool. If you’re interested, you can keep an eye on it and reserve it.”

“It will take about half to a full year for it to mature.”

Shen Ye suddenly remembered something and, after scanning the surroundings with his spiritual sense, whispered to Lu Xuan.

“A fifth-grade sword grass spirit seed?”

Lu Xuan, upon hearing this, was immediately invigorated, and his desire to obtain it was overwhelming.