Only three seconds? He's already the Lord of All Realms, so it doesn't matter.

Outside the south gate, the dense forest was not silent.

Ye Xuan stood at the entrance, his gaze sweeping over the rows of sandalwood trees, where many figures were moving about.

"Thunder sandalwood, throughout the entire realm of immortality, is primarily used to store spiritual energy, including souls."

In fertile soil rich in spiritual energy, it will grow to maturity in three months from the date of planting, and reach a height of eight feet in four months.

Besides, although the name of this wood contains the character "thunder," it needs human guidance to ensure its growth in the face of the frequent thunderbolts that plague the back mountain.

At the same time, there are many intricacies involved in harvesting this type of wood...

Within the outer sect of the Holy Sect, planting and felling Thunder Sandalwood became the most frequent tasks undertaken by registered disciples.

Ye Xuan stepped into the forest. The soil beneath his feet was soft, and a faint smell of burning filled the air.

The sandalwood trees varied in shape; some were straight as spears, while others were twisted like dragons. Without exception, their trunks were all charred black and covered with cracks.

He concealed his presence and blended into the busy crowd in the forest.

About twenty or thirty registered disciples were scattered around. Some stood upright next to the seedlings, holding a bronze mirror in their hands, while others carefully carved marks on the tree trunks with specially made wooden saws.

"New here?"

A slightly rough voice came from behind. Ye Xuan turned his head and saw a young man with a star-shaped mark on the token at his waist.

"Just got back."

He behaved neither servilely nor arrogantly. Zhao Wu and Qian Sansheng mostly looked down on such trivial work and rarely came to the back mountain, but they knew the person in front of them.

Tang Zhao, a formal outer disciple, specializes in taking on tasks related to the Thunder Sandalwood in the back mountain. He can be seen almost every time you come to the dense forest in the back mountain.

Tang Zhao glanced at him, his gaze lingering on the token at his waist for a moment.

"Zhao Wu, right? Qian San mentioned you. Didn't that kid come back with you?"

"He's dead."

Tang Zhao paused for a moment, then shook his head. "That godforsaken place, the wasteland... never mind."

"You came here because you're short on merit points, right?"

As he spoke, he took out a wooden saw from his storage pouch and handed it to him. The saw was black, and the blade gleamed with a faint light.

"The sandalwood tree cannot be cut with ordinary sharp tools, otherwise its spiritual energy will leak out and the whole tree will be ruined."

Cut along the lines I drew, making sure the cut is smooth and without any burrs.

Tang Zhao pointed to a sandalwood tree next to him, whose trunk had been marked with three diagonal lines in charcoal.

"After sawing, just pile them up over there, and someone will come to inspect them."

Having said that, without giving Ye Xuan a chance to refuse, Tang Zhao walked to a spot not far away and began instructing another disciple on techniques.

"Don't you have to go to the Star-Picking Hall to accept a mission? ...I haven't accepted one yet."

He originally just wanted to come here for a look. Ye Xuan was a little amused and exasperated. This senior brother was far too enthusiastic and too familiar.

But since I was already here, I figured I might as well give it a try.

He walked up to the sandalwood tree, squatted down to examine it closely. Beneath the charred bark of the trunk, the bluish-purple wood grain was faintly visible, pulsating slightly like blood vessels. When he touched it lightly, his fingertips felt numb.

Following Tang Zhao's instructions, Ye Xuan aimed the wood saw at the first marked line and slowly pulled it.

The moment the saw blade cut into the bark, he clearly felt a resistance, and at the same time, he heard a faint "buzzing" sound, as if an electric current was running through him.

He steadied his wrist, focused his senses on the tree trunk, and pulled the saw at a steady speed.

The charred wood chips fell one after another, and the cut gradually revealed bluish-purple wood, from which a lot of spiritual energy escaped, which was quickly absorbed by the spiritual light flashing on the wood saw.

Half an hour later, Ye Xuan sawed off the first piece of sandalwood completely. The cut was smooth and clean, the bluish-purple wood grain was clearly visible, and there was very little spiritual energy emanating from it.

After placing the piece of wood in the designated spot, Ye Xuan looked at the other disciples who had their names displayed; most of them were complaining.

"This job is really inhuman. If you're not careful, one wrong step leads to another, and in the end you'll have to lose some money."

"Sigh, it's not only hard work, but the merit points are also few. Even veterans can't earn much in a day."

"I heard that inner disciples don't have to do these chores at all; their monthly stipend is enough for their cultivation?"

"Dream on, you'll be lucky to even become a formal disciple..."

Ye Xuan listened silently, but his feet never stopped, and he had already arrived at the next marked piece of sandalwood.

This time, he deliberately slowed down, maintaining an efficiency similar to that of the disciples around him, while subtly spreading out his perception.

Ten zhang, twenty zhang... The senses penetrated through the Thunder Sandalwood Forest, spreading deeper into the woods.

As they ventured deeper into the forest, the light gradually dimmed, the charred trees grew denser, and a chilling atmosphere seemed to permeate the air at all times.

When his senses reached a depth of fifty feet, Ye Xuan's heart stirred slightly.

There's something there.

It is neither a living thing nor a tree, but rather the fragments of a person's soul that drift between heaven and earth after death.

These spirits are extremely well hidden during the day, but at night they condense into blurry human shapes. Disciples who want to stay up all night to earn extra points are often frightened by these ghosts.

"It must be the unique natural attraction of the Thunder Sandalwood Forest that prevents the souls of those who die here from disappearing."

Wandering here can also provide some nourishment for this place.

Due to their lack of strength, most of the registered disciples can only do odd jobs. The points earned from these odd jobs are few and often insufficient to support their expenses for advancement. So, if they can't outlast others, they will end up like this.

In the end, even as a saint, he could only give his all in death...

He withdrew his senses, his expression unchanged, and continued sawing the sandalwood.

"Well done."

Tang Zhao then walked to Ye Xuan's side, glanced at the two pieces of sandalwood he had sawed off, and couldn't help but praise them.

"The incisions are very clean, with less than 10% of the spiritual energy lost. Is this your first time doing this?"

"He just has a bit of talent."

Upon hearing this, Tang Zhao suddenly burst into laughter, "Interesting, you're more interesting than these people. Keep up the good work."

Time passed quickly before Tang Zhao left, and it was already afternoon.

Ye Xuan arrived at the designated location as per the rules and released six pieces of Thunder Sandalwood from his storage bag. Even though he deliberately slowed down, he was still faster than most of the registered disciples, and his technique rivaled that of many veterans.

According to the Star-Picking Hall's mission standards, two sticks are exchanged for one point, so his six sticks are naturally worth three points.

"These six pieces of fine sandalwood are yours."

Tang Zhao handed Ye Xuan a wooden plaque from the Star-Picking Hall, but what was engraved on it was—

[Task: Two pieces of well-preserved sandalwood will earn you 1 merit point.]

Total submissions: two

"Senior brother, this number is wrong, isn't it?"

"Oh, you're new here and don't know the rules yet. I'm going to take a cut of the sandalwood you cut down."

Ye Xuan frowned slightly; so this was what was waiting for him!

Seeing that his junior brother in front of him still seemed a little confused, Tang Zhao kindly explained to him:

"This sandalwood is not so simple. Without my markings, how could you find the correct location?"

If you're not careful, the whole thing will be ruined, and you'll have to compensate the sect.

And also, you rented this saw from me, so you should take some profit, right?

……

Ye Xuan had nothing to say about the first half, but Tang Zhao's second half was obviously too much. He remembered that the saw belonged to the government, so how could he have asked to rent it from him?

But the disciples standing beside him were completely speechless and could only complain to themselves.

"Okay, I'll come again tomorrow."

"Look, there's still a lot of sandalwood over there that hasn't been marked. It shouldn't be under my senior's jurisdiction, right?"

Tang Zhao indeed scoffed at this, saying, "Of course, if you have the ability, then go ahead and do it."

"But don't blame your senior brother for not reminding you, you'll have to pay for damaging the sect's Thunder Sandalwood."

He left with a smile on his face, not at all afraid that the person in front of him could ruin his business.

Finding the right spot to make the cut is easier said than done. If it were easy, how could he earn any points?

In this area alone, Tang Zhao, if not monopolistic, is practically the dominant player!