Clan Turmoil Chapter 5: Feeding the Scrap Pit

“Follow the path straight ahead until you see that foul-smelling ditch. Gather the weeds and throw them into the designated fire pit to burn.”
“Remember, don’t go where you shouldn’t, and don’t look at things you’re not supposed to.”
“Yes, Senior Brother,” Chu Xing bowed humbly.
After the steward closed his eyes again, Chu Xing turned and walked down the narrow path.
The path grew increasingly remote, and the scent of medicinal herbs gradually faded, replaced by a foul stench of decaying plants and fermentation.
As Chu Xing rounded the last thicket, the full view of the Herb Ditch lay before him.
Even with prior preparation, the corners of his eyes twitched involuntarily.
The ditch was piled high with discarded branches, rotten leaves, and leftover medicinal residue. In the damp environment, a faint green poisonous mist lingered overhead.
“Rotten poison,” Chu Xing immediately held his breath. He recalled the rumor about a disciple falling seriously ill and understood the danger.
No wonder nobody wanted this task.
He surveyed the area and spotted a half-person-high stone fire pit not far from the ditch’s edge.
Today’s mission was to shovel out the trash from the ditch, load it into the fire pit, and burn it.
He carefully slid down into the ditch, suppressing his discomfort, then crouched and placed his palm on a decayed leaf.
The stone bead on his chest warmed slightly.
A complex energy surged into his body, but in a blink, the bead transformed it into a pure, gentle current that slowly nourished his meridians.
“This is too inefficient...” Chu Xing frowned deeply.
A sudden memory flashed through his mind—when he stole the Dragon’s Blood Herb, the medicinal power was actively drawn by the bead into his body, an exact form of absorption!
“I’ve been feeding it with my hands, but it clearly has its own mouth!”
His eyes brightened instantly. From the muck, he picked out a relatively intact withered root and held it between his fingers.
Taking a deep breath, he focused all his intent on the stone bead, then silently commanded it toward the root in his hand.
“Suck!”
The stone bead in his dantian trembled slightly, emitting an invisible suction force from his fingertip!
“Zzzz!”
The gray, withered root rapidly shriveled before his eyes. A wave of energy far purer than before was forcibly extracted, forming a slender green thread that entered Chu Xing’s body.
This energy turned into a cool, moist breath that tenderly nourished his fragile meridian walls.
Chu Xing even felt the newly opened meridian instantly toughen under this energy’s care!
This single absorption yielded several times the benefit of his previous clumsy attempts!
“So... this is its true function.”

Chu Xing’s body trembled with excitement. Looking down at the ditch full of trash, his gaze transformed completely.
This was no mere garbage heap—it was an inexhaustible spiritual mine!
He immediately plunged into fervent absorption. Outwardly, he continued clearing the trash, but each time he bent down, he discreetly plucked the better-looking withered herbs and drew out their remaining essence.
Just as he was getting into the rhythm, two disciples in the Pill Hall uniform appeared, pushing a wheelbarrow toward the ditch.
“Hey! You down there, the newbie?” one pinched his nose and called out.
Chu Xing looked up and nodded.
The disciple wore a look that said “bad luck for you,” then dumped the steaming medicinal residue into the ditch.
An intensely complex and blistering scent of dozens of medicinal properties instantly spread!
The aroma carried strong hallucinogenic effects; just one whiff made Chu Xing’s head buzz and his vision double.
“This is a batch of failed pills from the Pill Hall, the medicinal properties haven’t dissipated yet, and the toxicity is at its worst,” the disciple sneered.
“Sister Mu ordered that you must clean this up today! Remember, don’t touch it with your bare hands, or if your meridians get burned, no one will help you! Wait until it cools down before handling it—we’re leaving now!”
After speaking, they pushed the empty wheelbarrow away quickly like fleeing.
Chu Xing stared at the steaming pile of residue and immediately understood—it was Mu Wanqing’s revenge!
This fresh batch of residue was wildly chaotic and violent in medicinal power. Ordinary labor disciples wouldn’t dare approach, let alone handle it. Normally, it would take three to five days for the toxicity to fully dissipate before cleaning. But she forced him to deal with it today, clearly setting him up!
If it were anyone else, this hot potato would have ended their work for the day.
But Chu Xing’s eyes blazed with unprecedented light as he looked at the residue.
Wild? Chaotic? Highly toxic? The stone bead would absorb it no matter what!
Suppressing his inner excitement, he waited until the two had left, then rushed to the residue pile and unhesitatingly plunged his hand in!
“Suck!”
A fierce roar echoed in his mind!
A torrent of energy far purer than before was forcibly drawn from the residue by the stone bead, flooding into his body!
His dantian’s primordial force surged at an unprecedented speed. The invisible barrier to the fifth stage of body tempering had long been shaken to the brink by this continuous onslaught.
Only one final push remained!
As dusk fell, when Chu Xing completely drained the essence from the pile, the accumulated primordial force finally found its breakthrough point!
A soft crack sounded inside his dantian, and the barrier shattered in response!
Fifth stage of body tempering achieved!
A fresh wave of strength coursed through his entire being, washing away all the fatigue of the day.
From the fourth to the fifth stage in less than a day!

At dusk, Mu Wanqing paused at the entrance to the Herb Garden and turned to ask the steward senior brother, “How is that laborer named Chu Xing today?”
The steward’s face showed a strange expression as he respectfully replied,
“Reporting to Senior Sister Mu, that boy... is a strange one. The batch of new waste materials from the Pill Hall, he actually cleaned it all up before the end of the day. And not only that, he left looking even more energetic than when he arrived.”
Mu Wanqing’s beautiful eyes flickered with disbelief. “He finished it all?”
She knew the toxicity of that batch better than anyone. No disciple below the seventh or eighth stage of body tempering would dare handle it barehanded before the medicinal properties dispersed.
“Could it be... he has some secret?” Mu Wanqing murmured, her curiosity about Chu Xing deepening.
Meanwhile, that perplexing junior brother was dust-covered and hurrying toward the Contribution Hall.
The Contribution Hall was where disciples exchanged contribution points for cultivation resources—from herbs and pills to cultivation techniques, everything was available.
Behind the counter sat an elderly man with white hair and beard, dozing with eyes half-closed.
This old man was surnamed Bai, known as Old Bai. He was a legend within the Mystic Star Pavilion, though his fame stemmed from less reputable reasons.
Rumor had it that when young, he was punished for spying on women bathing, but he defended himself, saying, “That’s not spying; that’s art imitating life.”
Others said he secretly collected countless erotic paintings and would discreetly shave off fractional points when exchanging resources for pretty female disciples, just to hear a sweet “Brother Bai.”
Chu Xing approached the counter, respectfully handing over his identity token to this “notorious” senior.
“Old Bai, I have a task to submit.”
Old Bai lifted one eyelid and glanced at Chu Xing, who was covered in mud.
“Chu Xing? You brat, besides coming monthly for your stipend, I haven’t seen you step into the Contribution Hall for nearly half a year. What’s this? Did the sun rise in the west today?”
Chu Xing scratched his head. “I feel like I’ve had a breakthrough in my cultivation recently, so I took on some work.”
“A breakthrough?” Old Bai hummed noncommittally, took the token, and placed it on a smooth jade stone on the counter. The five contribution points on the token changed to eight.
On the lowest shelf of the Contribution Hall were some miscellaneous items like healing powders and hemostatic herbs, mostly priced at five points. One level up were various basic pills, with the cheapest body tempering pill clearly marked at ten contribution points.
Chu Xing’s gaze finally settled on a jade box set apart on its own. Pointing to it, he asked,
“Old Bai, how many contribution points for that Dragon’s Blood Herb?”
Old Bai lifted his eyes and looked at him properly for the first time, slowly extending five withered fingers.
“Five hundred.”
Chu Xing sighed inwardly. As he had expected, with his current resources, he couldn’t accomplish anything.
“Thank you, Old Bai.” Chu Xing retrieved his token, respectfully bowed, and turned to leave.
Old Bai watched his retreating figure, his cloudy old eyes narrowing slightly, a trace of amusement flickering within.