The next morning, Lin Mu left the Sleepscape upon waking up and went to look for the supreme elder. He reckoned the best person to ask about something like this might be the man currently in charge.
"Oh? Brother Lin Mu is ready to finally go out?" Hua Langya questioned.
For the past couple of days, Lin Mu had not appeared in the sect and had stayed in the courtyard assigned to him. To others, it was just Lin Mu resting and thus they didn't mind it at all.
"Ah yes. I've had enough of rest and think it's time for a little outing." Lin Mu answered.
"That's good. Hopefully, it was enough to for you to recover. But if Brother Lin Mu says so, it is alright." Hua Langya spoke. "Though where do you intend to go?" he asked.
"That's what I am here for. I wanted to ask you if you know of any spirit plants or herb that are sentient." Lin Mu questioned.
Hearing this, Hua Langya raised his brows.
"Hmm… a sentient spirit herb is very rare and hard to find." The Supreme elder said while rubbing his beard.
"Does the Noon Grass sect have any?" Lin Mu asked, just in case.
"Ahaha, if we had any, I would have gladly offered you them. But unfortunately we don't. We did have one a long time ago, but it was used in the refinement of a pill and no longer exists.
After all, the most common reason for obtaining such a spirit herb would be to refine a pill. Rearing them on our own is not something the Noon Grass sect has the capability to do. We aren't specialized in pill refinement, thus we don't grow any spirit herbs or fruits that are of high quality.
Rather, we just go and harvest them from the forest since we live next to it. That's one of the benefits of being so close to the Great Southern forest." Hua Langya replied.
"That's understanding." Lin Mu said with a nod.
"Though, do you have any clue as to where one can be found? I mean, there should be some in the forest, right?" Lin Mu questioned.
The supreme elder furrowed his brows before pulling out a communication jade slip. He held onto it and closed his eyes for a few seconds before opening them again.
"I've called Elder Pigu to help you. He handles the spirit herb farms that we have in our sect and is also the head of the Pill pavilion. He is more knowledgeable in this regard than me, since I'm mostly in seclusion or handling internal matters of the sect." Hua Langya answered.
"Very well." Lin Mu replied and waited for the Elder to arrive.
He had already met Elder Pigu before during the banquet and was thus acquainted with the man.
Five minutes passed as Elder Pigu finally arrived at the hall.
"Greetings Supreme Elder, Brother Lin Mu." Elder Pigu spoke.
Elder Pigu was a portly looking man and had a rather round face. He had no beard, but had a long mustache. He was middle aged and had light black hair with some Grey mixed in. Over all he looked like a neighborhood uncle who one would see watering their plants.
"Greetings," The Supreme elder And Lin Mu replied in greeting.
"So, Supreme elder says Brother Lin Mu needs my help with something?" Elder Pigu questioned.
"Indeed, I need to find a sentient spirit herb." Lin Mu replied.
"That's… a bit too wide of a term. What exactly do you need it for?" Elder Pigu questioned.
"Hmm… it's to experiment on something. I need it for some techniques as well." Lin Mu answered.
"I see… well, there is indeed no shortage of such spirit herbs in the Great Southern Forest, but acquiring them is a difficult task. Brother Lin Mu must already know that sentient spirit herbs are usually herbs that have lived a long time and have gained cultivation bases rivaling that of at least Nascent soul realm creatures.
But most will have strength equaling that of Dao Shell realm creatures at the very least. The areas they live in are not really good to enter either and are very dangerous. Death is looming in every corner and harsh environments are plenty." Elder Pigu explained.
"I understand that. I don't mind the danger, I am confident in being able to take care of myself. I just need a location." Lin Mu stated.
"Very well. Then I do have three options for you." Elder Pigu said, surprising Lin Mu and Hua Langya both.
"There are actually three sentient spirit herbs we know of?" Hua Langya asked.
"Yes, supreme elder." Elder Pigu replied.
"Then why has no mission been issued for them yet?" The supreme elder asked, as this was the normal course of action that the sect followed.
If something good was found, even if there was danger, the elders would formulate a plant that would allow them to acquire the said item as safely as possible. If the disciples were not enough, the elders themselves would join in on the mission.
This was something that was done even now when the supreme elder was suffering from Qi deviation and the disciples were sent out to search for rare herbs that the sect didn't have. They had already scoured the depths of the southern forest for some of them and were thus experienced.
"There are several reasons for that Supreme elder. All three herbs are located beyond the second border of the forest, and two of them are located in forbidden zones. Only one of them is somewhat accessible and even that is guarded by a beast.
We only got the information about them because the disciples went to look for spirit herbs that would heal you." Elder Pigu answered.
"I see… this will be a tough venture then." Hua Langya muttered.
"It doesn't matter. I'll try to see if I can get one. Can you tell me their locations exactly and what those herbs are?" Lin Mu asked.
