Lady Di's five people went down into the gaping pit left by the demon tree. Inside, they found piles of white bones, most likely victims the man-faced tree had dragged off. Their souls and flesh had all been devoured.
They carefully gathered the bones and sifted through them, finding storage gear and a few dull, broken artifacts. They packed everything into storage pendants, filling five of them completely. There were also storage rings and bracelets they couldn't open for now, so they stuffed them into a cloth bag, which bulged full by the end.
After digging ten meters deeper and confirming nothing else was hidden, they reburied the bones and carried their harvest back into the formation.
Naturally, they knew their place. Two of them carried the haul over to Jian Mao, while the other three reported to Lady Di and Bei Ze.
Jian Mao hadn't expected such a windfall. A quick sweep through the pendants showed decent loot, so he signaled for his two junior sisters to take a look.
After sweeping it with her divine sense, Jian Dan immediately understood what was inside. She told the two disciples,"Invite Lady Di and Bei Ze Zhēnzūn over. We'll divide the spoils together."
"Yes!"
The pair left cheerfully to deliver the message.
During the gap, Jian Dan turned to her fellow sect members. "Senior Brother, let's give them one-third of this haul. What I want most is that bag of storage gear we can't open yet, but I'm sure they'll eye it too."
"It's fine. Let them pick what they want first. If they know their place, we can keep working with them to reach the inner circle. We don't have enough people, and we'll need them to run errands anyway."
Jian Mao waved his hand casually. Some profit had to be handed out, otherwise why would the others follow? Besides, they'd already taken everything from Mao Wu. It was only right to release some of it.
Lady Di and Bei Ze arrived soon, both of them delighted. They didn't know how much they'd get, but at least there'd be something.
"Lady Di, this is our first joint harvest. Pick one-third for yourselves."
"Many thanks, Big Brother Mao!" She was genuinely surprised they even got to choose.
"The stuff in the pendants is visible, but the storage rings and bracelets are a gamble. You might hit treasure, or you might get nothing. It's up to you." Jian Jing explained with a smile.
Lady Di and Bei Ze exchanged a look, then chose two storage pendants and only five of the rings from the bag.
"Big Brother Mao, we'll take these."
Seeing that they'd taken even less than a third, Jian Mao's tone softened considerably.
"We need to stay here until the rescued cultivators wake up. Arrange people to patrol, in case that demon tree returns. We'll send one of ours daily to patrol with yours."
"Understood."
Lady Di and Bei Ze took their share back to their corner of the formation and set three people on patrol.
"Bei Ze Zhēnzūn, Big Brother Mao's generous and fair."
"Judging by their conduct, they must be high-ranking disciples from one of the top sects in their continent." Bei Ze had watched them these past few days and was now certain of it.
"I agree. So what next?"
"We stick with them. We're already part of their team, and as long as we do our part, we won't miss out on gains."
Meanwhile, the Heavenly Sword Sect disciples had sorted through their own haul and were now discussing the condition of the five rescued cultivators.
"Xiao Yong and Xiao Rong are doing better, but neither has woken up yet."
"Restoring vitality isn't easy."
Jian Xu frowned.
Jian Dan went herself to check the five, then pulled out two bathing tubs from her storage bracelet. She poured high-grade spirit spring water into them, then uncorked a white jade vial. With a wave of her hand, she told Hu San to put Xiao Yong and Xiao Rong inside, letting the spring water nourish them.
"This method works, but it's slow. If they wake, recovery should be quicker."
"It's the only thing I could think of. We can't circulate Xianyuan energy here, ours is basically frozen, and theirs has been drained. Forcing energy back in is tough, so letting the spring seep in through the skin is the best bet."
"That's true. When a cultivator's on the brink of death, the body instinctively draws in what helps it."
Wu Siyuan confirmed it was working, sensing the abundant energy in the spring slowly flowing into their bodies.
"It'll waste a lot of spirit spring water."
"No problem. Once they recover, they can pay it back."
Jian Dan chuckled.
Three days later, Xiao Yong's eyes cracked open first, bloodshot and hazy. Hu San, who'd been watching, immediately called out,
"Boss, this male cultivator's awake!"
Everyone except Kuang Dao, who was on patrol, gathered. Jian Mao and Jian Dan went over. Hu San slipped back to the edge of the formation and sat down cross-legged.
"Xiao Yong, are you alright?"
He rolled his eyes slowly, realizing he'd been saved. He tried to sit up, clutching the tub's rim with pale hands. When he looked up and saw Jian Mao and Jian Dan, gratitude flashed in his eyes. He managed to cup his hands weakly. "Xiao Yong thanks both of you for saving me. My junior sister—"
"Don't worry. Xiao Rong's over there. She hasn't woken yet, but her complexion's much better."
Jian Dan soothed him quickly.
He turned his head with difficulty. Seeing his dao partner resting in the spring water with some color in her cheeks, his heart finally calmed.
"We've got limited resources and can't open your storage rings. For now, we've only been able to treat you and Xiao Rong. Your three other companions have taken pills, but they haven't woken yet."
Jian Mao spoke plainly. Better to be upfront than to leave misunderstandings.
Xiao Yong knew at once what he was soaking in: high-grade spirit spring water. He could feel the rich energy seeping into his skin, replenishing what he'd lost. He thought himself lucky. To be saved by members of the Heavenly Sword Sect, and with Jian Lu among them, was fortune itself. Otherwise, he'd have died under that monstrous tree.
"I can't thank you enough for this kindness."
"Don't try to get out yet. Stay in the spring another day and absorb as much as you can." Jian Mao stopped him from climbing out.
"In that case, I'll shamelessly remain."
"Xiao Yong, can you tell us what happened after you entered this place?" Jian Dan asked.
"I can." He exhaled softly and began recounting their ordeal.
Their group of ten had entered the spatial rift under Sect Master Xiao Zi's orders, hoping to find missing Dao Sect cultivators. But passing through, they were battered by a chaotic stone storm. Two were knocked off-course and lost in the turbulence. Eight landed in the bone fields, only to be pelted by flaming stone rain. One more companion died in the scramble.
Before they could even grasp the situation, three of ten were gone. The seven left banded tightly together, becoming far more cautious. At the time, they hadn't encountered any scavenging squads on the outskirts, so they headed deeper, hoping to find other cultivators and regroup. But luck wasn't on their side. In a canyon, they ran straight into an attack from demon mosquitoes.