The herb apprentice worked faster than her. After finishing, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and approached Nan Gong Huan.

  "I should thank you. If it were before, I would’ve been scolded by Elder Shan Yi," the herb apprentice said, watching Nan Gong Huan’s actions in amazement. He noticed that as soon as she casually scattered the seeds, the soil automatically wrapped around them and moved them to the correct positions.

  The herb apprentice asked in surprise, "Are you an earth elemental mage?"

  "Sort of," Nan Gong Huan replied, scattering seeds with a leisurely demeanor, as if she were living a retirement life.

  The herb apprentice pondered for a moment, then couldn’t help but ask, "Who do you think sabotaged the herb field? It might’ve been targeting you."

  From the state of the field, it was clear that someone had tampered with it. Fortunately, these fields weren’t growing rare magical herbs, or the elders would’ve been furious.

  Nan Gong Huan lazily replied, "Probably some self-proclaimed clever little mice."

  "Uh... Are you going to catch the mice? Do you need my help?" the herb apprentice asked.

  "No need, thank you," Nan Gong Huan smiled at the herb apprentice, then pulled out a rather casual-looking scarecrow and planted it in the field.

  The scarecrow had its arms outstretched, draped with a torn piece of white cloth. Two black tassels hung from its waist, swaying in the wind.

  Yan Ji and Xue Ji emerged from the black tassels, each perched on one of the scarecrow’s arms. Invisibly, the scarecrow’s white cloth fluttered, resembling a vengeful ghost.

  The herb apprentice couldn’t help but shrink his neck. "Looking at it suddenly at night, it’s quite scary. Wait, even during the day, it’s terrifying. Won’t this scarecrow just scare people away?"

  Suddenly, he felt a chill in the air. The herb apprentice rubbed his arms and glanced at the bright sun in the sky, wondering if the temperature had suddenly dropped.

  "When mice see a delicious feast, how could they bear to run away?" Nan Gong Huan said with satisfaction, looking at the scarecrow. She then released her spiritual energy to soothe the Dream Spiral Grass seeds.

  If it were anyone else, the Dream Spiral Grass seeds might struggle to sprout under the influence of Yan Ji and Xue Ji’s ghostly aura. But with her spiritual energy, this wasn’t a problem at all.

  Next, Nan Gong Huan walked around the field, occasionally crouching down and fiddling with something on the ground.

  The herb apprentice didn’t understand what she was doing and scratched his head before walking away.

  After setting everything up, Nan Gong Huan clapped her hands and smiled with satisfaction.

  "You two stay here and keep watch for a few days. If anything happens, report to me immediately," Nan Gong Huan instructed Yan Ji and Xue Ji.

  "Yes, Master!"

  Nan Gong Huan packed up her things and left leisurely.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Behind a tree not far from the herb field, two heads peeked out.

  Lu Sui’an stared at Nan Gong Huan’s retreating figure, then glanced at the scarecrow she had planted in the field, scoffing. "Who would be scared by a lousy scarecrow?"

  "She took on a half-month task. She’ll probably be too anxious to sleep these days. Let’s wait until the last few days to destroy all her hard work!" Nan Gong Qian’er said smugly.

  They would wear down Nan Gong Huan’s spirit these days, and when she was sleep-deprived and exhausted, they would strike!

  At that moment, a cold breeze blew by, making both of them sneeze.

  "Let’s go, let’s go. Don’t get caught," Lu Sui’an muttered. Seeing that no one was around, the two quickly slipped away.

  According to their agreement from the previous day, Nan Gong Huan and Jiang Huairou took on a task together and arrived at the Mountain Guardian Pavilion.

  There were four Mountain Guardian Pavilions in the academy, each located in the district of one of the four major departments. Beneath them operated the Mountain Guardian Formation, which covered the entire academy.

  Earning credits at the Mountain Guardian Pavilion was the easiest method. All one had to do was transmit spiritual energy into the guardian crystals to complete the task. Credits were then awarded based on the amount of energy accumulated.

  This was also a simple and effective way to maintain the Mountain Guardian Formation.

  The Mountain Guardian Pavilion resembled an ancient seven-story pagoda, with a base spanning a hundred meters, grand and imposing. However, only the first floor was open to students.

  On the first floor, two hundred guardian crystals were fixed to the ground according to the formation’s nodes. At the moment, over eighty students were there, each standing in front of a crystal, releasing their energy.

  "Hey, do you know Dong Yan Cuo? Is he on leave? I haven’t seen him these past two days," a strange voice came.

  Nan Gong Huan glanced to the side and saw a sneaky-looking young man approaching.

  She remembered him—the one who had fainted during the dormitory assignment, Dong Yan Cuo’s roommate, Xie Zhishang.

  "Yes, he’s on leave for some personal matters," Nan Gong Huan replied.

  "Alright, my precious ancient text is still in his hands. I’m just worried he’ll run off, and I’ll never get it back," Xie Zhishang pouted, suddenly regretting giving his treasure to Dong Yan Cuo. That guy hadn’t even put it to use before running off. What a waste!

  "Ancient text?" Nan Gong Huan raised an eyebrow. "What ancient text? When I see him, I’ll help you get it back."

  Xie Zhishang quickly waved his hands and forced a laugh. "No, no, no, I was just kidding. I’ll go earn some credits now. Let’s chat another time!"

  He slipped away like a greased weasel, finding a corner crystal and began transmitting energy.

  "Let’s pick these crystals over here," Jiang Huairou pointed to two empty crystals in another corner.

  Nan Gong Huan had no objections, and the two each went to a guardian crystal and began transmitting energy.

  The feeling was somewhat like pointing a water hose at a lake and spraying water, yet the water level never rose.

  Curious about the formation, Nan Gong Huan focused her spiritual energy in her eyes and looked at the ground. She saw that the spiritual energy underground was intertwined, with the two hundred crystal bases connected to two hundred nodes.

  When energy was input, it flowed into the nodes and then filled the Mountain Guardian Formation.

  Her vision was filled with a golden glow, and the hidden Mountain Guardian Formation... was so vast it seemed endless!

  Suddenly, Nan Gong Huan noticed something unusual. A few of the guardian crystals weren’t connected to the nodes but instead extended in a strange direction, all converging toward the same spot.

  Was someone stealing energy from the guardian crystals?

  This thought flashed through Nan Gong Huan’s mind. Normally, as Elder Ling had taught her, guardian crystals were only useful when connected to the formation.

  Coincidentally, the guardian crystal she was holding wasn’t connected to the Mountain Guardian Formation. With nothing better to do, she decided to see where it was leading.

  Nan Gong Huan closed her eyes and carefully sensed with her spiritual energy. Her consciousness followed the energy, moving further away, passing through two mountains, and arriving at the Summoning Department.

  The Summoning Department? Nan Gong Huan frowned, and her consciousness continued forward.

  It had to be said that the academy’s territory was too vast. After moving for nearly a quarter of an hour, Nan Gong Huan finally saw where the crystal was connected.

  In her vision, a sinister crimson formation appeared.

  It was like a crack leading from hell to the human world, with countless ugly evil spirits struggling on the formation. Every time they were about to crawl out, they were immediately thrown back by the formation’s power!