Xiao Fei lived in a tree hollow room, attempting to cultivate the wood-elemental cultivation technique gifted by Immortal Lord Yi Mu.
The cultivation of this technique was not overly complex. He grasped its entirety within a few days and began practicing.
He discovered that with his Hun Yuan Gong as a foundation, cultivating all five elements made practicing these single-elemental techniques remarkably easy.
After over a month of cultivation, he achieved minor success.
He then set the technique aside and continued cultivating his own Hun Yuan Gong.
The technique provided by Immortal Lord Yi Mu was not entirely suitable for him; it was merely enough to fulfill his obligations.
However, the performance of the other handyman disciples was vastly different from Xiao Fei's.
They lacked friends like Zhu Yu and had no opportunity to access high-level cultivation methods, thus cherishing this chance immensely.
The remaining seven handyman disciples, eager to impress Immortal Lord Yi Mu, cultivated almost without rest or sleep.
Even though they were slightly inferior to Xiao Fei in talent and aptitude, and their cultivation progress was a little slower, diligence compensated for their shortcomings. Through their arduous practice, their cultivation progress ultimately far surpassed Xiao Fei's.
When the one-year cultivation period concluded, and the eight of them emerged from their respective secluded cultivation rooms.
Xiao Fei shamefully realized he was at the bottom among the eight, lagging far behind the other seven.
He had initially intended to blend in, but now the gap between him and the others was too vast.
Immortal Lord Yi Mu's divine sense swept over the eight individuals. He had been smiling and nodding, but upon seeing Xiao Fei, his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
"Very good! Your cultivation progress, the seven of you, is excellent!"
Upon receiving Immortal Lord Yi Mu's praise, the seven handyman disciples became somewhat excited. They straightened their previously bowed backs, savoring this rare honor.
"The seven of you have performed well. Now, I have a task to entrust to you. If you complete it, there will be a substantial reward."
"Thank you, Immortal Lord!"
"Junior disciples will surely go through fire and water, and will not hesitate to die!"
The seven quickly expressed their loyalty. Immortal Lord Yi Mu was generous, and working for him would surely not be unrewarding.
"As for you, return to your wooden house and continue cultivating. Do not slack off!"
When Immortal Lord Yi Mu turned his gaze towards Xiao Fei, his tone had become stern.
Xiao Fei clearly felt a chilling killing intent envelop him. A powerful being at the Immortal Lord level was not easily fooled.
If he were to be perfunctory again next time, Immortal Lord Yi Mu would surely seek to end his life.
As a mere handyman disciple, he held no status within Yu Xu Palace. It was as simple and casual for an Immortal Lord to kill him as it was to kill a chicken.
Xiao Fei bowed in trepidation and returned to his room to continue cultivating.
This time, he dared not be perfunctory any longer. He diligently cultivated the technique bestowed upon him by Immortal Lord Yi Mu.
Meanwhile, Immortal Lord Yi Mu led the seven handyman disciples deeper into the tree hollow.
The trunk of this colossal ancient tree was immense. The group advanced through the winding passages of the tree hollow.
They walked for a long distance without exiting the tree hollow, finally arriving at a place resembling a large hall, where they stopped.
"Alright, it is here!"
Immortal Lord Yi Mu pointed to a green object before them, signaling for everyone to halt.
This green object was oval-shaped and placed on a wooden platform over three feet high.
Immortal Lord Yi Mu instructed the seven to stand in a circle around the green sphere.
"When you hear my command, you need only circulate the cultivation technique I taught you and channel your immortal power towards this green sphere. There must be no error."
The seven quickly nodded, indicating they would follow all arrangements.
Upon Immortal Lord Yi Mu's command, the seven dared not make any mistakes and immediately channeled their immortal power with all their might towards the green sphere.
At this moment, to perform better in front of Immortal Lord Yi Mu, they held nothing back, exerting themselves to their utmost.
The green sphere seemed like a bottomless pit, absorbing all the immortal power they channeled, yet it showed no reaction.
The seven could only continue to channel their power with all their might until their internal immortal power was depleted.
"May I ask, Immortal Lord, do we need to continue?"
"Continue! Do not stop!"
"We are about to collapse!"
"Continue, use your origin!"
Immortal Lord Yi Mu shouted loudly, his demeanor turning severe.
"Without my command, no one is to stop, or face death!
Upon completion, I shall bestow generous rewards!"
Under Immortal Lord Yi Mu's strict orders, the seven could only squeeze out their own origin to channel into the green sphere.
Everyone's origin was finite. Consuming one's origin could lead to a drop in cultivation realm, or even death.
However, facing the Immortal Lord's strict command, the seven could only obediently deplete their origin.
They hoped this would not deplete too much, perhaps the Immortal Lord would bestow some treasures as compensation.
Driven by fear and a glimmer of hope, the seven could only persist.
But as their origin was consumed, the realms of the seven individuals rapidly declined. They fell from True Immortal to Earth Immortal, feeling increasingly weak.
"I can't take it anymore!"
A handyman disciple cried out in supplication and simultaneously ceased circulating the cultivation technique within him, attempting to stop the depletion of his origin.
However, at that very moment, the cultivation technique within him reactivated automatically, completely disregarding his will. His origin continued to flow ceaselessly into the green sphere, and he was powerless to stop it.
"Ah! Ahhhhh!"
"What is happening?"
At this point, the others also realized what was happening and attempted to stop the circulation of the cultivation technique within their bodies.
Yet, they found their bodies no longer under their control. The cultivation technique within them operated autonomously, sending their origin into the green sphere.
"This cultivation technique has a problem!"
"What kind of cultivation technique did you have us cultivate?"
"Immortal Lord, spare us!"
"Please, Immortal Lord, spare our lives!"
"You old hag, may you die a terrible death!"
"..."
The seven handyman disciples realized they had been deceived. Their reactions varied: some questioned, some pleaded for mercy, and some directly cursed their maternal ancestors.
Immortal Lord Yi Mu's previously amiable face now revealed a ferocious aspect.
"Hehehehe..."
"What I had you cultivate, of course, was a top-tier cultivation technique!"
"It's just that this technique is divided into two parts, mother and child. You received only the child portion."
"I cultivate the mother portion of the technique, which allows me to control the operation of the technique within you."
"Hehehehe..."
Immortal Lord Yi Mu chuckled triumphantly as he spoke.
"Please, Immortal Lord, spare us! Junior disciples are willing to be your oxen and horses, to be driven as you please!"
Some still held out hope and tried to beg for mercy. Immortal Lord Yi Mu was in a good mood, but he had no intention of letting them go.
"You need not panic. Your deaths are also very valuable. You have made a great contribution to Yu Xu Palace, and you should be proud of this!"
As Immortal Lord Yi Mu spoke, he accelerated the circulation speed of the cultivation technique within the seven, causing vast amounts of origin to pour out and surge into the green sphere.
In an instant, the bodies of the seven handyman disciples rapidly withered and shriveled. Their origin was completely depleted, their bodies collapsed to the ground, their breaths faint.
"Spare~ me~"
One handyman disciple still harbored a sliver of hope. He weakly extended a hand, expending his last ounce of strength to grasp at something, perhaps his fleeting life.
However, the ground of the hall twisted and shifted, resembling a great maw that swallowed these corpses, which had not yet completely breathed their last.
Soon, the ground returned to its original state, as if nothing had happened.
In unseen depths below, countless skeletons were piled up. Some had been decomposed to only small fragments, while others appeared to have died not long ago.