After introducing themselves, Yin Xue led Pei Ze into the small building.
To Pei Ze's surprise, the building, which looked to be no more than 150 square meters from the outside, was a world of its own within.
The corridor they had just traversed—over a hundred meters long—and the roughly five-mu garden before him both indicated that the building had been integrated with some kind of Space Magic.
"This is the area you'll be tending to."
After leading Pei Ze once around the perimeter of the herb garden, Yin Xue stopped where they began and turned to face him.
"There are thirty-six species of plants in this garden. They all have vastly different characteristics, so each one requires unique methods of care and watering. The caretaker must be thoroughly familiar with the growth habits and maintenance procedures for every single one."
"Pei Ze, as the one who posted this task on behalf of the owner, I need to test you before I can decide if you're capable of accepting it."
Pei Ze had already been informed when he signed up for the task that he would need to pass a test, so he wasn't surprised and readily agreed.
"Then please describe the growth habits and care requirements for each of these plants," Yin Xue said, gesturing toward the garden.
Pei Ze gave a calm nod and stepped up to a vine covered in barbs, its tips heavy with dark red fruit. He observed it for a moment before speaking slowly, "This is Red Sweet Fruit. It loves sunlight and must be watered with boiling water once every three days. It matures in three months. To harvest, you must use a flame to sever the stem, then store the fruit in a silver box. It's commonly used to create the Blood Boiling Potion."
With that, Pei Ze took a few more steps and stopped before another plant, this one shrouded in black cloth.
The plant resembled a sunflower, only it was a ghostly gray-white. The dense lines at the center of the flower head faintly formed the image of a human face, as if it were opening its mouth to wail at you.
"This is the Human-faced Sunflower. It prefers warm environments, but its location must be shielded from sunlight with black cloth. Every seven days, it requires five hundred milliliters of a thirty-percent-concentration Spirit Storage Grass extract. It matures in one hundred days. The scent of its sap has a powerful hallucinogenic effect, so when harvesting, you must either take a sobering potion beforehand or wear a Magic Item that provides resistance to hallucinations. Incidentally, this plant is often used to create Shrieking Potions."
"This is the Sand Snake Poison Vine..."
"This is the Jiuwei Grass..."
Pei Ze paused before a Jiuwei Grass, his eyes narrowing as he examined it closely.
The plant looked identical to the other Jiuwei Grass next to it, but after a moment's observation, he noticed something different.
"...This is a Mandrake. It likes to bury itself in the soil and disguise its leaves to match the surrounding flora, a method of evading predators. If caught, it emits a piercing cry that hypnotizes all nearby creatures, allowing it to escape. Therefore, it's best to plug your ears or take an anti-sleep potion before trying to catch one. Of course, there is an even simpler method..."
Seemingly realizing it had been discovered, the 'Jiuwei Grass' began to tremble violently. A moment later, a creature shot out of the soil. It was shaped like a turnip, but with a tiny face and short, stubby limbs. It immediately scurried off into the distance.
Unfortunately for it, it didn't get far before Pei Ze, who had been ready, snatched it by the leafy tuft on its head and hoisted it into the air.
The moment its feet left the ground, the Mandrake opened its mouth wide, ready to let out a shriek.
But before it could, Pei Ze cast a Dizziness Technique, striking the Mandrake and stifling its cry before it could even get out.
The Mandrake's little face scrunched up, and its body went limp.
Pei Ze shoved it back into its hole, stomped on the dirt a few times to pack it in, and then calmly continued his explanations of the other plants.
Beneath the warm sun, the young man strolled among the bizarre flora, calmly explaining the traits of each plant. He recalled all sorts of knowledge with effortless ease, radiating an aura of scholarly brilliance.
Beside him, Yin Xue's eyes sparkled with astonishment.
She had tested quite a few students who wanted this task over the past few days, including some Second-level Wizard Apprentices.
Yet none of them had demonstrated such an intimate knowledge of the various rare plants as Pei Ze.
'Initially, she'd only expected him to know twenty or so of the plants. He could have learned the rest while tending to the garden.'
'After all, finding a first-year student so well-versed in rare plants wasn't easy. If she hadn't been willing to lower her standards, she'd never have found anyone.'
'But now, it was clear she had underestimated Pei Ze.'
'For a first-year, to have this level of knowledge about rare plants was nothing short of scholarly!'
'To think there was someone so capable among this year's new students!'
In that moment, Yin Xue found herself greatly admiring her knowledgeable junior.
When Pei Ze finished describing the last plant, Yin Xue clapped softly and said with a beaming smile, "Junior, you're even more outstanding than I imagined."
With a light flick of her wrist, an oval seed materialized in her fair palm. She then turned her hand over, letting the seed drop slowly to the ground.
"Now, all you have to do is cast Plant Spirit Light to make this seed sprout. Do that, and you've passed the test."
'Impressed by the depth of Pei Ze's knowledge, Yin Xue secretly decided that even if he failed a few times, she would still pass him as long as he could successfully cast Plant Spirit Light in the end.'
But what happened next made her eyes widen slightly.
Pei Ze pointed his index finger at the seed on the ground. As he uttered strange syllables, a point of white light, radiating a soft, warm glow, condensed from thin air at his fingertip. It drifted down like a raindrop and landed on the seed.
SIZZLE!
The instant the point of light sank into it, the seed split open. A green shoot burst forth, twisting and winding its way upward, growing taller and larger at a speed visible to the naked eye.
In the blink of an eye, a sapling of interwoven vines stood before them, its branches tipped with white buds that slowly began to blossom.
"Complete mastery!"
Yin Xue was taken aback. She never imagined that her junior was not only incredibly knowledgeable, but also so proficient with magic.
'It was rare to see a first-year who had practiced a spell to the point of complete mastery.'
'Yin Xue grew even more curious. Just who was this junior?'
"That was an excellent spell," Yin Xue said, her face breaking into a smile. "Junior, I'll be counting on you to take care of this place for a while."
"Yes, senior," Pei Ze replied with a faint smile.
'With the fifty contribution points from this task, I won't have to worry about Spirit Storage Grass Leaves or spell models for a while.'
"Here is the key for the herb garden."
Yin Xue handed him a vibrant green leaf that shone like a Gemstone.
"The courtyard outside the garden is rigged with Magic Traps. You can only get in and out safely if you're holding the key or if someone guides you."
"Also, other parts of the property have Magic Traps as well. There are many areas that even I can't enter freely, so it's best if you stay in this section. Don't go wandering off. If anything comes up, just let me know."
Pei Ze nodded, accepted the key, and carefully placed it in his pocket before asking, "Senior, when do I start?"
Yin Xue smiled. "If you don't have anything else to do, you can start today."
"I'm free right now," Pei Ze said without a moment's hesitation.
'I'm in dire need of money for spell models right now. Of course, the sooner I start, the sooner I get paid.'
Yin Xue nodded and led Pei Ze toward a nearby wooden cabin.
"This is the storage shed for tools and potions. You can find everything you need for daily plant care in here."
With Yin Xue's guidance, Pei Ze quickly familiarized himself with the garden's care routine and then did a full round of watering himself.
It was worth noting that while the garden had a large number of plants, they didn't actually require daily watering.
Many of the plants only needed to be watered once every three to five days. With a staggered schedule, the task wasn't very demanding.
The task was far more demanding in terms of knowledge than physical labor.
After all, any single plant in the garden was worth over a thousand contribution points. If one were to be harmed due to a caretaker's ignorance, the losses would be immense.
This was precisely why the garden's owner offered such a high reward to recruit a Wizard Apprentice with the necessary level of expertise.
'So, knowledge really is money,' Pei Ze thought to himself as he watered the plants.