“Brother An, what’re you doing here?”
Wang Dazhu was thrilled to see him.
Li An said, “Just buying some stuff.”
“Spring Essence Grass? Li An, you’re not trying to use that to fix your spirit root, are you?” Zhao Xianchuan glanced at the two big bundles of Spring Essence Grass on Li An’s shoulder and smirked.
A while back, Wang Dazhu had visited Spirit Plant Mountain and told them Li An had reached Qi Refining.
Zhao had been surprised but later learned that forcing Qi Refining with a damaged spirit root carried big risks.
It basically meant Li An was stuck at the First Layer of Qi Refining for life.
“Yeah, I heard this grass helps a bit with spirit roots,” Li An replied calmly, neither proud nor ashamed.
“Li An, that grass does have an effect, but it’s barely noticeable,” Mu Qingwan chimed in, trying to warn him.
Back during the entrance exam, she’d promised to help heal him if she advanced, but now she knew his injury was nearly hopeless.
Li An just sighed.
The group chatted by the market for a bit.
Four months since entering the sect, Mu Qingwan had progressed the most, reaching the peak of the Second Layer of Qi Refining, close to breaking through to the Third.
Her Mid Grade Yellow Tier Spirit Root made her cultivation speed far outpace others.
Wang Dazhu and Zhao Xianchuan had both hit the Second Layer.
They’d all started together, but now the gap between Li An and them was only growing.
Even their clothes showed the difference. Li An’s menial uniform was worn and dirty from constant labor, while Mu Qingwan and the others wore crisp, bright robes.
Li An learned they’d come to the market to buy spirit rice.
“The sect’s Spirit Beast Mountain Range had a small beast tide recently, caused by the birth of a beast with a strong bloodline…”
“The sect issued a mission to capture the overflow beasts for contribution points.”
Li An’s heart tightened.
Like humans, beast bloodlines were ranked Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow.
To cause a beast tide, this creature’s bloodline was likely a Mysterious Tier.
A Mysterious Tier beast, even growing normally, could become a Second Rank beast, rivaling human Foundation Establishment Cultivators. It even had a good shot at reaching Third Rank!
A Third Rank beast matched a human Core Formation Cultivator.
Such beasts were incredibly rare. The Clear Sun Sect’s Leader, Master Clear Sun, was only a True Core Formation Cultivator.
“By the way, Li An, you’re a spirit plant farmer, right? Got any extra spirit rice? We’re all friends; we’ll support your business…” Zhao Xianchuan asked, a hint of smugness in his eyes.
“Sorry, Senior Sister Xu Qiuhui passed by earlier and bought all my spirit rice,” Li An said, spreading his hands.
“Xu Qiuhui’s almost guaranteed to become an inner sect disciple. Buying so much spirit rice, she might be planning to lure that Mysterious Tier Beast cub to trade for a Foundation Establishment Pill…” Mu Qingwan murmured.
“Brother An, we’re heading to a small gathering. Rumor is, some inner sect disciples might show up. Wanna come?” Wang Dazhu invited him warmly.
Li An gave a wry smile. “Nah, I barely got this day off. If I don’t get back, I won’t finish my work.”
He said goodbye.
As he walked off with the Spring Essence Grass, Mu Qingwan’s eyes held a mix of emotions, and she sighed softly.
…
Leaving the market, Li An didn’t head straight back to Spirit Plant Mountain.
He visited the sect’s exchange hall, spending one spirit stone to buy two books.
Basic Herbology and Talisman Basics.
Basic Herbology covered common herbs’ properties, uses, and identification of some spirit plants.
Talisman Basics outlined beginner talisman-making techniques.
These books were common in the sect, cheap and widely owned.
In his past life, reaching Core Formation, Li An had studied alchemy, talismans, and herbology. He already knew this stuff.
Especially talismans—he’d been particularly skilled.
He bought them for his future plans.
If he suddenly showed certain talents or skills, these books would keep suspicious eyes off him.
…
Back at Spirit Plant Mountain, Li An stopped stealing spirit rice.
The pest problem was getting severe, almost out of control. Stealing more could cause trouble.
After finishing his daily rain-casting task, he sometimes studied Basic Herbology and Talisman Basics, and every night he boiled Spring Essence Grass water to drink.
Occasionally, he gathered wild herbs nearby to boil too.
Fan Jie, who stayed over at Zhang Susu’s hut every few days, knew about this and just sneered, thinking Li An was wasting his time.
…
One day, Li An hunted in a forest near the spirit fields.
His Cloud and Rain Technique had become smooth, so he’d finished his morning rain task early.
“This forest is the only place where Stink Rat Wolves live.”
Li An hid behind a large rock, running the Art of Nurturing Life and Forging Immortality. The Life Seed’s aura cloaked him, blending him with the surrounding plants.
A yellow shadow darted past.
A water arrow formed in front of Li An, shooting out with a whoosh.
A screech rang out. Ten meters away, the Stink Rat Wolf was hit, collapsing instantly. It twitched twice and went still!
Li An walked over, satisfied.
His Water Arrow Technique was now second nature, with a lethal range of 15 meters.
Thanks to the Art of Nurturing Life and Forging Immortality, his spiritual qi was thick, long-lasting, and recovered fast, letting him fire about 12 arrows in a row.
This strength could even overpower a Second Layer Qi Refining cultivator!
“The Life Seed’s first leaf is fully open, and the second leaf has a small green bud, ready to sprout…”
Li An was confident he’d reach the Second Layer of Qi Refining within a year!
Everything felt hopeful.
Carrying the Stink Rat Wolf’s body back to his hut, he sliced open its rear, removing the sticky, foul-smelling gland.
A stench hit him, making him gag. He quickly ran the Art of Nurturing Life and Forging Immortality, holding his breath, and tossed the gland into a pot.
“Crow Poison Grass kills rice borers well enough. Add camphor root and the Stink Rat Wolf’s stench to mask it, and no one will figure it out.”
He’d promised Xu Qiuhui another 100 pounds of spirit rice next month. Without solving the pest issue, forget extra rewards, he might lose out.
Having come from a cultivation clan with spirit fields in his past life, he knew a couple of pest-control tricks.
The trick was simple: boil Crow Poison Grass water. It killed bugs effectively.
To hide the recipe, he added camphor root and Stink Rat Wolf glands, muddling the mix so no one could guess the secret.
The pot’s dark, foul soup boiled, the stench spreading far.
“Li An, what the hell are you cooking?!”
Fan Jie was eating at Zhang Susu’s hut and nearly puked from the smell. He stormed over, kicked open Li An’s door, and cursed, pinching his nose.
Li An hurriedly explained, “Immortal, I found a bug-killing soup recipe in a herb book and was testing it…”
“Testing my ass! You, making soup? Shut it off now!”
Fan Jie couldn’t stand the smell.
Li An quickly doused the fire.
…
The next day, Li An mixed the boiled soup into the rainwater during his Cloud and Rain Technique.
About an hour after the rain, huge swaths of rice borers in his fields died.
And the spirit rice was unaffected!
“Does this work well?!” Fan Jie was surprised. Had Li An actually found something useful in that common herb book?
He was secretly delighted. The pest issue had been driving him crazy.
He immediately told Li An to brew another pot that night for his use.
This caught Li An off guard.
He thought of the qi-stealing array in the fields.
Fan Jie never let Li An or the others step above the mountainside…
Was Fan Jie growing something up there, hit by pests?
Li An didn’t ask, agreeing readily.
“Li An, could you brew a pot for me too?” Zhang Susu came by. Since getting on the bed with Fan Jie, her life has improved fast.
She glowed, her cheeks rosy, now wearing her old dresses instead of the menial uniform, exuding a new, mature charm.
Li An said, “Sister Susu, it might take a bit. Gathering the herbs takes time…”
“Don’t worry, I won’t use it for free. When my fields mature this month, I’ll split half the extra reward with you. Deal?”
She smiled.
The pest problem had worsened, even stumping Fan Jie. If it continued, her fields might not yield any extra.
Li An agreed happily.
Even Wang Zilin limped over, hesitating as he looked at Li An. “Brother An, I…”
“Ninety-five percent. Give me ninety-five percent of your extra reward, and I’ll brew you a pot,” Li An said.
Wang Zilin nearly lost it. Ninety-five percent of his extra income for one pot?!
Was Li An a bloodsucker?
But without fixing the pests, forget extra income—his rations would get cut.
He gritted his teeth and agreed.
…
The next few days, Spirit Plant Mountain reeked.
Fan Jie stopped staying at Zhang Susu’s—the brewing smell was too much.
…
Soon, the third batch of spirit rice was harvested.
With no pest damage, all fields had a bumper crop.
Li An came out on top. His fields’ extra reward, plus shares from Zhang Susu and Wang Zilin, brought his total extra income to 138 pounds.
Li An felt great. Reaping rewards without extra effort was the best.
On the last day of the month, he went to the market to keep his deal with Xu Qiuhui.
He’d heard the Spirit Beast Mountain Range’s beast tide was ongoing, so spirit rice would stay in demand for a while.
He bought another 20 pounds of Spring Essence Grass.
…
Time flew.
Eight months passed in a blink.
“Almost there.”
Li An’s condition kept improving. The First Layer of Qi Refining was finally mastered!
He was ready to aim for the Second Layer.
…
(Chapter End)