Chapter 1978 - Master Bian

At the edge of the spiritual fields, Master Bian began much as Liu Wuxie had. He selected a stalk and stripped several grains into his palm, examining them one by one. He raised some to his nose and crushed the rest to inspect their interiors. Every grain was plump, golden, and seemingly free of disease.

The Chai Clan members watched with anxious eyes. Years of paying experts to investigate had consumed their wealth without buying them a single answer.

A month earlier, they had learned that a renowned expert in cultivating immortal rice was visiting Rainbow Soaring City. Over the years, he had resolved crop problems for countless clans. However, a reputation like his came at a considerable price.

The Chai Clan had sold its last shop to bring Master Bian here.

Master Bian tucked the grains into his pocket, then crouched and pulled up another stalk with a clump of spiritual soil clinging to its roots. He rubbed the soil between his hands and smelled it before taking out a bronze mirror for a closer look. Each movement carried the precision of long practice, giving substance to his reputation as an expert.

"At last, our clan has a chance!" Chai Shan said, anticipation brightening his face as he watched.

This man seemed unlike the experts who had come before. Those supposed masters had cloaked their explanations in mystery and talked the clan into purchasing their remedies. Yet every harvest had brought the same blackened rice. Once the Chai Clan realized it had fallen prey to fraud, it had become wary of seeking further help.

As the examination continued, Master Bian uprooted more than a dozen stalks. The sight hurt the clan members. They could not afford to waste even a single grain of immortal rice.

After about fifteen minutes, Master Bian finally rose and put away the bronze mirror with a grave expression.

"Have you discovered the cause, Master Bian?" the Grand Elder asked. His cultivation at the Great Golden Immortal Realm did nothing to prevent him from addressing the man with an ingratiating smile.

"I've examined the crops repeatedly, and at last, I know what ails your immortal rice," Master Bian announced, turning to the four clan members with confidence. Liu Wuxie earned no acknowledgment. Master Bian had taken him for an ordinary disciple tasked with watering the fields.

"Please, Master Bian. Tell us what you discovered," Chai Qian urged, his eyes brightening with hope.

Liu Wuxie shook his head despite himself. This was the patriarch of a third-tier clan, reduced to hanging on another man's words.

"An unknown species of insect has infested your spiritual fields. That's why the immortal rice blackens at harvest. These insects live among the roots, too small to be seen with the naked eye. The toxin they release passes up through the stalks and enters the grain," Master Bian explained, raising the uprooted stalks for all four men to examine.

"The evidence is here, if you look carefully," Master Bian said. With care, he split the roots open, revealing thin streams of black liquid.

The faces of all four Chai Clan members changed.

"So that's the cause! An infestation by unknown insects!" Chai Hu and Chai Shan exclaimed, exchanging a glance. Now that they had identified the problem, the answer seemed straightforward. They could save the clan by killing these insects.

Only Chai Qian frowned. They had inspected the roots countless times and had often seen black liquid seep from them, though never anything quite this dark. Still, immortal rice grew in black soil, so such discoloration had always seemed normal.

He voiced none of those doubts. For now, he wanted to hear Master Bian out.

"Can you still save the crops, Master Bian?" Chai Shan asked, grabbing him by his arm.

A single glance from Master Bian made Chai Shan withdraw his hand.

"There is still a way to save them. It won't be simple, though," Master Bian said with solemn emphasis, deliberately leaving them waiting.

"Then please tell us what we need to do. Don't leave us hanging, Master Bian. Save our immortal rice, and the clan will reward you handsomely," Chai Shan urged. The youngest and weakest of the four, he was the most suitable person to make such an appeal.

Doubt continued to trouble Chai Qian. If insects truly infested the fields, how had they escaped his divine sense?

"Only a special medicine can eradicate these insects. Anything ordinary would be useless," Master Bian said with a troubled look.

A laugh escaped Liu Wuxie before he could contain it. Everyone turned toward him, including Master Bian.

"What do you find amusing, Young Master Liu?" Chai Qian asked.

"It's nothing. Don't let me interrupt," Liu Wuxie said with a wave of his hand. For a brief moment, his amusement had got the better of him.

Master Bian dismissed him with a glance and turned away again. In his eyes, Liu Wuxie was merely an ignorant boy.

Unease settled over Chai Qian, the Grand Elder, and the others. They had already paid for more remedies than they could count, and every one had failed.

"Where can we obtain this medicine, Master Bian? Tell us. If it saves the immortal rice, you'll have our clan's deepest gratitude," Chai Shan said, resolve hardening his features. What alternative remained to them?

"I still have half a bottle from treating another clan's immortal rice. It won't come close to covering all your spiritual fields, though. I'll have to gather ingredients and prepare more, which will take time," Master Bian said, retrieving a half-empty porcelain bottle from his interspatial ring.

Anxiety tightened its grip on Chai Qian. The harvest was only a few days away, and by the time Master Bian gathered the necessary ingredients, the rice might already have turned black.

"Can you prepare the remedy before the harvest? We need a definite answer, Master Bian," the Grand Elder said. He could see that the man was exploiting their desperation to drive up his price.

"Preparing the medicine poses no difficulty. If you give me enough immortal stones, I can purchase the ingredients at once. But you know the spiritual herb pavilions. The highest bidder always receives priority," Master Bian replied, feigning helplessness as he emphasized each obstacle.

Everything came down to money. If they wanted Master Bian to obtain the ingredients before the harvest, they would have to place an enormous sum of immortal stones in his hands.

Troubled glances passed between Chai Qian and the others. No one understood the clan's depleted finances better than they did. Raising such a sum would require selling yet another asset.

They had already sold every shop. Only the ancestral estate remained.

"Could we try the half bottle on a small plot first, Master Bian? Let us see how the crops respond," Chai Qian said, staying calm. The clan had survived ten years of hardship; it could endure one more. Something about Master Bian’s explanation seemed amiss, though he could not yet identify what it was.

Another failed harvest would wound the clan, but risking everything without first testing the medicine would be worse. If the treatment worked, they could apply it across all their spiritual fields the following year, even if they had to sell their ancestral estate to do so.

"If you won't trust me, we have nothing more to discuss. Goodbye," Master Bian said, anger flashing over his face. He swept his sleeves and turned toward the exit.

The four clan members looked at one another, stunned by the sudden reversal.

"Please don't leave, Master Bian. The patriarch isn't doubting your medicine. We simply don't have enough immortal stones to spare. If the treatment works, we'll make sure you receive a generous reward next year," Chai Shan pleaded, rushing forward to bar his way.

"I apologize if I've offended you, Master Bian," Chai Qian said, quickly tempering his words. For the clan's survival, he could only swallow his indignation.

"Five hundred thousand immortal stones. Pay that, and the half bottle is yours," Master Bian said.

An ordinary cultivator could have paid that price without difficulty. The Chai Clan, however, had nothing. It survived on the resources its disciples brought home from missions, barely keeping itself afloat.

"This Azure Firmament Pearl is worth five million immortal stones. Accept it as a deposit in exchange for the medicine we require. While you prepare the rest, we can test this half bottle. Will that arrangement do?" Chai Qian asked. He stared at the medicine before reluctantly retrieving the pearl from his interspatial ring. The unwillingness on his face was impossible to miss.

"Patriarch, you can't give him that!" the three elders protested.

The Azure Firmament Pearl was not among the rarest treasures, but its value to Chai Qian went far beyond immortal stones. His wife had given it to him as a token of her love, making it priceless in his eyes.

"That's enough," Chai Qian said, cutting them off. He would give his life for the Chai Clan. An Azure Firmament Pearl could hardly demand a greater sacrifice.

The pearl brought a gleam to Master Bian's eyes and a faint smile to his lips. At night, an Azure Firmament Pearl shone with wondrous light, revealing mountains, seas, and other landscapes within its depths. It did nothing to aid cultivation, but many cultivators prized such treasures for their beauty.

"Very well. I suppose that will suffice," Master Bian said, feigning reluctance. He passed the bottle to Chai Shan and took the Azure Firmament Pearl from Chai Qian.

Without delay, Chai Shan hurried to the edge of the spiritual fields and prepared to pour the medicine.

"Go ahead, if destroying these spiritual fields is what you want," Liu Wuxie said, no longer willing to remain silent. Once that medicine seeped into the soil, it would ruin the fields and destroy any chance of recovering the overdue tribute.

He was not intervening out of compassion. Once he recovered the debt, the Chai Clan could perish the following day for all he cared.

Chai Shan's hand froze in midair. Another moment, and he would have poured out the medicine.

"What are you saying, Young Master Liu?" Chai Qian asked. He had surrendered even his Azure Firmament Pearl to save the clan. Why would Liu Wuxie stand in their way now?

"My meaning is clear. That medicine won't cure your spiritual fields. It will only worsen the damage. Pour it into the soil, and the Chai Clan will never grow immortal rice here again," Liu Wuxie said indifferently.

"You little brat! How dare you slander my potion!" Master Bian roared, striking at Liu Wuxie with his palm. The strike carried the full power of a Golden Immortal. If it landed, Liu Wuxie would have no chance of survival.