Chapter 158 - 143: Ungraded

Chapter 158: Chapter 143: Ungraded

"That’s good." Li Changsheng clapped him on the shoulder and smiled. "They’re all on loan from the sect and very experienced. Watch them closely when you’re planting Spirit Medicines."

Xu Li nodded repeatedly and sighed, "Watching them made me realize how stupid I was to just use my life-force spiritual qi to sprout the spirit seeds directly."

"There are so many steps before sprouting the seeds. For instance, you can mix a solution to soften the outer shell so it breaks open more easily. You can also nourish it with life-force spiritual qi and a small amount of water from a Spiritual Spring. The resulting spirit sapling will be far more vigorous..."

Xu Li rambled on, pouring out everything he had learned from observing Yan Shaoyuan and Hao Yuegui.

This left Li Changsheng stunned.

After hearing all that, he suddenly felt that his own method of directly using his life-force spiritual qi had indeed been too crude...

’But stupid...’

’Was I really stupid? No, just inexperienced.’

Li Changsheng’s expression hardened. "What are you still standing here for? Get back to planting Spirit Medicines," he snapped. "Now that you know the gap, hurry up and close it."

Xu Li didn’t know why Li Changsheng’s mood had changed so suddenly. He gave an awkward laugh and quickly trotted back to the Spirit Field to sprout and plant the Spirit Medicines.

Li Changsheng chuckled to himself. After watching for a moment, he swung himself onto Xiaohua’s back and headed toward the edge of the mountaintop.

As he passed Dong Xing’s family home, he saw smoke rising from their chimney and heard the occasional sound of laughter. He smiled and urged Xiaohua down the mountain.

Soon, the man and the pig arrived at the foot of the mountain.

Just as Li Changsheng put Xiaohua away and prepared to cross the water to the other side,

a figure in a Profound Robe descended from the sky, slowly landing in front of him.

Li Changsheng knew who it was and didn’t dare to be disrespectful. He cupped his fists and said, "Changsheng greets you, Senior Brother."

Seeing this, a slight smile appeared on the newcomer’s face. He cupped his fists in return and said, "Bai Shui greets Steward Li. Are you heading outside the lake area?"

"Yes, Senior Brother," Li Changsheng nodded.

Bai Shui hesitated. "Technically, it’s not my place to tell Steward Li where he can and can’t go. However, for your own safety, it would be best not to go out unless it’s absolutely necessary."

Fearing Li Changsheng might misunderstand, he added, "The Spiritual Land has Patrol Guards, but we can’t account for every possibility..."

Li Changsheng cupped his fists. "Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother, but I have some business to attend to..."

He understood Bai Shui’s good intentions, but he had his own confidence. With Xiaohai’s current cultivation level, an Early-Demon Realm creature—unless it was some particularly powerful variant—could not harm him.

’Besides, I have a vague suspicion.’

’If it’s true, then I really can’t imagine anyone in the Ring Mountain Spiritual Land who could hurt me.’

Bai Shui looked at his earnest expression and suddenly said, "In that case, would you like me to accompany you?"

Hearing this, Li Changsheng was taken aback for a moment, then quickly waved his hands. "How could I possibly trouble you, Senior Brother? I can go by myself."

He smiled. "I’m just going to see Steward Ma. I’ll be back shortly."

Seeing this, Bai Shui felt a tinge of regret but smiled and nodded, watching him leave.

Watching his retreating figure, Bai Shui murmured softly, "To think a golden carp would emerge from a muddy pond. How extraordinary."

"What golden carp?"

A Cultivator dressed in the same dark Profound Robe slowly descended from the sky.

"A very tasty golden carp!"

Bai Shui joked before leaping a few times and vaulting back to the mountaintop.

"Doesn’t Ten Thousand Serpent Lake only have snake beasts?"

The newcomer muttered to himself, tapped his feet lightly, and flitted across the treetops. He landed on the shore of Ten Thousand Serpent Lake, looked at the emerald water, enveloped his body in a thick layer of Spiritual Power, and plunged in.

On the mountaintop, Bai Shui, who was watching this scene, felt the corner of his mouth twitch.

Then, a soft murmur was heard.

"Simpleton..."

.

After leaving Ten Thousand Serpent Lake, Li Changsheng summoned Xiaohua, sat on its back, and ambled slowly toward the center of the Spiritual Land.

He glanced around.

Half a month had passed, and the aftermath of the battle had vanished.

Busy Spirit Farmers were everywhere.

The damaged Spirit Fields were once again a sea of green, but unfortunately, with their Spiritual Qi depleted, they were only planted with Mortal Rice.

As he traveled, Xiaohua’s massive size was eye-catching, drawing stares from all around.

Li Changsheng was used to it, his expression not changing in the slightest under their gazes.

He held a blank jade slip in his hand. Riding Xiaohua, he observed the Spirit Fields one by one, recording the Spirit Medicines planted in each of them onto the slip.

He hadn’t forgotten what was needed to cultivate the Spirit Medicines.

’After I’m done recording, I’ll give this directly to Steward Ma.’

’Of course, in the initial stage, I can’t just reveal the exact Spirit Medicines required for cultivation. Instead, I’ll record all the Spirit Medicines under the pretext of an experiment.’

’After half a year or a year, I can say I’ve researched a few things and then provide a jade slip with a mixture of many different Spirit Medicines.’

’I’m sure that once they see it’s effective, they won’t refuse to supply the Spirit Medicines.’

’But at first, I definitely can’t follow the cultivation method from my Golden Finger completely. It would be bad if the results were too good.’

’The effectiveness of this cultivation method will have to be revealed bit by bit as my own cultivation level increases, until I feel there’s no longer a threat.’

And just as he was recording the Spirit Plants and collecting information...

「Ring Mountain Spiritual Land, Central Hall.」

A middle-aged man with a beard and a stern face sat in the main seat, sipping his tea.

He was the Patrol Guard Steward, Luo Fang.

Across from him, Steward Feng, dressed in a green robe, calmly toyed with a gleaming gold orb.

Below them, the Spirit Field Stewards sat in a row, led by Jin Fang. On the other side were the five captains of the Patrol Guard, all at the Vein Condensation Realm.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the hall was heavy and silent.

The only sounds were the scraping of the gleaming gold orb as it turned and Luo Fang sipping his tea.

After a moment, Luo Fang slowly set down his teacup and smiled. "Steward Feng, do you agree to my Patrol Guards’ request?"

Feng Bai Mei’s expression was unchanged. She said flatly, "This is not my decision to make. You can go ask Elder Qing."

"They’re just a few Ungraded Spirit Fields. There’s no need to trouble the esteemed Elder for such a small matter."

Luo Fang chuckled, cupping his fists with a smile. "Steward Feng, please be accommodating. Once the Patrol Guard has its own Spirit Fields, they will surely be more diligent in their patrols of the Spiritual Land in the future."

"So you’re saying they aren’t diligent now?" Feng Bai Mei glanced at him and said coolly.

At her words, the five Patrol Guard captains below all looked grim.

Luo Fang’s expression didn’t change. He smiled. "Diligent, of course they’re diligent." After a pause, he continued, "But with the precedent set by the Demon Hunting Corps, I believe that giving them some Spirit Fields will at least ensure they don’t flee before a battle even starts..."

Before the scowling Feng Bai Mei could speak, Luo Fang sent a voice transmission directly to her ear: "Do you want to know why Tong Zuo wasn’t present to defend the Spiritual Land, and where he is now?"

Feng Bai Mei’s eyes narrowed slightly. She turned her head to look at Luo Fang. "Where is he?"

Luo Fang stroked his beard and smiled. "And the Spirit Fields?"

"I agree."

Feng Bai Mei didn’t hesitate in the slightest, her gaze fixed on him. "Where is he!"

Hearing this, Jin Fang and the other stewards below all revealed ugly expressions.

Although the Ungraded Spirit Fields were managed by the Miscellaneous Peaks to recruit Loose Cultivators, there were plenty of loopholes to exploit.

For example, Spirit Fields closer to the center contained more Spiritual Qi, while those farther away had less. Across a large expanse of Ungraded Spirit Fields, the difference was worth far more than just one or two Spirit Stones.

Moreover, Feng Bai Mei had agreed to *give* them away, not *sell* them!

The Patrol Guard had nearly three hundred members, requiring close to a hundred and fifty acres of Spirit Fields. Who was going to cover that deficit?

Feng Bai Mei could probably cover it for a few years by emptying her own coffers, but would she?

Obviously, this deficit would ultimately fall to the Spirit Field Hall, which was equivalent to diluting their own benefits.

With the Patrol Guard present, the stewards were furious but couldn’t say much. The looks they cast at Feng Bai Mei turned much colder.

Luo Fang said, "I haven’t found him yet..."

He quickly added, "But I have some clues, and I’ve already sent people to look for him."

"I’ll be waiting for your news."

Feng Bai Mei’s furrowed brow relaxed. She then stood up and left the hall, still toying with the gleaming gold orb.

Luo Fang drained his tea in one gulp, stood up, and shot a half-smiling, half-sneering glance at the Spirit Field Stewards before leaving with his Patrol Guard captains.

"Damn it!"

Jin Fang slammed his hand down hard on the wooden table, his face contorted with rage.

Ke Jing and Steward Ma’s expressions were grim for only a moment before they returned to normal.

The two of them were long used to Feng Bai Mei’s arbitrary way of making decisions. Their status was inferior, their cultivation was inferior—what could they do?

When Jin Fang heard no words of agreement for a long time, he turned his head. Seeing the two of them calmly sipping their tea, he let out a disdainful snort and strode away.

Not long after he left, Ke Jing suddenly spoke up. "Senior Brother Ma, I’ve seen you go to the Ten Thousand Snake Lake Island several times. Is something the matter?"

"Hm?"

Steward Ma looked puzzled. "Something the matter?" He then chuckled. "I was just going to see what a Tier Two Spirit Field looks like and visit an old friend while I was at it."

With that, he stood up, nodded to Ke Jing, and left the hall.

’Old friend?’ Ke Jing’s eyes flickered.

Just then, a voice came from outside the door.

"Senior Brother Ma, your junior brother has come to trouble you this time. You can’t refuse me..."

This was followed by the sound of Steward Ma’s hearty laughter.

"HAHAHA."

"Junior Brother, what are you saying? How could I..."

The voices gradually faded into the distance.

Ke Jing looked toward the entrance. After a moment of contemplation, a look of sudden realization dawned on his face.