Chapter 11: Withered Seeds
Chapter 11: Withered Seeds
Although the Eclipse Fruit had only yielded a fragment of the first-grade artifact, the Silver Cleaver, and he would need to gather the other pieces, Lu Chen was still quite pleased.
After all, in the cultivation world, among cultivation resources of the same grade, elixir formulas and cultivation techniques were the most valuable. Next were array formations, magical artifacts, pills, and talismans, with various cultivation materials like spirit herbs, spirit ores, and demon beast flesh being the least valuable.
For an ungraded spirit plant like the Eclipse Tree, even a fragment of a magical artifact was considered a pleasant surprise.
He gazed at the three silver-white shards floating around his body, anticipating the moment when they would merge to form the Silver Cleaver.
On this day, the usually quiet courtyard was disturbed once more.
A gentle yet slightly anxious voice called out from outside.
"Landlord Lu, are you home?"
Lu Chen immediately recognized the voice as belonging to Zhang Hong's wife.
He had only met her a few times when visiting Zhang Hong's home and remembered her as a graceful and gentle woman named Xu Wan, a cultivator at the second layer of Qi Refining.
Opening the courtyard gate, Lu Chen saw Xu Wan, her face drawn and weary.
"Sister-in-law, is something the matter? Please, come in and let's talk."
"No need, Landlord Lu. I do have a favor to ask of you, though."
Seeing Lu Chen, Xu Wan's rapid breathing slowed.
"I heard from Zhang that you once had a Black Bud Worm infestation in your spirit herb garden and spent a lot of spirit stones to get rid of it."
"Many solitary cultivators in the North District have been plagued by pests recently. I've been vigilant day and night, but I still couldn't prevent an infestation in my spirit herb garden. By the time I discovered it, the situation was already quite severe."
"I wanted to ask if you know of any solitary cultivators nearby who can get rid of the Black Bud Worm larvae and how much it would cost."
Lu Chen pondered for a moment before sharing the information he had.
"I know of three. There's Ling Yunxianzi, who specializes in flying needle artifacts, Li Xu, a sword cultivator who can turn his sword qi into silk, and Qin Ming, who is proficient in ice-based magic. Of the three, Qin Ming charges the least at seven spirit stones, and there's room for negotiation."
"Seven spirit stones..."
A conflicted look flashed in Xu Wan's eyes as she heard this, and she nervously rubbed her hands together in front of her abdomen.
Her husband, Zhang Hong, had spent most of their savings to prepare adequately, and their child's needs were a significant expense. If they spent seven spirit stones on pest control, their meals for the next while would be a concern.
"Thank you, Landlord Lu."
In the end, she decided to hire someone to get rid of the Black Bud Worm larvae. Her expression returned to normal, and she thanked Lu Chen before turning to leave.
"Wait a moment."
Lu Chen called out to Xu Wan and, when she turned around, spoke with certainty.
"Sister-in-law, I've been making rapid progress in a magic technique lately, and I'm now quite confident I can deal with the Black Bud Worm larvae. Why don't I take a look first?"
"Then, thank you, Landlord Lu."
Hearing Lu Chen's offer, a glint of surprise flashed across Xu Wan's face. She didn't expect him to help for free, but hiring a cultivator at the fourth layer of Qi Refining would undoubtedly cost less than one at the second layer.
If Lu Chen could solve the problem, they could save at least a little.
Lu Chen closed the courtyard gate and followed Xu Wan, his head lowered.
When he had heard the sounds outside and wondered if Zhang Hong's wife needed help, he had already been considering it.
After the white light had appeared in his spirit herb garden, his first priority was to avoid putting himself in danger.
This time, Zhang Hong's home was just a short distance away, and he would be dealing with Black Bud Worm larvae, which didn't seem to be very harmful.
Previously, the adult Black Bud Worm had been easily destroyed by his Metal-Reinforcing Sword Technique. Now, with his deeper cultivation, a better understanding of the sword technique, and the addition of the Silver Cleaver fragment and various talismans, he was confident he could handle the larvae.
Lu Chen thought with steady assurance.
There was also another primary reason.
From his original body's memories, he knew that he had become a Spirit Herb Master with much help from Zhang Hong. When he first rented the small spirit herb garden, Zhang Hong had lent him some spirit stones.
After taking over this body, he had also received guidance from Zhang Hong on cultivating spirit herbs, and little Zhang Xiuyuan was rather adorable. This was a good opportunity to go and see him.
"Zhang Xiuyuan!" Xu Wan scolded sternly.
"Uncle Lu, hello," the child said reluctantly, a bit fearful of his mother.
"Hello there," Lu Chen replied nonchalantly as he approached the Zhang family's spirit herb garden.
The herb garden in their courtyard was almost twice as large as his own and boasted a more diverse range of spirit plants. In addition to the Spirit Glowgrass, there were three other common varieties.
It didn't take long for Lu Chen to spot the infected Spirit Glowgrass.
On the underside of the leaves, he could see thin, black lines clinging tightly, almost as if they had fused with the plant.
Lu Chen's eyes narrowed, focusing intently on the black lines.
He closed his eyes, recalling the essence of the Metal-Reinforcing Sword Technique, and began to manipulate his spiritual energy, compressing and refining it within his acupoints.
In the blink of an eye, a hair-thin strand of golden sword energy shot forth, skimming the leaf and slicing one of the black lines in two.
After cutting through a Black Bud Worm larva, the golden sword energy retained its momentum, arcing gracefully to bisect another black line.
One by one, the black lines were divided into segments, falling to the ground and twitching a couple of times before becoming still.
"Wow! Little Uncle Lu is so awesome!"
Zhang Xiuyuan had quietly crept up beside Lu Chen, his eyes shining with admiration.
Lu Chen straightened up, his expression calm and unassuming amidst the boy's awe-struck gaze.
"These Black Bud Worm larvae are nothing to boast about."
"Brother Lu, thank you for your help. Please come inside and have a cup of hot tea."
Seeing that the Black Bud Worm problem that had plagued her was easily solved by Lu Chen, Xu Wan's face relaxed with relief, and she invited him into the house.
After sending Zhang Xiuyuan off to review his cultivation knowledge, Xu Wan retrieved five spirit stones from the inner room.
"Brother Lu, thank you so much for your help this time. Please accept these spirit stones."
"Sister-in-law, I can't accept these. Your husband has helped me so much already. How could I take your spirit stones?" Lu Chen hastily refused, waving his hands.
Zhang Hong had been kind to him, and Lu Chen knew that Xu Wan, as a single mother, had a difficult life supporting herself and her son. He couldn't bring himself to take her spirit stones.
"No, you must accept them! You've done me such a big favor. I would have had to pay more if I asked someone else. These five spirit stones are more than enough," Xu Wan insisted, her gentle exterior belying a strong-willed character.
Lu Chen couldn't refuse any longer, and an idea came to mind.
"How about this, sister-in-law. I won't take the spirit stones, you keep them for yourself. But I won't work for free either. Do you have any unknown spirit seeds that you've found in the wild? If you do, I'd be happy to take just one."
He proposed a compromise, knowing that Zhang Hong often ventured into the wilderness and might have come across unknown spirit seeds.
"Unknown spirit seeds? Yes, we do have one, but I'm not sure what type it is, and it seems to be withering," Xu Wan said after a moment's thought.
She went into the inner room and soon returned with a withered seed.
The seed resembled a small sword, its surface a dull grayish-black, indicating that it had been kept for quite some time.
"Your brother-in-law came across two of these seeds by chance a while back. He asked around among the solitary cultivators, but none of them knew what variety it was," Xu Wan explained.
"He tried planting one, but it didn't even sprout, so he gave up on it."
"As for the remaining seed, he wanted to trade it, but it wasn't valuable enough to get anything good in return, so it just ended up sitting in our house. After being left alone for so long, the seed has lost quite a bit of its vitality."
"In that case, I'll gladly take this withered spirit seed off your hands."
Lu Chen examined the slender, sword-like seed, turning it over in his hands as he spoke with a smile.
After obtaining the seed, Lu Chen didn't linger. He bid Xu Wan farewell amidst her gratitude and Zhang Xiuyuan's reluctant goodbye and left the Zhang residence.
(End of Chapter)
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