Chapter 131: Yin Fire
Chapter 131: Yin Fire
After tasting quite a few spirit fruits, Lu Chen, accompanied by the round-faced female cultivator, entered her spirit field.
Due to the presence of an array veiling the field, the spirit plants growing within weren't very clear to see.
The round-faced cultivator led Lu Chen to a fiery-red spirit plant that stood as tall as a person. It had palm-sized fiery-red leaves, and among its branches hung dozens upon hundreds of fiery-red spirit fruits.
The fruits were thick at the bottom and tapered towards the top. The surface of the fruits had flame-like patterns, making them look like little flames dangling amidst the foliage.
However, both the fiery-red leaves and the flame-like spirit fruits were in a poor state. The branches looked limp, and the fruits seemed shriveled and undernourished.
"This is the second-grade Blazing Flame Fruit. For some reason, its growth condition is particularly bad, and I can't seem to pinpoint the issue. So, I posted a task at the Administrative Hall, hoping to find a fellow disciple who could solve this problem."
The round-faced cultivator pointed at the ailing Blazing Flame Fruit as she explained to Lu Chen.
"Senior Chen, I shall begin my examination now. Please forgive me if I inadvertently offend the Blazing Flame Fruit in any way," Lu Chen said.
"Go ahead, Junior Lu. Don't hold back and treat this Blazing Flame Fruit. Minor issues are nothing to worry about. As long as you can cure it, some damage is acceptable," Senior Chen said with a smile, her tone relaxed.
Seeing her smile, Lu Chen's nervousness vanished instantly. He walked up to the Blazing Flame Fruit, pinched one of the palm-sized fiery-red leaves, and examined it carefully.
He had recently crammed a lot of knowledge about spirit plants and beasts, including the various issues that could arise during their growth.
Now, he was no longer the solitary cultivator who only knew how to tend to his own plants. He had gained a certain level of understanding about common spirit plants and beasts.
"It doesn't seem to be infested with pests," Lu Chen observed.
The front and back of the fiery-red leaves showed no signs of intrusion by any strange insects.
Lu Chen slowly infused his spiritual sense into the Blazing Flame Fruit plant, carefully wandering through its branches and leaves, but he still found nothing amiss.
"Have you discovered anything, Junior Lu?" The round-faced cultivator asked eagerly when she saw Lu Chen open his eyes.
"No, all the branches and leaves of the Blazing Flame Fruit seem normal," Lu Chen replied.
"There's no pest infestation, and the growth environment has sufficient spiritual energy. It's strange why there's a problem with its growth," Lu Chen muttered to himself.
"Indeed, I've been diligently taking care of it. I've been casting fire-attributed spells on it every day so that it can absorb enough fire-attributed spiritual energy. But I don't know why its condition is getting worse," Senior Chen added from the side.
"In that case, it must be an issue with the spirit plant itself," Lu Chen said.
"Senior Chen, have you been cultivating this Blazing Flame Fruit since it was small, or did you transplant it from somewhere else recently?" Lu Chen asked out of curiosity.
"I found it in a secret realm not long ago. Because I love all kinds of spirit fruits, I transplanted this Blazing Flame Fruit into my spirit field," Senior Chen explained.
"Is there a problem with that? During the transplantation process, I was very careful. I used a special artifact to bring it back to the sect, ensuring minimal loss of its spiritual energy," the pretty female cultivator explained to Lu Chen.
"Senior Chen, may I pull out the roots of the Blazing Flame Fruit to check if there's a problem with them?"
"If you pull out the roots, how confident are you, Junior Lu Chen, in treating this Blazing Flame Fruit?"
The female cultivator asked solemnly, her expression grave. If left to continue in its current state, the Blazing Flame Fruit might wither and die soon. With that in mind, the idea of pulling out its roots didn't seem so unacceptable.
"At least seventy percent," Lu Chen replied confidently.
His request to examine the roots was merely a pretext. His primary goal was to complete the act of 'planting' and thereby gain control over the detailed status of the Blazing Flame Fruit.
"Alright then, go ahead, Junior Lu Chen. Show us your skills."
Seeing Lu Chen's confidence, the round-faced cultivator nodded in agreement, indicating that he could proceed as he saw fit.
Lu Chen nodded and used the Earth-Drawing Art. The spiritual soil surrounding the Blazing Flame Fruit's roots instantly loosened.
He easily pulled out the entire root system and gently shook off the soil.
The dark red roots were now visible to both of them.
Lu Chen reached out and touched the surface of the roots. A slight sense of coolness emanated from the fiery red roots, which was somewhat different from the information he had gleaned from the jade book.
"Senior Chen, come here and touch the roots of the Blazing Flame Fruit," Lu Chen called out to her softly.
"Hmm? Why is it so cool? I recall the records mentioning a slight burning sensation on the surface of the Blazing Flame Fruit's roots," the round-faced cultivator exclaimed in surprise.
Due to the long-term nourishment of fire-attributed spells, the roots of the Blazing Flame Fruit were supposed to have a mild burning sensation. However, the sensation they felt from touching the roots of this particular fruit was entirely different.
"I think I've found the problem," Lu Chen said casually, as he pretended to bury the Blazing Flame Fruit back into the spiritual soil. He focused his mind on the spirit plant, and suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind.
[Blazing Flame Fruit, Second-Grade Spirit Plant. The spirit fruits contain abundant spiritual energy. Consuming them can slightly increase a cultivator's spiritual power, and they can also be used as ingredients for refining certain spiritual wines.]
[During cultivation, fire-attributed spells must be cast to stimulate the spirit plant and accelerate its growth.]
[Due to growing in a special environment and devouring a large amount of Yin Fire, the Blazing Flame Fruit has mutated. Ordinary fire-attributed spells will not provide nourishment, and it requires stimulation from Yin Fire-type strange fire.]
"So that's it," Lu Chen marveled inwardly.
The Blazing Flame Fruit before him appeared similar to an ordinary one, but because it had grown in a Yin Fire environment and been influenced by it for a long time, it had mutated to absorb only special flames. Ordinary fire had little positive effect on its growth.
"Junior Lu Chen, why are you burying the roots of the Blazing Flame Fruit back into the soil? Won't you examine it further?"
The round-faced cultivator asked, unable to contain her curiosity any longer.
"Senior Chen, it's fine. I've already figured out the probable cause," Lu Chen replied as he used the Earth-Drawing Art to wrap the roots with spiritual soil once more. He smiled at the round-faced cultivator and said, "If I'm not mistaken, Senior Chen, when you found this Blazing Flame Fruit, it was growing in a Yin Fire environment, wasn't it?"
"Yes, that's right."
A hint of surprise flashed across the round-faced cultivator's face. She hadn't expected Lu Chen to deduce the fruit's previous growth environment so directly.
(End of Chapter)
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