https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-181-High-Cultivation-But-Lacking-Elsewhere/12544017/
Chapter 180 - Spirit Plant Mutation
Chapter 180 - Spirit Plant Mutation
For Lu Chen, physical tempering was but an appetizer, the true main course was cultivating his spiritual fields.
In the following days, aside from feeding and caring for the giant flood dragon and the Burning Origin Wood, he spent the rest of his time in the courtyard, diligently nurturing his spirit plants and beasts.
After harvesting the previous batch of Spirit Glowgrass, he planted 150 of the remaining 200 spirit seeds in the vacant spiritual field to enhance his cultivation and refine his spirit seeds.
He planted the last 50 seeds in the cave alongside the Yin Hue trees.
Then, he dug a channel from the ancient well to the cave, diverting the icy spring water into the cave to further enhance the spiritual energy within.
The cave felt a bit cramped now with the Yin Hue trees and the 50 Spirit Glowgrass plants growing in it.
With these Spirit Glowgrass plants, Lu Chen intended to see if he could slowly influence their characteristics by altering their growing environment.
Within the cave, after diverting the icy spring water from the well, this cave with its unique environment was the only place suited for such an experiment.
Influencing the characteristics of spirit plants through the environment required long-term exposure, something that was difficult for humans to achieve.
Lu Chen could only hope that after breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage, he would have more options. He planned to choose a complex spiritual mountain with diverse environments to cultivate various spirit plants, increasing the chances of mutations.
The 200 Spirit Glowgrass seeds quickly took root and sprouted, producing slender, tender green leaves that were a delight to behold.
The spirit seeds of the Mystical Peach and Blazing Flame Fruit that he had planted earlier also sprouted.
The three slender, powder-white peach branches trembled gently in the breeze, their delicate pink leaves swaying with them, giving off a captivating and enchanting vibe.
"Snow, I want snowy white snow..."
Lu Chen stared at them for a while, and a strange thought suddenly popped into his mind.
He took a deep breath and cast a Cleansing Charm on himself, instantly entering a sage-like state of mind, free from desire and greed.
Over at the Mystical Insect Vine, the black beetles that had remained in their egg state finally started hatching. More than a dozen black beetles crowded onto the vine, their insect chambers clearly distinct from those of the other two insect species.
The Hidden Wing Cicada, Black Beetle, and Silver Line Mantis had all been tamed by Lu Chen, and so they coexisted peacefully, growing together with the Mystical Insect Vine.
"With three types of mystical insects and a number exceeding twenty, there are enough to support the initial growth of the Mystical Insect Vine. Any more, and the balance between them would be disrupted.
When it grows to a certain stage, I'll find a few more suitable mystical insects to coexist with the vine."
Lu Chen mused as he gazed at the bizarrely shaped vine.
In the spiritual fields, the other spirit plants were thriving under Lu Chen's meticulous care, growing vigorously in the hopes of rewarding him with light orbs soon.
After inspecting the spiritual fields, Lu Chen arrived at the ancient well, which was marked with obscure patterns. He retrieved the 50 Spirit Glowgrass seeds that had been soaking in the icy spring water.
The spirit seeds had been induced in the icy conditions for a while now, and it was time to examine the results.
The dried, slender seeds hadn't changed much in appearance, but after being nourished by the spring water for an extended period, they looked slightly plumper than before. Holding them in his hand, he could feel a faint chill.
Lu Chen held the seeds and arrived at a vacant spiritual field.
He cast the Earth Drawing Technique, causing the spiritual soil before him to shift subtly, forming a narrow fissure that drew in the Spirit Glowgrass seeds.
Lu Chen focused his mind on the seeds within the spiritual soil, and suddenly, a thought emerged in his mind.
"A setback, but expected."
Lu Chen, having anticipated that the spirit seed's structure might be damaged by stimulation, remained expressionless as he planted another Spirit Glowgrass seed.
【Spirit Glowgrass, rankless...】
"No changes, a normal spirit seed."
He proceeded to plant the third seed.
Thought after thought flashed through Lu Chen's mind.
【Spirit Glowgrass, rankless...】
【Aberrant Spirit Plant: The spirit seed, stimulated by icy spirit energy during its formative stage, now contains a slight amount of ice-attribute spirit energy upon maturity.】
"Finally, I've successfully induced a mutation in one of the seeds! An aberrant Spirit Glowgrass imbued with ice-attribute spirit energy. Although it didn't elevate its rank, it's still a good start."
With one mutated Spirit Glowgrass seed, Lu Chen felt relieved.
He had long known from Master He that improving spirit plant varieties required lengthy experiments and could not be rushed. Thus, he was prepared for the long haul.
As he planted each seed, Lu Chen, through his connection with them, could discern the changes that occurred after induction.
In the end, out of the fifty seeds, fourteen failed to induce any mutation, resulting in Spirit Glowgrass of inferior quality. Some even failed to sprout, becoming useless.
Five seeds underwent a successful mutation, producing aberrant spirit plants with a slight icy spirit energy.
The remaining thirty-one seeds showed no changes.
Lu Chen categorized the seeds accordingly and then headed inside, where he retrieved the other fifty Spirit Glowgrass seeds that had been slowly roasting in the pill furnace over a gentle flame.
After planting these seeds in the spirit fields, he further sorted them into three categories.
The environment within the pill furnace seemed to have a stronger inductive effect, as only twenty seeds remained unchanged.
Interestingly, twenty-three seeds exhibited negative states, indicating induction failure.
Fortunately, seven seeds had successfully mutated, and the resulting plants would possess a slight fire-attribute spirit energy.
"Even at the lowest setting, the pill furnace's fire is still too destructive and stimulating compared to the spring water in the ancient well, resulting in more damaged or useless seeds," Lu Chen analyzed inwardly.
In his endeavor to improve spirit plant varieties, he had discovered a unique advantage.
When other spirit planters attempted to modify spirit plant varieties, they had to plant all the induced seeds and wait for them to grow to a certain stage before they could identify the successful mutations.
However, Lu Chen, with his ability to sense the changes in the seeds after induction, could directly select the aberrant spirit plants without having to wait for them to mature.
Failed seeds could be discarded, and the unchanged seeds could undergo repeated induction attempts until they either succeeded or failed.
While this approach might incur higher initial costs, it allowed Lu Chen to gather a large number of aberrant spirit plants in a short time, facilitating his experiments and significantly reducing the time required for spirit plant variety improvement.
"My next step is to re-induce the remaining ordinary spirit seeds and cultivate aberrant spirit plants. Through the spirit seed refinement technique, I should be able to obtain a large number of aberrant spirit seeds."
"With repeated induction and seed refinement, I'll create a positive cycle that will surely lead to the improvement of the Spirit Glowgrass spirit seeds."
Lu Chen thought confidently.
(End of Chapter)
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