Chapter 342: Spirit Infusion, County Crisis

Chapter 342: Spirit Infusion, County Crisis

September 15th, 2024

Lu Qing, with his cultivator's abilities, carefully selected the rice seeds.

The villagers had never witnessed such a mystical scene, and they were all left in awe.

With the aid of his spell, Lu Qing quickly chose the best rice seeds from the entire batch.

Looking at the bamboo basket filled with plump, golden rice seeds, Lu Qing nodded in satisfaction.

"Grandpa Zhang, I've made my selection. The rest can be taken back by everyone," Lu Qing said.

"Is this enough? Do you want me to pick more?" Grandpa Zhang asked, equally astonished by Lu Qing's spellcasting abilities. He snapped out of his daze after a while and hurriedly spoke.

"This is sufficient. More than this, I won't be able to use them for now," Lu Qing replied with a smile.

With his current cultivation level, the number of seeds he could infuse with spirit was limited.

Moreover, the spirit field he had cultivated on the mountain was not that large.

The selected rice seeds were already more than enough.

"Alright, as long as you're sure. If it's not enough, I'll ask everyone to bring you more," Grandpa Zhang nodded, not insisting further.

"Actually, Grandpa Zhang, everyone has gone to great lengths to help me gather these rice seeds. I'd like to express my gratitude with some silver. Please help me distribute this to everyone as a small token of my appreciation," Lu Qing said, taking out a pouch of silver from his pocket.

Before Grandpa Zhang could respond, the other villagers started waving their hands.

"Lu Qing, what are you saying? We're all from the same village. A few rice seeds are nothing. Why would we take your silver?"

"That's right. You've been treating us without ever asking for medical fees," another villager added.

"Yes, and the spell you cast a few days ago to protect the village—we haven't even had a chance to thank you for that," another villager chimed in.

...

The villagers were not foolish.

Since the unusual occurrence in the village some time ago, they had noticed the changes in the village over these days.

They knew that Lu Qing must have done something extraordinary for the village, and it was undoubtedly a good thing.

After all, in the past few days, everyone had been sleeping better at night, and their bodies were gradually becoming more energetic and vibrant.

Some elderly villagers even found that their chronic illnesses, accumulated over years of hard labor, were slowly improving.

Everyone knew that these changes must be attributed to Lu Qing.

In this world, having a healthy body was a rare blessing.

Compared to the small favor of gathering rice seeds for Lu Qing, it was hardly worth mentioning, and they were not willing to accept his silver.

Fearing that Lu Qing would insist on giving them the silver, the villagers picked up their loads and headed downhill, chatting and laughing along the way.

The most talked-about topic was Lu Qing's spellcasting abilities.

Seeing that the villagers were not giving him a chance to offer the silver, Lu Qing counted a few breaths before shaking his head with a smile and putting away the pouch.

"Never mind. Since it's their sincere intention, I'll accept it," Lu Qing thought to himself.

"I knew they wouldn't take your money," Grandpa Zhang said, "You're too polite. This might make you seem distant from the others."

"Thank you for the advice, Grandpa Zhang," Lu Qing humbly accepted the reprimand.

"Lu Qing, do you only need rice seeds? How about wheat seeds?"

Just then, a voice spoke up from the side. It was Grandpa Lin, finally finding an opportunity to ask.

"Wheat seeds..." Lu Qing pondered for a moment. "Does Grandpa Lin have good wheat seeds?"

"Of course! I can't speak for other things, but when it comes to wheat seeds, I can guarantee that not only in our village but also in the surrounding villages, no one has better wheat seeds than mine!" Grandpa Lin boasted with pride.

Grandpa Zhang, standing nearby, couldn't help but roll his eyes at Grandpa Lin's boastful attitude, but he nodded in agreement. "You're right. When it comes to growing wheat, Grandpa Lin, you're the best among the nearby villages."

Hearing even Grandpa Zhang's praise, Lu Qing didn't hesitate.

"Since Grandpa Lin has such excellent wheat seeds, please share some with me if possible," Lu Qing agreed.

After all, when the time came for the sky to turn cold, he could also try planting some spirit wheat.

"Alright, wait for me. I'll go get the wheat seeds for you right now!"

Upon hearing this, Grandpa Lin's heart filled with joy. He immediately started running downhill with quick, light steps.

"Woah, Grandpa Lin, slow down. I'm not in a hurry," Lu Qing called out, worried that the elderly man might fall.

"Let him be," Grandpa Zhang said. "This old man had trouble walking due to his leg ailment, but after you cured him, he's been eager to walk around the village every day."

Lu Qing: ...

The old man's energy was so vibrant that it caught him a bit off guard.

Grandpa Lin quickly carried up a bag of wheat seeds, and upon opening it, Lu Qing saw that the seeds were plump and of exceptional quality, just as the old man had boasted.

"I bet there aren't many in the surrounding villages with wheat seeds better than these!" Grandpa Lin boasted proudly.

"Indeed, these are excellent seeds, Grandpa Lin. I'll take all of them." Lu Qing felt the vitality essence within the seeds and found it to be slightly stronger than the rice seeds he had selected earlier.

He immediately decided to keep them all.

"There's no need to buy them. I'm giving these to you. Those fellows earlier didn't want any money, so how can I, an old man, be outdone by them?" Grandpa Lin glared and straightened his face, as if Lu Qing offering money was an insult.

Lu Qing hesitated, realizing that bringing up money again might offend the old man.

He understood that Grandpa Lin had a somewhat eccentric and stubborn personality, often not getting along well with many families in the village.

It seemed that he was now taking out his frustration on the villagers who had just left.

"In that case, thank you for your generosity, Grandpa Lin." Lu Qing expressed his gratitude.

Hearing this, Grandpa Lin finally brightened up.

He chatted with Lu Qing for a while longer before descending the mountain with Grandpa Zhang.

"Young Master, the villagers here are quite simple and kind-hearted," Yan's voice echoed in Lu Qing's mind after the others had left.

Yan had clearly sensed everything that had just transpired.

"They've always been good to me and Xiao Yan," Lu Qing said with a smile.

He recalled the events that had unfolded when he first crossed over.

If he had ended up in a different village, his and Xiao Yan's fate might have been drastically different.

Yan remained silent but understood why Lu Qing had gone to such lengths to set up a formation in this village.

"Senior Yan, is there anything else I should know before using the Spirit Infusion Technique?" Lu Qing asked, holding the two types of crop seeds.

"There's nothing special to it. Your grasp of the Spirit Infusion Technique is already quite profound, and infusing a Spirit Valley seed shouldn't be a problem."

As Yan spoke, he recalled Lu Qing's previous insights into the Spirit Infusion Technique, still feeling amazed.

The complexity of spells seemed non-existent to Lu Qing, as he could master them with just a brief study.

His comprehension was so profound that it was almost terrifying.

Hearing Yan's reminder, Lu Qing felt reassured.

He returned to the house with the Spirit Valley seeds, made some preparations, and fetched a wooden basin of clear water. Then, he asked Xiao Yan and Xiao Li not to disturb him and entered the meditation chamber where his master usually refined pills and cultivated.

Inside the chamber, Lu Qing placed the basin of water in front of him.

He concentrated, gathering a bit of spirit aura on his fingertip and gently tapping it into the water.

As he circulated his Heart Method, a vast amount of wood-attributed spirit qi from the surrounding heaven and earth was drawn towards him, condensing into a vitality aura and merging with the clear water.

Before long, the water in the basin transformed, taking on a faint green hue and containing the vitality essence of the wood spirit aura.

Then, Lu Qing slowly poured the selected rice seeds into the wooden basin...

As Lu Qing focused on nurturing the Spirit Valley seeds, several figures appeared before the city gates of Cang County.

"According to our recent investigations, something significant happened here over two years ago. Elder Wang Cangyi, a Primordial Realm elder from the Heavenly Cang Sect in the North, led his disciples to besiege a small aristocratic family in this county, supposedly to seize a treasure. However, they were eventually driven away by a mysterious pair of master and disciple. The disciple, a young man at the Bone Marrow Realm, defeated a disciple of Elder Wang who had reached the Perfect Viscera Realm. It is also rumored that a disciple from the Celestial Pavilion had appeared in Cang County to prevent a battle between Primordial Realm cultivators. All these clues indicate that the young man in question is likely the one named Lu Qing on the Dragon Ascension Rankings."

The leading figure among the newcomers gazed at the county's gate and spoke in a deep voice.

"Indeed, and the one who killed Xuanming and the others in the Holy City also seemed to have a master. This Lu Qing is very likely the person we're looking for." Another figure added.

"Elder You, what should we do now? Should we return to the secret realm and report?" asked one of the figures.

"Not yet. These are still just our speculations, and we need further confirmation," the leading figure shook his head.

"How can we confirm it, then?"

"According to our intelligence, there's a small aristocratic family with the surname Wei in this county, and they seem to have a deep connection with that master and disciple."

As night fell, we'll capture a couple of important members of the Wei family, interrogate them, and we'll get to the bottom of things."

"That's a good idea," the others agreed without hesitation.

After all, they had become quite adept at this kind of task over the past few days.

So, instead of entering the city, they quietly hid outside, waiting for the cover of night.

The people of Cang County were completely unaware that a group of terrifying Primordial Realm experts were lurking outside the city walls.

Time passed slowly, and as dusk approached, the city gates were about to close.

An elderly figure, dressed simply and carrying a bamboo basket on his back, appeared outside the city gates.

"Old man, it's so late, are you still going into the city?"

The city guard on duty, seeing the old man, asked curiously.

The old man revealed a kind smile, "I'm a doctor, and I've been treating patients in the nearby villages these past few days. I've run out of the medicine I had on me, so I want to go into the city to buy some more."

The guard looked at the medicine basket on the old man's back and the medicine hoe hanging at his waist, and had no reason to doubt him.

He spoke with a hint of respect, "It's Great Doctor Chen, please come in quickly. We're about to close the city gates, and if you're any later, you won't be able to enter."

The old man nodded and slowly walked towards the city.

After passing through several streets, he arrived at a grand mansion.

The doorman, upon seeing the old man, rubbed his eyes in disbelief.

After confirming that he wasn't mistaken, he trembled and immediately hurried over, bowing.

"Great Doctor Chen, what brings you here?"

"I happened to pass by the county town, and since I had some business, I thought I'd drop by. Is your master at home?"

The old doctor asked.

"Yes, yes, the master and the mistress are both in the mansion. Please come in, Great Doctor Chen."

The doorman respectfully led the old doctor into the mansion, while the other doorman had already rushed in to report.

After more than ten breaths, just as the old doctor entered the Wei family's front courtyard, Wei Xinghe appeared from the backyard, his face filled with surprise.

"Elder Chen, what brings you to visit us?"

The old doctor chuckled, "I've been providing free medical services in the nearby villages these past few days, and since I was in the area, I thought I'd drop by."

"So that's the case, Great Doctor Chen, you truly have a heart of a physician!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Xinghe's respect for the old doctor grew even deeper.

He knew that the old doctor's cultivation was unfathomably deep, far beyond the reach of even the Primordial Realm.

Yet, despite being such an extraordinary master, he still humbled himself to provide free medical care to the ordinary villagers.

Such kindness was truly admirable.

"I'm just fulfilling my duty as a physician," the old doctor said, "By the way, I have another matter I'd like to ask for your help with."

"Please, Elder Chen," Wei Xinghe hurriedly said.

"I've been providing free medical care in the nearby villages these past few days, and today, in one of the villages, I encountered some rather tricky medical cases that require urgent treatment.

Unfortunately, the medicine I have on hand has been nearly depleted over these days.

If I go to gather more herbs now, I'm afraid it might be too late.

So, I thought I'd come here to purchase some."

The old doctor explained.

"Elder Chen, you're too kind. It's just some medicine, there's no need for such formality.

Just tell me what you need, and I'll have someone fetch it immediately."

Wei Xinghe said without hesitation.

"I've written down everything I need on this list. Take a look and see if you can gather them."

The old doctor took out a list from his sleeve.

Wei Xinghe took it, glanced at it, and immediately handed it to Wei Da Zongguan.

"Hai, go to the warehouse immediately and gather these medicines for Elder Chen."

Wei Da Zongguan didn't dare delay and took the list right away.

"Elder Chen, where's Young Master Lu? Didn't he come with you?"

"Lu Qing has other matters to attend to, so he didn't come with me this time," the old doctor replied.

"In that case, Elder Chen, you must not have had dinner yet. Why not join us?"

"That's fine."

The old doctor didn't refuse. These past few days, he had been busy with his free medical services, and his meals had been rather haphazard.

He had only eaten a little in the morning that day.

Wei Xinghe immediately ordered the kitchen to prepare a banquet.

Before long, Lady Wei also received the news and came out from the backyard.

Upon seeing the old doctor, she greeted him warmly.

As the old doctor waited for dinner, the sky outside gradually darkened.

Outside the county town, several figures quietly appeared.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end