https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-39-This-Batch-is-of-Good-Quality/12543708/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-41-If-You-Can-t-Beat-Them-Report-Them/12543711/
Chapter 40: The Misty Smoke Fruit
Chapter 40: The Misty Smoke Fruit
Lu Chen took out the special spirit seed that resembled mist from his storage bag and rewarded the Cloud-Walking Lynx for its hard work. He found an empty spot in his spirit field and, with a display of his earth-drawing technique, created the perfect fissure in the spirit soil to plant the misty spirit seed.
He then focused his mental energy on the seed, and information began to flood his mind:
"Misty Smoke Fruit, a third-grade spirit plant. The fruit of this plant, when consumed, accelerates the cultivation of illusion techniques and enhances the power of spells. It can also be used to nurture beasts with related abilities or to refine special elixirs."
"During its growth, the spirit plant constantly generates mist, and over time, it may even create low-level illusions, making it difficult to pinpoint the plant's location within the misty realm."
"I'm right before your eyes, yet you can't seem to find me. Why is that?"
Lu Chen's mind was filled with detailed information and real-time updates about the spirit seed.
"A third-grade spirit plant! This is a breakthrough!" he exclaimed with delight.
Third-grade meant entering the realm of foundation establishment. Up until now, the best spirit plants in his field were two second-grade ones—the Sword Grass and the Dark Marrow Mushroom.
The rest, like the Blood Jade Ginseng, the Red Cloud Pine, and the Pure Snow Lotus, were first-grade, and there were even several dozen Spirit Firefly Grasses that had no grade.
Both the second-grade spirit plants and the Misty Smoke Fruit had been acquired in the same way—purchased as unknown spirit seeds. It was only through the real-time information provided by his unique ability that he had successfully cultivated them.
Without this ability, even if he had obtained these unknown spirit seeds, he would have been clueless about how to nurture them properly.
After planting the Misty Smoke Fruit seed, Lu Chen's spiritual sense detected faint tendrils of mist seeping out from the seed, so subtle that they were nearly invisible to the naked eye.
"Once it grows bigger and produces more mist, it will probably play hide-and-seek with me," he thought with a smile. "But since I can see its real-time status, I don't have to worry about losing track of it."
Lu Chen cast a spirit rain technique on the seed, nurturing it with his spiritual energy.
With the Misty Smoke Fruit seed planted and its characteristics understood, Lu Chen moved on to inspect the rest of his spirit field.
The Red Cloud Pine had grown larger, and the five pine cones within its delicate red-hued needles had increased in size, indicating their impending maturity.
Lu Chen had high hopes for this first-grade spirit plant. The previous mature spirit plants, the Spirit Firefly Grass and the Moon-Eclipsing Fruit, had been ungraded, and he was curious about the rewards that a first-grade plant might bring.
The Sword Grass and the Dark Marrow Mushroom were also thriving, although they still had a long way to go before reaching maturity.
The soil around the Sword Grass was filled with tiny furrows carved by the sword intent, making the sword intent even sharper.
The Dark Marrow Mushroom had extended its dark red hyphae, enveloping the decaying spirit wood completely. Its absorption of nutrients from the decaying wood seemed to have accelerated, and Lu Chen predicted that he would need to replace the wood soon.
The Pure Snow Lotus stood proudly in the spirit spring pond, its once-tender jade-like leaves now fully unfurled, having grown quietly and gracefully.
After the initial batch of over a dozen Spirit Firefly Grasses had matured, the rest entered a rapid growth phase.
Lu Chen surveyed the field and harvested ten fully mature Spirit Firefly Grasses.
The remaining few dozen were also ready for harvest, but as they had not reached full maturity, Lu Chen left them, worried that it might affect the light orb rewards.
Among the ten Spirit Firefly Grasses, two were of perfect quality, five were good, and three were of superior quality.
"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass yields six months of cultivation." 2
"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass yields nine months of cultivation."
"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass yields one year of cultivation."
Four of the ten grasses had yielded cultivation orbs, causing a surge of spiritual power within Lu Chen's body. He quickly channeled and controlled the energy, gradually calming it.
"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass, obtaining a top-grade Fu Lu Exorcism Talisman."
"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass, obtaining the Wood Birth Technique."
Four Fu Lu talismans successively appeared in Lu Chen's hands.
Although top-grade Fu Lu were only effective against low and mid-level Qi Refining cultivators and posed little threat to high-level Qi Refining cultivators, Lu Chen knew that with enough quantity and firepower, even taking down a high-level Qi Refining cultivator was not impossible.
After absorbing the white light orb containing the Wood Birth Technique, Lu Chen's understanding of it deepened. It was as if he had practiced the technique hundreds of times, and he could now execute it with even greater ease and fluency.
The last white light orb, left behind by a perfectly-graded Spirit Firefly Grass, was then collected by Lu Chen. The orb transformed into countless specks of light that surged into his sea of consciousness.
Instantly, a thought emerged from his sea of consciousness.
"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass, obtaining a top-grade Nurturing Qi Dan formula."
"Another dan formula," Lu Chen murmured. As the dan formula appeared in his mind, he instantly grasped the intricacies of its refinement process.
Ingredient types, quantities, preparation methods, fire control, and the perfect moment to remove it from the furnace...
Although he hadn't put it into practice yet, he already felt experienced in refining this top-grade Nurturing Qi Dan.
"With the Peiyuan Dan formula obtained earlier, I now have two dan formulas in my possession."
"If I come across another light orb containing a dan formula and improve my refinement skills to a proficient level or beyond during my free time, I might give it a try."
Lu Chen carefully stored the ten Spirit Firefly Grasses in a jade box and placed it into his storage bag.
Based on the current maturation rate of the Spirit Firefly Grass, he estimated that he would have to visit Hundred Herbs Hall again in another two or three days.
After inspecting his spirit field, Lu Chen was about to return to his house to cultivate.
The Cloud-Walking Lynx, which had been playing with the red-whiskered carp in the spirit spring pond, noticed his intention and gracefully followed behind him, its four fluffy paws gently treading on the ground.
"Fellow Daoist, are you home? We are executives from the market."
"There have been sightings of demonic beings in various places within the market, and we are conducting a routine inspection to maintain order. We hope for your understanding and cooperation."
Before long, a voice rang out from outside the courtyard.
"A market executive is here for an inspection?"
Lu Chen knew it would be unwise to refuse, so he opened the courtyard door, his expression filled with confusion.
Outside stood three cultivators, their faces solemn. One was at the fifth layer of Qi Refining, while the other two were at the third layer.
"Greetings, Fellow Daoist."
The cultivator at the fifth layer of Qi Refining, evidently the leader, greeted Lu Chen as he stepped forward.
Lu Chen nodded in response, his demeanor restrained.
"May I ask how you intend to conduct the inspection, Fellow Daoists?"
"We will use a magical treasure to search your courtyard, and we will also cast an exorcism spell on you. Please forgive us for any inconvenience," explained one of the third layer Qi Refining cultivators.
"Casting an exorcism spell on me is fine, but thoroughly searching the premises is rather inconvenient. After all, no one wants their privacy invaded unnecessarily," Lu Chen politely refused. He had no issue with them casting a spell on him, but he was reluctant to let them search his house, especially since he didn't want them to discover the rare spirit plants in his spirit field.
If there truly were demonic beings, the spell would be sufficient to detect them. There was absolutely no need to conduct an indoor search. Lu Chen was certain that even the major powers and influential families in the market, or even his neighbor Wang Shan, wouldn't perform a detailed search inside his house.
"The woes of being a lone cultivator..."
"If push comes to shove, I suppose this is my only option."
Lu Chen sighed inwardly and reached his finger into his sleeve.
The three cultivators tensed up, on guard against any sudden moves.
(End of Chapter)
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