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Chapter 70: Watching Your Debauchery After a Drink
Chapter 70: Watching Your Debauchery After a Drink
In the end, the two Lingzhi masters from Baicao Hall chose not to take the gamble, opting to sell their diseased second-grade spirit plants to Lu Chen at a low price.
This time, Lu Chen acquired fourteen diseased spirit plants, twelve of which were first-grade and two were second-grade.
He spent a total of fifty-six spirit stones on the fourteen spirit plants, plus the twenty spirit stones he paid to He Guanshi as a reward, bringing his total expenditure to seventy-six spirit stones.
His net worth had once again dropped below three hundred spirit stones.
However, Lu Chen was confident that he could earn even more.
He returned to the courtyard with the diseased spirit plants in tow.
First, he manipulated the array to isolate the diseased plants with the mist that spread from it, before planting them one by one.
Those that were on the brink of death or would require too much effort and resources to restore, Lu Chen mercilessly burned on the spot.
In the end, only eight spirit plants were worth salvaging; seven first-grade and one second-grade. There was another second-grade plant that he had a fair chance of saving, but it would have consumed a significant amount of spirit stones and energy, so he decided to forgo it.
After a busy day, he finally managed to cleanse the eight spirit plants of their mutated essence. All that was left to do now was to nurture them to maturity with a little extra care.
Due to the severe damage the spirit plants had sustained, even with meticulous care, it would take some time for their quality to improve. Lu Chen left them to grow in the spirit fields, occasionally dousing them with a large-scale Spirit Rain Technique to ensure they all received a healthy soaking.
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
During this time, Lu Chen stayed put in his courtyard, tending to his spirit plants and spiritual beasts without venturing out.
The Three-tailed Red-whiskered Carp grew plumper by the day with a steady diet of spirit rice. Its two long, thin red whiskers trailed behind it as it swam, swaying gently in the water.
In the center of the Spirit Spring Pond, a tiny bud had formed on the First-grade Pure Snow Lotus, nestled within its pristine white leaves. Nurtured by the spirit spring, the white bud exuded an aura of holiness.
There was still half a bottle of Green Flood Dragon's blood left, a gift from the snake-catcher Yu Jie. The Dragonvine, now nourished by an abundance of serpent blood, no longer looked dry and withered as it had when it was first planted. Each day, it remained plump and vibrant, its vines a glossy black.
Lu Chen also noticed that the vines had grown by about half an inch.
"It's not easy to cultivate a third-grade spirit plant," he mused. "A large bottle of second-grade serpent blood can only spur this much growth."
The Illusion Smoke Fruit, also a third-grade spirit plant, was a little easier to please. It continued to hide within the smoke it emitted, its true form elusive.
Among the spirit plants nearing maturity, the Blood Jade Ginsengs were the most unruly. If Lu Chen so much as zoned out for a moment, they would wriggle towards each other, seemingly intent on sucking each other dry.
To ensure the quality of the ginsengs upon maturity, Lu Chen had no choice but to patrol their area every half a day, even during the night.
There was no other way; he had to be ruthless and ensure these twenty Blood Jade Ginsengs remained chaste their entire lives.
The Sword Grass and the Dark Marrow Mushroom, both second-grade, were far less demanding.
As the Sword Grass approached maturity, the sword intent emanating from its straight body became increasingly subdued. Only the dense network of fine sword marks in the spirit soil bore testament to its former sharpness.
The Dark Marrow Mushroom, on the other hand, presented a starkly different growth state. The wooden rack Lu Chen had specially built for it had been completely overtaken by the dark red fungal threads it excreted, resembling countless tiny blood vessels that formed an impenetrable mesh.
Lu Chen worked with patience and composure, maintaining his own pace and doing his utmost to enhance the quality of the spirit plants. Then, he quietly awaited their maturation.
As for the other neighbors, Lu rarely crossed paths with the reclusive Lu Xuan and only knew that they were either diligently cultivating or out seeking opportunities.
Only these two, one content and unambitious, happily tending to his garden in retirement, and the other obsessed with cultivation, drawn by the allure of the glowing orbs, developed a friendship over time and frequent visits.
At Wu Wenjing's home...
"The world is becoming more and more difficult," the old man sighed, setting down his white jade wine cup. "Even finding peace in a market town like this is impossible."
"Having given up on advancing my cultivation, I bought this courtyard in Linyang Market Town and took up brewing spiritual wine to make a living. But who would have thought that even this simple desire would be so hard to fulfill?"
"Those useless enforcers from the Enforcement Hall, who knows what they're doing with all the spirit stones they collect. They haven't dealt with the taint seeping into the town, affecting our spiritual plants and insects."
"Indeed," Lu Chen sympathized. "We loose cultivators are like fragile weeds, unable to withstand any turmoil."
Lu Chen could relate, knowing that if it weren't for the glowing orbs in his spirit fields, his fate might have been to disappear silently in this cruel world.
"I heard that the spiritual energy and insects in the market town have been polluted, causing many spiritual plants to mutate. How are your spirit plants doing, Fellow Daoist Lu?" Wu, the elderly man, asked with concern.
"They're doing well," Lu Chen replied casually. "I discovered one that was affected and promptly removed and destroyed it before it could harm the others."
"I heard that the Wang family has sought help from their members cultivating within the sect. Apparently, someone will be coming to the market town to root out the hidden taint."
"Oh? If the sect sends their cultivators, those tainted beings won't stand a chance," Lu Chen agreed, nodding. The old man before him had lived in the market town for decades and had a wide network, always privy to the latest gossip and news.
Dealing with the taint was not the most challenging part; after all, the market town had its fair share of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Working together, they should be able to handle a single tainted being.
The real issue was the elusive and mysterious nature of the taint, making it hard to detect and track, which was why it had persisted for so long.
On the other hand, sect cultivators were a different breed, with specialized techniques, treasures, and spirit beasts designed to uncover and eradicate such threats.
"Looks like the opportunity to buy mutated spirit plants is dwindling," Lu Chen thought to himself. "I should take advantage of these last few days and make one last haul."
He had anticipated this development, knowing that the powerful families and factions in the market town would not allow the tainted beings to spread further, and the issue of mutated spirit plants would be resolved. Being able to profit from this situation and earn a substantial sum of spirit stones was already a blessing.
Lu Chen bid his farewells to the elderly Wu and made his way back to his own courtyard, feeling a pleasant buzz from the spiritual wine he had sampled at Wu's home. The wine had a subtle initial impact but packed a punch afterward.
"Others may act wantonly after drinking, but I, on the other hand, enjoy watching your debauchery after a drink. Now, break it up, you two!" Lu Chen, slightly tipsy, used his earth manipulation technique to separate two Blood Jade Ginseng roots that had entwined with each other.
Suddenly, he noticed one of the ginseng roots, its progress bar fully filled, indicating maturity. The sight instantly sobered him up.
He took a deep breath and carefully dug up the mature Blood Jade Ginseng from the spirit soil.
(End of Chapter)
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