Chapter 1
Chapter 1: In the Quiet Garden, a Jade-like Radiance Shines
Chapter 1: In the Quiet Garden, a Jade-like Radiance Shines
In the city of Linyang Fangshi, as the sky was just beginning to brighten, a thin veil of mist still hung in the air, enveloping the entire marketplace in a hazy, ethereal white fog.
Within a small courtyard enclosed by a bluish-gray stone wall, the yard stretched about three zhang long and two zhang wide. Most of the area was covered in dark gray soil, with only a narrow path of green stones running down the middle.
In the dark gray soil, various low-grade spirit plants were growing. After a night of silent nourishment from the mist, the spirit plants exuded vibrant vitality, lazily stretching out their tender green leaves.
With a creak, a stone house at the end of the green stone path opened, and a young man stepped out.
The youth, Lu Chen, was around sixteen or seventeen years old. He wore a gray robe, had a tall and slender build, and possessed a handsome face with lively and clear eyes.
It had been quite some time since he had crossed over into this world, unexpectedly taking over the body of this young man and becoming a lowly spirit herbologist among the countless cultivators in the cultivation world.
After overcoming the initial confusion and fear, Lu Chen gradually adapted to his new identity.
A standard beginning—orphaned and alone, with average talent and only a second layer of qi-refining cultivation. Through years of hard work, he had rented a small spirit field in the marketplace, cultivating spiritual herbs and medicines, striving to survive in this brutal and treacherous cultivation world.
The thin mist that filled the courtyard helped Lu Chen, who had just woken up, to feel more refreshed. He carefully inspected each of the spirit plants.
There were around two to thirty spirit plants, spaced evenly apart, each about one chi high, with slender leaves that bore faint white luminescence, resembling stars amidst the white mist.
These were Spirit Glow Herbs, first-grade spirit plants that were relatively easy to cultivate. When mature, they could be used as ingredients for refining healing pills, making them quite useful in the cultivation world.
In addition to the Spirit Glow Herbs, there were also two trees in the courtyard—both Moon-Eclipsing Trees.
The Moon-Eclipsing Tree was also a first-grade spirit plant, and under Lu Chen's meticulous care, it thrived. It was taller than him, and among its lush green leaves, dozens of silver-white fruits that resembled hooks could be glimpsed.
These fruits were called Moon-Eclipsing Fruits. When they first formed, they resembled crescent moons, but as they matured, the crescents grew larger until they became full rounds, resembling a luminous full moon.
The mature Moon-Eclipsing Fruits could be consumed directly, providing a slight increase in spiritual energy for low-level cultivators. They were also invaluable for refining precious pills like the Pei Yuan Dan.
Both in terms of cultivation difficulty and rarity, the Moon-Eclipsing Tree was slightly more exceptional than the Spirit Glow Herb, and it had indeed received the most attention from Lu Chen.
Both types of spirit plants were thriving, but a hint of worry crossed Lu Chen's face.
He quickly walked to the west side of the courtyard, crouched down, and used two fingers to gently turn over a leaf of a Spirit Glow Herb that was growing close to the stone wall, examining its underside.
As expected, there were faint black threads on the underside of the leaf, so thin and delicate that they would have been nearly impossible to detect if not for Lu Chen's careful inspection.
"Compared to yesterday, the number of black threads has definitely increased."
Lu Chen made a mental comparison, and seeing the herb affected by the black threads, he couldn't help but sigh softly.
A couple of days ago, while tending to the spirit plants, he had noticed that one of the Spirit Glow Herbs near the stone wall seemed a bit unusual. After searching for a long time, he finally discovered these black threads on the underside of its leaves.
The black threads seemed to be fused with the herb, clinging tightly to it, making them extremely difficult to remove.
Being only a low-level spirit herbologist from humble beginnings, Lu Chen lacked the knowledge to identify what these black threads were and their origin.
Unable to find a specific solution, he had no choice but to use his spiritual energy carefully to separate the black threads from the leaf's underside.
It had exhausted his spiritual energy and mental focus just to clean them off, but when he checked the next day, the black threads had reappeared, and their numbers were increasing day by day.
"At this rate, in a day or two, these black threads will completely overtake this Spirit Glow Herb, and they might even spread to the nearby herbs."
Thinking of this, Lu Chen fell into a dilemma, standing there lost in thought.
He had considered uprooting this herb to prevent the nearby plants from being affected by the black threads.
"For now, I'll have to find a formally trained and experienced spirit herbalist in the marketplace to help me resolve this issue."
"It took quite a bit of effort to save up those spirit stones... I was planning to pay the rent for the spirit field in two months."
Lu Chen was only a Qi Refining Second Layer cultivator, so he couldn't afford to own a spirit field outright.
The small spirit field in his courtyard was rented from a Qi Refining Intermediate Stage cultivator in the marketplace, and the monthly rent was quite expensive.
"I'll have to tighten my belt for a while after this."
He stood up, his expression determined.
Once the spirit plants matured, he could sell them to shops or cultivators in the marketplace, earning spirit stones. After paying the rent and covering his daily cultivation expenses, he would still have a small surplus.
But if he were to seek help from a senior spirit herbalist, he would have to spend a significant amount.
Lu Chen made his decision and looked around.
The bluish-gray stone wall was surrounded by black brambles, their sharp thorns providing some protection.
However, the defensive capability was minimal and could only deter honest people, not those with ill intentions, nor could it protect against mysterious creatures that might covet the spirit plants.
"After dealing with this matter, I'll need to save up some spirit stones to get a protective formation to prevent similar incidents in the future."
"Relying on this grass puppet to guard the spirit field is completely unrealistic."
Lu Chen glanced at the corner of the courtyard, where a grass puppet stood.
The puppet was about three feet tall, leaning against the wall. Its body was made of unknown straw, with a large head and a small body. On its oversized head was a gray tumor-like lump made of twisted straw.
Lu Chen had bought this grass puppet second-hand from a stall in the marketplace. According to the stall owner, the puppet was created by the Qianji Sect in the cultivation world and had a simple behavior model, often used to guard lower-grade spirit fields.
If it sensed a cultivator or demon beast entering the spirit field, the grass puppet would alert the owner. If it detected any intention to harm the spirit plants, the puppet would even launch an attack to detain the intruder.
However, the one in Lu Chen's courtyard was probably due for a replacement, as its warning function was unreliable, and it certainly couldn't be expected to launch any attacks.
Of course, this was also largely due to Lu Chen himself. Ever since his arrival in this world, he had mostly kept to himself, with little interaction with the outside world, so there hadn't been any cultivators or demon beasts intruding into his courtyard.
Lu Chen glared at the grass puppet with its lumpy head, his spiritual energy surging within him. Threads of spirit rain appeared above the Spirit Glow Herbs and the Moon-Eclipsing Trees, falling onto the leaves and permeating them.
Nurtured by the spirit rain, the spirit plants in the field looked even more vibrant and clean, their leaves swaying gently, free from any dust.
This was the Spirit Rain Technique, a mandatory skill for all spirit herbalists, which allowed them to infuse minute amounts of spiritual energy into water vapor to nourish the plants and ensure their healthy growth.
"Hmm? This Spirit Glow Herb has entered its maturity phase."
After watering each plant, Lu Chen noticed that one of the Spirit Glow Herbs was glowing, with specks of light flickering as if they were about to detach from the leaves.
He quickly went back into the house and took out a white jade box. Carefully, he plucked the Spirit Glow Herb and placed it inside the box.
The jade box could slow down the loss of spiritual energy within the herb, preserving its medicinal properties to a certain extent.
"What's this?"
As Lu Chen closed the box and turned to leave, he suddenly noticed a white light ball the size of a fist where the Spirit Glow Herb had been. The light ball flickered slightly, emitting specks of spiritual light.
Intrigued, Lu Chen reached out and gently touched the white light ball.
In an instant, countless specks of light from the ball flowed into his palm, and a thought suddenly appeared in his mind.
"Harvest one Spirit Glow Herb, gain three months of cultivation."
The seedling needs your collective nurturing, your pursuit, and my update.
(End of Chapter)
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