A thought crossed Lu Xuan's mind, and he felt something unusual within him. The calm and peaceful spiritual energy suddenly surged, racing through his veins. After a moment, the uncontrollable energy gradually settled down.
Lu Xuan carefully sensed the changes in his body and couldn't help but show a hint of joy on his face. His cultivation level had increased significantly, equivalent to three months of hard work, and he was just a step away from breaking through to the third level of Qi Training.
"After being here for so long, my lucky break has finally arrived."
Lu Xuan was overjoyed. In his past life, both his mind and body were just average, and the body he occupied now had ordinary talent and background. Without any special advantages, he didn't know how he would survive in the cultivation world.
An idea flashed in his mind, and he understood everything about the white light orb that had appeared. Any spiritual plants or herbs he personally planted and nurtured would reward him with a white light orb upon maturity. From this orb, he could obtain various things like cultivation levels, artifacts, techniques, and pills.
The richness of the rewards depended on many factors, such as his involvement in the growth of the spiritual plants, the types and grades of the plants, and their appearance when harvested. The orb was only visible and touchable by him; outsiders couldn't see it. If he didn't personally plant the spiritual plants, he wouldn't receive the orb's reward.
"So, as long as I successfully grow a spiritual plant, I can get the orb's reward in addition to the plant itself?"
"That means double the harvest, double the joy!"
Looking at the thriving Spirit Firefly Grass and the Corrosive Moon Tree in the soil, Lu Xuan felt as if he could see white light orbs flickering towards him.
"I, Lu Xuan, have achieved this much today because of my hard work in cultivation and diligent care of the spiritual plants."
He couldn't help but think. Since the appearance of the white light orb, he noticed many strange changes in the spiritual plants in his spiritual field.
Feeling inspired, he focused his mind on a Spirit Firefly Grass nearby. A nearly invisible progress bar appeared above it, indicating that this particular plant was about to reach full maturity.
A piece of information flashed through Lu Xuan's mind.
"Recently nourished by spiritual rain, it's quite satisfied, but the neighboring plant's roots are too big and long, causing some crowding."
What was this? The real-time status of the spiritual plant?
With curiosity, he focused on another nearby Spirit Firefly Grass. The progress bar was similarly almost full, and the same information appeared in his mind.
The neighboring plant was in good condition but also felt that the roots of its neighbor were too long and large, taking up its growth space.
"Well, there's nothing I can do about that; the spiritual field is only so big. You’ll just have to manage."
Lu Xuan sighed. Both the growth progress bar and the real-time status were quite helpful, allowing him to understand the growth needs of the plants and adjust details for faster and better maturation.
Looking at the nearing completion of the progress bar, he was eager to use the Spirit Rain Technique to hasten the growth of the Spirit Firefly Grass. But he also understood the principle of moderation; too much nourishment would be like forcing growth.
Even if the plants matured, poor quality would affect the rewards from the white light orb.
Thinking this, the desire to hasten the growth of the Spirit Firefly Grass and obtain the orb's reward quickly faded.
Just as he was about to head back inside, he suddenly remembered something and turned to the west side of the yard. Since he could know the real-time status of the spiritual plants, would the Spirit Firefly Grass being eroded by black threads also reveal its truth?
He held his breath and focused on the Spirit Firefly Grass tightly wrapped in black threads. The progress bar was similar to the previous two, nearly full.
Information surged into Lu Xuan's mind.
"The Spirit Firefly Grass infected by the Black Bud Worm larvae is in a worrying state. If not dealt with promptly, the larvae will completely drain its vitality, turning it into withered grass."
"Black Bud Worm larvae..."
Lu Xuan murmured, feeling a little relieved. Knowing the source of the black threads made things much easier; at least he no longer felt like a headless fly without a direction to resolve it.
The name sounded familiar. He hurried back inside and pulled out a thick book.
"Common Pest Problems and Their Solutions."
It recorded hundreds of common pests that could harm spiritual plants during their cultivation, along with the author's suggested solutions.
Flipping through the pages, he quickly found detailed information about the Black Bud Worm.
"The Black Bud Worm, about the thickness of a pinky, moves swiftly and loves to devour the leaves of spiritual plants."
"When laying eggs, they remain on the spiritual plants. After hatching, the larvae rely on absorbing the plant's vitality to grow. When the plant's vitality is nearly gone, they will leave to find a new target."
"Solution: Only cultivators at the third level of Qi Training who are skilled in offensive spells can safely deal with them."
"Unless one has keen spiritual awareness, it's very difficult for lower-level cultivators to detect the eggs and larvae."
"Due to the small size of the larvae and their connection to the plants, it's easy to accidentally harm the plants when dealing with them. Therefore, one must be highly skilled in specific spells to handle the situation."
Lu Xuan closed the book and pondered.
"To avoid harming the infected spiritual plant, the spells used must meet two conditions."
"First, they must have enough lethality, and second, the damage range must be controllable."
Because of his low background and being only at the second level of Qi Training, he currently only mastered two low-level spells. One was the Spirit Rain Technique mainly used for nurturing spiritual plants, and the other was the Fireball Technique used for self-defense.
But he only knew how to cast these spells and couldn't control them finely. Moreover, neither spell seemed suitable for dealing with the Black Bud Worm larvae.
The Spirit Rain Technique at its early stage could only nourish the plants, and Lu Xuan estimated that using it might not only leave the larvae unharmed but also make them more excited...
As for the Fireball Technique, while it had enough lethality, using it would result in the destruction of both the Spirit Firefly Grass and the Black Bud Worm larvae.
"It seems I need to seek help in the market town and spend some money to avoid disaster."
"At least I can target the right solution; saving a little is better than nothing."
Lu Xuan touched the slightly empty cloth pouch at his waist and sighed softly.
...
"Lu, are you home?"
A loud voice came from outside the yard, accompanied by a knock on the door.
Then, a gray-black grass rope came slithering from the corner of the yard, lightly tapping Lu Xuan's knee. It was the straw puppet in the yard, alerting Lu Xuan that someone was about to enter the spiritual field.
"You only alerted me after they’ve been knocking for a while. If there was any ill intent, I might not have noticed my home was being robbed."
Lu Xuan looked at the retracted grass rope and couldn't help but facepalm.
The voice sounded familiar; it belonged to one of the few cultivators he had met since coming here.
"I'm coming, Brother Zhang!"
He responded and walked to the gate, opening it.
A tall, sturdy cultivator with a simple appearance walked in. His name was Zhang Hong, a third-level Qi Training cultivator who lived next door to Lu Xuan. He had a second-level Qi Training partner and a six or seven-year-old child. When Lu Xuan first arrived, Zhang Hong had given him a lot of advice, helping him avoid many pitfalls.
"Brother Zhang, please come in for a cup of hot tea."
Lu Xuan led Zhang Hong into the house. Zhang Hong glanced at the thriving Spirit Firefly Grass and Corrosive Moon Trees lining the stone path and nodded.
"Lu, you've taken good care of these two types of spiritual plants. It looks like you'll have a good harvest soon."
"Well, it’s nothing compared to the spiritual plants in your field, Brother Zhang."
After Zhang Hong sat down, Lu Xuan brewed him a cup of hot tea. The tender green tea leaves floated and swirled in the cup.
Zhang Hong didn't mind; he understood Lu Xuan's background and cultivation level. Having a cup of tea with spiritual tea was already quite generous.
"This is indeed Qingyu Tea. Drinking it feels like being gently nourished by a fine drizzle; only here at your place can I enjoy such good tea."
"At home, my wife doesn’t allow anything, it’s boring."
Zhang Hong savored the effects of the spiritual tea, closed his eyes, and shook his head, recalling the restrictions at home, unable to help but pat his thigh.
"I have no choice; my wife has to prepare for Xiao Yuan's future, so we have to be frugal."
"That's true."
Zhang Hong sighed.
"Sometimes, I envy you, Lu. You’re alone, without the pressure of supporting a family."
"You can live however you want, without arguing over trivial matters like food and daily expenses, and you don’t have to worry about whether your child will grow up healthy and smoothly or what techniques they should practice to enter a sect in the future."
"How carefree!"
"If you, Brother Zhang, were in my shoes, you’d probably think having a wife and kids to keep warm would be the happiest thing."
Lu Xuan smiled and said.
"You young man, so wise at such a young age."
Zhang Hong just casually remarked, laughing and changing the subject.
"I'm here to tell you something."
"I heard from other sources that the Wang family in the market town has accidentally discovered information about a secret realm. However, the secret realm is located far in the wilderness, so in a while, they will recruit hundreds or even thousands of cultivators above the second level of Qi Training to explore it."
"See if you're interested; if you are, you can prepare early."
"Exploring a secret realm?" Lu Xuan pondered for a moment, falling into thought.
"I'm going to check it out. A new secret realm has appeared; although the risks are not small, the rewards will be proportional to the risks. Staying in the market town to cultivate spiritual plants makes it hard to maintain normal household expenses."
"As for you, Lu, I personally suggest you go take a look. After all, with the Wang family's foundation cultivators leading the way, those powerful spirit beasts and monsters will be hard for us to encounter."
"Most importantly, you’re still young. Being a Spiritual Plant Cultivator is stable, but the resources you can obtain are limited, and your strength will improve slowly. Over time, your enthusiasm may fade, and it will be hard to find opportunities for advancement."
Zhang Hong looked at Lu Xuan, who was deep in thought, and suggested.
Lu Xuan nodded slightly. Indeed, what Zhang Hong said made sense. Exploring a secret realm, while risky, was still within a controllable range. Moreover, the emergence of a new secret realm often meant huge rewards. Even if he only got a small share, it would take a long time to fully benefit from it.
Previously, he might have considered agreeing to this opportunity. But now, with the appearance of the white light orb, that slim possibility vanished completely.
Going out on an adventure was mainly to obtain cultivation resources, which could then be exchanged for pills, techniques, artifacts, and so on. But he could get all that by staying at home and growing spiritual plants!
It was safer, and the rewards were greater; farming was the way to go!
He pretended to think for a moment, looking conflicted, and finally raised his head, apologetically looking at Zhang Hong.
"Brother Zhang, I appreciate your good intentions, but I’ve always been cautious and afraid of trouble. Plus, my cultivation is low, and I lack the skills to handle things outside. It might be easy for me to go out and not come back."
"So, I just want to stay home, guarding this small piece of spiritual field, quietly growing my spiritual plants."
"As for the future, we’ll just take it as it comes."
Seeing Lu Xuan's firm decision, Zhang Hong couldn't help but sigh.
"Your thinking isn’t wrong. Exploring a secret realm may not be too risky, but that doesn’t mean it’s completely safe. Even a small oversight could cost the lives of us low-level Qi Training cultivators."
"But I have to take the risk; Xiao Yuan can't follow my path of practicing a wild technique."
The two fell silent. After a while, Zhang Hong stood up to leave, reminding Lu Xuan to take care of his little one.
Lu Xuan nodded in agreement, watching Zhang Hong leave and closing the yard gate behind him.
"With the appearance of the white light orb, I need to avoid putting myself in danger in the future."
"If I don't have a ninety percent certainty... no, ninety percent certainty is like having zero certainty. Without a hundred percent certainty, I shouldn't carelessly go out on adventures."
Lu Xuan looked at the Spirit Firefly Grass and the Moon-Eroding Fruit by the stone path, feeling a surge of confidence.
(End of Chapter)