After rewarding the Cloud Stepping Leopard, Lu Xuan took out a special spirit seed that looked like smoke from his storage bag. He found an empty spot in the Spiritual Field and used the Earth Summoning Technique to create a perfect crack in the spiritual soil, allowing the smoky spirit seed to settle in.
Then, he focused his mind on the seed buried in the soil. A thought appeared in his mind.
"Mirage Smokefruit, a third-grade spiritual plant. The fruit, when matured, can speed up the cultivation of illusions and enhance the power of spells. It can also be used to raise spirit beasts with related abilities or to refine certain special pills."
"The growth process of this spiritual plant will continuously produce smoke, and after a long time, it might even form a low-level illusion. The plant will hide within the illusion, making it hard to find."
"I'm right in front of you; why can't you see me?"
Details about the spirit seed and its current state flashed through Lu Xuan's mind.
"A third-grade spiritual plant, this is a big win!"
Lu Xuan was overjoyed as he absorbed the information. A third-grade plant meant he was entering the foundation-building stage. So far, the best plants in his Spiritual Field were two second-grade ones: the Sword Grass and the Dark Marrow Fungus. Other plants like the Blood Jade Ginseng, Red Cloud Pine, and Pure Snow Lotus were all first-grade, and there were even dozens of ungraded Spirit Firefly Grasses.
Both second-grade plants were obtained in the same way as the Mirage Smokefruit, through the discovery of unknown spirit seeds, and thanks to the immediate state revealing this information, they were successfully planted. Without this special ability, even if one had unknown spirit seeds, it would be like searching in the dark.
After planting the Mirage Smokefruit seed, Lu Xuan sensed faint wisps of smoke seeping out from the seed, barely visible to the naked eye.
"Once it grows a bit more and the smoke increases, it will probably play hide-and-seek with me. But since I can see the plant's current state, I won't have to worry about losing it."
Lu Xuan used the Spirit Rain Technique on the spirit seed, thinking to himself.
After planting the Mirage Smokefruit seed and understanding its characteristics, Lu Xuan checked the growth status of other plants in the Spiritual Field.
The Red Cloud Pine had five pine nuts that had grown larger, clearly nearing maturity. Lu Xuan had high hopes for this first-grade plant; the previously matured plants, whether Spirit Firefly Grass or Moon-Eroding Fruit, were all ungraded, and he was curious about the rewards a first-grade plant might bring.
The Sword Grass and Dark Marrow Fungus were also doing well, but they still had some time before maturity. The spiritual soil around the Sword Grass had been plowed into many small grooves by the sword intent, making it sharper. The dark red mycelium of the Dark Marrow Fungus had tightly wrapped around the decaying spiritual wood, clearly absorbing nutrients much faster than before. Lu Xuan guessed it wouldn't be long before he needed to replace the decaying wood again.
The Pure Snow Lotus stood proudly in the Spiritual Spring Pool, its white, jade-like leaves no longer looking as tender as when they first sprouted; they had quietly unfurled.
The Spirit Firefly Grass, after initially maturing over ten plants, had suddenly entered a rapid maturation phase. Lu Xuan checked and harvested ten fully matured Spirit Firefly Grasses.
There were still dozens of others that could be picked, but they weren't fully matured yet. Lu Xuan was worried about affecting the reward, so he decided to leave them for now.
Among the ten Spirit Firefly Grasses, two were of perfect quality, while five were of good quality and three were of fine quality.
"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, gained six months of cultivation."
"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, gained nine months of cultivation."
"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, gained a year of cultivation."
Out of the ten, four white light orbs brought cultivation rewards. Waves of spiritual energy surged within Lu Xuan, and he quickly circulated it, calming it down gradually.
"Nearly three years of cultivation gained at once; farming is truly addictive..."
Lu Xuan sighed contentedly.
"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, gained a first-grade Sword Qi Talisman."
"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, gained a first-grade Evil Dispelling Talisman."
"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, gained the Wood Growth Technique."
Four talismans appeared in Lu Xuan's hands. Although first-grade talismans were only effective against low to mid-level cultivators, if there were enough of them, they could potentially take down a high-level cultivator.
After absorbing the white light orb containing the Wood Growth Technique, Lu Xuan gained a deeper understanding of it, feeling as if he had practiced it hundreds of times in an instant, making it easier to use.
The last white light orb came from a perfect quality Spirit Firefly Grass. Lu Xuan picked it up, and the orb transformed into countless light points that surged into his sea of consciousness.
Immediately, a thought emerged from his mind.
"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, gained a first-grade Qi Nourishing Pill recipe."
"Another recipe."
Lu Xuan savored the information about the recipe that appeared in his mind, instantly mastering the method to refine it.
Types of materials, quantities, processing methods, control of heat, timing of completion...
Though he hadn't practiced yet, he already had rich experience in refining this first-grade Qi Nourishing Pill.
"With the previous recipe for the Foundation Pill, I now have two recipes."
"If I absorb another light orb with a recipe, I could improve my refining skills to proficient or even expert level. Then, in my spare time, I could give it a try."
Lu Xuan carefully stored the ten Spirit Firefly Grasses in a jade box and placed it in his storage bag. Given the current maturation speed of the Spirit Firefly Grass, he estimated he would need to visit the Hundred Herbs Hall again in two or three days.
After inspecting the Spiritual Field, Lu Xuan planned to return to his room to cultivate.
The Cloud Stepping Leopard, noticing this, stopped playing with the Red Whiskered Carp in the Spiritual Spring Pool and gracefully followed Lu Xuan with its fluffy paws.
"Friend, may I ask if you are home? We are the stewards from the market town."
"Recently, there have been sightings of malevolent spirits around the market town. To maintain order, we are conducting routine inspections. We hope for your understanding."
Not long after, a voice called out from outside the courtyard.
"Inspectors from the market town?"
Lu Xuan knew it wouldn't be good to refuse. With some confusion, he opened the courtyard door.
Outside, three cultivators stood, each looking serious. One was at the fifth level of Qi Refining, while the other two were at the third level.
"Greetings, friend."
The fifth-level cultivator took the lead and greeted Lu Xuan as he stepped out.
Lu Xuan nodded back, feeling a bit tense.
"What kind of inspection will you be conducting?"
"We will use our artifacts to search your courtyard and also release an Evil Dispelling spell on you. We ask for your understanding."
One of the third-level cultivators explained from behind.
"Releasing the Evil Dispelling spell is fine, but searching my courtyard is a bit inconvenient. After all, no one wants their privacy invaded."
Lu Xuan politely declined. He didn't mind the spell being cast on him, but he wasn't keen on having his courtyard searched, especially since he didn't want anyone to see the rare spiritual plants in his Spiritual Field.
If there were truly malevolent spirits, the spell would be enough to detect them. There was no need to search inside the house. Lu Xuan was certain that the big families and powerful forces in the market town, even those from Wang Shan next door, wouldn't conduct a detailed search inside.
"The helplessness of a loose cultivator..."
"If it comes to that, there’s no other choice."
Lu Xuan sighed inwardly and reached into his sleeve.
Seeing this, the three cultivators tensed up as if facing a great enemy.
(End of Chapter)