《My Daily Life of Farming in the World of Cultivation》 Chapter 1 - Chapter 1: Chapter 1: The Pitiful Agronomy Student Chapter 1: Chapter 1: The Pitiful Agronomy Student Within the Wind Spirit Sea Domain, there lies an island named Spirit Water Island. Spirit Water Island spans dozens of miles across, taking its name from a Spiritual Spring on the island, which further extends into a Spirit Water River. Because of the existence of the Spiritual Spring, although Spirit Water Island cannot compare with islands possessing Spirit Veins, it still barely boasts some spiritual energy. Relying on this scant spiritual energy, the Fang Family on the island has continued their legacy for hundreds of years. This day, atop the towering peak at the center of Spirit Water Island, a solitary young figure stood, gazing ahead and sighing deeply. ¡°Who would have thought I¡¯d transmigrate just like that, and to encounter such a start, truly unlucky.¡± The speaker was named Fang Yun, whose name in his previous life was Ling Yun. Indeed, Fang Yun was a transmigrator. In his previous life, he was a student about to graduate from an agricultural college, already harried by the many aspects of job hunting. He had pulled several all-nighters in a row, fully engaged in preparing for job applications. Unexpectedly, amid his busy job hunt, his carefully nurtured superb tomatoes were mysteriously picked clean by some conscienceless rogue. These were the super plants that he had devoted half a year to cultivating, selecting the seeds meticulously and tending carefully! Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?? Moreover, the plants were thriving, with each cluster producing over twenty tomatoes. Who was the damnable person that picked them all, not leaving even a single one for him? Without his graduation project, graduating would become a lot more troublesome, and it was possible he might even fail to graduate. One can imagine how devastating this was for Ling Yun. Upon receiving this bad news, coupled with the fatigue from several sleepless nights, Ling Yun¡¯s body collapsed under the strain, and he fainted, only to then transmigrate to this place and become the current Fang Yun. Although the Fang Family on Spirit Water Island had carried on for hundreds of years, they could only just about be called a half cultivator family. This was because, for a long time, the family only ever had one Cultivator. This wasn¡¯t due to a lack of potential successors, but because the spiritual energy on this island was exceedingly scarce, barely enough to sustain the needs of a single Cultivator. Thus, normally, it was only when the previous Cultivator¡¯s lifespan was about to run out that the family would search within for someone with a Spirit Root to cultivate. Such a mode of inheritance actually had significant drawbacks. For instance, if the island¡¯s only Cultivator were to suddenly die unexpectedly, or if there were no individuals with a Spirit Root in the family when the Cultivator was about to pass away. And only after his death does someone with a Spirit Root appear. Under such circumstances, the family could only rely on the elders to use a rudimentary Spirit Testing Stone to search for a person with a Spirit Root within the family and then begin their cultivation. If one could not be found, they would have to wait for the next generation to grow up before continuing the search. Using this primitive method of inheritance, the Fang Family has struggled to continue for hundreds of years. However, fortuitously, the value of Spirit Water Island was indeed low, and no Cultivators would take an interest in it. Even if some Cultivators did covet the Spiritual Spring on this island, Relying on the heritage left by the Fang Family over hundreds of years, they could still manage to defend it. After all, Cultivators interested in a Spiritual Spring far weaker than a Spirit Vein wouldn¡¯t be very powerful. And Fang Yun, he became the sole Cultivator of the Fang Family when the previous generation¡¯s Cultivator suddenly passed away. The previous generation¡¯s Cultivator of the Fang Family had left the island to trade for some cultivation supplies, and after he left, he never returned. Clearly, he encountered unexpected trouble on the way and tragically lost his life. One must understand that the previous generation of cultivators was merely a Qi Refinement Stage Two cultivator. He left the island to conduct trade and encountered such a tragic end¡ªnothing could be more common. After all, the Cultivation World has always been fraught with crisis, especially for low-level cultivators like themselves. It could be said that the misfortunes of the past cultivators of the Fang Family were generally caused by this very reason. If one¡¯s own strength was too feeble, it was best to stay on the island honestly and not leave rashly. And once one left, they had to be prepared to be erased by others at any time. After the previous generation cultivator¡¯s departure from this world, the elder found Fang Yun, a person with a Spirit Root, with the use of a simple Spirit Testing Stone. Thus, at the age of 16, he thus became the new cultivator of the Fang Family and, naturally, the new Clan Leader. Upon becoming the Clan Leader, Fang Yun officially took over all of the Fang Family¡¯s cultivation resources. This included a Spiritual Spring, as well as two plots of spirit fields nourished by the water flowing from this Spring. In addition, there were a dozen faintly glowing Spirit Stones and a secret manual for the Chang Chun Skill that could be cultivated up to the Qi Cultivation Third Layer. There were also a dozen Spirit Talismans of various attributes and a slightly damaged Magic Artifact. However, Spirit Talismans and the Magic Artifact were considered the Fang Family¡¯s profound legacy, not even the Clan Leader Fang Yun was qualified to use them at will. This was to guard against the unforeseen possibility that if the Clan Leader unfortunately perished, and enemies came to invade, the family¡¯s elders could activate these Spirit Talismans and Magic Artifact through other special methods, helping the family through difficult crises. Therefore, under the current circumstances, the Spirit Talismans and Magic Artifact could temporarily be ignored. Consequently, the only thing that Fang Yun could focus on, besides diligently practicing cultivation, was to carefully tend to those two plots of spirit fields. However, what a pity it was that the Earth Spirit Rice he painstakingly planted suffered a pest disaster. Green Beetles, emerging from who knows where, had nibbled the maturing Spirit Rice down to nothing. For Fang Yun, who had just broken through to the first layer of Qi Cultivation and whose foundation was still unstable, this undoubtedly was an extremely heavy blow. After all, apart from the Spiritual Energy contained in the Spiritual Spring, these Spirit Rice were his only reliance for cultivation resources. As for those dozen or so Spirit Stones, one reason was that they were one-time-use commodities, not resources for long-term cultivation. On the other hand, they were the Fang Family¡¯s inheritance passed down over hundreds of years. The elder explicitly instructed Fang Yun when handing them over, not to use them for cultivation. Because they were too precious, he might need to rely on these Spirit Stones if they ever had to make purchases! Now that the Spirit Rice had been completely devoured by the Green Beetles, it meant that his path of cultivation had suffered a serious setback. Thus, Fang Yun, who had just broken through and had not yet stabilized his realm, suddenly experienced qi deviation. Perhaps it was the pull and guidance of a similar fate in the depths of the unknown that allowed Ling Yun from Earth to take the place of this world¡¯s Fang Yun and become the lowest-ranked cultivator in this world. Memories of the original host continuously flashed through Fang Yun¡¯s mind, leaving him with particularly complex emotions. On one hand, he could have been elated to go from being an ordinary student on Earth to becoming a cultivator, by logic. On the other hand, the assets left by the original host were pathetically scarce, while the troubles were plentiful. Putting other issues aside, merely this injured body was enough to cause Fang Yun substantial headaches. What transmigrated was merely the soul of Fang Yun; it did not help the injury caused by the original owner¡¯s qi deviation. Although he did not lose his life due to qi deviation like the original owner. But repairing the meridians damaged by the qi deviation would not be that simple and easy. Chapter 2 - Chapter 2: Chapter 2 Planting Spirit Rice Chapter 2: Chapter 2 Planting Spirit Rice It has already been three whole days since he crossed over, and it took him immense efforts comparable to the strength of nine oxen and two tigers just to tidy up the chaotic Spiritual Energy within his body. Only then did he have the chance to step outside and head up to the summit to take a breath of fresh air and soothe his mood. Next, the only thing he needed to focus on was healing his injuries and then cultivating with all his might. Other matters were not within Fang Yun¡¯s control just yet. Gathering his tangled thoughts from mind, Fang Yun was about to head down the mountain. Since he had come out, he might as well take a look at the Spirit Rice that had been plagued by Green Beetles. It was uncertain whether the agricultural knowledge in his mind could handle these pests in this world. If it was possible to deal with them, he would do his best to rescue those Spirit Rice. After all, for him, this was an incredibly rare resource for cultivation. Thinking this, Fang Yun slowly walked down from the mountaintop. He reached a cave on the mountainside. Inside the cave was the only Spiritual Spring of the Fang Family, and it was also where Fang Yun had cultivated before. In front of the cave was a water channel; a thin stream of water gurgled out from the cave, meandering down along the rock crevices towards the foot of the mountain. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í¨À0.§ã¦Ï Following the direction of the flow, Fang Yun walked for a moment and came to a depression on the mountain, where he saw the only piece of spirit field owned by the Fang Family. Calling it a spirit field was a bit of a stretch, but with the nourishment of the spring water from the Spiritual Spring, it was still possible to grow some Low Grade one level Spirit Rice. The spring water flowing out from the cave gurgled into the spirit field and then continued along the water channel towards the lower mountain from the other end of the spirit field. Eventually reaching the foot of the mountain, it merged into a magnificent Big River on the island. Then it rushed southwards all the way to the estuary. This Big River was the Spirit Water River on Spirit Water Island, but how much spirit water was actually in the river was hard to say. Even so, along the way, this river still nourished tens of thousands of acres of fields along both banks of the Big River, sustaining hundreds of thousands of mortals of the Fang Family. With the cool spring water flowing under his feet, Fang Yun slowly walked into the spirit field. Looking at the remaining Spirit Rice in the field, Fang Yun helplessly shook his head. The rice ears on the Spirit Rice had been gnawed away, and even the stems of the Spirit Rice were all withered and yellow, clearly beyond rescue or hope. It seems that he could only remove all these Spirit Rice, and then replant new Spirit Rice. Fortunately, the former Fang Yun had not used up all the Spirit Rice Seeds. Otherwise, Fang Yun would really be at a loss. As for going out to buy new Spirit Rice Seeds, Fang Yun absolutely did not dare to. After all, the previous Cultivator had just died outside, let alone himself who was just injured and disabled? But thinking about planting new Spirit Rice, Fang Yun was somewhat worried about whether he might encounter Green Beetles again. This kind of anxious thought stayed in Fang Yun¡¯s mind for only a moment before he pushed it to the back of his mind. Worrying was useless, as there really wasn¡¯t any good defensive strategy for this matter currently. He could only wait until the filling period of the Spirit Rice and pay extra attention and care. Or just live directly in the spirit field. This might be able to salvage some of the losses. If the original Fang Yun had realized this, he wouldn¡¯t have ended up with nothing like now! Thinking so, Fang Yun approached a stalk of Spirit Rice, bent down, and pinched a green beetle the size of a soybean from its stem. He held it in his hand and examined it carefully. He discovered that the beetle had no unique features, nor was it the legendary Spiritual Insect. There is no attack ability whatsoever. The only advantage, it seems, is their large numbers. This is probably why the original Fang Yun, after realizing something was wrong, could do nothing about them. After discovering that these Green Beetles had no attack power, Fang Yun simply squeezed one lightly and crushed it to bits. From this point of view, it was indeed good news for Fang Yun. At least by then, when facing these Green Beetles, he wouldn¡¯t be completely helpless. Afterward, Fang Yun caught some Green Beetles from several stalks of Spirit Rice. He found they were no different from ordinary pests. With this, he was completely relieved. Unfortunately, he did not know how to make any insecticides, otherwise dealing with these pests would be much simpler. No longer thinking about these things, he uprooted the remaining Spirit Rice and neatly placed them aside. Then he carefully tidied up the spirit field. The next day, after completing his healing routine, Fang Yun took the Spirit Rice Seeds and a fine iron hoe, and slowly walked out of the cave towards the spirit field. It¡¯s not that he didn¡¯t want to recover from his injuries quickly, but there was truly no better way to heal this kind of meridian injury. He could only mobilize the mana in his body daily to slowly flow through the injured meridians. Allowing this mana to gradually nourish the meridians to achieve a recovery effect. However, this healing method was not only extremely inefficient but also hard to sustain. Running it for more than half two-hour periods each day, the injured meridians would reach their limit. Continuing further would instead aggravate the injury. But this was also good, as the remaining time could be used to handle other matters. In a short while, Fang Yun arrived at the spirit field. He lifted the fine iron hoe and fiercely hoe towards the spirit field. Then he exerted force to pry open a small hole in the black soil of the spirit field. Though the black soil in the spirit field was always soaked in spring water, hoeing it was quite strenuous. Because the black soil contained Spiritual Power, making it several times heavier than ordinary soil. It also meant that the cohesive force between the black soil was much stronger than that of ordinary soil. Without sufficient strength, he couldn¡¯t hoe at all. After spending most of the day, Fang Yun finally dug hundreds of small holes. Then he carefully placed the seeds of Spirit Rice into the holes and struggled to fill them back up. After finishing all this, the sky had completely darkened. Feeling somewhat exhausted, Fang Yun carried the hoe and slowly walked towards the cave. Arriving at the shore, Fang Yun glanced back at the spirit field. From the original Fang Yun¡¯s memory, he knew that the cultivation of Spirit Rice was simple and unadorned. There were absolutely no complicated steps like advance breeding or fertilizing. He didn¡¯t know if everyone in this world farmed this way or if the Fang Family simply had no tradition of farming. Although Fang Yun¡¯s mind contained over a hundred ways to make fertilizers. But after all, the world had changed drastically. Fang Yun needed to consider whether these fertilizers would be compatible with the Spirit Rice. If he recklessly tried and ended up killing the Spirit Rice, that would be a problem. For now, it is better to follow the planting methods of this world, and wait for an appropriate opportunity to slowly try the methods from his previous life. Chapter 3 - Chapter 3: Chapter 3 Golden Finger Chapter 3: Chapter 3 Golden Finger In the following days, Fang Yun diligently stayed within the cave, carefully circulating the Mana within his body, allowing it to slowly pass through his injured meridians to heal them. The rest of the time, he would take out the Chang Chun Skill and read through it. He familiarized himself with the various mysteries of this Cultivation Technique. At the same time, he deeply studied the three Spells that came with this Cultivation Technique. One of these Spells was the Earth Power Skills, which could mobilize the Spiritual Energy within the earth to aid in the cultivation of crops. This Spell was the foundational technique for cultivating a spirit field, with relatively low requirements ¨C one only needed to reach the first layer of Qi Cultivation to practice it. Unfortunately, Fang Yun was still recovering from injuries and was unable to practice it. The second Spell was the Spirit Rain Skill, capable of condensing a cloud and then forming spirit water, mainly used for watering crops. This Spell demanded a higher level of cultivation; without reaching the second layer of Qi Cultivation, one simply could not perform this Spell. After all, the Mana within the body was too sparse to execute any Spells. The third Spell was the Gold Qi Skill, which was the only attack Spell; however, don¡¯t expect to use it against enemies. Because this Spell was about manipulating Golden Spirit Qi, it was specifically for pest control. For humans, the lethality of this Spell was far too negligible. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?? Moreover, to perform this Spell, the Mana requirement was at least the third layer of Qi Cultivation. Therefore, Fang Yun had to put it out of his mind for the short term. After familiarizing himself with the Cultivation Method and researching the three Spells, several days passed by quietly. After a few days of healing, there were signs of improvement in the injuries within Fang Yun¡¯s meridians. According to the current rate of progress, it was estimated that it would take about a year to fully recover. By then, Fang Yun would regain his Cultivation to the level of Qi Cultivation layer one. He could then continue his cultivation practices. Thinking it would still take a year before he could cultivate, Fang Yun looked at the Spiritual Spring next to him that occasionally emitted a wisp of Spiritual Energy and felt a deep sense of regret. With his meridians currently injured, he couldn¡¯t refine the Spiritual Energy. He could only watch the Spiritual Energy slowly dissipate into the air, which felt like a tremendous waste. That night, Fang Yun was sound asleep on a small bed in the corner of the cave. Without knowing when, the sky outside the cave began to flash with lightning and rumble with thunder, followed by a torrential downpour. At this moment, the sleeping Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but frown. An unusual sensation surged within him. It felt as if he had become a seed, attempting to break through its hard shell with great effort in such extreme weather, then to take root and sprout. This feeling grew stronger and finally woke Fang Yun from his sleep. He got up with a frown and went to the entrance of the cave, looking at the terrible storm raging outside. But after a mere glance, Fang Yun no longer paid attention. He carefully sensed the feeling in his heart and sought the direction from which it originated. There lay the location of the spirit field. ¡°Could something have happened to the spirit field?¡± With this thought, Fang Yun didn¡¯t care about the extreme weather outside. He rushed into the pouring rain and quickly moved above the spirit field. By this time, the spirit field had been completely submerged by the swift water flowing down from the mountain top. However, standing above, Fang Yun could still clearly sense the Spirit Rice Seeds inside the field, those that were striving to break out of their shells. Yes, it was the Spirit Rice Seeds that he had planted a few days ago that gave him that strong sensation. ¡°Golden Finger? Or is it an increase in Soul Power due to transmigration?¡± Upon realizing that the strong sensation of breaking out of a shell originated from the recently planted Spirit Rice Seeds. Fang Yun immediately felt invigorated and became excited. For Fang Yun, a transmigrator, this was a long-awaited sensation. ¡°Regardless of whether it¡¯s a substantial enhancement of Soul Power or the arrival of the Golden Finger, both are extremely advantageous for him. After all, in the numerous novels he read in his past life, such plot developments were all too familiar. However, judging from the current situation, it seems more likely that it¡¯s the Golden Finger. After all, a significant increase in Soul Power should feel like more than this, like an increase in comprehension, and clearer senses, right? Thus, Fang Yun didn¡¯t go anywhere, and just stood straight in the heavy rain, quietly waiting for the Spirit Rice Seeds to break through their shells. After an indeterminate amount of time, a crisp ¡°crack¡± sound suddenly echoed in Fang Yun¡¯s mind, followed by a sensation as if a force was released from within, bringing him great relief. With that ¡°crack,¡± more and more similar sounds continued, and the oppressive feeling in Fang Yun¡¯s heart gradually vanished. At that moment, Fang Yun suddenly sensed an ancient scroll appearing in the depths of his consciousness. The scroll slowly opened, revealing its contents. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 1 (Flawed) Mana: 10 Plant Control: Spirit Rice (63) Fang Yun looked at the scroll that emerged in the depths of his consciousness, then at its contents. Only then did he realize that his Golden Finger was actually a panel. This thing is familiar to him. It¡¯s a common feature in transmigration novels. He just never thought he¡¯d one day become one of the lucky ones. Taking advantage of the ongoing rain, and unable to enter the spirit field for now, Fang Yun carefully examined the content of the panel. The content of the panel was actually quite simple: it was his Cultivation and Mana, and the display appeared to be accurate. Indeed, he was a flawed Qi Cultivation Level 1 practitioner. As for Mana, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t quantify it, but according to the panel, there should be no problem. As for the controlled plants, they should be the Spirit Rice in the spirit field in front of him. But the number 63 puzzled Fang Yun. Does it mean that only 63 seeds in the spirit field germinated? He had initially planted a hundred seeds. The survival rate seems a bit low. Whether this is true or not, he¡¯ll find out soon; a hundred seeds are easy to count. At this time, the sky was gradually brightening, and the heavy rain had stopped at some unknown point, with the excess water in the spirit field slowly flowing down the mountain. By noon, Fang Yun walked into the spirit field, which had returned to its usual appearance. Following the sensation, he bent down and gently moved the black soil aside. The Spirit Rice Seed was revealed. On the seed, there was a crack. A tender white sprout carefully emerged from within. Seeing this scene, a smile bloomed on Fang Yun¡¯s face. Fang Yun then covered the seed back up with the black soil. After that, Fang Yun continued pacing in the spirit field, slowly sensing the condition of each Spirit Rice Seed. He realized that as long as a seed had germinated, he was able to distinctly sense the emotions of the seed, as well as get a general sense of its condition. It was as if a vague channel of sensation had formed between him and these seeds. It seems that in addition to the display of the panel, his Golden Finger also possesses other functionalities. As for those seeds that hadn¡¯t germinated, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t sense them at all. It¡¯s unclear whether this is because the seeds haven¡¯t germinated yet or if they¡¯re simply dead seeds that won¡¯t germinate. Nevertheless, with such a Golden Finger to assist, Fang Yun¡¯s future farming endeavors will likely progress very smoothly. If farming goes well, could there be any problems on his path of cultivation? According to the information from the panel, it¡¯s quite clear that he ought to follow the path of a Spirit Plant Cultivator. Fang Yun has no objections to the path chosen for him by the Golden Finger, as it was his professional expertise in his previous life. Now, it¡¯s just a matter of professional alignment, so why not embrace it?¡± Chapter 4 - Chapter 4: Chapter 4: The Anomaly of Spirit Rice Chapter 4: Chapter 4: The Anomaly of Spirit Rice After setting his heart on a goal, Fang Yun suddenly felt much lighter. He began to harbor even more expectations for the future. Subsequently, Fang Yun carefully counted the sprouted Spirit Rice Seeds. He indeed found only 63, confirming that the Golden Finger was reliable in this regard; he just didn¡¯t know whether the remaining seeds would sprout later. It seemed that in the next planting, he should improve the breeding methods to increase the seed survival rate. Fang Yun noted the positions of the seeds that had not sprouted. Then he returned to the cave. Over the next few days, Fang Yun visited the spirit field every day to observe the sprouted seeds. He sensed their emotions, checking if there was any discomfort. At the same time, he checked if there were any changes in his own panel. He also paid attention to the previously unsprouted seeds to see if there were any new signs of germination. However, after several days, there was no change to the Golden Finger, and the remaining thirty-seven seeds still hadn¡¯t sprouted, causing Fang Yun to give up on them completely. After digging up these non-sprouted seeds, he stopped paying any attention to them. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?0¦Í??.?¦Ï He continued to focus his attention on the sixty-three sprouted seeds. Time flowed by, and a month passed in the blink of an eye. The sprouted seeds grew exceptionally well, now emerging above the water. Each one was lush and green without any flaws or problems. This was the result of Fang Yun¡¯s careful nurturing, as it wasn¡¯t without the growth of weeds. However, as soon as the weeds started to emerge, the Spirit Rice sent out a warning, which Fang Yun discovered immediately. He pulled out the weeds before they could grow further. This prevented the weeds from competing with the Spirit Rice for Spiritual Energy, allowing the Spirit Rice to grow so well. However, Fang Yun could not let his guard down yet, because according to the growth cycle of Spirit Rice, it would take another eleven months for them to fully mature. Fang Yun was helpless about this. Although he was eager inside, longing to see if his Golden Finger would change after the Spirit Rice matured, the fixed growth cycle of plants was something Fang Yun could do nothing about. A few more days passed, and while inspecting the spirit field, Fang Yun suddenly felt a sense of discomfort from one of the Spirit Rice plants. This unusual sensation was far more intense than when he had previously discovered weeds, making Fang Yun pay immediate and serious attention to it. He walked into the spirit field, approaching the problematic Spirit Rice. Fang Yun crouched down, intently observing the Spirit Rice in front of him. He found it still stood tall and straight, its color as green and vibrant as ever, and he did not detect any abnormalities. There was no trace of insects, and no weeds growing nearby. Looking at his panel, there were no alerts either. It seemed his Golden Finger was not as powerful as he thought. Or perhaps more functions of the Golden Finger relied on his own perception rather than the panel. The panel was just a summarizing display. This made Fang Yun frown, and he sensed the Spirit Rice even more carefully. After a long time, he discerned that the Spirit Rice seemed to be hungry, or in other words, it wasn¡¯t getting enough nourishment. Not getting enough nourishment? Fang Yun stood up and looked around the entire spirit field. ¡°` Instantly realizing, this means that there is a shortage of Spiritual Energy supply! After all, growing Spirit Rice requires the spiritual energy from both the dark soil and the spring water. And the spiritual energy in these two is actually just barely meeting the standards; under such circumstances, it¡¯s only logical that it cannot satisfy the demand of the Spirit Rice. Previous Cultivators didn¡¯t have a Golden Finger like Fang Yun, hence they never noticed such a situation; as far as they were concerned, having a harvest was good enough, and there was no need to worry about anything else. Moreover, even if they did discover it, they were powerless to solve it. Fang Yun walked out of the spirit field, standing beside it and frowning as he pondered over the entire spirit field. Although he understood that it was normal for the current spirit field to not meet the growth requirements of Spirit Rice. Yet, the current Spirit Rice was after all related to his own Golden Finger, that is, his path of Cultivation. He couldn¡¯t just ignore it. If he were to leave it unattended, these Spirit Rice would, even if they managed to survive the pest infestation, inevitably experience reduced yields due to malnutrition. This was definitely not the outcome Fang Yun wished to see. As his first batch of planted Spirit Rice, Fang Yun wholeheartedly hoped they could grow up flawlessly. Even if it meant paying a certain price! Fang Yun made a firm decision in his heart! If he wants the Spirit Rice to grow perfectly. There are but two approaches: increase the source or reduce consumption. Increasing the source refers to enhancing the supply of Spiritual Energy in the spirit field, while reducing consumption means decreasing the number of Spirit Rice so that the remaining ones have sufficient resources to grow. Reducing consumption was not in line with Fang Yun¡¯s expectations. So, he could only choose to increase the source. The only way Fang Yun could think of to increase the Spiritual Energy in the spirit field was by using the handful of Spirit Stones he had. These were the only valuable possessions Fang Yun had on hand. However, without sacrificing something, one cannot gain anything; at such a point, it was necessary to forsake those Spirit Stones, nothing too grave. He was not the original Fang Yun, who, until his death, was too miserly to use a single Spirit Stone. With the existence of the Golden Finger, he firmly believed he would soon earn back the lost Spirit Stones. Thus, Fang Yun returned to the cave and took all the Spirit Stones in one fell swoop. Since one stalk of Spirit Rice had already shown such a reaction, it wouldn¡¯t be long before other Spirit Rice would face similar situations. That small number of Spirit Stones would definitely not be enough; it would be better to take them all and then adapt according to the actual circumstances. Back at the side of the spirit field, Fang Yun looked at the Spirit Rice within the field. He began to contemplate how to maximize the utilization of the Spirit Stones he held in his hands. After all, the number of Spirit Stones in his hands was truly limited; they could not be squandered or wasted indiscriminately. If the Spirit Stones were depleted before the Spirit Rice in the spirit field fully matured, then his plan would be completely ruined. This was not a scenario Fang Yun could accept. Hence, Fang Yun took out three from the fifteen Spirit Stones he had, setting them aside as reserves for emergencies. The remaining twelve were divided into two portions; six stones he planned to apply directly to the spirit field to increase the concentration of Spiritual Energy within it. The other six were temporarily kept back in case the first six were exhausted and there were no Spirit Stones for replenishment. Afterward, Fang Yun carefully placed the six Spirit Stones throughout the spirit field in an evenly distributed manner, according to its layout structure. And he didn¡¯t bury them in the soil because Fang Yun planned to let the Spirit Stones release their contained Spiritual Energy slowly under the continuous rinse of the spring water. If he placed the Spirit Stones in the soil, the roots of the Spirit Rice would not be able to break through the hard shell of the Spirit Stones to access the Spiritual Energy inside. If so, the Spirit Stones would not be able to play their due role. ¡°` Chapter 5 - Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Descending the Mountain Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Descending the Mountain After placing the Spirit Stones properly, Fang Yun spent the following days constantly guarding the spirit field. Even the daily routine of healing was not conducted back in the cave. After all, his method of healing was merely using Mana to nourish the meridians, which could be done anywhere. The Spiritual Energy in the Spiritual Spring, given his current condition, couldn¡¯t be absorbed for cultivation purposes. At present, the Spirit Rice in the spirit field was at a critical moment, other matters had to be temporarily set aside. Only when the Spirit Rice overcame this difficult phase, could he be at ease. After several days of close observation, Fang Yun discovered that his initial thoughts were correct, the Spirit Stones in the field indeed merged part of the Spiritual Energy into the soil with the constant washing of the spring water. The previously emotionally unusual Spirit Rice had returned to normal over these few days. And the other Spirit Rice didn¡¯t show any problems either, instead, they exuded a sense of satisfaction. With this, Fang Yun finally felt relieved. Following that, Fang Yun continued his observations for several more days, the growth of the Spirit Rice was still normal, with no anomalies. In this phase, there were no pests appearing either, and whenever weeds grew, Fang Yun promptly removed them. The consumption rate of the Spirit Stones in the spirit field was not as fast as he had imagined. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï??0.§ã¦Ï In such a situation, Fang Yun left the spirit field with peace of mind and returned to the cave. In non-urgent situations, even if unable to cultivate, staying at the mouth of the cave was more comfortable, at least it spared him from the wind and the sun. For the next month, Fang Yun traveled back and forth between the spirit field and the cave. He continued healing while observing the growth of the Spirit Rice. The growth of the Spirit Rice went smoothly, and after one month, it sprouted a few new leaves. It was one step closer to maturity. At this time, however, Fang Yun started to feel bored. He didn¡¯t have this feeling when he was busy, but now as the Spirit Rice was growing smoothly, he only needed to check them occasionally to see if any of the plants showed abnormal emotions. Then, as usual, he would remove any weeds and that would be all. At this stage, there were no pests appearing yet, the only danger to the Spirit Rice were those weeds. Weeding ultimately didn¡¯t take much time. And due to the injuries in his meridians, Fang Yun was temporarily unable to cultivate. Thus, he had a lot of free time each day. Previously during his free time, Fang Yun could take out the Chang Chun Skill to read. Now, he had become bored of reading that secret manual, even memorizing it thoroughly by heart. But even though he knew it well, in the inability to cultivate, the content of the book could hardly be put to any practical use. In such a situation, the idle days became almost unbearable for Fang Yun. The only Golden Finger panel still displayed the same data, two months had gone by, no matter what he did, it showed no changes at all. From this aspect, it was evident that during these two months, there had been little to no improvement in his strength or control over plants. And on this mountain, considering the vital importance of the Spiritual Spring, other than Fang Yun the cultivator, it was strictly forbidden for common people to enter. Even the elders of the Fang Family only came up to the mountain in urgent situations, otherwise, they resided at the base of the mountain or within the town. This made it impossible for Fang Yun to find someone to talk to. On this day, after Fang Yun carefully inspected the Spirit Rice in the spirit field and did some weeding, he then checked the consumption of the Spirit Stones. After finishing all this, he had completed his tasks for today. However, at this moment, Fang Yun did not want to return to the cave again. Because today¡¯s healing task had been completed, and if he were to go back, there would be nothing else to do except for flipping through the Chang Chun Skill book, which he had already read many times. It would be better to take a walk down the mountain. Since arriving in this world over two months ago, Fang Yun had never left this mountain. Nor had he seen anyone other than himself. It was time to go down the mountain for a stroll. After all, with his identity as a Cultivator, even if he encountered people from the Fang Family at the foot of the mountain, he probably wouldn¡¯t face any danger. With a plan in mind, Fang Yun still, as a precaution, took a fine iron sword left behind by a previous generation Cultivator and wore it on his body, before leaving the cave. Rather than walking down the usual mountain path, he followed the flow of the spring, heading towards the foot of the mountain. The spring water flowed down from the spirit field towards the mountain¡¯s foot, not in a straight line, But in the mountain¡¯s rocky crevices, constantly turning and winding, passing through numerous places before finally reaching the foot of the mountain. Following the direction of the flowing spring, Fang Yun moved forward, benefiting from the nourishment of the water, witnessing a thriving landscape along the way. Trees were lush, grasslands were verdant, flowers were competing in beauty, and there were various types of rare plants he had never seen before, and Fang Yun even discovered some approximated medicinal herbs among them. It seemed that many years had passed since these things had last been harvested. Indeed, these things were ignored by Cultivators and unreachable by ordinary people. They could only continuously grow, wither, and then grow again, constantly experiencing such cycles. While admiring the charming scenery along the way, Fang Yun¡¯s mood instantly became much more pleasant. Moreover, seeing these plants, Fang Yun¡¯s occupational instincts kicked in, making him eager to stop right there and start researching. To explore the secrets hidden within these plants. However, ultimately, Fang Yun managed to resist the urge. At this stage, his main tasks were still healing, cultivating Spirit Rice, and exploring his Golden Finger. Once these aspects were settled, then Fang Yun could spare time to research these rare plants and achieve twice the results with half the effort. Rather than wasting time on these plants now, which might lead to losing out on bigger opportunities. Having set his plan, he continued walking towards the mountain¡¯s foot. After a while, Fang Yun finally reached the foot of the mountain. Following the direction of the flowing spring, he saw a wide, majestic river that was hundreds of meters wide. Walking along the great river for a short while, Fang Yun finally saw endless paddy fields in front of him. At this time, the paddy fields were in the seedling stage, and the entire field was a vibrant green. A surge of boldness spontaneously arose in Fang Yun¡¯s chest. Although these paddy fields were not planted by him personally, as the Clan Leader of the Fang Family, he still had some control over them. If in the future his farming skills could improve, and he could find better rice varieties along with thoroughly researching his Golden Finger, Then these vast and boundless paddy fields would become his ideal experimental fields. Chapter 6 - Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Finding the Right Experimental Field Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Finding the Right Experimental Field Thinking of the Golden Finger, he glanced at the rice paddy before him. Fang Yun suddenly had a flash of inspiration, remembering that his Golden Finger awoke while he was planting Spirit Rice. However, the Golden Finger didn¡¯t provide him with a detailed manual, merely displaying the number of plants he could control. Nor did it explicitly state that the plants must be Spirit Rice for the Golden Finger to function. Could there be a possibility that the Golden Finger could also affect ordinary crops? If this idea proved true, the progress of researching his Golden Finger would undoubtedly accelerate significantly. Now, the Golden Finger, aside from the display panel with the functionality to show, only had the ability to sense Spirit Rice. Although these two functions were still decent, converting them into his own strength proved somewhat difficult. This was the reason why he pursued the development of other abilities of the Golden Finger. A mere Qi Cultivation at the first level is truly defenseless in this world. To develop new functions for the Golden Finger, the best current method seems to be to wait for the maturation of the Spirit Rice; Fang Yun has not thought of any other ways for the time being. But the maturation period for Spirit Rice is exceedingly long. If changed to ordinary crops, the time to maturity would be much shorter. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.?¦Ï Moreover, during this process, he could experiment with the use of fertilizers known from his past life. Because of its preciousness, Fang Yun truly dare not rashly employ those fertilizers on Spirit Rice. But for ordinary crops, there are far fewer concerns. If the fertilizer experiment succeeds, it could not only promote more robust growth of the crops, but it would also undoubtedly be great news for the Fang Family. With this in mind, Fang Yun¡¯s mood surged with excitement, he stopped in his tracks and turned towards the mountain. Wanting to quickly find a suitable experimental field for the planting of ordinary crops. As for allocating a portion of these rice paddies at the foot of the mountain, that would also be possible. But on one hand, it¡¯s too far from the mountain, and it¡¯s inconvenient for him to commute back and forth; his focus is still on the cultivation of Spirit Rice in the spirit field. The planting of the crops is merely an experiment concerning the Golden Finger, and even if the experiment truly succeeds, ordinary crops could never be as important as Spirit Rice. On the other hand, the rice paddies before him were already planted with rice, and it was unnecessary for him to remove some of the rice for his own experiments. Doing so would make him feel like a tyrant, and it was not necessary. There are numerous undeveloped wastelands on Spirit Water Island. Not to mention others, just in the mountains to the north, there lies vast tracts of land unclaimed by humans. The terrain of the entire Spirit Water Island displays a high-north and low-south topology, with the north consisting of rolling mountains, and the south, a vast plain. A Big River, originating from the mountains in the north, flows to the south, thundering all the way to the sea. Splitting the entire south in two. On both sides of the Big River, there are tens of thousands of acres of rice paddies, and behind them, towns and villages where the Fang Family¡¯s kin reside. Aside from the mountains to the north, even in the south, away from the Big River, there is still a great deal of undeveloped land. However, for the time being, Fang Yun does not require such vast lands; for now, he simply needs some experimental fields to test his Golden Finger. Thus, Fang Yun returned to the mountains once more. After some meticulous preparations, he began his journey from the back of the mountain peak, heading north to explore. His heart was filled with the hope that he would find a piece of land that met his needs. However, it was clear that finding such an ideal piece of land would require a significant amount of time and effort. As night approached, an empty-handed Fang Yun had no choice but to return to the mountains. In the following days, after finishing his healing every day, carefully checking the status of the Spirit Rice, and weeding, Fang Yun tirelessly continued northward. After several days, as the saying goes, hard work pays off. Fang Yun finally found the experimental field he had longed for in a secluded valley. Inside this valley, there was a plot of land spanning several hundred acres. It was densely covered with various trees, flowers, plants, and other vegetation, all of which were very lush. From this sight alone, it was evident that the soil was extremely rich in nutrients. Moreover, in the center of the land, there was a clear stream babbling through. It was precisely because of the existence of this stream that the land was full of life and vigor. Fang Yun stood atop the valley, looking down at the vibrant land below, and couldn¡¯t help but reveal a satisfied smile on his face. Not only was the land fertile, but this place was also only a few kilometers away from the mountain peak where he practiced his Qi Cultivation. With his current speed, he could reach this place in no more than half an hour. This way, he would be able to take care of both locations without neglecting one for the other. This discovery made Fang Yun even more satisfied with this place. Afterward, Fang Yun returned to the top of the mountain, picked up his fine iron hoe, equipped himself with a fine iron sword, and also found an ordinary axe. The hoe was for plowing the land, the axe for chopping wood, and the fine iron sword was for self-defense. One must know that on Spirit Water Island, there weren¡¯t only humans. In the wilderness, especially in the northern mountains, there were numerous fierce wild beasts lurking. Although there were no powerful demon beasts around, even ordinary wild animals were a significant threat to an injured cultivator like himself, whose strength had been greatly diminished. In addition to these three key items, Fang Yun also brought some bits and pieces of miscellaneous goods, as well as some essential provisions. After all the preparations were in place, he set off determinedly towards the canyon. Upon reaching the top of the canyon, Fang Yun carefully tied the ropes and slowly descended into the canyon along the ropes. Once on the ground, he began energetically clearing the trees and other plants in the canyon. In the following two months, on the premise that he ensured he had enough time for healing each day, and diligently checking the condition of the Spirit Rice, he devoted all his remaining time to the task of reclaiming the land in the canyon. After two months of exhausting chopping, thorough root removal, and concentrated burning, the entire canyon was finally cleared immaculately, without a speck of dust. The ashes from the burning were carefully mixed into the soil, greatly enhancing the fertility of the land. Although it took a full two months of long days, looking at the several hundred fertile and leveled acres, Fang Yun¡¯s heart was still very content and gratified. Next, it was necessary to make a reasonable plan for these acres, to determine the planting layout, and then to look for the appropriate seeds. After completing these preparations, he would be able to officially start his farming plan. Chapter 7 - Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Descending the Mountain, An Overview of the Fang Family Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Descending the Mountain, An Overview of the Fang Family Fang Yun took a special two-day rest to let his body, weary from two months of labor, relax and recover. This was the consequence of not being able to use Mana; otherwise, as a cultivator, even with just a Qi Cultivation level one, he wouldn¡¯t have been this exhausted. Afterward, he went to the spirit field, meticulously observing those spirit rice plants, checking for any negative emotions or abnormal conditions. In fact, even during the busy times in the canyon, he didn¡¯t forget to come every day to observe and pull out weeds. So, basically, nothing went wrong. These spirit rice plants, after more than four months of vigorous growth, had already reached a height of more than ten centimeters above the water¡¯s surface. And they had grown seven or eight tender green leaves. Due to the continuous effect of the Spirit Stones in the spirit field, the spirit rice did not exhibit any signs of Spiritual Energy deficiency. Fang Yun picked up the Spirit Stones from the spirit field and inspected them carefully, pleasantly surprised to find that the Spiritual Energy consumption had not even reached ten percent. If the consumption continued at this rate, these six Spirit Stones would be more than enough to support the spirit rice to maturity. For Fang Yun, who was strapped for cash, this was undoubtedly an encouraging piece of news. After resting for two days and waiting for his body to fully recover, Fang Yun headed down the mountain, hoping that the clan elders at the foot of the hill could help him find some seeds. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?¦Ï.§ã? Fang Yun did not plan to use all the hundreds of acres of land in the canyon to plant rice. On one hand, not all of the land in the canyon was suitable for rice cultivation. On the other hand, as an experimental field, if he only planted one type of crop, it wouldn¡¯t greatly benefit his research on the Golden Finger. Following the winding mountain path down, Fang Yun soon saw a courtyard at the foot of the mountain. Just as he was about to step forward, he saw the courtyard gate wide open, and two old men, accompanied by a large group of people, hurriedly rushed to greet him. Fang Yun was puzzled about how they knew he was coming down the mountain even though he hadn¡¯t notified them. However, when he looked back up the mountain, he realized that from here, one could clearly see some parts of the mountain path. It seemed that someone in the courtyard must have been observing the mountain path year-round. That was why they were able to come out to greet him as soon as he came down the mountain. In this regard, the two clan elders were quite attentive. ¡°Clan Leader, why did you come down from the mountain yourself? If you need anything, just give an order, and I¡¯ll personally bring it up to you,¡± said one of the old men, stepping briskly in front of Fang Yun with utmost respect. From the memory of his former self, Fang Yun knew that the old man in front of him was named Fang Lin, and the other old man was named Fang Zhou. They both lived in the courtyard at the foot of the mountain, serving him, the cultivator. However, Fang Yun felt speechless about the flattery in the old man¡¯s words just now. On the entire mountain, he lived alone, and without telephones in this world, if he needed anything, wouldn¡¯t he have to come down the mountain to inform them? Nevertheless, Fang Yun did not fuss over the logical flaw in Fang Lin¡¯s words. Instead, he politely said, ¡°There¡¯s no need to be so courteous, clan elder. The journey down the mountain isn¡¯t too far, just a stroll along the way! I came down this time because I urgently need some seeds. I wonder what the current seed situation in the clan is, and what types can be provided?¡± Fang Zhou, standing nearby, furrowed his brows in thought for a moment, ¡°Clan Leader, do you need seeds of Spiritual Objects? We don¡¯t have such things in our clan right now. If we did, they¡¯d be in the collections of past cultivators, not with us!¡± Upon hearing Fang Yun¡¯s request, they instinctively assumed that he needed the seeds of Spiritual Objects. After all, as a cultivator, what would he want with regular seeds? However, Fang Yun shook his head at this moment, ¡°I don¡¯t need seeds of Spiritual Objects. Just some ordinary seeds will suffice!¡± Hearing that Fang Yun only needed ordinary seeds, the two old men breathed a sigh of relief. Fang Lin immediately said, ¡°Ordinary seeds? Clan Leader, we have plenty of those. I¡¯ll have someone bring them to you right away. Clan Leader, please rest inside for a while. You¡¯ve never come down the mountain since you went up. There are many clan matters, and I just happen to take this opportunity to talk with you!¡± Saying this, he led the way ahead. Fang Yun thought briefly and followed him inside. Then he saw Fang Zhou start arranging for the people beside him to rush outside the courtyard. Knowing they were off to find what he needed, Fang Yun followed Fang Lin into the main hall of the courtyard. As he drank the tea respectfully offered by the servants, he sat for a while. Fang Lin, holding several book-like items, hurried out from behind the screen in the hall. He sat down beside Fang Yun, placed the books on the table, then said, ¡°Clan Leader, since you went up the mountain to cultivate a year ago, you haven¡¯t come down. I haven¡¯t had the chance to clearly explain the specifics of our Fang Family to you. This is the personnel roster of our Fang Family, and another book is our financial account books. Why don¡¯t you take some time to look them over?¡± Fang Yun glanced at Fang Lin, then at the books in his hand, and subsequently shook his head, ¡°Clan elder, I am currently in a crucial phase of cultivation and really don¡¯t have the time to delve into these matters. Since I have a bit of free time now, why don¡¯t you pick some important things and tell me about them. When I have more free time in the future, I¡¯ll take a more thorough look!¡± Fang Lin thought for a moment, nodded, and placed the books aside, then said, ¡°I¡¯ll give you a simple explanation! Our Fang Family came to Spirit Water Island hundreds of years ago. Initially, the ancestor of the Fang Family was a loose cultivator in the Wind Spirit Sea Domain, who, by chance, discovered the Spiritual Spring on Spirit Water Island. Then they flourished on this island, establishing the Fang Family. Over hundreds of years, our Fang Family faced many crises but withstood them all. And the family members gradually increased, reaching tens of thousands, with rice fields covering hundreds of thousands of acres. The only pity is that the Spiritual Energy in the Spring is too scarce, only able to support one cultivator. Even as prosperous as we are, the Fang Family still faces the risk of annihilation. From this perspective, we are somewhat embarrassed for our ancestors!¡± At this point, Fang Lin looked at Fang Yun and said, ¡°Clan Leader, if I may be bold, I hope you can cultivate diligently, rise to higher realms, and nurture more cultivators for our Fang Family. Only then can our Fang Family become increasingly prosperous and continue for generations!¡± Fang Yun listened to these words and nodded solemnly. Even if Fang Lin hadn¡¯t said anything, he was determined to cultivate earnestly. After all, on the path of cultivation, who doesn¡¯t want to reach greater heights? Chapter 8 - Chapter 8: Chapter 8: Seeds in Hand Chapter 8: Chapter 8: Seeds in Hand ¡°`html Seeing that Fang Yun had listened to his words, Fang Lin nodded reassuringly, then consoled him, ¡°However, Clan Leader, you don¡¯t need to bear too much pressure. Our Fang Family has developed to this point. Although we have only one cultivator, we do have quite a few martial artists. ¡°The martial artists of the Postnatal Realm aside, we have as many as ten elders in the Innate Realm in the Fang Family. ¡°Moreover, with the profound heritage left by generations of cultivators, as long as we don¡¯t rashly provoke others, we have a good grasp of holding Spirit Water Island!¡± Fang Yun heard the terms of the Postnatal Realm and Innate Realm, and he couldn¡¯t help but look at Fang Lin with great astonishment. ¡°Postnatal Realm, Innate Realm? Elder, besides cultivators, there are martial artists in this world?¡± Hearing Fang Yun¡¯s puzzled words, Fang Lin smiled and gently stroked his beard. Clearly, being able to answer questions and clarify doubts for Fang Yun, a cultivator, was an achievement for him. Then Fang Lin continued, ¡°As a cultivator, it¡¯s understandable that you, as the Clan Leader, are unaware of the martial artists among mortals. ¡°Among mortals, there exists a technique to extract primordial qi from food to cultivate martial arts. ¡°This can be used to counter the ferocious beasts in nature or the sea beasts in the ocean. ¡°However, it can only deal with ordinary creatures and hardly compete with those demon beasts containing spiritual energy. ¡°Martial arts are roughly divided into the Postnatal Realm and the Innate Realm. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï???.?¦Ï ¡°But even the most powerful Innate Realm can hardly contend with cultivators who absorb spiritual energy. ¡°This is a fundamental gap that can¡¯t be bridged!¡± As Fang Lin finished speaking, his expression turned somewhat rueful. After all, he had practiced martial arts all his life, and it was only after much hardship that he broke through to the Innate Realm, yet he could only reign among mortals. Even when facing a cultivator at the lowest realm, without relying on those spirit talismans passed down from their ancestors, they were utterly powerless. This was the fundamental difference. Even with Fang Lin¡¯s current mental realm, looking at the young Fang Yun before him, he couldn¡¯t help but be filled with emotion and helplessness. *Was this destiny, he wondered? Why didn¡¯t he have a Spirit Root?* *With such thoughts in his heart, Fang Lin¡¯s interest in the conversation suddenly diminished significantly.* Then he bypassed these emotions and spoke with Fang Yun about the Fang Family¡¯s financial issues. Upon hearing the vast difference between the Innate Realm and cultivators, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but secretly nod. He had originally thought that the Innate Realm in this world was equivalent to the Qi Cultivation Stage of cultivators. But now it seemed that even the most powerful Innate Realm couldn¡¯t compare to a Qi Cultivation Stage cultivator with a Spirit Root. This realization reassured him a lot, or else, in his current ¡°disabled¡± state as a cultivator, facing many Innate Realm elders would indeed be quite pressuring. Although Fang Yun was still curious about the martial arts realm of the Innate, seeing that Fang Lin had lost interest in discussing this matter, he felt it was inappropriate to pursue further questions. The subsequent discussion about the Fang Family¡¯s financial issues, Fang Yun listened casually and didn¡¯t take it seriously. Because the island where the Fang Family resided was nearly a hundred miles away from another island. They seldom interacted with the outside world on a daily basis, not much exchange occurred. Therefore, there weren¡¯t too many complicated financial issues. Before long, Fang Zhou, who had gone to search for seeds, returned. Fang Yun immediately perked up and hurriedly approached, quickly taking a large package from Fang Zhou¡¯s hands. He placed it on a table beside him and opened it. Fang Zhou pointed to the bags inside the cloth sack and introduced the seeds inside one by one. The types and quantities of seeds on the island weren¡¯t rich, and the rice seeds were the most numerous. In addition, there were soybean seeds and some vegetable seeds. Besides these common seeds, there were also some medicinal herb seeds common to the island. As Fang Zhou introduced them, images of the land in the canyon automatically emerged in Fang Yun¡¯s mind. He then made a rough plan based on the types and quantities of these seeds. After Fang Zhou finished the introduction, Fang Yun looked at the quantity of seeds in the package. Fang Zhou had prepared quite a lot, enough for him to squander. Fang Yun nodded towards Fang Lin and Fang Zhou, ¡°Alright, then I¡¯ll trouble the two of you, elders, this time. I¡¯ll take my leave now!¡± ¡°Clan Leader, there¡¯s no need to be so courteous. We two are here to handle these trivial matters for you. If you have any needs in the future, feel free to come to us!¡± Fang Lin said with a hearty laugh. Fang Yun nodded, lifted the heavy package, and turned to walk up the mountain. Watching Fang Yun¡¯s departing back, Fang Zhou spoke up, ¡°Elder Lin, what do you think of our new Clan Leader?¡± Fang Lin pondered for a moment, recalling Fang Yun¡¯s performances earlier, then said, ¡°In terms of cultivation, I really can¡¯t tell much, but in terms of personality, he seems quite steady. ¡°He should make a good clan leader!¡± Fang Zhou, feeling relieved, exhaled and said, ¡°As long as he¡¯s steady. The previous clan leader was too impulsive, disappearing without a trace on his first outing. It was really too dangerous for our Fang Family.¡± Fang Lin shook his head and said, ¡°As a cultivator, the spiritual energy on our island was too sparse, eventually leading him to venture out to seek opportunities. ¡°The previous clan leader also had no other choice!¡± Fang Zhou shook his head and said no more. Although what Fang Lin said made sense, he still wished for a steadier clan leader who wouldn¡¯t easily leave the island. Even if he needed to leave the island, a steadier personality could offer a higher chance of survival, preventing the Fang Family from suddenly falling into danger. Thinking of the recent disturbances outside the island, Fang Zhou¡¯s heart couldn¡¯t help but grow heavy. Following the mountain path, Fang Yun quickly returned to the cave, picked up a hoe, and slung the fine iron sword on his back. He took the package and strode toward the direction of the canyon. He soon arrived above the canyon, and by using the rope he left earlier, he smoothly entered the canyon. After placing the package filled with seeds aside, Fang Yun held a hoe, carefully surveying the land in the canyon, and began to plan the planting earnestly. There was a more than one hundred-acre low-lying area, waterlogged throughout the year, perfect for planting rice. With the stream providing a water source, there shouldn¡¯t be a concern about water scarcity for the rice here. After arranging the low areas properly, the remaining land was divided into two parts, one part for planting soybeans. The other part was subdivided into more than a dozen small sections where the medicinal herb seeds could be planted. There were also some vegetable seeds left, which Fang Yun planned to plant along the banks of the stream in succession. In this way, the several hundred acres of land could be fully utilized. After making a detailed plan, Fang Yun spent five days categorizing and dividing the terrain. Then he began to plant the rice. ¡°` Chapter 9 - Chapter 9: Chapter 9 Planting Chapter 9: Chapter 9 Planting Beside the low-lying plots, a five-acre piece of land was demarcated. First, he evenly scattered all the rice seeds on this piece of land. This step is called seedling cultivation, which is completely different from the planting method of Spirit Rice. For ordinary rice, Fang Yun still used the conventional methods he had learned in his past life. This practice effectively improved the seedling rate of the rice. After finishing scattering these rice seeds, Fang Yun continued in another area to start planting soybeans. The planting of soybeans was relatively simple; just dig holes, place the soybean seeds in them, and then cover them with soil. It only took Fang Yun three days to finish planting soybeans on nearly a hundred acres of land. At this time, the previously scattered rice seeds had also begun to take root and sprout. Then, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t wait to check his panel to see if there were any changes. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 1 (Incomplete) Mana: 10 Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ??¦Í??.§ã¦Ï Control over plants: Spirit Rice (63), Ordinary Rice (830,000) Seeing the real changes on the panel, Fang Yun immediately became invigorated. It seemed that his experiment was halfway successful; the rest depended on whether the Golden Finger would change after these crops matured. As for the exaggerated number of seedlings displayed on the panel, Fang Yun didn¡¯t find it strange. This was not planting Spirit Rice after all; considering the hundred-plus acres of land, the number didn¡¯t seem too much. Standing beside the seedling area, Fang Yun could clearly sense the emotions emanating from the rice seedlings within the soil. However, the emotions transmitted by individual rice seedlings were much weaker than those of Spirit Rice. And the distance was much shorter; Spirit Rice could convey its feelings from the spirit field to himself in the cave, but here the ordinary rice could only be sensed when he was nearby. Even so, Fang Yun still felt exceptionally happy. As long as he confirmed that his Golden Finger worked on ordinary crops, it was enough for him. Thus, every day, besides healing and investigating Spirit Rice, Fang Yun added the task of inspecting the rice seedlings during his breaks from work. However, it was no difficult task for him; he just needed to glance at them from time to time while working. After planting the soybeans, Fang Yun immediately started the cultivation of medicinal herbs. The cultivation of medicinal herbs was relatively complex, involving seeds and rhizomes. He needed to choose different planting methods according to different situations. However, these medicinal herbs were all common ones like Yellow Ginseng, astragalus, and yam. Fang Yun still had some understanding of the cultivation of these medicinal herbs. After completing the planting of medicinal herbs, he then started planting vegetables along the creek. By the time he finished everything, the rice that was originally in the seedling stage had now reached the phase where it could be transplanted. Carefully selecting the well-growing seedlings, he cautiously transplanted them into the expansive rice fields. The rest were discarded. Originally, the rice count on the panel had changed from 800,000 to 500,000. After completing the transplantation of the rice seedlings, the scattered soybean seeds also began to germinate. Shortly thereafter, the medicinal herbs that were planted had also started to take root. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 1 (Incomplete) Mana: 10 Control over plants: Spirit Rice (63), Ordinary Rice (500,000), Ordinary Soybeans (700,000), Astragalus (2536), Yellow Ginseng (1561), Yam (1862) Green Leafy Vegetables (50,000), Root Vegetables (10,000), Fruit Vegetables (500), Bean Vegetables (600) All these plants, personally cultivated by Fang Yun, fell within the scope of the Golden Finger¡¯s influence. Naturally, they were displayed on the panel. Looking at the dense array of plant types on the panel, a sense of achievement surged in Fang Yun¡¯s heart. It seemed as if the fatigue from his recent efforts had been swept away all at once. According to what Fang Yun sensed, the vitality of the vegetables was the weakest, the life force shown by soybeans was slightly stronger than that of rice, and the vitality of the medicinal herbs was even more robust than that of soybeans. Of course, under the current circumstances, the most vibrant life force still belongs to the Spirit Rice. After all, Spirit Rice is a Spiritual Object, which is incomparable to other ordinary mundane objects. After more than a month of busy work, Fang Yun finally completed the planting task in the canyon. Next, all he could do was wait for these crops to mature. In this phase, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t exert much effort; at most, he would weed, an unavoidable task in all planting. There was nothing else he could do. Although he had thought about adding some fertilizer during the growth process of these crops to encourage healthier growth, the crops in the canyon currently did not require any extra fertilizer. This is because the soil in the canyon was already extremely fertile. Additionally, the ash from burning trees that Fang Yun had previously spread was evenly mixed into the soil. The nutrients provided by these substances were completely sufficient to meet the growth needs of the crops in the canyon. Thus, besides healing and observing the growth condition of the Spirit Rice every day, Fang Yun stayed in the canyon, carefully tending to these crops. Besides protecting them from insect infestation, he also needed to pay attention to whether there were any weeds in the soil that could compete with the crops for nutrients and thus affect the maturity time of the crops. In the blink of an eye, another month hurriedly passed. Perhaps due to the abundant fertility and Fang Yun¡¯s meticulous care, the crops in the canyon thrived exceptionally well. After a month, the green leafy vegetables, which have the shortest growth cycle, had matured. Upon noticing that these vegetables had stopped growing, Fang Yun felt an instinctive realization, knowing that it was time to harvest them. Thus, after completing his healing, and after carefully examining the Spirit Rice, he went to the creek in the canyon. Looking at the lush, tender vegetables in front of him, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but swallow his saliva. During this period, he had been eating the dry rations left behind by the previous Cultivators. Though nutritionally richer than ordinary food, And beneficial to cultivation, The taste was indeed too bland. Previously, Fang Yun had focused all his attention on planting, healing, and the Golden Finger, And had not paid attention to his diet. However, seeing the vegetables in front of him now, he truly felt his body¡¯s intense craving for vegetables. Thus, Fang Yun¡¯s hands swiftly moved in preparation to pick all the vegetables in sight. However, after continuously picking a few vegetables, Fang Yun suddenly stopped his movements. Because he seemed to feel a cool breath emanating from the vegetables, slowly circulating into his body. But this breath was so weak that he initially didn¡¯t notice it and wasn¡¯t sure whether it was just his imagination. So, Fang Yun opened his control panel, as any new discovery would definitely first show up there. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation first level (damaged) Mana: 10 Control over plants: Spirit Rice (63) Ordinary Rice (500,000) ordinary soybeans (700,000) astragalus (2536) Yellow Ginseng (1561) yam (1862) ¡­ Unknown Energy: 0.0001 Other items didn¡¯t change much, but an unknown energy appeared at the end of the panel. This stirred Fang Yun¡¯s heart; he had speculated before that his Golden Finger would change after the crops matured. After all, the most important parts in cultivating crops were the initial planting and the final harvesting; it didn¡¯t make sense for there to be reactions during planting but none during harvesting. Indeed, there were still many functions of his Golden Finger that had not been developed. Subsequently, with an excited mood, it took Fang Yun two hours to completely harvest all the mature green leafy vegetables by the creek. Then, without attending to the vegetables placed by the creek, Fang Yun focused on sensing that cool breath near his Dantian. Meanwhile, watching as the quantity of Unknown Energy on the panel also reached a value of 0.01. Although minimal, this was undoubtedly an excellent start for himself. Just, he didn¡¯t know what effect this cool breath could have. Chapter 10 - Chapter 10: Chapter 10 Harvest and Life Essence Qi Chapter 10: Chapter 10 Harvest and Life Essence Qi Immediately, Fang Yun sat cross-legged beside the stream, and with a slight stir of his spirit, this refreshing breath began to flow slowly through his meridians just like mana, driven by his spirit. Seeing this, Fang Yun¡¯s expectations for the effects of this refreshing breath increased even more. When this refreshing breath reached the previously injured meridians, it was like a piece of dry land that had been long parched, suddenly doused with a ladle of clear water. Those injured meridians began to recover at a speed visible to the naked eye. If the pace of healing with his own mana was used as a benchmark, the healing effect of this refreshing breath was roughly equivalent to ten days of his healing efforts. Although it looked scant in quantity, it¡¯s important to realize that the vegetables he had gathered were merely less than one-tenth of all the vegetables beside the stream. If he were to gather all the vegetables, the energy obtained, coupled with the effects of his previous healing with mana, would be enough for his injuries to recover by sixty to seventy percent. Besides these vegetables, there were also rice, soybeans, and medicinal herbs. Once the crops in the canyon ripened, not only would his injuries fully recover, but he would also be able to store some refreshing breaths. By then, he might be able to explore more uses and wonders of this type of energy. Thinking that his injuries were about to heal, Fang Yun¡¯s mood couldn¡¯t help but become excited. This injury had plagued him for too long; if not for this injury, he would have been able to continue his cultivation long ago. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?¦Ï Moreover, with his previous Qi Cultivation of the first level, he could also cultivate the Earth Power Skills in the Chang Chun Skill. This would greatly assist his farming endeavors, and in turn, he would obtain more Unknown Energy, creating a positive cycle. Instead of the current situation, where he wasted a lot of time and had to wield a hoe like an ordinary mortal laboring hard to clear the land. After calming his excited mental state, Fang Yun glanced at the panel where Unknown Energy was again displayed as zero and nodded. The emergence of this type of energy was indeed timely for him. In the following days, Fang Yun stopped healing with mana and inspected the Spirit Rice every day, removing some weeds. Then he went directly to the canyon, caring for these crops even more diligently. Over the next month, the other vegetables beside the stream gradually matured. Fang Yun began to gradually harvest these vegetables. After collecting the refreshing breaths, he immediately used them for healing; the remaining vegetables were casually placed in a corner. He couldn¡¯t eat that many vegetables; adhering to the principle of not wasting, Fang Yun planned to use them for composting. In this way, when the vegetables decayed sufficiently, by adding some other materials, he could add more fertilizer to the land. A month later, all the vegetables had been harvested; perhaps due to different growing times, the remaining vegetables provided more refreshing breaths than the previous green leafy vegetables. Using the refreshing breathable formed by these vegetables, combined with the part previously healed by mana, the injured meridians in his body were now eighty to ninety percent recovered. Full recovery was not far off. Thus, Fang Yun closely monitored the soon-to-ripen rice and soybeans in the canyon, being constantly vigilant about pests and weed growth. Meanwhile, he used his mana diligently to nourish the injured meridians. A little over a month later, as the rice and soybeans were about to mature, the injuries in Fang Yun¡¯s meridians finally healed completely. With the injuries in the meridians fully healed, the mana in Fang Yun¡¯s body could finally circulate freely throughout his body. It also meant that he had returned to the cultivation realm of the first layer of Qi Cultivation. The Spiritual Energy emanating from the Spiritual Spring could finally be utilized fully without waste. Moreover, the Earth Power Skills he had longed for could finally be cultivated. ¡°` It can be said that starting from this day, Fang Yun formally embarked on his journey of cultivation. He began his ascent on the Immortal Path known as the summit. However, no matter how excited he felt, Fang Yun had to forcibly suppress it for now. For after more than three months, both the rice and soybeans had begun to mature. To him, these crops were undoubtedly a tremendous source of energy. Thus, after sensing the maturity of the rice, he went back down to the foot of the mountain to fetch the tools for harvesting the rice and soybeans. And he politely declined the elders¡¯ offers of help, returning to the valley alone. He began harvesting the rice and soybeans. Ultimately, due to the different growing times, these rice and soybeans contained a much richer cool aura compared to the previous vegetables. When the harvesting of rice and soybeans was completed, some changes appeared on Fang Yun¡¯s panel again. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 1 Mana: 10 Control over Plants: spirit rice (63) astragalus (2536)¡­ Unknown Energy: 2 With his injuries healed, the character for ¡®damaged¡¯ no longer appeared behind Fang Yun¡¯s cultivation status. And the amount of unknown energy was much more than when harvesting vegetables previously. Fang Yun estimated that one point of unknown energy could restore his injuries from their initial state to their peak state. For him, that was like having an additional life. Thinking of this, a bright smile emerged on Fang Yun¡¯s face. After some thought, he decided to give a name to this ¡®Unknown Energy¡¯: Life Essence Qi. After all, it could not always be called Unknown Energy. Once Fang Yun firmly set this name in his mind, the name on the panel changed accordingly. It seems that the panel¡¯s data could also change according to his consciousness. Then, looking at the grains that had been harvested in the valley. He contemplated a bit. It would indeed be quite difficult to transport them out by himself. Either he could go down the mountain to ask the elders to send people to take them away. Or he could burn them all up, turning them back into nutrients. After hesitating for a moment, rather than not wasting these grains, Fang Yun was more unwilling to expose this place. After all, these crops were somewhat linked to his Golden Finger. Although Fang Yun didn¡¯t think that after handing over these grains, the people of the Fang Family could detect anything unusual about them. But out of caution, before he had the ability to protect himself, Fang Yun did not want any information related to his Golden Finger to be exposed. When his strength improved later, and the crop yield increased, then it wouldn¡¯t be too late to hand them over to the Fang Family. Consequently, among the two types of crops, Fang Yun selected the parts with the most vigorous life force as seeds for the next batch. Then, after several days of exposure to the sun, he burnt all the remaining rice, mixing it back into the soil. This served as a source of nutrients for the next generation of crops. What remained was the herbs that hadn¡¯t matured yet, but the maturation time for medicinal herbs was much longer than ordinary crops anyway, and the longer the planting time, the better the medicinal effect. Wouldn¡¯t that mean they also contain more Life Essence Qi? In that case, there¡¯s no rush to harvest these herbs. Chapter 11 - Chapter 11: Chapter 11 Other Functions of Life Essence Qi Chapter 11: Chapter 11 Other Functions of Life Essence Qi ¡°` However, Fang Yun no longer meticulously managed those medicinal materials afterwards. After all, having been so busy for such a long period, it was time to take a rest. Moreover, his body had already recovered, and the most important thing at present was to re-engage in cultivation and practice that spell. If he continued to spend a large amount of time on managing the medicinal materials, it would seem to be a loss that outweighed the gain. Likewise, the planting of crops in the valley would also have to come to a temporary halt. Only after mastering the Earth Power Skills could the next planting of crops be carried out more smoothly and efficiently. Thus, Fang Yun returned to the cave, and first concentrated on Qi Cultivation for a few days, feeling anew the wonderful sensation of Spiritual Energy flowing into his body and transforming into Mana. However, after experiencing this for about ten days, Fang Yun felt that the efficiency of his cultivation was rather low. After several consecutive days of cultivation, he had only slightly increased his mana value, and in the following days there was no movement at all. Fang Yun didn¡¯t know how much Mana was needed to advance to the second level of Qi Cultivation, but at the current pace, breaking through to the second level would take a very long time. This involved the issue of his body¡¯s talent, as well as the scarcity of Spiritual Power in the Spiritual Spring. No wonder the previous cultivators could not progress after reaching the second level of Qi Cultivation, leaving them no choice but to think of leaving the island in search of opportunities. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?¦Ï.?? The resources on the island were just too scarce. Regarding this, Fang Yun had no solution; after all, he could not conjure up Spiritual Energy out of thin air, and he could only cultivate with the Spiritual Energy in the Spiritual Spring for now. After advancing to the second level of Qi Cultivation, then other options could be considered. In the following time, while persistently cultivating, Fang Yun started to wholeheartedly care for the Spirit Rice. Hoping that once the Spirit Rice matured, it would bring him more Life Essence Qi and allow him to research if there were more functions to Life Essence Qi. One day, after finishing his cultivation, Fang Yun, following his usual habit, went to the spirit field to closely inspect the Spirit Rice. Now that the maturation time of the Spirit Rice was drawing near, Fang Yun became increasingly worried. He was very concerned that the Green Beetles from the last time would come back for another attack. Although those Green Beetles posed no substantial harm to him, their number was just too immense. It would be no easy task to eliminate them all before they harmed the Spirit Rice. Therefore, in these days, besides cultivation, Fang Yun almost always stayed near the spirit field. Even practicing the Earth Power Skills was done beside the spirit field. After observing the condition of the Spirit Rice and seeing that they were growing well with no signs of pest damage, Fang Yun then left the spirit field and went to an open space nearby to practice the Earth Power Skills. ¡°Earth Power is robust, with thick soil as the foundation. Spirit Breath flows, Earth Veins return to heart¡­¡± As Fang Yun chanted the incantation, the handprints on his hands also continuously changed, and the Mana in his body began to circulate in a strange pattern continuously. Yellow light started to flicker on Fang Yun¡¯s hands. However, the yellow light flickered only briefly before it extinguished. Clearly, even the simplest of Spells could not be easily mastered by Fang Yun in just a few short days. However, Fang Yun was well-prepared for this. One glance at the still unchanged status panel told him that his Earth Power Skills had not reached the standard. Hence, he remained calm and continued to practice with unwavering persistence. After several attempts, the Mana was quickly exhausted. ¡°` The mana of someone at the first level of Qi Cultivation was ultimately too meager. This forced Fang Yun to cease his practice. Leaving the vicinity of the spirit field, he walked towards the cave, planning to absorb Spiritual Energy to restore his mana. However, at this moment, Fang Yun looked at the Life Essence Qi within his Dantian and a thought suddenly struck him. He decided to try and see whether this Life Essence Qi, which could heal wounds, could also be used to restore mana. Consequently, Fang Yun sat down cross-legged and began to refine the Life Essence Qi in his Dantian with the little mana he had left. Initially, he had thought this would be a very difficult task, but to his surprise, as soon as the mana touched the Life Essence Qi, it expanded rapidly and restored to peak condition in the blink of an eye. It was as if they were inherently one entity. This left Fang Yun no time to react; of the two points of Life Essence Qi in the panel, only one remained. This immediately made Fang Yun extremely upset. This was the Life Essence Qi he had painstakingly accumulated from three months of cultivating the fields. To use it now for restoring mana seemed too wasteful. If he had entered the cave to refine the Spiritual Energy from the spring, though it would take more time, at least that Spiritual Energy was free, and using it wouldn¡¯t cause any pangs of distress. But now that things had developed to this stage, there was nothing Fang Yun could do about his heartache. However, thankfully, Fang Yun had inadvertently discovered another function of the Life Essence Qi. Aside from its healing properties, the Life Essence Qi could actually restore mana. In the future, with an ample supply of Life Essence Qi, his endurance would be much stronger than before. The only limitation now was the quantity of Life Essence Qi. Moreover, since Life Essence Qi could be used to restore mana, did that mean it could replace Spiritual Energy for cultivation? Such a thought suddenly sprang into Fang Yun¡¯s mind. If it could indeed replace Spiritual Energy, that would be an immense help for Fang Yun¡¯s future pursuit on the Immortal Path. After all, the amount of Spiritual Energy in the Spiritual Spring was limited, only enough to support his advancement to the second level of Qi Cultivation. Fang Yun had originally planned, if it came to the worst, to leave the island after reaching the second level of Qi Cultivation. The island simply didn¡¯t have sufficient Spiritual Energy, and he couldn¡¯t continue to scrape by without it. However, if Life Essence Qi could replace Spiritual Energy for cultivation, then for the time being, Fang Yun need not worry about his cultivation resources. And there would be no need to leave the island. After all, the island might lack many things, but it had an extensive amount of land. Enough land meant a great number of crops could be planted. Therefore, even if the Life Essence Qi provided by crops was limited, the Life Essence Qi he could obtain would still be much more abundant than Spiritual Energy. Thinking up to this point, Fang Yun could no longer afford to cherish the sole strand of Life Essence Qi left in his Dantian. He went ahead with the refining process, eager to ascertain whether Life Essence Qi could truly replace Spiritual Energy for cultivation. Touching the Life Essence Qi with his mana, which had already returned to its peak state, the situation was just like before; the mana quickly devoured the Life Essence Qi. After absorbing the Life Essence Qi, Fang Yun distinctly felt a slight increase in his mana. Noticing the increase in his mana, Fang Yun stood up with a face full of joy. Chapter 12 - Chapter 12: Chapter 12 Spirit Rice Enters the Maturation Phase Chapter 12: Chapter 12 Spirit Rice Enters the Maturation Phase He quickly checked the data on his panel. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 1 Mana: 12 Life Essence Qi: 0 Control over Plants: Spirit Rice (63) Astragalus (2536) ¡­ Indeed, the mana value increased by one point. Although it¡¯s partly due to his recent efforts in refining Spiritual Energy, the role of Life Essence Qi should not be underestimated. Most importantly, it verified the cultivation effects of Life Essence Qi, which was crucial for him. Moreover, compared to the scarcity of Spiritual Energy, there are many more ways to attain Life Essence Qi, and it¡¯s much more convenient. If he had enough Life Essence Qi, Fang Yun could potentially break through to Qi Cultivation Level 2, or even Level 3. The difference lies merely in the amount of Life Essence Qi. With this thought, Fang Yun approached the spirit field, gazing at the Spirit Rice with burning eagerness and anticipation. He wondered how much Life Essence Qi these mature Spirit Rice could bring him. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï??¦Ï.§ã0 Regardless, this was a crop full of Spiritual Energy; he hoped it wouldn¡¯t disappoint him. A month later, Fang Yun stood on an open piece of land, clearing his thoughts and calming his spirit, highly focusing his mind. ¡°Earth Power profound and vast, the thick soil as the foundation. Spirit Breath fluctuates, Earth Veins lead to the core¡­¡± As he chanted the spell and simultaneously changed the handprints, a yellow energy slowly condensed in his hands and then shot quickly into the ground. Instantly, Fang Yun clearly sensed the distribution of matter and energy within several meters of the soil around him. As the handprints changed, the scattered energy in the soil seemed to find a pathway, gradually converging together. Along with this gathering of energy from the soil, the color of the ground beneath Fang Yun¡¯s feet darkened and blackened. After a short while, Fang Yun ceased the spell, eagerly looking at his panel. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 1 Mana: 12 Life Essence Qi: 0 Control over Plants: Spirit Rice (63) Astragalus (2536) ¡­ Spell: Earth Power Skills (Beginner 1%) Seeing the word ¡°spell¡± appear on the panel and that his Earth Power Skills had reached the beginner level, Fang Yun breathed a sigh of relief. Cultivating this spell during the past month had been quite challenging. Now that he had finally reached the beginner level, it was a pity that this panel was just a summary of his abilities and didn¡¯t have a mode for allocating points, which would have made his cultivation so much more convenient. Closing the panel, Fang Yun crouched down and grabbed a handful of the black soil beneath his feet. Even with a casual squeeze, he could clearly feel the rich nutrients contained in the soil. These energies he had sensed before must have been the nutrients within the land. Sadly, this patch of land did not contain any Spiritual Energy, so all that gathered was just ordinary energy. Otherwise, Fang Yun would have liked to try gathering the Spiritual Energy from the land. As one of the spells specialized for farming, it should indeed be effective on the spiritual energy in the soil. With such a spell, I wouldn¡¯t even need any fertilizer when farming in the future; just by concentrating the nutrients within the soil, I could satisfy the needs of my crops. However, at the current stage, Fang Yun¡¯s mana is limited, and it is not worth such a waste yet. That can wait until his cultivation is stronger. In the following months, Fang Yun practiced his Earth Power Skills more diligently, and after several months, his Earth Power Skills finally leveled up. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation first layer Mana: 12 Life Essence Qi: 0 Control over plants: Spirit Rice (63), astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 3%) Having progressed from Beginner to Skilled, not only can I gather the energy within the soil more quickly to increase the fertility of the land. But also, I can disperse this energy evenly throughout the entire piece of land according to my needs, balancing the nourishment of the soil. Unfortunately, Earth Power Skills cannot move the physical matter of the soil, merely drive the energy within; otherwise, the spell could have had some offensive capabilities. Several months passed, and the growth of the Spirit Rice was very smooth. One day, as Fang Yun was carefully observing the Spirit Rice in the spirit field, he found they had begun to ear. This also means that from this moment, the Spirit Rice could be considered to have entered the mature stage. According to Fang Yun¡¯s previous memories, the last batch of Spirit Rice encountered an attack by Green Beetles during the filling stage. Thinking of this, Fang Yun immediately became alert from his state of deep practice in his spells. Now there may be only a few days left until the filling stage of the Spirit Rice, so it seems I must make early preparations. Otherwise, facing a large number of Green Beetles or other types of insects, Fang Yun wouldn¡¯t be able to eliminate so many. Luckily, Fang Yun was not completely unprepared for this situation. So, Fang Yun hurriedly rushed down the mountain and quickly arrived at the estate. As soon as he saw Fang Lin, Fang Yun, without the time for pleasantries, urgently asked: ¡°How is the Silk Net I asked you to prepare last time coming along?¡± Seeing the Clan Leader so anxious, Fang Lin knew this matter was of great importance and quickly led him toward the hall while speaking: ¡°Clan Leader, rest assured, what you entrust to us is the top priority for the Fang Family. We¡¯ve used up all of the silk reserves at home and spent several months weaving a three-layer thick Silk Net. Please wait a moment, I will fetch it for you right away!¡± Upon hearing their preparations were ready, Fang Yun finally breathed a sigh of relief. This was his secret weapon against those Green Beetles! If it hadn¡¯t been completed, the Spirit Rice would be totally doomed. The loss of both the Life Essence Qi contained in the Spirit Rice and the value of the Spirit Rice itself would instantly turn to dust. Such a loss would be incredibly heavy. Even if Fang Yun wouldn¡¯t become crazed by it again, it would surely enrage him to the point of spitting blood. It wasn¡¯t long before Fang Lin came out, carrying a long white strip of material with quick steps. Fang Yun took this white item and handed the other end to Fang Lin; then, the two unfolded the white object together. This white object might not seem large when folded, but once unfolded, it was a giant Silk Net over a hundred square meters in size. The mesh of this Silk Net was so small that it could completely block an invasion of Green Beetles. And despite being three layers thick, because the silk itself was extremely thin, the net still appeared light and allowed sunlight to easily penetrate. Fang Yun kept inspecting the Silk Net in front of him, even pulling and rubbing it with his hands, and found that both the toughness and the density of the mesh met his requirements. Chapter 13 - Chapter 13: Chapter 13: Green Beetles Appear Chapter 13: Chapter 13: Green Beetles Appear Thus, Fang Yun smiled and nodded, saying, ¡°Elder, this time it has really troubled the clan!¡± ¡°The Clan Leader being satisfied is what matters most; as long as it is your need, our clan will definitely do our utmost to fulfill it. You just focus on cultivating well!¡± Fang Yun glanced at Fang Lin, knowing well that these were flattering words, but still, his heart couldn¡¯t help feeling touched. Without the united support of the Fang Family, completing this task would have been utterly impossible by himself. He silently kept this favor in mind, quietly vowing to repay it in the future. After all, he was not the original Fang Yun, and could not take their support for granted. But with the assistance of the Golden Finger, Fang Yun firmly believed that he should soon be able to provide substantial support to the Fang Family. After collecting the Silk Net, Fang Yun did not linger, and immediately headed for the mountain. He then used bamboo strips to meticulously construct a sturdy framework above the spirit field. Next, it would just require covering it with the Silk Net when necessary, and the job would be done. However, considering the current situation, there was no rush. After all, the Silk Net was not plastic film; once it was placed, it would indeed block some sunlight. For the Spirit Rice that had just entered its mature phase, the role of sunlight was still crucial. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï??0.?¦Ï Therefore, before the Green Beetles arrived, Fang Yun did not intend to cover it with the Silk Net. In the following days, Fang Yun diligently cleared the weeds constantly emerging in the spirit field while closely observing the condition of the Spirit Rice, patiently waiting for the pests to appear. Regarding the weeds in the spirit field, Fang Yun temporarily did not have an effective solution. He couldn¡¯t know in advance how many weed seeds were hidden in the spirit field before they began to grow. Fortunately, compared to the headache-inducing pests, with the alert from the Spirit Rice, the weeding work was relatively convenient. That night, Fang Yun was sleeping next to the spirit field. Since the Spirit Rice had entered its mature phase, Fang Yun had been sleeping by the spirit field. He was worried about any unexpected issues that might arise with the Spirit Rice. After all, the Spiritual Energy in the Spiritual Spring was already sparse, missing out on a few days of absorption wouldn¡¯t have much impact on him. Rather, if the Spirit Rice could provide ample Life Essence Qi, it would greatly accelerate the growth of his Cultivation. Just as he fell into a deep sleep, the Spirit Rice in the field suddenly transmitted an uncomfortable sensation. For Fang Yun, who was already vigilant, this immediately woke him from his sleep. He quickly followed the signal, striding to a stalk of Spirit Rice in the field. Converging Spiritual Energy into his eyes, and aided by the clear moonlit night, the familiar figure on top of the Spirit Rice clearly came into view. ¡°It¡¯s finally here!¡± Fang Yun muttered to himself, his heart also feeling relieved. Waiting had indeed been quite draining. He then caught the Green Beetles on the Spirit Rice with his hand and crushed them all. After observing the other Spirit Rice carefully to ensure there were no issues. He finally relaxed temporarily. It seemed that those few Green Beetles were just the vanguard. Thus, Fang Yun quickly spread the Silk Net over the spirit field. And tightened it around the edges to prevent any gaps. After placing the Silk Net, Fang Yun, no longer feeling sleepy, crouched next to the spirit field, staring unblinkingly at the Spirit Rice inside. Before long, Fang Yun heard the buzzing sounds of flying insects in the vicinity. Following that, objects kept hitting the Silk Net and were bounced back, falling to the side. Fang Yun saw the Green Beetles struggling to get up from the ground, and immediately breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. It seems that the preparations he had made were still effective. Therefore, he stood up and went near the Silk Net, crushing all the fallen Green Beetles on the ground without leaving any behind. Since they had come here, he certainly couldn¡¯t let them leave unscathed. Although Fang Yun knew that the Green Beetles he had killed did not play a significant role in containing the entire population of Green Beetles. Who knows how many such insects exist in the wild? In any case, compared to the number he had killed, there were certainly many more Green Beetles in the wild. But no matter what, eliminating some was still better than none. Even if it seemed ineffective, at least it made him feel a bit better. By dawn, the area near the spirit field was already covered with a dense pile of Green Beetles¡¯ corpses. As the day gradually broke, the continuous stream of Green Beetles seemed to have disappeared. Could it be that these Green Beetles only travel at night? Considering the characteristics of insects, this is indeed a possibility. As for why he found Green Beetles on the Spirit Rice during the day last time. It was obviously because they had begun feeding on the Spirit Rice and wouldn¡¯t leave, day or night, until they had completely consumed the Spirit Rice. If these Green Beetles no longer appeared during the day, that would truly be good news for him. Thus, Fang Yun patiently waited for a while, and indeed, no more Green Beetles appeared. Then he finally collected the Silk Net, allowing the Spirit Rice to be fully exposed to the sunlight. If he had a choice, abundant sunlight would undoubtedly be better for the Spirit Rice. Afterward, Fang Yun picked up a hoe and gathered all the corpses of the Green Beetles. Then he used Earth Power Skills to condense some energy, infusing it into the soil mixed with the bodies of Green Beetles. He then set it aside, treating it as a form of compost. With these Green Beetle bodies, the fertilizer should be quite rich in nutrients. He could use it later when planting ordinary crops. After all, if these bodies of Green Beetles weren¡¯t dealt with, leaving them there would be extremely disgusting. Just consider it recycling waste. Later, Fang Yun began to rest, conserving his energy and preparing for the evening. The evening is when these insects are most active; even with the Silk Net, Fang Yun dared not grow complacent. Who knows whether an excessive accumulation of Green Beetles might damage the Silk Net. Even if these Green Beetles couldn¡¯t damage the Silk Net, what about other insects on the island? With numerous types of insects in nature, Fang Yun was uncertain if any harmful insects with sharp teeth might appear. This made Fang Yun cautious at all costs. Fortunately, apart from the Spiritual Spring on the island which contains Spiritual Energy, the rest of the area does not have Spiritual Energy. This means that no Spiritual Insects that feed on Spiritual Energy would appear on the island. Otherwise, with his Qi Cultivation at the first level, facing those Spiritual Insects would indeed be too much to handle. In the following month, Fang Yun rested during the day to conserve energy, and at night, he put all his effort into exterminating the Green Beetles. After a month of relentless effort, the Green Beetles were not completely annihilated, but the Spirit Rice had finally reached full and thorough maturity. It meant the end of such torrid days. Chapter 14 - Chapter 14: Chapter 14 Qi Cultivation Level 2 Chapter 14: Chapter 14 Qi Cultivation Level 2 After noticing the Spirit Rice had matured, Fang Yun also heaved a sigh of relief. This month had been exceptionally tough for him. But the result was perfect. Sixty-three stalks of Spirit Rice, not one was damaged; all had grown perfectly. The rice panicles were half a meter long, with each grain the size of a soybean. Fang Yun gazed at the Spirit Rice in the spirit field, feeling that the hard work of the past month was completely worthwhile. Then, Fang Yun took out the sickle that had been prepared well in advance. This sickle was passed down from a previous Cultivator. It seemed to be made not only of fine iron but also incorporated some other metals. Precisely because of this, the sickle could withstand the infusion of Spiritual Energy. Otherwise, it would not be an easy feat to harvest this Spirit Rice with an ordinary sickle. Fang Yun had tried before; after the Spirit Rice matured, its stalks became exceptionally tough. Almost as durable as a large tree. If he used an ordinary sickle, Fang Yun estimated it would take two to three days to complete the harvest. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í¨À0.§ã¦Ï That would be too much of a waste of time! As Spiritual Energy was channeled into the sickle, a flash of sharp, chilling light instantly gleamed on the blade. Then with a light flick of his right hand, the Spirit Rice fell as if responding to his action. Fang Yun was prepared, timely supporting the fallen Spirit Rice with his left hand. At that moment, a rich Life Essence Qi emanated from the Spirit Rice, surging toward Fang Yun¡¯s body. Fang Yun¡¯s heart stirred, and the panel in the depths of his mind displayed. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation first level Mana: 12 Life Essence Qi: 1 Plant Mastery: Spirit Rice (62), Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 5%) Seeing that his Life Essence Qi had increased by one point, which was equivalent to the Life Essence Qi provided by a hundred acres of regular rice. Indeed, it was worthy of being the exclusive food for Cultivators; the difference from food for common people was immensely vast. From this, one can see the extremely huge gap that exists between common people and Cultivators. It is like they belong to two entirely different species. No wonder Martial Artists at the Innate Realm among common people aren¡¯t a match for even the weakest Cultivator. After his reflection, Fang Yun continued harvesting the Spirit Rice in the spirit field. In less than an hour, Fang Yun had harvested all the Spirit Rice. He opened the panel again. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation first level Mana: 12 Life Essence Qi: 63 Plant Mastery: Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 5%) The panel now only showed medicinal plants under his mastery, the previously listed Spirit Rice had disappeared, and his Life Essence Qi had increased by 63 points. Next, it was time to enhance his cultivation. Carrying the Spirit Rice on his shoulder, he quickly ran towards the cave. Back in the cave, Fang Yun placed the Spirit Rice in a corner of the cave. Then he moved near the Spiritual Spring in the center of the cave and began to sit down cross-legged. At this moment, he was eager to immediately refine the Life Essence Qi in his Dantian to improve his cultivation. However, thinking of the hard labor he had undergone this month, with a completely reversed day and night schedule, his current state was actually at the point of extreme exhaustion. If it weren¡¯t for the harvest of the Spirit Rice, Fang Yun could not have lasted this long. With his current state for cultivation, the effects might not be very good. So, suppressing the urgent feeling in his heart, Fang Yun first took a nap. After waking up, he sorted out all the Spirit Rice, leaving those with stronger Life Essence as seeds for the next stage. The rest would serve as his daily food. After categorizing them, Fang Yun set the Spirit Rice outside the cave entrance to dry in the sun. Then, after two more days of rest to fully recover his spirits, He began to prepare to refine and assimilate the Life Essence Qi in his Dantian. Fang Yun sat cross-legged beside the Spiritual Spring, his expression focused. One could see the Mana within his Dantian slowly swirling like a vortex. Next, the Mana reached out toward the nearby Life Essence Qi. The Life Essence Qi seemed to naturally and easily merge with the Mana. As the Life Essence Qi continually integrated, the Mana grew like a nourished sapling, strand by strand, becoming increasingly powerful and abundant. At that moment, Fang Yun¡¯s body abruptly shook, and a powerful aura surged out from within him, like an invisible storm, violently shaking the surrounding air. The ripples from this force caused the calm waters of the spring to stir, with ripples expanding outwards. He then slowly opened his eyes, excitement and joy twinkling within them. Unexpectedly, he had easily broken through to the second level of Qi Cultivation. Considering that, including the original Fang Yun¡¯s formal cultivation time, it had been just about two years. Yet, in this comparatively short period, he had already reached what used to be the pinnacle for the Fang Family cultivators. This speed could be said to be extremely fast indeed. Although not comparable to the legendary disciples of the great sects, this speed was five to six times faster than the former Fang Family cultivators. Of course, Fang Yun knew very well that he didn¡¯t consider this his own merit. Judging by his aptitude and the cultivation resources he possessed, he didn¡¯t have any marked advantage over the previous Fang Family cultivators. He was just very lucky to have a Golden Finger that could increase his Cultivation. Subsequently, Fang Yun opened the panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation, second level Mana: 32 Life Essence Qi: 23 Plant Control: astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 5%) His Cultivation was promoted to the second level of Qi Cultivation, and his Mana had risen to 32 points, roughly triple that of before. However, the consumption of Life Essence Qi was astonishing, having used up 40 points, indicating that the Life Essence Qi he had accumulated over a year was not very effective after all. But advancing to the second level of Qi Cultivation was a cost Fang Yun was willing to bear. For Fang Yun, this not only meant he had a new spell to practice. Moreover, the smooth breakthrough of his Cultivation filled him with confidence about the future path of cultivation. Such a happy occasion was rare, and Fang Yun had planned to celebrate properly. However, looking around at the surroundings, it inevitably left him feeling helpless; even if he wanted to celebrate, there were no suitable items for celebration. The only good thing available was the freshly harvested Spirit Rice. In that case, he decided to cook Spirit Rice. After such hard work, he would finally be able to taste the rice made from Spirit Rice. It was not known how it would taste and whether it would be as amazing as the legends say. So, Fang Yun took out some dried Spirit Rice and, using tools left behind by past cultivators, he husked the grain. Turning them from Spirit Rice into Spirit Rice. After a simple processing, he put them into a clay pot and added spirit water rich in Spiritual Energy. And thus began his first cooking experience in the Cultivation World. Chapter 15 - Chapter 15: Chapter 15 Subsequent Plans Chapter 15: Chapter 15 Subsequent Plans Before long, the spring water began to boil, and an indescribable fragrance wafted out from the earthenware pot. In an instant, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but swallow his saliva. After a while, the Spirit Rice was finally cooked through. The mature Spirit Rice had swelled to the size of corn kernels, each grain crystal clear and incredibly enticing. Fang Yun couldn¡¯t wait to grab a spoon and devoured the Spirit Rice directly from the pot, taking big mouthfuls. Bouncy upon biting, and with an excellent texture, the aroma filled the air, and a strong sense of satisfaction instantly surged inside his heart with each mouthful. After one bite, then another, even without any side dishes, Fang Yun still found the meal delicious. Completely immersed in the delightful taste brought by the Spirit Rice. Unknowingly, an entire pot of Spirit Rice had been polished off clean. Looking at the empty pot, Fang Yun rubbed his stomach and let out a contented burp. Then, a warm current began to slowly spread from his belly to the rest of his body, causing Fang Yun to lean lazily against the cave¡¯s stone wall, feeling no desire to move. From his past life to this one, never had a meal brought him such a profound sense of satisfaction. The food felt as though it wasn¡¯t just entering his stomach but integrating directly into the very essence of his body. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.§ã0 When the warmth within his body gradually dissipated, he felt his physical strength had increased, though there was no noticeable increase in his Mana. This meant that Spirit Rice was not for increasing Cultivation but for enhancing physical strength. Although physical strength is part of one¡¯s power, for a Cultivator, Mana is still more important. Thus, the original Fang Yun¡¯s idea of using Spirit Rice as a resource for cultivation seemed to be mistaken. It¡¯s unclear who had told him that. However, considering that the previous generation¡¯s Cultivator had died suddenly, and the original Fang Yun had newly discovered his Spirit Root before going up the mountain to cultivate, it¡¯s likely nobody had informed him about the specifics of Spirit Rice varieties. Perhaps it had all been the original Fang Yun¡¯s own speculation. If he had known about the types of Spirit Rice earlier, perhaps he wouldn¡¯t have cared as much and might not have succumbed to demonic cultivation. But if that were the case, wouldn¡¯t I have missed the chance to reincarnate? Let¡¯s forget that¡ªreincarnating was a good thing after all! Fang Yun shook his head, discarding the random thoughts in his mind. He continued to rest against the wall for a while before he began to ponder over his subsequent plans. Having successfully broken through to the Second Level of Qi Cultivation, it was time to schedule practice for the Spirit Rain Skill. With the previously mastered Earth Power Skills and the soon-to-be-practiced Spirit Rain Skill, one responsible for regulating the nutrients in the soil, the other for controlling the rain from the sky. With these two basic Spells for farming at hand, the essentials were complete. Besides these two Spells, there was the Gold Qi Skill that could only be practiced at the Third Level of Qi Refining, mainly for pest control, not immediately necessary. After all, there were many other pest control methods available. Like the Silk Net he had created before, which was an excellent solution. Apart from cultivating Spells, Fang Yun did not plan to invest too much effort in advancing his Cultivation. Having his own Golden Finger to assist, the key to improving his Cultivation still relied on farming. Relying solely on absorbing Spiritual Energy to reach the Third Level of Qi Refining was nothing but a fantasy. Unless I am willing to spend decades of tedious time slowly absorbing the sparse Spiritual Energy, bit by bit polishing my Cultivation up. However, for Fang Yun, this is utterly unacceptable. Therefore, rather than wasting time on cultivation, it would be more cost-effective to reclaim more wastelands and plant more crops. Besides these two aspects, Fang Yun started to prepare for the next stage of planting Spirit Rice. This is the most important task for the next stage; as for ordinary crops, there¡¯s no rush and they are not as important. This time, Fang Yun did not plan to plant as extensively as he did last time. He intends to start with raising seedlings, transplanting them after the spirit seedlings grow, hoping to increase the survival rate. Instead of like the last planted Spirit Rice, where only sixty percent survived. Then, replenish the Spiritual Energy in the spirit field to a certain extent, in order to smoothly carry out the next Spirit Rice planting. After all, the 6 Spirit Stones invested last time are now almost depleted. It¡¯s just that currently, I only have 9 Spirit Stones left, and if I consume another 6, I will be left with only the last 3. Without Spirit Stones, it would be impossible to continue planting Spirit Rice the year after next. For Fang Yun, this is exceedingly difficult to accept. After all, this concerns his future path of cultivation and development. However, the thought of leaving the island to find more Spirit Stones still disconcerts Fang Yun. Even if he¡¯s lucky and the cultivation from crops and Spirit Rice next year allows him to break through to the Third Level of Qi Refining, he still wouldn¡¯t dare to easily leave Spirit Water Island. After all, the Cultivation at the Third Level of Qi Refining might seem passable on Spirit Water Island, but once involved in the real Cultivation World, such Cultivation is far too insignificant. In that Cultivation World filled with the unknown and dangers, such Cultivation could cost one¡¯s life at any time. From this viewpoint, there is no essential difference between the Third Level of Qi Refining and the Second Level of Qi Refining. He does not wish to end up like the previous generation of Cultivators. However, if he doesn¡¯t venture out, where else could he obtain Spirit Stones to plant Spirit Rice? This matter seems to have entered an unsolvable vicious cycle, leaving Fang Yun extremely conflicted. Unless the Spirit Rice he cultivated could reduce the dependence on Spirit Stones, thus extending the usage time of the Spirit Stones in his hands. Wait until his Cultivation is further advanced, possessing some self-protection capabilities, then consider leaving Spirit Water Island. With these thoughts, Fang Yun turned his gaze to the adjacent Spiritual Spring. If not using Spirit Stones, the only viable method is to rely on the Spiritual Energy of the Spiritual Spring. Anyway, there¡¯s no need to rely on this Spiritual Energy for cultivation in the future, so the idea of directly irrigating the Spirit Rice with the water from the Spiritual Spring is not a bad one. Moreover, the current variety of Spirit Rice in my possession doesn¡¯t rely heavily on Spirit Stones; it only requires the spirit field to maintain a certain concentration of Spiritual Energy. If the Spiritual Energy from the Spiritual Spring could be led to the spirit field, it might even eliminate the need for replenishing with Spirit Stones, sufficing the growth needs of the Spirit Rice. However, there is a distance between the location of the spirit field and the Spiritual Spring, and currently, Fang Yun does not possess the ability to guide the Spiritual Energy there without dissipation during transfer. Unless I gain some knowledge of Arrays, this might be possible. Since there is no absolute certainty that the water from the Spiritual Spring would not dissipate Spiritual Energy while flowing, I can only move the spirit field nearby the cave. After relocating the spirit field here, the spring water could be directly channeled into the fields upon flowing out of the cave, thus maximally satisfying the consumption of the Spirit Rice. Chapter 16 - Chapter 16: Chapter 16 Building a New Spirit Field Chapter 16: Chapter 16 Building a New Spirit Field Since the plan was set, Fang Yun began to implement it without hesitation. Just having finished his meal, he took it as an opportunity for some physical activity. He arrived at the entrance of the cave and carefully surveyed the environment around, observing the direction of the sunlight, and finally chose a relatively flat area. This place was not only close to the cave but also had just the right amount of sunlight, making it a good spot for a new spirit field. The only problem was that there was hardly any soil near the cave entrance, mostly just hard stone. Creating a new spirit field here would likely require a great deal of effort. Fortunately, Fang Yun had recently advanced to the second level of Qi Refinement. Otherwise, he would have been at a loss facing these stubborn rocks. After choosing the location, Fang Yun first found a heavy hammer among the many tools collected by previous cultivators. Being a lower realm cultivator in farming was beneficial in one way, he was never short of labor tools. Then, he lifted the heavy hammer high with the aid of Mana and fiercely smashed it toward the ground. Under the hammer¡¯s powerful impact force, the stones on the ground started to shatter, and in less than two hours, all the stones within nearly half an acre were pulverized. This time, Fang Yun planned to expand the spirit field a bit since he still had some Spirit Rice Seeds left after the first batch of Spirit Rice matured. Moreover, placing the spirit field near the cave entrance would not lack much Spiritual Energy, sufficient for the usage of half an acre of the field. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.§ã? After clearing the crushed stones on the surface, Fang Yun continued to break deeper layers of stones until he had cleared up to a half-meter depth over the half-acre area, then he finally stopped. Having cleared all the stones, the next step was to lay down some soil. Fang Yun, carrying a bucket, a spade, and a hoe, headed to the location of the original spirit field. He carefully excavated all the soil from there and laid it in the newly dug pit near the cave entrance. However, the amount of soil from the original spirit field was far from adequate. Fang Yun then used the Earth Power Skills to summon rich nutrients from other parts of the mountain, forming high-quality soil with more fertility, which he tirelessly transported to the new spirit field. Although this newly transported soil didn¡¯t contain Spiritual Power initially, with the nourishment from the Spiritual Spring later on, it wouldn¡¯t be long before this land could be transformed into new fertile ground with Spiritual Energy. Ten days later, all the soil was successfully moved into the new spirit field. Next, Fang Yun started to excavate a water channel directly connecting from inside the cave to the new spirit field. His goal was to ensure that the water from the Spiritual Spring could directly reach the spirit field after flowing out of the cave, thus guaranteeing an adequate supply of Spiritual Energy for the new Spirit Rice. With the irrigation channel completed, fresh spring water continuously flowed into the new spirit field, and then, another channel was dug on the other side of the spirit field, diverting water that had passed through the spirit field back into the previous water channel. This allowed the water that flowed through the spirit field to continue downstream to the Big River in the plains. After all, the Big River downstream nourished tens of thousands of acres of rice fields, and this spring water was also useful for those fields. He could not afford to disrupt the downstream spring water just for planting Spirit Rice. With all these preparations done, it was now up to the spring water to continuously nourish the soil in the spirit field to reach the standards suitable for planting Spirit Rice. While the soil was yet to meet the criteria, Fang Yun took the opportunity to treat the new Spirit Rice for seedling cultivation. He went into the new spirit field, cast the Earth Power Skills, and with a soft chant of the spell, his handprints continuously changed, emitting a yellow glow from his hands, which then infused into the spirit field before him. Instantly, the scene within several meters of the spirit field clearly appeared in Fang Yun¡¯s vision. Not only could Fang Yun see the ordinary energy in the soil, but he could also sense strands of crystal-clear energy. Seeing this crystal-clear energy, Fang Yun instantly realized that these were indeed Spiritual Energy visible under special circumstances. Then, he changed the spell in his hands again, and the energy around began to converge under Fang Yun¡¯s feet. With the gathering of those ordinary energies, the Spiritual Energy was also drawn over, converging into the soil beneath Fang Yun¡¯s feet. With the successful execution of the Earth Power Skills, Fang Yun exited that special view. Looking at the soil beneath his feet, rich in fertility and Spiritual Energy, Fang Yun isolated it in a corner of the spirit field. Then, he evenly scattered the previously saved Spirit Rice Seeds over this nursery area, then flattened it out, embedding them deep into the soil. Having completed all this, what followed was patiently waiting for the germination of the Spirit Rice Seeds and for the soil in the spirit field to be nourished up to standard, when new Spirit Rice could then be planted. Taking advantage of this waiting period, Fang Yun began to study the Spirit Rain Skill. Without needing to flip through books again, the various details required for casting the Spirit Rain Skill were already deeply etched in Fang Yun¡¯s mind. ¡°Clouds gather, Spirit Rain descends, moistens all directions, nourishes the earth¡­¡± As he chanted the spell, the handprints in his hands began to change. Driven by these movements, the Mana in his body from the second level of Qi Cultivation, began to operate slowly along a mysterious and wonderful trajectory. As the Mana operated, an indescribable fluctuation emitted from within Fang Yun¡¯s body. Soon, a large amount of water vapor condensed above the sky in front of him, followed by a cloud of one square meter in size slowly emerging. Seeing this situation, Fang Yun knew that his spell-casting was going quite smoothly. He focused intently, not daring to allow the slightest ripple in his heart. The spell in his hands continuously changed, guiding the Mana inside his body to keep operating incessantly along a mysterious angle. After a while, the cloud above condensed to its limit, and then droplets of rain began to drift down towards the spirit field below. Seeing his spell successfully executed, Fang Yun¡¯s heart couldn¡¯t help but stir. As his emotions fluctuated, the operation of Mana in his body also fluctuated. Consequently, the cloud above, which had not yet rained much, was affected and slowly dispersed. Fang Yun, seeing this situation, did not mind too much; after all, the spell had already been successfully executed, and it would be easier the next time. Open panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 2 Mana: 32 Life Essence Qi: 23 Control over Plants: Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 5%) Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 1%) Indeed, the Spirit Rain Skill has reached the beginner level. To think that when initially practicing the Earth Power Skills, it was so strenuous, having tried dozens of times without success. Yet, practicing the Spirit Rain Skill succeeded on the first try. Could it be that I have a natural talent for casting water-element spells? Or is it that among my Spirit Roots, the water-element Spirit Root is more outstanding? Because initially, when the Fang Family tested for Spirit Roots, relying only on a crude Spirit Testing Stone, it was only possible to detect the presence of a Spirit Root. As for which type of Spirit Root one possessed, or which was more outstanding, could not be detected. This is an unavoidable situation; for a semi-Cultivator family, being able to maintain the presence of Cultivators within the family is already quite good. Where could one aspire for more? Chapter 17 - Chapter 17: Chapter 17: Spirit Rain Skill Chapter 17: Chapter 17: Spirit Rain Skill After resting for a while, Fang Yun continued to cast the Spirit Rain Skill. This time, with the experience of previous failures, Fang Yun succeeded in casting the spell at once. With the appearance of the clouds, rain began to fall ceaselessly upon the spirit field, creating ripples on the surface of the spring water. After about ten minutes, the clouds slowly began to disperse. During the following days, while Fang Yun eagerly awaited the sprouting of the Spirit Rice Seeds, he kept casting the Spirit Rain Skill. With each passing day and continuous practice, Fang Yun¡¯s success rate of casting the Spirit Rain Skill increased. The duration of the spell extended, and the Spiritual Energy within the Spirit Rain became richer. Fang Yun found out after testing that the rainwater brought down by the Spirit Rain Skill actually had a higher concentration of Spiritual Energy than the spirit water flowing from the Spiritual Spring. This inevitably made him curious about the source of the Spiritual Energy in the Spirit Rain Skill. Could it be that the air really contains such abundant Spiritual Energy? But if that¡¯s the case, why can¡¯t Fang Yun absorb any Spiritual Energy at all except when he¡¯s cultivating near the Spiritual Spring? Despite his curiosity about the mysteries contained in the Spirit Rain Skill, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t fully explore the reasons behind it with his current abilities and knowledge. However, with the existence of the powerful Spirit Rain Skill, he knew that the cultivation of Spirit Rice would definitely be more convenient and efficient in the future. Furthermore, it would undoubtedly provide a significant boost and assurance for the cultivation of conventional crops as well. Several days rushed by, and the Spirit Rice Seeds sprouted successfully. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?0¦Í?0.?¦Ï Cultivation: Qi Cultivation second level Mana: 32 Life Essence Qi: 23 Plant control: Spirit Rice (436), Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 6%), Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 30%) Looking at the breeding ground he had isolated in the corner, it was already covered with tender green seedlings. This time, there were more than 400 sprouts of Spirit Rice that had been planted, but a selection would have to be made later on to transplant those with stronger growth. By then, there might only be a little more than 300 left, but that was still several times more than the previous amount of Spirit Rice. However, this would still take some time, and the nourishment work for the spirit field was not yet complete. Taking advantage of this free time, Fang Yun did not remain idle. He once again went to the canyon. With the cultivation of a second-level Qi Cultivator, Fang Yun no longer needed to use ropes like an ordinary mortal to get down into the canyon. This was one of the conveniences brought about by the increase in cultivation. However, regretfully, Fang Yun still didn¡¯t know any Light Body Skills, otherwise, it would have been even more convenient. It had been a long time since he had come to the canyon, and it was now filled with weeds, almost reverting to how it was before he had cleared it, except for the absence of trees. Seeing this situation, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but smile wryly. It seemed like clearing these weeds was going to take some effort. Afterward, Fang Yun walked towards the corner of the canyon where he had initially planted medicinal herbs. As he had been busy with the spirit field and Spirit Rice, it had been quite a long time since he had cared for these herbs. Now, entering the area where the medicinal herbs were planted, Fang Yun could distinctly sense the uncomfortable feeling being transmitted from those herbs to him. Just as ordinary people might experience a state of sub-health, unable to pinpoint the exact problem, but feeling generally uncomfortable all over. So, Fang Yun began to weed the medicinal field, and it took him an entire day to clear out most of the weeds. Then, he cast the Spirit Rain Skill again. With a cloud slowly appearing above the medicinal field, the constant drizzle showered over the herbs. Nourished by this rain, the vitality of the herbs under the cloud gradually rejuvenated, no longer giving Fang Yun that uncomfortable feeling. Therefore, in the following days, Fang Yun continued to cast the Spirit Rain Skill in the medicinal field, planning to water all the herbs and restore their vigor. However, the use of the Spirit Rain Skill brought about some troublesome side effects. The weeds he had just cleared from the medicinal field were now growing back rapidly, leaving Fang Yun no choice but to shake his head again. He then pulled out these newly sprouted weeds once more. These weeds were different from those in the spirit field; they required even less from their environment to grow. As long as there was a simple patch of soil, they could quickly sprout. Especially since this was a field that had just been watered with the Spirit Rain Skill. If left unchecked, it wouldn¡¯t take long for the weeds to take over again. Moreover, there was so much land throughout the entire valley that would need to be watered with the Spirit Rain Skill in the future. If these weeds grew so quickly, Fang Yun would undoubtedly have to spend a lot of time weeding in the future. This was impossible for him, as now and in the future, most of his energy would be focused on the spirit field and Spirit Rice, and he couldn¡¯t afford to waste most of his time on the cultivation of ordinary crops. Therefore, Fang Yun had to come up with a practical solution for these weeds. Otherwise, the cultivation of crops would not be able to continue. Unless he stopped using the Spirit Rain Skill. After some thought, Fang Yun suddenly came up with a brilliant idea. However, this required Fang Yun to make precise use of another spell to achieve his goal. Thus, Fang Yun used the medicinal field as his experimental ground. On the basis of the previously divided dozens of plots, he made even finer divisions for each herb, so that each was situated within its own small grid. This task was indeed meticulous, and aside from observing the newly grown Spirit Rice and the nourishment of the spirit field, Fang Yun spent the rest of his time busily remodeling the medicinal field in the valley. Once the renovation of the medicinal field was complete, Fang Yun stood in the midst of it and began to cast the Earth Power Skills. With the deployment of the Earth Power Skills, Fang Yun entered a special underground perspective once again. Then, using the Earth Power Skills, he concentrated all the nutrients in the soil into each individual grid. Such manipulation was indeed challenging for Fang Yun, who had not learned the Earth Power Skills for very long. However, it was entirely possible to continue with a second deployment of the Earth Power Skills after an incomplete first attempt, to ultimately achieve a rational allocation of the soil¡¯s nutrients. The aim was not to completely prevent the growth of weeds, which was an impossible task at present. On one hand, this was to allow the herbs to obtain more nutrients and promote their robust growth; On the other hand, without ample nutrition outside of the grids, the growth of the weeds would be greatly limited. Chapter 18 - Chapter 18: Chapter 18 Fang Lin Goes Up the Mountain Chapter 18: Chapter 18 Fang Lin Goes Up the Mountain The area within the square is ultimately limited, so the number of weeds that can grow is also limited. This makes clearing them relatively easy and simple. After this is done, what follows is waiting for the results to be verified. After Xie Yi modified the medicinal fields, the spirit rice seedlings in the spirit field also gradually grew robust and strong. Most crucially, after careful observation by Fang Yun, he discovered that the spiritual energy in the spirit field had become abundant, reaching a balance with the Spiritual Spring. Even if they were to continue waiting, the spiritual energy in the spirit field would not increase any further. Now was the perfect time to plant the spirit rice. So, early the next morning, Fang Yun went to a corner of the spirit field and began to carefully select the grown spirit rice seedlings. He picked out the seedlings that were growing well and transplanted them into the spirit field. After a meticulous selection process, Fang Yun chose 320 stalks of spirit rice, five times the amount of the last time. If these spirit rice could fully mature, the Life Essence Qi he would obtain would be about five times that of before. Add to that other ordinary crops, which would be enough to support his cultivation reaching the Third Level of Qi Refining. It took two days, but Fang Yun finally finished transplanting the spirit rice. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï??0.§ã0 Next was the long wait for spirit rice to mature. Fang Yun only needed to remove weeds periodically and closely monitor the spiritual energy condition in the spirit field to ensure an ample supply of spiritual energy, and his task would be considered complete. As for insect pests, based on past experience, they usually appear after the spirit rice enters the maturity phase. However, Fang Yun did not dare to take this lightly; with many types of pests, no one could predict whether other unseen pests might appear in this process. Fortunately, with his special abilities, even if pests did appear, he could deal with them in a timely manner. With the spirit field¡¯s matters taken care of, it was time to plant ordinary crops in the valley. Though ordinary crops provide somewhat less Life Essence Qi, every little bit counts. And he could also take the opportunity to cultivate better seeds for future expanded planting. After all, the spiritual energy in the Spiritual Spring is limited, which means the size of his spirit field is also limited. When his need for Life Essence Qi becomes greater, these spirit fields will obviously no longer be enough to meet his needs. In that case, he might need to use the vast land on Spirit Water Island to plant ordinary crops to supplement his Life Essence Qi. Although ordinary crops provide limited Life Essence Qi, when their quantity reaches a certain level, the yield is still considerable. However, to plant crops on Spirit Water Island, there are many challenges to overcome, and he doesn¡¯t have the time right now, so it would have to wait. Returning to the valley, Fang Yun observed the growth of weeds in the medicinal fields. He found that the measures he had previously taken were noticeably effective, and the growth of weeds had significantly decreased. After a simple clearing of the weeds that sprouted in the small grid, Fang Yun began to clear the weeds in the areas not yet planted with crops. Using the entire day, Fang Yun vigorously swung the hoe, clearing all the weeds completely. He piled these weeds in a corner, waiting for them to dry out completely before burning them into ash. With all this done, Fang Yun followed the previous method used in the medicinal fields and divided all the land plots, including the paddy fields, into regular small squares. All the crops that would be planted next would be located within these small squares. In this way, subsequent weed clearing efforts could save more time and energy. Over ten days later, the transformation of all the fields was smoothly completed. Fang Yun used the Spirit Rain Skill to thoroughly irrigate all the land, and then cast Earth Power Skills to evenly distribute the ordinary energy within the soil. Having completed all this, he proceeded to plant soybeans and also completed the breeding of rice grains in parallel. Next, he just needed to wait for the rice seedlings to grow before transplanting them. On this day, after clearing the newly grown weeds in the valley, he returned to the cave. Suddenly, he saw a figure standing at the entrance of the cave. It was the elder from the mountain foot, Fang Lin. Fang Yun, carrying a hoe, quickly approached him. ¡°Clan Leader, is there something urgent from the clan that needs me?¡± Apart from such matters, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t think of anything else that would bring the Clan Leader of his family to find him. And usually, for the sake of his cultivation, they would not come to the mountain to disturb him. When Fang Lin saw that Fang Yun had finally returned, he let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Clan Leader, something terrible has happened! There are 18 pirate groups outside the island, and they are attacking Spirit Water Island; everyone is waiting for you to discuss countermeasures!¡± Upon hearing this, Fang Yun was stunned. 18 pirate groups attacking Spirit Water Island? What¡¯s going on? How could pirates suddenly emerge in the surrounding waters? According to what he knew before, wasn¡¯t the closest island more than a hundred li away from here? Where did these pirates come from? Fang Yun¡¯s heart was full of doubts and even a tinge of panic! After all, it looked like a war was coming, and in this Cultivation World, it was unknown whether there were cultivators among those pirates. If there were, he would definitely have to take the lead; as someone who had never fought before, facing such a situation, Fang Yun was naturally quite flustered. However, seeing that Fang Lin was anxious but not panicking, he guessed that the family must have some measures to deal with this situation. Thinking again that he was a cultivator and also a Clan Leader, it was improper to show signs of cowardice. So he nodded crisply: ¡°Alright, Clan Leader, please wait a moment; I¡¯ll make some preparations and then descend the mountain with you!¡± Without waiting for Fang Lin¡¯s reply, Fang Yun went into the cave to put away the hoe, took up the fine iron sword and strapped it to his back. Then he went to a corner of the cave to collect the Fang Family¡¯s legacy left by generations of cultivators, which included several Spirit Talismans and a damaged Magic Artifact long knife. He took all these things with him. Facing an unknown battle situation, it was natural to bring all the life-saving objects available. Otherwise, if he were to carelessly fall in battle, these things would end up benefiting the enemy. After getting everything in order, Fang Yun left the cave to meet with Fang Lin. ¡°Clan Leader, let¡¯s go!¡± Seeing Fang Yun with the Magic Artifact long knife tied to his waist, Fang Lin knew that the Clan Leader was cautious and had brought the Clan Suppressing Artifact of the family without being reminded. Therefore, he didn¡¯t say anything more, leading Fang Yun with qinggong, heading towards the foot of the mountain. Chapter 19 - Chapter 19: Chapter 19 Pirate Invasion Chapter 19: Chapter 19 Pirate Invasion Fang Yun watched as Fang Lin lightly tapped his toes on the ground, gracefully soaring down the mountain. *He couldn¡¯t help but feel a tinge of envy, considering whether he should practice Qinggong without relying on spells.* *After all, even though he wasn¡¯t much slower than Fang Lin when running under the influence of mana, his posture was truly unsightly.* *It seemed that he should indeed seize the opportunity to learn.* With this thought in mind, the two quickly arrived at the base of the mountain and then sped towards the south side of the island along the road. They crossed the rice fields and the bridge over the river, swiftly arriving at the front of a town. It was then that Fang Lin finally stopped and led Fang Yun inside. Without pausing for a moment, they directly entered the great hall within the town. The layout of the hall wasn¡¯t particularly luxurious. At the center end stood a large chair, with a small tea table beside it. On either side, there were two rows of chairs, each row containing five chairs, making a total of ten seats. Each chair also had a small tea table beside it. At this moment, except for the first position on the right, which was clearly reserved for Fang Lin, all other seats were occupied, indicating that people had been waiting for a while. Fang Yun entered the hall and quickly glanced at the nine people on both sides. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?¦Ï Except for Fang Zhou, who was seated in the second position on the right, Fang Yun didn¡¯t recognize anyone else. Among the others, there were six men and two women, and even the youngest appeared to be in their forties or fifties. The oldest, sitting in the first position on the left, had white hair and a face full of wrinkles. Fang Yun could even sense the decaying aura emanating from his body. It was apparent that his life was nearing its end. Seeing even someone whose life was about to conclude appear here indicated that the matter at hand was quite urgent. *Thinking of this, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but become even more nervous.* As Fang Yun observed these people, gathering and analyzing information, the others also noticed Fang Lin entering with a young-looking person. Although Fang Yun hadn¡¯t met these people before, they were very familiar with his appearance. After all, as the only cultivator and the clan leader of the family, these people, being elders of the family, were naturally acquainted with Fang Yun. ¡°We pay our respects to the clan leader!¡± Everyone bowed deeply, offering a grand salute to Fang Yun. Fang Yun was taken aback by this scene, *never having been so respected in either of his lifetimes, making him feel a bit embarrassed.* After a light cough, he said, ¡°There¡¯s no need to be so formal, everyone, please rise!¡± ¡°Thank you, clan leader!¡± At this moment, Fang Lin guided Fang Yun to the central seat opposite and said, ¡°Clan leader, let me briefly introduce the elders present here to you. On the first seat on the left is our great elder, Fang Jianting. He is 102 years old and is the living fossil of our clan. Though he¡¯s advanced in age, his wisdom is exceptional, having devised numerous strategies for the family.¡± Fang Jianting nodded slightly, casting a gentle gaze toward Fang Yun. Fang Lin continued the introductions, ¡°The second person is Fang Hong, who manages the family¡¯s trade affairs and has significantly contributed to the family¡¯s economic prosperity.¡± Fang Hong cupped his hands in a salute, wearing a composed smile. ¡°The third person is Fang Yong, responsible for the family¡¯s martial prowess and commanding the family¡¯s guard. He has defended the family in perilous times.¡± Fang Yong had a burly stature and a keen gaze. ¡°The fourth is Fang Ming, skilled in medicine, ensuring the health of the family members.¡± Fang Ming exuded a scholarly air, smiling and nodding at Fang Yun. ¡°The fifth is Fang Qiang, in charge of the family¡¯s logistics, organizing everything meticulously.¡± Fang Qiang appeared simple and honest. After introducing those on the left, Fang Lin turned to the right, ¡°These two are the only female elders in our clan, and their capabilities are comparable to any of us. The one on the left is Fang Xue, an expert in cultivation, under whose guidance the family¡¯s rice fields have almost always yielded plentiful harvests.¡± Fang Xue maintained a cold demeanor, nodding slightly. ¡°The one on the right is Fang Jie, skilled in crafting, who has forged many fine weapons for the family.¡± Fang Jie wore a kind expression, offering Fang Yun a friendly smile. At this point, Fang Lin pointed to a middle-aged man standing aside, who hadn¡¯t been introduced yet, and said, ¡°This is Fang Hao, responsible for collecting the family¡¯s intelligence. His sources are highly informed.¡± Fang Yun listened attentively to Fang Lin¡¯s introductions, nodding at everyone present, making an effort to remember their names, appearances, and specializations. As the clan leader, even though Fang Yun didn¡¯t participate in the family¡¯s specific affairs, he needed to know about the elders¡¯ particular situations; otherwise, he would seem rather inept. After the brief introductions, it was time to discuss the main issue. Fang Yun didn¡¯t mince words and directly asked Fang Lin, ¡°What exactly is going on? How did the pirates suddenly start attacking our Spirit Water Island? If I recall correctly, there weren¡¯t supposed to be any pirates near us, right?¡± Fang Lin stood and cupped his hands, saying, ¡°Clan leader, the specifics should be explained by Elder Fang Hao. He oversees the family¡¯s intelligence and knows the details more thoroughly!¡± Hearing Fang Lin¡¯s suggestion, Fang Yun turned his gaze towards Fang Hao. Fang Hao didn¡¯t hesitate and stood up, saying, ¡°Clan leader, esteemed elders! Indeed, based on past experiences, our Spirit Water Island is relatively remote, with few isolated islands nearby, hence pirates were rare. However, ever since the previous cultivator of our Fang Family passed away, somehow the news got out. Since last year, pirates have appeared nearby. They were initially wary of our Fang Family¡¯s strength and the legacy left by former cultivators, so they did not dare to invade rashly. Recently though, it seems they have gathered enough manpower or acquired some other leverage. They are gradually approaching, and it¡¯s estimated that in a few days, they will reach our Spirit Water Island! We must come up with a strategy as soon as possible!¡± Fang Hao finished speaking and then sat down. His task was complete; now it depended on what countermeasures the family could devise. Fang Yun hadn¡¯t expected that this situation was caused by the death of the previous cultivator. The previous cultivator was only at the second level of Qi cultivation, yet his deterrence was strong? When he was alive, no pirates dared to invade, but after his death, there were those bold enough to attack Spirit Water Island. *For the first time, Fang Yun deeply realized the immense deterrent power cultivators held over the mortal world.* *Nevertheless, despite recognizing this, Fang Yun didn¡¯t dare to feel proud, fully aware of his own abilities.* *A mere cultivator at the second level of Qi cultivation was nothing to boast about.* *In the face of such a level of war, caution was indeed the best approach.* Chapter 20 - Chapter 20: Chapter 20: Discussing Strategies Chapter 20: Chapter 20: Discussing Strategies Fang Yun thought for a moment; in both of his lifetimes, he had never encountered war. When it came to coming up with a strategy, he worried about leading others astray. So, he looked at the oldest, Fang Jianting, and said, ¡°Forefather, do you have any suggestions?¡± As the living fossil of the clan, surely he must have some experience in this area of warfare. As the saying goes, an old person in the family is like having a treasure! Fang Jianting leaned on his cane, stroked his white beard, and then said gently, ¡°Clan Leader, don¡¯t panic. Our Fang Family has weathered many such storms before. I remember when a cultivator passed away three generations ago, we also faced an attack from other forces. At that time, we only had five martial artists in the Innate Realm, and the situation was much more perilous than it is now. Didn¡¯t we survive that? This time won¡¯t be any different!¡± At this point, Fang Jianting looked at Fang Hao and said, ¡°Hao, have you found out the origins of these eighteen bands of pirates? Who are they, and approximately how many Innate Realm martial artists do they have? Are any cultivators involved?¡± Fang Hao stood up and said solemnly, ¡°Great-grandfather, the general situation has been figured out; these enemies are no ordinary foes! Just the Black Widow, Wei Changhai, and Mo Rongxiao have more than ten Innate martial artists combined. Even if each of the remaining groups of pirates has just one Innate martial artist, there would still be about twenty-five or more. According to our estimates, they might even have more than thirty Innate martial artists! As for whether there are any cultivators involved, we still haven¡¯t found out yet!¡± Upon hearing that the enemy had thirty Innate martial artists, the clan elders present were somewhat panicked. Though they had experienced battles before, they obviously had never faced dozens of Innate martial artists. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?¦Ï.§ã¦Ï The disparity in strength between the two sides was palpable, causing them to be flustered. Even Fang Yun felt that their chances were slim upon hearing this news. He had previously thought that having ten Innate martial artists on his side was quite a lot. It turned out that some random pirates could easily gather nearly thirty Innate martial artists. *Was the Innate Realm in this world so cheap?* Seeing the scene growing chaotic, Fang Jianting¡¯s cane struck the ground with a heavy sound, making a thudding noise. ¡°Enough! Why panic? The enemy hasn¡¯t arrived yet, and you¡¯re already like this? What nonsense is this? Do you plan to surrender just because the enemy is numerous?¡± Beside him, Fang Hong hurriedly said, ¡°Great-grandfather, we have no such intention. Those pirates are extremely cruel. Even if we surrendered, we wouldn¡¯t survive. We are just discussing countermeasures!¡± Fang Jianting gave him a cold glance and snorted, ¡°Is this how you discuss strategies? I think you¡¯re just scared!¡± Then, looking toward Fang Yun above, he softened his tone and addressed the crowd, ¡°Rest assured, the enemy¡¯s numbers are not as overwhelming as you think. Any pirate group with Innate martial artists counts as a medium-sized organization. Where would they find so many pirate organizations? Our Fang Family¡¯s resources aren¡¯t attractive enough to warrant that. The other pirate groups among them are mostly there just to make up the numbers!¡± Hearing this, the crowd immediately breathed a collective sigh of relief. However, Fang Jianting continued, ¡°But don¡¯t be too quick to relax. The few pirate forces like the Black Widow are still somewhat powerful. Along with other forces, given the estimated number of Innate martial artists, even if it¡¯s not thirty, there are at least twenty.¡± ¡°Ah, great-grandfather, finish what you¡¯re saying! Should we be worried or not?¡± Sitting across from Fang Jianting, Fang Lin complained at once. ¡°Whether to worry or not depends on your abilities. If you think you can handle it, then there¡¯s no need to worry! If you can¡¯t handle it, worrying won¡¯t help!¡± After saying this, Fang Jianting turned his head away, ignoring the crowd. He had said all he needed to say. Now it was up to these juniors to see what they would do. He ultimately didn¡¯t have much time left; the Fang Family would have to rely on these younger members. Seeing this, Fang Lin could only shake his head helplessly, then look toward Fang Yun. ¡°Clan Leader, even if there are only twenty Innate martial artists, it¡¯s very difficult for us to deal with, not to mention that we don¡¯t know if there are any cultivators among them!¡± Fang Yun nodded, acknowledging the truth in what was being said. The Fang Family had only ten Innate martial artists, including Fang Jianting, who was too old to fight. That meant there were only nine Innate martial artists left, plus himself as a cultivator. Although he was a cultivator, and his status seemed prestigious, he had no combat experience at all. *How much combat power he could exert at that time? Fang Yun himself wasn¡¯t sure.* Moreover, they had to be prepared for possible cultivators appearing. In that case, facing more than twenty Innate martial artists with nine people carried significant pressure. Seeing that Fang Jianting had stopped speaking, Fang Yun looked at Fang Yong, who was in charge of the island¡¯s guard. Among those present, Fang Yong seemed to have some experience. ¡°Elder Fang Yong, do you have any suggestions?¡± Fang Yong pondered for a moment and then said, ¡°Actually, we are not entirely without hope. The family guard is well-equipped with weapons and armor. Although fewer in number than the pirates, their combat strength is not inferior. We mainly lack combat power at the higher levels. In this regard, if we want to defeat those pirates, we will have to resort to some of the family¡¯s heritage!¡± At this, Fang Yong glanced around at the other elders and then looked up at Fang Yun. Upon hearing Fang Yong¡¯s suggestion, the other elders fell silent. This approach could work. Or rather, it was the only option left, as other plans, given such strength disparities, would not make much impact. But using the family¡¯s heritage was limited. Once used, it diminishes, which made everyone hesitant to expend it. Moreover, as Innate martial artists, using Spirit Talismans required the use of their own essence blood. Essence blood was limited for everyone. Once used, it would certainly leave lifelong side effects, potentially rendering one a cripple. The cost was indeed high; unless absolutely necessary, no one wanted to pay it. It¡¯s not about being afraid of death, but given the choice, who would want to become a cripple? At this moment, Fang Zhou, who had not spoken until now, took the initiative to say, ¡°If necessary, I can activate the Spirit Talismans!¡± Beside him, Fang Lin also said, ¡°Count me in too! As long as we have Spirit Talismans, we have a fighting chance to fend off this attack!¡± Chapter 21 - Chapter 21: Chapter 21: The Astounding Qi Cultivation Level 2 Chapter 21: Chapter 21: The Astounding Qi Cultivation Level 2 At that moment, Fang Yong also spoke: ¡°Just to be safe, add me in as well, with three Spirit Talismans, it should be enough to repel those Innate Martial Artists!¡± At this time Fang Hong said, ¡°Aren¡¯t we all discussing strategies now? Let¡¯s see if there are any other methods. We shouldn¡¯t act as if we are afraid of dying! If necessary, I am also willing to activate the Spirit Talisman, the worst case is being bedridden for life!¡± After listening for a while, Fang Yun seemed to understand a bit; does activating a Spirit Talisman really come at such a high cost? Could it actually leave one bedridden for life? Is this still a Spirit Talisman then? Fang Yun thought of the dozen or so Spirit Talismans in his arms and suddenly felt uncomfortable. These talismans are a bit too hot to handle. If I activate all of them, won¡¯t I be turned into a dried corpse? This is nothing like the Spirit Talismans of the Cultivation World I imagined! So, Fang Yun cautiously asked, ¡°Does activating a Spirit Talisman really come at such a high cost? If it¡¯s really like that, should we think about other methods? Don¡¯t we still have a Magic Artifact? Wouldn¡¯t it be better to use it!¡± Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.§ã¦Ï Upon hearing Fang Yun¡¯s questions, Fang Lin turned his head with a wry smile and explained, ¡°Clan Leader, for a cultivator like yourself, activating a Spirit Talisman does not require any sacrifice. Because your own mana is the best payment! But for us as Innate Martial Artists, the quality of the True Yuan in our bodies is far inferior to mana. To activate a Spirit Talisman, we must extract the most abundant essence blood in our body to complete the activation! Everyone¡¯s essence blood is limited, once it is used to activate a Spirit Talisman, the cost is unpredictable! As for that Clan Suppressing Artifact you mentioned, if we were to activate it, the cost would be even greater. It requires draining the essence blood of two or three Innate Martial Artists at the very least to possibly do it! Unless our family is truly facing life or death, we generally do not activate the Clan Suppressing Artifact!¡± When Fang Yun heard this, he suddenly had a realization, ¡°So that¡¯s how it is!¡± It gave him quite a fright; he thought the Cultivation World he had crossed into was a Lovecraftian bizarre world. Turns out it¡¯s still a normal world, just that the energy inside other people¡¯s bodies isn¡¯t sufficient, so they have to pay with their lives. At this moment, Fang Lin continued, ¡°It¡¯s a pity, Clan Leader, your cultivation time has been too short, otherwise if you activated the Spirit Talisman, it wouldn¡¯t require so many people to pay the price!¡± At this time, the previously silent Fang Jianting swiped his walking stick. ¡°What nonsense are you speaking? The Clan Leader, with his invaluable body and short cultivation time, how can he waste precious mana to activate a Spirit Talisman? Furthermore, there might still be cultivators lurking around; the Clan Leader is our last resort. Unless absolutely necessary, the leader must not act lightly. As sons of the Fang Family, activating the Spirit Talismans doesn¡¯t mean risking your lives, stop hesitating here. Think about 80 years ago, we only had 5 Innate Martial Artists back then, yet everyone activated the Spirit Talismans and repelled the invaders. Even though everyone except me died, no one regretted their actions. It¡¯s precisely because of such spirit that our Fang Family has been able to continue for hundreds of years in this world. What? Has it come to your generation and suddenly you can¡¯t do it?¡± After hearing Fang Jianting¡¯s reprimand, everyone else bowed their heads in shame, ¡°Yes, great-grandfather, you are right, even if it costs us our lives, we will fend off the enemies! We won¡¯t let down the ancestors of the Fang Family!¡± Fang Yun, watching this impassioned scene, opened his mouth but didn¡¯t know whether he should interrupt them. He felt that with his second level of Qi Cultivation, activating a few Spirit Talismans should not be too costly. Even that Magic Artifact, Fang Yun felt that with his cultivation level, he could use it as well, just for a shorter duration. It shouldn¡¯t be as exaggerated as they said. While Fang Yun wasn¡¯t sure how to start speaking. Everyone had already completed their fiery pledges. Now it was time for Fang Yong, the leader of the guard team, to arrange the strategy for meeting the enemy. But before that, Fang Yong asked Fang Yun, ¡°Clan Leader, considering that the enemy might have cultivators, I wonder if your cultivation has broken through the first layer of Qi Cultivation, and whether you can contend with their cultivators. If not, we need to make further arrangements!¡± At this point, Fang Yong looked nervously at Fang Yun. If Fang Yun truly couldn¡¯t handle the possible appearance of cultivators, and they had to face it themselves, the cost they had to pay would be tremendous. It was very likely that the clan elders present would all die in battle. Fang Yun, hearing Fang Yong¡¯s question, finally breathed a sigh of relief. He didn¡¯t need to forcefully explain his cultivation level, which would make him feel like he was showing off. But, with just the second layer of Qi Cultivation, Fang Yun really didn¡¯t feel he had anything worth flaunting. To brag, he would need to wait until his strength reached Foundation Establishment; only then would there be a slight possibility to flaunt. So, Fang Yun leisurely said, ¡°I have already broken through to the second level of Qi Cultivation recently! It¡¯s just not clear what level of cultivator the pirates might bring. Whether I can handle it or not is still hard to say!¡± Fang Yong subconsciously nodded, ¡°That¡¯s good, as long as you have broken through the first layer of Qi Cultivation, we are confident.¡± Then suddenly realizing what was said, he looked at Fang Yun somewhat shocked, ¡°Did you just say you broke through the first layer of Qi Cultivation, or the second layer?¡± Fang Yun¡¯s words were not only heard by Fang Yong, all the clan elders present heard them clearly. But they couldn¡¯t believe that Fang Yun had broken through to the second layer of Qi Cultivation so quickly. They all stared at Fang Yun, hoping he would give a confirmed answer. Fang Yun awkwardly touched his nose, ¡°Really, it¡¯s the second layer of Qi Cultivation, this cultivation level is just at the lowest of the Cultivation World. And I have no combat experience, so don¡¯t place too much hope on me, otherwise it might lead to bad results!¡± The others had already stopped listening to Fang Yun¡¯s explanation. Upon receiving a confirmed answer, they looked at each other, then fell silent. Not knowing what kind of expression should reflect their shock. Only Fang Jianting, leaning on his walking stick, chuckled lowly, his voice gradually growing tearful. ¡°Very good! The Clan Leader is a heaven-sent genius; there¡¯s hope for the Fang Family¡¯s rise!¡± Thinking about the many difficult years the Fang Family had passed through, each time barely surviving. The reason it was so difficult was because the cultivators within the family were too weak. If the cultivators in the family were stronger, could go outside to find more resources, and train more cultivators, the Fang Family would not have had such a hard time. Chapter 22 - Chapter 22: Chapter 22 Negotiations Concluded Chapter 22: Chapter 22 Negotiations Concluded Fang Yun saw Fang Jianting¡¯s emotional breakdown to the point of sobbing, and immediately felt the scene was quite awkward. Is it their limited experience, or is he unaware of the formidable aspects of the second layer of Qi Cultivation? Thus, Fang Yun hurriedly consoled: ¡°Elder Ancestor, it¡¯s not like that, truly unnecessary, please don¡¯t get so worked up!¡± Fang Jianting also realized his lapse in composure, and after calming his emotions, looked towards Fang Yun: ¡°Clan Leader, you are not aware, our Fang Family, although we have a heritage of several hundred years, these years have been tremendously difficult for us! Whenever an accident occurs to a Cultivator in our clan, we are faced with a life or death crisis. The number of people who have died over the years for this is too many, so many that this old man can¡¯t even remember the number. Not only do us ordinary people suffer, even the Cultivators of past generations had a tough time! Among these past Cultivators, to breakthrough to the second layer of Qi Cultivation, they would at least spend a decade or more. Then, either go out to experience the world and search for resources or endure bitterly until their lifespan was at its end, barely breaking through to the third layer! Even though I, this old man, am not a Cultivator, I can understand the difficulties our family¡¯s Cultivators face. Now, you have broken through the second layer of Qi Refinement in just two short years. The Spirit Root within you must be extraordinarily outstanding.¡± Upon saying this, Fang Jianting paused for a moment, then sighed: ¡°It¡¯s truly a pity, had you been born in those great sects. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.§ã0 In the future, you would surely ascend to immortality and become an ancestor. Our Fang Family ultimately just holds you back!¡± Fang Yun listened to Fang Jianting¡¯s words and felt quite touched. In truth, when he had initially crossed over to this world, he also complained, wondering why he didn¡¯t cross over into one of those great sects, but instead came to this ordinary family where cultivation was difficult. Making his start so arduous. But then he thought about it, coming to such a family wasn¡¯t without benefits. At least in the early stages, he wouldn¡¯t encounter too many dangers. And in terms of cultivation, with his Golden Finger, progress wouldn¡¯t be too slow. In comparison to those great sects, the current family suit him better. At least this allowed him ample time to develop. If he had crossed over to one of those great sects, it would be hard to predict what might occur; perhaps with bad luck, before even making use of the Golden Finger, he could already have been eradicated. Thereupon, Fang Yun comforted: ¡°Elder Ancestor, do not speak like that. If not for the support of the family, I might still be amongst the mortals, an insignificant person. Rather than becoming a Cultivator as I am now. I am full of gratitude to the family! Thus, let us no longer mention such words in the future, right now we should think about how to repel those pirates!¡± ¡°Good, good, good! The Clan Leader¡¯s words are most correct, I will not speak of such things in the future!¡± Fang Jianting also realized he had spoken excessively, now that Fang Yun was a Cultivator in the clan, the stronger his talent, the better for the clan. It is indeed best not to say things that create disaffection. At this time, Fang Yun turned to look at Fang Yong and said: ¡°Elder Fang Yong, you are in charge of the guard squad within our family, and I believe you are an expert in arranging troops. Please tell me how I can help in the upcoming confrontation with the pirates, I am ready for your orders!¡± Fang Yong, upon hearing Fang Yun¡¯s words, immediately came to his senses, shaking his head repeatedly: ¡°I dare not, Clan Leader, how could I dare issue orders to you! However, with your second-layer Qi Cultivation, we can rest easy! The other matters, we will handle them, you only need to take care of activating the Spirit Talismans. With you here, we won¡¯t need to pay the extra cost to activate the Spirit Talismans!¡± Fang Yun heard this arrangement and nodded. It was indeed appropriate for him to activate the Spirit Talismans, after all, he didn¡¯t need to pay a price for activating them. ¡°What if other Cultivators appear? I¡¯m a bit worried I won¡¯t be able to handle it!¡± Fang Yun did not hide his worry about his lack of strength. Even though everyone present showed shock at his second-layer Qi Cultivation, as if it was very impressive. Yet, Fang Yun wasn¡¯t blinded by these emotions. He clearly knew that apart from a little Mana, he had no other skills. If a real second-layer Qi Cultivator, or even a third-layer one, were to appear. He would surely be doomed. This was something that could not be ignored. Fang Yun¡¯s cultivation journey had just begun, and he certainly didn¡¯t wish for it to end so soon. Addressing this concern of Fang Yun, Fang Lin explained: ¡°Clan Leader, you do not need to worry about this! Even if those pirates really did bring a Cultivator, they are most likely to be just first-layer Qi Cultivators. With Spirit Talismans and the Clan Suppressing Artifact, you should have no problem dealing with them!¡± Fang Yun nodded thoughtfully upon hearing this. If it was just a first-layer Qi Cultivator, as long as he did not encounter some freak capable of fighting across levels, he should be able to cope. But why only a first-layer? However, Fang Yun did not voice this question. As he quickly realized the reason, a second-layer Qi Cultivator might be weak to him. But to ordinary mortals, it was ultimately a rather powerful presence. It¡¯s not easy to enlist such a person. Those pirates probably could not afford such a price. If those pirates truly could afford that price, with their strength, they wouldn¡¯t consider targeting the resource-scarce Spirit Water Island. And the Spiritual Spring on Spirit Water Island could only support ordinary Cultivators reaching the second layer of Qi Cultivation. Such Spiritual Objects were thus clearly unworthy in the eyes of other second-layer Qi Cultivators. Therefore, Fang Lin said that even if there were Cultivators among the pirates, they were likely to be only first-layer Cultivators. Understanding this, Fang Yun was reassured. Thus, Fang Yun looked at Fang Yong: ¡°Then alright, I will take care of the Spirit Talismans and any potential Cultivators that may appear! The remainder of the arrangements and troop deployment, I will entrust to you, Elder Fang Yong!¡± Fang Yong quickly responded: ¡°Clan Leader, rest assured, I will certainly not fail this mission!¡± Afterward, Fang Yong made some brief arrangements with the elders present, then hurriedly left to organize the clan¡¯s guard squad, starting battle preparations. With Fang Yong¡¯s departure, the others also bid farewell to Fang Yun. As the war approached, apart from dealing with the Innate Realm Martial Artists, within their designated responsibilities, there were still many affairs to be prepared. Following the departure of the other clan elders, Fang Yun simply decided to stay in the town. After all, with the war impending, he couldn¡¯t possibly return to the mountain and run down when the pirates arrived; that would be too much of a delay. He just hoped that his absence for these few days wouldn¡¯t have too much impact on the growth of the Spirit Rice. Led by Fang Lin, Fang Yun arrived at the courtyard in the town designated for the Clan Leader. The courtyard was very large, with pavilions and towers, the residence where the past Clan Leaders lived. However, the previous Clan Leaders were all Cultivators of the clan and lived in the caves on the mountain, so clearly this place was not frequently inhabited. Chapter 23 - Chapter 23: Chapter 23: The Terrifying Power of the Magic Artifact Longsword Chapter 23: Chapter 23: The Terrifying Power of the Magic Artifact Longsword Upon arriving in the courtyard, Fang Yun didn¡¯t rush to rest; instead, he planned to utilize these last few days to study his tactics against enemies and accumulate a bit more experience. However, Spirit Talismans are ultimately single-use items, and Fang Yun didn¡¯t want to waste them on trials. Thus, he could only take out the Magic Artifact sword and wanted to see just what kind of power it possessed. He drew the blade and carelessly tossed the scabbard aside. This Magic Artifact sword bore a likeness to an ordinary sword, but unlike an ordinary blade, its surface was covered with mysterious and intricate patterns. Without a doubt, these must be some sort of prohibitions or Arrays, which also constituted the wonders of this Magic Artifact sword. After examining the Magic Artifact sword in his hand, Fang Yun circulated his Mana from within his Dantian, through the meridians in his hands, and into the sword. Influenced by the Mana, the Magic Artifact sword began to emit a bright yellow light starting from the hilt. The light slowly flowed toward the tip of the sword. When it reached the tip, the bright yellow light enveloped the entire Magic Artifact sword. Then, Fang Yun swung the sword toward a nearby rockery, and a several-meters-long Sword Energy flew towards it. The Sword Energy gently swept across the rockery as if slicing through a block of tofu, utterly silent. Then it continued forward, cutting into the pavilion behind the rockery, then on to the corridor behind that, before it stopped. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?? Fang Yun waited for a moment, and as the rockery emitted a thunderous boom, it split into two halves, the pavilion cracked in half, and the corridor was also cut into two sections. Seeing this scene, Fang Yun was shocked as he looked at the Magic Artifact sword in his hand; its power had indeed given him a great fright. Could the quality of a Cultivator¡¯s Mana be so high? Or was it that the Magic Artifact was too powerful? But regardless of whether it was the might of the Magic Artifact or the power of the Mana, both were actually parts of a Cultivator¡¯s strength. No wonder those Clan Elders reacted so strongly to him advancing to the second layer of Qi Cultivation. It turns out, the destructive power exhibited by a second-layer Qi Cultivator was indeed formidable. Immediately after, Fang Yun sensed his own Mana and discovered that after swinging the sword, his Mana depleted by about one-tenth. That meant his total Mana could only produce around ten such sword strikes. This consumption of Mana was indeed enormous. However, with a slight stir of his spirit, Fang Yun lightly touched the Life Essence Qi nearby. After expending three points of Life Essence Qi, his Mana quickly expanded and instantly returned to its peak. He glanced at the panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation second layer Mana: 32 Life Essence Qi: 20 Control over Plants: Spirit Rice (320), Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 6%), Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 30%) Looking at the 20 points of Life Essence Qi remaining on the panel, a smile appeared on Fang Yun¡¯s face. With this Life Essence Qi, he would still be able to use the Magic Artifact sword regularly. With this, he no longer needed to worry so much about his own safety. Just then, a loud noise came from the door as Fang Lin kicked open the courtyard gate and rushed in. ¡°Clan Leader, what has happened?¡± Fang Yun gave him a glance, then looked at the collapsed rockery and the damaged things behind it. Hearing the sounds of people hurrying this way, he knew that the commotion he¡¯d caused was too significant and had led to a misunderstanding among the crowd. Therefore, Fang Yun explained: ¡°Clan Elders, there¡¯s no need for concern. I was merely testing the Magic Artifact in my hand. Tell everyone to remain calm! Scatter! Disband!¡± Fang Lin looked at the magic artifact long sword in Fang Yun¡¯s hand, then glanced at the nearby rockery and the collapsed pavilion. Swallowing the saliva in his mouth, he had just thought to persuade Fang Yun not to waste mana, so as not to affect the upcoming battle with the enemy in a few days. But then he thought that as a cultivator, Fang Yun must be aware of such matters, and it was not his place as a mortal to overstep. ¡°Yes, Clan Leader!¡± Saying so, he turned and walked out of the courtyard to explain to the others who were rushing over. Having understood the rough power of the magic artifact long sword, Fang Yun decided not to conduct further tests. Next, he took out those dozen or so spirit talismans and carefully examined them. Among these spirit talismans, there were 5 with the fire attribute, 3 with the wind attribute, 3 with the earth attribute, as well as 2 with the gold attribute, and 2 with the wood attribute. Fang Yun could only simply discern their attributes, but as for which specific spirit talismans they were, he had never seen them before and lacked the knowledge to distinguish them. So, Fang Yun organized the spirit talismans by their categories. For the upcoming war, let¡¯s start with the fire attribute spirit talismans. Because they are most likely offensive in nature and would presumably be quite suitable for wartime. Once all preparations were in order, Fang Yun spent the following days tranquilly in the courtyard. Cultivating his spirit and body, waiting for the great battle to arrive. Five days later, as the courtyard gate was knocked, Fang Yun realized that those pirates must have come. He went forward to open the door and indeed saw Fang Lin standing at the entrance with a grave face. Even though they had already thought of strategies a few days ago, the thought of the enemy¡¯s numbers still weighed heavily that this battle would not be easy. Fang Yun nodded at him, then led the way towards the grand hall in the center of the town. Arriving at the entrance of the grand hall, except for Fang Yong, all the other family elders were already waiting there. ¡°Reporting to the Clan Leader, the pirates are nearing Spirit Water Island and are about to begin landing! Please issue your orders, Clan Leader!¡± Fang Hao, responsible for intelligence, stepped forward to report. Fang Yun, with the magic artifact long sword in hand, raised it high and declared: ¡°Good, I won¡¯t say anything else, let¡¯s move out!¡± Following Fang Yun¡¯s command, except for Fang Jianting, the elder who was unfit for battle, the rest of the elders promptly employed their qinggong and dashed towards the eastern side. That area was one of the beaches of Spirit Water Island; if the enemy were to land, they would have to choose this place. Seeing the elders speeding away with qinggong, a twitch formed at the corners of Fang Yun¡¯s mouth. It seems that he had to prioritize practicing his qinggong. Otherwise, it would undermine his authority as a Clan Leader. But now was not the time to think about this; Fang Yun nodded towards Fang Jianting, who stayed behind, then channeled his mana and followed the other elders towards the east. Fang Jianting didn¡¯t notice Fang Yun¡¯s somewhat awkward running posture. Instead, he watched the departing figures and sighed softly, ¡°Ancestors, please protect the Fang Family, and hope we can successfully fend off the pirates! At the very least, I hope nothing happens to our Clan Leader; he is the hope of our Fang Family!¡± Fang Yun quickly arrived at the eastern beach along with the others. At this time, nearly a thousand island guards, in armor and wielding long spears, were already lined up under Fang Yong¡¯s command, ready for battle behind the beach. And in the distance, the outlines of over a dozen large ships were faintly visible. As time passed, the appearance of the ships came into clearer view. Clearly, it wouldn¡¯t be long before the ships reached shore. That was when the war would commence. Feeling the atmosphere of war on the field, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but tense up. Chapter 24 - Chapter 24: Chapter 24 The Battle Begins Chapter 24: Chapter 24 The Battle Begins It didn¡¯t take long for the people on shore to wait, as more than a dozen large ships quickly approached the beach, and then without the slightest hesitation, they crashed directly onto the seabed of the shallow sea. In the midst of the murky seawater, they were firmly grounded on the shallow sea bed. The pirates on board, who had been waiting for a long time, leaped down one after another. Dressed in various strange garments, they each wielded different kinds of weapons, and screeched uproariously. Soon, the pirates densely packed the entire coastline and then trudged through the sea water, charging towards the shore. Seeing this, Fang Yong waved his hand, and the Fang Family¡¯s guards on shore formed into formations, stepping in steady strides onto the sand, heading to confront the pirates. It didn¡¯t take long for both sides to clash, with the sounds of weapons colliding, cries of battle, and pained screams of the wounded. And the moans of those on the brink of death began to echo continuously along the stretch of the beach. Bloodshed and chaos instantly engulfed the entire battlefield, the sea water stained red with blood, the sand covered with corpses and weapons. The senior members present were unfazed by such a scene, their expressions solemn as they watched the dozen or so beached ships on the shallow sea. Because those who had come ashore were just low-level pirates, the Innate Realm Martial Artists had yet to reveal themselves. Those were the ones the seniors truly regarded seriously. As for the lowly pirates, the Fang Family¡¯s guards were entirely capable of dealing with them on their own. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï??0.§ã? Compared to the unfazed seniors, Fang Yun, who had never experienced war, wasn¡¯t as composed. Witnessing the beach gradually turn red and the wails that echoed in his ears, Fang Yun took a deep breath, only to fill his mouth with the taste of blood. He couldn¡¯t help but cough, then turned his head away, unwilling to face such a scene any longer. His reaction did not escape Fang Lin¡¯s notice, who thought about how their Clan Leader was, in fact, just a child who hadn¡¯t experienced anything. It was indeed a bit difficult for him to suddenly step onto such a grim battlefield. So he comforted him, ¡°Clan Leader, you don¡¯t need to worry. With the guards¡¯ equipment and strength, these pirates won¡¯t be their match. The most important thing is the arrival of those Innate Martial Artists later. Once they appear, you just need to find the right moment, and wherever the number of Innate Martial Artists is greater, throw the Spirit Talisman there! As long as we take down a few Innate Martial Artists, the rest certainly won¡¯t want to fight us to the death. These pirates are just a mob; they¡¯re alright in one-sided battles but will definitely flee at the first sign of a strong opponent!¡± Listening to Fang Lin¡¯s comforting words, Fang Yun exhaled slowly and turned to look at the battling scene, then nodded firmly. Fang Yun realized now that in this world of Cultivation, he would certainly face many such scenes in the future. He must adapt, for otherwise, when facing other Cultivators, with a mindset like his own, even with considerable strength, he wouldn¡¯t be a match for them. With that thought, Fang Yun stared intently at the battling scene, watching the pirates¡¯ dying wails. He allowed such scenes to continuously assault his spirit, forcing himself to mature quickly. After watching for a while, perhaps due to an automatic physiological adjustment, Fang Yun gradually became less panicked. Even the pre-battle tension he felt earlier was slowly dissipating. As the melee continued, perhaps the pirate leaders, seeing their subordinates were not achieving any significant impact, Those pirate leaders, who had previously stayed hidden onboard the ships, hoping to let their subordinates wear down the island¡¯s fighting force, Started leaping down from the ships one after another. Then, executing his qinggong, he lightly stepped on top of the sea, instantly reaching the beach. Fang Yun briefly scanned the group of pirate leaders and discovered that their numbers astonishingly reached a total of 25. Clearly, both previous guesses by the Fang Family had not been entirely accurate. The number of Innate Realm Martial Artists among the pirates was exactly between the two estimates. Faced with such a number of Innate Martial Artists, the Fang Family only had 9 Innate Martial Artists, plus Fang Yun the Cultivator, this was indeed rather troublesome. It wasn¡¯t just Fang Yun who thought of this issue, the other clan elders had as well. After exchanging glances, the gravity of the situation was evident in each other¡¯s eyes. If it were just up to their 9, the Fang Family would certainly meet total ruin in this battle. However, fortunately, heaven still favored the Fang Family, allowing the Clan Leader Fang Yun to break through to the second layer of Qi Cultivation within a mere two years. This gave them a chance to turn the tables in the war. ¡°Clan Leader, it¡¯s all up to you now. When you see the right moment, just trigger the Spirit Talismans!¡± Fang Lin said beside Fang Yun. Fang Yun glanced at Fang Lin, reached into his chest, and clutched the few Fire Attribute Spirit Talismans, then silently nodded. At this moment, a burst of loud laughter came from the pirates. Following the laughter, a brawny man wearing armor, with his hair disheveled and carrying a large saber, stepped out from the crowd. ¡°The Fang Family over there, whoever is in charge, you can see for yourselves, we have gathered 25 Innate Martial Artists, you Fang Family have no chance of victory this time! You might as well surrender, hand over all of the Fang Family¡¯s assets! I assure you, not a single person from the Fang Family will be killed unnecessarily! We¡¯ve only come here for the wealth, why necessitate a life-and-death struggle?¡± At this time, Fang Lin pushed through the crowd, stepped forward, looked at the brawny man with the large saber, and said: ¡°Wei Changhai, I¡¯ve heard of your reputation on the seas, but you¡¯re not someone known for keeping promises! Everyone here is no fool; we don¡¯t need any of your tricks! If you want to fight, the Fang Family will accompany you in battle. Just think it through, our Fang Family has inherited its name on Spirit Water Island for hundreds of years, it¡¯s not undeserved. Once this great battle begins, when it ends will no longer be something you or I can determine!¡± Fang Lin¡¯s tone showed not the slightest weakness but instead threatened the opposing pirates. He knew that the moment he showed weakness, the pirates opposite would bare their sharp fangs and bite ferociously. Only by letting them know that the Fang Family was determined to resist desperately, and had the power to make them pay a heavy price, would they hesitate and possibly retreat. If possible, the Fang Family didn¡¯t want to fight, either. Not to mention the casualties that would occur in a fight, just the consumption of the Spirit Talismans was enough to pain the Fang Family for a long time. Hearing Fang Lin¡¯s words, Wei Changhai knew his strategy had failed. But this was normal, it was a tact that came at no cost. No big deal if it failed. However, since it had come to this, a real fight was inevitable, the 18 pirate gangs had prepared for so long, how could they possibly retreat over a few mere words. Chapter 25 - Chapter 25: Chapter 25: The Fireball Technique Shows Its Power Chapter 25: Chapter 25: The Fireball Technique Shows Its Power And so, as Wei Changhai raised his large saber, the atmosphere at the scene quieted down in an instant. Even the sounds of the protective squad and pirates still fighting on the other side quieted down significantly. ¡°Kill them all!¡± Following Wei Changhai¡¯s fierce shout, his saber swung down ruthlessly, and he led those innate martial artists behind him, charging towards Fang Yun¡¯s side. The nine elders of the Fang Family, also showing no fear, formed a formation with each other and charged towards the opposite side as well. In the blink of an eye, only Fang Yun was left at the original spot. As both sides clashed together, the force of the innate true qi collided with dazzling bursts of light. Wave after wave of air surged, forcing the protective squad and pirates fighting on the nearby shore to dodge to the side to avoid being swept into the battle of the innate martial artists. Fang Yun took a deep breath, steadied his spirit, then looked towards the innate martial artists fighting each other. He knew he had to take action quickly; otherwise, the nine elders, with only so many of them, definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand the siege of so many innate martial artists. At a glance, because the nine elders had formed a circular formation, the 25 pirate innate martial artists could only circle around from the outside, forming another larger ring. Because of the limited range of the circle, roughly 10 innate martial artists could only wait on the outskirts, looking for an opportunity to rush in or replace those inside. And these 10 innate martial artists were exactly who Fang Yun was targeting. Thus, a fire attribute spirit talisman appeared in Fang Yun¡¯s hand, and with a slight turn of mana within his body, the fire attribute spirit talisman immediately lit up. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.§ã¦Ï Then, a fluctuation suddenly emitted from the talisman, and Fang Yun instantly understood that it was the direction guiding method within the spirit talisman. In other words, after casting, the spirit talisman could actually fly under the influence of the spirit. Not like he had imagined, where you activate it with mana and then simply throw it out. Thus, Fang Yun intuitively probed into the spirit talisman with his spirit, then glanced at the group of innate martial artists huddled together. The spirit talisman immediately flew towards them at great speed, burning rapidly in mid-flight, then forming a fist-sized, deep red fireball. Those innate martial artists in the crowd only felt a wave of heat rushing towards them, and before they could turn around, the fireball landed among them. Then, like a rocket, it exploded. In just an instant, five or six people were blasted flying away, and the rest were instantly engulfed in raging flames. This huge commotion made the fighting innate martial artists and the protective squad on the other side all stop their combat. Turning their gaze towards Fang Yun, who was still at the other end of the beach. ¡°Cultivator, has your Fang Family actually cultivated a new cultivator so quickly?¡± Wei Changhai said incredulously while looking at Fang Yun. Fang Yun did not answer his question, instead glancing at those innate martial artists desperately diving into the sea covered in flames, As well as those blasted away and lying motionless. Regardless of whether these people were dead or not, they were certainly out of the fight. Just with this one attack, he had directly incapacitated nearly half of the opposing pirates¡¯ fighting force. Fang Yun was particularly satisfied with the power of the spirit talisman in his hand. However, it was clear that just one spirit talisman wasn¡¯t enough to completely rout these pirates. Thus, another fire attribute spirit talisman appeared in his hand. ¡°Elders, get out of the way!¡± Fang Yun announced, then with a flash of light from the talisman in his hand, another fireball transformed and flew towards Wei Changhai¡¯s side. Aiming to directly take out the leader of the pirates. The Fang Family¡¯s elders, hearing Fang Yun¡¯s words, immediately ran to the other side. So as not to affect Fang Yun¡¯s spirit talisman. Wei Changhai, being targeted by Fang Yun, saw the fireball flying towards him and his face turned pale with fright. He knew that with his strength, he had no hope of withstanding such a fireball. Therefore, he desperately exercised his martial movements, leaping towards the sea while dodging the fireball. At the same time, he shouted, ¡°Daoist Qingmu, please save my life!¡± In response to Wei Changhai¡¯s fleeing action, Fang Yun merely locked his gaze onto his silhouette and then slightly adjusted with his spirit. The fireball, like a homing missile, struck Wei Changhai¡¯s back with extreme speed. He didn¡¯t even have the time to scream before he was obliterated into pieces by the exploding fireball. Fang Yun shook his head in regret; those innate martial artists around Wei Changhai had already sensed trouble and ran off when Fang Yun asked the elders to move away, resulting in the fireball technique only killing Wei Changhai alone. It was somewhat of a waste. Afterward, Fang Yun fixed his gaze on a frail middle-aged scholar who leaped from the large ship back onto the beach. Presumably, this person was the Daoist Qingmu mentioned by Wei Changhai. Unexpectedly, even with such a great advantage in numbers, they had still called upon a cultivator for aid. Such caution they had. Daoist Qingmu looked at the destruction caused by Fang Yun¡¯s two castings of the fireball technique. His expression was somewhat solemn; he knew that if he didn¡¯t appear, not many of those present would be able to return. It seems the Fang Family, a cultivation family with a heritage of hundreds of years, had cultivated a new cultivator so quickly even after the previous generation of cultivators had only passed away two years ago. But looking at the Fang Family¡¯s cultivator, he seemed to have just started practicing not long ago. He probably didn¡¯t possess much strength; the main threat was those talismans in his hand. Luckily, since the Fang Family¡¯s cultivator had just started practicing, he wouldn¡¯t dare to face a cultivator who had been training for a longer time too carelessly. Fang Yun, facing Daoist Qingmu, was unaware of the inner thoughts of the Daoist. However, facing the first cultivator he had encountered crossing over, Fang Yun did not dare to act rashly either. The main issue was, he did not know the level of cultivation of the person in front of him; whether it was the first layer of qi refinement he had speculated or a stronger second layer of qi refinement. Just by looking at the surface and without a way to detect cultivation levels, he couldn¡¯t really tell Daoist Qingmu¡¯s realm. Perhaps this was a weakness due to the lack of proper inheritance. As the two of them sized each other up and confronted one another. The innate martial artists on both sides also began to slowly separate, then stood behind their respective cultivators. The protective squad and the pirates on the other side, seeing the main battlefield had ceased combat, also stopped fighting. Then, they withdrew to both sides. Consequently, the focus of the scene was centered on Fang Yun and Daoist Qingmu. Chapter 26 - Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Killing Daoist Qingmu Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Killing Daoist Qingmu Seeing the stalemate drag on, Daoist Qingmu cracked a slight smile and said, ¡°Young friend, although you have just stepped into the Cultivation World, we can be considered fellow cultivators. As your senior, I won¡¯t make things difficult for you. Just give me twenty Spirit Stones, or something of equivalent value, and I will leave this place immediately. How about it? Think it over! Once we start fighting, never mind whether your mana can still cast a few more Spirit Talismans¡ªif they can be cast at all, they¡¯re not going to bother me. Moreover, your uncles and granduncles will likely die or be wounded because of this. Why bother? You agree, right?¡± Fang Yun watched Daoist Qingmu in front of him, and he had to admit that Daoist Qingmu made some sense. If they started fighting, it would be difficult for the clan elders to withstand the assault of the remaining Innate Martial Artists without his help. But to surrender just because of a few words¡ªthat was too belittling. Moreover, based on previous estimates, Daoist Qingmu in front of him was very likely only at the first layer of Qi Cultivation. Fang Yun was just being cautious because it was his first fight and he couldn¡¯t see clearly. That did not mean he was afraid. However, it was no solution for the two of them to be at a standstill like this. He might as well test the waters first. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?? Thus, Fang Yun grabbed another Fire Attribute Spirit Talisman in his hand and lit it up again, then he flung it towards Daoist Qingmu. Was Daoist Qingmu waiting for Fang Yun to compromise? After all, the situation on the scene was quite clear to him. Even with some losses of Innate Martial Artists on his side, he still firmly had the upper hand. And what he demanded should not be a lot for the Fang Family. Unless they were fools, they should not want to clash head-on with him. But what he didn¡¯t expect was that Fang Yun didn¡¯t bother exchanging empty words, his Spirit Talisman flying directly towards him. Seeing this, a coldness swept over Daoist Qingmu¡¯s face. Originally, he just wanted to save some mana, but since this youngster was so ungrateful, he couldn¡¯t blame him for what was to come. Consequently, a Spirit Talisman appeared in his hand as well, which upon lighting up, formed a green Light Shield, enveloping him within. Then a handful of seeds appeared in his hand, cast toward the ground in front of him. As he chanted incantations and changed his handprints, the seeds rapidly took root and sprouted, swiftly forming several thorny vines. They then swept towards Fang Yun. The moment the green Light Shield appeared around Daoist Qingmu, the Fireball Technique smashed against it. A violent explosion erupted, sending sparks flying in all directions. The innately skilled pirates hastily dodged away. Combat between cultivators was not something they could participate in. If those flying sparks landed on them, even if it didn¡¯t cost them their lives, it would be enough trouble. Hit by the Fireball Technique, the green Light Shield began to flicker intensely, but ultimately it persisted. However, the green glow did become a bit more transparent. Perhaps one or two more Fireball Techniques could break his defense. However, Daoist Qingmu wasn¡¯t about to give Fang Yun another chance now; his Wood Attribute spell was already taking form. Seeing the vines sweeping towards him, Fang Yun knew that just relying on the Spirit Talismans in his hands, he wouldn¡¯t be able to take down Daoist Qingmu in an instant. Fortunately, following the trial of the Fireball Technique, Daoist Qingmu¡¯s displayed mana was not particularly strong. It seemed he was still within the scope of the first layer of Qi Cultivation. With that in mind, Fang Yun felt reassured. Then, the longsword in Fang Yun¡¯s hand came out of its sheath and mana instantly poured into it. With a swing of his hand, a several meters long Sword Energy slashed forward. Compared to the Fireball Technique, Sword Energy was much more powerful. Just at the moment of contact, several vines were cut into pieces and continued flying towards Daoist Qingmu. Daoist Qingmu, seeing his spells shattered by Fang Yun¡¯s Sword Energy, suddenly turned pale: ¡°Magic Artifact!!¡± How could the Fang Family have a Magic Artifact? Such a thing was far more valuable than common items like Spirit Talismans. And the requirements for the user¡¯s mana for a Magic Artifact were also much higher than for Spirit Talismans. Even if the Fang Family had a handed-down Magic Artifact, could a newly advanced cultivator from the Fang family meet the usage requirements? But now, there was no one to answer his question. By the time he noticed the Sword Energy, it was too late to dodge, and it rapidly slashed at his body. The green Light Shield that had just withstood the Fireball Technique burst like a bubble against the Sword Energy. Following closely, Daoist Qingmu¡¯s body was also bisected. Seeing Daoist Qingmu slain by his hand, Fang Yun finally breathed a heavy sigh of relief. This was the first cultivator he had faced, and fortunately, there had been no mishap. He hadn¡¯t realized in the heat of the tense battle; only now did he notice his back was soaked through. One could imagine how tight Fang Yun¡¯s nerves had been. At this time, the pirates, Innate Martial Artists, finally realized what had happened. Their cultivator had been killed by a cultivator from the Fang Family. With the cultivator gone, the remaining pirates, who were Innate Martial Artists, were no match for the Fang Family¡¯s cultivator. So they no longer had the courage to stay put and began to desperately leap towards the direction of the large ship. The other pirates, upon seeing the death of their cultivator and the escape of the Innate Realm pirate leader, also realized they had failed and scattered toward the direction of the ship. Hoping to take the large ship and flee this terrifying place. Seeing the pirates¡¯ cultivator killed and the remaining pirates fleeing, the Fang Family¡¯s elders were greatly encouraged. ¡°Kill!¡± After a battle cry, the elders led the attack against the remaining pirates, with the Fang Family¡¯s guards, also arrayed in formation, chasing after them. Seeing this, Fang Yun did not rest, worried that the elders would encounter unexpected trouble at this last hurdle. After all, the number of remaining pirates was still substantial. In a moment of desperation, his side could also suffer additional casualties. Hence, another Fire Attribute Spirit Talisman appeared in his hand. Now, the only thing Fang Yun was sure of was these Fire Attribute Spirit Talismans. The rest of the Spirit Talismans of other attributes he didn¡¯t know what kind they were, so he wouldn¡¯t risk wasting them here. As the Fire Attribute Spirit Talisman lit up, a fireball rapidly flew to the frontmost pirates and landed on the fastest few. It directly blasted the pirates¡¯ Innate Martial Artists who ran the fastest, while those behind were also thrown into disarray. Chapter 27 - Chapter 27: Chapter 27 Handling of Pirates Chapter 27: Chapter 27 Handling of Pirates Upon witnessing this terrifying scene, the fleeing pirates immediately halted their steps, then turned to look towards Fang Yun with horror. ¡°Immortal Master, have mercy! We are willing to surrender!¡± From within the crowd, one of the Innate Martial Artists, a woman dressed in brightly colored clothes, promptly laid down her weapons and kneeled in the seawater. Following her lead, several Innate Martial Artists behind her did not hesitate and also knelt in the seawater. The rest, exchanging glances, hesitated briefly before ultimately joining in the act of kneeling. Under the current circumstances, they had no chance to escape. Even if they could reach their ships, they wouldn¡¯t be able to escape the pursuit of Cultivators. It might be better to simply surrender; perhaps their lives could be spared. With all the Innate Martial Artists kneeling and surrendering, the remaining ordinary pirates had no choice but to lay down their arms and surrender as well. Thus, the battle between the Fang Family and the pirates came to an end. Other than a few casualties among the guards, none of the clan elders had been harmed. For the Fang Family, this was a rather perfect outcome. Now that the pirates had surrendered, there was no need for the Fang Family to continue the pursuit, so the clan elders turned their gaze to Fang Yun. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?¦Ï They waited to see what he would do with the pirates. Fang Yun walked slowly onto the beach, looking at the dense group of pirates kneeling in the seawater. He first went over to Daoist Qingmu¡¯s body and took out the items from his embrace. He ended up with a small booklet, several Spirit Stones, a few Spirit Talismans, and some seeds that were unidentifiable. After examining his spoils of war, Fang Yun put them away. With matters still unresolved, it was not the time to study these things. He then looked at the clan elder beside him: ¡°Clan Leader, what do you think should be done with these pirates?¡± After pondering for a moment, Fang Lin said, ¡°It all depends on what you think, Clan Leader. These pirates are vicious and ruthless; even if we were to kill them all, it would not be considered evil! If you prefer not to kill them, then keep them. Outside the islands, there are places specifically for the slave trade. Selling them all would compensate for our losses. This is how we¡¯ve always dealt with the losers of wars in the past.¡± Fang Yun glanced at the others and saw that they had no other opinions. So after thinking it over, killing was out of the question. If they had died in battle, it would have been another matter. Now that they had surrendered, it would be a violation of his conscience to execute them all. Even in ancient times, it was considered inauspicious to kill prisoners, let alone for someone like himself who had traversed from the modern era. Fang Yun didn¡¯t have the heart to do something so ruthless. However, selling them all, To be honest, while that would be slightly better than just killing them, it would also be too wasteful. These were all mortals in the end; selling them would only yield some gold and silver. Could it possibly bring Spirit Stones? If Spirit Stones could be obtained, the slave traders probably would have already caught all the pirates around here, even the mortals from islands like Spirit Water Island. And as for gold and silver, it was likely that the Fang Family was not in short supply. Hence, Fang Yun looked to Fang Xue, who was responsible for the cultivation of the family¡¯s farmland, and said, ¡°Elder Fang Xue, does our family have enough labor force for the cultivation of our fields?¡± Upon hearing Fang Yun¡¯s words, the clan elders present understood his intention. Although they couldn¡¯t help feeling that their Clan Leader was a bit too kindhearted, considering the strength Fang Yun had just shown, they weren¡¯t in a position to object. Fang Xue hesitated for a moment before saying, ¡°Clan Leader, we already have enough people for planting rice in the family. After all, the rice fields are located on both sides of the Big River, where the water supply is convenient.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t usually need too many laborers!¡± Fang Yun nodded after hearing this; indeed, for the Fang Family with its tens of thousands of mu of paddy fields and a population of nearly 100,000, there really was no need for additional labor. However, Fang Yun was thinking about his own farming plans. With the limited spirit fields, if he wanted more Life Essence Qi, the planting area for ordinary crops definitely needed to keep expanding. Although he was unsure whether crops grown under his command by others would be recognized by his Golden Finger. But that was a direction for the future, and it was ultimately a direction towards which he needed to develop. And in order to expand the planting area for ordinary crops, the whole Spirit Water Island was within his scope of expansion. The Fang Family, now with a population near 100,000, if we subtract the old and the young, That would leave about 100,000, and then if you remove those occupied with other tasks, The labor force that could eventually be spared might only be a few tens of thousands of people. And these few tens of thousands of people still had to take care of the tens of thousands of mu of paddy fields. Therefore, when expanding the farmlands in the future, Fang Yun might not be able to spare many people from within the Fang Family. Even if he could spare some, Fang Yun was not willing to overwork the people of the Fang Family. After all, he wasn¡¯t truly Fang Yun, where would he get the nerve to have the clansmen do so much for himself? And these pirates at present were a good source of labor. Each one was skilled in martial arts, with physical quality far stronger than ordinary people. Killing them or selling them off would ultimately be too wasteful. It would be better to let them contribute to his farming business. Adding bricks to his path of cultivation. Fang Yun said to Fang Ming, the Clan Elder skilled in medicine among the Fang Family elders: ¡°Elder Fang Ming, these Heavenly Martial Artists we have now, do you have a way to come up with some poison to control them?¡± Upon hearing Fang Yun¡¯s words, before Fang Ming could even speak, Fang Lin couldn¡¯t help but blurt out: ¡°Clan Leader, you¡¯re not seriously thinking of keeping these pirates on the island, right? These pirates have their hands stained with other people¡¯s blood, every one of them vicious to the extreme, each with their own deadly methods. And with their numbers so great, if we keep them all on Spirit Water Island, should an accident occur, it would be a heavy blow to our Fang Family. It might even lead to the extinction of our clan. Clan Leader, please think it over!¡± Fang Yun looked at the agitated Fang Lin and then at the other Clan Elders, who all shared the same sentiment. Fang Yun was aware that his actions were indeed somewhat benevolent, keeping these pirates did pose a certain danger. However, according to his plan, he really needed this batch of labor. Thus, Fang Yun explained: ¡°Clan Elders, I understand your concerns, but after a while, I will need a large number of laborers to help me reclaim wilderness land. The people of our Fang Family are ultimately our own, and I too refuse to let them overwork. These pirates at hand would be a suitable group to use for labor. But if you feel uneasy about this, then leave these Innate Martial Artists to be dealt with by you. If you can control them, then they can stay. If you feel there¡¯s no assurance, then whether to kill or sell them, that¡¯s up to you. The rest of these pirates are all Postnatal Martial Artists. Even if they attempted to create turmoil in the future, our Fang Family should be able to handle it right?¡± Hearing Fang Yun only needed those regular pirates, the Clan Elders suddenly breathed a sigh of relief. There might be thousands of these pirates, but indeed, they were not too great a threat to them. Chapter 28 - Chapter 28: Chapter 28 Handling of Pirates 2 Chapter 28: Chapter 28 Handling of Pirates 2 Since these pirates pose no significant threat, there is no need to stop the Clan Leader. But how should they deal with these remaining Innate Martial Artists? Several clan elders looked towards Fang Ming, who had the best medical skills in the clan, to see if he had a way to control these Innate Martial Artists. Fang Ming, noticing everyone looking at him, coughed lightly before shaking his head and saying to Fang Yun, ¡°Clan Leader, although I do possess some medical knowledge, concocting medicine to control Innate Martial Artists is no simple task. The main reason is that the Fang Family lacks experience in using medicine to control Innate Martial Artists. Therefore, I don¡¯t have a solution for this matter!¡± Hearing Fang Ming say this, the clan elders felt a bit disappointed. If they could control the present Innate Martial Artists, the strength of the Fang Family would certainly increase substantially. However, what the Fang Family currently needs the most is not Innate Martial Artists but rather a greater number of Cultivators. Even with the addition of these Innate Martial Artists, it would not bring about a fundamental change for the Fang Family. If they cannot control them, it would be better to kill or sell them. By doing so, the Fang Family would be able to reduce some risks. The Innate Martial Artists among the kneeling pirates in the seawater. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?¦Ï.?? Listening to Fang Yun and the Fang Family elders discuss their fate. The more they listened, the more desolate they felt. But as the defeated, they had no choice. They wanted to resist, but recalling the terrifying Fireball Technique used by Fang Yun, they didn¡¯t dare to act recklessly. However, upon hearing that the Fang Family did not intend to accept them, these Innate Realm pirates began to panic. They certainly did not wish to be killed or sold, both of which would be tragic ends for them. ¡°Immortal Master, we are willing to seal our own cultivation and not resist, to be at the mercy of the Immortal Master!¡± The beautiful woman who surrendered first hurriedly spoke, while casting a pleading look towards Fang Yun. Fang Yun turned to look at her, then looked over to Fang Ming, since he had just said that the handling of these Innate Martial Artists would be up to the clan elders. He felt it inappropriate to meddle in the arrangement for these people. If they could be kept, that would be best; if the clan elders insisted on dealing with these Innate Martial Artists, Fang Yun would not object. Seeing his Clan Leader looking at him again, Fang Ming felt somewhat troubled. Usually, he would do anything as one who follows orders. Now suddenly having the fate of a dozen Innate Martial Artists in his hands, he was indeed unsure how to proceed. After hesitating, Fang Ming finally said, ¡°Clan Leader, even if they seal their cultivation, there are still some hidden dangers.¡± As soon as he finished speaking, the Innate Martial Artists who were previously kneeling in the sea suddenly soared into the air, rushing towards Fang Yun¡¯s side. ¡°Brothers, since the Fang Family gives us no way out, let¡¯s fight them!¡± The speaker, a gaunt middle-aged man, took two steps forward, but upon seeing the other Innate Martial Artist pirates rushing towards Fang Yun¡¯s side, he instead leaped toward the great ship like mad. Clearly, he wanted his fellow brothers to stall the pursuit and buy time for his own escape. Meanwhile, the gorgeous woman still kneeling in the seawater glanced back at the skinny man fleeing away, bit her lip, and continued to kneel without moving. The four people behind her, though a bit restless, ultimately trusted their leader and remained kneeling there unmoved. Fang Yun watched the approaching Innate Martial Artists, a cold light flashing in his eyes. Although somewhat merciful and not yet fully accustomed to this cruel world, it didn¡¯t mean he could spare those charging at him. Glancing at the Spirit Talisman in his arms, he eventually decided against using this disposable item. After all, there weren¡¯t many of them; using it on these Innate Martial Artists would be a waste. At once, before the clan elders took action, Fang Yun swung the Magic Artifact longsword in his hand. Deliberately thinning the Sword Energy, he formed a 10-meter-long Sword Energy that he cast forward. In the pirates¡¯ horrified gazes, it directly struck them, effortlessly tearing through their Protective True Qi, and then bisected them. The Sword Energy flew over the heads of a few pirates still kneeling in the sea water and swiftly reached behind the skinny man who had fled earlier. The skinny man looked back and saw the Sword Energy about to cut him, cried out in terror, ¡°No! Immortal Master, spare me!¡± And then he was cleaved in two by the Sword Energy. All these events may sound complicated, but they happened in the blink of an eye. The clan elders were about to make a move, but the situation had already been resolved by Fang Yun with a single strike. The clan elders all looked towards Fang Yun, having previously thought their Clan Leader was too lenient. But seeing him destroy so many with a single strike, it seemed their impression of him had to change. Fang Lin then shook his head, ¡°Clan Leader, we can handle these people. Your Mana is precious and should not be wasted on them!¡± Fang Yun smiled, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. There¡¯s some risk if you all take action; I¡¯ll recover the Mana spent when I get back!¡± By this time, Fang Ming also shook his head with a wry smile, ¡°I hadn¡¯t finished speaking just now! I heard that Black Widow is an expert in poisons, and she should have some that can control the lives of Innate Martial Artists! If we can control Black Widow, we can to a certain extent control these Innate Martial Artists. It¡¯s a pity, before I could finish, they were already too impatient and attacked!¡± Fang Lin snorted coldly, glanced at the bodies floating in the seawater, and then at the only remaining gorgeous woman and her four subordinates. ¡°These pirates cannot be trusted. Even if they submit temporarily, they will rebel if given a chance. Better to finish them off now!¡± Hearing these words with a clear implication, the body of the gorgeous woman visibly trembled, but she dared not make any unusual movements. She could only wait for her fate to arrive. Fang Yun, considering this advice, glanced at Fang Ming, then at the woman kneeling in the water. ¡°Are you Black Widow?¡± ¡°The humble one is indeed Black Widow. If the Immortal Master desires, I have a poison called Seven Leaves and Seven Flowers that can control the lives of other Innate Martial Artists.¡± Fang Yun looked at the other clan elders. The elders looked at each other, all aware that their Clan Leader was inclined to keep these Innate Martial Artists. Although they preferred to eliminate all of the Innate Martial Artists, there were only five left now, and the risk was still within a controllable range. With the addition of the poison for control, it was also an extra layer of management, so they could begrudgingly accept this arrangement. Chapter 29 - Chapter 29: Chapter 29 Back to the Mountain Chapter 29: Chapter 29 Back to the Mountain ¡°` Thus, Fang Lin said, ¡°Clan Leader, if you really intend to keep these Innate Martial Artists, then you must keep a close watch on this Black Widow. If she gets any ideas, our Fang Family will be in trouble!¡± Fang Yun cast a glance at the Black Widow and said, ¡°She shouldn¡¯t dare to try anything now, but I might not always have the time to watch her. How about it, Elder Fang Ming, could you keep an eye on her for me? Poison and medicine are essentially the same thing after all, perhaps you could exchange some knowledge?¡± Upon hearing Fang Yun¡¯s decision, and glancing at the kneeling beauty with a gorgeous figure amidst the seawater, Fang Ming¡¯s face flushed red as he waved his hands repeatedly, rejecting the idea: ¡°Clan Leader, that doesn¡¯t seem quite appropriate. Medicine and poison are ultimately two different matters!¡± Fang Yun shook his head: ¡°It¡¯s settled then. I¡¯m usually busy with cultivation and don¡¯t have the time to watch her. You wouldn¡¯t expect me to bring her up the mountain, would you? Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t always be up on the mountain, I¡¯ll come down and help you keep an eye on her after!¡± After saying this, Fang Yun turned to the Black Widow: ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then you can divide your poison among your subordinates! I imagine they wouldn¡¯t refuse, right?¡± Fang Yun said this and glanced at the remaining four Innate Martial Artists. Those people hurriedly shook their heads: ¡°We wouldn¡¯t dare!¡± After they had all swallowed the Black Widow¡¯s poison, Fang Yun looked at Fang Ming: ¡°Elder, go check on those who were blown away earlier, see if any are still alive, and save them if you can. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.§ã? If not, then leave it be!¡± ¡°Yes, Clan Leader!¡± ¡°Alright, now that the matter has concluded, let¡¯s head back!¡± Leaving Fang Ming and Fang Yong to handle the remaining affairs. Fang Yun and the other clan elders began their return to the Fang Family¡¯s residence. From a distance, at the town gates, they saw Fang Jianting waiting there with a cane. Seeing this scene stirred warmth in Fang Yun¡¯s heart. He always felt undeserving of this heavy burden of affection. Perhaps it was because he had never fully accepted his current identity. Arriving at the town gates, Fang Yun stopped and stepped forward to pat Fang Jianting¡¯s withered palm: ¡°Don¡¯t worry, ancestor, with the protection of our forebears, our Fang Family has won this time! Not only did none of our elders die. But we also captured thousands of pirates, including a few Innate Martial Artists among them! It was a complete victory!¡± Fang Jianting, hearing this, looked at Fang Yun, then at Fang Lin and the others behind him, and after receiving confirmation, He nodded with joy: ¡°Good, good, good! I knew it, with the Clan Leader here, those Xu pirates are no match for us! I shall have our clanspeople prepare a feast to properly celebrate this victory!¡± Fang Yun didn¡¯t want to dampen Fang Jianting¡¯s spirits, but the affair had already delayed him for quite a long time. The Spirit Rice on the mountain and the crops in the valley had been unattended for many days. He could no longer put it off without concern. And so, Fang Yun could only look towards Fang Lin and say: ¡°Elder Fang Lin, you represent me, and along with the ancestor and everyone else, have a good celebration. As for myself, I have many matters unattended to on the mountain, and I¡¯ve already been held up for quite a while. I cannot afford any more delays. Moreover, I have also expended some Mana and need to return and recover. Also, Elder Fang Lin, when they return, help me settle those pirates first. I¡¯ll come down after handling the mountain affairs and then arrange for them.¡± Seeing the situation, Fang Lin quickly nodded in affirmation: ¡°Rest assured, Clan Leader, your subordinate will handle it well!¡± At this moment, Fang Jianting also said: ¡°Clan Leader, you go deal with your matters first, our celebration can wait. Whenever you have the time to come down the mountain, that¡¯s when we will start!¡± ¡°` Fang Yun bitterly smiled upon hearing this, ¡°Great Ancestor, there¡¯s really no need to wait for me, you can organize everyone to celebrate together!¡± Fang Jianting shook his head, ¡°How can we do that? Without you, our celebration would be meaningless. But don¡¯t worry, your matters are the most important. Head back to the mountain retreat and take care of your affairs first. No matter how long it takes, a month, two months, a year, two years, we can wait!¡± Helpless, Fang Yun shook his head. Since Fang Jianting insisted, Fang Yun didn¡¯t bother to persuade him further and simply nodded, ¡°In that case, I shall return to the mountain retreat first. As for the celebration, you can start preparing now, and we can begin once I come back down the mountain!¡± ¡°Alright, Clan Leader, rest assured!¡± Fang Yun then turned around to head up the mountain. While harnessing mana to move upwards, Fang Yun opened his status panel to check his remaining mana points. Although he could sense the mana remaining in his Dantian, it was still not as intuitive as seeing it on the status panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation ¨C Second Layer Mana: 18 Life Essence Qi: 20 Control over Plants: Spirit Rice (320), Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 6%), Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 30%) After all, he had wasted several days, and there were no significant changes in the values on the panel. Just that his mana points were 14 fewer, but that was no big deal. This consumption was even less than he expected. After all, he had cast many spells in the thick of battle, mostly using Spirit Talismans, which didn¡¯t consume much mana. Once he returned to the mountaintop, he would use the Spiritual Energy of the Spiritual Spring to recover. The water of the Spiritual Spring, though entirely used for irrigating the Spirit Rice, still emitted some Spiritual Energy on a daily basis. It would be wasteful not to use this energy, and it was just right for restoring his mana. This way, he wouldn¡¯t need to deplete his own Life Essence Qi to recover mana. After all, his Life Essence Qi was finite, and Fang Yun might not mind using it to enhance his cultivation. But using it to restore mana, unless in an emergency, was not something Fang Yun was willing to waste. Before long, Fang Yun had reached the mountaintop and arrived beside the spirit field. Looking at the spirit field full of weeds and feeling the extremely uncomfortable sensation coming from the Spirit Rice, Fang Yun¡¯s heart clenched, and he suddenly felt a great pain. In just a few days of neglect, so many weeds had grown in the spirit field. The vitality of these weeds was terrifying indeed. He hoped they hadn¡¯t affected the Spirit Rice too much. Fang Yun couldn¡¯t afford to hesitate and hurried into the spirit field to begin weeding. At the same time, he checked if any new pests had appeared on the Spirit Rice. Fortunately, there weren¡¯t any new pests on the Spirit Rice. This relieved Fang Yun since the weeds were just competing for the Spiritual Energy of the Spirit Rice, and a slight deficiency of Spiritual Energy shouldn¡¯t have much impact on the plants in the short term. But pests would directly harm the Spirit Rice itself, something Fang Yun couldn¡¯t bear. After a few two-hour periods, he had cleared all the weeds, not sparing even those just sprouting in the soil. After cleaning and conducting another check, and sensing the Spirit Rice¡¯s mood to find no more discomfort, Fang Yun finally felt at ease. Chapter 30 - Chapter 30: Chapter 30 Growth Skills Chapter 30: Chapter 30 Growth Skills Seeing that it was getting late, Fang Yun was not in a hurry to check on the ordinary crops in the canyon. One could imagine that the area was definitely filled with dense weeds. Even if Fang Yun went now, it wouldn¡¯t be convenient to weed in the middle of the night; better to wait till tomorrow. Returning to the cave, sitting beside the Spiritual Spring, Fang Yun began to absorb the Spiritual Energy emitted by the spring, slowly recovering his Mana. The next morning, Fang Yun checked his panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Second Layer Mana: 20 Life Essence Qi: 20 Plant Control: Spirit Rice (320), Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spell: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 6%), Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 30%) One night had restored two mana value points, meaning at least seven nights were needed for a full recovery. If his Mana was entirely exhausted, it would take 16 nights. The time wasted was truly terrifying. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?¦Ï.§ã0 It can only be said that the Spiritual Energy here is too scant, and his speed for refining Spiritual Energy is also inadequate. In comparison, the efficiency of Life Essence Qi is incredibly fast, almost instantly restoring his Mana to its peak. The only drawback is that it is too scarce and cannot withstand any expenditure. It seems that Fang Yun must quickly expand the cultivation of ordinary crops. With the help of thousands of pirates, the expansion of ordinary crop cultivation should not be a big problem. The only worry is whether the crops grown with others¡¯ help fall within the recognition range of the Golden Finger. If the crops planted with others¡¯ help aren¡¯t recognized by Golden Finger. Then relying solely on his own cultivation, the area Fang Yun could plant is indeed limited. Then the plan to supplement the Life Essence Qi of Spirit Rice with ordinary crops might be in jeopardy. But whether it will work or not, only time will tell. Afterwards, Fang Yun was originally going to check on the crops in the canyon, but suddenly remembered another more urgent matter that he hadn¡¯t done, which was to check the spoils obtained yesterday. Thus, the matters of the canyon had to be put aside for the moment. Yesterday, concerned about the growth of the Spirit Rice, he had been weeding after returning, followed by a rush to recover Mana. He had forgotten the spoils he had collected earlier. Sitting by the Spiritual Spring, he took out the spoils obtained from Daoist Qingmu. The first was only five Spirit Stones, truly a meager amount. Even in his own impoverished state, he dared to ask Fang Yun for twenty Spirit Stones. It was somewhat insane. Picking up the Spirit Stones and adding them to those originally possessed by Fang Yun, this restored his count to fourteen, which should have some purchasing power. However, for the moment, Fang Yun has no plans to leave the island, so these Spirit Stones currently serve little purpose. The second item was four Spirit Talismans, two of which were Fire Attribute, similar to the talismans used in his Fireball Technique. They must be the same type of talisman. Fortunately, Daoist Qingmu did not use these Xie Yi Spirit Talismans against Fang Yun but instead used the Wood Based Magic. Obviously, in his view, the power of Wood Based Magic was stronger than the talismans. Fortunately, this was the case; otherwise, facing the attack of the talismans, Fang Yun really had no means of defense. He had no defensive measures on him. After reflecting for a moment, Fang Yun looked at the other Spirit Talismans. The other two talismans were of the Wood Attribute, reminding him of the protective barrier used by Daoist Qingmu before. Perhaps they were defensive talismans of that kind. With these two talismans, he would have some security when facing other cultivators in the future. He placed these four talismans back with the remaining talismans and then put them all together in the original corner of the cave where items were stored. These talismans wouldn¡¯t be needed for a while, so he decided to put them away for now. The remaining spoils were a small booklet and some seeds. Fang Yun picked up the booklet, which was titled ¡°Wood Origin Skill¡± ¨C apparently, a cultivation technique of the Wood Attribute. Opening the booklet, he found that this technique could only be cultivated up to the second level of Qi Cultivation, one level less than the Fang Family¡¯s cultivation method. It wasn¡¯t very useful to him. However, the book did include a Wood Based Magic spell. The spell was named Growth Skills, and its main function was to utilize the mana generated from Wood Attribute Spiritual Energy to accelerate the growth of plants. It was the same spell Daoist Qingmu used in conjunction with those seeds. Overall, the spell was potent; if Fang Yun hadn¡¯t had the magic artifact long knife, he would have had a difficult time dealing with such a spell. However, upon seeing the spell¡¯s function, the first thing Fang Yun thought of wasn¡¯t the spell¡¯s power but its ability to accelerate plant growth. If this spell could be used, and the plants it accelerated grew just like ordinary plants, then it would be a more important spell for him than both Earth Power Skills and Spirit Rain Skill. Now, the main reason why he was lacking Life Essence Qi, aside from the limitations of the size of the spirit field and the amount of Spiritual Energy. The main reason was that Spirit Rice took too long to grow, while ordinary crops, though quicker, provided too little Life Essence Qi. If this spell could shorten the growth period of Spirit Rice, even just by half, it would be great news for him. After memorizing the chant, handprint, and other precautions for the Growth Skills. Fang Yun couldn¡¯t bother to check the rest of the seeds. He went to the area in the spirit field where he initially cultivated the Spirit Rice Seeds. Since the Spirit Rice was transplanted from here, the leftover Spirit Rice was removed, making this corner idle. It was now a good spot to practice the Growth Skills and see if the Spirit Rice generated by the spell would produce Life Essence Qi. First, he adjusted the energy and Spiritual Energy in the soil using Earth Power Skills. Once the energy was sufficient and filled with Spiritual Energy, Fang Yun returned to the cave and found the Spirit Rice that had been stored away. These were originally intended for food, but Fang Yun had been too busy with other things lately to eat that much. It was just right to take some out and test the effects of the new spell. He scattered the Spirit Rice in the corner of the spirit field and then began to form handprints and chant the spell. ¡°Wood¡¯s growth, vitality hidden. Spirit Breath gathers, Wood Power blooms. Fostering all life, flourishing upwards¡­¡± Under the influence of the handprint and chant, the mana in Fang Yun¡¯s body, not yet fully recovered, began to circulate continuously along his meridians. Radiating a mysterious fluctuation. It didn¡¯t take long for a cyan glow to condense above Fang Yun¡¯s handprint. However, since the spell was not yet skilled, the cyan glow had just gathered when it flickered and then shattered. However, Fang Yun was not discouraged by the delay. After all, he did not expect every spell he practiced to be as swift as the Spirit Rain Skill. After trying continuously more than a dozen times, although he hadn¡¯t successfully mastered the spell, the mana inside Fang Yun was gradually depleted. But at this moment, Fang Yun could no longer afford to conserve Life Essence Qi. His mana swept to the side, absorbing a great deal of the nearby Life Essence Qi. Feeling some of his mana restored, Fang Yun continued practicing the Growth Skills. Chapter 31 - Chapter 31: Chapter 31 Experiment Failure Chapter 31: Chapter 31 Experiment Failure After several more rounds of practice, the Growth Skills were finally cast successfully. With the bluish glow descending on the corner of the spirit field, it then quickly expanded, covering all the Spirit Rice Seeds under the control of the Spirit. The Spirit Rice Seeds seemed to be stimulated, trembling slightly before starting to break out of their hard shells, with some tender white filaments emerging. Fang Yun sensed the subtle emotions coming from the Spirit Rice Seeds, as well as their general condition. He took a deep breath; he knew that his Golden Finger was starting to take effect. The only thing he didn¡¯t know was how much Life Essence Qi these matured Spirit Rice could provide him. Under the drive of the bluish light, the grains of Spirit Rice began rooting in the spirit field, sprouting green shoots and steadily growing upwards. By the time the bluish light was depleted, the Spirit Rice in front of him had grown to more than ten centimeters tall, sprouting seven or eight leaves. Equivalent to the growth of four to five months of normal Spirit Rice. Although it had not directly matured, one spell had allowed these Spirit Rice to skip a small half of their growing period, which was quite beyond Fang Yun¡¯s expectations. He glanced at his Golden Finger panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Second Layer Mana: 18 Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.§ã0 Life Essence Qi: 5 Plant Control: Spirit Rice (330) Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 6%) Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 30%) Growth Skills (Beginner 1%) Growth Skills now showed up on the panel, and although it was just beginner level, being able to cast it was enough for Fang Yun. Seeing that there was still a good amount of Mana, he was ready to continue casting Growth Skills. However, at this moment, he sensed an uncomfortable feeling from the Spirit Rice in front of him. This feeling was familiar to Fang Yun; it was the same feeling as the first batch of Spirit Rice lacking Spiritual Energy. With this information, Fang Yun had to stop casting Growth Skills and instead started casting Earth Power Skills. Sensing the status of the ordinary energy and Spiritual Energy in this corner, he indeed found that after the promotion by the Growth Skills, the ordinary energy and Spiritual Energy in the spirit field in this corner had been nearly exhausted. Thus, Fang Yun had to draw a certain amount of energy and Spiritual Energy from the larger spirit field to replenish this corner of the spirit field. After completing this, Fang Yun resumed casting Growth Skills. After three consecutive times, the Growth Skills were successfully cast again. With the bluish energy covering the Spirit Rice in the corner of the spirit field. They continued to grow. The Spirit Rice plants continued to grow taller, and the number of leaves increased. After the effects of the Growth Skills dissipated, the Spirit Rice had grown to its limit, with tiny ears of rice starting to appear at the top. If they grew normally, it would only take a few days for these Spirit Rice to start heading. And in not much longer, they would enter the filling stage, meaning the Spirit Rice was about to mature. However, with Growth Skills in hand, Fang Yun certainly would not waste over a month¡¯s time waiting for the Spirit Rice to mature. After replenishing the regular energy and Spiritual Energy from the larger spirit field again. Fang Yun cast Growth Skills once more. With the bluish energy covering these Spirit Rice. The tips of the Spirit Rice started to grow rice ears continuously. At this time, however, Fang Yun discovered an unexpected situation. Whether it was because they had grown too quickly or not, after the Spirit Rice developed rice ears, they did not enter the filling state. They seemed to mature directly instead, and the leaves of the Spirit Rice began to turn yellow. The grains of the rice on the ears also slowly turned yellow as if they were already mature. But through a slight sensation from his Golden Finger, Fang Yun could sense that these grains were just the husks, without any Spirit Rice inside. Noticing this abnormality, Fang Yun hurriedly stopped casting Growth Skills and removed the bluish glow covering the Spirit Rice. He then walked forward and grabbed some of the grains at the top of the Spirit Rice. Indeed, as sensed by his Golden Finger, these grains of Spirit Rice were merely husks. Without any Spirit Rice inside. Was this a flaw in the Growth Skills? Meaning that the Growth Skills could not completely defy the natural laws of growth. And could not make the plants skip directly from seed state to mature stage. The entire process of the plant, just as a human directly goes from child state to adult and then gives birth to a new child. The growth process of the Spirit Rice might need, aside from the regular energy and Spiritual Energy, some other things as well. Such as sunlight, or other nutrients. Without these supplements, the Spirit Rice might end up sterile as they are now. So, for Fang Yun to use Growth Skills to quickly obtain a large amount of Life Essence Qi, was not likely. The right balance still required multiple experiments, to shorten the growth time of Spirit Rice as much as possible without affecting their maturity. However, since the experiment had failed now, he might as well take a break for a while. Because, within Fang Yun¡¯s body, the Mana was once again nearing depletion. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Second Layer Mana: 3 Life Essence Qi: 5 Plant Control: Spirit Rice (320) Astragalus (2536)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 6%) Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 30%) Growth Skills (Beginner 2%) After looking at the panel, not only the Mana was about to be exhausted, but also the previously available Life Essence Qi, which was now only five points left. This was what Fang Yun kept for injury prevention, for self-preservation which he could not use. So, before the next batch of Life Essence Qi arrived, life wouldn¡¯t be so easy for Fang Yun. But the good thing was, having paid such a big price, he had mastered a new spell, which could be considered some sort of gain. Just that to bring out the full potential of the Growth Skills, he still needed to study and investigate thoroughly. So Fang Yun tidied up the corner of the spirit field. Then returned to the cave, looked at the remaining seeds obtained from Daoist Qingmu, and took them into his arms. Those things were better researched later; now, restoring Mana was the most important, or else without sufficient Mana, Fang Yun truly wouldn¡¯t feel safe. So, he went to the Spiritual Spring and began absorbing the Spiritual Energy in the cave, to restore his Mana. 5 days later, Fang Yun¡¯s Mana was barely recovered by just over a third. Temporarily, this was enough to give himself a certain self-protection ability. So, on this early morning, after cleaning the new weeds that sprouted in the spirit field. He picked up the magic artifact long saber, carried a hoe, and headed towards the canyon. It had been intermittently over a fortnight since he had been to the canyon, and he had no idea how much the crops there had suffered. Chapter 32 - Chapter 32: Chapter 32 Planting of Weeds Chapter 32: Chapter 32 Planting of Weeds Upon arriving at the canyon he hadn¡¯t visited in a long time, Fang Yun found, as expected, that it was already overgrown with weeds. After all, without management for such a long period, even the small grid pattern he had previously made was helpless in this situation. Feeling the uneasy emotions transmitted from these crops was like a sick child crying out to their parents. It gave Fang Yun a headache. He could only quickly put down his magic artifact long knife and start weeding with a hoe. After several days, he finally cleared all the weeds. Then, he used the Earth Power Skills to adjust the energy in the soil, concentrating it back into the grid pattern. Next, he used the Spirit Rain Skill to supplement the nutrients for the herbs and the already grown soybean sprouts. After the nourishment of the Spirit Rain Skill, these crops finally regained their vitality. It¡¯s a pity, though, that because of the delay and the competition for nutrients from the weeds, the rice seedlings that had been bred before hadn¡¯t grown at all. Even those that had managed to grow a bit were no longer suitable for transplanting. With no choice, Fang Yun had to clear out all the rice seedlings. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?¦Ï However, Fang Yun didn¡¯t continue breeding at this time. Because he needed to carefully consider which crops he would primarily plant when expanding his cultivation area next. After all, large-scale crop planting requires consideration of many factors. Considering his situation, the traits he needed in his crops were at least easy management and a short growth cycle. From these traits, rice obviously wasn¡¯t suitable for large-scale planting. These crops require more meticulous farming, and any neglect could lead to a significant decrease in yield. With a small quantity, Fang Yun could care for them, but once he expanded the scale, he couldn¡¯t provide the same level of care as he currently did for these 100 acres of rice. As for those pirates, it was feasible to let them clear the land, but expecting them to carefully tend to the rice was impossible. If he stubbornly planted rice, the yield would be easy to predict. A sharp decrease in yield wasn¡¯t of great concern to Fang Yun, but he worried that alongside the reduced yield, the production of Life Essence Qi would also diminish dramatically, which was unacceptable to him. Another factor was that on Spirit Water Island, apart from the regions close to Big River, there were not many paddy fields elsewhere, which also limited rice cultivation. Therefore, after calmly deliberating, Fang Yun excluded rice from his future planting plans. Unless he could find a suitable place for the growth of rice in the future, only then would he reconsider. The reason he chose this crop previously was because of the influence of the Spirit Rice planted in the mountains and the Fang Family members growing rice. It was just a form of mental inertia. After eliminating rice, which was unsuitable for large-scale cultivation, Fang Yun looked at the soybeans next to him, which were also the crop most commonly grown by the Fang Family in dry fields. However, compared to the rice along Big River, these soybeans were merely scattered plantings. The Fang Family had never thought of using these soybeans to feed their family. Besides these two crops, the Fang Family hadn¡¯t cultivated any other crops. For example, corn, which was popular nationwide in his previous life, was unseen on this island. ¡°` It¡¯s unclear whether this world has the seeds for corn. In the absence of any surprise, Fang Yun felt that this might be the only option for crops to cultivate. However, the realization that cultivating 100 acres of soybeans could only yield a little Life Essence Qi made Fang Yun feel it was quite a loss. After all, so much time spent for such little return. But there was no alternative; whether it was rice or soybeans, they were just ordinary mundane crops. They simply couldn¡¯t compete with Spirit Rice, which absorbs spiritual energy. Therefore, Fang Yun was eager to find a crop with a better cost-performance ratio to replace these soybeans. Preferably a crop that grows faster and does not require meticulous care. However, this seemed like nothing more than Fang Yun¡¯s own wishful thinking; not to mention this island, even in his past life, there weren¡¯t many crops easier to manage and with shorter growth periods than soybeans. He shook his head, dismissing the unrealistic ideas from his mind. He went back to the cave to continue restoring his mana. He took a trip to the canyon and used two spells, which depleted several points of his mana value. Without sufficient Life Essence Qi, mana indeed runs out too quickly. As for the matters below the mountain, Fang Yun was not in a hurry; it seemed better to wait until his mana was restored. For the next few days, Fang Yun was busy restoring mana while taking care of the crops on both sides. One day, while Fang Yun was weeding in the spirit field, He looked at the freshly sprouted weeds in his hand, and a sudden inspiration struck his mind. To him, there truly was a plant in this world that offered even greater cost-performance than soybeans. That was the very weeds before his eyes. These weeds had a short growth cycle, were not picky about their environment, and required no management whatsoever; once planted, they could be left alone. Is there any easier plant to manage in this world than these weeds? The thing to consider was whether these weeds fell within the scope of effect of his Golden Finger. Considering the Golden Finger¡¯s range indicated it worked on plants, it should work on these weeds. Therefore, what remained to be seen was how much Life Essence Qi these weeds could provide him. Regardless of the amount, this method of management was nonetheless convenient for him. He could intersperse the planting of soybeans with these weeds in other areas. That would also count as a harvest. However, there was some consideration needed as to which type of weed to plant, And collecting the seeds of the weeds might take some time. Thus, Fang Yun went to the canyon in search of the suitable weeds. Although there were also weeds in the spirit field, they were clearly nourished by spiritual energy, and seemed to produce more Life Essence Qi than ordinary weeds. However, their environmental requirements were terrifingly high; after all, they would need spiritual energy to grow. Therefore, Fang Yun never considered the weeds from the spirit field right from the start. Once in the canyon, after observing with intent, Fang Yun realized the weeds of this world had many similarities with the weeds from his past life. Among these, Fang Yun quickly identified some familiar weeds from his previous life that met his requirements. These included Pampa Grass, Eleusine indica, Dallisgrass, and Portulaca oleracea among others. ¡°` Chapter 33 - Chapter 33: Chapter 33: Down the Mountain Chapter 33: Chapter 33: Down the Mountain ¡°`html *Fang Yun wondered if it was the difference in the world or the fertility of the land here,* these weeds grew more vigorously than those in the past life. Fang Yun chose some of the already mature weeds from among them. He removed their seeds, then found a vacant spot in a corner. First, he used the Earth Power Skills to gather a large amount of energy to make the soil in front of him more fertile. Then he used the Spirit Rain Skill to add some Spiritual Energy to this land. After that, he scattered the weed seeds on it. The next day came, and when Fang Yun returned to Xia Valley. He discovered that in just one day, the weed seeds, nourished by the Spiritual Energy, had already broken their shells and sprouted tender green shoots. Fang Yun didn¡¯t need to open a panel; just by sensing the faint emotions transmitted from these weeds, he knew they were within the range of his Golden Finger. He opened the panel and took a glance. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level Two Mana: 13 Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ??¦Í?0.§ã¦Ï Life Essence Qi: 5 Plant Control: Spirit Rice (320), soybeans (500,000), astragalus (2,536), purslane (56), Pampa Grass (77)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (skilled 7%), Spirit Rain Skill (beginner 32%), Growth Skills (beginner 2%) Seeing the new names of the weeds appear on the panel, Fang Yun felt at ease. *As for why those names were identical to those from the past life, it must have been influenced by his consciousness.* *He didn¡¯t know what these weeds were called in this world, and probably no one else did either.* *After all, there were no agricultural experts in this world to name these weeds.* *Thus, the naming rights of these weeds belonged to him for now.* After examining the land for a moment, Fang Yun moved on. *The maturity period of these weeds was about a month.* *The nutrients in the soil would suffice for these weeds to mature.* *What remained to be seen was how much Life Essence Qi could be harvested.* *If the numbers were considerable, he could also gather more weed seeds.* *Then he could proceed with expansive planting.* *Initially, Fang Yun had thought of using Growth Skills to promote the growth of these weeds.* *But recalling the lessons from the Spirit Rice before, he decided not to waste Mana for now.* *He would experiment once he had more ample Mana and a greater quantity of weed seeds.* Another ten days or so passed, during which Fang Yun refrained from using spells. He only weeded the spirit field or managed the other crops in the valley. The remaining time was spent absorbing Spiritual Energy in a cave. After about ten days of recovery, the Mana within Fang Yun finally returned to its peak. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level Two Mana: 35 Life Essence Qi: 5 Plant Control: Spirit Rice (320), soybeans (500,000), astragalus (2,536), purslane (56), Pampa Grass (77)¡­ Spells: Earth Power Skills (skilled 7%), Spirit Rain Skill (beginner 32%), Growth Skills (beginner 2%) *Seeing his Mana not only return to its peak but also increase by three points, overall it was somewhat rewarding.* Only then did Fang Yun begin his descent down the mountain. *After all, he had been delayed on the mountain for quite some time, and the people at the bottom were probably anxiously waiting.* *He indeed needed to go down the mountain this time.* With his Magic Artifact machete, Fang Yun arrived at the foot of the mountain. He saw Fang Lin and Fang Zhou waiting with some people at the base. ¡°Clan Leader, are you okay? You¡¯ve been up the mountain for so long, everyone was quite worried, thinking you might have been injured in the last battle,¡± Fang Lin greeted him and asked. Fang Yun shook his head, ¡°Sorry to keep everyone waiting. It took a bit longer to restore my Mana, but there¡¯s nothing we can do about it. The Spiritual Energy in our Spiritual Spring is too scarce. Plus, with other things causing delays, time just slipped by!¡± ¡°As long as you¡¯re okay, Clan Leader, waiting a bit longer isn¡¯t a big deal!¡± Fang Yun nodded casually and then led them in the direction of the town. While walking, he looked at Fang Lin, ¡°Clan Elder, those pirate captives from last time, have they behaved themselves during this period? No problems so far, right?¡± ¡°Rest assured, Clan Leader, although there are many pirates, they are merely Martial Artists. They wouldn¡¯t dare to act up in front of us. We¡¯ve already settled them and are just waiting for your instructions! As for those few Innate Martial Artists, they¡¯ve been detained in special cells, so there¡¯s no need to worry!¡± Fang Yun nodded, feeling at ease with this knowledge. The primary purpose of coming down the mountain this time was to arrange for those pirates to begin land clearing according to his plan. He didn¡¯t place much importance on the celebration issue mentioned earlier by Fang Jianting. With their pace, even without rushing, they soon reached the town on Spirit Water Island. At this time, the town was already bustling, with the clan members of the Fang Family decorating with lanterns and streamers, all beaming with joy. It seemed that everyone had entered a celebratory state. It looked like they started preparing for the celebration as soon as they heard Fang Yun was coming down the mountain. In response, Fang Yun simply smiled and entered the town with Fang Lin and the others. In the center hall, he met with Fang Jianting and others who had been waiting for quite a while. ¡°Clan Leader, how are you? Has your body recovered?¡± Fang Jianting asked immediately upon seeing Fang Yun. He seemed genuinely concerned about Fang Yun¡¯s physical condition. After all, Fang Yun was the Fang Family¡¯s hope for rising up, and nothing should happen to him! *Fang Yun felt a warm happiness in his heart in response to Fang Jianting¡¯s concern.* He patted Fang Jianting¡¯s hand and said with a smile, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Elder. There¡¯s no problem with my health. Just some trivial matters took a bit of time.¡± ¡°Good, good! That¡¯s great. Then let¡¯s begin the celebration, everyone has been waiting for a long time!¡± He said this as he pulled Fang Yun towards the other side of the town. Fang Yun hesitated for a moment, looking at Fang Jianting¡¯s aged face, and eventually softened. After all, he was already down the mountain, what difference would another day or two make? So, Fang Yun followed Fang Jianting¡¯s footsteps to the other side of the town. At a large vacant lot in a corner of the town, he found a platform had been set up, with several rows of chairs placed below it. Behind the chairs, there were numerous round tables set up. A rough estimate indicated there were at least several thousand, while on the other side of the lot, there were dozens of stoves lined up, with a large group of people cooking. Clearly, the Fang Family¡¯s way of celebrating was quite simple and unpretentious. Just one word: Food. *Perhaps only food could bring true happiness to people.* *Seeing this lively scene, Fang Yun gradually became interested.* *After all, such a scene was rare even in the past life.* After waiting a short while, the dishes were ready. Fang Yun and Fang Jianting sat at a spot near the platform. In the meantime, a theater troupe arrived on the platform and began performing. Chapter 34 - Chapter 34: Chapter 34 The Pirates Arrangement Chapter 34: Chapter 34 The Pirate¡¯s Arrangement The chefs of the Fang Family are quite skilled indeed, and the other resources on the island are also fairly abundant. The dishes they prepare are varied in style, enticing in color, and fragrant to the nose, enough to make one¡¯s mouth water just by looking at them. However, Fang Yun only ate a little to satisfy his cravings, and then he did not continue to eat. Although these foods are delicious, they are after all only ordinary mortal provisions. Eating too much of them would bring no particular benefit to him. After sharing a meal with the clan elders of the family and watching opera for a while, Fang Yun followed Fang Lin to the place where the pirates were settled. To accommodate these pirates, Fang Lin had enclosed an area outside the town, haphazardly erected some thatched shelters, and then gave them some simple food, which solved the problem. Although the conditions were rather crude, the area was guarded by the security team, and there was no worry that the pirates would cause any trouble. Upon arrival at the pirates¡¯ settlement, Fang Yun went inside. The previously noisy pirates instantly quieted down. They had seen Fang Yun employ the Fireball Technique to bombard those Innate Martial Artists and the scene where he killed Daoist Qingmu. The terrifying power still instilled fear in these pirates when they thought about it. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í¨À?.§ã¦Ï Fang Yun paid no attention to the fearful gazes of these pirates. After briefly checking that they were still in relative good health, such that his field reclamation plan wouldn¡¯t be affected, he went on his way. Turning to Fang Lin beside him, he asked, ¡°Clan Leader, where are those pirates of the Innate Realm being held?¡± ¡°Clan Leader, those individuals have been deliberately detained in the town. After all, they are different from the common pirates here; they still possess some strength. If they decided to cause trouble, our security team wouldn¡¯t be able to contain them. Does the Clan Leader need them for something?¡± Fang Yun shook his head: ¡°Not really, but didn¡¯t I mention last time that I wanted these pirates to help me inspect the surrounding wastelands? Those few in the Innate Realm are of no use being locked up. It would be better to release them to supervise the work. With these pirate leaders in charge, the other pirates will work even harder!¡± Hearing this, Fang Lin hesitated, ¡°Clan Leader, what if they run away?¡± Fang Yun thought for a moment. Fang Lin¡¯s point was not without merit. After all, outside of the Black Widow¡¯s poison, he had no other means of controlling these Innate Realm pirates. As for the Black Widow, there was truly no way to control her on their side; it was only based on the deterrence of Fang Yun. In that case, if they did escape, the Fang Family would indeed be helpless against them. ¡°So, Clan Leader, do you have any suggestions? We can¡¯t keep them locked up indefinitely; then it would have been better to just kill them from the start. It would save us the food!¡± Fang Lin thought for a moment but could only shake his head, not having a better idea. That was why he initially wanted to kill or sell these people. Seeing Fang Lin had no suggestions either, Fang Yun pondered for a while and eventually said, ¡°If there are no ideas, then let them out for now. Let them supervise the other pirates to swiftly reclaim those wastelands.¡± The reason he insisted on letting those Innate Martial Artists go was that they, as pirate leaders, were more familiar with the pirates¡¯ temperaments and thus more suitable to direct them. It was also possible to have people from the Fang Family supervise the work, but it would be more laborious, and the pirates might not commit themselves to the task wholeheartedly. As for the possibility that these Innate Martial Artists might escape, Fang Yun didn¡¯t want to waste too much time considering it. If they managed to escape, that would just be their good fortune. The main task now was to organize the pirates to rapidly reclaim the land on the plains south of Jiangnan, far from Big River. Fang Yun next planned to plant soybeans there. To collect Life Essence Qi as soon as possible. As for other minor details, it wasn¡¯t necessary to be too concerned. Fang Lin nodded. Since the Clan Leader had said this, there was no need for him to continue opposing. He then turned and headed toward the town. Fang Yun also left the pirates¡¯ gathering place. As the two of them departed, the pirates¡¯ settlement became lively once again. Moreover, the conversation they had just shared without discretion had already spread among the pirates. Upon learning of their future work, the pirates finally let go of their worries. It¡¯s not that they naturally wanted to rush to help Fang Yun with the land reclamation. Rather, without any tasks assigned, the pirates were concerned that the Fang Family might sell them off to some black market in another location. Their fate would then be much more miserable than it currently was. At best, they would be sent to labor in some places. Should they be unlucky enough to fall into the hands of Evil Cultivators practicing Evil Skills, they¡¯d become merely cultivation resources for those Evil Cultivators. Compared to this, working to reclaim land for the Fang Family, though still hard labor, was relatively much better. Fang Yun stood not far from the pirate gathering field, waiting for a while. Fang Lin then brought over the five pirates of the Innate Realm. The five came before Fang Yun, knelt down respectfully, and paid their respects: ¡°Your humble servants greet Immortal Master!¡± Fang Yun nodded slightly: ¡°Rise.¡± Once the five apprehensively stood up, Fang Yun then said, ¡°This time, I¡¯ve called you here to organize the other pirates and fully reclaim the southern plains, the remaining wastelands that have yet to be planted with rice.¡± ¡°As long as you complete the task, you can get rid of your captive status, and if you perform well, I don¡¯t mind giving you some rewards! Of course, if you try to use this opportunity to escape Spirit Water Island, that¡¯s not impossible. But I hope you won¡¯t be discovered by me, otherwise, I need not say what consequences await you!¡± When Fang Yun said this, he mainly focused on the Black Widow. As the leader of the other four, and considering the other four had been poisoned by the Black Widow, This meant that the lives of those four were in the hands of the Black Widow. Thus, as long as Black Widow didn¡¯t have other intentions, it wouldn¡¯t be easy for the others to escape even if they wanted to. The Black Widow, as a woman who managed to rally a powerful group of pirates at sea, was certainly no simple character. She noticed that Fang Yun was staring at her while speaking these words, So she knew these words were meant for her. Then, she nodded firmly, ¡°Immortal Master, rest assured, since I¡¯ve been captured, I certainly will listen to your orders obediently. I dare not entertain any thoughts of fleeing.¡± Fang Yun looked deeply at Black Widow, neither confirming nor denying her words. Chapter 35 - Chapter 35: Chapter 35 Re-studying Growth Skills Chapter 35: Chapter 35 Re-studying Growth Skills Anyway, he had said everything he needed to say, as long as they could complete their task, he naturally wouldn¡¯t say anything more. But once they ran away and he discovered it, that would be a different story. The Black Widow bowed her head deeply; she knew that her words at this moment carried little credibility. Besides, as a pirate, it was indeed difficult for her to claim much credibility. However, she truly had no intention of escaping. The pirate forces over the sea were too numerous; even though she was an Innate Martial Artist with four Innate Martial Artists under her command, such strength still led to a life of constant fear on the sea. *This was because there were simply too many powerful people and creatures in this world.* *Any cultivator or any demon beast could bring a catastrophe to pirate organizations like hers.* *If she could survive elsewhere, why would the Black Widow choose to make a living on the sea?* When she surrendered before, although most of the reason was due to Fang Yun¡¯s immense power, it was undeniable that the Black Widow also had some thoughts of siding with Fang Yun. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?0¦Í?¦Ï.§ã¦Ï After all, Fang Yun appeared very young, and at such an age, could easily slay another cultivator, Daoist Qingmu. One could imagine the great potential Fang Yun possessed. If she could submit to Fang Yun under these circumstances, it would also be a rare opportunity for the Black Widow. With this mindset influencing her, the Black Widow naturally had no thoughts of defecting. Fang Yun did not know of the Black Widow¡¯s intent to side with him. Since the Black Widow had made her promise, Fang Yun didn¡¯t delay any further; after all, he had a ton of things to handle on the mountain, and he didn¡¯t want any issues with the crops there due to matters down the hill. Thus, after Fang Yun instructed Fang Lin to prepare enough tools, he directed the Black Widow and her fellow Innate Martial Artists, accompanied by a few thousand pirates, toward the eastern side of the southern plain. The Fang Family¡¯s guard squad, along with Fang Zhou, followed them. Their main task was to supervise these pirates, preventing any escape attempts. Although the guard squad might not be able to restrain those Innate Martial Artists, they could still keep an eye on the other pirates. After handling these matters, Fang Yun returned to the town, spoke briefly with the other clan elders, and then headed back to the mountain. The clan elders understood that, as a cultivator, Fang Yun had too many things to deal with, so they didn¡¯t delay him any longer. Back on the mountain, aside from the daily management of the Spirit Rice, Fang Yun resumed his research on the Growth Skills. The Growth Skills spell was crucial for someone like him, whose career revolved around farming. Since his mana was fully restored, he naturally couldn¡¯t delay any longer. However, this time Fang Yun did not use Spirit Rice as an experimental subject. Although he still had some Spirit Rice left, using it for experiments felt a bit extravagant. In comparison, the crops in the canyon were far less valuable than the Spirit Rice. Using them as test subjects meant that even if everything failed, Fang Yun wouldn¡¯t feel distressed. Just as he was not planning to grow rice at the moment, the unused rice seeds from before were perfect for Growth Skills experiments. So, Fang Yun went to the rice paddy in the canyon. Since he wasn¡¯t planning to plant rice, he hadn¡¯t managed this area recently. The weeds, which were previously cleared, had grown back. Fang Yun could only clear out a small section again for the Growth Skills experiment. After clearing the weeds, Fang Yun used Earth Power Skills along with the Spirit Rain Skill. He enriched the land with a large amount of ordinary energy and a touch of spiritual energy. Afterward, Fang Yun scattered the prepared rice seeds into the paddy. Then, reciting the incantation with focused hand movements, the mana within his body began to rotate in a particular pattern. A mysterious fluctuation spread in the air as the Wood Spirit Energy in the atmosphere started gathering at Fang Yun¡¯s handprint. This energy was then directed toward the land in front of him. As the green light spread over the soil, the rice seeds began to quickly take root and sprout, then swiftly grew taller. Almost in the blink of an eye, the rice in the paddy had grown to its limit, headed, and turned golden. Before the green light faded, the rice in the field had fully matured. Seeing this, Fang Yun could only shake his head in resignation. He didn¡¯t need to look closely to know that the rice kernels inside the husks were empty. In other words, the rice had headed but hadn¡¯t entered the grain-filling stage, directly reaching maturity. This experiment ended in failure for Fang Yun. However, at this moment he roughly understood the reason for his failure. Because whether it was ordinary rice or Spirit Rice, shortly after heading, they needed to undergo pollination. Only through pollination could the rice enter the maturity stage. But under the influence of the Growth Skills, this process was accelerated significantly, leading the rice not to complete pollination, and naturally, no rice grains appeared. Besides this, the ultimate maturity of rice also required the role of sunlight. By accelerating this process, the sunlight was definitely reduced significantly, which in turn also affected the rice¡¯s maturation. If one wanted the rice to mature without being affected, while still using Growth Skills to speed up its growth, the best solution seemed to be stopping the use of Growth Skills before the rice entered the maturation phase. Upon discovering the reason for his experimental failure, Fang Yun quickly thought of a new method. However, whether it would succeed still needed further experimentation. Thus, Fang Yun cleared out all the current rice, enriched the land again with Earth Power Skills and Spirit Rain Skill for sufficient nutrients. After replanting the rice seeds, Fang Yun once more cast the Growth Skills. The Wood Spirit Energy again converged in his hands and then penetrated the land in front. Under the influence of the Wood Spirit Energy, the rice seeds began to absorb the energy and spiritual energy from the soil rapidly, growing vigorously. Fang Yun closely watched the rapidly growing rice, then just before they reached their growth limit and started to head, he directly ceased the Growth Skills. As the green light on the land disappeared, the growth of the rice halted. Fang Yun watched the rice, which had just begun heading, and felt a sense of relief. ¡°Now, let¡¯s allow these rice plants to grow naturally. I just hope that under the influence of the Growth Skills, the rice grains can finally develop.¡± Chapter 36 - Chapter 36: Chapter 36 Progress of Experiments on Growth Skills Chapter 36: Chapter 36 Progress of Experiments on Growth Skills Several days passed, and the rice used for the experiment gradually entered the grain-filling stage. Watching those grains slowly become plumper, Fang Yun¡¯s worries also gradually lessened. It seems that his previous guess was correct; even with Growth Skills applied, it did not hinder the rice from entering the maturation stage normally as long as it did not affect their pollination. As for how much could ultimately be harvested, that would have to depend on the final results. Fang Yun then went to check on the weeds he had planted earlier, finding that their growth condition was also quite smooth. Perhaps due to the characteristics of being weeds themselves, these weeds thrived incredibly under the dual boost of rich nutrients and Spiritual Energy. There were no other uncontrollable weeds competing for the growing environment, so their growth condition was the least of Fang Yun¡¯s concerns. However, even though these weeds were growing rapidly, it would still take more than ten days for them to fully mature. In contrast, the rice that had Growth Skills applied matured much faster. Initially, Fang Yun wanted to apply Growth Skills on these weeds. But considering that his experiment, although hopeful, was not completely successful, he decided to wait. He felt it was safer to fully understand all the details of using Growth Skills before stimulating the weeds. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.§ã¦Ï As time continued to pass, besides his daily attention to the Spirit Rice, Fang Yun spent the rest of his time closely watching the maturing rice. After the grain-filling stage, under the ample warmth of the sun, the rice gradually began to mature. The panicles turned yellow and drooped heavily. However, as this rice gradually matured, Fang Yun also discovered some issues. This rice ultimately could not compare with those naturally grown. Although there were mature and full grains in the panicles, there were still many that were merely empty husks. That is to say, the Growth Skills ultimately had some undesirable effects on the growth of the rice. Perhaps there are some critical aspects of rice growth that cannot be directly stimulated with Growth Skills. However, Fang Yun has not yet discovered exactly which aspect that might be. But since the rice had matured, Fang Yun did not hesitate any longer and started to harvest it. As his sickle swung continuously, stalks of rice were cut down. At the same time, Fang Yun clearly felt a faint cool aura converge toward him. Although these auras were very weak, Fang Yun, who was especially familiar with Life Essence Qi, of course, would not mistake it. With the mature rice and the harvest of Life Essence Qi. In fact, overall, Fang Yun¡¯s experiment this time was a success, though it had not reached a particularly perfect level. The remaining issues that had not been discovered, Fang Yun planned to slowly search and explore them in follow-up experiments. Subsequently, Fang Yun turned his gaze toward the nearby soybeans, the other herbs, and weeds in the farthest corner. Since the initial experiment with Growth Skills had achieved a certain degree of success, the next natural step was to continue using Growth Skills to stimulate these crops, so as to collect Life Essence Qi as quickly as possible. After all, Life Essence Qi was something precious that Fang Yun was particularly lacking now. However, when deciding to use Growth Skills, Fang Yun had to seriously consider the cost-effectiveness issue. According to the current conversion relationship between Mana and Life Essence Qi, it should be around 1:1. If it is during a breakthrough in Cultivation, the consumption of Life Essence Qi will be even higher. After all, at the time of breakthrough, it¡¯s not just the growth of mana, but also overcoming certain milestones, all of which require energy consumption. Using Growth Skills once would roughly consume two points of mana value, and using Earth Power Skills once would consume the same. The consumption for using Spirit Rain Skill once is approximately four points of mana value. That is to say, the spells that can be performed at the first layer of Qi Cultivation consume two points of mana value, and the spells of the second layer consume four points. Therefore, just considering the cost-effectiveness, using these spells on soybeans and weeds seems somewhat unwarranted. Even if a Growth Skill could fully mature these hundred acres of soybeans, it would only harvest one point of Life Essence Qi. Indeed, it seems hardly necessary. Furthermore, one Growth Skill is likely not enough to fully mature a hundred acres of soybeans, thus even more consumption would be required. Of course, given that Life Essence Qi is scarce right now, while Mana can be restored through Spiritual Energy, using a certain amount of Mana to facilitate crop growth in order to restore Life Essence Qi is not out of the question. With these considerations, it¡¯s not possible to consider just cost-effectiveness; as long as the ratio is not too exorbitant, conversions are possible. Thus, after some deep consideration, Fang Yun believes it¡¯s feasible to apply spells on medicinal herbs and then convert them into a certain amount of Life Essence Qi. Coincidentally, those medicinal herbs have also been growing for a while, and after using the Growth Skills, they can be completely harvested. The growth cycle of these medicinal herbs is relatively long, and in the current plan, they are not suitable for Fang Yun¡¯s long-term cultivation. After this batch of medicinal herbs is harvested, Fang Yun plans to temporarily cease the cultivation of medicinal herbs. Once there is a new plan in the future, he will reconsider whether to continue the cultivation. Having thought this through, Fang Yun came to the side of the medicinal field, chanting the spell silently, forming hand seals, and mana began to circulate, a stream of blue energy gathering in his hands. Then, he infused this stream of energy into the medicinal field, Fang Yun concentrating intently on driving this blue energy, striving to spread it around. The blue energy kept spreading until it eventually reached the ends, covering about one-third of the medicinal field. Subsequently, in the medicinal field, those herbs marked chiefly by their rhizomes, began to frantically absorb the nutrients in the field, then grew at an astonishing speed. Once the blue energy was exhausted, this part of the medicinal field had undergone tremendous change, Fang Yun glanced at it and did not rush to harvest these medicinal herbs immediately. Instead, he applied Growth Skills two more times on the remaining herbs. As the effect of the Growth Skills gradually dissipated, Fang Yun watched the significantly transformed medicinal field, took a deep breath, and picked up the hoe to start laboring. In theory, these medicinal herbs require meticulous harvesting, but there was only Fang Yun alone on-site, and all he needed was Life Essence Qi. As for the quality and integrity of the medicinal herbs themselves, Fang Yun did not give much importance, so the harvesting was naturally rather rough. It took him two full days to harvest all the medicinal herbs. At the same time, he also harvested 10 points of Life Essence Qi, ten times more than ordinary crops, but much less than Spirit Rice. Overall, Fang Yun did not feel particularly thrilled. Moreover, a lot of time and energy were spent on this medicinal field. Including the previous use of Spirit Rain Skill and Earth Power Skill to promote the growth of medicinal herbs, as well as the Mana consumption by the Growth Skills. All things considered, Fang Yun actually incurred a significant loss in this cycle of planting and harvesting medicinal herbs. Chapter 37 - Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Back to the Mountain Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Back to the Mountain After harvesting all the medicinal herbs, it wasn¡¯t long before the various weeds that had been planted also started to mature. Fang Yun carefully collected all the seeds from the weeds, and then harvested all the weeds. Once again, he felt that cool, refreshing sensation. Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but open the panel that he hadn¡¯t looked at in a long time. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation level two Mana: 20 Life Essence Qi: 15.012 Control over plants: Spirit Rice (320), soybeans (500,000) Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 9%), Spirit Rain Skill (Beginner 60%), Growth Skills (Beginner 9%) The plants he controlled no longer displayed the herbs and weeds that had been harvested. On the panel, there were a few more decimal points after the Life Essence Qi value. These decimals came from the trial harvest of the spirit rice as well as the weeds that were recently harvested. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?0¦Í??.§ã¦Ï Although the amount was sparse, as long as there was production of Life Essence Qi, it was enough for him, even if it was just these decimal points, it became difficult to estimate the difference in Life Essence Qi yielded from these weeds compared to ordinary crops. Unless he could plant a hundred acres of weeds to make an accurate estimate. However, even if he wanted to plant them, he didn¡¯t have enough seeds at the moment, but he would consider it later. After all, as long as there was a harvest of Life Essence Qi, it was fine. After confirming this, the next step was to collect enough seeds. However, collecting seeds still required the use of Growth Skills. Otherwise, relying solely on natural growth, the time spent would be too long. Although this would waste a lot of Mana, since this matter relates to his future farming plans, he couldn¡¯t just consider cost-effectiveness. Similarly, a large amount of soybean seeds would need to be stimulated if he wanted to meet the needs of expanded planting. These seeds, after all, grew under the influence of his Golden Finger, and Fang Yun could even sense the vitality in the seeds of the mature plants. In this way, planting them again would be even more influenced by his Golden Finger. Even during the expansion of planting, with other people¡¯s help, the possibility that the grown crops would be within the range of his Golden Finger¡¯s influence would be higher. However, to prepare more seeds using the Growth Skills. He needed to analyse the Growth Skills in more detail to make them more compatible with the crops he intended to plant. The result obtained by the previous way of using the Growth Skills was obviously not suitable. Therefore, a few more rounds of experiments were necessary. Only after mastering all the techniques of using the Growth Skills. Could he achieve the desired effect. Actually, learning the original Growth Skills wasn¡¯t supposed to be so troublesome, and its application was only to stimulate those spell seeds for combat purposes. There was no need to consider the growth issues of those spell seeds. But now, due to different needs, Fang Yun required the Growth Skills to speed up the growth of his planted crops. This necessitated a reconsideration of the application of the Growth Skills in this regard. However, although the initial stage was difficult, as long as he succeeded, it would provide great help for the development of his future farming career and his cultivation issues. Thus, Fang Yun selected some soybean seeds and weed seeds and returned to the mountain. This time, when conducting the experiment, Fang Yun planned to do it on the mountain and also incorporate the Spirit Rice. After all, since he already had some results, using the Spirit Rice wasn¡¯t a waste. In this way, he could quickly see results and also take this opportunity to harvest some Life Essence Qi. Upon arriving at the mountain, Fang Yun simply cleared the weeds from the spirit field and then sensed the mood of the Spirit Rice to see if there were any other factors affecting its growth. After all that, Fang Yun returned to the cave to absorb Spiritual Energy and recover his Mana. Early the next day, Fang Yun left the cave and found two plots of land nearby, planning to use them for planting experiments with soybeans and those weeds. He cleared the trees and weeds on top, then used Earth Power Skills and the Spirit Rain Skill to enrich the soil with nutrients. This had become the standard preparation before starting to farm. Afterwards, he scattered soybean seeds and weed seeds on the two pieces of land, separately. He did not rush to use the Growth Skills to promote growth. Instead, he went back to the corner of the spirit field, the area where he previously experimented with Spirit Rice. After a simple cleanup, he used Earth Power Skills to adjust the energy and Spiritual Energy within the soil. Then he scattered the Spirit Rice Seeds. After completing all these tasks, he could proceed with hastening their growth using the Growth Skills. However, Fang Yun thought about the previous experiments with rice, and although they ended up successful, they still did not compare to rice grown normally. In other words, during the early fostering stage, some growth stages should not be hastily skipped over. Identifying which stage had issues required an understanding of the various stages a crop goes through during its growth. Technically speaking, the growth stages of crops can be divided into six stages. Namely, the sowing stage, germination stage, seedling stage, growth stage, reproductive stage, and finally, the maturity stage. The sowing stage, being just about the seeds, doesn¡¯t require much consideration. The germination and seedling stages could be combined as the first stage, a period when the sprout emerges from the seed and is relatively delicate. At this stage, akin to the crops¡¯ seedling stage, an increased input of nutrients is typically needed. Only in this way can they quickly enter their period of growth. The second stage is the regular growth period, which lasts the longest but is generally the most stable. As long as there is a sufficient supply of nutrients and protection from weeds and pests, there should not be any major problems. The reproductive and maturity stages can be combined into the third stage. At this stage, the plants would have reached their growth limits; it¡¯s all about harvest, so it makes sense to treat them as one stage. Therefore, according to these three stages, previous experiments have shown that if Growth Skills are applied during the maturity stage, the crops fail to yield any harvest. Naturally, the Life Essence Qi I seek would also end in no result. Similarly, during the seedling stage, due to its huge dependence on the external environment and the need for ample nutrients. Accelerating growth at this stage would result in nutrient-deficient seedlings, also affecting the final outcome. Only during the growth period, the stage with the least external demands, does using Growth Skills have the minimal impact. Additionally, this stage requires the longest growth time, and using Growth Skills to shorten this period is most convenient for me. If my assumption is correct, then it would be best to wait until these crops have entered their growth period before using Growth Skills to hasten their maturation. In any case, both the seedling and maturity periods do not consume much time. Even for crops like Spirit Rice that absorb Spiritual Energy, these two periods amount to only about two months. This is not a very long time for me. Thinking this, Fang Yun thus wasn¡¯t in a hurry to promote growth for the crops under experimentation. He decided to wait until they had grown up before taking further action. Chapter 38 - Chapter 38: Chapter 38 Vine Seeds Chapter 38: Chapter 38 Vine Seeds ¡°` The plants being cultivated were growing very smoothly under the influence of sufficient nutrition and Spiritual Energy. The next day, while the Spirit Rice Seeds had yet to show any response, the soybean seeds and other weed seeds had already sprouted. Fang Yun wasn¡¯t surprised by this; after all, these ordinary plants don¡¯t require much from the soil¡¯s nutritional content. Especially considering the high-nutrient soil he had meticulously prepared, along with the presence of Spiritual Energy. Fang Yun simply observed these seeds for a while, and seeing that they all had basically sprouted, he no longer paid them any attention. There wasn¡¯t a rush for time at the moment; he would wait another ten days or so, until these seeds had grown to a certain extent, before promoting their growth. Using this interval, Fang Yun took out the vine seeds he had obtained from Daoist Qingmu to study. From the way Daoist Qingmu used these seeds, they should be the type of seeds that can cast spells. This name was casually coined by Fang Yun based on the effects of those vines. Means it¡¯s a seed that can exert the effects of a spell. Looking at the seeds, which were the size of lotus seeds and pitch black, Fang Yun remembered Daoist Qingmu¡¯s methods. Thus, he selected one, threw it on the ground, and cast the Growth Skills, hitting the pitch-black seed with the green energy. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?¦Ï.?¦Ï Affected by the green energy, the pitch-black seed broke open very quickly, then its roots penetrated the soil and grew rapidly. By the time the effects of the Growth Skills faded, a vine several meters long and as thick as a bowl with sharp spikes on its body had appeared on the ground. Fang Yun looked at the vine lying on the ground, twisting like a long snake. Sensing the simple profile transmitted by the vine, he found he could actually command this vine. For this, Fang Yun didn¡¯t feel anything out of the ordinary, just that he could vaguely sense the overall situation of the vine, just like how he sensed the Spirit Rice he cultivated through Golden Finger. This did surprise Fang Yun a bit. He had thought this method of sensing was unique to his Golden Finger. Unexpectedly, a simple spell could also perceive the vine¡¯s basic situation. Afterward, a slight thought in Fang Yun¡¯s mind, and the vine began to coil around him continuously. Seeing this scene, Fang Yun¡¯s face revealed a smile. Other than feeling a bit of amusement, what Fang Yun valued was this feeling of commanding the vine as easily as using his own arm. Although he already possessed a Magic Artifact, having more attack power was something Fang Yun wouldn¡¯t disdain. However, his delight did not last long, for after a while, perhaps because the duration of the spell had ended, the previously ferocious vine suddenly started to wither. In a short time, the vine that had been several meters long shrank into a dry stick less than a meter long, crumbling at a light squeeze. Looking at the crumbling debris in his hands, Fang Yun shook his head helplessly. Such a spell might have some Impact Force, but its duration was too short¡ªit was ultimately rather disappointing. However, if it weren¡¯t viewed as a spell, but simply as a plant, that would be somewhat different. At any rate, it was a type of Spiritual Object! Fang Yun looked at the remaining vine seeds, pondering thoughtfully. He wondered if simply cultivating these vine seeds in the ordinary way, would they grow differently. Right now, Fang Yun practically only had the Spirit Rice as a Spiritual Object, and it was the lowest grade of the primary rank among Spiritual Objects. If these vines could also become a type of Spiritual Object, then Fang Yun would have two kinds of Spiritual Objects. Even if such Spiritual Objects had no other effects, just their Life Essence Qi alone would be enough to excite Fang Yun. ¡°` With a trace of curiosity and a hint of anticipation in his heart, Fang Yun took out several seeds and found a small patch of land on a mountain corner to plant them. The same planting combo, Earth Power Skills and Spirit Rain Skill, could all be arranged. Ensuring that the vine seeds would have ample nutrients. As for the Growth Skills, Fang Yun didn¡¯t bother with them for now; he only hoped that the vine seeds would grow normally. Then he would see how they differed from the ones that had been hastened. After being busy with this for a few days, the Spirit Rice Seeds also began to sprout. However, the seedling stage of Spirit Rice was relatively longer, needing more than a month, so only observation was necessary during this period. A few days later, the soybean seedlings and those of the weeds had grown as well. Basically, they began to reach the growing stage. Fang Yun returned to the valley and, using Earth Power Skills, condensed a portion of ordinary energy and concentrated it into a section of soil. To make the nutrients in this soil sufficiently rich and then move it up the mountain to supplement the two plots planted with soybeans and weeds, ensuring they had enough nutrients. After supplementing them twice with the Spirit Rain Skill, providing a certain amount of Spiritual Energy, He then began to apply the Growth Skills to them. A spell of Growth Skills was cast over the plot with soybeans. The soybean seedlings began to grow crazily, and in no time, the seedlings started to mature. Pods sprouted in the blink of an eye. At that moment, Fang Yun directed the green energy condensed by the Growth Skills to another plot where weeds were planted. As the green energy left, the growth of the soybean seedlings also halted. While the weeds, in turn, grew wildly just the same. Though the soybean seedlings had consumed most of the green energy, the weeds had a shorter growth time and required less energy. Under the influence of the remaining green energy, those weeds quickly entered their mature stage. Seeing there was still a thin amount of green energy left, Fang Yun decided not to continue to hasten their growth. To prevent any impact on the final seed yield of the weeds. Having completed the hastening of these two types of plants, next was to see what influence it would have, once the mature period passed, compared to normally grown crops. After about ten more days, the weeds reached full maturity first. Fang Yun collected all the seeds and compared them with the harvest of weeds previously planted in the canyon. He found that there wasn¡¯t much difference between the two. It seemed that with ample nutrients, even if part of them were hastened, there wasn¡¯t much impact on the final yield. Uncertain, after the soybeans were fully mature, Fang Yun also checked the yield of the soybeans. He discovered that compared to the last batch of soybeans, there was no significant difference when considering individual plants. But to know the difference in final yield, it would be best to hasten the growth of those soybeans in the canyon for comparison. Of course, these harvests were merely material gains and not particularly important to Fang Yun. By contrast, he cared more about the harvest of Life Essence Qi. However, unfortunately, the Life Essence Qi to be harvested from the mere quantity of ordinary plants was too little. These decimal numbers were indeed difficult to compare. Chapter 39 - Chapter 39: Chapter 39 Completion of Growth Skills Experiment Chapter 39: Chapter 39 Completion of Growth Skills Experiment Even so, in terms of yield alone, employing Growth Skills in such a manner not only greatly hastens the maturation time of crops, but it also does not adversely affect the final outcome. This has already met the most primary goal for oneself. Observing that the Spirit Rice seedlings had also passed the seedling stage, Fang Yun chose 10 seemingly promising seedlings to keep. After clearing all the underperforming seedlings, he applied the Growth Skills once again. As a green glow gathered in a corner of the spirit field, the specially selected Spirit Rice seedlings also began to grow wildly. Perhaps due to the small number of Spirit Rice, merely a single application of the Growth Skills brought the seedlings directly into the ripening stage. Watching the rapidly growing Spirit Rice, still vibrant in color, and the rice panicles that had just begun to emerge at the top, Fang Yun nodded in satisfaction, and the rest would depend on the harvest results after a month. However, Fang Yun wasn¡¯t planning to just wait idly during this month. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.§ã0 Returning to the cave, he spent a few days recovering his Mana. Fang Yun then went back to the canyon, starting to promote the growth of 100 acres of soybean seedlings. Since the previous experiments had shown no significant issues, it was naturally time to promote the growth of these soybeans now, to harvest a large batch of quality seeds as swiftly as possible, to facilitate his subsequent planting plans. After three consecutive casts of the Growth Skills, all the soybean seedlings matured. It was fortunate that he was solely interested in the seeds of the soybeans; if it were for Life Essence Qi, he didn¡¯t know how much loss would have been incurred. During the waiting period for the soybeans to mature, Fang Yun planted all the harvested weed seeds back in the original herb-growing area, and then used the Earth Power Skills and Spirit Rain Skill to enhance the soil¡¯s nutrients and spiritual energy. This can be considered a temporary completion of the task. Several days later, when all the soybeans were harvested, there wasn¡¯t much difference in yield. The Life Essence Qi increased by a point. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation level 2 Mana: 21 Life Essence Qi: 16.016 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 30%) Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 10%) Growth Skills (Beginner 59%) Plant Control: Spirit Rice (330)¡­ Besides this harvest, the consecutive casting of these spells during this period also brought about significant progress in these spells, and the Spirit Rain Skill officially moved into the skilled phase. The range covered by the Spirit Rain cast was wider, and its casting speed was faster. Plus, the Spirit Rain now contained even more Spiritual Energy. The only pity was that these controlled plants did not display their maturation time, which would have been more convenient. However, with the Growth Skills, the maturity time of these plants was significantly accelerated; ordinary crops required just a month¡¯s time. For Spirit Rice, which absorbs Spiritual Energy, it needed just over two months, so there was no need for specific calculations. In this way, the speed of accumulating Life Essence Qi would be greatly increased in the future. The only concern was that the supply of Spiritual Energy from the Spiritual Spring might not keep up with the consumption of the Spirit Rice. In this regard, other than using Spirit Stones for replenishment, the only method was to use the Spirit Rain Skill to supplement the Spiritual Energy in the spirit field. The one problem is that his own Mana is still too low; if he uses the Spirit Rain Skill frequently in the future, there might be some difficulties in this aspect. However, once this batch of Spirit Rice is completely matured, the harvested Life Essence Qi should be enough for me to breakthrough to the third level of Qi Cultivation. By then, I will not be so passive. After making a rough plan for my future. Fang Yun stimulated the growth of the already-growing weeds. The maturity time of the weeds is relatively short, and just one Growth Skill is enough for a hundred acres of weeds to all reach maturity. It only needs a little longer before they can all be harvested. However, since the maturity time is short, Fang Yun does not hold much hope for the Life Essence Qi that can be harvested from these weeds. Or rather, for ordinary crops, unless they reach a scale of tens of thousands of acres, the harvested Life Essence Qi would not be enough for his own consumption. After completing the stimulation of these weeds, it was not long before the ten Spirit Rice plants used for the experiment were fully matured. Perhaps due to the small number, these ten Spirit Rice plants did not attract any pests. This indeed relieved Fang Yun. To be honest, perhaps due to the environment of Spirit Water Island, except for the initial Green Beetles, Fang Yun had not seen other pests appear. This significantly saved him effort during farming. Following the complete harvest of these Spirit Rice plants, Fang Yun also reaped 10 points of Life Essence Qi and a certain amount of Spirit Rice grain. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 2 Mana: 21 Life Essence Qi: 26.016 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 30%), Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 10%), Growth Skills (Beginner 60%) Control over Plants: Spirit Rice (320) ¡­ Fang Yun is not particularly concerned about the Spirit Rice grain; after all, the Spirit Energy in the spirit field is limited, and even with many seeds, he does not have enough Spiritual Energy to sustain them. On the contrary, the ten points of increased Life Essence Qi were a pleasant surprise. The harvest of these ten Spirit Rice plants also represented that the usage method of Growth Skills had fully matured. In the future, the growth time of his crops will be greatly shortened. This is of great benefit to his future farming and cultivation endeavors. Since Growth Skills had been completely mastered, it goes without saying that the remaining 320 Spirit Rice plants need to be stimulated for growth as soon as possible. Thus, next to the spirit field, Fang Yun directly deployed the Growth Skills. When the blue light covered all the Spirit Rice, they began to grow rapidly. Nevertheless, they are not ordinary crops, and a single Growth Skill was obviously not enough to bring the Spirit Rice to maturity. Moreover, as the Spirit Rice grew rapidly, the consumption of ordinary energy and Spiritual Energy within the spirit field was also extremely alarming. After deploying the Growth Skills, the Spirit Rice transmitted an intense hunger feeling to Fang Yun. Using Earth Power Skills to gauge the situation in the spirit field, Fang Yun could tell that the residual ordinary energy and Spiritual Energy were no longer sufficient for another application of Growth Skills. Therefore, Fang Yun had to consecutively deploy the Spirit Rain Skill, consuming most of his Mana, barely managing to replenish the Spiritual Energy in the spirit field. However, after replenishing the Spiritual Energy, a large amount of ordinary energy is still needed. Subsequently, Fang Yun returned to the cave and, after a few days of recovering some Mana, he went into the northern mountains. Then, using Earth Power Skills, he condensed a large amount of ordinary energy in the soil, and then transported all this soil into the spirit field. He completed the replenishment of ordinary energy in the spirit field. After doing all this, Fang Yun had laid the foundation for the next deployment of Growth Skills. It can be said that although Growth Skills can greatly accelerate the growth of Spirit Rice, the required conditions are indeed very troublesome. Indeed, taking shortcuts always comes with certain costs. Chapter 40 - Chapter 40: Chapter 40: The New Silk Net Chapter 40: Chapter 40: The New Silk Net ¡°`html After preparing the Growth Skills, Fang Yun took another two days to rest. Only then did he cast the Growth Skills once again. As the Growth Skills were cast, the Spirit Rice shot up significantly. However, as the effects of the Growth Skills faded, so did the ordinary energy in the soil that had been painstakingly prepared before, and the Spiritual Energy gathered using the Spirit Rain Skill. It seemed that to bring the Spirit Rice to the maturity stage, he would need to cast the Growth Skills 2 to 3 more times. There was no choice. For the final harvest, Fang Yun could only head to the mountains behind and gather enough energy-rich soil. After returning, he replaced the original soil. Then he used the Spirit Rain Skill again, supplemented by the water flowing from the Spiritual Spring. After several days, he finally replenished the ordinary energy and Spiritual Energy needed for the Spirit Rice once more. Just like this, over the next month, Fang Yun performed this operation twice more, which allowed the Spirit Rice to enter the maturity stage. With the final replenishment of ordinary energy and Spiritual Energy for the spirit field, Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.§ã0 for the next maturity period, he let the Spirit Rice slowly grow again. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level 2 Mana: 21 Life Essence Qi: 26.016 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 50%), Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 50%), Growth Skills (Beginner 90%) Plant Mastery: Spirit Rice (320) Vine Plants (5)¡­ After more than a month¡¯s effort, not only did the Spirit Rice enter the maturity stage, but the frequent casting of spells also led to significant progress in these spells. *It was estimated that it wouldn¡¯t be long before these spells could advance to the next stage.* Similarly, in about a month, these Spirit Rice would be fully mature. One could say that although this month was arduous for Fang Yun, the rewards were also substantial. However, in the next month, pest defense would have to be carried out. This was crucial; whether of the past efforts could yield perfect results depended on his ability to protect these achievements in the coming month. Defending against pests naturally had to involve the Silk Net he had made before. However, seeing the spirit field, which had grown several times larger than before, Fang Yun realized that his previous Silk Net could no longer cover this spirit field. Thinking of this, Fang Yun¡¯s face changed slightly. This was related to the Spirit Rice harvest. If any unexpected events occurred, it would be a big problem. Therefore, he hurried down the mountain. Arriving at a courtyard at the foot of the mountain, Fang Yun found Fang Lin and Fang Zhou had already brought a group of people waiting there. Seeing Fang Zhou standing in front alongside Fang Lin, Fang Yun was a bit surprised. He remembered Fang Zhou had gone with the guards to supervise the pirates in reclaiming the wasteland. *When did he return?* ¡°Clan Leader, you seem to be in a hurry. Is there something important?¡± Fang Lin asked as Fang Yun came closer. *In a hurry?* *Am I?* Fang Yun glanced at Fang Lin, but indeed, he had been quite anxious earlier. *It seemed that looking a bit urgent wasn¡¯t out of place.* ¡°I overlooked some things, so now I have to come down the mountain to ask for help from the clan elders. By the way, Elder Fang Zhou, how is the progress with the pirates?¡± Fang Yun explained to Fang Lin before looking towards Fang Zhou. Fang Zhou gave a slight bow, then said, ¡°Report to the Clan Leader, the pirate leaders have done well. The pirates are still working quite diligently. They¡¯ve already finished reclaiming the wasteland to the east and are now working on the west wasteland. Elder Fang Yong is currently supervising them in my stead.¡± Fang Yun nodded. Since they were doing well, he also needed to speed up seed collection. However, those matters would have to be discussed back home. He then led the two elders into the hall and said after sitting down, ¡°Elder Fang Lin, do we still have any silk at home? This time, I might need a Silk Net three times larger than before!¡± Upon hearing this, Fang Lin understood that the Clan Leader was referring to the Silk Net matter. Fortunately, he had prepared in advance. So he said, ¡°Rest assured, Clan Leader. After discovering you needed a Silk Net last time, the clan procured a large batch of silk after the previous batch was used up to ensure you¡¯d have enough when needed!¡± Hearing this, Fang Yun felt relieved. Though these elders weren¡¯t as strong as him, they were much more thorough in their considerations. *Thankfully, these elders were there to fill in the gaps. Otherwise, he might have faced reduced or even total crop failure for the Spirit Rice.* He silently took this lesson to heart and nodded to Fang Lin, ¡°The elders really are thoughtful, or it could have been quite troublesome this time! This time, I need a Silk Net three times larger than before. How long will the clan need to prepare it?¡± Fang Lin thought for a moment, then asked, ¡°Clan Leader, is this Silk Net urgent?¡± Fang Yun nodded, ¡°I indeed hadn¡¯t considered it thoroughly before. It only dawned on me at the last minute! It is indeed quite pressing!¡± Actually, if adhering to the normal growth period of Spirit Rice, Fang Yun would have had enough time for the clan members to help make this larger Silk Net. However, due to the use of Growth Skills, the Spirit Rice growth time accelerated, leaving him caught off guard. Upon hearing that it was urgent, Fang Lin nodded, ¡°Since it¡¯s urgent for the Clan Leader, I will go back and assemble the clan members tonight to expedite production! Among the clan members, there are still hundreds of women skilled in weaving such Silk Nets. I will gather them promptly, and within a few days, it can be completed!¡± Hearing this, Fang Yun nodded, though it would make the clan members work hard for a few days, at this point, he couldn¡¯t bother with that. ¡°Thank you, Elder!¡± ¡°It¡¯s our duty. We are only too happy to help the Clan Leader,¡± Fang Lin replied with a smile. Fang Yun nodded. These polite words just needed to be said once; there was no need to say them repeatedly. Having the Silk Net issue sorted out eased Fang Yun¡¯s mind. Thus, he didn¡¯t linger at the foot of the mountain since during the maturity period of Spirit Rice, staying by the spirit field brought him more peace of mind. After bidding farewell to the two elders, Fang Yun returned up the mountain. Just as he was about to return to the spirit field, he sensed a surge of emotions from a corner as he passed by. This feeling was much stronger than that of the Spirit Rice. It made Fang Yun pause for a moment. Then he realized that on the mountain wall in that corner, he had planted some vine plants. Previously preoccupied with nurturing the Spirit Rice, although he sensed this feeling emanating from the distant mountain wall, and it was displayed on the panel, he didn¡¯t have time to attend to it. Now with the Spirit Rice matters temporarily resolved, sensing this surge of emotions, he remembered the vine plants he had once planted. ¡°` Chapter 41 - Chapter 41: Chapter 41 Planting of Vines Chapter 41: Chapter 41 Planting of Vines Fang Yun also had great expectations for these few vines. After all, they are a type of Spirit Plant! Moreover, since they were planted, so many days have passed, and these vines have already sprouted and have not died, which means that these vines have the potential to mature. In that case, I might really harvest another type of Spirit Plant. Thinking of this, Fang Yun quickly walked to the corner and saw that there were 5 vines that had grown about a meter long, climbing along the mountain wall. However, after Fang Yun got closer, he discovered that perhaps this little spot wasn¡¯t very nutrient-rich. The bit of Spiritual Energy condensed previously through the Spirit Rain Skill had been depleted as the vine seeds germinated. Thus, these five vines didn¡¯t look particularly healthy and seemed rather languid. So, Fang Yun sensed his remaining Mana. And he cast the Spirit Rain Skill once again. As a small cloud appeared in the sky, a drizzle of rain poured down onto the five vines. With the irrigation of the rain, the condition of the five vines improved slightly. They were slowly creeping along the mountain wall, but the information they conveyed didn¡¯t express the same sense of satisfaction as the Spirit Rice. Instead, it was a relatively chaotic and aggressive feeling. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.§ã0 Fang Yun thought for a moment and felt that perhaps the ordinary energy in the soil wasn¡¯t sufficient. Therefore, he went to the place where soybeans and weeds had been planted before, utilized the Earth Power Skills to gather the ordinary energy from the soil to a portion of the land, and then brought it to where the vines were growing. With the supplement of this energy, the vines¡¯ condition improved a lot more, and they began to wriggle frequently on the mountain wall. However, the emotions conveyed became even more aggressive. Such emotions left Fang Yun a bit stunned. He squatted down and carefully examined the five vine tendrils in front of him. He intently sensed the specific state of the vines and speculated about what they were trying to express. After thinking for a long time, Fang Yun looked at the thorns that had grown on the vines and thought about the slightly aggressive messages they conveyed. Considering their inherent Attack Attribute, Fang Yun seemed to have some speculation about the emotions they were expressing. These vines, although they are also classified as plants, possess the ability to move like animals. Although they can¡¯t leave the place where they were planted on their own. However, they can move their own branches. Thinking back to the previous life¡¯s textbooks and other materials that mentioned aggressive plants. It seems like these vines should belong to the same type of plant. This is also why they can become Spell plants. So, what they want to convey now is that they need some prey? If so, Fang Yun isn¡¯t unable to provide these things to them. However, if they need the flesh and blood of prey as a nutritious component. The mountain¡¯s growth environment clearly isn¡¯t quite suitable for the growth of these vines. There aren¡¯t any prey for them to capture on the mountain. And I don¡¯t have the time to feed them. Then they can only be placed in the northern mountain range, which indeed has enough wild beasts. ¡°` Or they could be taken down the mountain, where the Fang Family likely has plenty of livestock to feed these little creatures. However, once they leave here, it wouldn¡¯t be convenient for me to replenish their Spiritual Energy and energy. It¡¯s just uncertain whether for these vines, Spiritual Energy is more important, or prey is more important. After some thought, as a type of Spirit Plant, the lack of prey might affect their growth, but without Spiritual Energy, they would regress to ordinary plants even if they don¡¯t die. This is something Fang Yun cannot accept, as he is looking forward to harvesting their Life Essence Qi once these vines mature. If they degenerate, it would be meaningless. Since Spiritual Energy is more important, neither location is suitable for the growth of the vines. After thinking for a moment, to balance prey and Spiritual Energy, perhaps only the previous valley could serve this purpose. Although there usually didn¡¯t seem to be any prey there, the valley was also among the northern mountains, and with a bit of lure, there should still be no lack of wild beasts. Having made up his mind, Fang Yun dug up the soil and unearthed all five vine plants. He allowed their tendrils to wrap around his arms as he approached the spirit field to check on the Spirit Rice. Finding no issues, he then confidently headed towards the valley. In fact, the Spirit Rice at this stage, although very attractive to insects, are mostly active at night, just like the previous Green Beetles. Therefore, during the daytime, it was still possible for Fang Yun to step out occasionally. He arrived at the upper reaches of the valley. Fang Yun pondered for a moment; actually, there was no need to enter the valley to plant these vines. The reason for bringing them here was the possibility of wild beasts and for his convenience in supplementing them with energy and Spiritual Energy. Thus, the place where he should plant these vines should be somewhere nearby where wild beasts are likely to roam. Not to lead them into the valley itself. With this in mind, Fang Yun, along with the five vine plants, circled above the valley a few times. Then he found a small river, which should be the upstream of the small stream within the valley. According to documentaries seen in a previous life, a place with a water source should not lack wild beasts. Planting these five vines here should be quite appropriate. Moreover, this place is only a short distance from the valley, making it convenient for him to come and supplement them with energy and Spiritual Energy. As for whether these vines could deal with the wild beasts, Fang Yun had never worried about it. After all, they were a type of Spirit Plant, and moreover, a Spirit Plant with an Attack Attribute. He didn¡¯t worry about their ability to handle the demon beasts, but there should be no problem dealing with these ordinary wild beasts. After choosing a spot, Fang Yun planted the five vines not far from the riverbank and separated them. Then he used the Earth Power Skills to gather the surrounding energy. However, he only gathered a portion and did not drain all the energy from the soil, as he had done elsewhere before. His main concern was that if the surrounding soil lost its energy, all the plants on it would die. In such a case, wild animals would not dare approach upon seeing such a scene. That would go against his original intention. Moreover, Fang Yun also planned that even in the future, when he went to procure nutrient-rich soil, he should not deplete all its energy; otherwise, the plants in the areas where he had extracted energy would die off completely. This was not what Fang Yun wanted to see. After planting the vines, he cast the Spirit Rain Spell on them. Fang Yun then returned to the mountain, as it was a critical period for the Spirit Rice. Although he believed that occasional absences should be fine, he dared not leave for too long. ¡°` Chapter 42 - Chapter 42: Chapter 42 Spiritual Insect Chapter 42: Chapter 42 Spiritual Insect Several days later, after the urgent efforts of the Fang Family, a larger Silk Net was finally made. ¡°Clan Elder, it¡¯s really troublesome for all of you!¡± Fang Yun, looking at Fang Lin who specially brought the Silk Net up the mountain, felt somewhat excited. Without the Silk Net in hand, Fang Yun could not completely relax. Now he could finally be at ease. ¡°Clan Leader, you don¡¯t need to say these polite words to me. As long as it helps you, these tasks are really nothing for us clansmen!¡± Fang Lin waved his hand and said. Then he glanced at the lush spirit field, knowing these places were not where an ordinary person like himself should stay for long. So he quickly added, ¡°Clan Leader, since the item has been handed over to you, this old man has some other matters to attend to, so I¡¯ll head back down the mountain now!¡± Fang Yun nodded. He indeed had many tasks to attend to next, so he didn¡¯t keep Fang Lin. Of course, the main reason was that there was nothing special to offer on the mountain. Keeping him here, it would be awkward for himself instead. After Fang Lin left, Fang Yun opened the Silk Net and found that the quality of this Silk Net was not much inferior to the previous one. With this, he was relieved. He put the Silk Net back in the cave. In the following days, Fang Yun stayed on the mountain, vigilant of the arrival of the Green Beetles. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.?? Sure enough, just a few days after the Silk Net arrived, one night Fang Yun keenly sensed that familiar discomfort emanating from the Spirit Rice inside the cave. Fang Yun grabbed the Silk Net and dashed out of the cave with quick steps. Following the response of the Spirit Rice, he arrived next to the troubled plants. Indeed, he saw that several stalks of Spirit Rice were infested with clusters of Green Beetles around the borders of the spirit field. Fang Yun took a deep breath, placed the Silk Net to one side, and then with consecutive movements of his hands, he stripped off all the Green Beetles. He had no other means of pest control and could only resort to such a primitive method. It was only after reaching the third level of Qi Cultivation and learning another Spell of Chang Chun Skill, the Gold Qi Skill, that he could escape this predicament. Fortunately, the first wave of Green Beetles wasn¡¯t too numerous, so they didn¡¯t catch Fang Yun off guard. After dealing with the first wave of Green Beetles, Fang Yun hurriedly followed the same treatment process as the previous batch of Spirit Rice. Using some bamboo sticks, he constructed a frame and then covered it with the Silk Net. After finishing all this, the next step was to wait for the swarm to arrive. The next evening, a large number of Green Beetles emerged from some corner of Spirit Water Island. Then they began to crazily crash into the Silk Net. Fang Yun, already waiting there, watched the defense of the Silk Net without any negligence. Meanwhile, he used the iron shovel in his hand to crush every Green Beetle that fell to the ground. It was just one night, and the surroundings of the spirit field were littered with the bodies of Green Beetles. The number was much higher than the previous maturity of the Spirit Rice. However, this was normal since the quantity of Spirit Rice this time was five times more than the last. The attraction to these pests was naturally stronger, which made sense. But in the end, the Silk Net was reliable. Despite the impact of so many Green Beetles, not a single hole appeared. This allowed Fang Yun to be slightly relieved. But his relief didn¡¯t last long before another night, a few days later. Fang Yun was guarding the spirit field, watching the Green Beetles constantly strike against the Silk Net. With the iron shovel in hand, he occasionally smashed the Green Beetles that fell to the ground. At that moment, a commotion suddenly arose among the Green Beetles that were impacting the Silk Net. Fang Yun instinctively sensed a trace of impending doom. Under the moonlight, Fang Yun saw a bug emitting a faint luminescence approaching from a distance. This insect was as big as a fist and incredibly fast, with a silvery white glow similar to moonlight all over its body. In the blink of an eye, the insect had traveled the distance and was now in front of Fang Yun. Seeing this, Fang Yun immediately realized it was a Spiritual Insect capable of absorbing Spiritual Energy. Without the time to ponder why there was a Spiritual Insect on Spirit Water Island, Fang Yun¡¯s heart immediately rose to his throat. Facing such a Spiritual Insect, Fang Yun did not believe his Silk Net could withstand the other¡¯s assault. If the Silk Net was destroyed and then swarmed by the Green Beetles, then the Spirit Rice he had painstakingly cultivated would be completely lost. Fang Yun did not dare to delay, channeling his Mana into the fine iron shovel in his hand. The shovel immediately emitted a glow, and with a wave of Fang Yun¡¯s hand, the shovel struck towards the approaching insect. With a loud bang, the bug, radiating a silvery white light, was swatted away flying hundreds of meters like a batted baseball. However, being a Spiritual Insect, it could not possibly be killed by a single swipe of the shovel. The Spiritual Insect circled the sky for a few rounds hundreds of meters away before finally regaining its senses. Then, with a buzzing from its wings, it rapidly charged towards Fang Yun again. Fang Yun narrowed his eyes, knowing that another strike with the shovel would not kill it. That would only enrage the insect further, leading to an endless tangle. Currently, he needed to guard the Spirit Rice and didn¡¯t have the luxury of time to get entangled with this insect. Thus, Fang Yun transferred the shovel to his left hand and quietly gripped the Magic Artifact long knife in his right hand. Mana surged into the fine iron shovel and the long knife simultaneously. When the insect was before Fang Yun, he stood the shovel upright with his left hand, blocking the path of the insect. Another loud noise ensued as the insect and the shovel collided once again. The massive Impact Force nearly caused Fang Yun¡¯s left hand to lose its grip on the shovel. But the insect also stumbled from the collision, retreating a few meters in the air. Seizing the opportunity, Fang Yun unsheathed the Magic Artifact knife, enveloped in Sword Energy, and then fiercely slashed at the body of the insect. With a clang, Fang Yun¡¯s Magic Artifact long knife felt as if it had struck fine iron, and he felt a substantial rebound force. Fortunately, the Spiritual Insect was still slashed to the ground. Fang Yun was surprised to see that the insect had only one of its wings cut off and was not cleaved in two. After all, he had tested the sharpness of the long knife in his hands. He didn¡¯t expect this insect to have such a hard body. Taking advantage of the situation, Fang Yun didn¡¯t have time to think more, pressing the iron shovel down hard on the struggling insect. After struggling frantically for a while, whether it was severely injured or had depleted its inner Spiritual Energy, the insect¡¯s glow finally began to fade. A dark green body was revealed. Fang Yun squatted down, hesitated for a moment, and then, using the leftover Silk Net to wrap around his hand, cautiously grabbed the insect. Ignoring its struggles, Fang Yun carefully examined the insect in his hand. The whole insect was roughly the size of a fist, oval-shaped, like a giant beetle. Its body was dark green, and the reason it appeared silvery earlier must have been related to the Spiritual Power within its body. It was not its inherent color. Chapter 43 - Chapter 43: Chapter 43 Breaking Through the Third Layer of Qi Cultivation Chapter 43: Chapter 43 Breaking Through the Third Layer of Qi Cultivation At this moment, the Spiritual Insect¡¯s left wing was broken, revealing the tender wing beneath. The right wing, although not injured, did not have much strength when it moved. With a tiny mouth, one could see the fine sharp teeth inside, which should be quite sharp. It was just unknown whether it was poisonous, so Fang Yun did not dare to catch it with his bare hands. Looking at the Spiritual Insect in his hand, Fang Yun felt tempted to enslave it and make it his own Spirit Pet. After all, the realm of this Spiritual Insect was obviously not high at the moment, but it already possessed such defensive power, one could imagine what its defensive power would be when it reached a higher level. However, desiring it was one thing; Fang Yun clearly lacked the means to do so. Even if his heart was moved, there was nothing he could do. Helpless, Fang Yun thought for a moment and directly started dismantling the Silk Net in his hand. After all, with a new Silk Net available, the old one was of no use. He pulled out the silk from within. And wrapped all the legs of the Spiritual Insect. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï??0.§ã¦Ï But even then, Fang Yun was still not at ease. Then he also wrapped the body of the Spiritual Insect, leaving only a head exposed. Immediately, the Spiritual Insect was bound in a thick layer of silk. It was impossible for it to make even the slightest movement. After completing all this, Fang Yun held the Spiritual Insect in his hand, and then looked towards the direction of the spirit field. Only then did he notice that at some point, the Green Beetles had stopped their assault on the Silk Net. He looked around and, apart from the Green Beetles struggling on the ground, there were no other Green Beetles in sight. Seeing this, Fang Yun felt very strange. He looked down at the Spiritual Insect in his hand, with thoughts stirring in his heart. By the evening of the 2nd day, the Green Beetles still had not appeared. Fang Yun then knew that it was probably because of the Spiritual Insect he caught. With the presence of the Spiritual Insect¡¯s aura, those Green Beetles, due to the suppression of their level, dared not to come near this area. Thinking of this, Fang Yun looked at the Spiritual Insect in his hand, a joyful expression on his face. It was unexpected that even if he couldn¡¯t enslave the Spiritual Insect, it still played a significant role. Realizing the use of the Spiritual Insect, Fang Yun looked at the somewhat wilting Spiritual Insect in front of him. And cherished it even more. However, when Fang Yun wanted to treat the Spiritual Insect a little better, he didn¡¯t know how to feed it. After all, he had no understanding of Spiritual Insects at all. Thinking of its previous assault on the Spirit Rice, perhaps Spirit Rice should be one of its foods. However, Spirit Rice was too important for Fang Yun. To be precise, the Life Essence Qi contained in the Spirit Rice was indeed too important for Fang Yun. Before the Spirit Rice ripened, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t possibly use it to feed the Spiritual Insect. So, after much thought, the only thing that could be used to feed the Spiritual Insect was the water from the Spiritual Spring. So, Fang Yun directly soaked the Spiritual Insect in the water channel he had previously built. Watching the Spiritual Insect regain some spirit, no longer looking as listless as before. Fang Yun also breathed a sigh of relief. It¡¯s good as long as it doesn¡¯t die. With the presence of the Spiritual Insect, Fang Yun was no longer troubled by the invasion of the Green Beetles. However, to prevent any other accidents from happening, Fang Yun did not open the Silk Net. After more than ten days, all the Spirit Rice had matured. When Fang Yun sensed the ripeness of the Spirit Rice, he could not contain the excitement in his heart. Holding the sickle in his hand, he removed the Silk Net, then rushed into the spirit field. It took two hours to harvest all 320 stalks of Spirit Rice. He placed them on the stone in front of the cave, and Fang Yun couldn¡¯t wait to open the interface. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Second Level ¡°` Mana: 38 Life Essence Qi: 346.016 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 51%) Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 53%) Growth Skills (Beginner 90%) Control over Plants: Vines (5)¡­ Skipping other data, he noticed an increase of 320 points in Life Essence Qi. Fang Yun could no longer restrain the excitement in his heart. During this period, because of the Spiritual Insect, there were no assaults from the Green Beetles, and he had no significant problems with rest. Now was the time when his energy was at its peak. Thus, he didn¡¯t proceed to conserve his energy and gather his strength. He went straight to the Spiritual Spring, ready to break through to the Third Level of Qi Cultivation. The Mana in his Dantian whirled wildly, then gently probed towards the cluster of Life Essence Qi. The Life Essence Qi naturally merged into the Mana. Without any difficulty, Fang Yun¡¯s Mana expanded wildly, surging through his meridians, reaching all over his body, purifying his body¡¯s impurities. Soon, as Fang Yun¡¯s body shook violently, a flicker of luminescence flashed across his face. A strong aura flashed momentarily over him. Powerful waves of qi swept outwards. After a while, Fang Yun slowly calmed the Mana within his body. Then, he looked at the panel again. Cultivation: Third Level of Qi Refining Mana: 66 Life Essence Qi: 260 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 51%) Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 53%) Growth Skills (Beginner 90%) Control over Plants: Vines (5)¡­ His cultivation had broken through to the Third Level of Qi Refining, and his Mana had more than doubled. The consumption of Life Essence Qi was not much. All in all, the efforts Fang Yun had made during this period had finally yielded a rich reward. Feeling the Mana in his Dantian, now more robust than ever. He let it slowly rotate in his meridians, passing through various parts of his body. At the same time, he sensed his body gradually becoming stronger under the nourishment of Mana. Fang Yun reached the peak of satisfaction and accomplishment in his heart. After a long while, Fang Yun slowly settled the excitement in his heart. Compared to the other cultivators of the Fang Family, he indeed stood at the top of them all. However, among the cultivators at the Qi Cultivation stage. He was after all still at the bottom rung. And even with the cultivation at the Third Level of Qi Refining, he lacked protective methods. It could be said that his Third Level of Qi Refining was the weakest among them. Thinking of these, the pride that had just risen in Fang Yun¡¯s heart was instantly scattered to ashes. It seems that there are many things to do after the breakthrough. Moreover, breaking through to the Third Level of Qi Refining meant that the next breakthrough would require even more Life Essence Qi. Fang Yun didn¡¯t know if the Life Essence Qi remaining in him would be enough. If not enough, whether planting another batch of Spirit Rice, along with ordinary crops, would enable him to break through to the Fourth Level of Qi Refining. It was hard to say. If that didn¡¯t work, his next step would be to leave Spirit Water Island and seek out more places abundant in Spiritual Energy. For Fang Yun, he temporarily didn¡¯t want to leave Spirit Water Island. Just like he thought before, as a cultivator on the Third Level of Qi Refining, he was just at the bottom in the world of cultivators practicing Qi Cultivation. Leaving the island, risk-wise, was also significant. Unless absolutely necessary, Fang Yun hoped he could develop for a bit longer before making a move. After that, Fang Yun took a few days to consolidate his cultivation. Only then did he leave the cave. ¡°` Chapter 44 - Chapter 44: Chapter 44 Subsequent Arrangements Chapter 44: Chapter 44 Subsequent Arrangements ¡°` Leaving the cave where he had stayed for a few days, Fang Yun stretched vigorously in the sunlight and let out a comfortable sigh. No matter what, he had finally broken through to the third level of Qi Cultivation. Fang Yun was still quite satisfied in his heart. He glanced at the Spirit Rice that was still laid out at the entrance of the cave. After several days of airing, this Spirit Rice had dried completely. Fang Yun selected some of it as the next batch of Spirit Rice Seeds. He threshed the rest and stored them away. Seeing that there was still some Spirit Rice from the previous batch left, Fang Yun simply took all of it out, removed the husks, and turned it into Spirit Rice. He then put it into pottery jars, added pure water from the Spiritual Spring, and cooked it. Because of the variety of this Spirit Rice, eating it did not increase cultivation. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?0¦Í??.§ã¦Ï So although the Spirit Rice was tasty and could increase some physical strength, Fang Yun didn¡¯t eat it often. As a result, the previous batch of Spirit Rice was still left until now. He enjoyed a fine meal of Spirit Rice, to celebrate breaking through to the third level of Qi Cultivation. Fang Yun began to think about his plans for the next stage. Firstly, planting Spirit Rice was indispensable; it was also the most important source of his Life Essence Qi. Fang Yun didn¡¯t feel that the more than two hundred points of Life Essence Qi he had were sufficient. The demand for Life Essence Qi would only increase later on, and this amount was definitely not enough. Therefore, the cultivation of Spirit Rice was still the main source of Life Essence Qi. However, due to the accelerated growth of the Spirit Rice before, the spirit field had been somewhat heavily consumed. To plant again, he needed to adjust it properly. Similarly, once the planting of Spirit Rice began, Fang Yun would be busy. With the presence of Growth Skills, the growth time of Spirit Rice was already greatly shortened. Of course, this also meant that Fang Yun needed to be busier. For now, Fang Yun had just made a breakthrough and just wanted to properly relax for a while, not wanting to be so tired all at once. Thus, the cultivation of Spirit Rice could be paused for a bit. He would start after he had had ample rest. Apart from planting Spirit Rice, there was also the expansion of ordinary crops. This was especially important for the new channels to acquire Life Essence Qi. Furthermore, the pirates sent to reclaim land had already cultivated all the wasteland to the east. According to current estimates, a considerable amount of the wasteland to the west had also been reclaimed. This plan was now halfway underway. The next step depended on the amount of stored seeds; as long as there were enough seeds, the expansion of the crops could proceed. However, although some seeds had been stored in the recent past, Considering such a large area for planting, the seeds still weren¡¯t enough. If possible, Fang Yun planned to plant soybeans in most of the reclaimed lands. This way, he could obtain more Life Essence Qi. As for those miscellaneous grass seeds, Fang Yun planned to plant them in various nooks and crannies, even among the mountains to the north. After all, those grasses didn¡¯t have too many requirements regarding environment and maintenance. There was no need to use such good lands to plant miscellaneous grasses. If the planting of soybeans this time could fall under the influence of Golden Finger, Then based on the estimated millions of acres, he would be able to obtain thousands of points of Life Essence Qi no matter what. ¡°` By then, not only would I be able to break through the fourth layer of Qi Refinement, but I would also make great progress in the practice of spells and various other aspects. Therefore, continuing to plant and promote the growth of soybeans and weeds will be my main task for the coming period. Apart from completing this task, the next thing would be those five vines I planted earlier; I don¡¯t know how they¡¯ve fared so far. Maybe I could find some time to check on them and study how to get them to reach maturity as quickly as possible. To see if they could produce Life Essence Qi. Once all this is done, Fang Yun, who has completely recovered, can start planting Spirit Rice. In terms of planting crops, Fang Yun roughly made plans for these three projects. The rest concerns my cultivation and my spells. These two aspects, under normal circumstances, are closely integrated with the planting of crops. In terms of cultivation, I have not been practicing autonomously for a while; it has been completely relying on Life Essence Qi to improve. As for my spells, they are all related to planting, so naturally they¡¯re used and practiced during planting, and there¡¯s no need for deliberate practice. Having arranged the planting, there is no problem with cultivation and spells, the rest is just to proceed step by step. The only thing left is the practice of new spells. After reaching the third layer of Qi Cultivation, the last spell of Chang Chun Skill, the Gold Qi Skill, can also be practiced. Once I master this spell, the next time I face those Green Beetles or even other Spiritual Insects, I won¡¯t have to be so passive. Moreover, Fang Yun has some unique expectations for the Gold Qi Skill. From the description of the spell, I know that this spell works by condensing Gold Attribute Spiritual Energy and then uses it to kill pests. Since it involves condensing Gold Attribute Spiritual Energy, if the Gold Attribute Spiritual Energy is condensed in large amounts, couldn¡¯t it become a spell with immense destructive power? Although according to the description of the spell, it is not supposed to be used against humans, Fang Yun still holds a glimmer of hope. Thinking of Spiritual Insects, Fang Yun found the cyan-black Spiritual Insect tied up in a corner of the cave. Although I had left it alone for nearly twenty days, it was still alive, and merely relying on the flowing spring water, I felt that its condition seemed to have somewhat recovered. I must say, being a Spiritual Insect, it truly is tenacious in life. Looking at the cocoon silk tightly wrapped around it, Fang Yun thought that with his third-layer Qi Cultivation, he should not be afraid of an injured insect escaping. So, he unraveled the cocoon silk that wrapped the Spiritual Insect. Once the bindings were undone, the Spiritual Insect started to struggle frantically. However, by just covering his hand with Mana, Fang Yun was able to prevent the Spiritual Insect from struggling free. Looking at its broken wings, Fang Yun suddenly wondered, my Life Essence Qi can heal; I wonder if it could work on other beings? Thinking this, Fang Yun immediately mobilized the Life Essence Qi in his Dantian. Allowing the Life Essence Qi to flow through his meridians to his right hand, then enveloping the Spiritual Insect within it. Subsequently, the green Life Essence Qi smoothly integrated into the body of the Spiritual Insect. As the Life Essence Qi integrated, the Spiritual Insect¡¯s struggling ceased immediately, and then its wings began to slowly regrow. At the same time, Fang Yun surprisingly found that he was able to faintly sense the Spiritual Insect¡¯s emotions and some details of its body. It was just like with the Spirit Rice he planted. Discovering this phenomenon, Fang Yun was elated. He didn¡¯t expect that Life Essence Qi to be so potent, not only able to heal other beings but also to achieve an effect similar to forming a bond. At this moment, Fang Yun¡¯s heart swelled with emotion, as he envisioned various applications of Life Essence Qi in the future. It took quite a while before he gradually calmed down. Thinking of his previous reverie, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but shake his head, these things were still too far-fetched, and it was better to focus on the present matters. Looking at the Spiritual Insect in his hand, feeling the dependency it conveyed, Fang Yun slowly released his hand. After gaining freedom, the Spiritual Insect did not take the opportunity to escape but instead rubbed against Fang Yun¡¯s palm and then joyously flew back and forth over his head with its wings spread. After flying for a while, it slowly landed on Fang Yun¡¯s shoulder. Fang Yun touched the Spiritual Insect on his shoulder, his face involuntarily brimming with a smile. Then, Fang Yun rested for another two days, and after becoming familiar with the Spiritual Insect, he began to make his way towards the canyon. Chapter 45 - Chapter 45: Chapter 45: Returning to the Canyon Chapter 45: Chapter 45: Returning to the Canyon Fang Yun arrived at the top of the canyon and wasn¡¯t in a hurry to enter. Instead, he went to the five vines he had planted before. It had been many days since his last visit, but it seemed that the vines were thriving well. As soon as Fang Yun approached, he could feel the joyful emotions they conveyed. This was a completely different state from when he had not visited this place initially. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that the area near the vines was now overgrown with weeds, and faintly, bones could be seen hidden among these tall weeds. Clearly, these vines had harmed quite a few wild beasts during this period. These vines were also hidden among the weeds, completely indiscernible from the outside. Seeing that they were surviving well, Fang Yun did not make a special effort to search for the vines. Instead, he simply stood outside and used Earth Power Skills and Spirit Rain Skill to replenish some energy and Spiritual Energy to the vines. After doing so, feeling the joyful emotions transmitted by the vines, Fang Yun left the riverside and entered the canyon. It had been quite some time since he last entered, and the canyon was now overgrown with weeds. However, Fang Yun had already advanced to the third level of Qi Cultivation and didn¡¯t want to wield a hoe to clear these weeds again. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?0.§ã¦Ï He simply didn¡¯t feel like doing so. So, after a moment¡¯s thought, Fang Yun directly used Earth Power Skills. With skilled Earth Power Skills, under the influence of the rich mana at the third level of Qi Cultivation, it expanded to a peripheral area of dozens of meters. Then, he gathered all the ordinary energy from around him. Concentrating it to a small area. Using this method, Fang Yun created about 10 such spots in the canyon. Without the support of energy, it would take no more than two days for the weeds to completely die off. Two days later, Fang Yun burnt all the weeds in the canyon completely, and then using the same method, he redistributed the energy throughout the canyon. In fact, this method was still quite wasteful of mana and not very efficient. It would have been better to use a hoe to remove the weeds. One could only say that Fang Yun was being a bit extravagant now. After completing these tasks, he covered the previously collected weed seeds all over the canyon. Even in the paddy fields, after a series of alterations, which involved draining all the water and then planting weed seeds. Next, he had to wait for a while for these weeds to enter their growth stage before he could stimulate their growth. Taking advantage of this waiting period, Fang Yun began practicing the Gold Qi Skill. ¡°Metal Spirit converges, sharp radiance shines, Spiritual Energy floods, golden light fills¡­¡± As he chanted the mantra and performed specific handprints, the Gold Qi Skill began to take effect. However, after several attempts, Fang Yun was unable to condense the Gold Attribute Spiritual Energy. It was even more difficult than practicing the Earth Power Skills. From this performance, Fang Yun knew that he likely did not possess a Metal Spirit Root. That¡¯s why he had such an experience. If he were to define his Spirit Root based on the effectiveness of his Spells, Fang Yun guessed that his Spirit Root might consist of Water Attribute, Wood Attribute, and Earth Attribute ¨C a triple Spirit Root. Among them, the Water Attribute was the strongest, followed by Wood Attribute, with Earth Attribute being the weakest. Of course, this was just a guess for now, and Fang Yun wasn¡¯t entirely sure. To know for certain what his Spirit Root was, he would need to leave Spirit Water Island and use specialized detection equipment. With such a guess, Fang Yun had some expectations for his inability to practice the Gold Qi Skill successfully. However, the final outcome wasn¡¯t as bad as he expected. After dozens of attempts, Fang Yun finally managed to condense the Gold Attribute Spiritual Energy. Although the Gold Qi Skill had not yet been successfully performed, the Gold Attribute Spiritual Energy had already converged, and success was not far off. If based on previous theories, there might still be traces of a Metal Spirit Root in one¡¯s own Spirit Root. This is not certain either, perhaps the mutual influence of the Five Elements caused the success of one¡¯s Spell. Casting these speculations aside, Fang Yun spent a few more days before these weeds reached their growth stage. Finally, he succeeded in executing the Gold Qi Skill. ¡°Metal spirit converges, sharp brilliance shines. Spiritual Energy like tides, golden light fills the space¡­¡± As the mantra was chanted, special handprints appeared, followed by the Mana circulating in a specific pattern. Releasing a mysterious fluctuation. A bright white light appeared in Fang Yun¡¯s hands. With the completion of the handprint, a burst of light flew out from Fang Yun¡¯s hands. Upon reaching the air in front of him, it suddenly exploded, forming a dense mass of golden specks. These specks, following Fang Yun¡¯s spirit, continuously moved dynamically in front of him. Fang Yun gently extended his palm, then directed these specks to hit his palm. Without using much force, he could still feel a slight stinging pain on his palm. If these were targeted at the Green Beetles, unleashing full power, these golden specks should be able to penetrate all the Green Beetles. Perhaps this is why the Gold Qi Skill can kill pests. However, it can only kill pests. Such power, even when converged, could at most kill some mortals. To deal with Cultivators who possess Mana and Spells, it¡¯s obviously impossible with the Gold Qi Skill. Before the successful execution of the Gold Qi Skill, Fang Yun was actually still hopeful. But having truly witnessed the power of the Gold Qi Skill, he could only helplessly shake his head. To this point, he had mastered 4 Spells. But each Spell could only be utilized in farming. None of the Spells possessed any lethal power. To confront enemies, he could only rely on Spirit Talismans and the damaged Magic Artifact saber in his hand. This left Fang Yun somewhat helpless. But since this was the starting situation, helpless as he was, there was nothing he could do. As he initially thought, although his start was low, at least the environment was stable. With the successful execution of the Gold Qi Skill, those weeds had already entered their growth stage. Fang Yun did not hesitate and directly performed the Growth Skills. Following multiple Growth Skills landing on the weeds, they rapidly pushed all the weeds in the canyon to their mature stage. Next, after waiting for a period of time, he could harvest these weeds. After completing the harvest, he would proceed with planting soybeans. It seemed that another batch of soybean planting would provide seeds that could also be used for agricultural expansion. Even if there weren¡¯t enough seeds, he could first plant one batch, and the remaining seeds could be supplemented later. With this plan in mind, Fang Yun, a few days later, proceeded to harvest the weeds. He harvested a large batch of weed seeds and two points of Life Essence Qi. Then, he started planting the soybeans. The seedling stage for soybeans, compared to weeds, required a bit more time. With some free time, Fang Yun once again visited the place where the vine with five beads was located. Chapter 46 - Chapter 46: Chapter 46 The Growth of the Vine Chapter 46: Chapter 46 The Growth of the Vine Coincidentally, Fang Yun happened upon the scene of a Carnivorous Vine preying. A wild boar, weighing several hundred pounds, lumbered from the riverbank towards the thicket where the vine was located. Then it lowered its head, continuously rooting around in the weeds with its snout. It dug out the roots of the weeds and then began to gnaw on them. These weeds, nourished with ample nutrition and Spiritual Energy, were indeed a rare temptation for the omnivorous wild boar. As it drew nearer, suddenly five vines as thick as fists and several meters long sprouted from the thicket. Sharp spikes were also growing on the branches of these vines. These five vines swiftly entangled the wild boar, and the sharp spikes easily penetrated the boar¡¯s tough skin. The wild boar only had time to let out a pained squeal before its mouth was bound. Then, torrents of fresh blood erupted from where the spikes pierced, completely staining the vines red. However, the vines paid no heed to this, dragging the boar deeper into the thicket. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í?¦Ï.§ã? Fang Yun followed the vines into the thicket and quietly observed them tightening around the boar. Simultaneously, the spikes injected a substance that dissolved flesh and blood, then proceeded to dissolve and consume everything inside the boar. Watching the boar¡¯s body transmute from flesh and blood slowly into a pile of white bones, Fang Yun couldn¡¯t help but sigh at the ferocity of the vine. Yet, such a method of attack didn¡¯t please Fang Yun. Not because it was too brutal, but because the abilities it displayed didn¡¯t possess much lethality. It was fine against mundane creatures, but such abilities were simply impractical against Cultivators or demon beasts. Fang Yun had high hopes for these vines. Not only did he hope they could bring him more Life Essence Qi, but he also hoped they could become a method for him to combat enemies. However, it now seemed that using them against enemies would be somewhat difficult. As Fang Yun contemplated these issues, the Spiritual Insect perched on his shoulder suddenly took flight, hovering above the vines. Desire for the vines emanated from its emotions. The vines noticed the little creature above, their branches reaching up, attempting to attack the Spiritual Insect in the sky. Seeing these two creatures suddenly become adversaries, Fang Yun could only shake his head, then with a thought, stopped them and called the Spiritual Insect back. However, looking at the Spiritual Insect flying back to his shoulder and then at the vine in front, a sudden idea arose in Fang Yun¡¯s mind. That was to use Life Essence Qi to nourish the vine before him, to see if there would be different outcomes. From his past experience using Life Essence Qi to heal the Spiritual Insect, it was clear that Life Essence Qi had many functions yet to be discovered. Now that he was unsatisfied with the vine¡¯s attack power, could feeding it with Life Essence Qi bring some changes? If it were before, when Fang Yun¡¯s quantity of Life Essence Qi was scant, he wouldn¡¯t dare to experiment even if he had ideas. But now that he possessed more than two hundred units of Life Essence Qi, there was no need to be so cautious in using it. Thinking this, Fang Yun approached the vine, grabbing one of its branches. The vine didn¡¯t resist, but instead gently coiled around Fang Yun¡¯s arm. Fang Yun glanced at the vine in his hand, slowly channeling Life Essence Qi into it. As Life Essence Qi flowed, Fang Yun looked at the vine in his hand with some surprise, sensing the budding of a plant, clearer than before. ¡°` It was as if the Life Essence Qi carried his own spirit power into the vine¡¯s body. Fang Yun could clearly sense the vine¡¯s emotions and the details within its body. He could see the blood of the wild boar that had just been absorbed and the other substances circulating in the vine. He could also see how the substance stored in the roots of the vine, which corroded flesh and blood, reached the spikes. And then entered the prey¡¯s body. Although sensing all this clearly did not seem to have much use for himself. It did bring him absolute control over the vine. If the vine could become stronger, then with such control, he could add a powerful means of contending with enemies. Thinking of this, Fang Yun glanced at the other vines, wondering whether to take control of the others as well or to continue infusing the vine in his hand with Life Essence Qi. After some thought, he realized that having control over these vines did not greatly enhance his own strength. The main reason was that the vines themselves were not very strong. They could deal with wild animals but were unable to contend with Cultivators or demon beasts. Therefore, he decided to continue infusing the vine with Life Essence Qi to see if any changes would occur. Consequently, the Life Essence Qi in Fang Yun continued to flow. The situation of the vine continued to clearly unfold before Fang Yun. Every flow of energy within the vine and the channels through which it flowed were clearly presented to Fang Yun. At the same time, the appearance of the vine began to change, becoming thicker, longer, and the color gradually deepened. It was as if the vine was affected by Growth Skills, just like cultivated crops. Not until he felt the vine had grown to a limit did Fang Yun stop the infusion of Life Essence Qi. Opened the panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation third layer Mana: 66 Life Essence Qi: 240 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 55%) Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 59%) Growth Skills (Beginner 96%) Gold Qi Skill (Beginner 2%) Control over Plants: Vine(5) soybeans (2 million)¡­ The data in the panel did not change much; the only addition was a beginner level Gold Qi Skill. The consumption of Life Essence Qi was twenty points; a few must have been spent on the Spiritual Insect, with the rest used on the vine before him. Seeing this rate of consumption, Fang Yun felt a bit pained and dared not to use Life Essence Qi on the other vines. Otherwise, the little over two hundred points of Life Essence Qi would really not be enough. However, the effect of Life Essence Qi just now did seem somewhat similar to the Growth Skills; maybe the other vines could be tested with Growth Skills. But that would have to wait until this particular vine bore fruit. This vine, having absorbed ample Life Essence Qi, was clearly entering its maturation stage. It should not be long before it fully matured. For this, Fang Yun was quite looking forward to it. He wanted to see how much Life Essence Qi this vine, which had cost him over a dozen points, could ultimately provide for him. However, just like those crops hastened by Growth Skills, the final maturation still required a certain amount of time. Fang Yun did not plan to intervene with the vine during its maturation period. Lest it encountered other problems like the previously hastened crops. ¡°` Chapter 47 - Chapter 47: Chapter 47 Large-Scale Soybean Cultivation Chapter 47: Chapter 47 Large-Scale Soybean Cultivation ¡°`html Later, Fang Yun returned to the canyon again, waiting for the soybeans to reach maturity and getting a chance to rest. After all, he hadn¡¯t taken a proper break since he broke through to the Third Level of Qi Refining. A few days later, the soybeans he had planted earlier entered the growing phase. Fang Yun utilized several Growth Skills in succession, pushing the soybeans directly into maturity. After resting for more than ten days, these soybeans finally fully matured. Then came the harvest process, and after gaining a few points of Life Essence Qi, Fang Yun¡¯s seed reserve efforts temporarily came to a halt. Calculating it, combined with the previously stored soybeans, the amount of soybeans Fang Yun had now reached over two hundred thousand jin. According to the usual soybean planting density, about three to five jin of soybean seeds are needed per mu. So, this amount of soybeans was enough to plant tens of thousands of mu. Coupled with the seeds of weeds previously harvested, the Life Essence Qi harvested at that time would be quite considerable. The most important thing was that this would allow him to test whether providing seeds himself while others helped plant them would fit within the scope of his Golden Finger and if it would allow for the gaining of Life Essence Qi. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï???.?¦Ï If it didn¡¯t work, then all his work during this time would have been in vain. In that case, there would be no need to continue the seed reserve. However, with such a large quantity of seeds, Fang Yun wanted to take them all down the mountain; even with his cultivation at the Third Level of Qi Refining, it was impossible for him to do so. He glanced at the environment within the canyon, thought for a while, and finally decided to have members of the Fang Family or those pirates come to help with the transport. With his cultivation at the Third Level of Qi Refining, there was no need to keep the canyon so secretive. The main reason being, the canyon itself didn¡¯t hold many secrets. It was simply a place where he planted ordinary crops. Even if others knew about it, it wouldn¡¯t be a big deal. *This might be the confidence brought about by the improvement in strength.* Having made up his mind, Fang Yun left the canyon. He came down to the mountain. Once more, he met Fang Lin and others. ¡°Clan Leader, I¡¯ve stored some soybean seeds and some weed seeds in the northern hills, planning to plant them in the newly expanded lands. But there¡¯s quite a large amount, and I can¡¯t move them myself, so I¡¯ll need you to arrange for some manpower to help me transport them out!¡± Fang Lin nodded, ¡°No problem, I¡¯ll arrange manpower to move those seeds out right away, but with the newly cultivated lands covering hundreds of thousands of mu, are we planting all of them with soybeans? If so, our clan won¡¯t be able to consume all those soybeans!¡± Fang Yun glanced at him, ¡°The soybean seeds I¡¯m storing now only amount to several hundred thousand jin, which might just cover about sixty thousand mu or so. For the rest of the land, a portion will be used to plant weeds, and as for the remaining land, we¡¯ll plant more once my seeds have grown! As for the excess soybeans, if our clan can¡¯t consume them all, we¡¯ll find a way to sell them! After all, our clan doesn¡¯t have other crop seeds to plant in those arid areas!¡± Learning that not only soybeans were to be planted but also weeds in other places, Fang Lin couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit heartbroken. He mainly felt that it was quite a waste to plant such things on the hard-earned cultivated lands. ¡°Clan Leader, while our clan may not have other seeds, the islands outside probably do, so why don¡¯t we trade for some seeds, plant a portion first, and then expand gradually? It would be better than planting all soybeans or weeds!¡± Fang Yun seriously considered Fang Lin¡¯s suggestion; indeed, using this land to plant other crops was feasible. However, if he did this, he would have to cultivate several types of common crop seeds. *That would be too troublesome for him.* Moreover, the main issue was that Fang Yun still wasn¡¯t sure if the crops grown from these seeds would fall within the scope of his Golden Finger; if not, he didn¡¯t even plan to plant the current seeds, let alone other seeds. Thus, in the end, Fang Yun shook his head, ¡°Clan Leader, let¡¯s stick to the current plan, just plant those soybeans and weeds. Other crops are too troublesome, so we won¡¯t plant them.¡± Fang Lin opened his mouth, but since Fang Yun had already made his decision, there was nothing he, as the Clan Elder, could oppose. Moreover, Fang Zhou on the side had already tugged at his sleeve several times. *For them as mortals, saying such things was already somewhat stepping over the line.* *Fortunately, Fang Yun had a relatively good temper; otherwise, with the usual temperament of a cultivator, Fang Lin might have faced a round of punishment.* Having made the decision, Fang Lin immediately arranged for thousands of strong clan members to come to the foot of the mountain. Fang Yun led these thousands of people, circumventing his mountain abode, and went directly to the hills behind the peak. Although this route was longer, the place where Fang Yun resided was considered sacred to the Fang Family. Even the Elders of the family couldn¡¯t stay on the mountain for long. Let alone ordinary clan members. Hence, they could only bypass the mountain peak to reach the hills behind it. After arriving above the canyon, Fang Yun opened up a simple path leading down into the canyon. He then led these people into the canyon. These thousands of individuals, each with some Martial Arts foundation, could easily carry hundreds of jin of soybean seeds. In just one trip, they moved all the seeds to the foot of the mountain. After the seeds were moved out, the next step was planting. The next day, Fang Yun went to the eastern part of the island. The terrain there was relatively flat, but previously, due to the lack of clearance, it had always been overgrown with weeds and jungles. After several months of cultivation, nearly two hundred thousand mu of land had been cleared on the eastern side of the island. Looking at the vast fields before him, Fang Yun felt limitless emotions. *This terrain was actually most suitable for mechanized operations.* *If mechanized operations were used, it wouldn¡¯t take long to plant the two hundred thousand mu of land.* *Unfortunately, this was a Cultivation World and a mundane island lacking in cultivation power.* *To plant crops, they could only rely purely on manpower.* At this time, the land was already filled with thousands of pirates and nearly ten thousand Fang Family members. Following the Clan Elders¡¯ directions, they began planting the soybean seeds provided by Fang Yun. ¡°` Chapter 48 - Chapter 48: Chapter 48: The Partial Failure of Crop Cultivation Chapter 48: Chapter 48: The Partial Failure of Crop Cultivation ¡°`html Because there were so many people, the planting of soybeans was completed in just a few days. The planting of the remaining weed seeds was much simpler, as it only required scattering them on other lands without much technical skill. Moreover, because these lands had not been cultivated for many years, the soil fertility was quite good. During the first planting, there was no need to add extra fertilizer. This provided some convenience for the first planting. Next was waiting for the seeds to sprout, and only then would they know whether these seeds could be recognized by the Golden Finger. In the past few days, Fang Yun simply did not return to the mountain, since there were no other crops planted up there. It was better to wait down the mountain. He could only feel at ease to return once he confirmed whether these seeds sprouted within the influence range of the Golden Finger. A few days later, Fang Yun, who was staying in the town, received a report from his subordinates. They told him that the planted weed seeds had already started to sprout. Upon receiving the news, Fang Yun immediately went to the eastern location. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?¦Ï He found that the land previously scattered with weed seeds had indeed grown some delicate sprouts and leaves. However, even as Fang Yun walked up to this piece of land, he did not sense the kind of emotions that weeds would convey to him. *This left him feeling disheartened.* He took a deep breath and then opened the panel. Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Level Three Mana: 60 Life Essence Qi: 240 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 55%), Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 59%), Growth Skills (Beginner 99%), Gold Qi Skill (Beginner 2%) Plant Control: Vines (5) Skipping over the values on the panel, Fang Yun looked at the plant control section displayed on the panel. He found that it only displayed five vines. There was no indication of controlling weeds. This meant that the weeds in front of him were not within the control range of his Golden Finger. So naturally, there would be no harvest of Life Essence Qi. *This was indeed a heavy blow to Fang Yun.* He glanced at the weeds in front of him, then at the land beside him where the soybeans had not yet sprouted. He let out a slow breath. *Even though he couldn¡¯t accept this fact internally, he had no way to change it.* *It seemed that the range of the Golden Finger¡¯s function might be limited to the plants he personally planted.* *If that was the case, obtaining a large amount of Life Essence Qi in the future wouldn¡¯t be so easy.* ¡°Clan Leader, why do you look so upset? Did something happen?¡± Among the Innate Martial Artists following Fang Yun, Fang Lin was the first to notice Fang Yun¡¯s unusual expression. So he quickly asked. Fang Yun turned around and glanced at him, then swept his eyes over Fang Zhou and the other pirate leaders. In the end, he shook his head and said nothing. *These matters ultimately related to his Golden Finger, so Fang Yun naturally couldn¡¯t reveal them.* He waved his hand, not letting the crowd follow him. Fang Yun, feeling downcast, walked into the land where the weeds were planted. Just as he reached the center, he suddenly sensed a faint emotional fluctuation. *This surprised Fang Yun, who was feeling low.* He looked down and around, searching for where the emotions were being transmitted from. It was then that he discovered it was the weeds on the ground that were conveying emotions to him. This instantly lifted Fang Yun¡¯s spirits, and he squatted down, gently touching the newly grown weeds with his hand. He concentrated on sensing the emotions transmitted by the weeds. After a while, he confirmed that these weeds did transmit some emotions. But compared to the weeds he had planted in the canyon, the emotions they conveyed were quite weak. Only because he had walked into the middle of this land did the weeds all around transmit emotions, allowing him to sense this faint fluctuation. If these weeds did have emotional fluctuations, it meant they were still within the range of his Golden Finger. Then why was the emotional fluctuation so weak, and why did it not show up on the panel? Fang Yun stood up, stroked his chin, and pondered the reason behind this phenomenon. He contemplated the differences and similarities between these weeds and those he had planted in the canyon. The similarity was that the seeds for these weeds were all provided by him. The difference was that, while the weeds in the canyon were planted entirely by himself, the weeds on this land were planted by others, except for the seeds. *Could it be that this difference led to such a result?* *How did his Golden Finger recognize which planting actions were done by him and which by others?* *Could there be an intelligent life inside his Golden Finger monitoring everything?* *Or was it through some causal relationship that determined whether these planting actions were his own?* Fang Yun stared at the panel that had reappeared, pondering which of these possibilities was more likely. After thinking for a while, he realized that with his current capabilities, he couldn¡¯t confirm the reason at all. Regardless of the reason, Fang Yun was now able to determine that the more involved he was in the planting process, the more he could sense the emotions of the crops. Of course, besides this aspect, it was also significantly related to the quality of the crops. If he took the strength of emotional perception as the criterion, did it mean that for this batch of crops, his harvest of Life Essence Qi would be far below his expectations? If that was the case, to be honest, Fang Yun saw no great necessity to invest much effort into planting these ordinary crops. After all, the process of cultivating those crops to harvest seeds was quite troublesome and wasted a lot of time. Thinking of this, Fang Yun looked at the land beneath his feet and then at the nearby land where soybeans were planted. He decided to wait and see whether there would be any changes after the soybeans sprouted. So, he led two clan elders and five pirate leaders back into the town. A few more days passed, and Fang Yun once again returned to the eastern fields. By this time, the soybeans had already started to sprout, and the weeds from before had also grown quite tall. This time, when Fang Yun stood at the edge of the field, he could already sense the emotions of these crops with relative clarity. Noticing this, Fang Yun felt a bit of relief. *Initially, when he found that he couldn¡¯t sense the emotions of the weeds and there was no display on the panel, Fang Yun had little hope for these crops.* But now, it seemed there was a bit of hope again. *This didn¡¯t allow Fang Yun to place too much expectation on these crops.* ¡°` Chapter 49 - Chapter 49: Chapter 49 Replanting of Spirit Rice Chapter 49: Chapter 49 Replanting of Spirit Rice Fang Yun squatted down, carefully sensing the young soybean plants in front of him. Although he felt that the emotional connection with these seedlings was much weaker compared to the ones he had planted in the canyon, emotions were not something that could be easily quantified. Therefore, it was indeed unlikely for Fang Yun to estimate the amount of Life Essence Qi to be harvested based on this aspect. Well then, since that¡¯s the case, he might as well wait until the harvest to see how much Life Essence Qi was obtained before making further plans. After all, these weeds would only take about a month to mature, and the soybeans would need about two to three months to mature. For him, this amount of time wasn¡¯t particularly long. It happened to be a good opportunity to harvest another batch of Spirit Rice. In this way, even if the Life Essence Qi harvested from these crops was less than he expected, he could compensate with Spirit Rice. Thinking this, Fang Yun turned his gaze towards the five pirate captains, especially Black Widow. ¡°From now on, just focus on taking care of these crops. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï???.?¦Ï Don¡¯t rush to reclaim the untouched wasteland on the other side. Wait until I see the harvest of these crops before making any decisions!¡± Upon hearing his words, the five pirate captains bowed respectfully and said, ¡°Yes, Immortal Master!¡± For them, as captives, Fang Yun¡¯s orders were everything. So, whether it was cultivating wasteland or caring for crops, it made no difference to them. Fang Yun nodded, and after giving instructions to the two clan elders, he returned to the mountains. First, he arrived above the canyon and glanced at the vine that was entering its mature phase. He noticed that the vine was just lazily coiling on the ground, not hunting beasts like the other four vines. Nor did it show any signs of blooming or pollination characteristic of its maturation period. This puzzled Fang Yun; could it be that this vine reproduced asexually? If that were the case, how could he determine whether the vine had matured? Fang Yun moved a little closer and carefully sensed the vine¡¯s specific condition. He found that while the vine lay still, the energy inside it was circulating rapidly. Besides the swift circulation of energy within it, Fang Yun also noticed several points of energy convergence on its branches. And indeed, he observed some small bulges forming on the branches of the vine. With this observation, Fang Yun realized that these should be the places where it would bloom, pollinate, and then produce seeds. Since it was capable of blooming and pollination, the vine was a sexually reproducing plant. This made it easier to determine its maturation period. However, judging by the current progress, the vine¡¯s maturation period could be even more prolonged than that of Spirit Rice. But this was normal, as the Spirit Rice he planted was merely the lowest level of Spirit Plant. These vines, having a high probability of being of a higher rank than Spirit Rice, would naturally have a longer maturation period. After observing the situation of this vine, Fang Yun returned to the mountains. He came to the side of the spirit field and spent a day cleaning up all the weeds and the roots left by the previous batch of Spirit Rice in the field. Since the previous planting of Spirit Rice had depleted the soil, although some time had passed, both the ordinary energy and the Spiritual Energy in the dirt had not fully recovered. Therefore, Fang Yun once again entered the northern mountains. Following the previous method, Fang Yun concentrated the ordinary energy in the soil and then transported the energy-rich mud back to the spirit field. However, this time, Fang Yun did not completely eradicate the normal energy from other lands. After replacing the soil in the spirit field, he used the Spirit Rain Skill twice to replenish the Spiritual Energy within the field. Having done all this, Fang Yun began the breeding work for the Spirit Rice. Adopting the work pattern from the last time, he first scattered the Spirit Rice Seeds in the specially designated breeding corner that had been scientifically determined previously. Then, he covered them with soil. Next was to wait for these Spirit Rice Seeds to germinate and grow to the stage where they could be transplanted. This process would take roughly ten to twenty days. After transplantation, there would still be a waiting period until the Spirit Rice entered its growth phase and could be induced to grow faster. Before this, there wasn¡¯t much that Fang Yun could actually do. It was just insect prevention and weed removal. Now, with the presence of Spiritual Insects, Fang Yun didn¡¯t even need to do insect prevention anymore. The only thing left was the occasional inspection work. Having rested for a few days and starting to enjoy some idle time, Fang Yun began making plans for what lay ahead. Following his initial plan, Fang Yun had completed the expanded cultivation of crops and the reseeding of Spirit Rice. Although the outcome of the effort wasn¡¯t as splendid as he had anticipated, neither was it as poor as he had initially imagined. Overall, the situation was moderate, not fully satisfying, but not completely disappointing either. After expanding the cultivation of the other crops, he didn¡¯t need to tend to them anymore. Before the results from that effort came in, Fang Yun did not plan to force the crops to produce new seeds. Therefore, Fang Yun¡¯s main focus was now taking care of the Spirit Rice. In addition to that, it was just waiting for the vine to mature and see what could be harvested. These tasks did not require too much time. In terms of farming, there was nothing much else to do at present. So the next phase would only involve improving his Cultivation Level and practicing Spells. This plan had actually crossed Fang Yun¡¯s mind briefly when he broke through the third level of Qi Cultivation. But now, upon revisiting the plan, he realized his initial thoughts weren¡¯t thorough enough. Most importantly, he had overlooked a critical factor. To advance his Cultivation Level to the fourth level of Qi Cultivation, besides having a sufficient amount of Life Essence Qi, one also needed the Cultivation Technique of the fourth level. However, the Chang Chun Skill inherited from the Fang Family was only suitable up to the third level of Qi Cultivation. Regarding the Qi Refinement Technique for the fourth level, Fang Yun didn¡¯t possess it. This meant that even if he had an abundant amount of Life Essence Qi, without the support of a proper Cultivation Technique, breaking through to the fourth level of Qi Cultivation would likely be impossible. Perhaps his concerns during previous breakthroughs were solely focused on whether he had enough Life Essence Qi and not about the Cultivation Technique. As a result, Fang Yun hadn¡¯t considered the significant problem of advancing to the fourth level of Qi Cultivation over these past days. Realizing this made Fang Yun suddenly become somewhat restless. Because the only way to obtain the continued techniques of the Chang Chun Skill would be to leave Spirit Water Island. To look for a place where Cultivators trade. But visiting such places, with his current Cultivation Level and means of Protecting himself, was indeed somewhat dangerous. Chapter 50 - Chapter 50: Chapter 50 Practice of Martial Arts Chapter 50: Chapter 50 Practice of Martial Arts Fang Yun¡¯s expression grew serious as he thought about this. The outside world was far too dangerous, and his own cultivation was too low, his combat methods too few. However, to continue advancing his cultivation, he must venture out. Therefore, he needed to prepare some means of combat next. In addition to that, Fang Yun currently only had fourteen spirit stones in hand. He didn¡¯t know how many spirit stones the subsequent techniques of the Chang Chun Skill would require, but of course, the more spirit stones the better. Otherwise, it would be troublesome if he didn¡¯t have enough when the time came. Fang Yun glanced at the spirit field; it seemed that he could only rely on the spirit rice for spirit stones. He wasn¡¯t sure how many spirit stones this variety of spirit rice could fetch outside. That would have to be seen once he brought it out. In terms of combat, spirit talismans were too common and there should be many of them outside; they couldn¡¯t be relied upon for combat. Also, remember the magic long saber is just a damaged magic artifact. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.?? It¡¯s fine for dealing with cultivators at the first and second layers of Qi Cultivation, but it¡¯s not so reliable against stronger ones. Besides, there¡¯s an even more important reason: whether it¡¯s the spirit talismans or the magic long saber, they are the Fang Family¡¯s last resort. When he leaves, he cannot take them with him. This has been the rule passed down in the Fang Family for hundreds of years and it¡¯s the main reason for their lasting legacy. They worry that if a cultivator takes them away and dies outside, then the Fang Family would be finished. Although Fang Yun, as a transmigrator, hasn¡¯t fully integrated into the Fang Family and doesn¡¯t completely consider himself one of them. But, he also couldn¡¯t possibly take these bases of the Fang Family away from Spirit Water Island. Therefore, aside from spirit talismans and magic artifacts, Fang Yun must have other combat methods, and these methods must be strong enough for him to leave the island. While such ideas were fine, Fang Yun searched through everything he had that could be used for combat and found nothing suitable. The only thing somewhat related to combat strength was the vines that were still being cultivated. Besides that, there were the various martial arts cultivation methods used by the family¡¯s martial artists. However, it was visible from when Daoist Qingmu used them that they couldn¡¯t handle even a damaged magic artifact. Thinking of using them against stronger individuals was simply impossible. The same logic applied to martial arts cultivation techniques of the mundane world; they were only suitable for dealing with mortals. Fang Yun had no hope of using such methods to confront cultivators. After thinking for a long time and finding no solution. Fang Yun could only temporarily give up on this idea for now. After all, he was still young; plans for combat spells could be thought out later. Anyway, without sufficient strength, Fang Yun was not planning to leave. Since that¡¯s the case, he should focus on farming for now. Stockpiling enough Life Essence Qi, as long as he gets his hands on the cultivation technique later on, advancing would still be quite easy. After figuring this out, Fang Yun started to focus mainly on the care of the spirit rice. In his free time, he also went up to the gorge to check on the vine in its mature phase. Also, he took some time out to see Fang Lin regarding the martial arts cultivation methods in the mundane world. Fang Lin found the Clan Leader¡¯s request strange, but with the lessons from last time, he didn¡¯t say much more. Besides, the Fang Family had quite a lot of martial arts cultivation techniques; if the Clan Leader wanted to research them, then research away. Fang Yun got dozens of martial arts cultivation techniques from Fang Lin, including thirteen internal cultivation methods, the rest being various styles of techniques, and a portion being light body skills. The principles behind the internal cultivation methods were similar to what he knew in his previous life. At first, they absorb the essence of food, then transform it into inner strength. This stage belonged to the Postnatal Martial Artists. What was special was that once martial artists advanced to the Innate Realm, they could absorb Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi and use various True Qi moves, which still had some power. Although both absorb energy from Heaven and Earth, Innate Martial Artists and cultivators with Spirit Roots felt similar. But because the Yuan Qi from Heaven and Earth was not the same type of energy as Spiritual Energy. Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi, like many energies beneficial to humans from heaven and earth, is a collective term. While Spiritual Energy is one of the more pure and advanced forms of energy among them. That¡¯s exactly why there is a difference in strength and life essence between the two. After Fang Yun flipped through a few Inner Power Secret Manuals, he understood why Innate Martial Artists couldn¡¯t beat even the lowest level cultivators. Since that was the case, these internal cultivation methods were of no use to him. He put the Inner Power Secret Manuals back into the cave, then Fang Yun looked through the other techniques. Also, the Lightweight Skill Heart Method that he had been longing for. There was nothing special in the techniques, and considering that cultivators mostly engage in long-distance combat. These close-range techniques were basically not very effective. From among these techniques, Fang Yun chose a saber method to use with the magic long saber. Even though it likely wouldn¡¯t be very effective. After choosing the saber method, Fang Yun then looked through the light body skills. These were the skills that would have the greatest effect for him. Fang Yun¡¯s mana flowed through several meridians on his feet. A force emanated from the soles of his feet, acting on the surrounding air. Fang Yun instantly felt his body lighten considerably, with a light step, he sprung forward. Then, through the continuous changes of mana in the meridians, Fang Yun¡¯s body also constantly changed its shape. With the Light Body Skills, Fang Yun¡¯s speed improved by several times compared to before. Moreover, the agility was much stronger than before. This indeed brought Fang Yuan quite a surprise. Even ordinary martial artists¡¯ Light Body Skills had such a powerful effect. Those Light Body Skills in spells would definitely be more potent than these skills. This piqued Fang Yun¡¯s interest a bit. He was quick to master the martial arts techniques in hand, partly due to the mana¡¯s control being much stronger than the True Qi in the martial artists¡¯ bodies. At the same time, Fang Yun had already opened all the meridians in his body when he advanced to a cultivator. Under such circumstances, Fang Yun had mastered all these skills before the spirit rice transplant. He glanced at the panel. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Third Layer Mana: 67 Life Essence Qi: 240 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 58%) Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 63%) Growth Skills (Beginner 99%) Gold Qi Skill (Beginner 2%) Martial Arts: Gale Saber Skills (Familiar 1%), Spirit Rhinoceros Body Method (Familiar 3%). Controlled Plants: Vines (5) Spirit Rice (500) Chapter 51 03-25 - Chapter 51: Chapter 51: The Maturation of Spirit Rice Chapter 51: Chapter 51: The Maturation of Spirit Rice On the panel, there were no significant changes in other values; there was just an additional item, Martial Arts. The appearance of this item and the fact that it had a percentage indicated that I could quickly practice these Cultivation Techniques to their peak. However, while this was convenient, aside from the Light Body Skills being somewhat useful, the other Martial Arts likely didn¡¯t serve much purpose. So, there wasn¡¯t anything particularly surprising. After roughly researching these Cultivation Techniques, it was time to transplant the Spirit Rice. Using the same method, Fang Yun selected 300 seedlings of Spirit Rice. It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t want to choose more, but the Spiritual Energy within the spirit field was limited. Constantly using the Spirit Rain Skill, the recoverable Spiritual Energy wasn¡¯t very much. Therefore, from these 500 Spirit Rice seedlings, Fang Yun chose the best for cultivation. Only by doing so could he ensure that the Life Essence Qi harvested in the end wouldn¡¯t have any issues. After the transplantation was complete, he needed to wait a while longer for the Spirit Rice to enter the growth stage before he could start accelerating their growth. A couple of weeks later, Fang Yun was moving back and forth constantly in the open space in front of the cave, swinging the magic artifact sword in his hand. The Sword Energy, condensed by Mana, whirled around the sword, tearing through the surrounding air, producing howling sounds. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?0¦Í?¦Ï.§ã¦Ï After a while, Fang Yun stopped and sheathed his long sword. He opened the panel again. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation, third level Mana: 60 Life Essence Qi: 240 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 58%), Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 63%), Growth Skills (Beginner 99%), Gold Qi Skill (Beginner 2%) Martial Arts: Gale Saber Skills (Perfect), Spirit Rhinoceros Body Method (Perfect). Control over plants: Vines (5), Spirit Rice (300) After practicing for over ten days, both Martial Arts had already reached the state of Perfection. From the classification of levels, Fang Yun knew that the skills were divided beginning with Beginner, to Familiar, then Minor Success, Great Success, and finally Perfect. According to this sequence, the classification for other Spells should be similar. This method of classification, whether it was influenced by Fang Yun¡¯s consciousness or the way Spells were classed in this world, was unclear. But after some thought, Fang Yun felt it was most likely influenced by his own consciousness. After all, Fang Yun himself was not clear about how the world¡¯s Spells were classified in terms of proficiency. So, what the Golden Finger revealed was probably based on his own subjective understanding. However, these things were not very important; whether classified in any manner, the main point was just to reflect the proficiency of skills. Now that these Martial Arts had achieved Perfection, Fang Yun decided to hide them from the panel, so they wouldn¡¯t take up too much space. Then, Fang Yun went to the side of the spirit field, where the Spirit Rice had already started entering the growth period. It was time to begin the acceleration. Looking at his mana value, he saw there was no need to particularly recover Mana. Thus, Fang Yun stood beside the spirit field and cast the Growth Skills directly. The Spirit Rice in the spirit field began to grow madly. After the Growth Skills ceased, looking at the Spirit Rice, which had grown significantly taller, Fang Yun nodded in satisfaction. Then he headed towards the northern mountain range. Although his Mana was still abundant, the ordinary energy and Spiritual Energy in the spirit field had been exhausted. This was the biggest obstacle limiting the acceleration of the Spirit Rice. Arriving in the mountain range, he gathered enough ordinary energy, and then carried the soil back to the spirit field. He replenished the spirit field with it, using the Earth Power Skills to transfer the energy into the Spirit Rice. Afterward, he cast the Spirit Rain Skill to replenish the Spiritual Energy in the spirit field. Stay for another two days, waiting for this spiritual energy and normal energy to fully merge into the soil. Then, stimulate the growth of the spirit rice once again. The same method was applied for another two times, and only then did the 300 stalks of spirit rice reach maturity. After the last round of replenishing the spirit field with ordinary energy and spiritual energy, there was nearly a month of waiting again. Fang Yun opened his panel. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Third Layer Mana: 40 Life Essence Qi: 240 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 61%), Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 72%), Growth Skills (Familiar 3%), Gold Qi Skill (Beginner 2%) Plants Controlled: Vines (5), Spirit Rice (300) The efforts of the past several days, not only brought the spirit rice to maturity, but the Growth Skills also reached a skilled level. The progress of Spirit Rain Skill was the fastest, nearly breaking through to the Minor Success realm. Fang Yun found all these developments very satisfying. Taking advantage of the moment right after the spirit rice entered the maturity phase, Fang Yun once again went to the top of the canyon. The area where the vines were located now had lush vegetation. The five vine pearls were hidden within, completely invisible. However, looking at the bones covered by the underbrush, Fang Yun knew that many wild beasts had fallen victim. Not dwelling on this, Fang Yun parted the underbrush and walked straight in. Following his sense, he arrived at the central position and saw that the vine he cared about most had already bloomed. It seemed that it wouldn¡¯t be long before this vine reached full maturity. Seeing this, Fang Yun felt quite relieved. He checked the other four vines and found that it was still too far-fetched for the others to reach maturity, given they were only fed by hunting those wild beasts and the occasional supplement of spiritual energy. Fang Yun shook his head, the other vines were no longer of concern to him. Next, it was time to see what performance the vine, on which he had placed great expectations, would have after maturing. After observing for a while, Fang Yun returned to the cave. He began to recover his mana. Although he still had more than 200 points of Life Essence Qi, he did not have the luxury of using them to restore his mana. After all, the spiritual energy in the Spiritual Spring was still good for mana recovery, even though the speed had slowed down, but it was still acceptable. In the remaining month, Fang Yun, with his Spiritual Insect, loitered around the spirit field, warding off other pests from getting close. Hence, Fang Yun spent this period quite leisurely. The only regret was that there wasn¡¯t much entertainment on the mountain. It was somewhat boring. Therefore, with nothing else to do, Fang Yun took out all the other martial arts manuals and practiced them thoroughly. With prior experience and the support of his mana, practicing these martial arts was not at all difficult for him. In just a short month, Fang Yun had practiced all the martial arts to a skilled level or higher. The rest was to see if he had time to perfect them. However, with so many martial arts, Fang Yun was too lazy to display them all on his panel. A month passed, and the spirit rice matured without issue. Harvesting proceeded in an orderly manner. And another 300 points of Life Essence Qi were added to Fang Yun¡¯s Dantian. Chapter 52 03-25 - Chapter 52: Chapter 52 Mature Vines Chapter 52: Chapter 52 Mature Vines Took a glance at my own status panel. Fang Yun Cultivation Level: Qi Cultivation Third Layer Mana: 56 Life Essence Qi: 540 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 61%) Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 72%) Growth Skills (Familiar 3%) Gold Qi Skill (Beginner 2%) Plant Control: Vines (5) The amount of Life Essence Qi has reached over five hundred. Based on previous estimates of consumption for increasing cultivation level, even if it¡¯s a beginner to intermediate rise from the Third to the Fourth Layer of Qi Cultivation. The quantity of this Life Essence Qi should be sufficient. Now, the only thing missing is the cultivation technique for the Fourth Layer of Qi Cultivation; if I had that, I could immediately make a breakthrough. Regrettably, Life Essence Qi can only be used to elevate my cultivation level and does not have the capability to deduce cultivation techniques. Otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t be so troublesome for Fang Yun. Since I lack the cultivation technique, I can only leave Spirit Water Island and trade at a gathering place for cultivators. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï??0.?¦Ï However, the same problem remains: I must possess sufficient self-protection capabilities before I dare to leave. Moreover, Fang Yun has recently thought of another issue, that is the inheritance problem of the Fang Family¡¯s cultivators. Whenever a cultivator of the Fang Family experiences an accident, it has always been a huge disaster for the Family. It is because there is a problem with the inheritance of the cultivators. Like the last time pirates invaded, it was because the previous generation¡¯s cultivator had an unexpected accident. So, if Fang Yun really plans to leave Spirit Water Island, it would be best to cultivate another cultivator for the Fang Family. Only then can I protect the Fang Family in case I never return. After all, having transmigrated here, I have received quite a bit kindness from the Fang Family, and I do not wish for my own reasons to lead to their downfall. And since I won¡¯t be able to come up with new combat methods in a short time, I still have the time to cultivate a new cultivator for the Fang Family. Currently, apart from using the Spiritual Spring to recover mana, it¡¯s not really needed for anything else; it¡¯s perfect for cultivating cultivators. In that case, my work for the next period of time, besides continuing to plant Spirit Rice, will be to cultivate a new cultivator. I hope there are mortals with Spirit Roots among the present Fang Family; otherwise, I¡¯ll have to wait even longer. After deciding on what to do next, Fang Yun spread out the newly harvested Spirit Rice on the flat ground in front of the cave. In a few days, once the Spirit Rice dries, it can be stored away. Since I plan to leave, these Spirit Rice will be my trading chips once I go out; I must handle them with care. Having finished these arrangements, Fang Yun once again visited the top of the canyon. It has been a while since my last visit; I wonder if that vine has matured. Upon arriving near those vines, Fang Yun felt a surge in his heart. He could sense the mature feeling transmitted by that vine. I can¡¯t quite describe this feeling, but it¡¯s one I¡¯ve felt before from mature crops and Spirit Rice. Perhaps this is an implicit feature of the Golden Finger. Noticing this, Fang Yun quickly stepped into the dense undergrowth. There saw a vine, as thick as a grown man¡¯s calf and about ten meters in length, quietly coiled on the ground, its dark brown vines bearing dense, three-inch-long thorns. Among these thorns, where the flowers had bloomed before, now grew thumb-sized, green fruits. Fang Yun approached the vine, crouched down, and picked a fruit from the vine¡¯s branches. He broke it off, then opened its green shell. Indeed, he saw a seed that looked just like the ones he had previously obtained from Daoist Qingmu. But compared to those, the seed before him seemed larger. Using his Golden Finger, Fang Yun could clearly sense the condition within the seed. Glancing over the material structure of the seed, Fang Yun could clearly sense the energy it contained and the amount of Spiritual Energy. This energy and Spiritual Energy intertwined to form a unique life vitality inherent to the seed. This was also a method he had used before to screen the vitality of seeds from various crops. However, previously Fang Yun could only roughly sense the life vitality of the seeds, not as clearly as now, nor could he see the essence of that vitality. After inspecting the seed in front of him, Fang Yun picked all the fruits from the creeper branches. In the end, there were only 32 fruits, which was not a large quantity. As all of the fruits were harvested, the creeper seemed to have fulfilled its purpose. There was no need for Fang Yun to harvest it, as the energy within its body gradually subsided, like an animal slowly entering into a state of death. At the same time, Fang Yun also felt a relatively rich Life Essence Qi being transmitted from the creeper before him. Fang Yun opened his status panel to take a look. Fang Yun Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Third Layer Mana: 56 Life Essence Qi: 570 Spells: Earth Power Skills (Skilled 61%) Spirit Rain Skill (Skilled 72%) Growth Skills (Familiar 3%) Gold Qi Skill (Beginner 2%) Control over plants: Creeper (4) The Life Essence Qi was 30 points more than before, meaning that the creeper before him had provided 30 points of Life Essence Qi. The amount was not much, considering what he had previously invested in this creeper in terms of Life Essence Qi. His gain was just a few points of Life Essence Qi. Numerically speaking, this indeed wasn¡¯t much. But considering that a stalk of Spirit Rice only had one point of Life Essence Qi, This single creeper amounted to 30 times that of the Spirit Rice. The gap in their life levels was unimaginable. For Fang Yun, who lacked combat means, the creeper before him might bring some surprises. Thinking of this, Fang Yun looked at the remaining four creepers, then at the 32 seeds in his hand. After some consideration, he decided to replant these creepers and selected the individuals he needed. As for the remaining creepers, they were no longer worth cultivating. They would be left to thrive or perish on their own. Hence, Fang Yun left the place where the creepers grew. He found a new spot, adjusted the ordinary energy within the soil, and then used the Spirit Rain Skill to replenish the land with Spiritual Energy. Then he planted all 32 seeds. Fang Yun planned to follow the cultivation method used for Spirit Rice, starting with breeding and then choosing from the resulting creeper seedlings, cultivating those that met his requirements for combat capability. After having planted them, Fang Yun left the area. Now, waiting for these seeds to germinate and grow would take a relatively long time. After all, even the germination and growth of Spirit Rice had taken so long. Not to mention these creepers that were on a higher plane of life compared to Spirit Rice. Chapter 53 03-25 - Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Fang Yuns Killing Intent Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Fang Yun¡¯s Killing Intent ¡°`html Returning to the mountain, Fang Yun waited for two days before gathering all the Spirit Rice. Afterward, he began his descent down the mountain. Calculating the time, the crops he had planted earlier should have matured by now. Particularly those weeds, they should have passed their maturity period long ago. However, Fang Yun thought that those weeds wouldn¡¯t yield much Life Essence Qi; he had been preoccupied with the planting of the Spirit Rice and the cultivation of Martial Arts. So he was too lazy to make a trip down specifically for them. Now, with nothing else to do for the moment, he decided to take this opportunity to go down the mountain, to harvest those crops and see how much Life Essence Qi he could obtain. Additionally, he needed to inform the clan elders to search for those with Spirit Roots within the family. With the Qinggong he had mastered, Fang Yun took much less time to descend the mountain this time. He quickly arrived near the fields to the east. He saw that the soybeans had indeed ripened. Source: Webnovel.com, updated on ?¦Ï¦Í??.§ã¦Ï And the weeds beside them had matured long ago, their seeds falling onto the adjacent soil, sprouting new weeds while the original ones started to wither and turn yellow. At this time, the pirates near the fields also noticed Fang Yun¡¯s arrival and immediately informed their leaders. ¡°Immortal Master, you have come down the mountain! These soybeans have all matured. When do you think would be a good time to harvest them?¡± Several pirate leaders approached Fang Yun, with the Black Widow leading them, asking hurriedly. Fang Yun glanced at the Black Widow, contemplating that he might leave this island in the next few years. The innate realm martial artists in front of him could pose a significant threat to the Fang Family. *Should he take care of them before he left?* Although it seemed rather unfair, as it was he who accepted their surrender initially, and now, without any wrongdoing from them, to suddenly kill them would indeed appear unjust. But compared to that, leaving them in the Fang Family and then encountering unforeseen incidents once he left, those pirates would be uncontrollable. Moreover, with their presence, the thousands of other pirates would follow their lead. This would cause even more trouble for the Fang Family. If things went wrong, the Fang Family could be destroyed by them even before any external threats emerged. Perhaps it was Fang Yun¡¯s prolonged silence that prompted the Black Widow and others to look up at him. They instantly sensed the murderous intent in his eyes. Compared to those pirates who had been wandering the seas for many years, Fang Yun was evidently less adept at controlling his own murderous aura. This immediately alerted the pirates to his intentions. Realizing this, the five pirates suddenly felt a chill over their bodies, uncertain of what had provoked Fang Yun, the cultivator, to consider killing them. Just as they were about to kneel and plead for mercy, Fang Lin and Fang Zhou also received the news and hurried over. ¡°Clan Leader, when did you come down the mountain without informing us?¡± Fang Lin called out loudly from afar. Fang Yun glanced at him, shook his head, and suppressed the murderous intent in his heart. Then he instructed the pirates before him, ¡°Notify everyone else that they can now begin harvesting these crops. Also, cut down these weeds beside them!¡± After saying this, Fang Yun turned and walked towards Fang Lin. The pirates bowed and complied. Once Fang Yun had walked away, one of the pirates whispered to the Black Widow, ¡°Boss, did you feel it just now? This cultivator from the Fang Family seemed like he wanted to kill us.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just seemed. The murderous intent in his eyes was obvious to anyone! But why? We haven¡¯t provoked him recently! We¡¯ve always diligently completed the tasks he¡¯s assigned!¡± Another pirate chimed in. The Black Widow shook her head, looked up in the direction Fang Yun had left, her eyes growing deep and thoughtful. On the other side, Fang Yun reached Fang Lin and Fang Zhou, nodded to them, then led the way towards the town. Seeing Fang Yun like this, Fang Lin knew that Fang Yun had something to say to them privately. So, he dared not joke around carelessly. As they walked along the road to the town, Fang Yun spoke, ¡°Clan Elder, search among the children in the family recently to see if there are any with Spirit Roots!¡± Upon hearing this, Fang Lin and Fang Zhou were shocked, looking incredulously at Fang Yun walking ahead. Because they understood the implication of those words. It meant that Fang Yun was also about to leave Spirit Water Island and venture into the dangerous Cultivation World. This was akin to a calamity for the Fang Family, which had just achieved some stability in recent years. Recovering from their shock, the two quickly stood in front of Fang Yun, saying, ¡°Clan Leader, you are still so young and possess such cultivation level. Why rush to leave Spirit Water Island? You could completely wait a few more years until your cultivation is higher before leaving!¡± Fang Yun glanced at Fang Lin, knowing what his departure meant for the Fang Family. But if there were a way, he wouldn¡¯t want to leave just like that! The Fang Family¡¯s inherited Cultivation Technique could only be cultivated up to the Third Level of Qi Refining. *Surely, he couldn¡¯t waste time on the island at the stage when his cultivation was advancing the fastest!* This was a divergence in their paths, with no room for compromise. The Fang Family¡¯s cultivators in the past had all gone this way. Didn¡¯t they know staying on the island was safer and more beneficial for the Fang Family? Of course, they knew, but compared to their own Immortal Path, these family affections could only come second. Both sides understood these matters in their hearts. Fang Yun saw no need to spell them out. So, Fang Yun said, ¡°I didn¡¯t say I would leave right away. I¡¯m asking you to find new people with Spirit Roots as soon as possible, nurture them into the Fang Family¡¯s new cultivators before I leave! That way, even if I leave Spirit Water Island, the Fang Family¡¯s safety could be better ensured!¡± Fang Zhou, who had been silent, spoke at this point, ¡°Clan Leader, the dangers of the Cultivation World are unpredictable. Perhaps once you leave, you¡¯ll never return! With your talent, you could wait until you break through to the Third Level of Qi Refining and then leave; wouldn¡¯t that be more reliable?¡± Fang Yun shook his head, not revealing that he had already surpassed the Third Level of Qi Refining. After all, with the reliance on the Fang Family¡¯s Spiritual Spring, breaking through to the Third Level of Qi Refining wasn¡¯t something that could be solely attributed to talent. This behavior, which might expose his Golden Finger, naturally, Fang Yun would not reveal. ¡°Clan Elders, you don¡¯t need to persuade me; I have made up my mind. As in the past, the Fang Family¡¯s cultivators will walk this path. This is inevitable, so you should hurry in finding new people with Spirit Roots!¡± ¡°`