Chapter 115 Liangqiu Arrives

In the blink of an eye, Ji An had settled down on Crimson Flame Peak for over a month.

There are five kinds of spiritual trees planted in this mountain forest: the first-grade top-quality spiritual tree, Crimson Cloud Pine; the first-grade upper-quality Xuan Yang Wood and Qing Ling Bamboo; and the first-grade middle-quality Zi Yang Wood and Iron Birch.

Red pine relies on seeds for propagation, but the season is not yet right; we will have to wait another two or three months for seeds to be available for planting.

The Qingling Bamboo can only grow in the area near the Cold Pool. Fortunately, he has the perfected Spring Breeze and Rain Technique and the Thick Earth Returning to Origin Mantra, plus the minor-complete Jade Wood Transformation Technique, which allows him to maintain the rapid growth of the bamboo.

Otherwise, after handing over 500 jin of the burned spirit charcoal to the sect and selling it to Du Huaiyuan, there wouldn't be much left.

Both Xuan Yang Wood and Zi Yang Wood are fire-elemental spiritual woods; as long as the seedlings survive, they will grow well.

Ironwood is a metallic spirit wood with a hard texture, making it suitable for crafting spirit boats and defensive magical artifacts.

This kind of spiritual tree has very low requirements for spiritual rain; it only needs the soil to be nourished by the Thick Earth Returning to Origin Mantra to maintain good growth.

Various spiritual herbs were planted in the spiritual fields surrounding the cold pool, and several main ingredients of the Nourishing Essence Pill were planted in the small medicinal field inside the cave.

At dawn, Ji An finished his cultivation and nodded repeatedly as he felt his magical power increasing.

Now everything is on track. He practices spells during the day and studies cultivation techniques at night and in the early morning. With plenty of elixirs, his cultivation level is increasing rapidly.

He stepped out of the cave and discovered a talisman sword outside the barrier, gleaming with a faint silver spiritual light.

He opened the magic barrier, reached out and caught the talisman sword, and extended his divine sense to read the information within.

It was Zhao Mengyao's invitation. She had achieved Foundation Establishment half a month ago and invited him to attend the Foundation Establishment Ceremony half a month later.

There was a hint of resentment in his words, saying that he hadn't been informed immediately after he achieved foundation building, and that he only found out from Zhang Yuanshan.

Ji An smiled faintly, took out the talisman sword from his storage bag, and entered the information that he would keep the appointment on time.

Then he summoned the flying shuttle and began his daily routine patrol.

He divided the Spiritwood Forest into dozens of areas, and knew exactly which spells needed to be cast in which area on which day.

He didn't know how the spirit trees were growing before, but after he arrived, he was certain that they would generate sufficient profits.

In the valley outside the Crimson Flame Peak magic array, golden waves rolled in the spirit fields under the sunlight, and a special herbal scent wafted from the talisman grass fields.

Huang Feihu directed more than twenty spirit farmers to harvest talisman grass. Their task was heavy. There were 100 acres of talisman grass planted here, and with the time spent making talisman paper, it would keep them busy for a long time.

Zhang Erniu gazed at the golden talisman grass and sighed enviously.

"I never expected that Uncle Ji would be such a powerful spiritual farmer. In the past, when we took on the task of planting tree cuttings for the sect, it would take us two or three months to finish. Now, following Uncle Ji, we finish in less than a month."

If the talisman herbs I grow are of this quality, would I still need to worry about exchanging them for Foundation Establishment Pills?!

The survival rate of saplings planted on Chiyan Peak is not high, and many replantings are needed to ensure a sufficient number of surviving saplings.

For this group of people, it's a long-term task that allows them to earn contribution points multiple times.

The new owner of Crimson Flame Peak now possesses incredibly powerful planting magic, guaranteeing a 70-80% survival rate for the saplings—it's truly unbelievable.

"Erniu, go back to sleep. You can have anything in your dreams."

Everyone burst into laughter, and the spirit field was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

"Senior Brother Huang, is Uncle Ji really a Foundation Establishment cultivator who hasn't been in the Foundation Establishment stage for long? I feel that the planting spells he uses have more spiritual energy than other Foundation Establishment cultivators."

Huang Feihu wiped the sweat from his forehead and laughed:

"It's the real deal. Uncle Ji has been at the Foundation Establishment stage for less than half a year. We used to grow spirit fields together over Biyue Lake."

When I joined the sect, I was assigned to my uncle's sect, and we spent seven or eight years together. That's why I was fortunate enough to follow my uncle to Crimson Flame Peak for cultivation.

His words sparked another wave of envy, with everyone praising his good fortune.

Zhang Erniu said:

"I don't know what level your cultivation skills have reached. Normally, talisman grass needs three months to grow, but this batch of talisman grass matured in just one and a half months."

"For the same rent, my master earns one more round of spirit stones than others."

Another Ginnon chimed in:

"It's not just that the growth cycle has been shortened; everyone here is an expert, just look at the quality of this talisman herb!"

I dare say the chance of producing mid-grade talisman paper is at least 50%; the advantage of planting spells during the Foundation Establishment stage is simply too great.

Huang Feihu smiled and shook his head, saying:

"Even before my master established his foundation, the quality of the talisman grass he planted was already this high. However, the growth cycle of talisman grass at that time was two months."

Based on our experience at Biyue Lake, each acre of talismanic herbs can produce approximately 240 to 250 talismans, of which over 60% are medium-grade talisman paper.

Suddenly, no one spoke; everyone silently went about their work.

Zhang Erniu felt drool dripping from the corner of his mouth and hurriedly wiped it away with the back of his hand.

He always felt that Lingnong was a disciple living at the bottom of the sect, and it would be difficult for him to accumulate many spirit stones through planting.

Judging from the current situation, it's purely because he's not strong enough on his own. If he had the same abilities as his senior uncle, spirit stones would be flowing into his storage bag like a mountain stream.

Not only him, but others also had the same idea. It turned out that being a spirit farmer could earn spirit stones so quickly.

As dusk fell, everyone finally finished harvesting the talisman grass and piled it up in the wooden shed they had built.

Huang Feihu shouted:

"We will start making talismans tomorrow. Everyone, please bring your tools. My uncle is new to this place and hasn't had time to gather all the necessary tools yet."

After finishing my work, I bought some wine and meat, and everyone drank heartily.

“Alright,” the Ghibli agreed.

Huang Feihu coughed a few times and then said:

"There's one more thing. The wages for making the talismans will be settled a little later."

As everyone knows, purchasing Foundation Establishment Pills is quite expensive, and my uncle doesn't even have enough spirit stones to invite his fellow disciples to hold a Foundation Establishment celebration.

Once the talismans are sold, I'll deliver them to everyone individually.

After settling in Crimson Flame Peak, there were many expenses that he wouldn't have encountered otherwise, and Ji An had run out of spirit stones.

In order to quickly improve his cultivation, Huang Feihu kept taking pills and didn't keep many spirit stones.

"It's alright if it's later."

Zhang Erniu said that it is common knowledge that cultivators who have just established their foundation are short of money.

Purchasing a Foundation Establishment Pill requires three thousand spirit stones, and many disciples have to borrow from various sources to scrape together the money.

Besides, the quality of the harvested talisman herbs shows Uncle Ji's planting skills. If we give them a few months, they'll be better off financially.

"Yes, it's fine if it's a little later."

The spirit farmers echoed, their thoughts similar to Zhang Erniu's. No one believed that their uncle, who could earn hundreds or thousands of spirit stones every month or two, would default on paying them spirit stones.

A small flying boat took off from the Azure Lake and quickly flew past the disciples riding their beasts, drawing angry shouts.

Instead of getting angry at the scolding, Wei Songnian laughed triumphantly.

When he rode the talisman bird back and forth across the Azure Lake, he was often mocked by the disciples who rode and controlled beasts.

At that time, these people urged their beasts to fly quickly past him, and the strong winds brought by the flapping wings of the beasts always made him and the talisman bird sway from side to side.

Liang Qiu laughed and said:

"Senior brother is really rich and powerful. He's already using a flying boat before even advancing to the Foundation Establishment stage."

Wei Songnian's smile faded, and he said:

"It's just for show. Fellow Daoist Ji is already a Foundation Establishment cultivator. We can't appear too shabby when we do business with him."

Besides, the journey to Crimson Flame Peak is long and arduous; riding the talisman bird would take countless days.

He patted the storage bag at his waist, wondering if he had enough spirit stones. It contained all his belongings, and he had also borrowed more than two hundred spirit stones.

The next morning, Wei Songnian watched as the golden-red mist rose into the sky in the distance and shouted:

"Junior Brother Liang, we're almost there."

Beneath Crimson Flame Peak.

Ji An picked up his teacup and looked at the two men whose expressions weren't very pleasant, saying:

"Finally, my two fellow Daoists have arrived. My place is too filled with the energy of metal and fire during the day, so it can't be considered a good place."

Only after sunset can it be considered a blessed land of second-tier spiritual veins.

"Gentlemen, please have a cup of spiritual tea to soothe your hearts and lungs."

"The mountain peaks are ablaze with gold and fire, the foot of the mountain is covered with lush forests, and there is a deep pool. The mountains and waters are interdependent and the five elements converge. It is a wonderful place."

However, our merits and virtues are still shallow, and we are not fortunate enough to enjoy such a privilege.

Wei Songnian smiled and took a sip of tea.

Liang Qiu also drank the tea and said:

"I have just tested the water quality of the Cold Pool and I already know which kind of spirit fish is suitable for raising. I plan to use a magic array to divide the pool into several areas. I need to go back to Azure Lake to buy fish fry and prepare fish food."

He understood the significance of being invited here, and the first thing he did upon entering was to inspect the water quality and measure the depth of the pool.

"These are spirit fish that need to be handed in for sect missions. I asked Senior Brother Ye if I could use spirit stones to offset the cost, but he said no."

Ji An took out a jade slip and used his object manipulation technique to hand it to Liang Qiu.

He felt that some senior brothers or uncles had taken on the task to satisfy their appetites, and that there were personal connections involved. Otherwise, what use would the sect have for spirit fish, since they couldn't be preserved for long?

Liang Qiu placed the jade slip against his forehead, quickly reading its information with his divine sense, and said:

"These are the spirit fish I plan to raise. Among them, the red grouper is a carnivorous spirit fish, so I must purchase a magic array to separate the water area."

The cold pool isn't large, but it's deep enough. The isolation array needs to be custom-made, which will probably cost a lot of spirit stones.

Since learning that he was raising spirit fish in a cold pond, he had consulted a lot of information and made thorough preparations.

Building trust between people is not easy. If things go wrong, trust is betrayed, and the relationship is likely to fade away.

Ji An nodded and said:

“The spirit stones are easy to handle. I have planted a hundred acres of talisman grass and have more than ten thousand mid-grade talisman papers on hand, which is enough for us.”

He was satisfied with the other party's attitude; as long as they did things diligently, he would not treat them unfairly.

Wei Songnian's heart skipped a beat, and he gave an awkward laugh:

"Fellow Daoist, I don't have enough spirit stones to consume all the goods."

Even including the borrowed ones, he only had a little over six hundred spirit stones, which was far from enough.

“Fellow Daoist, take 12,000 sheets and give the spirit stones owed to Fellow Daoist Liang.”

Ji An paused for a moment, then said:

"With so many talisman papers flooding the market, will they be easy to sell in a short time?"

(End of this chapter)