Chapter 13 Life is Like a Play
It was nearly noon.
Ji An wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, licked his lips, and walked to the shade of the tree.
After spending half a day and exhausting all his magical power, he finally completed the planting of the spirit grain.
As instructed by Lao Huang, use the Little Cloud Rain Technique to rain again in the evening or early morning, and that will complete the entire sowing process.
"Hehe, I'll cultivate well tonight and cast the rain when my body is full of magic power tomorrow morning."
Back in the valley, next to the Azure Lake, Kanling's acquisition returned to normal, and tomorrow Shiyu will be able to use the third level of the Lesser Cloud Rain Technique.
Before the Spirit Valley sprouts, the spiritual energy absorbed by the stone tortoise will surely be able to upgrade the other two spells to the minor completion level.
After sowing, there is about a month of downtime, during which he needs to carefully plan how to use this time.
One cannot practice cultivation techniques during the day, nor can one waste time; even earning one spirit crystal is good.
He needs to acquire a crystal to buy a Yellow Sprout Pill, see how effective the pill is, and then decide how to cultivate.
Because the stone turtle absorbs magical power, his current aptitude should only be equivalent to the low grade, probably even at the bottom of the low grade.
Without taking elixirs, it's unknown how long it would take to advance to the second level of Qi Refining.
He wants to advance to the next level in the Spirit Valley, which he estimates will cost a lot. He needs to think carefully about what to do next.
No one stipulates that you can only use the crystals you earn to cultivate; you can also borrow money to cultivate immortality.
He decided to package himself and establish a persona of a magical genius.
Ji An returned to the bamboo house and cleaned the courtyard.
Since he had no crystals, he didn't even activate the magic restrictions on his bamboo house. And because he was so poor, he wasn't afraid of anyone coveting it.
Entering the house, with nothing to do for the time being, he subconsciously picked up the wooden carving of the spirit-seeking rat and played with it, thinking about who he could borrow the crystal from.
He waited patiently until dusk before leaving the bamboo house and heading to Old Huang's residence.
Lacking crystals and having nothing else to offer, he had no choice but to bring his two fists.
"Senior Brother Huang."
No one responded.
Ji An raised his voice: "Senior Brother Huang?"
No one answered.
He exhaled, stood in front of the fence gate, and gazed into the distance.
The smoke from the chimneys rose gently, creating a serene and peaceful scene. But he knew that most Qi Refining disciples lived busy lives, counting the grains of rice before they went into the pot.
The golden and red sunset clouds resembled mountains towering in the sky. As twilight faded, the colors of the sunset clouds, at their peak, turned into a bluish-gray hue, slowly merging into the night sky.
Stars hang low over the plains, and the cold moon hangs like a hook.
"Cultivation is not easy."
Ji An sighed sincerely, "No matter what kind of world it is, life at the bottom is always full of hardship."
The bright moon silently passed over the treetops, and a thin figure hurried along the path.
Who's there?
There was a subtle threat in his tone.
"Senior Brother Huang, it's me, Ji An."
"Xiao An."
Old Huang approached, his tone softening, "Did you need something from me?"
Ji An cupped his hands and smiled:
"Senior brother is a veteran, I would like to ask you if there is a suitable method to earn crystals at the first level of Qi Refining."
He continued, somewhat embarrassed:
"I should have brought some food and drink to share with my senior brother, but I am penniless and have no money left. I can only wait until things are better before I can reciprocate."
Since I don't have any crystals, I have no choice but to swallow my pride and ask.
Perhaps a kind person would answer this question, so that he could observe whether the other person is someone he can become close to.
"Don't be so polite. You call me senior brother, how can I let you call me that for nothing?"
Old Huang lifted the fence gate:
"Come inside and talk to me. Back then, I went through the same hardships."
Once inside the bamboo house, we lit candles.
Ji An glanced at the furnishings inside the room, which were almost identical to his own residence, except for a few more vats. He wondered what might be inside.
"It's difficult for a Qi Refining Level 1 cultivator to earn spirit stones."
Let alone the first level of Qi Refining, even disciples in the early stage of Qi Refining have a hard time making it.
At this time, the disciples' magical skills were poor and their magical power was scarce. Even if they wanted to go out and risk their lives, no senior brother was willing to take them along.
As he spoke, Old Huang raised his left hand, revealing three fingers:
"When I entered the sect, I was already at the second level of Qi Refining."
It took him a year to reach the third level of Qi Refining.
Without the support of crystals, it is simply impossible to quickly improve one's cultivation level.
If you just follow the routine and focus on the spirit field, you'll have almost no chance of advancing to the mid-stage of Qi Refining.
Out of necessity, I went out with a few fellow apprentices who shared the same plight during the off-season, hoping to find some opportunities.
Four people went out, and one and a half came back.
From then on, I stayed obediently in the sect and tried every possible way to earn spirit stones.
He recounted his past circumstances in a long, drawn-out manner, his words filled with regret.
"You're only at the first level of Qi Refining right now, so I can only think of two solutions."
First, try your luck in the mountains and forests outside the sect's gates. You might be able to find some low-grade spiritual herbs and plants, but remember not to go too far.
Secondly, you could try finding odd jobs at the Biyue Lake market, but given your low cultivation level, it's unlikely you'll find anything.
Biyue Market is an internal market established by the sect, frequented by Qi Refining disciples along the shores of Biyue Lake.
Ji An looked troubled and nodded slightly:
"Thank you for your guidance, senior brother."
He felt no disappointment; he knew what was going on.
A cultivator at the first level of Qi Refining can earn a slightly better income in the Immortal City than a mortal martial artist doing odd jobs.
The main purpose of my visit today is not to find a way to earn crystals.
"Senior brother, I have finished sowing the spirit grains today and am preparing to send rain tomorrow morning."
This is our first time conducting a formal rainmaking operation, and we have no experience. We would like to ask our senior colleagues to come and provide some guidance.
"What kind of guidance is there? Just choose a location where the clouds and mist form above the spirit field."
Old Huang was puzzled.
"Hehe, I'm a little nervous, but I won't take up too much of your time, senior brother."
I've discovered I have a remarkable aptitude for the Five Elements magic, and I feel my magical level is about to advance.
Is his magic about to reach the mastery level? Judging by the time, it should be close.
However, to achieve this result with the mana of only the first level of Qi Refining, one can truly be considered quite insightful.
Old Huang nodded:
"Okay, I'll go take a look."
However, I'll need to wait until I return from extracting the water essence from Azure Lake, which should take me to your spiritual field around 7:45 AM.
Ji An bowed:
"Thank you, senior brother."
Success! The other party is willing to watch, and this will be his debut performance.
Qi Refining Level 1, Level 3 Lesser Cloud and Rain Technique, are you scared yet!
He paused, then said:
"Senior brother, what exactly is Water Essence?"
He had heard his father mention water essence before and knew a little about it.
His current persona is that of a newcomer to the cultivation world, like a blank sheet of paper, his face radiating the words "shallow knowledge".
"Xiao An, you should visit the library of the General Affairs Hall more often when you have time. You should learn some basic common sense."
Old Huang, even more naive than I was back then, glanced at the other person and explained:
"Water Essence is one of the Five Elements Essences. It is the Five Elements Qi extracted by cultivators from the Five Elements by using the Spirit Tempering Technique. It has many uses."
Weapon refiners use it to enhance the spirituality of magical artifacts, while alchemists use it to upgrade the grade of their pills.
"If you reach the mid-stage of Qi Refining, extracting the five elements' spiritual essence would be a pretty good job."
(End of this chapter)
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