31-40 I PRACTICE FARMING WHILE THE REST CULTIVATES

C32 - 31 Cloud Leopard i

Inside Bai Cao Tang.

Lu Xuan had strolled around the market, but got nothing in return. However, he wasn't disappointed and decided to drop by the office of Manager He.

"Kid Lu, you're here?!"

The thin old man was flipping through his account book, glanced at Lu Xuan, and didn't pay him any more attention.

Lu Xuan took a seat wherever he wished, watching as several young attendants, aged around thirteen or fourteen, were bustling around inside the Bai Cao Tang, coming in and out.

The collected spirit plants go through many processes, and the tasks these attendants undertake are the most basic ones.

This kind of procedure doesn't require much skill. Hence, Bai Cao Tang conducts these openly in the hall without worrying about anyone watching.

"Here, have a hot cup of tea."

After a while, Manager He, who momentarily finished his work, came over to Lu Xuan and handed him a cup of tea with a fresh green spiritual tea floating in it.

As the spiritual tea entered his throat, a heart-refreshing aroma wafted into his mouth and nose, leaving Lu Xuan to savour it for a long while.

"So, how is it? Are the spirit plants growing well? If they are not up to par, it will cause a significant loss to your profits!"

The lean old man asked with concern.

"Not bad, the quality is better than the last batch."

Lu Xuan laughed as he replied, he knew the cultivation of spirit plants in the spirit field not only concerned his income but also represented the reputation of Manager He to some degree, since it was him who introduced Lu Xuan into Bai Cao Tang.

After hearing Lu Xuan's reply, Manager He felt slightly relieved, and the two chatted at leisure.

Suddenly, a distraught-looking woman carrying a little child rushed into Bai Cao Tang.

The woman was sobbing uncontrollably, her eyes swollen with tears, indicating she had been crying for a long time.

The child had a bewildered look on his face, his mouth gaping open as he allowed the woman to hold him tightly.

After asking the woman a couple of questions and entering into the Bai Cao Tang, Manager He followed along, concerned that something might have happened.

A moment later, he returned to the hall with a grim expression on his face.

"One of the Spirit Plant Masters who had a partnership agreement with the hall met with an unfortunate accident. His family came to inquire about the subsequent handling of the spirit plants."

"What happened?"

"They said that several people were invited to pick spiritual medicines in a secret land, and had the misfortune of encountering an injured Tier-2 Demonic Beast. Two of them died on the spot, and the other two were seriously injured and could hardly hold on."

"What was the name of the Spirit Plant Master who established the partnership agreement with the hall?"

Upon hearing Manager He's words, Lu Xuan couldn't help but think back to an incident when Lei Fei had invited him to explore a secret land some time ago.

"His name was Lei Fei, one of the two who died. Why, did you know him?"

As expected, Lu Xuan got confirmation from Manager He that it was indeed Lei Fei, the Spirit Plant Master who had invited him.

"Back then, they tried to invite me to explore the Secret Land together. I was worried about the spirit plants in the Spirit Field and was afraid of encountering danger, so I didn't agree."

Lu Xuan sighed.

"Luckily, you didn't agree, otherwise…you might have been added to the list of victims."

Manager He couldn't help but say.

"All that could be said is that they were unfortunate to have met with this calamity. Despite having visited the secret location countless times along with numerous other cultivators, they had the misfortune of encountering a Tier-2 Demonic Beast."

"What happens to the spirit plants he had under his care?"

"After a Spirit Plant Master dies, and his family isn't adept at cultivating First-Grade Spirit Plants, per the regulations, the hall should take over and transplant the plants, giving a certain compensation to the family."

"However, the amount paid for these is much lower than that for mature spirit plants. The family has come today, hoping to plead to allow them to cultivate the remaining spirit plants."

Manager He did not expressly say how matters would be handled, but by observing his expressions, Lu Xuan could guess a major portion of it.

Bai Cao Tang prioritizes profits. In front of profit, every hint of sentiment is optional.

This incident reinforced Lu Xuan's decision to not stake his life for prospects of profit. After all, if he went out and could not come back, wouldn't the spirit plants in his courtyard be benefiting others for free?

After this interlude, he no longer felt like savoring the spiritual tea. After gulping it down, he got up and left.

"This little Cloud Leopard for forty Spirit Stones? Are you insane?"

"Dear friend, this isn't an ordinary Cloud Leopard, look at its eyes, it's a different species of civet, the price definitely can't be the same as usual."

While meandering around, Lu Xuan's attention was drawn to a dispute on a nearby stall.

Intrigued, Lu Xuan approached the stand; his attention was caught by an iron cage in the corner.

The iron cage, constructed from an unknown material, was adorned with intricate details. It emanated a chilling aura, and had charms pasted on the four corners to prevent the creature inside from escaping.

Through the bars of the cage, Lu Xuan saw a small civet.

The Civet's fur was pitch black, but the four paws were as white as snow, standing as if balanced on four white clouds. The name 'Cloud Leopard' probably originate from this.

Two long ears stood straight up, tipped with clusters of white fur. They were straight and seemed like two antennas.

Its pair of jade-green eyes caught everyone's attention, gazing coldly all around.

Upon meeting Lu Xuan's glance, the battle-scarred Cloud Leopard showed its teeth, leaning slightly forwards as if in an attacking stance.

"So if it has pretty eyes, it becomes a different species? Then would my sash at my waist count me as a Cultivator of a different species?"

A Qi-Cultivator in front of the stall couldn't help but retort the stall owner.

No wonder he was angry. Normally, this Cloud Leopard Juvenile would go for twenty Spirit Stones. But the stall owner raised the price, leveraging the fact that this Cloud Leopard had different colored pupils, and was demanding for forty Spirit Stones.

"Forty Spirit Stones, no lower!"

The stall owner was unwavering, sticking to the original price.

"You can keep this so-called 'different species' of Cloud Leopard for yourself then! Just stare at it as much as you like every day!"

The Qi-Cultivator left after dropping this sentence.

"Ignorant."

The stall owner mocked him mercilessly.

"Fellow Daoist, may I know how you obtained this Cloud Leopard, and the story behind its pupils?"

Suddenly, a gentle voice sounded. The stall owner looked towards the source to find a handsome young man standing in front of the iron cage, his clear eyes looking directly at him.

"My companions and I went through great lengths to obtained this from deep within the Secret Land."

"The Cloud Leopard is a First Grade Spirit Beast, it moves rapidly and silently, has a great attack power. This juvenile beast is unlike a common Cloud Leopard, its pupils might have some special abilities once it grows up."

"What do you think?"

"How about thirty Spirit Stones?"

Lu Xuan, out of habit, cut down a large portion of the price.

"Hehe."

The stall owner crossed his arms over his chest, ignoring Lu Xuan's proposal.

"Dear friend, you say it's a different species of Cloud Leopard, but what's your basis for this? Just because of its green pupils?"

"You should know, different species of Demon Beasts are very rare, it's one in ten thousand for a First Grade Demon Beast."

"These green pupils could just be due to some stimuli during the development of the embryo, or affected by the unique spiritual energy environment, directly classifying it as a different species seems a bit too arbitrary."

"Besides, I can see that this Cloud Leopard Juvenile in your cage is not in a good condition, I assume it was injured quite seriously during your capture, and it's been trapped in the cage ever since, not receiving good treatment and rest."

"With its current condition, it's uncertain whether it can be raised successfully."

"Thirty-six Spirit Stones, no lower, please understand that we paid a huge price to catch this."

"Thirty-Two Spirit Stones, and I'll take it away."

Lu Xuan knew the stall owner had been convinced by his arguments. Plus, he had particularly taken a liking to this Cloud Leopard with green pupils, and relaxed the price a bit.

"Alright, I'll make you a special offer then."

After gritting his teeth, the stall owner agreed.

He was well aware that the chances of this being a different species were extremely low, and he was also afraid he couldn't keep it alive for long. Being able to profit more than half, compared to an ordinary Cloud Leopard Juvenile, was already a pretty good end result..

Chapter 33: Chapter 32 Body Says No

Lu Xuan handed over thirty-two Spirit Stones to the vendor, taking the Cloud Leopard juvenile beast with green pupils from him in exchange.

To prevent the little beast from escaping, the vendor also gave Lu Xuan a Black Rope, tied around the Cloud Leopard's neck.

With one hand holding on to the end of the rope and the other gently holding the Cloud Leopard, Lu Xuan left the market.

Before heading home, he also specifically visited the shop where he bought the Red-bearded Carp.

The Cloud Leopard juvenile beast was riddled with wounds, so it was necessary to heal it. This shop specialises in various spirit pets and also sells healing medicine for spirit beasts.

He bought a small bottle of ointment from the shop, took the Cloud Leopard, and returned to the courtyard.

"Good boy, don't move, I'll untie the rope right now."

While Lu Xuan gently comforted the Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast, he untied the Black Rope.

"From now on, this will be your home. Behave yourself and don't go out casually, or you'll be caught by those ill-intentioned bad guys." Lu Xuan scared the Cloud Leopard. The juvenile beast stared at Lu Xuan with its big green eyes, then turned its head to observe the situation indoors. Seeing that the Cloud Leopard was fairly obedient, Lu Xuan was slightly reassured, focusing his consciousness on its black fur.

A thought flashed through his mind.

"Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink, a first-grade Demon Beast, feeds on Demon Bird eggs and Demon Beast meat.

It possesses strange pupils which allow it to see things that are typically hard to notice. It can even see through falsities, revealing true nature."

"This really is a strange species of demon beast, these strange pupils seem to

hold something special."

Lu Xuan exclaimed.

Demon beasts are limited by their bloodline, their strength usually finds it difficult to surpass their own rank. However, this does not include the occasionally seen strange species of demon beasts.

They are far more mysterious than ordinary demon beasts, thus the possibility of breaking through the bloodline constraints is much greater.

"I am a solitary Civet from the North, roaming the boundless wilderness. Despite being covered in wounds, I still enjoy my solitude. Roar-"

This was the current state of Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink.

Lu Xuan looked at the injured but still proud Cloud Leopard and felt a little pity in his heart.

"Come on, let's apply this ointment first."

He pressed down on the head of Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink, gently clamped it with his leg, took out a small amount of ointment, and gently applied it to the Cloud Leopard's wounds.

In a short while, patches of ointment appeared on the originally black body of the Cloud Leopard, somewhat diminishing its attractiveness.

"OK, don't move around for the next few days to avoid interfering with the formation of scars. After applying the ointment a couple more times, it will be mostly healed."

Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink continued to gaze at Lu Xuan coldly.

"Come here, let me give you a rub."

Lu Xuan sensed the solitude from the Cloud Leopard's current state and got the idea to pet this big cat.

He beckoned to the Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink, but the short-tailed mink did not move an inch.

"Oh, not obeying yet."

Lu Xuan stretched out his hand, grabbed it over, stroked its head a few times, and tugged lightly on the clusters of grey-white fur on its pointed ears.

"Roar…"

As he summoned his consciousness to the Cloud Leopard, Lu Xuan seemed to hear a pleased growl from it.

Lowering his head, his eyes met the emotionless green pupils of Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink. It seemed like the thought was just an illusion in Lu Xuan's mind.

Lu Xuan couldn't help but chuckle softly, headed to the kitchen, cut off a piece of wind-dried porcupine meat, tore it into thin strips, and placed them in front of Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink.

"Here, have some porcupine meat. This is something even I don't dare to have often."

The Cloud Leopard, with its emerald eyes, first glanced at the strips of air-dried porcupine meat on the ground. It strolled over as if treading on tiny white clouds and elegantly stuffed a piece into its small mouth.

"Is it tasty?"

Lu Xuan asked quietly.

The Bi Jing Cloud Leopard continued to leisurely eat the porcupine meat on the ground, as if it were merely filling its belly.

However, Lu Xuan noticed its slightly retracted paws, the roundness of its emerald eyes, and the hairs on its ears standing on end.

His attention was entirely focused on it.

"Roar- Who would understand? Today I ate something called porcupine meat,

it really makes it easy for the civet to eat."

"Hahaha!"

Lu Xuan couldn't help but laugh. He had a great understanding of the Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast in front of him now.

On the surface, it seemed proud and aloof, but in fact, it needed love and warmth. It hid everything deep within its heart. If he wasn't able to monitor the real-time status of Spirit Plants and Beasts, he would have found it difficult to discover this characteristic.

"Your body is saying no, but your heart is saying yes, huh!

Lu Xuan laughed, reaching over and patting its head despite the Cloud Leopard Juvenile's resistance.

When the Bi Jing Cloud Leopard had almost finished eating, Lu Xuan went to the Spirit Field again and scooped up a bowl of Spiritual Spring water.

The Bi Jing Cloud Leopard sniffed at the Spirit Spring water and stuck out its pink tongue, lapping at the water lightly.

After it had eaten and drunk its fill, Lu Xuan took it to the Spirit Field.

"These are the Spirit Plants that I've cultivated, each one is very important. When you're playing in the yard, don't harm them, otherwise don't blame me for being unkind."

"Also, don't touch the Three-Tailed Red Whisker Carp in the Spiritual Spring Pool. If one day I find one less, I will hold you responsible.

The Bi Jing Cloud Leopard looked around the courtyard, its head unmoving.

Lu Xuan knew its actual thoughts were not as they appeared on the surface and took it back into the house.

After leaving the Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast to rest in the house, Lu Xuan went to the Spirit Field alone, checking all the Spirit Plants and catering to their every tiny need.

He then took out a handful of Spirit Rice and scattered it in the Spiritual Spring Pool. Only after the Red Whisker Carp had eaten all of it did he return home.

By this time, it was already dusk.

As soon as he entered the house, he saw the pair of emerald eyes of the Cloud Leopard Juvenile staring at him. As Lu Xuan came into view, it subtly shifted to one side.

"Come here, sleep in my bed."

Lu Xuan cultivated for multiple cycles before getting ready for bed after washing himself.

He looked at the Bi Jing Cloud Leopard, curled up not too far away, and felt the loneliness and cold inside its heart. He patted the side of his wooden bed, signaling it to jump up.

The Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast closed its eyes and did not move.

Lu Xuan had no choice but to let it be.

He blew out the candle, laid down, and closed his eyes to rest.

After a while, Lu Xuan opened his eyes, and the Cloud Leopard's luminous green eyes were staring back at him.

"This creature seems to be nocturnal. Could it be that it gets more excited as the night deepens?"

Muttering to himself, Lu Xuan got out of bed, picked up the Juvenile Beast from an uninjured spot, and without minding its struggles, put it directly onto one side of his bed.

"Behave yourself and rest!"

After giving this instruction, he closed his eyes.

Not long after, Lu Xuan's breath gradually became long and steady.

The Bi Jing Cloud Leopard felt the warmth emanating from Lu Xuan's side. It looked at Lu Xuan's sleeping face with its green eyes, flicked its short, stout tail, and gently closed its eyes..

Chapter 34: Chapter 33 Perfect Grade

Dawn had not yet broken.

"Roar ~ ~"

Lu Xuan was half-asleep when he suddenly heard a coarse roar.

He opened his eyes instantly, wide awake, and saw the Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink staring coldly at him from afar.

"Was that roar from you just now? That's a bit…"

"…contrasting, don't you think?"

As Lu Xuan gazed at the gracefully majestic Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast crouching quietly on the bed, he found it difficult to reconcile the graceful image before him with the coarse roar he had heard earlier.

"Could you roar again for me?"

Lu Xuan asked tentatively.

The Cloud Leopard overlooked him, lightly jumping down to the ground, as if stepping on four white clouds.

Helpless, Lu Xuan got up from bed and was about to wash up when he heard another dubious roar from behind him.

"Roar…"

The voice had an obvious tone of compromise. Lu Xuan imagined a brawny robust man trying his utmost to act cute, which seemed weirdly out of place.

"That was a lovely roar, but please don't do it again," Lu Xuan said casually.

After washing, he fed it a few dried porcupine meat strips.

He had established a simple master-servant bond with the Cloud Leopard

Juvenile Beast after purchasing it yesterday.

This contract assured a close connection between the two. Certain empathy was possible, and if the spirit pet intended to harm the cultivator, the cultivator would sense it immediately.

The bond's conditions and restrictions were fairly simple. The Beast Mastery Sect allegedly held a more complex blood pact, once established, a cultivator could determine the spirit pet's life or death in an instant. If the cultivator unexpectedly died, the spirit pet would follow suit.

After breakfast, Lu Xuan headed to the Spirit Field and surveyed every area. In the Spirit Spring Pool, the Pure Snow Lotus had already sprouted several delicate white leaves. It was growing proudly in the mist, marking its place uniquely in the world.

Lu Xuan watered them with the Spirit Rain Technique, which held an icy spiritual power, making the small lotus leaves appear even more pristine and cold.

A few Blood Jade Ginseng roots were misbehaving, trying to mingle while Lu

Xuan was resting during the night.

He even noticed two Jade-like Spirit Ginsengs converging toward a Blood Jade

Ginseng from two different directions.

"If I hadn't discovered you in time, wouldn't you three have been playing a 'triple-ginseng' game?" Lu Xuan mockingly remarked, using the Earth Pulling Technique to correct the positions of the deviated Blood Jade Ginsengs.

Five pine nuts within the Red Cloud Pine's thin, needle-like, red leaves had grown a bit larger, barely concealed and about to burst forth.

In the area planted with Spirit Firefly Grass, a hundred stems had entered their final maturity stage, each about a foot tall. Lu Xuan estimated that a few would yield a light cluster reward in the coming days.

After completing his inspection, he took several strange worms unearthed in the process and headed back to the edge of the Spirit Spring.

In the Spirit Spring Pool, a trio of Three-Tailed Red Whisker Carp swam around the Pure Snow Lotus, seemingly sensing some changes in the spiritual energy surrounding the lotus leaves.

■■This scene…to some extent, could be summarized by those four lines of

poetry."

"Fish play among lotus leaves in the east, the west, the south, and the north."

"The original poem implies thriving lotus leaves with fish appearing ceaselessly, whereas here in my Spirit Spring Pool, the Red Whisker Carp surround the Pure Snow Lotus, encompassing its four sides.'

Lu Xuan thought to himself before tossing a juicy worm into the Pool.

As soon as Lu Xuan approached the spring, the Three-Tailed Red Whisker Carp knew that food was about to descend. They each drew out a pair of long red whiskers and swam beneath Lu Xuan.

As soon as the worm was thrown in, six long whiskers shot out almost simultaneously, attacking it.

Suddenly, a black and white claw emerged from the edge of the spring, forcibly grabbing the six long red whiskers.

Under the pull of the paw, the body of the Red Whisker Carp jumped out of the shallow spring water.

Before Lu Xuan even had a chance to scold, the Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast quickly let go of its black and white paw, allowing the Three-Tailed Red Whisker Carp to fall back into the Spiritual Spring Pool uncontrollably.

After this, the Red Whisker Carp, which had continuously been using its delicate long red whiskers to fish for Strange Worms, became much more well-behaved. It no longer dared to fling out its whiskers in front of Lu Xuan. Only when the Strange Worms fell to the surface of the water would it go to snatch them up.

Lu Xuan glared at the Cloud Leopard juvenile, now nestled at the edge of the Spirit Spring Pool, deducing that the initiative to catch fish was its instinct, while its immediate release was in compliance with his instructions.

The Cloud Leopard ignored Lu Xuan, but its steps were stealthy as it prowled silently around the edge of the Spirit Spring Pool, ready to pounce at a moment's notice.

It seems that the Red Whisker Carp, having just suffered a huge loss, no longer dared to shoot out its red whiskers.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

The wounds on the Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink had all scabbed over, and four stalks of Spirit Firefly Grass in the Spirit Field had matured.

Perhaps the spiritual energy in the Spirit Field was purer and more abundant, coupled with the fact that Lu Xuan had taken great care of them since they were Spiritual Seeds, he was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the matured Spirit Firefly Grass.

Two of them were of Superior Quality and two of Perfect Grade.

After the four Spirit Firefly Grass were harvested, four flickering white light clusters were left in their original spots.

Lu Xuan picked up the light clusters one by one.

"Harvested a Spirit Firefly Grass, gained Nine Months of Cultivation."

"Harvested a Spirit Firefly Grass, gained One Year of Cultivation."

Two ideas flashed through Lu Xuan's mind.

The Spiritual Power in his body surged wildly within his meridians.

Lu Xuan operated his Cultivation Technique, controlling the flow of Spiritual Power within his body. Once it gradually calmed down, a smile appeared on his face, unable to be held back.

During this period, although he mainly focused on growing Spirit Plants, he still practiced hard in his spare time. However, the spiritual energy within his body could be said to be stagnant.

He wasn't in a hurry, his talent was there after all, and such a cultivation speed was normal.

More importantly, with Spirit Firefly Grass light cluster rewards, whether or not his Spiritual Power increased during his daily hard cultivation wasn't that important anymore.

Just like now, two Spirit Firefly Grass almost equaled two years of his hard cultivation.

"I've planted three batches of Spirit Firefly Grass so far. It's clear that the quality at maturity has a huge impact on the light cluster rewards." -From what I remember, the Ordinary Quality gives me Three Months Cultivation, the Good Quality gives me Six Months, the Superior Quality brings Nine Months, and the Perfect Grade provides a full year." Thinking this in his heart, he continues to pick up the third white light cluster. -Harvested a Spirit Firefly Grass, gained Wood Generation Technique."

A thought flashed through his mind.

"Wood Generation Technique, Wood-Based Technique. It can condense Wood energy, and to a certain degree, accelerate the growth of Spirit Plants."

"Finally, a new technique has dropped."

Following the Earth Pulling Technique and Golden Sword Technique, the light cluster from the Spirit Firefly Grass has presented a third technique.

This Wood Generation Technique is similar to the Earth Pulling Technique, both are rank-less techniques. They are not as powerful as the Golden Sword Technique but are more suitable for Lu Xuan.

"Just learned about this technique with its rather minimal ripening effects. If I absorb a few more Wood Generation Technique experience packages, I should be able to reduce the growth time of Spirit Plants considerably.

Lu Xuan secretly pondered this.

Finally, there is the last white light cluster, also brought by the Perfect Quality Spirit Firefly Grass.

The light cluster vanished, replaced by a talisman in Lu Xuan's hand.

The talisman's material was different from ordinary talismans, seemingly crafted from gold-iron alloy, with numerous small sword engravings on it. "Million Swords Qi Talisman, Second Grade Talisman. Activating it equals the full force attack of a High-tier Qi Cultivator, extremely strong offensive power."

"A Second Grade Talisman!"

Lu Xuan's heart surged with joy. The First and Second Grades fall under the scope of Qi Cultivation. Most First Grade Talismans equate to the full-force attack of a Lower Level Qi Cultivator, the better ones can reach the Mid-stage of Qi cultivation. Meanwhile, most Second Grade Talismans are the equivalent of a High-tier Qi Cultivator's attack.

For Lu Xuan at this moment, it's no less than a secret weapon..

Chapter 35: Chapter 34 Dyeing This Thing Green l

Lu Xuan tucked the Second-Grade Sword Qi Ten Thousand Talisman into his storage bag and happily returned to his room.

The Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast stared at him with its green eyes, looked at Lu Xuan who was grinning, moved its ears, and then laid down on the ground.

Lu Xuan could roughly guess what the Civet Juvenile was thinking without focusing his mind, walked over to it, and rubbed its fluffy head.

"Meow…"

It was another strained meow.

Unfortunately, its natural condition was evident, and despite its efforts, the grunt still made a gruff sound.

Lu Xuan couldn't help but secretly chuckle; he went into the kitchen, cut a piece of dried cactus meat, tore it into small strips, and placed them in front of the Civet Juvenile.

"The rewards from the perfect quality Spirit Firefly Grass are quite good. It seems that my path to meticulous cultivation has not been misguided."

"As for whether plants with ranks like the Red Cloud Pine and Sword Grass can be cultivated to perfect quality, I'm not sure. If that is possible, the rewards should be even more considerable."

"The possibility should be lower than that of Spirit Firefly Grass since their planting conditions are more complex, and it's challenging to make them perfect."

"I'll just do my best."

For the next few days, Lu Xuan stayed at home, cultivating spiritual plants, and raising Red-bearded Carp and Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink.

The Civet Juvenile maintained its cold and aloof temperament in front of Lu Xuan, but its true thoughts were often revealed through occasional glimpses into its inner state.

After the maturing of four Spirit Firefly Grasses which seemed to trigger a chain reaction, five more matured a few days later.

This batch was slightly lesser in quality compared to the first batch. Among the five that matured, one was of good quality, three were of superior quality, and only one was of perfect grade.

"Harvest one Spirit Firefly Grass, and gain nine months of cultivation."

Lu Xuan picked up a white light cluster that had appeared on the ground. Two thoughts flashed in his mind as he did so.

He immediately felt an outburst of powerful spiritual power in his body, wreaking havoc throughout his body.

He closed his eyes, operated his cultivation technique, and tried to control the surging spiritual power within him.

When the spiritual power eventually subsided, Lu Xuan opened his eyes, his eyes clear and radiant.

Now, having added another year and a half of cultivation, he could feel his spiritual power reaching the peak of the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer.

Next, as long as he diligently practiced cultivation and a few more Spirit Firefly Grass matured, he would be able to break through to the Qi Practicing Fifth Level.

"Harvest one Spirit Firefly Grass, and receive one first-grade Evil Banishing Talisman."

A talisman carrying an imprisoned evil ghost appeared in Lu Xuan's hand.

Lu Xuan put it into his storage bag, and began a new round of talisman accumulation.

"Harvest one Spirit Firefly Grass and receive the Wood Generation Technique."

The white light cluster entered his mind, and a thought surfaced. Lu Xuan gained an experience package of the Wood Generation Technique.

Immediately, concepts about the principles, execution process, and spiritual power control of the Wood Generation Technique flashed through his mind like a slideshow.

Lu Xuan's comprehension and control of the technique improved even more.

He had advanced from a beginner to proficient in the Wood Generation Technique.

Lu Xuan came to the Red Cloud Pine, operated his spiritual power, and a strand of spiritual power with a faint hint of green drifted into the slender pine leaves of the Red Cloud Pine.

In an instant, he felt the surrounding area of the Red Cloud Pine had a slight aggregation of wood-related spiritual power, full of vibrant vitality, integrating into the body of the spiritual plant.

With his mind focused on the Red Cloud Pine, even though there seemed to be no outward change, the faint woody spiritual power had stimulated growth in the Red Cloud Pine.

Lu Xuan tried out the Wood Generation Technique he just learnt from the experience package and then turned his attention to the last white light cluster.

This white light cluster was bestowed by the only perfect grade Spirit Firefly Grass, which made Lu Xuan have certain expectations for it.

"Harvested Spirit Firefly Grass one, gained Grass Spirit Elixir one drop."

This idea flashed through Lu Xuan's mind.

Suddenly, a drop of green liquid appeared in Lu Xuan's hand.

The liquid was droplet-shaped, about half the size of Lu Xuan's thumb, semi-solid, displaying a lush green color and emitting a vigorous breath of life.

"Grass Spirit Elixir, made from the essence of abundant plants, the elixir contained rich plant spiritual energy. It could be used to feed demon beasts that eat plant spiritual energy, or used in the refining of related elixirs, or fused into magic artifacts, formations, puppets, and other related treasures."

"Grass Spirit Elixir, it sounds quite good, but how should it be used?"

Lu Xuan held the trembling liquid in his hand, which could burst at any moment, and fell into contemplation.

"I got it! Isn't there a ready-made Grass Puppet available? It was refined from the special withered grass and is a woody treasure."

Lu Xuan turned his head and looked at the Grass Puppet that was guarding in the corner.

This Grass Puppet was a secondhand good that he had got from the Loose Cultivation Market. It was rumored to come from the Thousand Mechanism Sect, famous for their puppets, and was programmed with very simple behavior.

When outsiders or demon beasts invaded the spirit field, it would alert Lu Xuan and tried to bind the intruders.

When the Qi Practitioner Intermediate Level cultivator, Qin Ming, tried to sneak attack him, the Grass Puppet intercepted the deadly strike of the spear for Lu Xuan. It was indeed very useful.

"I usually feed you Broken Spirits, today I will feed you something different."

Lu Xuan walked to the Grass Puppet, bent down, and stuffed the Grass Spirit Elixir into the large withered grass lump on its head.

The originally gray lump visibly turned green at an astonishing speed.

"Huh, I just dyed this thing green for you."

Lu Xuan laughed softly, and when he saw that the Grass Puppet showed no reaction, he continued to inspect the spirit plants in the spirit field.

Half a day later, he returned to the corner of the yard and found that the green tint on the head of the Grass Puppet had faded a lot.

After absorbing the drop of Grass Spirit Elixir, there were significant changes in the Grass Puppet.

Before, it always stayed quietly in the corner of the spirit field. If there were no invaders in the spirit field, it would stay in place, motionless.

One was because it inherently lacked mobility, and second, it had no spiritual intelligence and could only perform a few simple instructions.

After digesting the Grass Spirit Elixir, Lu Xuan noticed it produced a trace of faint spiritual intelligence. It began to move its head from side to side of its own accord, observing its surroundings.

When Lu Xuan gave the order to patrol the spirit field, the Grass Puppet seemed to understand and slowly moved around at an extremely slow pace.

At the same time, the dried gray grass on its body also underwent more changes, becoming stronger. It could instantaneously shoot out numerous grass ropes, and also twist and condense a thicker and longer rope.

The only thing that did not change was, its reaction speed was still sluggish, it took quite a while to act after receiving Lu Xuan's instructions.

"Now that the spirit field is bigger, your task is more difficult. Remember to inspect the spirit field when you are free."

Lu Xuan gave a lengthy explanation to the Grass Puppet.

The Grass Puppet remained still, its disproportionately large head and gray grass-wrapped face gazing blankly at Lu Xuan.

When Lu Xuan disappeared from its sight, a faint green light seemed to flash in the gray grass. Then, the Grass Puppet stepped its thin grass legs one after the other, its gray grass head toppling a huge tumor that was still a bit green and walked slowly in the spirit field..

Chapter 36: Chapter 35: A Familiar Plot 1

The next day, Lu Xuan inspected the Spirit Field and then cultivated his spiritual plants using various lower-tier formula methods. He then watched as the Grass Puppet continued to move slowly within the field.

"You didn't just walk around in the Spirit Field all night, did you? Stop, stop." The Grass Puppet continued to slowly stretch out its straw-like legs.

It was only when Lu Xuan had returned to the house that it finally reacted and stopped, with its straw head turned towards the Spirit Field.

I m planning to go out for a while; do you want to come along?"

Lu Xuan said to the Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink lying on the floor after he entered the house.

"Meow…"

The Mink Juvenile Beast gave a low cry with a suppressed throat, looking indifferent as it walked to the doorway.

Seeing this, Lu Xuan knew that it was just playing hard to get and that it actually couldn't wait to come with him.

Sure enough, when he reached out to touch the Mink's fur, the Juvenile Beast made a symbolic struggle before obediently laying on Lu Xuan's shoulder.

Four white clouds clung to Lu Xuan's clothes like snow, with the Mink's pointed ears standing upright and its grayish-white fur fluttering in the wind. With the dwindling stock of Spirit Beast Meat and Spirit Rice at home, Lu Xuan planned to buy some at the market.

After feeding the Three-Tailed Red Whisker Carp and the Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink, the consumption of Spirit Beast Meat and Spirit Rice had greatly increased. Lu Xuan could only hope for better rewards from the light clusters when they matured to satisfy them.

As for the mature Nine Spiritual Firefly Grasses, he didn't plan to sell them to the 'Ba, Cao Tang' just yet. Instead, he kept them in the White Jade Box inside his storage bag, intending to deal with them once he had more.

After arriving at the market, as usual, Lu Xuan scanned around the various stalls, looking to obtain the unknown spiritual seeds, spirit beast eggs, or young beasts he wanted.

Unfortunately, he wasn't lucky enough to find them.

He calmly entered a shop and bought twenty pounds of the lowest grade Spirit Rice and five pounds of Demon Beast Meat, spending a total of over ten spirit stones.

After that, he had about eighty spirit stones left in his hand.

After putting the Spirit Rice and Demon Beast Meat into his storage bag, Lu Xuan was about to leave when suddenly, a huge demonic bird flew across the sky with its wings flapping.

The demonic bird's wingspan was around thirty feet, casting a large shadow on the ground.

"This is the Wang Family's third-rank demonic beast, the Iron-winged eagle. It has been raised for hundreds of years and has the strength equivalent to a Foundation Establishment first-term cultivator."

Looking like this, it's probably carrying a group of cultivators who are returning from a newly opened secret land."

In the market, a cultivator with profound knowledge said in a low voice.

Sure enough, not long after the Iron-winged eagle passed, a variety of demonic birds and flying boats successively flew over the market.

They finally landed in a spacious square hundreds of feet away.

Lu Xuan followed the crowd and watched from a distance.

"That's Wang Wenhong, a high-grade Qi practitioner. Among the young talents of the Wang Family, his cultivation is one of the highest. It's said that he was taken to the wilderness for trial."

One steady-looking youth walked out of the square with a crimson sword in

his hand, emitting a subtle killing aura as he walked.

"I wonder how the development of that new secret land is going? Do we loose cultivators have a chance to go in and get a share of the leftovers?"

"You, with your Qi Cultivation Second Layer, want to enter the new secret land' Not to mention the Wang Family and the loose cultivators who went to reclaim it would scrape the secret land clean; even if there is anything good left, you wouldn't be able to enter the gate of the secret land with your cultivation." "What have these cultivators from the Wang Family been encountering in the secret land? They all look so serious."

"There's no need to be suspicious. This is just a regular return for supplies and rest."

The loose cultivators in the market were abuzz with discussion, while Lu Xuan carefully observed from within the crowd.

In addition to a large group of cultivators from the Wang Family, there were also hundreds of loose cultivators who had returned.

Many loose cultivators didn't carry storage bags; their waists were bulging, showing that they had reaped significant gains.

Every loose cultivator seemed uneasy, showing signs of doubt, retrospect, and heaviness…

Lu Xuan took a quick glance around, but he didn't see Zhang Hong. However, he wasn't too worried about Zhang Hong's safety. After all, it hadn't been long since Zhang Hong's last return. Considering the long journey, he wouldn't waste time going back and forth easily.

He quietly withdrew from the crowd.

With so many cultivators coming back, he presumed that the market would flush out quite a few good items these next few days. He planned to keep a more vigilant watch.

Once back home, he carefully stored the spirit rice and demon beast meat he took out, warning the Cloud Leopard not to sneak into the kitchen for meat, otherwise he would leave it without any treats to eat.

In the afternoon, Wang Shan made a visit.

Right as he stepped in, the Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast's jade green eyes fiercely stared at him, growling in a low voice.

"Roar-!"

"This is a demonic beast that I bought from the market some time ago. Its wild nature is not yet tamed, I apologize if it disturbed you, Wang Fellow Daoist," Lu Xuan gently patted the Cloud Leopard's head, signalling it to quiet down as he spoke to Wang Shan with a smile.

"Not at all, Brother Lu has interesting tastes, keeping such a demon beast. However, the eyes of this Cloud Leopard indeed look out of the ordinary " Wang Shan remarked.

"Appearances can be deceiving, there's nothing extraordinary about it," Lu

Xuan replied casually.

"As for taming this little guy, I primarily intended it to guard the house Also living alone for long can get rather boring, so having something to accompany me is certainly better."

"Unlike you, Brother Wang, being constantly in the company of a gentle, fragrant and soft beauty, I daresay you're living in absolute bliss," Lu Xuan teased.

Having not seen each other in a while, Wang Shan's complexion seemed even more radiant than before.

"Hahaha!"

Wang Shan burst out laughing.

"I came here to give Little Brother Lu a friendly reminder."

"Hundreds, perhaps thousands of loose cultivators have returned from a newly discovered secret land in the wilderness, each carrying valuable items. Naturally, this will attract many coveters. This being their most sensitive period, conflicts tend to break out easily."

"Earlier today, two disputes already occurred in the North District, causing the death of three loose cultivators."

"In addition to that, the unpredictable demon envoys in the wilderness could potentially infiltrate the city along with them. Friend Lu, please be extra cautious."

"I appreciate the reminder, Wang Fellow Daoist," Lu Xuan replied gratefully.

No matter how tumultuous the outside world was, he was simply going to stay in his courtyard, cultivating spiritual plants.

If any cultivator dared to disrupt his peaceful farming life, he wouldn't let them off easily.

After a brief conversation, Wang Shan went on to patrol the various streets in the North District.

Lu Xuan firmly locked the door to his courtyard, isolating it from the outside through array formations.

Not long after, a soft voice resounded from outside the courtyard.

"Brother Lu, are you home?"

It was Wang Shan's concubine.

As Lu Xuan opened the courtyard door, the gorgeous Lady Wang quietly stood at the entrance. Her loose robe couldn't hide her curvy figure, her eyes cast downward. Seeing Lu Xuan emerge, she lifted her head, her moving eyes seemed to ripple like water, filled with grace and charm.

"Lady Wang, what brings you here?" Lu Xuan asked.

"Some strange noises have been emanating from my house. I'm scared being by myself. Could Brother Lu come help me check it out?" Lady Wang asked, her demeanor frail, reminiscent of a timid rabbit ready to bolt at any movement.

A strange smile formed on Lu Xuan's lips.

A newly wedded couple with the husband preoccupied with many duties leaving the wife at home with trouble arising and no other option but to seek the help of a young neighbor.

Why did this situation feel so familiar?

Chapter 37: Chapter 36 – The Female Practitioner Will

It was impossible for Lu Xuan to feel nothing when such a delicate female cultivator stood in front of him, inviting him home with the softest, most soothing voice.

He forcefully suppressed his eagerness, comforting Lady Wang.

"Sister-in-law, don't be afraid. Are you sure there have been strange noises in your house?"

"I've heard it more than once, a very eerie noise, it sounds terrifying. My heart's still pounding non-stop till now."

Lady Wang lowered her eyes, her slender, fair hand held against her chest.

Following her movement, Lu Xuan's gaze fell on a large expanse of plump, white skin.

"…Sister-in-law, are you testing a Spirit Plant Master with this?"

He muttered to himself internally and continued to question Lady Wang.

"Did Big Brother Wang leave you any protective magical artifacts or charms? Did he set up any defensive arrays in the courtyard?"

"Yes, everything is there."

Hearing the woman's words, Lu Xuan's eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"Since Big Brother Wang left you with protective magical artifacts and charms, as well as defensive arrays, why did you come looking for me?"

'You're at the Second Layer of Qi Cultivation, and I'm at the Third Layer. Plus, I'm just a Spirit Plant Master and not good at combat. Our strengths are about the same."

"I'm sorry I can't help you. I suggest either you go find Big Brother Wang, or you stay home and rely on the array and magic artifacts until Big Brother Wang returns."

Lu Xuan promptly said.

"But…I'm a weak woman, I'm scared to stay at home alone…Brother Lu…"

Lady Wang spoke timidly, her features looking vulnerable and helpless.

"Bang!"

The sound of the courtyard gate closing was her response.

Unwilling to give up, Lady Wang pleaded several more times outside the courtyard. Lu Xuan remained unmoved and directly entered his house.

Soon, the area outside the courtyard returned to peace.

Lu Xuan listened carefully and waited. When he was certain that there was no longer any sound, he finally relaxed.

He could not confirm the truth of Lady Wang's words.

If it was true, and there were strange noises at her house, entering it could potentially cause him to fall into dangerous circumstances. Besides, explaining the situation if Wang Shan returned and found them alone in a room would be difficult.

If her claims were false, then Lady Wang was either trying to seduce him or had nefarious intentions towards him.

Chances are, it was far more likely to be false. After all, it does not make sense that she did not seek help from her Fifth Layer Qi Practicing husband, but instead, sought help from a Third Layer Qi Practicing stranger.

"Huh, female practitioners!"

"They only disrupt my farming speed!"

Lu Xuan sneered, pushing the incident out of his mind.

The next two or three days were quiet and peaceful.

As Lu Xuan observed, both Wang Shan and Lady Wang had no abnormalities, and they did not come looking for him.

He did not know if they had successfully resolved the so-called weird noises, or if the whole thing was a fabrication.

With no one bothering him, Lu Xuan happily indulged in his leisure, cultivating spiritual plants daily and watching the Three-Tailed Red Whisker Carp scramble for Spirit Rice by the Spiritual Spring Pool.

From time to time, he played with the Cloud Leopard Juvenile Beast. The juvenile occasionally made sounds, still possessing a distinct, crude, and robust tone.

After a few days, under Lu Xuan's careful care, four more stalks of Spirit Firefly Grass matured completely.

Among them, two were of good quality, one was of superior quality, and one was of perfect quality.

According to the growth of the thirteen mature Spirit Firefly Grass plants, Lu Xuan also realized that achieving Spirit Firefly Grass of perfect quality isn't an easy task.

He believes he has done his utmost care and cultivation, but the probability of achieving perfect quality is still quite low.

Four Spirit Firefly Grass plants generated four slightly flickering white light clusters.

"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass, gaining six months of cultivation progress."

With that thought flashing by, Lu Xuan's spiritual power rose sharply, making his cultivation at the Fifth Level of Qi even more stable.

"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass, obtaining the First Grade Explosive Flame Talisman."

As he absorbed the white light cluster, a thought flashed through Lu Xuan's mind.

A red talisman appeared in his hand, the talisman was painted with strange patterns, looking like a burning flame, holding it gave a slight burning sensation.

Lu Xuan put it into his storage bag.

He always welcomed more talismans. Even though a first-grade talisman was only equivalent to the attack of a lower or middle-level qi cultivator and had limited lethality, if there were enough of them and used together, the effect would be extraordinary.

During the previous sneak attack from Qin Ming at the Fourth Level of Qi Cultivation, the numerous talismans he had accumulated played a vital role.

"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass, gaining the Earth Pulling Technique."

Thoughts flashed through his mind, and Lu Xuan's understanding of Earth Pulling Technique in terms of principles, casting speed, and control deepened as if he had practiced it hundreds of thousands of times in an instant.

He vaguely felt that his mastery of the Earth Pulling Technique had reached a grand completion stage.

He could accurately change the terrain, even to the size of sand and gravel, and if spiritual power was sufficient, he could even cause crustal movements.

The charms and methods brought by the two superior quality plants were as expected by Lu Xuan.

He looked down at the last white light cluster. This cluster was left by the Spirit Firefly Grass of perfect quality, and Lu Xuan had great expectations for it.

"Harvesting one Spirit Firefly Grass, gain a First Grade Treasure, Thunder Fire Pearl."

As the white light cluster disappeared, a bead about the size of a baby's fist appeared in front of Lu Xuan.

The bead was fire-red, with many dark red patterns on the surface, and a faint flash of lightning could be seen inside.

"The Thunder Fire Pearl, a first-grade treasure, can burst with the force of raging thunder-fire when used."

"The use of the thunder-fire power inside the bead is limited. Once depleted, it can be recharged in some special wind power environments."

"A consumable treasure that can be charged with thunder and fire power, but it looks challenging to find a suitable place to charge."

Lu Xuan looked at the Thunder Fire Pearl in the palm of his hand and thought to himself.

This Thunder Fire Pearl isn't like a usual magic artifact, durable and long-lasting. Although it's consumable, it's different from one-off talismans, as it can be used more times and recharged for repeated use.

That is what makes it much more superior in value compared to talismans of the same rank.

"As expected from a Spirit Plant of perfect quality, a grade-less Spirit Firefly Grass. A treasure such as this is obtained from the cluster inside."

The previous First Grade Slivered Blade was collected after opening numerous Moon Erosion Fruits. The Thunder Fire Pearl in front of him is slightly inferior in value to the Slivered Blade, yet it came from just one mature Spirit Firefly Grass.

This shows the importance of acquiring a Spirit Plant of perfect quality.

In this batch of mature Spirit Firefly Grass, Lu Xuan only got four of perfect quality.

Among them, one gave him a year of cultivation progress, one gave him a Second Grade Sword Qi Talisman, one gave him the Grass Spirit Elixir which was filled with the essence of grass and trees.

The latest one did not disappoint, revealing a Thunder Fire Pearl.

Compared to other qualities of maturing Spirit Firefly Grass, the acquired cultivation progress varies between three, six and nine months depending on the quality, whilst other items primarily consist of First Grade Talismans and low-grade techniques, the best of which is the First Grade Technique, the Golden Sword Technique.

"I must work harder on farming, not for the sake of any perfect level rewards."

"I just want to experience the heavy harvest that comes after hard work."

Lu Xuan put the Thunder Fire Pearl into his storage bag, his resolve unyielding..

Chapter 38: Chapter 37 Sneaky Level Evil Invasion

Thirteen mature Spirit Firefly Grass plants were ready, and any longer on the vine might result in loss of vitality and damage to their quality.

Lu Xuan planned to hand these thirteen plants over to the Bai Cao Tang, and take the opportunity to shop for suitable Spirit Seeds and young beasts at the market.

"Little guy, do you want to come with me?"

Before Lu Xuan's words fell, he felt a slight sinking sensation on his right shoulder. Turning his head, he saw the crisp emerald eyes of a Mysterious Cloud-Civet whose cloud-like paws were lightly stepping on his shoulder.

A couple of aquamarine eyes stared straight ahead, coldly observing the front, seemingly reluctant to acknowledge the turned face of Lu Xuan.

Lu Xuan focused his spirit on its body, quickly understanding the excitable feelings inside the young civet's heart.

He didn't find it surprising. After a light laugh, he instructed the now back-to-normal Grass Puppet to take extra good care of the Spirit Field before he took the Cloud-Civet to the market with him.

In the market, there was a noticeable increase in the number of Loose Cultivators compared to before.

The countless materials and Spiritual Medicine that were brought back from the new Secret Land attracted many Cultivators to enter the market.

New and unique items appeared on the stalls, Lu Xuan leisurely strolled around, looking for something that caught his interest.

Suddenly, a group of Cultivators about ten yards away caught his attention.

These Cultivators wore standard Daoist robes. Lu Xuan recognized at a glance that they were Patrol Guards from Linyang Market.

A few Qi Practitioners at the intermediate level were using a black rope to encircle an area, where quite a few strange charms were attached. Within this circle, there was a scorch mark.

Lu Xuan observed a Patrol Guard tossing an Evil Banishing Talisman into the circle. A pure white light flashed, emitting a peaceful sentiment.

At the appearance of the white light, the other guards nervously watched the open space. Only after the white light gradually disappeared did they slightly relax.

Lu Xuan, led by curiosity, moved closer to the crowd and quickly got some information.

"These Patrol Guards are indeed diligent, guarding the place where the Strange Class Cultivator died a day ago, to prevent Evil Spirits from appearing."

"There's no help for it. Everyone knows the horror of Evil Spirits. Better safe than sorry."

"In the North District, at least ten cultivators have died, either attacked and tainted by the Evil Spirits and transformed into monsters or killed by these transformed monsters."

"Don't know if you guys have heard, but rumor has it the large number of Evil Spirits appearing this time in the market has a lot to do with the Wang Family."

"The rumor says they broke open a new formation and stirred up a Trick Level Evil Spirit in the Secret Land, which then followed them back."

"Be prudent with your words, this isn't something we Lower Level Loose Qi Cultivators can discuss at will, lest they bring bad luck."

"What we can do now is just think about how to survive this Evil Spirit invasion."

As the discussion gradually subsided, they slowly moved on to new topics.

"Cultivators transformed to death, Trick Level Evil Spirit Invasion?"

Lu Xuan vaguely picked up two key words.

"I didn't expect so much to happen in just the few days I didn't leave the house."

"Trick Level Evil Spirit…"

He felt a heaviness in his heart.

The classification of Evil Spirits was different from Demon Beasts, divided into four ranks: Strange Class, Trick Level, Disaster Level, and Catastrophe Level.

A Strange Class Evil Spirit already possessed strange and extraordinary abilities, akin to a Qi-Cultivator. A Trick Level Evil Spirit possessed inscrutable abilities, generally comparable to a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Even though the Wang Family and other powers in the market were up front, if a regular Loose Cultivator was slightly affected by it, it would result in their death.

With a little attention, Lu Xuan observed that influenced by this rumour, the prices of charms such as Evil Banishing Talismans and Demon Warding Talismans in the market had risen a lot.

"Quickly take a look around the market, if there's none, go to 'Bai Cao Tang' at the fastest speed, deal with these dozen or so Spirit Firefly Grass, and immediately go home," Lu Xuan made up his mind on the spot. As the market became increasingly unstable and unsafe, he planned to stay in the courtyard as much as possible, accompanied by spiritual plants and spirit pets.

Just as he quickened his pace, Lu Xuan suddenly felt his shoulder where the Cloud Leopard was resting become a few pounds heavier.

He turned his head and saw the civet juvenile staring coldly ahead, issuing that strange low growl from its mouth.

"It's making an actual sound. Did it detect something?"

Seeing the civet behave oddly, Lu Xuan slowed down.

The civet's posture made Lu Xuan recall its actions when it lurked at the edge of the Spiritual Spring Pool, ambushing the Red-bearded Carp. This posture meant that the Cloud Leopard entered into attack mode.

"Those strange eyes of the civet seem to be able to see something that's usually hard to detect," Lu Xuan thought, remembering the information he'd received about it when he first started raising the Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink.

At this thought, he was suddenly startled. The Slivered Silver Blade on his waist emitted a faint hum, and a Second-Grade Sword Qi Ten Thousand Talisman quietly slid into his sleeve.

"According to my usual behavior and the direction the Cloud Leopard is looking at, the most likely spot a problem would occur is directly in front," he thought.

His expression unchanged, he naturally stopped at the nearest stall, casually pointed at a piece of merchandise, and quietly asked the stall owner about the price.

His body was actually tensed, with his attention entirely on the cultivators around.

"Too expensive, I don't want it," He disregarded the vendor's response, casually leaving a comment and intending to retreat along the same path.

Suddenly, a Loose Cultivator standing two or three feet ahead of him grunted. In an instant, various small and large cracks appeared on his face and neck. Countless red buds shot out from the cracks at a rapid pace, growing rapidly. In a blink of an eye, they became blood-red tentacles, madly attacking cultivators nearby.

"Ah!"

A cultivator near him failed to react, and his head was pierced by a blood-red tentacle.

The moment the red buds appeared, Lu Xuan moved backwards urgently. With a Swift Talisman attached to each of his legs, he was as swift as the wind and floated back.

The surrounding cultivators released all their skills. For a moment, Formula Methods, Magic Artifacts, and Talismans flew everywhere.

The blood-red tentacles grew rapidly, appearing to cover a radius of ten to twenty feet.

Lu Xuan soared out like an arrow, leaving several cultivators behind. Suddenly, a high earth wall appeared in front of him and a few others, blocking Lu Xuan from view.

The moment the earth wall appeared, Lu Xuan noticed a sneering cultivator in the front.

"A bunch of fools, it doesn't matter if I can't outrun the Demon Envoy. As long as I run faster than you guys, I'll be safe," the loose cultivator who had cast the earth wall felt incredibly clever.

Lu Xuan quickly went around the earth wall. The Loose Cultivator had managed to run quite a distance due to the momentary delay.

Feeling frustrated at being used as a human shield, Lu Xuan mobilized his Spiritual Power. He instantaneously released the grand-mastery level Golden Sword Technique, and a golden ray, like lightning amidst chaos, struck the Loose Cultivator's leg precisely, causing blood to gush out and leaving a huge hole in his lower leg.

The Loose Cultivator let out a wailing cry. Reeling in pain, he couldn't help but stop.

Lu Xuan silently passed by him.

"You wanted to see who runs faster? Now I've made it so you can't run at all."

He looked back to see several blood-red tentacles, like giant pythons, attacking the loose cultivator lying on the ground..

Chapter 39: Chapter 38 – Spiritual Seeds like Smoke and Fog

The reaction speed of the patrol guards in the market was very swift. When the blood-red tentacles were wreaking havoc everywhere, a luminescent green seed was shot out like an arrow, landing around the tentacles.

In an instant, thick vines sprouted from the ground, growing and extending rapidly, continuously splitting and tightly wrapping around the blood-red tentacles.

The blood-red tentacles struggled desperately, wrestling with the robust vines.

In the sky, a crisp birdcall sounded.

Upon hearing the sound, Lu Xuan looked up to see a huge firebird floating in the air. Its wings spread out at least forty to fifty feet, and every flap generated waves of heat.

Immediately, it turned into a red light, surging towards the Metamorphosis Cultivator who had sprouted numerous tentacles.

Wherever it passed, the ground was scorched into black charcoal.

"Ah…."

The Metamorphosis Cultivator, whose body was occupied by the tentacles, let out a painful howl and turned into black ash in the raging fire.

The fire climbed up along the roots of the tentacles, fiercely burning the blood-red tentacles that had spread out everywhere.

On the ground were broken tentacles writhing everywhere, seemingly wanting to invade the bodies of the other cultivators again.

However, the damage caused by the fire was too significant. All the tentacles were burnt to a cinder.

Immediately, a pure white aura emanated from the remains of the Metamorphosis Cultivator, radiating in all directions.

Lu Xuan, as well as the other cultivators in the distance, felt a sense of peace and tranquility as the aura swept over them.

"One can only say that this cultivator turned at the wrong time. Thankfully, there were several Middle-Stage Qi Practitioners patrolling and guarding here. Otherwise, he could've caused a huge commotion among the many Loose Cultivators in the market," Lu Xuan thought, looking at the several Middle-Stage Qi Practitioners who had just been checking the remnants of the Metamorphosis Cultivator for any residual demonic energy. They quickly teamed up to personally eliminate a cultivator who had been contaminated by the demonic forces.

The method was simple and effective. First, the vines temporarily restrained the tentacles to prevent further casualties, then gave their comrades a brief window to employ powerful Formula Methods. The firebird completely incinerated the Metamorphosis Cultivator, followed by a purification technique to inspect the remains of the cultivator and the surrounding Loose Cultivators.

"No wonder they are the patrol guards of the market. Their cooperation is smooth and natural," Lu Xuan thought. With his Grand-mastery Gold Sword Technique, First Grade Special Magical Tool Split Silver Blade, the Second Grade Sword Qi Talisman (equivalent to a full blow from a High-tier Qi Cultivator), and his newly acquired Thunder Fire Pearl, he could have easily dealt with the Metamorphosis Cultivator.

It just wouldn't have been as clean and neat.

"It seems I have to work hard to grow spiritual plants and add as many means to myself as possible," he decided in his heart.

The entire process, from the cultivator's transformation to successful resolution, was extremely short. After a brief chaos in the Loose Cultivation Market, order was restored quickly, as if the Metamorphosis Cultivator had never appeared.

However, the large patch of burnt ground left behind and the corpses of three cultivators attacked by the tentacles reminded everyone present of what just happened.

Among the three was the cultivator who tried to block Lu Xuan with an earth wall. He had been impeded after Lu Xuan used the Golden Sword Technique to pierce his calf and was killed by the blood-red tentacles.

Lu Xuan felt no pity for this. He brought all this on himself. If he hadn't tried to block the tentacles with Lu Xuan, he wouldn't have been targeted.

After this small incident in the market, Lu Xuan no longer felt like leisurely strolling around. He randomly chose a road and headed to 'Bai Cao Tang'.

'Bai Cao Tang' wasn't far from the Loose Cultivation Market. You could see the store just after turning a few corners.

"Hmm?"

Suddenly, Lu Xuan stopped. His gaze was drawn to a wooden board at a nearby stall.

Eight black characters were written on the board.

"Special spiritual seeds, for sale at a low price."

Lu Xuan scanned the goods on the stall, but he didn't see anything related to spiritual seeds.

"May I ask, fellow Daoist, what are the 'special spiritual seeds' mentioned on your board? Could you show them to me?"

"Ah, here it is,"

The merchant was a middle-aged 'Qi Practitioner Intermediate Level', upon hearing Lu Xuan's inquiry, he pointed to an item on the stall.

The item had an oval shape and was faintly white. If you didn't pay close attention, you would easily overlook it. Inside was a wisp of smoke, constantly changing form and transforming into all kinds of bizarre shapes.

"Is this a spiritual seed? You wouldn't be deceiving me, would you?"

Lu Xuan asked curiously. This object that was constantly changing like smoke made it difficult for him to associate it with a spiritual seed.

"Honestly, I'm not entirely sure if it's a spiritual seed."

"After returning, I consulted with a few of my Spirit Plant Master friends and they weren't able to confirm if its a spiritual seed after taking a look." "However, when I found it, it was within a withered Spirit Plant. It's possible that the Spirit Plant had matured and no one harvested it. As a result, all of its essence condensed to form this spiritual seed."

"My words are truthful. If you sincerely want to buy it, I can swear an oath to what I just said."

Lu Xuan stroked his chin, falling into deep thought.

The shopkeeper was willing to make an oath, which convinced him somewhat. There were various types of oaths between cultivators. If they were broken, one could even face the risk of death.

The way the spiritual seed had condensed didn't surprise him. When a wild Spirit Plant matured, some of them continued to grow, others naturally withered away, and some, due to a combination of circumstances, would condense into a spiritual seed, carrying on in a different form.

Although he didn't know what this item in front of him was, judging by its mystic shape, it was likely to be a rare and unusual spiritual seed.

"If you really can make a Heart Demon Oath, I might be somewhat interested. How much do you wish to sell it for?"

Lu Xuan asked the shopkeeper.

"I spent a lot of time and effort to obtain this spiritual seed from a new Secret Land. If you want it, you can have it for fifteen spirit stones."

The shopkeeper was pleasantly surprised when he saw that Lu Xuan was genuinely interested.

This item could indeed be a spiritual seed, but during his few days at the Loose Cultivation Market, only a few people had asked about it and then they were scared off by the price.

After all, buying an unknown category, with an unknown planting method spiritual seed for fifteen spirit stones was exorbitantly expensive.

Lu Xuan, being subtle, caught the change in the shopkeeper's expression and slowly sighed.

"My friend, aren't you being a bit too ruthless with your price? For an item which we still can't confirm as a spiritual seed, yet you're asking for a price far higher than a first-grade spiritual seed. With fifteen spirit stones, I could buy three to four first-grade spiritual seeds."

He shook his head continuously, seeming to be dissatisfied with the price.

"Then, how much do you propose?"

"Seven spirit stones, and I'll take it off your hands immediately. This price is already quite higher than an ordinary first-grade spiritual seed."

Lu Xuan cut the price by more than half right away.

"No! At least ten spirit stones. Look at its magic shape, it's likely to be a second-rank or even higher spiritual seed."

The shopkeeper argued, his face reddened.

"A second-rank spiritual seed, when I don't know how to plant it, is of what use exactly? Should I keep it in the storage bag and let it waste away?"

Lu Xuan countered.

"Alright, I am willing to take a loss. Eight spirit stones. That's all the spirit stones I have on me. I can't afford any more."

"And add another fifty Broken Spirit, then it's all yours."

The shopkeeper gritted his teeth and said.

"Deal!"

Lu Xuan promptly agreed..

Chapter 40: Chapter 39 The Quality of This Batch of Goods is Good 1

The two reached an agreement, and Lu Xuan, the booth owner, made a vow. He gave him 8 spirit stones and 50 fragments in exchange for the spiritual seed with wispy smoke.

With the transaction complete, he felt delighted as he made his way to Bai Cao Tang.

Manager He saw him from afar and jogged over.

"You little fellow, why are you here today?"

"I heard there was a Metamorphosis Cultivator at the Loose Cultivation Market who caused several casualties, you didn't run into him, did you?"

Once he had Lu Xuan safely in Bai Cao Tang, he relaxed slightly.

"Unfortunately, I did encounter him, but I managed to escape in time and was not affected."

Lu Xuan replied.

"I don't know whether to say you're lucky or unlucky. It's rare for you to come out, and you end up running into this dangerous situation. It's good that you did not get hurt."

The thin old man sighed.

"In a short time, the market has become extremely unstable, cultivators are dying everywhere, and the demons keep appearing."

"You might as well become a full-time Spirit Plant Master at the hall. Once you're in, you'll be protected by high-grade Qi Practitioners, and you won't have to worry about similar incidents happening again."

Manager He extended an invitation to Lu Xuan again, trying to persuade him to join Bai Cao Tang and be under the protection of the higher rank cultivators of the hall.

Lu Xuan knew Manager He meant well, and he was worried about his safety but the cultivation of Spirit Field Spirit Plants involved too much. He did not want to be dependent on others and be restricted in every way.

"Manager He, I appreciate your kindness. But I'm used to freedom and lazy to be tied down by various rules. I'll just stay in my yard."

"Anyway, I hardly ever go out. I just want to stay at home and grow spiritual plants peacefully. That should help me avoid most of the dangers."

"Fine, do as you wish then. You came here today because your Spirit Firefly Grasses have matured, right?"

Seeing that Lu Xuan had made up his mind, the thin old man did not try to persuade him further. He changed the topic and asked him.

"Exactly, 13 Spirit Firefly Grasses have already matured early. Why don't you, respected elder, check it out and see the quality?"

Lu Xuan said with a light laugh.

"Judging by your triumph, I'm guessing it's good quality. Bring it out for this old man to see."

Curious at Lu Xuan's expression, Manager He asked him to show the plants. With a flicker of his thoughts, Lu Xuan pulled out thirteen Spirit Firefly Grasses from his storage bag and placed them in front of Manager He. "Superior Quality Spirit Firefly Grass."

"Another Superior Quality."

"What? This one is… Perfect Quality?"

The thin old man looked up, surprised, and stared at Lu Xuan, with an expression of surprise in his eyes.

He regained his composure and focused on the Spirit Firefly Grass in front of him.

"This one is Good Quality."

"Superior Quality."

"Perfect Quality again?"

Over time, the appearance of four Perfect Quality Spirit Firefly Grasses turned Manager He's initial shock into numbness.

The quality of this batch is very good."

"Unexpectedly, you can actually cultivate Perfect Quality Spirit Firefly Grass. I'm a bit surprised."

Out of the thirteen Spirit Firefly Grasses, four were of Perfect Quality The thin old man remembered that even the experienced senior Spirit Plant Masters in Bai Cao Tang were not sure they could achieve this ratio.

Especially considering that Bai Cao Tang has richer and purer spiritual energy in their spirit fields.

Wouldn't Lu Xuan's chances of producing Perfect Quality Spirit Firefly Grass be even greater if he planted in Bai Cao Tang's fields?

With this thought, he couldn't help but sigh deeply. If his earlier invitation was out of concern for Lu Xuan's safety, then now he regretted that Bai Cao Tang was unable to have such a talented Spirit Plant Master as Lu Xuan.

"I was just lucky. My success is simply because I devote the time others use for cultivation to growing my spirit plants," Lu Xuan laughed and said.

"Haha, every effort will be rewarded," Manager He laughed heartily. "Come, let's settle the accounts! The purchase price is the same as before, three spirit stones and fifty fragments for each Good Quality one, an extra twenty spirit fragments for each Superior Quality and four spirit stones each for ones of Perfect Quality."

"The total is… forty-eight spirit stones and seventy spirit fragments."

Lu Xuan calculated and confirmed it was correct, then accepted the spirit stones handed to him by the thin old man.

With this, his wealth again exceeded a hundred, with more than a hundred and twenty spirit stones in hand.

Although Bai Cao Tang provided Lu Xuan with Spirit Firefly Grass seeds at a price 10-20 percent lower than the market, the purchase price for matured Spirit Plants was at market rate according to their agreement.

Bai Cao Tang offered the Spirit Seeds to Lu Xuan and other spirit plant cultivators at a low price in exchange for the right of first refusal once the spiritual medicines matured.

In other words, they sacrificed some profit from the spirit seeds to secure a steady and high-quality supply of spiritual medicine.

"If the Spirit Firefly Grass you bring in the future maintains this quality, 1 can put in a good word for you in front of the young lady and apply for other first grade and even second-grade spiritual seeds for you," Manager He told Lu Xuan seriously.

Second grade Spiritual Seeds?" Lu Xuan said, somewhat surprised. When he came last time, because they had just established a cooperative relationship, and he hadn't had an impressive track record, the young female cultivator in charge of Bai Cao Tang didn't trust him fully. Thus, she only provided him with a hundred Spirit Firefly Grass seeds and twenty Blood Jade Ginseng Spirit Seeds.

"You can rely on the quality. As for the rest, I will trouble you, respected elder.

I'll bring you a bag of spirit tea leaves another day," he said gratefully to the thin old man.

"That won't be necessary. If you can cultivate high-quality spiritual medicines for the hall, I, as the recommender, will naturally benefit as well," Manager He said with a smile.

After selling the Spirit Firefly Grass, Lu Xuan was careful to keep alert on his way back home without lingering at the Hall. On arriving home, he closed the door, activated the formation, and took out an Evil Banishing Talisman from his storage bag.

Under his spiritual power, a pure white light appeared. It scanned around Lu

Xuan, but detected nothing amiss.

Only then did Lu Xuan relax completely and settle down the Cloud Leopard who had been quietly resting on his shoulder.

"You did a good job today. Thanks to your warning, I'll reward you with two dried pork sticks later."

If it weren't for the Cloud Leopard's green eyes that detected something wrong at the Loose Cultivation Market, even with his talismans and charm, Lu Xuan might have been injured.

Thinking about this, he gently stroked the two small tufts of fur on the Cloud

Leopard's ear tips and spoke softly.

The Cloud Leopard looked at Lu Xuan with its pale green eyes, letting him stroke its head.

"Rawr- Dried meat, my favorite-"

Lu Xuan imagined a lively and cute spirit inside the Cloud leopard's cold and aloof body, jumping around excitedly, its four little fluffy paws skimming over the clouds.

But as soon as he remembered the Cloud Leopard's hoarse roar, the small figure inside its body instantly disappeared.

"Rawr-"

Feeling the hand on its head stop moving, the Bi Jing Cloud Treading Mink tried to make a low sound..

Chapter 41: Chapter 40 Phantom Smoke Luo Fruit l

After rewarding the Cloud Leopard, Lu Xuan took out the mist-like special spiritual seed from his storage bag.

He found a vacant area in his Spirit Field, used the Earth Pulling Technique so that the spirit soil formed a suitable crack, and placed the misty spiritual seed into it.

Then, his spiritual sense converged on the seed within the spirit soil.

An idea appeared in his mind.

"Phantom Smoke Fruit, a third-grade Spirit Plant. Once matured, its spirit fruit can quicken the speed of Illusion Technique cultivation and enhance the power of formula methods."

"It can also be used to feed demon beasts with related abilities or concoct certain special elixirs."

"During the growth process of the Spirit Plant, it will continuously produce smoke. After a long period, it may even form a low-level Illusion Realm, with the Spirit Plant hiding within it, making its location difficult to discern."

"I am right before your eyes, why can't you find me?"

Details about the spiritual seed and its current state flashed through Lu Xuan's mind.

"A third-grade spirit plant, I've hit the jackpot this time!"

Lu Xuan happily processed the information that appeared in his mind.

A Third Grade, that would be entering the Foundation Establishment Category.

Up until now, the best Spirit Plants in the Spirit Field are two second grade ones, which are Sword Grass and Dark Marrow Mushroom.

Other Spirit Plants like the Blood Jade Ginseng, Red Cloud Pine, and Pure Snow Lotus are first grade, and there are even dozens of Spontaneous Grass which are of no rank.

The two second-grade spirit plants and the Phantom Smoke Fruit were acquired in the same way. They are unknown spiritual seeds that were screened out and successfully planted with the assistance of information revealed by their current states.

If it wasn't for this magical ability, even if he acquired unknown spiritual seeds, he would be at a loss, not knowing what to do.

After implanting the Phantom Smoke Fruit spiritual seed, Lu Xuan's spiritual sense perceives threads of extremely faint smoke seeping out of the seed, too faint for the naked eye to see clearly.

"Once it grows a bit bigger and produces more smoke, it will probably play hide and seek with me, but since I can see the real-time state of the Spirit Plant, I don't need to worry about not finding it."

Lu Xuan used the Spirit Rain Technique towards the spiritual seed, secretly considering this.

After planting the Phantom Smoke Fruit spiritual seed and learning its characteristics, Lu Xuan went to other areas in the Spirit Field to examine the growth conditions of the various Spirit Plants.

In the Red Cloud Pine, the size of the five pine nuts has grown by a bit, steadily approaching maturity.

Lu Xuan held considerable expectations for this first-grade Spirit Plant. He didn't know what kind of light cluster reward a first-grade Spirit Plant like the Spirit Firefly Grass or Moon Erosion Fruit, which were of no rank, could bring.

The Sword Grass and Dark Marrow Mushroom are also growing well, but it seems that they are still a long way from maturity.

The spirit soil around the Sword Grass has been plowed into many small trenches by the sword intent, making it even more edgy.

The dark red hyphae extended from the Dark Marrow Mushroom has thoroughly enveloped the decayed spiritual wood, absorbing nutrients from the decayed wood at a noticeably faster speed than before. Lu Xuan estimated it wouldn't take long before he would need to replace the decayed wood again.

The Pure Snow Lotus is proud and upright in the Spiritual Spring Pond; several pieces of its leaves, pure as jade, have quietly bloomed unlike their tender state when they just sprouted.

After more than ten Spirit Firefly Grass matured initially, they rapidly entered the fast maturing stage.

Lu Xuan examined them all and collected ten completely mature Spirit Firefly Grass.

The remaining dozens can also be picked, but they have not fully matured. Afraid to impact the light cluster rewards, Lu Xuan decided to leave them be for now.

Among the ten Spirit Firefly Grass, two were of perfect grade quality, five of good quality, and three of superior quality.

"Harvest a Spirit Firefly Grass, earn six months of cultivation progress."*!

"Harvest a Spirit Firefly Grass, earn nine months of cultivation progress."

"Harvest a Spirit Firefly Grass, earn a year of cultivation progress."

Among the ten, four white light clusters brought cultivational progress rewards.

One wave after another, spiritual power soared in Lu Xuan's body. He quickly circulated it, controlling the spiritual power until it gradually subsided.

"An increase of nearly three years worth of cultivation in an instant, farming is indeed fascinating…"

Lu Xuan sighed leisurely.

"Harvest a Spirit Firefly Grass, earn a First Grade Talisman Sword Qi."*3

"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, obtained a First Grade Evil Banishing Talisman."

"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, obtained the Wood Generation Technique."

Four talismans successively appeared in Lu Xuan's hand.

Though a First Grade Talisman is only effective against mid- to lower-level Qi Cultivators, and will hardly threaten high-level Qi Cultivators, with enough quantity and power, it's not impossible to eliminate a high-level Qi Cultivator.

After absorbing the White Light Group containing the Wood Generation Technique, Lu Xuan's understanding of it deepened, as if he had used it hundreds of times in an instant, he could now perform with more ease and grace.

The last White Light Group was left by a piece of Perfect Grade Spirit Firefly Grass.

Lu Xuan picked it up and the Light Group turned into countless points of light, pouring into his Spiritual Sense.

Suddenly, a thought emerged from his Spiritual Sense.

"Harvested one Spirit Firefly Grass, obtained a prescription for the First Grade Qi-Nourishing Pill."

"Another elixir recipe."

Lu Xuan savored the information of the elixir recipe appearing in his mind, and instantly grasped the method of its concoction.

The types of materials, their quantity, how to process them, how to control the fire, the exact time to take out of the furnace…

Although he has yet to practice, he already has extensive experience in refining this First Grade Qi-Nourishing Pill.

"Added to the previous Yuan Cultivating Pill recipe, I now have two elixir recipes."

"If I manage to absorb another Light Group that has an elixir recipe, to improve my brewing level to proficient or even masterful, I can try to make it in my spare time."

Lu Xuan placed the ten harvested Spirit Firefly Grass into the jade box and put it into his Storage Bag.

According to the current maturity speed of the Spirit Firefly Grass, he estimated that he should return to 'Bai Cao Tang' in two or three days.

After checking his Spirit Field, Lu Xuan planned to return to his room for cultivation.

Upon seeing this, the Cloud Leopard from the side stopped playing with the red-bearded carp in the Spiritual Spring Pool, and it lightly tapped its foot on the ground like a fluff of cotton, elegantly tagging along behind Lu Xuan.

"Fellow Daoist, may we ask if you're at home? We are deacons from the market."

"The market has been infested with Demon Envoy, for the purpose of maintaining order, we are performing routine inspections, and we hope you would understand."

Not long after, a voice echoed outside of the courtyard.

"Market deacons are conducting an inspection?"

Lu Xuan knew it was ill-advised to refuse, so, filled with uncertainty, he opened the yard door.

Outside the courtyard, stood three cultivators, all of them solemn; one was a Qi-Practising Fifth Level and the other two were at the Third Level.

"Greetings, fellow Daoist."

Among the three men, the Qi Practicing Fifth Level Cultivator stood out, he greeted Lu Xuan as he appeared.

Lu Xuan nodded in acknowledgement, his expression solemn.

"I was wondering how the fellow Daoists will conduct the inspection?"

"We will use a magic artifact to search your premises, and at the same time cast an Exorcism Technique on you. We ask for your understanding."

One of the Third Level Cultivators explained from behind.

"Casting the Exorcism Technique is acceptable, but a detailed search of my residence would be very inconvenient, after all, no one wants their privacy invaded."

Lu Xuan gently refused. He didn't mind the exorcism technique being cast on him, but he was not comfortable with them searching his residence, after all, he didn't want others to see the rare spirit plants in his Spirit Field.

If there really was a Demon Envoy, an exorcism technique would be enough to detect it, there's absolutely no need to search the house. Whether it's the big families and powers in the market, or even his neighbour Wang Shan, Lu Xuan was sure that none of them would conduct a detailed search of their homes.

"The predicaments of being a Loose Cultivator…"

"If it really comes to that, I have no choice but to resort to this."

Lu Xuan sighed softly and reached into his sleeve.

The three of them, seeing this, reacted as if facing a formidable enemy..