Chapter 10: Spirit Rice Harvest (Seeking Recommendations)
Chapter 10: Spirit Rice Harvest (Seeking Recommendations)
Early spring.
The spirit farmers in the shantytown all had joyful expressions, some even donning rare new clothes, as if heading to some grand celebration.
Fang Xi walked through the bamboo forest, casually waving his right hand.
The Green Reaping Sword flew out, slicing off a section of bamboo.
He tapped the bamboo tube, listening to the solid echo from within, and nodded in satisfaction: "The spirit rice is ripe."
The next moment, Fang Xi directly lit a fire on the ground, roasting the bamboo tube.
As time passed, a clear fragrance, a mix of rice and bamboo, slowly wafted out.
This was another way to eat spirit bamboo rice, made into bamboo tube rice.
For this, he had even refrained from going to Da Liang.
And today, finally, it was harvest time!
Crack!
A moment later, the bamboo tube burst open, revealing the full, abundant spirit rice inside.
The freshly ripened spirit rice grains were plump and evenly distributed. They practically melted on the tongue, and that clear aroma, in particular, was refreshing and invigorating.
Paired with the cured meat Fang Xi brought, it made for a fine meal.
After eating his fill, Fang Xi felt the spiritual energy overflowing within his body. Not daring to be negligent, he quickly circulated the Changchun Jue cultivation method once.
Not only that, after circulating the cultivation method, he struck a stance and honed his palms.
"Tsk, tsk. . . Little Fang, are you practicing Body Cultivation?"
Fang Xi, somewhat immersed in martial arts, didn't know how much time had passed when he heard a teasing voice. He quickly looked up and saw an Iron Leaf Boat artifact slowly descending from mid-air, with a person disembarking from it.
The other party was a male cultivator in his thirties, dressed in a sky-blue wealthy commoner's robe, with a smiling, somewhat portly face.
Upon seeing him, Fang Xi quickly stopped his martial arts practice, stood up, and offered a fawning smile: "Greetings, Steward Situ."
Seeing him look at him, he quickly laughed again: "Just practicing some mortal martial arts in my leisure, a laughingstock, truly a laughingstock. . ."
This blue-robed fat man was named Situ Ying, a member of the Situ Clan, and he managed a portion of the spirit fields.
To many spirit farmers on the mountain, he was an uncrowned king, holding sway over their very lives.
"Hmm, this patch of spirit bamboo is growing well. You must have put in a lot of effort."
Situ Ying walked through the bamboo forest, inspecting the growth of the spirit rice, and nodded slightly.
"Oh, no, no, it's mainly because Green Bamboo Mountain is truly a blessed land with excellent spiritual energy, which helps the spirit rice grow so well."
Fang Xi flattered him while pulling out a small brocade pouch and handing it over.
Inside the pouch were the last few spirit crystals he had.
Situ Ying took it, not even needing to open it to know the exact amount, and his expression softened further: "Good lad, you understand how things work. . . Since that's the case, let's begin the harvest."
This scene reminded Fang Xi of what he had read in books in his previous life.
Perhaps this was what it was like when landlords and tenant farmers harvested in ancient times?
As both were cultivators, the harvest proceeded quickly.
Rustle, rustle, rustle!
Patches of bamboo forest fell, transforming into bamboo rice.
Finally, Situ Ying took out a specialized large measuring artifact from his waist storage bag and began to weigh the harvest.
"Storage artifact?"
Fang Xi stared at the dusty, unassuming little pouch on Situ Ying's waist, feeling envious again.
He didn't have a storage artifact like that. . .
"The harvest is good this year. Two piculs and forty catties of spirit rice. . . The master's share is half, which is one hundred and twenty catties!"
Situ Ying flicked his abacus: "The price of spirit bamboo rice has risen. If you sell your private share, I can give you four spirit stones. . ."
Fang Xi calculated for a moment, then said with a wince: "I'll keep half. . ."
According to the land lease contract, he was originally entitled to half of the harvest, which was one hundred and twenty catties of spirit rice.
If he wanted to sell this spirit rice, he could only sell it to the Situ Clan.
The Situ Clan also ran a rice shop in the cultivation city, so they could drastically suppress prices, offering very low spirit crystals.
And spirit farmers often needed to cultivate, so most of them had to keep their share.
However, Situ Ying's immediate demand for Fang Xi to sell his share was rather avaricious.
"Half, then. . . I'll leave you sixty catties."
Situ Ying put the spirit rice into his storage bag, then tossed over a small pouch of spirit crystals, and departed on his Iron Leaf Boat.
Fang Xi opened the bag and saw only eighteen spirit crystals inside. He couldn't help but curse inwardly: "A bloodsucking leech that plucks every feather off a passing goose! Just you wait until you fall into my hands someday. . ."
...
After the spirit bamboo rice was harvested, it would not be ready for replanting until summer.
The planting method here was also quite peculiar; no rice seeds were needed, only the cultivation of spirit bamboo roots to produce bamboo shoots.
Between the spring harvest and the summer replanting, there was a period of agricultural leisure.
Fang Xi strolled back to his hut, wondering if he should renovate his home.
Just as he opened his door, he saw a new person in Old Mai Tou's house and was momentarily startled.
"You must be Fellow Daoist Fang? I am the new spirit farmer, Chen Ping."
Chen Ping looked to be in his twenties or thirties, also at the early Qi Refinement stage, with an unremarkable appearance.
He offered a ingratiating smile and handed over a low-grade 'Dust Removal Talisman': "A humble gift, a token of my respect."
"Thank you. Let's keep in touch in the future."
Fang Xi smiled and exchanged a few pleasantries, then returned to his room, stroking his chin: "In the past, spirit farmers would at most offer snacks or spirit rice as gifts. . . This new fellow daoist seems quite well-off. . . Could he be a talisman master?"
But then, he felt a wave of emotion.
Old Mai Tou had been a spirit farmer for decades, yet he died in an instant, and few remembered him. Even his house and land were swiftly transferred.Such was the reality of the cultivation world!
The cultivators at the bottom were mere ants, or leeks. . . easily harvested, for they would always grow back.
"Yesterday it was Old Mai Tou, tomorrow it might be me!"
Fang Xi gave a self-deprecating smile.
With his personality, even fewer people would remember him when his time came.
"Well, then. . . it's a good opportunity to cultivate properly during this period of leisure."
Fang Xi practiced the third level of the Changchun Jue every day, but his progress was not fast.
In contrast, his White Cloud Palm martial art showed signs of rapid advancement.
...
Da Liang.
White Cloud Martial Arts Hall.
"Senior Brother Fang!"
"Greetings, Senior Brother."
Dressed in white training attire, Fang Xi entered the martial arts hall, and the outer court disciples greeted him with fawning, admiring smiles.
If at first they were merely impressed by Squire Fang's wealth, now they carried a certain reverence for a strong practitioner.
The reason was simple: Fang Xi's rate of progress was simply too fast!
Not only did he enter the martial path quickly, completing the first Blood-Qi Transformation at home, but he had also recently announced his breakthrough to the second Blood-Qi Transformation!
This made countless people secretly green with envy.
"But. . . what good is jealousy?"
Fang Xi smiled faintly and entered the inner court of the White Cloud Martial Arts Hall.
"Eldest Senior Sister!"
After greeting Mu Piao Miao, he went directly to a clay stove.
This clay stove was built with green bricks, with an iron pot suspended above it.
When Fang Xi arrived, servants immediately lit the stove and began pouring bag after bag of medicinal herbs into the iron pot.
Looking closely, among the herbs were wriggling centipedes, spiders, and other venomous insects, making one's scalp tingle.
"After my White Cloud Palm enters the second Blood-Qi Transformation through the calcination method, I must attempt to temper poison into my palm force!"
Fang Xi gazed at his palms.
After two blood-qi transformations, the skin of his palms was as tough as oxhide, powerful and strong.
This was the foundation for cultivating poison arts.
After all, infusing poison into palm force would inevitably harm one's own body.
Even though the White Cloud Martial Arts Hall had specialized antidotes, accumulating such damage over time would result in terrifying injuries.
Roar! Roar!
Flames fiercely licked the bottom of the pot, making the soup inside thicker and thicker, turning it dark green and putridly pungent. . .
Fang Xi's expression remained unchanged. Once the water boiled, he plunged both his hands directly into it.
Swish, swish, swish!
The boiling poisonous liquid rippled between his palms as he silently circulated his blood-qi transformation, absorbing the power of the toxins.
"Indeed, only with the powerful physique and blood-qi after the second Blood-Qi Transformation can one slightly absorb toxins. . . Cultivating too far ahead would likely poison my palms beyond repair!"
After half an hour of cultivation, Fang Xi withdrew his hands, which had turned crimson, and looked at his palms.
He saw that in the center of his palms, whenever he circulated his blood-qi, a gray mass would suddenly appear.
"Is this the Poison Palm? The Dark Cloud realm of White Cloud Palm? No. . . this should just be the beginning. . ."
White Cloud Palm had three levels: White Cloud, Dark Cloud, and Black Cloud!
The White Cloud level corresponded to the first and second Blood-Qi Transformations, where the palms were as white and pristine as jade.
The Dark Cloud level was at the third Blood-Qi Transformation stage. When the technique was circulated, the palms would turn completely black, signifying minor success in poison arts.
Fang Xi was currently in the intermediate stage between the second and third transformations.
As for the final Black Cloud level, that meant truly mastering True Force, achieving great success in poison palm techniques!
It was said that when Mu Cang Long truly circulated his technique, his palms were as black as ink, and even the force of his palms carried potent venom!
"My ample financial resources allow me to purchase all sorts of exotic poisons to temper into my palms, thus my progress is incredibly fast. . ."
Fang Xi stood with his palms retracted, silently contemplating his martial arts progress.
Furthermore, he could use his Divine Consciousness to examine his body internally, repair physical damage, and expel toxins, which was a huge advantage!
With so many advantages combined, Fang Xi's progress in White Cloud Palm was naturally swift, advancing by leaps and bounds. Even Wu Ji had been surpassed. Although Wu Ji still appeared enthusiastic in front of others recently, the looks he gave from behind were quite intriguing.
"Among the entire martial arts hall, in terms of martial arts, only Mu Piao Miao and Mu Cang Long are above me now, right?"
Fang Xi secretly thought.
"Wu Ji isn't shaping up, Liu Tao Tao has flaws in her character. As for honest and steady, Tang Xuan might even surpass them in the future. . . I can consider befriending him slightly."
As he pondered, the handsome Wu Ji came to the backyard, a kindly smile on his face: "Junior Brother Fang. . ."
"Senior Brother Wu, is there something you need? " Fang Xi raised an eyebrow.
"Well. . . Senior Brother has been short on funds recently for cultivation, I wonder if Junior Brother. . ."
As soon as Wu Ji spoke, it was to borrow money.
"This little boat of friendship is about to capsize," Fang Xi inwardly rolled his eyes.
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