Chapter 84: Humiliation, Qi Refining Fourth Layer and Talent [Gathering Spirit]
Chapter 84: Chapter 84: Humiliation, Qi Refining Fourth Layer and Talent [Gathering Spirit]
"PHEW!"
Chen Mo forcefully exhaled a breath of stale air. The circulation of Spiritual Qi within his body stagnated, getting stuck right at the final bottleneck. He slowly stood up, pocketed the Spiritual Sand that still held a trace of Spiritual Qi, and secretly clenched his fists.
"What’s going on? Why aren’t they here yet?" he wondered.
Autumn had deepened, with leaves falling in colorful flurries, yet the Grain Collection Officer from Purple Cloud Peak was nowhere to be seen. Over half a month had passed since the harvest. The Spirit Plant Cultivators of Ancient Dust Marketplace craned their necks in eager anticipation every single day. Before the Grain Collection Officer arrived, none of them dared head to the Marketplace to sell their Spirit Rice on their own.
However, with Purple Cloud Peak continually delaying, some Spirit Plant Cultivators were already losing their patience. Chen Mo was waiting anxiously as well. Not only had he been unable to sell his grain, but he was also forcefully holding back his breakthrough to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer!
While breaking through one layer every three years was acceptable among Spirit Plant Cultivators, breaking through in just two years would inevitably draw the attention of the Grain Collection Officer from Purple Cloud Peak. Therefore, Chen Mo had no choice but to suppress the tantalizing draw of newfound power, stubbornly dragging out the process to prevent himself from advancing to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer.
A few days later.
The Grain Collection Officer who had served for four consecutive years, Si Yu, finally arrived!
Unlike her greenness during their first meeting and her arrogance during the second, the passage of time had tempered her into a much calmer person. Whether due to an advancement in her Realm or a favored genius falling from grace, Si Yu’s brows now carried a touch more coldness and maturity. Beside her followed the Pavilion Master of Ancient Dust Marketplace—Niu Youliang. Other than him, there was no one else.
The two hurried from south to north, and the amount of Spirit Rice in her Storage Ring steadily grew. Along the way, Niu Youliang tried to strike up a conversation with Si Yu, but she maintained a cold expression and remained completely silent.
When they appeared before Chen Mo via Sword Control, they paused slightly upon seeing the house behind him, though they didn’t pay it much mind.
"Where is the grain?" Niu Youliang took the initiative to ask.
Chen Mo pointed at the grain sacks nearby. "Seventeen acres of Spirit Fields, totaling 1,700 catties."
Si Yu stepped forward and swept her sleeve, collecting everything into her Storage Space. Just as she was about to leave, she abruptly looked at Chen Mo, her delicate brows furrowing slightly. "Qi Refining Third Layer?"
Chen Mo took a deep breath. "Yes."
"Why aren’t you in the Secret Realm?!" Her tone carried obvious dissatisfaction.
Two years had now passed. The first batch of Death Warriors had been completely exhausted by last year, and their "deaths" had successfully torn open a rift at the entrance to the Secret Realm, allowing Cultivators below Foundation Establishment to enter. As an outstanding disciple of Purple Cloud Peak’s second generation, Li Shangxian naturally took on the mantle of becoming a vanguard.
Exactly a year ago today, the reason Si Yu had rushed through the grain collection was so she could catch a glimpse of Senior Brother Li. However, the deeply Dao-seeking Li Shangxian had not waited for her return. Originally, she had wanted to follow in Senior Brother Li’s footsteps and enter the Secret Realm as well.
However, the Peak Master had issued an absolute order: no disciple below the Qi Refining Ninth Layer was allowed to enter! In his eyes, venturing into the Secret Realm still posed too great a risk. Therefore, the higher one’s Realm, the greater the chances of success. Consequently, over the past year, Si Yu had cultivated desperately, all to break through to the Qi Refining Ninth Layer as soon as possible! Going back and forth between training and her duties was what had delayed the grand task of grain collection!
"I only broke through recently," Chen Mo replied.
In an instant, Si Yu’s expression turned complicated. She looked him up and down before asking again, "Have I met you before?"
"I’ve been planting here for fiv—"
"Chen Mo?!" Finally, the favored daughter of Purple Cloud Peak recognized him. "Has your Flaming Palm reached Minor Achievement?"
Chen Mo smiled bitterly and shook his head. How could he possibly admit it?!
Hearing this, Si Yu let out a soft chuckle and scoffed, "A Spirit Plant Cultivator is still just a Spirit Plant Cultivator! Compared to Senior Brother Li, the difference is like heaven and earth!"
As she spoke, she lightly tapped her toes, stepping onto her Flying Sword to head toward the next Spirit Field.
Chen Mo stood where he was, watching her graceful figure recede into the distance. He slowly raised his right hand, aimed his fingers at the back of her head, and mimed firing a gun.
"BANG!"
He blew on his fingertips and then smiled brightly. "That goes in the little black book!"
Originally, Chen Mo was worried that if he exposed his true strength, she would forcefully take him as a disciple. Little did he expect that her extra question was merely an excuse to step on him while simultaneously elevating her precious "Senior Brother Li"!
He watched as the two figures disappeared over the horizon.
The very next instant, Spiritual Qi erupted from his body like a violent storm, even forming a miniature vortex around him. The vortex slowly coalesced, ultimately converging within his Dantian. The breakthrough took merely a moment, yet it felt as if ten thousand years had passed in the blink of an eye.
Before Chen Mo could properly savor this wonderful feeling, bright yellow text appeared before his eyes, pulling him back to reality.
[Please select a professional Talent:]
[Spirit Plant Cultivator] [Spirit Nurturer]
"What’s going on?" he wondered.
Chen Mo immediately opened his interface, only to find no changes under the [Talent] tab. Unlike before, where he would automatically awaken a Talent with each level-up, this time he was given a choice!
After pondering for just a moment, he came to a realization.
"It seems that no matter how many professions I unlock, aside from the initial Talent awakened upon unlocking, I can still only awaken one Talent each time my Realm breaks through a layer!
"But that’s fine. At least it gives me the opportunity to choose."
Whether he chose to awaken a Spirit Plant Cultivator Talent or a Spirit Nurturer Talent was entirely up to his own will. As for what specific Talent he would get? That would depend on fate!
Chen Mo stood perfectly still, deep in thought. A few breaths later, his gaze settled on the three bright yellow words for [Spirit Plant Cultivator]. With a mere shift of his thoughts, the decision was made!
The next moment, text gradually materialized beside the Spirit Plant Cultivator’s [Talent] tab!
[Gathering Spirit (Green): The Transformation of the Celestial Dao lies in seizing the heavens and shaping fortune. Places nourished naturally by heaven and earth are beyond the reach of mortal power. Yet, those who defy the heavens to alter fate perform Gathering Spirit. You may integrate this Talent during Array Formation to increase Spirit Field quality by 100%, effective over 5 acres (Unlock by casting any Tier One Spirit Array).]
"Increase Spirit Field quality?!" Chen Mo was astonished. "An increase of 100%... does that meet the standard of a Tier Two Spirit Field?" This question was the first to pop into his mind.
The Spirit Plant Atlas documented many Spirit Plants required for Alchemy, but those plants needed at least Tier Two Spirit Fields or higher to be cultivated. If the [Gathering Spirit] Talent could break this restriction and allow him to successfully plant the medicinal herbs from the atlas, his hopes of reaching Foundation Establishment would likely increase by a few more notches.
"Arrays, Arrays... It’s Arrays again!"
Two consecutive Talents were related to Arrays. This was equivalent to forcing Chen Mo to become a Spirit Array Master. Otherwise, whether it was [Rapid Maturation] or [Gathering Spirit], such powerful Talents would be stuck at green rarity forever.
It was an absolute waste of heaven’s gifts!
However, a very real problem lay before him. From his experience learning the Mountain Gazing Shadow Retaining Array, it was glaringly obvious that his talent for Arrays was distinctly average! What Spirit Array Master would ever accept a Cultivator with such mediocre talent as a disciple?!