Planting Reached High Tier of First Rank!

[Name: Li Ye]

[Spirit Root: low-grade earth-wood Spirit Root]

[Remaining lifespan: 73 years (3 years lost from overtaxing primordial Qi)]

[Skills: planting, mid tier of first rank (514/2000); alchemy, not initiated (15/2000); artifact refinement, not initiated (12/2000); talismans, not initiated (1358/1500)]

[Plant Spiritual Essence: Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence * 251]

[Spiritual Essence attribute: Vitality, level one]

[Experience: 3349]

In the underground quiet chamber.

Li Ye opened his panel, and with just one glance, the happiness of a bountiful harvest welled up in his heart once more.

With this amount, not only could he raise his Planting Technique to the high tier of the first rank as planned,

he could even bring his alchemy to the point where it was just a little short of complete initiation!

And there was also this Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence...

"Fifty strands of Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence nearly restored my primordial Qi and my fourth-layer cultivation before. If I refined all two hundred and fifty strands..."

"Reaching the fifth layer shouldn't be too difficult!"

Li Ye murmured, his eyes practically shining.

Ever since he had finished refining the fifty strands of Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence he had harvested before, leaving only one or two strands for a rainy day, his cultivation had once again advanced at a tortoise's pace.

Even eating spirit rice was far less effective than the pure Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence.

How hard it was to go from luxury back to frugality!

Without the aid of Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence, the paltry bit of Law Power he had gained over the past half year nearly brought Li Ye to tears whenever he thought about it!

"Still, I can't squander all the Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence at once..."

Li Ye frowned in thought.

He still intended to use Plant Spiritual Essence as a material for refining medicine.

The Spiritual Essence he obtained in the future would most likely be even more precious than Jade Sprout Spiritual Essence. If he didn't use this stuff for practice, was he supposed to use essence from those spirit medicines instead?

That would be far too wasteful!

Besides, if his idea worked, pills refined from such pure medicinal power would most likely contain very little pill toxin. Wouldn't popping pills to cultivate then be even more efficient?

After indulging in these thoughts, Li Ye willed his experience points into his Planting Technique, maxing out its proficiency to make a breakthrough.

Whoosh-

In an instant, Li Ye's consciousness drifted.

Detailed techniques for tending all manner of first-rank spirit medicines and Spirit Plants, as well as information on some lower-level second-rank Spirit Plants, suddenly surged through his mind.

As he gradually grew familiar with them, they settled and became part of the skills he had mastered.

High tier of the first rank... achieved!

A smile like that of an old farmer appeared on Li Ye's face, and he had the inexplicable illusion that he had gained a great deal of farming experience out of thin air.

Still somewhat absorbed, he murmured as he contemplated the changes,

"I can now cultivate first-rank spirit rice with effortless ease, and I know the methods and precautions for tending many Spirit Plants like the treasures in my own home..."

"Even with second-rank Spirit Plants, if they're hardier varieties that don't need as much care, it seems it wouldn't be too difficult for me to keep them alive with the help of the [Vitality] attribute!"

With that, Li Ye finally had some confidence in competing for the position tending Elder Ji Qing's spirit fields at the cave abode.

After upgrading his Planting Technique, he had more than eighteen hundred experience points left.

Li Ye glanced at the panel.

[Planting, high tier of first rank (0/3000)]

That was not an amount he could obtain anytime soon.

The most cost-effective target for his remaining experience points was still alchemy!

The understanding of medicinal principles that came with advancing in the Dao of Alchemy could also feed back into his planting skills, giving him an additional advantage in that field!

With a plan in mind, there was no need to deliberate further.

Li Ye put in his experience points, and his alchemy proficiency shot straight up.

[Alchemy, not initiated (1878/2000)]

He was only one step away from initiation and mastery!

Inspiration flashed through Li Ye's mind. The many changes in medicinal properties, control of the flame, and various tricks and techniques that had once been obscure and difficult to understand all became clear, one by one.

Even the many basic methods in the inheritance, pieced together haphazardly, disjointed, and riddled with errors and omissions, now seemed to have been reorganized, becoming more orderly and easier to understand.

"So that's how it is. That's what it meant..."

Li Ye instinctively took out the Jade Slip and reread its contents, expressions of understanding appearing on his face again and again.

But the more he understood, the stranger his expression became.

Smack!

In the end, Li Ye couldn't hold back. He slapped the Jade Slip down on the table and cursed again.

"I didn't know until I understood it, but looking at this thing again, it's actually such a mess... You couldn't even piece an inheritance together properly. No wonder your Li Household can only raise a bunch of trash!"

No one could blame Li Ye for his sharp tongue.

This inheritance was simply too much of a trap!

From the perspective of someone who was about to reach initiation, if not for the panel's help, even if he studied this inheritance for his entire life with his aptitude, he probably wouldn't achieve anything!

If its contents hadn't been cobbled together with some order amid the chaos, yet remained obscure and hard to understand, Li Ye would have suspected that those fellows from the third branch had secretly tampered with it...

And speaking of which, the one or two Alchemists in the Li Household who had managed to reach initiation using this thing were probably genuine talents of no small measure!

It was ridiculous!

And if the alchemy inheritance was like this, the artifact refinement inheritance, which gave him the same feeling, probably wasn't much better...

Another thing he could only build up with experience points!

Shaking his head, Li Ye calmed himself and instinctively recalled how his various upgrades had felt.

"The panel's improvements to abilities... seem to mostly raise my skill level directly, then use that higher level to reorganize and complete the inheritance information I already have..."

"In that case, although I can keep improving despite the incomplete inheritance, there will ultimately be certain limitations..."

"If I get the chance, it looks like I should still collect some other complete inheritances to study!"

"Junior Brother Li, although Elder Ji is fairly easy to talk to, he's known among the sect elders for his reclusive temperament and extraordinary combat strength..."

"That's why he never concerns himself with maintaining social ties with the other elders, and prefers to choose a disciple with no connections to them to tend his spirit fields..."

"When you go to pay your respects this time, remember to be careful in your words and actions. Don't act rashly!"

Old Man Luo went on and on, carefully briefing Li Ye.

"Don't worry... Surely you know how cautious I am, Senior Brother?"

Li Ye replied with a smile.

The old man smiled at that too, looking reassured.

"True, true. Junior Brother, you're exceptionally steady and good at adapting. Even if this doesn't work out, there's no need to worry about offending the elder..."

Now that he had brought it up, his expression turned serious again.

"It's just that everyone competing with you this time comes from the spirit medicine garden. Their skills with Spirit Plants are probably already approaching the second rank. Are you confident, Junior Brother?"

Although he had made this recommendation mainly because he hadn't made friends with many spirit farmer disciples anyway, and thought he might as well earn some goodwill from Li Ye,

if Li Ye really was capable and could win the elder's favor, the benefits to him would naturally be even greater!

"All I can do is my best and leave the rest to heaven..."

Li Ye replied mildly,

"Senior Brother, we're here!"

Looking up, they saw a mountain peak right before them, its shape indistinct beneath a thin veil of clouds and mist.