Spirit Stones Acquired, Summer Missions

The results came quickly.

A total of fifteen hundred people in Returning Shore Market had taken part in this Start of Spring Wheat trial, including even the children of nearby cultivation families, yet very few had managed to cultivate Wheat Pellets.

Out of those fifteen hundred, only one hundred had succeeded.

And among those who had managed to make nearly half their wheat produce Wheat Pellets, there was one and only one person: Li Ye.

This result had been within Li Ye's expectations. Not only did he have his Golden Finger, but he had also given the wheat nearly every good thing he could spare.

Who else could be as generous as him? Spirit liquid without limits, abundant Spiritual Energy, and even the Wheat Spirit helping keep watch.

Still, he was somewhat dazed. He had kept such a low profile for so long, yet now he had taken first place. Hopefully, he could still conceal his edge and develop quietly.

Once the daze passed, excitement took its place.

Because Spirit Stones were about to fall into his hands!

"Fellow Daoist, the total I calculated is exactly this!"

After tallying the results, Fellow Daoist He wasted no time and completed the transaction with Li Ye on the spot—five hundred and twenty Wheat Pellets, along with eleven hundred and fifty stalks of wheat. The Wheat Pellets and wheat did not affect each other.

For the Wheat Pellets alone, he gave Li Ye one hundred and four thousand Spirit Stones. The wheat brought another three thousand four hundred and fifty, for a total of one hundred and seven thousand four hundred and fifty Spirit Stones.

That was an enormous pile of Spirit Stones.

Li Ye's Storage Pouch had difficulty holding so many Spirit Stones, so Fellow Daoist He simply gave him a large-capacity Storage Pouch and placed all one hundred thousand-plus Spirit Stones inside.

He seemed impatient beyond measure. Throughout the transaction, he moved in a great hurry, as though afraid someone might snatch them away from him.

After obtaining this batch of wheat, he beamed with delight and cupped his hands toward Li Ye. "Fellow Daoist Li, when you come to the Four Seasons Sect someday, you must let me treat you to a meal at Abundant Cup Pavilion!"

With that, he hurried away impatiently, even humming a cheerful little tune.

"..."

Li Ye watched him leave.

Holding the Storage Pouch, no bigger than his palm, Li Ye sent his Divine Sense inside and saw Spirit Stones piled up in a dazzling cascade of light.

One hundred and seven thousand four hundred and fifty Spirit Stones, added to the previous four thousand two hundred and the remaining scattered bits and pieces.

Li Ye, who had possessed practically nothing in winter, now had more than one hundred and ten thousand Spirit Stones. Even with Li Ye's temperament, he remained excited for quite a while.

Why should he still act so calm now?

Before crossing over, he had never even had that much in savings!

But he also knew that this was a seasonal task, one that came only once a year, and it had also relied on the right time, place, and people.

Even if he continued planting in the future, whether he could earn this much again remained uncertain.

One hundred thousand Spirit Stones a year... at first glance, that did seem like an enormous sum, but this was a task measured in years.

Honestly, it was not very stable.

The feeling of suddenly becoming rich was truly wonderful, but it would still be better to grow crops that could provide a steady stream of Spirit Stone income throughout all four seasons, like a thin stream flowing endlessly.

However, with these Spirit Stones, together with the nearly two thousand points of Vital Essence he had accumulated over these days, he should be able to deal with both the Huai Spirit Scroll and the Spirit Vein Willow.

He could also renovate the courtyard a little, at least partition off an area where he could receive guests. Although he planned to enter the Four Seasons Sect in autumn, there was still an entire summer ahead.

Su Ya had previously suggested coming to his home to discuss the Dao and chat, but the courtyard truly was not convenient for it.

As he pondered this, he quickly calmed down.

This was only a small success. Just from Su Ya's expression, he could tell that what Su Ya envied was Li Ye's skill at cultivating spirit plants, not his hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones.

As long as he had the ability, Spirit Stones would naturally come swiftly. Strengthening his foundation and his own capabilities—that was what truly mattered.

He slipped the Storage Pouch containing the Spirit Stones into his pocket.

Watching Li Ye's expression from the side, Su Ya reminded him, "Returning Shore Market is only one of the tens of thousands of markets under the sect, and prices here are not actually high.

Once Fellow Daoist Li truly enters the sect, there will naturally be plenty of places to spend Spirit Stones.

To put it plainly, the market is currently meant for low-level cultivators to live in. The prices of certain goods are controlled so cultivators will not be unable to continue cultivating.

Over a hundred thousand Spirit Stones is certainly a lot, but if Fellow Daoist Li wishes to build a cave abode of his own in the future—spirit veins, spirit springs, spirit rivers—

or even purchase special formation flags for formations—all of it will consume Spirit Stones.

Back then, I was considered rather favored as well. The elders in my family gave me one million low-grade Spirit Stones when I entered, yet merely building a cave abode drained them dry.

There are good things within the sect, but good things are expensive too—so expensive that you grit your teeth even as you still want to buy them!"

He could not help revealing a wry smile.

Hearing this, Li Ye's already steady state of mind became even steadier. Upon hearing the words "low-grade Spirit Stones," he understood that the flourishing cultivation world naturally had different tiers of currency.

That was only normal. All manner of signs showed that the cultivation world was far more than what he had seen in this market.

That was for the best. He would get to see more scenery.

He smiled at Su Ya.

"I merely took first place in a Returning Shore Market task. Even if I have occasional gains, I should continue persevering."

"If I become too famous, there will surely be people who come to disturb my life. I ask that Fellow Daoist not make this matter public. If Fellow Daoist has friends, I would also be very willing to make their acquaintance."

Su Ya could not help laughing. "These rankings were never made public. Only the deacons within the sect responsible for such affairs know them.

After all, they must be filed away in the records and entered onto Ginkgo Ancestor's leaves.

Earlier, I told you that after completing two solar-term missions, plus Hungry Bone's mission and Senior Spirit Vine's Autumn Harvest Token, you would be able to enter the Myriad Gods Temple before reaching Foundation Establishment.

Now you have completed everything but Hungry Bone's task.

However, as far as I know, the solar-term missions have follow-ups. Would you be willing to continue?"

In the brief pause in his voice, a familiar voice suddenly cut in:

"You rascal, you're handing out missions on my behalf now? Got nothing better to do? Then go preside over the wheat distribution!"

This voice...

Li Ye's eyes lit up. He clasped his hands toward the source of the voice. "Senior Spirit Vine, you've finally returned!"

A verdant vine, hopping and skipping along, appeared in his field of vision.

It raised its head and looked at Li Ye. "Well done. Once Hungry Bone's mission is complete, an opportunity awaits you."

The vine was being all mysterious, refusing to say what exactly this opportunity was. It merely swaggered over and hopped onto the chair, while Su Ya automatically moved behind it and stood there respectfully.

"Grain Rain falls in an endless drizzle; summer is close at hand."

"Before I left the sect, several sects in the Southern Domain were seeking to purchase Fire-Resistant Spirit Silk Garments, so the artifact refiners were rushing to make them. Thus, there will be only one solar-term mission throughout the summer: raising silkworms and cultivating mulberries."

It paused, its tone turning more solemn.

"The Radiant Dawn Spirit Mulberry and the Age-Tilting Silkworm are both third-rank Spirit Materials equivalent to Foundation Establishment Cultivators. Boy Li, your cultivation is still somewhat lacking."

Li Ye's brows drew together slightly at this. He was determined to obtain the chance to enter the Myriad Gods Shrine.

If this mission required him to break through to Foundation Establishment, he would rather refuse it.

Or find some other way.

Spirit Vine observed the changes in Li Ye's expression and knew that he was weighing his options. Under normal circumstances, it would certainly have made things sound a little more serious to satisfy its own mischievous taste.

But Li Ye... it truly did not wish to tease him too much.

So it continued, "But it's not impossible."

"Though these two Spirit Materials are at the Foundation Establishment Realm, they have been raised generation after generation by the elders of our Four Seasons Sect. They have long grown accustomed to enjoying cultivators' care."

Through the panel, Li Ye could see that Spirit Vine's mood had shifted to suspenseful teasing.

How could he not realize that this Spirit Plant senior, wiser than some humans, was toying with him?

"Senior, that dramatic pause really had me in a bind," Li Ye said helplessly.

"It is only right to hesitate when one's Dao Path is involved. If it were me, I too would have you delay your Foundation Establishment. Those mulberry trees and silkworms will probably all be transferred over in three days."

"Mm... you've gained a large sum of Spirit Stones this time, boy. It's about time you bought a few things, isn't it? Tell me, what do you want to buy?"

Spirit Vine said, switching into merchant mode.

To be fair, its guess was spot-on. Li Ye really did have things he wanted to buy. After working so hard for so long, it was time to spend some money.