The Means to Settle Down and Make a Living

Seeing Minor Cloud and Rain Art reach the Proficient level, Ji An suddenly felt that the moonlight was gentle as water and the night unusually shy.

He abruptly slapped his forehead and said in a low voice:

"Damn, I got so excited just now that I forgot to light an intact stick of incense before refining the Spiritual Inspiration!"

He wanted to calculate how much time refining Spiritual Inspiration would take and whether it was related to the amount being refined.

In the future, he would certainly need to learn offensive spells. By then, he would not refine all his Spiritual Inspiration as he did now, but would save some for a rainy day.

If refining Spiritual Inspiration took little time, he could simply wait until he needed it before refining it to raise his spell level.

He sighed again and slapped his cheeks in annoyance.

The spiritual power of the First Layer of Qi Condensation was scant. He should have gone to his own Spirit Field to practice Thick Earth Art.

Ji An lit a torch and jogged out.

Though his remaining spiritual power could only cast Thick Earth Art once more, even a mosquito's leg was still meat. He could not waste it.

The firelight swayed, and his elongated shadow fell across the winding path.

Upon reaching the Spirit Field, Ji An cast Thick Earth Art again, then inspected its effects.

The loosened soil was only four fingers deep—somewhat too shallow and below the required standard.

He did not know Blazing Fire Spell, so before planting, he needed to scatter medicinal powder in the Spirit Field to drive away pests.

Old Huang had said that the loosened soil needed to be at least one spade-blade deep to pass. Otherwise, pests lurking in the deeper layers could not be killed and would gnaw away at the roots of the Spirit Grain.

From the looks of it, Farming Spells needed to reach at least the Proficient level before they had any practical meaning.

Still, this was not difficult for him. He could simply wait a few more days before sowing the Spirit Grain.

His divine sense once more connected with the Stone Turtle.

Spell: Thick Earth Art (Beginner 83% → 85%)

Five days later.

The sun at horse hour was scorching. Ji An crawled along the mountain path with both hands and feet, inching forward with great effort.

When he caught sight of a corner of the General Affairs Hall, a faint, dry smile appeared on his sweat-streaked face.

A high-ranking cultivator of the sect would lecture the new disciples tomorrow. The moment he received the notice three days ago, he had set out at once.

Azure Water Lake was quite far from the General Affairs Hall. On top of that, he had no Talisman Bird for transportation and could only rely on his own two legs.

After walking through mountain paths for two days and two nights, he had finally arrived.

More than a dozen people sat scattered across the open ground before the General Affairs Hall. They were likely disciples who had come from other halls.

Ji An found an empty patch of ground with no one around and plopped down.

He took a worn blanket from his bundle, spread it on the ground, then lay down on his back.

He was truly exhausted.

Master: Ji An

Dao Rhyme: 0

Spiritual Inspiration: Kan Spirit 0.2, Kun Spirit 0.1, Xun Spirit 1.6

Spells: Minor Cloud and Rain Art (Proficient 72%)
Thick Earth Art (Proficient 48%)

Though he had been traveling, he had not neglected his cultivation. The Stone Turtle's absorption of Spiritual Inspiration had not been greatly affected either. After leaving Azure Water Lake, he obtained somewhat less Kan Spirit than usual.

When he returned to the Spirit Field at Azure Water Lake, Minor Cloud and Rain Art would surely rise to the Minor Accomplishment level. That would be the capital he needed to settle down and make a living.

Taking Minor Cloud and Rain Art as an example, the second tier of the spell had no additional effect. The spiritual power contained in the rain could merely sustain the growth of Spirit Grain, and watering multiple times in one day could not increase the spiritual grain yield.

Old Huang had said that if Spirit Grain was irrigated throughout its heading stage with Minor Cloud and Rain Art at Minor Accomplishment, its yield could increase by around ten percent.

If irrigated with the spell at Great Accomplishment, the yield could rise by thirty to forty percent.

Thick Earth Art was similar to Minor Cloud and Rain Art. Nourishing the soil with Thick Earth Art at Minor Accomplishment every two days could likewise increase the harvest by around ten percent.

Thinking that he could obtain an additional harvest right after becoming a Spirit Farmer, Ji An felt as refreshed as drinking a cold beverage in summer—absolutely fantastic!

His eyelids grew heavier and heavier. Before he knew it, he had drifted into sleep, letting out soft snores.

Waves of hunger washed over him. Ji An groggily opened his eyes and sat up, only to see crimson clouds filling the sky, the dark mountains stretching like an ocean, and the setting sun red as blood.

After taking out some dry rations and a waterskin and wolfing down a few bites, he entered the General Affairs Hall.

He wanted to use this opportunity to ask about the cost of learning a third-tier spell.

When Minor Cloud and Rain Art had risen to the Proficient level, he had conducted an experiment for comparison.

Refining the same amount of Spiritual Inspiration, he discovered that after learning the key to the second-tier spell, he could comprehend the spell more quickly than before.

It made sense. After low-level spells had been refined by countless generations, their explanations of cultivation methods were many times better than slowly figuring things out alone.

Ji An politely cupped his hands and said mildly:

"Senior Brother, pardon the interruption. I am a new disciple who entered the sect this year and was assigned to the Spirit Fields at Azure Water Lake.

May I ask how many Contribution Points are needed if I wish to learn the third-tier formula for Minor Cloud and Rain Art?"

The cultivator, who had been staring into space, sized him up and answered suspiciously:

"You're only a First Layer of Qi Condensation disciple, yet you want to learn a third-tier spell?"

Generally speaking, only Spirit Farmers at the Second Layer of Qi Condensation met the requirements for learning third-tier spells.

A First Layer of Qi Condensation cultivator had too little spiritual power in his body and could not practice spells more than a few times a day.

"Oh, I understand.

To allow disciples to travel more smoothly along the path of immortality, the sect requires very few Contribution Points for all production-type spells.

The third-tier formula of any Farming Spell only requires ten Contribution Points to learn."

What did he understand? Now it was Ji An's turn to be bewildered.

He was not surprised that the other party had seen through his cultivation realm at a glance.

Cultivators of different realms emitted spiritual pressure of differing strength. It was perfectly normal for high-level cultivators to see through the cultivation of low-level cultivators.

The sect's reduction in the Contribution Points required to learn production-type spells showed far-reaching vision, and he gained a trace of goodwill toward the sect.

Only with abundant material resources could one develop better. The cultivation world should be no exception.

He began recalling the ways to obtain Contribution Points. Completing sect missions could earn Contribution Points, while handing in spiritual items or cultivation methods not recorded by the sect could also earn them.

For example, if he handed in additional Spirit Grain beyond his Spirit Field rent, he could receive Contribution Points.

In addition, Contribution Points could be purchased with Spirit Stones. One Spirit Stone could be exchanged for twenty Contribution Points.

At the same time, the sect allowed disciples to exchange their own Contribution Points for Spirit Stones. Twenty-five Contribution Points could be exchanged for one Spirit Stone.

There was also a strict rule: Contribution Points could only be used by their owner and could not be transferred.

Ji An had no spiritual items and no rare cultivation methods. He only had five Spirit Crystals; his entire fortune could only be exchanged for one Contribution Point.

His father's beast-taming formula might have qualified, but his father had said he would only pass it on after Ji An opened his Immortal Meridian. His father never returned, and he never received the formula.

Because of this, he had once resented his father. When his father had decided to go gather herbs, why had he not copied down the formula for him?

"I am a new disciple and have no Contribution Points for now. I'll come back after my Spirit Grain is harvested in two months.

Hmm. What if I want to learn Wither and Flourish Art?"

The cultivator held up one finger.

"The first and second-tier formulas for Wither and Flourish Art, Blazing Fire Spell, and Sharp Metal Art each require only one Contribution Point."

Ji An laid out five Spirit Crystals. "Give me a jade slip for Wither and Flourish Art."