Quanjian Village, Father and Mother

Furthermore, once a skill is mastered and resources are acquired, those resources can be used to exchange for other treasures, arming oneself to the teeth and obtaining means to protect one's path.

"So, which skill should I learn?" Zhang Wan pondered as he sat in the rune carriage.

Artifact refining, alchemy, formations, and talismans were all options. With EXP, he wasn't afraid of not being able to learn them.

Investing a sum of EXP upfront could save a large amount of EXP later; this was a very worthwhile transaction.

"Perhaps, a spirit planter could also be considered."

Cultivating spirit plants not only provided food for cultivation but could also be utilized in artifact refining, alchemy, formations, and talismans.

Being able to cultivate any spirit medicine or spirit grass one desired was a beautiful thought.

Although the path of a spirit planter was easy to learn but difficult to master, and cultivating spirit plants required considerable time, as mentioned before, with EXP, Zhang Wan wasn't afraid of not being able to learn it.

With EXP, Zhang Wan's spirit planter level could easily reach an extremely high standard.

Perhaps by then, there might be a way to reduce the cultivation time for rare spirit plants.

Zhang Wan hadn't decided which skill to learn yet.

He wasn't in a hurry to make a decision.

If he wanted to get started, he first needed to find a way to obtain a corresponding inheritance. Otherwise, he wouldn't even be able to cheat with EXP.

The rune carriage sped along, covering the distance from the Beginner Martial Arts Academy to Hemi Town in a short time.

Many rune carriages were stopped in Hemi Town, including those transporting supplies and those like Zhang Wan's, escorting students.

However, not all these carriages belonged to the Beginner Martial Arts Academy.

The Jade Bone Sect ruled an area of over a thousand kilometers, with a mortal population exceeding fifty million.

Millions of children of appropriate age could potentially enroll in academies.

While not every eligible child could enter a Jade Bone Sect academy to cultivate martial arts, hundreds of thousands met the requirements, and one Beginner Martial Arts Academy couldn't accommodate so many students.

There were forty to fifty similar academies for cultivating Postnatal martial artists.

When the academies had holidays, it was the busiest time for rune carriages.

Zhang Wan, along with his second sister Zhang Lingshu, alighted from the carriage and headed towards Quanjian Village outside Hemi Town.

Quanjian Village had a mountain spring containing sparse spiritual energy. Relying on this spring water, Quanjian Village had been growing pseudo-spiritual items for the Jade Bone Sect.

Hemi was the pseudo-spiritual item most cultivated in Quanjian Village, which was also the origin of Hemi Town's name.

Zhang Wan's parents were in Quanjian Village, cultivating the pseudo-spiritual item Hemi for the sect. This was also why Zhang Wan and Zhang Lingshu were eligible to study martial arts at the Beginner Martial Arts Academy.

Aside from a very few individuals with exceptionally outstanding talent, students in academies under the Jade Bone Sect generally came from such backgrounds.

Quanjian Village was some distance from Hemi Town, and heavy snow blocked the roads.

But this didn't stop Zhang Wan and Zhang Lingshu.

In the past, Zhang Wan's parents would come to pick up the siblings when school was out. But ever since Zhang Wan had successfully cultivated the Ox Demon Body Tempering Fist and consistently shown himself to be steady, his parents had stopped doing so.

With the successful cultivation of the Ox Demon Body Tempering Fist, he could mobilize his internal Blood Essence, making his strength comparable to that of ordinary adults.

Naturally, Zhang Wan's parents didn't treat him like an ordinary child.

Moreover, there were many students heading to Quanjian Village, and some were Zhang Wan's childhood friends. They could look out for each other, so there was nothing to fear.

They walked and chatted, discussing the interesting things that had happened at their respective academies recently, and arrived at Quanjian Village amidst the wind and snow.

Zhang Wan and his sister returned home.

As soon as they opened the door, a little sprout excitedly shouted "Brother, Sister!" and ran towards them.

It was their third brother, Zhang Yan.

Zhang Wan picked up his third brother. Their mother, Lin Yue, was busy in the kitchen, while their father, Zhang Changlin, was still working in the fields.

The heavy snow blocked the sky, and it was no longer the season to plant Hemi.

However, there were many pseudo-spiritual items suitable for winter cultivation. Even at this time, mortals like Zhang Changlin, who worked as spirit farmers under the Jade Bone Sect, had to continue their busy work.

Zhang Wan chatted with his mother for a while, and after he and his second sister ate something, he found the family's iron plow, picked up a lunchbox, and headed to the fields to find his father, Zhang Changlin.

Their third brother, Zhang Yan, also trotted along.

Zhang Changlin had a total of five mu of land, two of which were used to cultivate pseudo-spiritual items. He was currently busy turning the soil in the field.

Ordinary fields were plowed in February or March, but these fields for cultivating pseudo-spiritual items were worked year-round.

As soon as the previous batch of pseudo-spiritual items was harvested, preparations began for planting the next batch.

The land was stiff and difficult to hoe in winter. It was only because Zhang Changlin had also learned some mortal martial arts and could mobilize his internal Blood Essence that he could turn the stiff ground.

Mortals who couldn't even mobilize their Blood Essence were not qualified to be spirit farmers for the Jade Bone Sect and cultivate pseudo-spiritual items.

When Zhang Wan arrived, Zhang Changlin was happy to see his children after a long absence.

And when Zhang Wan was home, especially after successfully cultivating the Ox Demon Body Tempering Fist, he had also started helping at home, plowing and turning the fields.

However, after his initial joy, Zhang Changlin was somewhat surprised this time. Why was his eldest son carrying an iron plowshare instead of a hoe?

When he took the food from Zhang Lingshu and ate lunch on the ridge of the field.

Zhang Wan tied the rope around himself and pulled the plow in front, while Zhang Lingshu operated the plowshare behind, quickly turning over the frozen fields.

Zhang Wan's family owned several water buffaloes for plowing.

While ordinary oxen could be used normally, using them for plowing in winter would exhaust them to death.

Since the oxen couldn't be used, humans had to step in.

He had experience with human-pulled plows!

Turning over an acre of frozen land, even for someone who could utilize Blood Essence, was exhausting.

But with Zhang Wan pulling in front and Zhang Lingshu guiding the plow behind, they easily finished turning over this acre of land, which was over six hundred square units in total.

Zhang Changlin watched, dumbfounded.

Then, as if struck by a realization, he exclaimed with joy and a trembling voice, "Boss, have you broken through to Postnatal?"

Zhang Wan smiled and gave an affirmative answer.

Zhang Changlin was overjoyed, his face beaming with happiness.

He had toiled and struggled, farming for the Jade Bone Sect, just waiting for this day.

He had originally thought it would take at least another ten to twenty years, or perhaps he'd never see it in his lifetime.

But his eldest son had given him such a pleasant surprise.

Seeing his father lost in his joy, Zhang Wan smiled and picked up the sack placed on the field ridge.

He took out seeds and planted the Snow Grass seeds one by one.

Snow Grass needed the harsh winter environment to grow; the more continuous the snowfall, the better the Snow Grass would flourish.

The father and his four sons busied themselves planting the Snow Grass.

By then, it was already dusk.

Winter days were short, so they returned home early.

The remaining acre, meant for planting pseudo-spiritual items, would be tended to tomorrow.

Back home, Zhang Changlin's joy remained undimmed, and he shared the news with his wife, Lin Yue.

Lin Yue was also happy, but she playfully chided Zhang Wan for not telling her the news as soon as he returned.

Zhang Wan repeatedly pleaded for forgiveness.

The family enjoyed dinner amidst laughter and joy.

As soon as they finished eating, Zhang's father and mother went out to visit neighbors, spreading the news of their son's breakthrough to Postnatal. This drew a flurry of praise and envy, making them grin from ear to ear.

Meanwhile, Zhang Wan was instructing Zhang Lingshu in her training.

This made Zhang Lingshu groan in misery. She had thought the holiday meant a chance to relax and have fun.

But how could Zhang Wan let his second sister have her way?

He had already prepared a long list of training exercises for her, ensuring her month would be both fulfilling and unforgettable.