Black Tongue was the largest of the Four-eared Hound puppies.
The moment Duke bought them, he named all six little pups according to their appearances: Black Tongue, Black Tail, Pointed Ear, White Gloves, Tie, and Tiger King. Black Tongue had a pitch-black tongue, while Tiger King had a wrinkled forehead marked with a king-shaped pattern.
Black Tail and Pointed Ear were nothing special. White Gloves had two white forepaws, while Tie had a ring of patterned fur around his chest.
Although they were all puppies, as descendants of 0-Ring Spirit Beasts, every one of them was bursting with energy. They could roughhouse and play all day without stopping.
Duke walked ahead, with Levin following behind.
The six little pups frolicked along behind the two of them. After being fed for the past few days, they had already begun to recognize their masters.
They knew Duke was their owner, while Levin was responsible for feeding them and shoveling their droppings.
With the Rainfall Breathing Technique activated, Duke could sense the seeds underground at any time, especially the Spiritual Plant wheat seeds scattered among them.
Those seeds had already cracked open and sprouted.
They would soon break through the soil and grow into wheat seedlings.
Under the breathing resonance of the breathing technique, the natural force transformed from spirituality constantly swirled among the wheat seeds, helping them grow while also making extremely subtle improvements to their quality. In particular, with the Spiritual Plant wheat seeds acting as intermediaries, the natural force became more infectious toward ordinary wheat seeds.
This was the mixed-planting method.
Ever since humanity had ventured into the primeval wilderness and discovered the mixed-planting method, large-scale famines had essentially ceased to occur.
"I've been practicing Qi Sea Cultivation for quite some time. Aside from the green cloud cluster rolling a little faster, I don't feel any major changes."
Duke operated the breathing technique while looking inward at his Qi Sea.
His Qi Sea was a chaotic expanse, with only lush green clouds and mist rolling within it, pulsing rhythmically with every breath.
He practiced the Rainfall Breathing Technique almost every day, but he still could not feel any increase in strength.
Of course, this was normal as well. The Qi Sea was mainly used to sense and guide natural force; it could not increase one's strength by itself. Through continuous comprehension, one established breathing resonance with more Spiritual Plants, thereby improving one's ability to guide natural force.
Duke was currently a 0-ring Spiritual Plant Servant and could establish breathing resonance only with 0-Ring Spiritual Plants.
Once he could establish breathing resonance with 1-Ring Spiritual Plants, he would be able to advance to a 0-ring Spirit Plant Master.
Once he could establish breathing resonance with 2nd Ring Spiritual Plants or Spiritual Plants above the 2nd Ring, he would be able to advance to a 1-ring Great Spirit Plant Master.
A 1-ring Great Spirit Plant Master had essentially reached the peak of Qi Sea Cultivation.
Only if one had explosively good luck and contracted an elf—an exceedingly rare being born from a plant—could one continue along the path of cultivation.
Blood Sea Cultivation was actually much the same. A 1-Ring Great Knight was the endpoint for most knights. Only a tiny number of knights could contract a phantom beast and continue cultivating battle qi.
This was also why Qi Sea Spirit Plant Masters and Blood Sea Knights could only become vassals of Spirit Sea Arcana Mages. Profound Arcana Mages could even refine the Blood Sea and Qi Sea into an arcane artifact. This showed that within the Spiritual Arcana system, the Spirit Sea's status far surpassed that of the Qi Sea and Blood Sea.
After making a full circuit, an hour had already passed.
Duke switched off the Rainfall Breathing Technique, instructed Levin to watch over the farm and the six little pups, then returned to the villa to begin his card-making work.
He did not know whether it was because he had moved into the farm, but his mood seemed to have blended with the surrounding environment.
Sitting before the workbench, he felt he was in excellent condition. Inspiration kept bursting through his mind, making him want to seize it.
Thus, he decisively instructed Xiao Yi, "Cancel the Field Meditation AFK cultivation."
"Understood, Master."
His body no longer drew in the free spirituality outside.
Duke rose from his seat and left, arriving at the corridor outside the animal-rearing room. He sat cross-legged beside the Earth Orchid, then began cultivating the Field Meditation himself.
As he meditated, little flowers rose within his Spirit Sea.
These little flowers were an anomaly that appeared while cultivating the meditation method. The Field Meditation had not originally possessed this anomaly. Back then, after comprehending certain things on the farm, he had advanced to a Three-star Spiritual Apprentice. From then on, the little flowers had appeared whenever he meditated.
At that very moment,
the little flowers swayed within the Spirit Sea as if brushed by the wind.
But as the meditation method continued to operate, Duke emptied his mind and allowed the inspiration in his thoughts to burst forth freely. Then he saw clusters of wheat seedlings drilling out around the little flowers as though breaking through the soil. They were fresh and verdant, swaying in the wind together with the flowers.
The little flowers and wheat seedlings encircled the two arcane artifacts at the center of the Spirit Sea: Nine-Ring Xiao Yi and the One-Ring Desert Eagle.
But upon closer inspection, it became clear that they were not encircling the two arcane artifacts themselves. Rather, they surrounded a Twisting and Winding energy line beside the arcane artifacts.
Snap.
That energy line seemed to have reached its limit as well. It suddenly broke apart, becoming two Twisting and Winding energy lines that bounced around wildly.
"Whew!"
Duke awoke from his meditative state, a smile appearing at the corners of his mouth. "One energy line split into two. My progress is flying! And my comprehension of the Field Meditation has deepened again, giving rise to two anomalies: little flowers and wheat seedlings."
Then,
he contacted Xiao Yi. "AFK cultivate the Field Meditation."
"Understood, Master. The Field Meditation has been put into AFK cultivation."
Duke closed his eyes and looked inward. Xiao Yi's process table had also been updated: "Process One: Field Meditation. AFK cultivation consumes 35% power. Current Spirit Sea level: 0-Ring Three-star Spiritual Apprentice (Twisting and Winding). Estimated advancement progress: 55.7%. Time estimate: 91 days."
"A few days ago, my progress was still 34.2%, and advancement required 154 days. Now it's jumped straight to 55.7%, and the time has been reduced to 91 days!"
"One comprehension increased my progress by so much, and the efficiency of the Field Meditation has improved too!" Duke silently calculated. "At the previous efficiency of the Field Meditation, 55.7% progress would still have required 103 days. Now it only takes 91!"
"If I comprehend it a few more times, won't I be able to advance to a Four-star Spiritual Apprentice very soon?"
"At this cultivation speed, even genius Arcana Mages can't compare with me!"
Duke was extremely satisfied with his cultivation speed. Even among genius Arcana Mages, very few advanced to the 1st Ring before the age of twenty.
For one thing, the cultivation speed of meditation methods was limited.
For another, the time available for cultivating meditation methods was limited.
No one could do what he did—leave a meditation method running twenty-four hours a day without interruption. Most Spiritual Apprentices were considered diligent if they could spare three to five hours a day for meditation.
"Insufficient talent? Make up for it with sweat!"
"I like this kind of steady, step-by-step cultivation!"
After expressing his feelings,
Duke returned to the workshop and continued making cards. The sky gradually darkened, and Levin had already begun cooking in the kitchen downstairs.
"Chirp!"
Little Dou ran out of the animal-rearing room and jumped onto Duke's shoulder. He stood upright, rubbing his two forepaws together.
"Hungry?"
"Here, dried Spirit Beast meat. Eat sparingly. I can't even bear to eat Spirit Beast meat at every meal." Duke took two strips of dried Spirit Beast meat from the bag.
One strip went to Little Dou, and he ate the other himself.
After finishing, he immediately contacted Xiao Yi. "AFK cultivate the Universal Blood Refining Method."
"Understood, Master. A new process has been added for you. Process Two: Universal Blood Refining Method. AFK cultivation consumes 26%. Current Blood Sea level: 0-ring Knight. Advancement progress cannot be estimated; waiting for Little Dou to grow naturally is required."
Before you continue