Harvest

On the table lay fourteen stones of varying sizes, three earth-yellow, five red, and six green.

The earth-yellow ones exuded a heavy, solid aura, like the earth itself. The red ones conveyed an aura of incomparably pure fire.

The green ones, however, gave off a sense of life, of thriving trees.

"These stones, as pure as jade, make one feel comfortable from the bottom of their heart. They must be extraordinary. Although I don't know their specific uses, they were collected in several storage bags, so they must have a purpose."

Lu Xiaotian thought to himself. However, he knew nothing about cultivation spells or spiritual materials, though he could sense the spiritual energy within them.

For now, he could only put them away and figure them out later.

Besides these fourteen stones filled with various spiritual energies, several jade boxes were also placed on the table. Each box contained spiritual grass, but the spiritual energy fluctuations from them were much stronger than what he had consumed before. They should be higher-grade spiritual grass.

In addition to the spiritual grass, there were three bottles of pills and three cultivation technique manuals. These also had spiritual energy fluctuations. The three bottles of pills were identical. As for the cultivation techniques, he had already cultivated the Primordial Scripture and had no use for these.

Lu Xiaotian's gaze fell upon the last storage bag. The other three were open, but this one remained closed. Several times, his spiritual sense had touched this storage bag, only to be repelled. It even caused his spiritual sense to vibrate, making him dizzy and his ears ring. After a few attempts, he no longer dared to try.

It seemed cultivators had many tricks up their sleeves. Unfortunately, the Black Robe Old Man had no intention of teaching him. He was completely in the dark about all of this. Lu Xiaotian lamented inwardly. If someone could teach him, it would save him a lot of trouble. At least he wouldn't be completely clueless. As it was, he could only explore on his own, doubling his effort for half the result.

He put the items away, hanging the small black bag and the jade gourd at his waist. Lu Xiaotian opened a small pill bottle and poured out a white pill, the size of a pigeon's egg. His face showed hesitation. The spiritual energy fluctuation from it was much stronger than the Qi Gathering Pills he had taken before. He wondered if there were any contraindications for this spirit pill. Lu Xiaotian pondered for a moment and finally decided not to take it unless absolutely necessary, before he understood its effects.

In Lu Xiaotian's other hand was a storage bag embroidered with characters. The words "Blood Dwarf" were embroidered on it. Seeing these words, he couldn't help but recall a middle-aged man he had met once. The man was not as tall as him and wore dark robes. He had learned from others that they seemed to call him Blood Dwarf. There were also three people accompanying the Black Robe Old Man. Could these storage bags belong to those three? If they were their storage bags, how did they end up on the Black Robe Old Man? Could it be? Thinking of the Black Robe Old Man's insidious and cunning nature, Lu Xiaotian felt a chill, but he couldn't be sure of his guess.

Half an hour later, after moving the stones in the cave mansion, Lu Xiaotian looked up at the blue sky and white clouds, exhaling heavily. Being forced into a desperate situation by the Black Robe Old Man earlier, he now felt a sense of surviving a disaster.

"When my strength is sufficient, I will definitely deal with the Black Robe Old Man's Primordial Spirit," Lu Xiaotian vowed inwardly. The other's Primordial Spirit had been residing within him. Although it was currently trapped behind a transparent barrier, it was always a hidden danger. After all, he couldn't be sure how long that barrier could contain it.

Everything in the canyon had withered, turning into a barren land. He wouldn't find any spiritual materials here. Even if the canyon hadn't changed, with his strength at only the Qi Refining First Layer, venturing into the canyon would likely turn him into food for other Yao Beasts very quickly.

Having realized this, Lu Xiaotian headed towards the exit of the canyon with the items he had obtained from the Black Robe Old Man.

"Roar!" Just as he approached the cave entrance, Lu Xiaotian heard a beast's roar. Instinctively, he gripped his sword hilt, but upon concentrating, he saw a leopard with a small silver collar around its neck galloping towards him, circling him excitedly.

"Good fellow, so my spirit beast also escaped the wolf pack." Lu Xiaotian's face lit up with joy, and he stroked the leopard's head. The leopard understood and crouched down.

"Let's go!" Lu Xiaotian shouted cheerfully. The leopard took off, galloping into the distance.

Several months later, in a dense jungle, a nimble leopard was locked in a fierce struggle with a larger tiger Yao. Their strengths were comparable, but the tiger Yao's larger size gave it an advantage in stamina. The two beasts fought fiercely. After a moment, the leopard began to fall into a disadvantage. However, at this moment, over a dozen little green ants flew in from different directions. They landed on the tiger Yao, burrowed into its fur, and began to bite. The tiger Yao's movements immediately became sluggish and weak. The leopard seized the opportunity and bit its throat, killing it instantly.

At this moment, a young man with several black bags hanging from his waist, along with a jade gourd and a short sword, curved his lips slightly.

"The little green ants' effectiveness is indeed extraordinary. No wonder the Black Robe Old Man always kept them by his side."

Lu Xiaotian was very satisfied with the role the little green ants had played along the way. These little green ants themselves had little killing power, but their paralyzing effect was extremely strong. Furthermore, even when he attacked a single little green ant with his short sword repeatedly, he couldn't kill it. Besides the ants' own astonishing defense, their small size and the fact that they were not affected by wind resistance while flying were also crucial reasons.

Lu Xiaotian skinned the dead tiger Yao and collected some of its bones. Tigers were treasures. Selling them to the city's pharmacies should fetch a good price. He put the entire skinned tiger hide and tiger bones into the storage bag. He also roasted some tiger meat and threw it to the leopard, which had been salivating for a long time.

He carried the storage bag with satisfaction. After days of experimentation, he discovered that only objects with spiritual energy could be stored in the bag. Some herbs he had in his backpack, like He Shou Wu, could not be placed inside.

While the leopard was devouring the roasted meat, Lu Xiaotian sat cross-legged and cultivated as usual.

"Brother Lu, Master Lu, please be merciful and let me out." In the midst of a hazy white mist, a barrier resembling a giant green fruit, like a green bubble, floated in the air.

Inside the translucent light green bubble, the Black Robe Old Man's Primordial Spirit tried to move back and forth. However, the mist outside the barrier churned, seeming to want to pull and tear the Black Robe Old Man's Primordial Spirit apart. The Black Robe Old Man was startled and no longer dared to easily step out of the barrier.

In the past, when he went into seclusion to cultivate, he would sometimes spend months. But within this transparent green barrier, in his Primordial Spirit form, he couldn't cultivate at all and couldn't absorb Origin Energy. After months of this monotonous and boring wait, it was enough to drive someone mad.

"You ruthless and shameless scoundrel, to think you'd beg for help. Truly astonishing."

Lu Xiaotian's Primordial Spirit emerged from the mist and spoke through the barrier. Through constant cultivation these days, he found that after each cultivation session, he would appear in this mysterious place within his body. After coming here many times, he discovered that he could control the location of his Primordial Spirit's appearance. He had left the Black Robe Old Man to stew for several months.