Harvest

Fourteen stones of varying sizes lay on the table: three earth-yellow, five red, and six green.

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

The green ones, meanwhile, evoked life itself, the flourishing vigor of trees.

"These stones look as pure as jade and make one feel comfortable from the bottom of one's heart. They must be no ordinary objects. Though I don't know their exact uses, since they were stored in several storage bags, they must have their purpose."

Lu Xiaotian thought to himself. He knew nothing about immortal cultivators' spells or spiritual treasures, but he could sense the spiritual qi within them.

For now, he could only put them away and figure them out slowly in the future.

Besides these fourteen stones brimming with various kinds of spiritual qi, several jade boxes sat on the table. Spiritual herbs were stored inside, and the fluctuations of spiritual qi they emitted were far stronger than those of the herbs he had consumed before. They were probably higher-grade spiritual herbs.

Apart from the spiritual herbs, there were three bottles of pills and three cultivation manuals. They too emitted fluctuations of spiritual power, and the three bottles of pills were identical. As for the manuals, he was already cultivating the Primordial Unity Scripture, so these manuals were of no use to him.

Lu Xiaotian's gaze fell upon the last storage bag. The other three had all been opened, but this one alone would not open. Whenever his divine sense touched it, it would be bounced away. It even faintly jolted his divine sense, leaving him dizzy and with ringing ears. After several attempts, he no longer dared to try.

Immortal cultivators truly had countless tricks up their sleeves. Unfortunately, the black-robed old man had never intended to teach him anything. Now he was completely in the dark about all of this and understood nothing. Lu Xiaotian inwardly sighed with regret. If someone could teach him, it would save him considerable trouble. At the very least, he would not be utterly ignorant of these things. Yet now, he could only grope his way forward alone, doing twice the work for half the result.

After putting everything away, Lu Xiaotian hung the small black bag and jade gourd at his waist. He opened one of the small pill bottles and poured out a white pill the size of a pigeon's egg. His expression became hesitant. The spiritual power fluctuations on it were far stronger than those of the Qi-Gathering Pill he had taken before. He had no idea whether this spiritual pill had any taboos. After pondering for a while, Lu Xiaotian finally decided that until he understood this pill, he would not take it recklessly unless absolutely necessary.

In his other hand, Lu Xiaotian held a storage bag embroidered with words. The words Blood Dwarf were stitched upon it. At the sight of them, he could not help recalling a middle-aged man he had met only once. The man was shorter than Lu Xiaotian and wore dark robes. From what others had said, they seemed to call him Blood Dwarf. There had also been exactly three people traveling with the black-robed old man. Could these storage bags have belonged to those three? If they were their storage bags, why would they be on the black-robed old man? Could it be...? Thinking of the black-robed old man's sinister, scheming nature, Lu Xiaotian shuddered inwardly, though he did not dare confirm his suspicion.

Half an hour later, after moving away the stones sealing the cave dwelling, Lu Xiaotian looked at the blue sky and white clouds overhead and let out a long breath. Having been forced into a desperate corner by the black-robed old man before, he could not help feeling as though he had survived a great calamity.

"Once I'm strong enough, I'll definitely deal with the black-robed old man's Primordial Spirit." Lu Xiaotian made his decision in secret. The other party's Primordial Spirit had remained inside his body. Though it was currently trapped behind that transparent barrier, it was still a hidden danger. After all, he had no way of knowing how long that barrier could keep the other party imprisoned.

Everything in the valley had withered, turning it into a barren wasteland. There would be no spiritual treasures to find in such a place, and even if the valley had not changed, with his mere First Layer of Qi Refining cultivation, venturing through it would probably soon make him food for other demon beasts.

Having thought it through, Lu Xiaotian set off toward the valley exit with the items he had taken from the black-robed old man.

"Roar!" Just as he neared the cave entrance, Lu Xiaotian heard a beast's roar. Instinctively, he gripped his sword hilt, but when he focused his gaze, he saw a Leopard with a small silver ring around its neck sprint toward him, circling him excitedly.

Good fellow, his spirit beast had actually escaped the wolf pack too. Joy appeared on Lu Xiaotian's face as he stroked the Leopard's head. Understanding, the Leopard crouched down.

"Go!" Lu Xiaotian shouted cheerfully. The Leopard spread its legs and raced into the distance.

Several months later, within a dense forest, the agile Leopard was locked in a biting struggle with a larger tiger demon beast. Their strength was roughly equal, but the tiger demon beast was somewhat larger and held the advantage in stamina. The two beasts fought in a tangled mass. Before long, the Leopard fell into a disadvantage. Yet at that moment, more than a dozen little green ants flew over from different directions. They landed on the tiger demon beast, burrowed into its fur, and began biting. The tiger demon beast's movements immediately became sluggish and weak. The Leopard seized its throat in a single bite, and it died on the spot.

At that moment, the corner of the lips of a youth wearing several black bags, a jade gourd, and a short sword at his waist curled upward slightly.

"The little green ants truly are extraordinary. No wonder the black-robed old man always kept them by his side."

Lu Xiaotian was greatly satisfied with the little green ants' usefulness along the way. These little green ants were not especially lethal by themselves, but their paralyzing effect was extremely powerful. He had even attacked one continuously with his short sword without managing to kill it. Besides the little green ants' astonishing defenses, their small size and the fact that they did not catch force while flying through the air were also crucial reasons.

Lu Xiaotian skinned the tiger demon beast and took some tiger bones as well. Every part of a tiger was treasure; selling them to a pharmacy in the city should earn him quite a bit of money. He placed the entire skinned tiger hide and the bones into his storage bag. Then he roasted several chunks of tiger meat and tossed them to the Leopard, which had long been drooling with anticipation.

He contentedly carried the storage bag. After experimenting over the past few days, he had discovered that only objects containing spiritual qi could be stored inside it. Several medicinal herbs in his backpack, including fleeceflower root, could not be put inside.

While the Leopard lay to one side, wolfing down roasted meat, Lu Xiaotian sat cross-legged and cultivated as usual.

"Brother Lu, Lord Lu, have mercy and let me out." Amid the pale mist, a barrier shaped like a gigantic green fruit, like a green bubble, floated in the air.

Within the pale-green transparent bubble, the black-robed old man's Primordial Spirit tried to pass through it back and forth. Yet the mist outside the barrier churned, seemingly ready to drag and tear apart his Primordial Spirit. The black-robed old man was startled and no longer dared casually cross beyond the barrier.

In the past, when he went into seclusion to cultivate, he could remain there for several months at a time. But within this transparent green barrier, in his Primordial Spirit state, he simply could not cultivate or absorb vital energy. Several months of such dull, tedious waiting were enough to drive anyone mad.

"You, a shameless wretch who is ruthless and cruel, actually have a day when you beg someone for help. What a truly astonishing sight."

Lu Xiaotian's Primordial Spirit emerged from the mist and spoke through the barrier. Through his continuous cultivation over the past few days, he had discovered that after every cultivation session, he would appear in this incomparably mysterious place within his body. But after entering many times, he discovered that he could control where his Primordial Spirit appeared when it entered. He had left the black-robed old man hanging for several months in a row.