Spirit Planter

Chapter 16: Spirit Planter

Someone with a lower cultivation level than hers was a Spirit Planter?

"Mm. He's the one who cured my Spirit Herbs whenever they got sick. I'm sure he can help you get rid of these weeds, so don't worry." Murong Xiaoxiao nodded.

Shi Yue's mouth twitched. He hadn't even said a word, and Martial Aunt Murong had already vouched for him. She was putting him under pressure.

"Really? That's wonderful! Junior Brother, hurry and help me get rid of these weeds." The Yellow-shirt Girl's eyes lit up, and she spoke excitedly.

"Don't rush. Tell me what happened first so I can prescribe the right remedy," Shi Yue said, raising an eyebrow.

"It happened like this. Half a month ago, a kind of weed suddenly appeared in my Spirit Field. No matter what I tried, I couldn't get rid of it. The weeds kept growing in number and absorbed all the spiritual energy in the field, causing the Spirit Herbs I planted to wither." The Yellow-shirt Girl explained each detail.

Shi Yue was secretly startled. It seemed these weeds grew very vigorously.

He walked over to the Spirit Field and circled it once.

He noticed that more than a dozen weeds had been cut off at the stems. The cut surfaces were smooth, and their roots remained in the soil.

At that sight, Shi Yue understood what had happened. It seemed this Senior Sister had only cut off the parts of the weeds that had sprouted above the ground, without pulling them up by the roots. These weeds happened to grow very vigorously, and as long as their roots remained, they would keep growing. That was why they had spread across the entire Spirit Field.

The Spirit Field was full of weeds, so there were bound to be weed seeds in the soil. Unless the seeds were cleared away, the weeds would grow back even if the ones in the field were pulled out by the roots.

Just then, Shi Yue thought of the Wood Grass Art. It could extract the essence of plants and trees and rob them of their vitality. The essence he extracted could be used to heal the three mu of Water Moon Flowers.

"Junior Nephew Shi, do you have a way to deal with these weeds?" Murong Xiaoxiao saw that Shi Yue still hadn't done anything. Her willow brows furrowed as she asked.

"I have an idea, but I won't know whether it can get rid of all the weeds until I try," Shi Yue said uncertainly.

"Then give it a try!" Murong Xiaoxiao urged.

Shi Yue nodded. His ten fingers moved like the spokes of a wheel as he formed Hand Seals. Soon, wisps of pale green light flew out of the Spirit Field and gathered at his fingertips.

Murong Xiaoxiao and the Yellow-shirt Girl watched in astonishment as the weeds in the Spirit Field changed from emerald green to withered yellow and slowly toppled over.

After a quarter of an hour, most of the weeds in the Spirit Field had turned yellow and fallen to the ground.

Shi Yue was drenched in sweat, and his face had grown pale. With his third-level Qi Refining cultivation, he couldn't sustain the Wood Grass Art for long.

After another quarter of an hour, Shi Yue had almost run out of spiritual power. He stopped forming Hand Seals, and the pale green light gathered at his fingertips turned into an emerald-green pearl about the size of a fist.

A small portion of the weeds still remained in the Spirit Field.

"Huh? Why did you stop? Junior Brother Shi, hurry up and keep going!" The Yellow-shirt Girl blinked and urged him anxiously.

"Enough, Xing'er. Junior Nephew Shi has overdrawn his spiritual power. Let him meditate and recover before continuing," Murong Xiaoxiao said, glancing at Shi Yue's pale face.

"Oh, all right." The Yellow-shirt Girl nodded.

Shi Yue sat cross-legged and meditated, slowly recovering his spiritual power.

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Shi Yue stood up and continued using the Wood Grass Art to extract the weeds' essence.

A quarter of an hour later, when no more pale green light rose from the Spirit Field, Shi Yue stopped forming Hand Seals. An emerald-green pearl, about the size of a baby's fist, appeared in his hand.

The Spirit Field was now covered in withered yellow weeds.

Shi Yue's lips moved slightly, and specks of red light appeared at his fingertips.

Pfft! A wisp of crimson flame sprang from Shi Yue's fingertips.

Shi Yue flicked his finger. The crimson flame flew off and landed on the withered weeds, which immediately caught fire and burned fiercely.

The flames grew higher and higher, covering the entire Spirit Field. Before long, they died out.

"The weeds are gone. But don't rush to plant Spirit Herbs yet. Keep an eye on the field for two days. If no weeds appear, then you can plant them," Shi Yue said, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"Got it. Thank you, Junior Brother Shi." The Yellow-shirt Girl nodded with a smile. Two shallow dimples showed on her round cheeks, making her look very cute.

Shi Yue's expression remained completely calm.

"Xing'er, Junior Nephew Shi has been working hard all this time. Is 'thank you' all you have to say?" Murong Xiaoxiao reminded her.

"Oh, I forgot. Junior Brother Shi, I don't have many Spirit Stones on me. Take these five as payment for getting rid of the weeds." The Yellow-shirt Girl suddenly realized her mistake and promptly took out five Spirit Stones, handing them to Shi Yue.

"Senior Sister, you're too kind. We're fellow disciples, so we should help each other." Shi Yue said this, but accepted the five Spirit Stones with delight.

Murong Xiaoxiao saw the change in Shi Yue's expression and looked at him with disdain. It was only five Spirit Stones. Was he really that happy?

"By the way, Senior Sister, is there anything else I can help you with?" Shi Yue asked warmly, narrowing his eyes.

"Uh, not for now." The Yellow-shirt Girl blinked, then shook her head.

"If you need help, be sure to tell me! We're fellow disciples, after all. We should help each other." Shi Yue said with a beaming smile.

Murong Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes at him. He was only this enthusiastic because of the Spirit Stones!

"All right, there's nothing else to do here. Junior Nephew Shi, go back to your own work. I'll call for you if I need anything." Murong Xiaoxiao ordered in a tone that brooked no argument.

Shi Yue nodded and flew away on his flying tool.

"Sister Murong, he looks so upright, but who would've thought he'd be such a greedy fellow?" the girl called Xing'er said to Murong Xiaoxiao after Shi Yue left.

"Uh, I didn't expect it either. But he got rid of all those weeds for you. You didn't lose out by giving him five Spirit Stones, did you?"

"But I'm broke, Sister Murong. How about lending me a few more Spirit Stones to spend..."

"Don't even think about it. Go ask your dad. I'm leaving."

Back at Uncle-Master Zhou's cave abode, Shi Yue went straight to the three mu of Water Moon Flowers.

With a flick of his sleeve, two emerald-green pearls, one large and one small, flashed into view and floated above the Water Moon Flowers.

Shi Yue formed Hand Seals with both hands and sent one spell seal toward each of the two emerald-green pearls.

A flash of green light, and the two pearls shattered one after another. A large amount of exceptionally pure plant essence surged out and streamed into the Water Moon Flowers below.

After absorbing the plant essence, the Water Moon Flowers' petals regained their white color. All three mu of them returned to normal, and they grew even better than before.

Shi Yue circled the three mu of Water Moon Flowers. Seeing their petals turn pure white, he nodded with satisfaction.

He had been able to solve the problem of the Water Moon Flowers' yellowing petals this time thanks to running into a Senior Sister whose Spirit Field was overrun with weeds. Otherwise, he wouldn't have known where to extract plant essence.

Today's experience had also served as a warning to Shi Yue. Waiting until Spirit Plants got sick before trying to find a solution was no way to do things. It seemed he needed to learn all the Basic Five Elements Techniques.

Of the Basic Five Elements Techniques, he already knew the Spring Rain Art, Metal Spirit Art, Wood Grass Art, and Blaze Art. Only the Earth Spirit Art remained.

With that in mind, Shi Yue found the Jade Slip containing the Basic Five Elements Techniques and located the Earth Spirit Art cultivation method.

The Earth Spirit Art could distribute the spiritual energy in the soil more evenly, making it easier for Spirit Plants to absorb.

After silently reciting the Earth Spirit Art's cultivation incantation, Shi Yue entered the Mysterious Space and released the Spirit Devouring Bees from the Spirit Beast Bag.

By then, the Spirit Rice had ripened. Shi Yue carefully snipped off each grain with scissors and put them into the Storage Bag.

Two hours later, he had finished harvesting one mu of Spirit Rice. Shi Yue was drenched in sweat from exhaustion.

He couldn't spare time to rest. After wiping the sweat from his face, he sat cross-legged, silently recited the Earth Spirit Art's cultivation incantation, and rapidly formed Hand Seals with his fingers.

Cultivating the Earth Spirit Art was no easier than cultivating the Wood Grass Art. Shi Yue failed again and again, but he didn't give up. Each failure only stoked his fighting spirit.

Two hours later, Shi Yue's fingers moved rapidly as he formed Hand Seals, and a yellow glow shimmered over both hands.

At the sight, Shi Yue's face lit up with joy. He pressed both hands into the soil.

The yellow glow on Shi Yue's hands flickered continuously, bright and conspicuous.

After a quarter of an hour, as a large amount of spiritual power flowed away, Shi Yue's face paled and a sheen of sweat appeared on his forehead. Still, he kept both hands pressed to the ground.

Another quarter of an hour passed. Shi Yue stopped forming Hand Seals, and the yellow glow on his hands vanished. He lifted them from the ground.

Shi Yue strode forward, picked up a lump of soil about the size of a fist, and squeezed it hard. The lump crumbled, and a surge of spiritual energy burst out.

There wasn't much spiritual energy, but it was distributed very evenly.

Shi Yue nodded. Since the Spirit Herbs hadn't matured yet, he couldn't use a Fireball Technique to burn the rice stalks, so he had to let them rot naturally.

To all fellow cultivators passing by, I humbly ask for a few recommendation votes!