First Battle Against the Third Level of Qi Refining

Mu Ye was satisfied; this one-star quest was finally complete.

"Unknowingly, it's almost dawn..."

"It's a good thing I'm a cultivator; there's no such thing as staying up too late for me."

Mu Ye closed his eyes and silently circulated the Foundation Building Art, letting his mind enter a state of emptiness.

Qi Refining stage cultivators were not yet able to condense their divine sense. Although the Foundation Building Art was a dime-a-dozen technique—slow to practice and difficult to improve—it had one benefit: it consolidated one's foundation. By circulating it frequently, the spiritual energy would flow through the entire body, allowing every organ to relax, which achieved the minor effect of nourishing the body and restoring mental energy.

In fact, cultivators had very low requirements for sleep; a few hours a day was sufficient. Most of their time was spent in meditation.

By daybreak, Mu Ye had already risen and begun his day's labor.

The spirit stones he had saved up over the past few years were all spent, and he had to start saving all over again.

"I've been playing this game for almost two months now..."

There hadn't been many changes in reality. A few handymen from the mines had left, and some new ones had been brought in to replace them.

Zhu Fengliu, who lived next door, had already kicked the bucket. He died in a room at Tianxiang Pavilion in Qinghe Market. It was said that while he was practicing with someone, he suffered a qi deviation and died right there on the spot.

The cultivation world was always this cruel. People came and went, dying left and right; one never knew when it would be their turn.

Stepping out of the stone house, the fresh air gave Mu Ye a jolt.

"There are quite a few fewer handyman disciples..."

Looking left and right, Mu Ye sighed. Suddenly, a somewhat familiar figure appeared in his field of vision.

The man was leaning against a branch, standing in front of a stone house.

"Chen the Lame?"

Mu Ye walked over and asked, "Why are you back?"

The man turned around, revealing a face that was passably good-looking, though his complexion was gray and his eyes were dull. He looked Mu Ye up and down for a few moments, stunned:

"You are... Mu Ye?"

"It's me..." Mu Ye nodded. Previously, that Zhu Fengliu had mentioned Chen the Lame's story.

To be honest, it was quite tragic.

A classic case of an honest man being taken for a ride, then kicked out of the game, and having his other leg crippled to boot.

Back in the Qinghe mines, he had been a very honest cultivator, the type who worked hard. As two hard workers who were also neighbors, their relationship had actually been decent.

It was just a pity that the man had met the wrong person.

Mu Ye looked him up and down, noticing that the man's clothes were tattered and he reeked of a faint, fishy stench. He must have crawled back from the wilderness. Sighing, Mu Ye took out a few Spirit Coins and handed them to him.

"I heard about what happened to you. It's good that you're alive. From now on, just stay here and mine honestly... No one has lived in your stone hut."

After saying this, Mu Ye patted the man on the shoulder.

Spirit Coins were fragments of Spirit Stones, used by cultivators for daily miscellaneous purchases.

A few Spirit Coins, when converted, were only worth a few of Mu Ye's meals over the past few days.

Chen the Lame opened his mouth, a glimmer of light appearing in his murky eyes. He stared blankly at the Spirit Coins in his hand, only snapping back to reality after Mu Ye had walked far away.

Just then.

"Hehehe... I didn't expect this world of cultivation to still have a shred of human warmth..."

A strange voice echoed from within his body.

Chen the Lame said nothing; he simply gripped the Spirit Coins in his hand and remained silent.

Mining in the morning and farming in the afternoon had become Mu Ye's daily routine.

The weeds in the one mu of Spirit Field, along with the various demonic insects, had been mostly cleared away.

"It's about time to start sowing."

Mu Ye looked at the clean, impeccably tidy Spirit Field, feeling quite a sense of accomplishment.

The burned Stone Stem Grass had already turned into fertilizer for the soil, with even some left over—there was simply too much Stone Stem Grass, and there was no helping that.

In fact, this type of weed and the Spirit Field formed a cycle. When the Spirit Field lay fallow, the weeds would absorb the field's nutrients and inhale the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to form this special type of grass. Once burned, it became the best fertilizer for the land.

The only downside was the trouble it caused.

Next was sowing.

It was currently late spring, and there were quite a few spiritual plants suitable for this season. The easiest to grow and the most cost-effective was naturally the Fragrant Spirit Melon Rice.

This was a spiritual plant that was half-fruit, half-grain. The rice ears grew inside a melon-like fruit, and the unique fruit body locked in the spiritual energy. It had a sweet aftertaste and a soft, chewy texture, making it extremely popular among Qi Refining cultivators.

High-quality Spirit Melon Rice was even enjoyed by Foundation Establishment cultivators, even though most of them had already achieved inedia and no longer required food.

However, for many cultivators, eating was often a preference that wasn't completely abandoned just because their cultivation realm increased.

Otherwise, the spiritual plant industry wouldn't have developed; if there were no demand, there would be no such thing as spiritual plants.

Mu Ye had already prepared the seeds.

One mu of land is not small, but for a Qi Refining cultivator, it can actually be finished in a single afternoon.

At dusk, Mu Ye had already arranged the seeds neatly and buried them in the soil. From here on out, only daily care would be required.

Looking at the rows of neat soil pits, Mu Ye smiled with satisfaction.

Just then, a clapping sound suddenly rang out from behind him.

"Not bad, not bad. I didn't expect a handyman disciple like you to be so diligent. In just one month, you've managed to clear all the Stone Stem Grass from the Spirit Field..."

Mu Ye turned around.

A middle-aged man had arrived at the Spirit Field at some point and was looking at him with a beaming smile.

Mu Ye recognized him immediately; this was the cultivator who had leased the Spirit Field to him.

"You came here, is there something you need from me?" Mu Ye looked at the man, his heart growing vigilant.

"Naturally, there is."

"I'm not subletting the Spirit Field anymore," the middle-aged man laughed. "I'll return your Spirit Stones, just give the deed back to me."

"?"

Although he had already guessed as much, Mu Ye was still amused to the point of laughter upon hearing this.

Good grief, so he wanted to get a free ride on a month of his hard work, right?

This past month, he hadn't just been weeding; he had also been clearing out pests. Of course, it was also thanks to those Golden Hawthorn Locusts that his Vajra Leg had been able to progress so quickly.

"Sorry, you've already transferred the lease to me," Mu Ye shook his head. "I've worked so hard this month, and you think you can just call it off because you say so? How could I possibly return it to you?"

"Then there's no other way." The middle-aged man shrugged, raised his hand, and with a wave, a Mystic Ice Art came crashing toward him.

The icicles transformed into long spikes. Although there were only a few, they were aimed directly at his vital points. One look told him that this man had cast this spell countless times; he was as practiced as could be.

Mu Ye's figure retreated explosively, his expression darkening:

"You have already transferred the Spirit Field... to act like this, disregarding the rules—are you not afraid of being blamed by the Jinshi Sect's law enforcement disciples?"

"I'm afraid, sure. If you were an outer sect disciple like me, I certainly wouldn't dare... but you're just a handyman, what do I have to fear? At most, they'll fine me for a few months. I'll get a perfectly intact Spirit Field for free, and when I sublet it again at a high price, I'll still make a huge profit."

The middle-aged man laughed out loud. "Kid, your experience is still a bit shallow."

"Besides, in this day and age, out here in these fields and hills, there's no one around. If I kill you and toss your body outside the Jinshi Sect's territory, unless those law enforcement disciples happen to stumble upon it, who would know?"

"I advise you to hand over the deed and keep your life. Just endure it for now; maybe once you have a bit of strength in the future, you can come find me for revenge."

As Mu Ye leaped and dodged, he narrowly avoided several more ice spikes.

His body was now well-coordinated, with over a hundred acupuncture points opened, making his limbs extremely agile. Coupled with the fact that he had anticipated the latter would make a move, he was naturally able to dodge successfully.

However, one of the icicles still pierced his arm.

A cultivator at the third level of Qi Refining has spell power far greater than mine...

Mu Ye's heart sank. The status of a chore disciple was truly low.

It was like those delivery riders in his past life; if they got into an accident, would the company even care about them?

They wouldn't even give you the time of day.

The middle-aged man was slightly surprised to see Mu Ye dodge:

"You're quite agile... but it's useless."

Several Mystic Ice Art spells came crashing down—a simple, unadorned suppression of cultivation levels.

Mu Ye barely managed to execute the Geng Metal Grass-Cutting Sword, but unfortunately, he couldn't cut through those ice cones at all; the sword light was shattered before it could even travel a few meters.

In a clash of spells, he was simply no match.

The more he dodged, the more wounds appeared on his body.

"Wait, I surrender!"

"I'll give you the land deed!"

Mu Ye slumped to the ground, looking exhausted, and pulled out the land deed, clutching it tightly in his hand.

If this thing were torn, that piece of Spirit Field would become ownerless and return to the hands of the Jinshi Sect.

If he wanted it back, he would have to rent it again, which would be far too expensive.

Otherwise, if the other party truly had the intent to kill, he might not have had any chance to fight back at all.

The middle-aged man was overjoyed:

"You know how to read the room."

As he spoke, he kept one hand behind his back, secretly forming the seal for a Mystic Ice Art, and walked over.