"Master, Master?"
Seeing Wei Zhong standing there in a daze, Xie Linghua softly reminded him.
Wei Zhong gathered his thoughts. These matters needed to be considered over the long term; they could not be arranged in such a short while.
Wei Zhong then had Xie Linghua receive the spirit farmers and others who would arrive later, instructing her to plan the allocation of Black Lake Island's spirit lands.
More than a decade ago, as the Li Lineage's second-tier spirit island, Black Lake Island had not only served as a cultivation ground for the lineage's upper ranks and outstanding descendants, but also possessed vast stretches of excellent Spirit Fields. These had not been opened to rogue spirit farmers, but had been cultivated exclusively by lineage descendants.
Now, Wei Zhong intended to make full use of these Spirit Fields to plant all manner of spirit plants.
After tossing the matter to the newly appointed spirit island steward, Wei Zhong returned to the cave abode. Looking at its somewhat gloomy interior, he felt uneasy.
After living so long in a small courtyard amid the fields as a spirit farmer, he truly was not used to this now.
I should build a small pavilion outside someday.
Wei Zhong took one step into the grotto-heaven. Sensing the dense spiritual energy within, he let out a satisfied sound.
"This is still the place best suited for cultivation."
Returning to the cultivation room, he took out the second-tier brewing inheritance he had obtained from Hu Yang Daoren and began studying it in earnest.
As he read through the knowledge recorded in the Jade Slip, Wei Zhong became utterly absorbed.
Compared with first-tier spirit wine, second-tier spirit wine required not only better ingredients, but also somewhat different techniques. Most importantly, one had to prevent conflicts between the spiritual energies of the various spirit materials during brewing. The many methods recorded within truly opened Wei Zhong's eyes.
Wei Zhong already possessed no small accomplishment in brewing. After reading through the Jade Slip once, he had gained some insight.
Perhaps Green Vine Intoxication can be raised to second-tier spirit wine if I replace a few more ingredients. Wei Zhong's face brimmed with delight.
When he reached the final three wine recipes, a trace of surprise appeared on Wei Zhong's face.
The first wine recipe was called Warm Tears. Its opening stated that the spirit wine's effect was to mildly nourish one's divine soul.
Having spent many years as a rogue cultivator, Wei Zhong understood just how scarce spirit objects capable of nourishing the divine soul were.
To Wei Zhong, such things were something he had never seen—at least, never in physical form. He had only encountered a few scattered mentions of such treasures in miscellaneous anecdotes and biographies written by cultivators, tales of uncertain truth.
After excitedly studying the entire recipe, Wei Zhong sighed helplessly.
No wonder Hu Yang Daoren had sold this inheritance to him.
Warm Tears fell within the category of first-tier spirit wine and only enhanced the spiritual sense of Qi Refining cultivators.
Moreover, the improvement was exceedingly slight. One had to drink one or two taels of the spirit wine every day for ten consecutive years just to barely raise the divine sense of early-stage Qi Refining to the level of mid-stage Qi Refining.
To raise it further to the level of late-stage Qi Refining would require drinking it for thirty years.
It sounded fairly decent, but the cost of making this spirit wine was exorbitant. A single batch of ingredients cost at least a hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones and could brew roughly a year's supply for one cultivator—without even considering losses from failed brewing.
Such an expensive investment was truly beyond what ordinary people could bear.
Wei Zhong was already a Foundation Establishment cultivator. This recipe could only serve as a temporary accumulation for him, its sole use being as a reference for him to try improving it into a second-tier wine in the future.
He would use it for practice first, familiarize himself with its principles, and improve it later.
Besides, this wine still had a market among certain Qi Refining cultivators, particularly those trapped at a bottleneck. Improving one's spiritual sense also had quite a good effect on breaking through a realm.
The second recipe was utterly unremarkable. It was called Jade Forest Green, a spirit fruit wine with a distinctive flavor.
To Wei Zhong, it leaned more toward the fruit-flavored drinks of his previous life. Its only advantage was that it tasted good; everything else about it was entirely ordinary.
The third wine recipe was called Azure Ganoderma Intoxication. Its name was rather similar to his own Green Vine Intoxication.
Using ganoderma as its main ingredient, it was a spirit wine brewed to provide cultivators with spiritual power and increase their cultivation. Its effects were fairly similar to those of the Harmony Qi Pill.
Furthermore, the recipe did not specify a particular grade. The more precious the ingredients used, the higher the grade of spirit wine brewed.
As for conflicts between the spiritual energies of the ingredients, the brewer had to grasp that on their own.
"This..."
Wei Zhong could not help thinking of the Jade Marrow Mushroom growing on the withered spirit tree outside the courtyard.
A three-hundred-year Jade Marrow Mushroom was a main ingredient for the second-tier pill, the Foundation Establishment Pill. If he used a three-hundred-year Jade Marrow Mushroom to brew wine, would that not make it a proper second-tier spirit wine?
Moreover, the Jade Marrow Mushrooms on that spirit tree were not limited to three hundred years in age. There were even five-hundred-year ones.
At this thought, Wei Zhong grew excited. He could completely use Azure Ganoderma Intoxication in place of Harmony Qi Pills as part of his daily cultivation needs.
As long as the materials were good enough, he would not have to worry about the spirit wine providing insufficient spiritual energy. Wasn't that better than the Harmony Qi Pills sold by the Azurewood Sect?
Without learning alchemy, Azure Ganoderma Intoxication was absolutely the best choice.
Speaking of which, that Fellow Daoist Shen from the Azurewood Sect still owed me a favor. It would not be excessive to ask him for an alchemy inheritance with this, would it?
Wei Zhong knew that Fellow Daoist Shen had earned quite a few Spirit Stones over the years through that Green Vine Intoxication recipe.
With these thoughts in mind, Wei Zhong set down the Jade Slip. Someone was about to enter the cave abode outside.
With a flash of his figure, Wei Zhong returned to the cave abode. Through his divine sense, he discovered that Xie Linghua had come, so he ordered the Blood-Eating Bat King to let her in.
At that moment, Xie Linghua stood at the cave entrance, looking at the red lights glowing within. Her scalp tingled. She did not know what kind of demon beasts they were, but she understood that with her meager strength, if those demon beasts swarmed her, she would have no chance of survival.
"Come in."
Only upon hearing Wei Zhong's voice by her ear did she steady herself and enter the cave abode with an anxious heart.
Being surrounded by Blood-Eating Bats along the way made goosebumps rise all over her body. At the sight of the vicious Blood-Eating Bat King, half a person's height tall, her heart nearly stopped beating.
Once she reached the interior of the cave abode and saw the pavilion-like buildings illuminated by several luminous pearls, she finally let out a breath of relief.
Wei Zhong was standing before the door, looking at her with a warm smile.
"Master!"
Xie Linghua stepped forward, and Wei Zhong led her inside. He had already cleaned this place again. The furnishings were all old items Wei Zhong had once used, giving it somewhat of the feeling of a home.
Xie Linghua first reported to Wei Zhong on that day's arrangements for the maidservants and spirit farmers.
"The Spirit Fields have all been allocated. Since most of them are old spirit farmers who once cultivated this island, they picked things up quickly.
"As for the sisters, I have temporarily arranged some light work for them and urged them to learn a few simple skills, so they can be of use to you in the future..."
Wei Zhong nodded.
"Good. Your arrangements are already more than sufficient. Also, do not shortchange them in terms of treatment. Give them the same treatment the Li Lineage once provided, with the outstanding ones receiving an additional increase of several tenths."
After discussing matters for a while, they set the tone for work on the spirit island. The remaining time was naturally for serious business.
Wei Zhong lightly drew Xie Linghua's slender waist close, and a bashful flush appeared on her face...
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