Cloud Rain Art

"Since Junior Brother Chen is so confident, I shall wait for the surprise your Five-Element Mixed Spiritual Root brings!"

Pi Dong gave a cold, mocking laugh, his eyes filled with thick derision before he turned and walked away.

This piece of trash with a Five-Element Mixed Spiritual Root was the very last among all the chore disciples to break through to the Qi Refining Realm; it would take him at least two months just to achieve a rudimentary mastery of the Cloud Rain Art.

Chore disciples had limited aptitude by nature, and their cultivation speed was sluggish.

If it were an inner sect disciple, they would be casting a simple Cloud Rain Art with proficiency in just a few days.

After a moment of silence, Chen Changming returned to his room to retrieve the Spirit Rice Planting Guide, then made his way to the spirit fields, opening the book to study it.

This guide did not involve cultivation techniques; it merely detailed the process of planting spirit rice, so Chen Changming grasped it quickly.

After all, he had spent several years farming with his grandmother when he was young, allowing him to draw parallels.

Having finished the guide, Chen Changming paced back and forth along the ridges, patrolling his five acres of spirit fields to observe the growth of the spirit rice and check for any pests.

"A bug!"

A golden beetle the size of a fingernail was resting quietly on a green stalk, successfully spotted by Chen Changming.

This was a Gold Spirit Bug, one of the most common pests in the spirit fields.

Chen Changming held his breath, not daring to be negligent, and carefully drew his steel blade.

These were no ordinary insects; they often devoured spirit rice and possessed hard shells, so he had to use his greatest force to deal with them.

Carefully taking a few steps, the youth slashed out with his blade.

The speed of this strike was fast—even faster than when he was in the Xiantian Realm—but the Gold Spirit Bug was startled by the blade wind, spread its wings, and took flight, successfully dodging the attack.

"Die!"

Chen Changming leaped into the air, executing a Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain.

Bang!

The Gold Spirit Bug failed to dodge in time, was clipped by the blade edge, and was sent crashing into the grass nearby.

Landing on the grass, the injured Gold Spirit Bug rolled about and actually began to scurry away rapidly through the weeds.

Swish, swish, swish... Blade light flickered.

Chen Changming lunged forward, landing several consecutive strikes to kill the Gold Spirit Bug completely.

"What a hard shell."

Sheathing his blade, the youth stood on the grass, his face lingering with a sense of trepidation.

The power of his Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade was still insufficient, requiring multiple strikes to finish off a Gold Spirit Bug.

It seems the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade needs to be strengthened as well...

Chen Changming thought to himself.

He had no contribution points and could not cultivate the Spirit Finger Flick, so for now, he could only pin his hopes on the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade.

For the next two hours, Chen Changming remained immersed in the spirit fields, searching for spirit bugs and wounding them, continuously practicing the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade in the process.

Every execution was an accumulation of experience.

It was as if the youth was slowly advancing on the path of progress, and one day, his blade technique would reach a higher level.

"Hmph!"

"I didn't expect this brat to know martial arts blade techniques; no wonder he's so arrogant! But that's as far as it goes. If you can't cast the Cloud Rain Art, the spirit rice yield will drop. Let's see how you handle that!"

In the distant woods, through the sparse leaves, Pi Dong's face turned livid. He stomped his foot in annoyance and turned to leave.

At the same time, within a cave on the highest peak of the Lingxiao Sect, a faint voice drifted out.

"Recently, has a youth holding a cyan ancient token joined the sect?"

"No, Ancestor."

Li Yue, Sect Master of the Lingxiao Sect, bowed low as he spoke, a flash of astonishment crossing his eyes; what manner of youth could possibly command the attention of this ancestor, who stood at the threshold of the Golden Core realm?

Could it be the descendant of an old acquaintance of the Ancestor?

"If he comes, kill him."

The Lingxiao Sect Ancestor sat cross-legged within the cave dwelling, eyes closed, speaking in a calm and indifferent tone.

Kill him?

Li Yue was startled. Who exactly was this youth that he warranted a direct order from the Ancestor to be executed?

"Ancestor, could he be a spy from the Blood Demon Sect?"

Li Yue asked after a moment of thought.

"Not at all. I am merely fulfilling a request, honoring a promise..."

The Old Ancestor smiled faintly and waved his hand, saying, "It is nothing of great consequence; you need not take it to heart. A boy who has yet to step through the gates of immortality might well be devoured by wild beasts in the mountains before he even reaches the Lingxiao Sect."

"I understand, Old Ancestor."

Li Yue retreated from the cave with a respectful bow.

Since the Old Ancestor had spoken thus, he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. He returned to the Sect Master's hall, gave a few casual instructions, and promptly cast the matter to the back of his mind.

After exterminating the Gold Spirit Bugs in the spirit fields, Chen Changming returned to his room and began to study the Cloud Rain Art.

It took him seven full days to thoroughly comprehend this rudimentary technique.

My aptitude really is nothing short of abysmal...

The youth gave a self-deprecating smile.

Throughout these seven days, he had visited the spirit fields every single day, alternating between practicing the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade and weeding out pests.

Upon returning, he would also dedicate time to continuing his cultivation of the Evergreen Art.

After all, this cultivation method could not be neglected, as it was tied to whether he could break through to the second level of the Qi Refining Realm in the future.

Once he had grasped the Cloud Rain Art, Chen Changming went to the spirit fields to put it into practice.

"Cloud Rain Art!"

Standing on the ridge of the field, the youth performed a series of hand seals. As the spiritual energy within his body surged, he pointed his finger sharply forward!

A white cloud, no larger than a washbasin, appeared out of thin air.

Is that it?

Looking at the miniature cloud, Chen Changming felt like crying but had no tears; he truly was a complete waste.

His first attempt at casting ended in failure, and the tiny cloud dissipated without shedding a single drop of rain.

"This Cloud Rain Art is far more difficult than the Spirit Armor Art..."

Chen Changming shook his head.

In truth, he understood that when he first learned the Spirit Armor Art, the flow of energy had been guided by Zhu Fang. Now, however, he had to control the Cloud Rain Art entirely on his own, and he was still unpracticed in circulating energy through many of his meridians.

This was what had led to such a failure on his first attempt.

The youth was not one to give up. He continued to cast the Cloud Rain Art, and after thirty consecutive attempts, the spiritual energy in his body was completely exhausted.

Chen Changming sat panting by the edge of the field. Once his breathing had steadied after a while, he began to practice the Evergreen Art to replenish his spiritual energy.

At this moment, the youth did not realize that a normal servant disciple at the early stage of Qi Refining could only cast the Cloud Rain Art five or six times with their internal spiritual energy. The fact that he had managed thirty attempts showed that the reserves in his dantian were five times greater than those of an ordinary person!

After ten cycles of the Evergreen Art, his dantian was filled once more, and the youth began to practice the Cloud Rain Art again.

Seven days later.

Chen Changming was finally able to conjure a cloud the size of an eight-immortal table and successfully make it rain.

This filled him with immense excitement!

Relying on this small, pathetic cloud, Chen Changming managed to water two acres of land in a single day.

Although the quality of his Cloud Rain Art was poor—the cloud was tiny and the rain sparse—he made up for it with the sheer frequency of his casting!

By replenishing his spiritual energy ten times a day, he could cast the Cloud Rain Art three hundred times. Through this terrifying volume, he had successfully watered two acres of spirit fields.

Spurred on by his success, Chen Changming performed even better the next day. The power of his Cloud Rain Art increased, the cloud grew a size larger, and he managed to water two and a half acres.

He worked overtime that night to finish the remaining half-acre.

At dawn, the mountains were shrouded in a faint mist.

The red sun flickered on the horizon, and the entire valley was filled with the lingering fragrance of spirit rice.

Having finished his cultivation of the Evergreen Art, Chen Changming picked up the Spirit Rice Planting Guide and returned to the fields, carefully observing the growth of the rice.

"My level of Cloud Rain Art is still lacking; there isn't enough spiritual energy in the rain..."

After a meticulous inspection, Chen Changming reached this conclusion.

"Cloud Rain Art!"

Putting away the Spirit Rice Planting Guide, the youth began to summon clouds and rain once more.

If the quality was lacking, he would simply compensate with quantity!

He had plenty of patience.

Over the next few days, Chen Changming continuously cast the Cloud Rain Art to irrigate the fields. As the number of attempts increased, he became more proficient in the execution of the technique and gained a deeper understanding of it.

After the five acres had been watered six times over, he finally mastered the Cloud Rain Art completely. By this time, another half-month had passed.

The voice didn't appear, so it seems my previous attempts didn't count because I hadn't truly mastered the Cloud Rain Art yet... the youth thought to himself.