In front of the Pill Pavilion.
"Senior, I'd like to exchange for two Spirit Gathering Pills."
Chen Changming bowed and handed over his Contribution Token.
"Young man, it isn't easy for a menial disciple like you to earn contribution points. Are you sure you want to exchange them for Spirit Gathering Pills?"
An old man with white hair asked coolly.
The menial disciple before him was only at the first level of Qi Refining. Taking Spirit Gathering Pills would be a waste of precious resources.
"Yes, senior."
Seeing the disdain in the other man's eyes, Chen Changming replied calmly.
"All right. Heh."
The white-haired elder gave a mocking laugh, handed him two Spirit Gathering Pills, then tapped the token and deducted the contribution points.
Chen Changming turned and left.
But laughter followed him from behind, as if they were mocking him for not knowing his own limits.
Chen Changming remained calm. He walked steadily, completely unaffected by their laughter.
He'd spent years wandering and had long grown used to being looked down on and ridiculed. With his current status as a menial disciple, he truly wasn't held in much regard within the Lingxiao Sect. He knew that perfectly well.
While he was still weak, all he could do was keep his head down and quietly build his strength.
When he passed the Mission Hall, Chen Changming didn't go inside. Instead, he hid beneath a tree some distance away and watched in silence.
His status as a menial disciple made him too conspicuous. It wasn't suitable for him to appear in the Mission Hall.
After visiting some menial disciples a while ago, Chen Changming had learned a little about the Mission Hall. It posted tasks for outer and inner sect disciples, who could earn contribution points by completing them.
Menial disciples were low in status and cultivation, so they weren't suited to taking on tasks. Even if they did, outer or inner sect disciples would only laugh at them.
Chen Changming turned and left. After winding his way through the area, he arrived outside the Scripture Library.
He still had 120 points on his token. He wanted to exchange them for the Spirit Finger Flick technique.
It was one of the simplest arts, and menial disciples received a discount on it, so it cost only 50 points.
"Menial disciples, turn right after entering..."
Chen Changming explained his purpose to an elder guarding the Scripture Library. Following the elder's directions, he entered a small room inside.
The little room wasn't large. Seven or eight manuals containing the simplest arts sat on the shelves: Fireball Art, Water Bullet Art, Golden Light Art, Entanglement Art, Earth Spike Art, Spirit Finger Flick, and Detoxification Art.
Though these were all rudimentary arts, they still opened Chen Changming's eyes. He had never seen anything like them before.
The Spirit Finger Flick and Detoxification Art each cost 50 points.
The other five arts cost 100 points apiece.
After thinking it over, Chen Changming chose the Spirit Finger Flick and Detoxification Art.
He'd been bitten by a venomous snake as a child and nearly died, so the memory had stayed with him. Since he'd come across the Detoxification Art today, he decided to master it in case something happened in the future.
When he left the Scripture Library and reached the entrance, Chen Changming placed the two manuals on the table and said respectfully, "Senior, I'd like to exchange for these two arts."
"All right."
The elder replied coolly, tapped the Contribution Token, and deducted 100 points.
Just then, several outer sect disciples walked over. Seeing Chen Changming pick up the two manuals, they glanced at them. One of the youths couldn't help bursting into laughter. "Who still exchanges for Detoxification Art these days?"
"Exactly. That art's useless. A single Detoxification Pill is much more convenient."
Another youth laughed.
"Hahaha, I remember now." The first youth stared at Chen Changming and suddenly clapped his hands, laughing uproariously. "This is that Five Elements Mixed Spirit Root, the most trash-qualified disciple in our batch!"
"Hahaha..."
The group roared with laughter, their mocking gazes full of scorn.
Chen Changming furrowed his brow slightly, tucked the two manuals into his clothes, and turned to leave.
He couldn't afford to provoke these outer sect disciples yet.
But things might be different in the future.
Give him enough time, and he could soar to the heavens.
The Scripture Library elder didn't pay any attention to the outer sect disciples' teasing.
After all, a menial disciple—especially one with the most worthless Five Elements Mixed Spirit Root—was nothing to him. He was beneath notice.
After returning, Chen Changming didn't rush to study his new arts. First, he replanted Spirit Rice across his five mu of fields.
"The yield from these five mu of spirit fields is nowhere near enough for cultivation..."
Looking toward the mountaintop, Chen Changming said enviously.
His cultivation was too low, and he wasn't qualified to farm on the mountain. For now, he could only clear new land in the woods behind the courtyard.
It took him two days to clear ten mu deep in the woods. He planted Spirit Rice, watered it with the Cloud Rain Art, then returned to his room and took out a Spirit Gathering Pill.
"These are so expensive."
He muttered to himself, his face pinched with pain.
Each one cost 50 contribution points. He had no idea how much he would advance after taking it.
A few seconds later,
Chen Changming swallowed the Spirit Gathering Pill.
Soon, a surging wave of spiritual energy roared through him with astonishing force. Chen Changming's heart leapt with delight, and he hurriedly circulated the Evergreen Art to cultivate.
Two hours later,
The medicinal effects of the Spirit Gathering Pill had been completely absorbed.
"One pill is equivalent to three days of cultivation..."
After silently savoring the feeling for a moment, Chen Changming swallowed the other Spirit Gathering Pill.
The two Spirit Gathering Pills hadn't helped Chen Changming break through, but he could feel the spiritual energy in his dantian growing ever more vigorous.
If he took a few more Spirit Gathering Pills, breaking through wouldn't be a problem.
But Chen Changming knew that was only wishful thinking. All he could do now was keep his feet on the ground, taking one step at a time, and wait for the next batch of Spirit Rice to ripen.
Once the Spirit Rice was ripe, Chen Changming planned to head to the market at the foot of the mountain and try his luck.
Every morning, he went to the woods to check how the Spirit Rice was growing, watering it and removing pests as needed.
After observing it for more than ten days, Chen Changming discovered that the Spirit Rice in his newly cleared fields grew more poorly than the crops in the regular spirit fields. After careful consideration, he concluded that the soil lacked spiritual energy, so he increased the amount of water he used.
It took six waterings a month for the crops to catch up.
As a result, the Spirit Rice in both places would ripen at the same time.
At a yield of two thousand jin per mu, the ten mu of land would produce twenty thousand jin of Spirit Rice. This would be Chen Changming's first "fortune" in the Lingxiao Sect.
So he planned to take it to the market and sell it for a good price, then buy Spirit Gathering Pills to cultivate.
Over the past ten days or so, Chen Changming had successfully mastered both the Spirit Finger Flick and the Detoxification Art. He began by practicing the Spirit Finger Flick.
The Spirit Finger Flick was simpler than the Cloud Rain Art. It required neither hand seals nor an incantation, only a little spiritual energy.
With Chen Changming's aptitude, he got the hang of it in just half a day.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Streams of spiritual energy shot from his fingertips like arrows, striking the ground and leaving one small pit after another.
"Not bad..."
Looking at the little pits two meters away, Chen Changming couldn't help smiling.
He was delighted.
This was the fastest art he'd ever learned, a hundred times faster than the Lesser Cloud Rain Formula.
After testing it several times, Chen Changming had a clear sense of the Spirit Finger Flick's power. It was strongest within one meter; beyond three meters, its power dropped off sharply.
At five meters, it could only pierce a board as thick as a thumb. At ten meters, it was even weaker, like a little breeze blowing past.
Chen Changming recalled Pi Dong's Spirit Finger Flick from back then. It, too, had only reached one or two meters.
"Once this Spirit Finger Flick is enhanced, it should be able to strike from much farther away."
Chen Changming smiled. Then, as an idea occurred to him, he flicked his fingers repeatedly and kept releasing spiritual energy.
Each flash of light from his fingers counted as one use of the Spirit Finger Flick.
So he could get in a great many uses by expending all his spiritual energy. That meant the chances to enhance this art far outnumbered those for any other!