Pocket Empty Again

"The market is not peaceful; you must be more cautious when you come out in the future..."

Chen Changming sighed silently.

Exchanging for various cultivation resources within the sect, while slightly more expensive, had the advantage of being safe and efficient, with absolutely no threat to one's life.

Coming out alone to sell goods indeed carried no small amount of risk.

Chen Changming searched the short, stout man and found a storage bag containing three spirit stones; other than that, there was nothing else.

This storage bag had the same capacity as his own.

He also searched the tall, thin man and found another storage bag containing seven spirit stones.

To Chen Changming's pleasant surprise, this storage bag had a larger capacity, totaling about thirty cubic meters.

He now possessed three storage bags, capable of holding over twenty thousand catties of spirit rice at once.

In other words, if he took the risk one more time to sell all his spirit rice, he would not need to go down the mountain again.

Several hours later.

Chen Changming encountered no further danger along the way and arrived safely at the Lingxiao Sect. The round trip had taken the entire day, and that night, he consumed a Spirit Gathering Pill to continue practicing the Evergreen Art.

The second Spirit Gathering Pill was also consumed in the latter half of the night.

Whoosh, whoosh... The spiritual power within his body surged like a river crashing against a dam, emitting the sound of ocean tides.

Chen Changming felt a surge of joy.

After consuming the Spirit Gathering Pill, the spiritual power within his body had grown even more robust.

At dawn, he rose without hesitation and went to the Pill Pavilion, spending 100 contribution points to exchange for two more Spirit Gathering Pills.

Upon returning.

He consumed the Spirit Gathering Pills one after another.

At this moment, Chen Changming discovered that the spiritual power in his dantian had increased significantly; if he were to unleash a Spirit Finger Flick at full power, he could now perform it thirty times.

I hope to break through to the second level of Qi Refining soon...

Chen Changming thought silently.

He had been in the Lingxiao Sect for over a year, yet he was still lingering at the first level of Qi Refining, while other outer sect disciples were at least at the second or third level, and inner sect disciples were already at the fourth or fifth.

I wonder how Linger is doing at the Glazed Sect?

The image of that thin, dark-skinned little girl resurfaced in Chen Changming's mind. He saw her crying in the ice and snow again, and the words, "This world is too bitter; I won't come back in the next life..." echoed in his ears.

The youth felt a wave of melancholy.

On that day when the snow was falling and the cold wind was biting, when he had been driven to a dead end by a rogue in Xiliang City, had he not also felt like he didn't want to live?

However.

The twists of fate were truly wondrous; that Silver-Robed Immortal Master of unknown origin had descended from the sky and completely changed the destinies of two little beggars.

"Hah—"

The youth suddenly exhaled and muttered, "I need more Spirit Gathering Pills to speed up my cultivation!"

Yes, his breakthrough was too slow, constrained by his trash-tier Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root aptitude.

If he could eat a Spirit Gathering Pill every day, Chen Changming's cultivation speed would be greatly enhanced!

Loading the remaining twenty thousand catties of spirit rice into his storage bags, the youth left the valley once more, exited the Lingxiao Sect, and headed straight for Lingyun City.

After entering Lingyun City, Chen Changming navigated through the streets to find a secluded corner. He changed into a black robe, donned a black bamboo hat, and made his way to the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion.

He had to be doubly careful while trading twenty thousand catties of spirit rice this time; he could not let anyone see him, not even disciples of the Lingxiao Sect.

Otherwise, if it were discovered that he had been secretly reclaiming land to farm without reporting it to the sect, he would face punishment—confiscation at best, and expulsion at worst.

"Clerk, I am selling spirit rice. I want to speak with your shopkeeper."

As soon as he entered the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion, Chen Changming went straight to the point.

He was now eleven years old, and his stature had grown much taller and stronger.

Chen Changming deliberately made his voice sound old and hoarse, adopting a cold, indifferent demeanor that exuded a chilling aura, making it difficult for anyone to associate his age with a youth in his early teens.

"Very well."

The young clerk sensed that the man in black before him was not to be trifled with and hurriedly led Chen Changming into a private room on the second floor.

"Fellow Daoist, how much spirit rice do you have?"

Shopkeeper Xu looked at the man in black and, after hearing the clerk's report, asked calmly.

"Twenty thousand catties."

Chen Changming replied.

"I'll take it."

Shopkeeper Xu's face brightened. In these troubled times, with war and chaos everywhere, spirit rice was still a highly sought-after commodity.

Chen Changming handed over three storage bags.

One held ten thousand catties, and the two others held five thousand each, totaling twenty thousand catties of spirit rice.

Shopkeeper Xu took out some spirit rice, held it to his nose, and sniffed it carefully. His expression suddenly shifted, and he hurried out.

It was Chen Changming's first time encountering such a scene, and he felt a bit flustered inside. However, he feigned composure and deliberately demanded in an angry voice to the young clerk nearby, "What is the meaning of your shopkeeper's behavior?"

"Please wait a moment. It is possible there is an issue with the quality of the spirit rice, and the shopkeeper has gone to have someone confirm it."

The young clerk thought for a moment before replying.

An issue with the quality of the spirit rice?

Chen Changming's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that the reclaimed land was unsuitable for growing spirit rice?

Yet, he had inspected the harvested spirit rice, and it seemed no different from the rice produced by those five mu of spirit fields!

Just as he was feeling apprehensive, Shopkeeper Xu returned, his face beaming with joy.

"Fellow Daoist, where did you get this spirit rice?"

The moment he approached, Shopkeeper Xu asked with a smile.

"Nonsense, it was naturally grown by this old man himself!"

Chen Changming feigned anger.

"Fellow Daoist, you have impressive methods. This spirit rice of yours is not ordinary low-grade spirit rice; the rice contains rich spiritual energy, making it nearly approach mid-grade spirit rice."

Shopkeeper Xu smiled and held up a hand. "Our Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion has always been fair to all. Since your spirit rice is of such high quality, we can add an extra twenty percent. If you can grow mid-grade spirit rice, I am willing to pay one spirit stone for every fifty catties!"

"I shall try!"

Chen Changming hesitated for a moment before agreeing.

Perhaps if he reinforced his Cloud Rain Art a second time, he could improve the quality of the spirit rice.

As for the spirit rice produced from this reclamation, perhaps the soil quality was poor, but his extra watering and irrigation had produced an unexpected effect!

These ten mu of fields had brought him an extra twenty percent in revenue!

Upon leaving the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion, Chen Changming's storage bag contained an additional one hundred and sixty low-grade spirit stones.

Although a storage bag had no perceptible weight, Chen Changming still felt the bag was heavy and substantial.

This was the first large sum of money in his life.

He went to the individual stalls on the street and, after some bargaining, purchased nineteen low-grade Spirit Gathering Pills from a rogue cultivator.

My pockets are empty again...

Chen Changming touched his storage bag, wanting to cry but having no tears.

Inside the storage bag, only one spirit stone remained—the very one he had used to smash Zhu Fang to death.

Next, to shake off any pursuers, he circled around Lingyun City repeatedly. After confirming no one was following him, he changed into his Lingxiao Sect servant disciple attire, sped out of Lingyun City, and headed straight for the Lingxiao Sect.

He had been overly cautious this time, so his return journey went smoothly.

Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion, top floor.

A woman in white gazed at the horizon and said softly, "Old Xu, keep a close eye on this cultivator who practices the Evergreen Art. If this person can grow mid-grade spirit rice, it shows his attainments in the Cloud Rain Art are not shallow, and he would be fully capable of handling spirit herb cultivation."

"Miss, do you intend to invite this person to work in the herb fields?"

Shopkeeper Xu was surprised.

The woman in white nodded and said slowly:

"Yes. With the Chu Kingdom and the Yue Kingdom now at war, many cultivation sects have been dragged into the conflict, leading to a massive demand for medicinal pills. The herb field within our Taicang Mountain Medicine Sect ruins has always been poorly managed, and various spirit herbs grow slowly. My father has asked me to find someone skilled in the Cloud Rain Art to regularly water the spirit herbs and accelerate their maturation."