Spirit Plant News, the Zhang Family's Moves?

"I want to get my hands on Spirit Rice too. You want Spirit Rice? Do you have Spirit Stones? If you do, you can enjoy the treatment of an Outer Sect disciple—eat Spirit Rice and replenish your vital energy and blood. Even if you don't cultivate and just eat Spirit Rice every day, your cultivation will still improve somewhat." The senior brother smiled at Chen Huai'an.

Poor scholars, rich warriors—this was even more apparent in the cultivation world.

"Can I buy it with Spirit Stones? Where can I buy this stuff?" Chen Huai'an showed an interested expression.

Now that he was cultivating the Elephant Armor Technique, he urgently needed to replenish his vital energy and blood. Spirit Rice was an excellent option.

If he could get Spirit Rice, he would not eat it at all. He could plant it in his space instead.

He had only planted a few medicinal herbs in the Purple-Skinned Gourd's space, while vast stretches remained empty. If he planted Spirit Rice there and watered and tended it every day, would he not have endless Spirit Rice to eat by next year?

He could plant not only Spirit Rice, but also other spirit fruits and spirit plants.

From chatting with the other party, he learned that buying cultivation resources such as Spirit Rice with Spirit Stones was the simplest method.

The other way was to become an Outer Sect disciple. Every month, the sect would distribute a certain amount of Spirit Rice for disciples to consume.

In short, no matter which method he used, becoming an Outer Sect disciple was the most direct and hassle-free path.

When it came to buying supplies, Outer Sect disciples could freely enter and leave the sect. Outer Sect Servant Disciples, however, were restricted in this regard, as though their freedom had been shackled. Even if they had Spirit Stones, without connections or channels, they could not buy the corresponding cultivation resources.

Well, that was not quite right. How much wealth could a servant disciple possibly have? The richest were Outer Sect and Inner Sect disciples. If merchants were going to do business, they would do business with the wealthy, not with a bunch of paupers.

"Are you thinking of leaving the Qingyun Sect and going to the market at the foot of the mountain?" the servant disciple asked Chen Huai'an with a smile.

"If you want to go, as long as you have Spirit Stones, I have a way to get you out of the Qingyun Sect."

"I was just asking out of curiosity. I don't have any Spirit Stones." Chen Huai'an smiled and shook his head.

Though he dearly wanted to go, considering his current circumstances, leaving the sect was still unrealistic.

He had Spirit Stones, and he had pills too. But all his pills were top-grade, and his Spirit Stones were High-Grade Spirit Stones. Such things were doomed the moment they saw the light of day; once he took them out, petty men would easily set their sights on them. He could only keep them for his own cultivation.

Especially High-Grade Spirit Stones. If he held one while cultivating with a Body Tempering Pill, his cultivation speed would be even faster.

Thus, even though Chen Huai'an had to work during the day and had no time to cultivate, relying on nighttime cultivation alone still made his cultivation speed far faster than everyone else's.

As for exactly how much faster, without anything to compare against, Chen Huai'an was not entirely sure either.

After returning to the rear kitchen courtyard, Chen Huai'an kept thinking about Spirit Rice. He possessed the Purple-Skinned Gourd, but he simply had no Spirit Rice. Ordinary rice grains would do as well.

Yet whether it was ordinary rice or Spirit Grain, he could only obtain it by leaving the sect or searching for it in the Qingyun Mountains.

But with endless servant chores to do every day, where could he find spare time to search for spirit plants in the Qingyun Mountains?

"If I were fast enough to finish my water-carrying task in half a day, wouldn't I have extra time to do the things I liked?" Chen Huai'an muttered to himself.

During this time, Chen Huai'an had also been observing things. He had not yet gone all out, and if he truly set his mind to it, this was not impossible.

Every water-carrying servant had the same task. Unless their relationship was exceptionally good, everyone looked after themselves and swept the snow from their own doorstep. No one was willing to waste time helping others.

It was not that they were unwilling to help, but that they could barely finish their own tasks and were already exhausted half to death. They truly had no strength left to help anyone else.

Therefore, Chen Huai'an still needed to find a way to build good relationships with Steward Wu and Old Li. If he handled those relationships well and they turned a blind eye to his water-carrying task, he would have a chance to go down the mountain and stroll around the market.

Just as Chen Huai'an was looking for time to acquire spirit plants, Zhang Hu's disappearance caught the attention of the stewards on Servant Peak.

Because he had been missing for a day and had not gone to complete his task, the stewards ordered people to search for Zhang Hu. But Zhang Hu had already vanished, and there was no one at his residence.

If Zhang Hu had been an ordinary servant disciple, then his disappearance would have been just that—a disappearance. The sect had tens of thousands of servant disciples; it could not turn the entire sect upside down over one person.

However, the Zhang Family held a certain position within the Qingyun Sect, with several Outer Sect and Inner Sect disciples in the clan. Once the Zhang Family's Outer Sect disciples learned of this matter, they began ordering a thorough investigation, wanting to know where Zhang Hu had gone.

Chen Huai'an knew nothing about this at all.

But even if he had known, what could he have done? This matter had to be covered up tight as a drum. Not even the slightest whisper could leak out.

That evening, while eating, Chen Huai'an unexpectedly heard news concerning Zhang Hu.

Because the Zhang Family attached great importance to this matter and was asking everywhere for news of Zhang Hu, word had spread even to the dining hall.

"Damn it. Zhang Hu's status on Qingyun Sect's Servant Peak isn't ordinary. If this draws the higher-ups of Servant Peak into coming after me, that'll be bad." Chen Huai'an left the dining hall with a heavy heart. He had not even eaten his fill today.

The consequences of the Zhang Hu incident had erupted. If the Zhang Family was powerful enough, it would not be long before they traced the matter back to him.

Zhang Hu's lackeys, as well as Zhang Long of the Zhang Family—those bastards all had to die. Only once they were dead would no one know the secret of the Spirit Spring Water.

Zhang Long in particular. Chen Huai'an did not know what Zhang Hu, that dead ghost, had told Zhang Long.

With his current strength, killing Zhang Long would be an extremely simple matter. What he needed to consider was how to kill the other party without anyone noticing.

But the key issue was that Zhang Long was different from Zhang Hu.

Zhang Long's talent was better than Zhang Hu's. If he died, neither the Zhang Family nor the Qingyun Sect would sit idly by.

Zhang Long had decent talent—a High-grade Spiritual Root. If he did not fall along the way, he would certainly enter the Qingyun Sect's Inner Sect. A genius like him had the potential to reach Foundation Establishment.

Servant disciple Wang Tong had been dead for some time, yet no one in the sect had asked about him. People like that were cannon fodder; dead was dead. But those with origins and backing were different.

This made Chen Huai'an realize something: if he acted, he could not leave behind even the slightest flaw. Anyone who had any contact or connection with this matter had to be dealt with as well. He could not leave himself a ticking time bomb.

Nor should he wait for trouble to come knocking. He should instead pour all his strength into strangling any possible crisis in the cradle.

"Zhang Long took my spot, so he doesn't have to complete tasks this month. If I were him, I would certainly use this time to sprint with all my strength toward a higher realm. The Qingyun Sect nurtures talent through survival of the fittest, like raising venomous insects in a jar. The better Zhang Long performs, the more the sect will value him. During this time, he probably hasn't been in contact with the other members of the Zhang Family. This might just be my opportunity." Chen Huai'an rapidly considered his options.

As long as he dealt with everyone who had contacted or met Zhang Hu, the danger brought about by Zhang Hu's death would give him a period of breathing room.

"Which area does Zhang Long live in? This is a real headache." Chen Huai'an rubbed his head. The idea was good, but actually carrying it out would be fraught with difficulties.