Auspicious Snow Foretells a Bountiful Year, Spirit Farmers Control Prices

Xu Changqing was in no hurry to submit his task.

He had to keep himself on the same level as everyone else.

He waited until only two days remained before the New Year, when everyone had nearly finished harvesting.

Only then did he head to the Spirit Field Core Administration Office and see Flower Elder once again.

It was much the same as last time. With so many people around, some disciples were working part-time.

"Flower Elder!" Xu Changqing greeted him respectfully. After all, the man was a steward.

"It's you." Flower Elder had not forgotten him and still remembered him somewhat.

Xu Changqing gave a slight nod. "I'm here to complete the winter task and submit spirit rice."

Flower Elder looked him up and down. "If I remember correctly, this is your first time planting in winter. Don't tell me you met the production quota?"

"Barely managed it." Xu Changqing put on a bitter smile.

Flower Elder looked mildly surprised. "As long as you completed it. The people who entered with you didn't even reach a yield of one thousand jin."

"Zhao Ziyao?" That name immediately popped into Xu Changqing's mind.

"That's right." Flower Elder nodded slightly.

Though Xu Changqing was somewhat surprised, he did not take it to heart.

Their relationship had been ordinary to begin with.

If not for Lin An connecting them in the middle,

they would probably have remained strangers until death.

Xu Changqing then submitted one thousand jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice for the winter task.

"Supreme-Grade Spirit Rice?" Flower Elder exclaimed in surprise.

These days, newcomers capable of growing Supreme-Grade Spirit Rice were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

He had not expected the young man before him to manage it.

Xu Changqing secretly thought, It seems Supreme-Grade Spirit Rice isn't something just anyone can grow. But this is the only kind of spirit rice I have.

Then he discovered that Supreme-Grade Spirit Rice exchanged for a different number of points.

If it was high-quality spirit rice produced from a Grade-Two Spirit Field, one thousand jin could earn two hundred points.

But one thousand jin of Supreme-Grade Spirit Rice produced from a Grade-Two Spirit Field could be exchanged for two hundred and fifty points—fifty more points, along with praise from Flower Elder.

Before leaving, Xu Changqing specifically asked about it.

He learned that exchanging for another high-tier cultivation technique required a full two thousand points.

In other words, he either had to submit ten thousand jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice in one go,

or accumulate the points bit by bit until he could eventually exchange them.

"Looks like I can only wait a little longer." Xu Changqing pondered.

Afterward, he left the Spirit Field Core Administration Office.

To his surprise, he had only just reached the downhill path outside the hall

when he ran into a familiar face.

Who was it?

Zhao Ziyao!

The man's face was clouded with worry, and he was clearly in a foul mood.

Yet when Zhao Ziyao saw Xu Changqing, his eyes lit up. He hurriedly stopped him. "Fellow Daoist Xu!"

"What is it?" Xu Changqing watched him with a wary expression.

Zhao Ziyao could not help asking, "Did you complete the winter task?"

"Mm." After considering it over and over, Xu Changqing ultimately did not lie.

Since Flower Elder had casually revealed Zhao Ziyao's situation,

that meant the news of Xu Changqing completing the winter task could not be hidden.

Since that was the case, hiding it from Zhao Ziyao now might provoke this man's dissatisfaction.

He might as well admit it openly and see what this fellow was actually after.

A flicker of displeasure passed through Zhao Ziyao's eyes, but he concealed it quickly. Then he asked, "Could you lend me one hundred jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice?"

"Just as I thought." Xu Changqing knew something was off with this fellow. He then put on a troubled expression. "I only barely completed the winter task myself. What's left isn't even enough for my own use."

Zhao Ziyao pressed, "How much do you have left?"

"Fifty jin." Xu Changqing shrugged.

"That's a little too little." Zhao Ziyao frowned.

To be fair, the other party might have been hiding something.

But Zhao Ziyao himself had failed to complete the winter task because of insufficient yield.

Therefore, the possibility of Xu Changqing hiding much was not great.

Perhaps he had only managed to complete it this time by stepping in dog shit.

"I can only lend you ten jin. No more than that." Xu Changqing said with a pained expression.

"Ten jin will do." Zhao Ziyao did not refuse.

Xu Changqing immediately took ten jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice from his small storage pouch.

"I'll definitely return it to you next year." Zhao Ziyao promised after receiving it.

"Alright." Xu Changqing chuckled softly.

Zhao Ziyao then continued toward the mountaintop platform.

Xu Changqing turned to watch his hurried retreating figure, his gaze instantly turning cold.

This person was not someone to befriend deeply.

Their relationship had been ordinary to begin with, yet he had been so proactive about borrowing things.

Take Lin An by comparison.

Although the two of them had both harbored some resistance back in the outer area,

after becoming formal disciples, Lin An had never once asked to borrow anything from him.

Even with Zhang Su that time, although Xu Changqing had voluntarily offered spirit rice, she had only accepted it reluctantly.

"It's snowing!"

"Good thing we harvested in time!"

"Auspicious snow foretells a bountiful year. Next year will be even better!"

At that moment, goose-feather snow suddenly began drifting down from the gray sky.

An extreme chill swept across the entire Spirit Fields.

Xu Changqing had nothing better to do, so he stopped to admire the snowy scenery for a while.

He discovered that not every place was covered in heavy snow.

Many Spirit Fields remained no different from autumn, completely unaffected.

Some places even gave off steam.

The snowflakes melted before they could touch the ground.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

The instant Xu Changqing opened his door,

a gust of cold wind mixed with snowflakes surged inside.

Fortunately, he was an immortal cultivator and did not fear the cold.

Outside, the Spirit Fields were blanketed in ice and snow.

The vast world had suddenly entered a state of hibernation.

Crunch, crunch!

Xu Changqing trudged through the snow, one foot deep and one foot shallow, before heading in another direction.

As he approached the Spirit Field Core Administration Office,

he found more and more people nearby.

Everyone was heading in the same direction without prior arrangement.

"Flying Paper Cranes! They can carry three hundred jin and reach the market in half an hour!"

"One day's rental costs five Low-Grade Spirit Stones! Buying one costs fifty Low-Grade Spirit Stones!"

"Spirit beast horses! Travel to and from the market in only the time it takes to burn one incense stick! Ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones per day!"

When Xu Changqing reached a crossroads,

he was surprised to find

quite a few disciples from the Water-Control Pavilion and Beast Spirit Valley standing by the roadside.

They were all selling and renting various things that could travel quickly.

But clearly, compared to spirit beasts,

everyone preferred Flying Paper Cranes.

Because they were cheaper.

Five Low-Grade Spirit Stones were equivalent to ten jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice.

At that moment, a Wood Spirit Root disciple who had rented a Flying Paper Crane called out to the people around him, "I can still take two more people to Red Maple Valley! Just one Low-Grade Spirit Stone, or two jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice!"

"I'm in." Xu Changqing hurriedly took out spirit rice.

It did not take long to gather three people.

The Flying Paper Crane then began flapping its wings with all its might.

Yet it did not take off.

No, more accurately, it could not fly high.

Xu Changqing did not know whether the three of them were too heavy or whether it had simply been designed that way.

The Flying Paper Crane hovered only around five meters above the ground.

The person who had rented the paper crane smiled and asked, "Fellow Daoists, how was this year's harvest?"

Xu Changqing shrugged. "Not bad."

The other person was a female disciple with an awakened Wood Spirit Root. She said flatly, "Better than last winter."

The paper crane renter introduced himself. "I am Xu Mingsheng. I have been a formal disciple for five years."

After thinking for a moment, Xu Changqing said, "Cai Kun, two and a half years."

The female disciple spoke last. "Lin Mengru, two years."

Xu Mingsheng said meaningfully, "Fellow Daoists, this year's Red Maple Valley market will be extremely lively."

Xu Changqing asked in confusion, "Why?"

Xu Mingsheng explained, "Because the Formal Disciple Grand Competition will begin in two years. All formal disciples have begun preparing resources."

"It has nothing to do with us." Lin Mengru curled her lips.

Disciples with Wood Spirit Roots were not suited for battle.

Even if they participated in the Formal Disciple Grand Competition, their rankings would not be high.

No matter how capable they were, they would still be finished when they encountered those with Metal Spiritual Roots or Fire Spiritual Roots.

Xu Mingsheng waved a hand. "Fellow Daoist Lin, you're mistaken about that."

"Oh?" Lin Mengru raised an unconvinced brow.

Xu Mingsheng said seriously, "We can seize this opportunity to sell the spirit rice, spirit plants, and other goods in our hands for higher prices!"

"That makes sense." Xu Changqing deeply agreed.

"Therefore, I wanted to discuss... market prices with you in advance." Xu Mingsheng got to the point.

Xu Changqing had always believed every spirit farmer was a lone operator.

That there was no need for them to band together.

But after meeting Xu Mingsheng, he understood that he had been wrong about everything.

Spirit rice was generally sold through two channels.

One was the official channel, where spirit rice was exchanged for points.

The other was the unofficial channel, where it was sold at market transaction prices.

And the transaction prices on the unofficial channel had always been determined by Xu Mingsheng—or rather, by the force behind him.

That force was made up of veteran spirit farmers who had joined the Spirit Field Core Region at least three years ago.

It was called the Farmer's Heart Society.

When prices rose,

when prices fell,

all of it was controlled by them.

With only two years left before the Formal Disciple Grand Competition,

Xu Mingsheng and the others deliberately restricted the quantity of spirit plants.

First, they reduced the volume flowing into the market and increased customer demand.

Then they used the opportunity to drive up prices and rake in profits until their bowls overflowed.

Normally, two jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice could be exchanged for one Low-Grade Spirit Stone.

But under their control, it could now be sold for two!