Xu Changqing held half a stalk of spirit rice in his hand and soon returned to the housing area where outer sect disciples lived and rested.
But this time, instead of heading to his own room, he walked toward the other end.
Before long, he arrived before a half-closed door.
Hearing faint movement inside, Xu Changqing immediately asked, "Is Senior Brother Li in?"
"Who is it?" Before long, the pattering footsteps drew closer, and the half-closed wooden door was pulled open, revealing a mature face filled with puzzlement.
Xu Changqing smiled faintly. "It's me, Changqing!"
"Xu Changqing?" Li Sancai barely recognized him, then asked, "What do you need from me?"
"Everyone says Senior Brother Li is formidable and has already cultivated the [Evergreen Formula] to the second level, so I wanted you to take a look at this spirit rice plant." Xu Changqing handed it over as he spoke.
"This is the inferior spirit rice you planted?" Li Sancai accepted it with a surprised look.
A thicker layer of pale green spiritual power quickly surfaced in his palm.
He swiftly discerned the condition of the inferior spirit rice.
Xu Changqing hurriedly asked, "How is it?"
"It lacks nutrients, water, and spiritual energy," Li Sancai blurted out.
"This is why my yield is insufficient?" Xu Changqing frowned upon hearing this.
The gap between the first and second levels of the Evergreen Formula was obvious.
He could only grasp a rough outline, while the other man understood it in such detail. No wonder he could stand watch over spirit fields for so long.
"Yes." Li Sancai nodded, then changed the subject. "Ordinarily, a normal Grade-One Spirit Field shouldn't have such a problem."
Xu Changqing pondered, "You mean there's something wrong with it?"
Li Sancai guessed, "Judging by the current situation, there's most likely a problem with your mu of spirit field. That's why its yield won't rise."
Xu Changqing quickly pressed, "Is there a way to solve it?"
"If you have connections, you can ask a Water Spirit Root disciple from the [Water-Control Pavilion] to come and cast the [Minor Cloud-Rain Art].
"Or you can find an Earth Spirit Root disciple over at the [Earth Vein] and ask them to loosen the soil for you," Li Sancai answered.
"Is there any other way?" Xu Changqing looked somewhat troubled.
Li Sancai nodded slightly. "There is."
"What way?" Xu Changqing's eyes lit up.
Li Sancai immediately said, "Raise the [Evergreen Formula] to the second level. The yield will increase as well."
"Raise it to the second level..." Xu Changqing fell into thought.
"You seem to have only one chance left?" Li Sancai looked at him with a complicated expression.
"Yes." Xu Changqing smiled awkwardly.
"Good luck." Li Sancai returned the half-stalk of spirit rice in his hand, then shut the door.
"Thank you, Senior Brother!" Xu Changqing cupped his hands in salute, expressing his gratitude.
After returning to his room, Xu Changqing looked at the half-stalk of spirit rice in his hand and considered the three methods Senior Brother Li had offered.
At present, only raising the [Evergreen Formula] could put out the fire at his eyebrows.
As for seeking out disciples from the [Earth Vein] and the [Water-Control Pavilion]—
First, he had no connections.
Second, it would take time.
On the other hand, the lifespan he lost could be earned back by harvesting spirit plants. Such a price was neither painful nor itchy to him.
With a great tree at one's back, one could enjoy the shade.
Since he had chosen the path of immortality, he could not easily leave a top-tier cultivation sect like [Dongting].
Countless people begged for such an opportunity yet never got the chance to join.
Once he left, he could only keep lowering his standards.
In the end, he would either join some minor sect.
Or marry into a cultivation lineage.
He might even become a Rogue Cultivator with no background whatsoever.
[Would you like to consume 1,066 days of lifespan to raise the Evergreen Formula from the first level to the second level?]
The prompt appeared once more.
"Yes." Xu Changqing agreed without hesitation.
All at once, a vast amount of experience and techniques concerning the [Evergreen Formula] surged into his mind.
[Successfully consumed 1,066 days of lifespan to raise the Evergreen Formula to the second level]
Xu Changqing looked at his attribute panel again.
[Remaining lifespan: 762 days] [Evergreen Formula (Second Level)] (Effect One: Cultivation speed +20%) (Effect Two: Yield increase +10%) (Effect Three: Can diagnose spirit plant conditions in detail)
The effects brought by the upgrade were indeed as different as heaven and earth, and the second level truly increased yield.
"Senior Brother Li did not deceive me." Xu Changqing smiled.
Next, he sat cross-legged and tried cultivating.
Yet he discovered that while his cultivation speed had indeed increased, the Wood Qi in his room was far too thin.
Not to mention advancing his realm—even maintaining normal cultivation was difficult.
The next day arrived.
The sun had just risen.
Xu Changqing's breakfast was a bowl of thin porridge and a small dish of pickled vegetables.
The food could only fill his stomach and offered no help whatsoever to cultivation.
There was no helping it; this was all outer sect disciples had.
At this moment, a noisy commotion came from outside.
It turned out that people were leaving.
Whether they had passed or failed the assessment, they could no longer remain here.
Yet not only had the number of outer sect disciples not decreased, it had actually increased.
As one of the three top cultivation sects, the Dongting Immortal Sect never lacked people.
The few familiar faces around Xu Changqing had all vanished, replaced by unfamiliar faces one after another.
Since they did not know each other, none of them could be bothered to converse.
After finishing breakfast, Xu Changqing carried his hoe toward the spirit fields.
There were still three days until the third assessment began.
This time, he could only succeed. Failure was absolutely not an option.
Therefore, the preparations before planting spirit rice could not be neglected.
The first step was turning the soil.
It was also called loosening the soil.
The reason for doing so was to improve the breathability of the spirit field while turning weeds and old roots into the soil to rot.
"My heavens, Lin An actually hired an Earth Spirit Root disciple to help him!"
"He's really going all out!"
"Where did this kid get so many spirit stones?"
"If I remember correctly, even an outer sect disciple with an Earth Spirit Root costs ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones for one session, right?"
"He traded one-tenth of his harvest for a long-term partnership with him!"
The crowd erupted in an uproar.
Xu Changqing stood before his spirit field and looked toward the other side.
Lin An's spirit field was not far away, and a young man stood beside him.
This person should be the Earth Spirit Root disciple everyone had been talking about.
He looked tall and powerfully built.
His skin was more yellow than that of an ordinary person, yet it shone with luster.
Soon, the Earth Spirit Root disciple stepped barefoot into the spirit field.
With every step he took, the ground trembled.
A continuous series of bangs sounded alongside it.
Before long, the weeds and leftover roots were all shattered by the vibrations.
At the same time, the compacted soil turned over rapidly, as though an Earth Dragon had burrowed through it.
The efficiency was astonishing. In only a short while, more than half the field was finished.
While others toiled themselves half to death, Lin An had not even broken a sweat.
The surrounding people stared until their eyes went straight.
But they had to admit that Lin An's move was truly clever.
Not only did it increase his chances of becoming a formal disciple, it also tied him together with disciples of other Spiritual Roots.
Though he gave up part of his harvest, he gained a partner.
Xu Changqing watched with great interest, and the thought of cooperating with him arose as well.
But just as he wanted to ask, the people around him swarmed over, and he could not even get a place in line.
Even the Earth Spirit Root disciple was surprised. He had never expected himself to be in such demand.
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