After some discussion, Xu Changqing agreed to cooperate.
The price was that he had to provide at least eight hundred jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice every quarter.
In other words, if his yield for each quarter was only two thousand jin—
after submitting the one thousand jin required for his task, he would still have to hand over another eight hundred jin.
That would leave him with only around two hundred jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice.
At first glance, it seemed like a terrible loss.
In truth, however, he would not be providing it for free.
Li Lingbi would pay for it with Spirit Stones.
The only difference was that the price would not be high.
It would even be lower than the market price.
Therefore, over these ten years, he would likely neither profit nor lose.
But whether Li Lingbi succeeded in forming an Earth-Grade Golden Core or not, the outcome would be worthwhile.
After all, the other party was a genius with Threefold Mutual-Generating Spiritual Roots.
He was also a core disciple.
And he had a Nascent Soul True Lord backing him.
"Junior Brother, I know this is a little difficult for you, and these ten years may even be rather tight. But this is a chance to change your fate, isn't it?" Li Sancai stared at the person before him, an indescribable gleam flickering in his eyes.
"Yes." Xu Changqing admitted it.
Li Sancai took a Spirit Stone from his storage pouch. "This is a Mid-Grade Spirit Stone, equivalent to one hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Consider it the deposit for our cooperation.
"Of course, whether you ultimately succeed or fail, we will not take this Spirit Stone back."
Xu Changqing accepted it, then cupped his hands in salute. "Thank you, Senior Brother!"
Li Sancai was fairly satisfied with the result of this trip. He immediately waved his hand. "I'm leaving."
Then he turned and headed toward the Core Administration Office.
Yet strangely, although the rhythm of each step was not particularly fast,
Xu Changqing discovered that within a few breaths, the other man had become nothing more than a blurry silhouette in the distance. His brow lifted involuntarily. "A movement technique?"
He then lowered his head to look at the Mid-Grade Spirit Stone in his palm.
Compared with a Low-Grade Spirit Stone,
this thing was larger.
If a Low-Grade Spirit Stone was the size of a quail egg,
then a Mid-Grade Spirit Stone was the size of a chicken egg.
The Spiritual Qi contained within it was several times denser.
This was good stuff.
Not only could it be used for cultivation, it could also be used to set up formations.
Of course, to the current Xu Changqing, its value as a collectible exceeded its practical value.
Days passed one after another.
Rumble!
A spring thunderclap exploded.
Before long, churning dark clouds gathered above the Spirit Fields.
Rumble, rumble!
Dull rolls of thunder sounded one after another, and the atmosphere grew increasingly oppressive.
Though it was clearly daytime, the sky became darker and darker.
"This is the first rain of spring. I heard it benefits spirit plants." Xu Changqing stood in the doorway, looking up at the heavens.
The little yellow dog sat beside him as well.
It raised its head, watching with its pitch-black eyes as if it understood, yet did not understand.
Though it did not know why its master was doing this,
it instinctively feared the thunder that rang out from time to time.
Pitter-patter!
Soon, rain poured down in sheets.
The dense raindrops seemed strung together by invisible threads.
One after another, too many to count.
The instant they struck the ground, they burst into countless smaller droplets.
Before long, puddles and potholes covered the ground.
Seeing this, Xu Changqing simply brought over a chair and sat at the doorway.
Then he held the little yellow dog in his arms.
Feeling its faintly trembling body, he gently soothed it with his hand from time to time.
Perhaps the sound was too soothing, for he actually fell asleep.
He did not know how much time had passed.
When he opened his eyes again, the rain had stopped.
Though the dark clouds had yet to drift away, there was no sign that it would continue raining.
"That was a really comfortable nap." Xu Changqing stood up, placed the still-sleeping little yellow dog on the chair, then stepped outside.
The air after the rain was rather complicated.
There was the earthy smell of soaked soil.
There was also the sour stench of rotting matter washed up by the rain.
And because it had rained, the concentration of Water Qi had surged.
This made Xu Changqing feel a faint sluggishness as he walked.
As though something invisible were lightly tugging at him.
Likewise, the concentration of Wood Qi had also risen somewhat.
But now was not the time to cultivate.
Although he had only one mu of Spirit Fields, Xu Changqing still inspected them carefully.
He tried his best to sense the condition of every spirit plant, not daring to be careless.
It had to be said that the nourishment brought by rainwater was indeed excellent.
Every spirit plant that had absorbed it, whether Spirit Rice or Four-Leaf Clover,
was moist and lustrous, growing even more robust.
The Four-Leaf Clover in particular.
Most of it had originally possessed only a single green leaf.
Yet after being nourished by the spring rain, many had grown two leaves.
Those that already had two green leaves had become three-leaved.
All of them had improved.
"Looks like everything's fine!"
"No, why are so many bugs crawling out of these puddles?"
"I knew it wouldn't be that simple!"
After making his rounds, he found no issues with the spirit plants.
But Xu Changqing discovered that bugs were crawling out of quite a few puddles and pools of water.
They were extremely small.
They resembled tiny cicadas.
And there were two kinds.
One had long, narrow wings.
The other had short, rounded wings.
Seeing this, Xu Changqing took a Communication Talisman from his small storage pouch. After channeling spiritual power into it and waiting for it to light up, he called out, "Fellow Daoist Luo, I need help getting rid of bugs!"
Although these insects had not yet crawled onto the Spirit Rice,
and perhaps would not cause any harm,
Xu Changqing still did not dare let down his guard.
Even if it meant wasting a little in Spirit Stones, it would be worth it.
Before long, a voice came from the Communication Talisman.
Though somewhat fuzzy, it was barely understandable.
"I'm busy. I can't get away at all!"
"Then when will you be free?"
"Not for the time being. How about I find someone for you?"
"Anyone is fine, as long as they can come remove the bugs!"
"Alright."
Their conversation ended.
Xu Changqing looked at the dimming Communication Talisman in his hand and could not help complaining, "It's like a cellphone."
Not only could it support long-distance calls,
even rainy weather could affect the signal.
Fortunately, although Luo Zhao could not come help,
he had found someone else.
He just did not know how long he would have to wait.
An hour later, a figure holding an umbrella approached.
"Woof! Woof!" The little yellow dog barked.
The person across from him was clearly startled and immediately stopped moving.
Seeing this, Xu Changqing walked out of the wooden house and called to the other person, "Are you the fellow Daoist Luo found to help me get rid of bugs?"
"Yes!" A timid voice soon answered.
"Then come on over." Xu Changqing beckoned.
"I... I'm afraid of dogs..." The other person sounded highly resistant.
Xu Changqing was taken aback. "My dog is only a few months old. It doesn't bite people!"
"Are... are you sure?" The other person still hesitated.
Xu Changqing nodded helplessly. "I guarantee it doesn't bite people. Put ten thousand hearts at ease."
"Alright, then." Only after receiving his assurance did the other person approach step by step.
Once she was closer, Xu Changqing finally saw her clearly.
Beneath the umbrella was a female disciple with rather androgynous features. On her chest was the same inverted golden sword.
Clearly, like Luo Zhao, she possessed a Metal Spiritual Root.
Why was he certain she was a female disciple?
Because while her face was androgynous, her figure was not.
It had even reached a scale that could not be underestimated.
At that moment, the female disciple with the Metal Spiritual Root introduced herself. "Hello, Fellow Daoist. My name is Luo Mumu."
Xu Changqing replied, "Xu Changqing."
Luo Mumu patted her chest in relief. "Looks like I didn't get lost."
Xu Changqing asked curiously, "What is your relationship with Fellow Daoist Luo?"
Luo Mumu smiled. "He's my brother."
"Your biological brother?" Xu Changqing asked in surprise.
As she put away her umbrella, Luo Mumu nodded. "Yes."
Xu Changqing sighed inwardly. No wonder they look exactly alike.
It was hard to believe that such a stunning figure had a face that looked so much like a man's!
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