He carefully selected a plot of land and began his experiment.
He cautiously planted wound-healing grass and mind-calming flowers at intervals according to his plan.
Day and night, he kept careful records of changes in their growth.
Several months later, the results were plain to see.
The spiritual herbs in this experimental plot were not only sturdier, but also had thick leaves and a lustrous sheen.
The yield per unit of land also clearly exceeded that of traditional planting methods.
Manager Zhao heard the news and came to inspect it himself.
Stroking the flourishing spiritual herbs, he was overjoyed.
He made the decision on the spot, ordering this method implemented throughout all suitable areas of the herb garden.
Although various limitations, including soil quality and management, kept the overall increase in yield from being as striking as that of the experimental plot.
At this critical juncture, when the sect urgently needed all kinds of basic resources, this steady increase in production was already like charcoal delivered in the snow.
Xu Xuan had rendered another service, and rewards naturally followed.
Manager Zhao specially approved ten low-grade spirit stones for him.
More valuable still, he was permitted to collect an extra bottle of Essence-Nourishing Pills each month to help stabilize his cultivation.
Of course, more important than these material rewards was the quiet rise of his standing within the herb garden.
Whenever Manager Zhao encountered any troublesome or perplexing affairs, he had grown accustomed to consulting him first.
Even when Li Jiangping came on inspection, his attitude toward him showed noticeably greater regard and courtesy.
Yet beneath the calm, hidden currents stirred.
As the three members of the Xu Household established themselves in the herb garden, they inevitably drew the attention of certain watchful people.
The menial workers were not a single solid slab of iron; wherever there were people, there was a world of rivalries.
Several of the existing menial-worker chiefs relied on their seniority or a little backing.
Seeing these newcomers rise swiftly and steal the limelight, they gradually grew jealous.
They began to exclude and suppress them, both openly and covertly.
During one routine assignment of duties.
They deliberately assigned the grueling task of clearing clogged drainage channels to the team under Xu An, intending to provoke these "newcomers" and stir up trouble.
Xu Xuan watched coldly from the sidelines without intervening directly.
Only in the still of the night did he quietly offer guidance.
They were to overcome the hard with the soft, unite the majority of ordinary menial workers who suffered oppression, and turn the conflict into resentment toward those chiefs who used their power to bully others.
Meanwhile, he found an opportunity to mention something "in passing" to Manager Zhao.
Certain menial-worker chiefs used heavy-handed management methods, undermining the enthusiasm of the workers at the bottom and hindering stable production.
Manager Zhao now placed great importance on yields, and took note when he heard this.
Not long afterward, someone reported those chiefs for withholding the menial workers' wages.
The evidence was conclusive, and Manager Zhao took the opportunity to put things in order, removing the two ringleaders from their key positions and sending them off to perform hard labor.
Because Xu An usually treated others generously and handled matters fairly, he had a good reputation among the menial workers, so Manager Zhao took the opportunity to promote him and place him in charge of some of the newly vacated managerial duties.
This disturbance instead made the Xu Household members' foundations in the herb garden even firmer.
After this incident, Xu Xuan became even more aware of the importance of information.
He instructed Xu An and the others.
Without arousing suspicion, they were to interact more with people of every kind.
They were to pay attention to gathering all sorts of news from inside and outside the herb garden.
Whether it concerned sect policies or disciples' activities.
Or rumors circulating among the public and resource prices, it all had its uses.
One day, at dusk.
The herb garden's menial workers gradually dispersed.
Using the pretext of inspecting the irrigation channel in the last herb field, Xu An quietly approached Xu Xuan, who was recording the spiritual herbs' growth.
He looked around, and only after seeing that no one was nearby did he lower his voice and say:
"Clan elder, today I heard a senior brother who often visits the trading market mention after drinking that the Black Marsh northwest of the sect has been very unsettled lately."
Xu Xuan's brush hand paused slightly, while his gaze remained on the pages.
He seemed merely to be listening to an ordinary report, but his ears had already pricked up slightly.
"There are rumors that ruins left by ancient cultivators have appeared deep within the miasma, drawing several groups to explore them, and all suffered heavy casualties."
"They also said they seemed to have seen figures suspected of being demonic cultivators."
The Black Marsh?
The demonic path?
Xu Xuan's brows furrowed slightly.
This reminded him of the rumors about an extraordinary treasure that Li Jiangping had mentioned many years ago.
At the time, he had taken them for ordinary rumors.
Now it seemed that perilous place truly harbored secrets.
The appearance of demonic cultivators.
Also meant that the situation in the Southern Region's cultivation world might be more complicated than he had imagined.
He slowly closed the book, his expression calm and unruffled.
He merely gave Xu An a faint glance and spoke in a steady voice:
"I am aware of this now."
"Remember, do not mention it to anyone else. Treat it as though you never heard it."
His gaze swept over the darkening sky, and his tone grew grave.
"The winds and clouds of the outside world are shifting now. When you go out, you must be especially vigilant."
"Our foundations are still shallow. Whatever opportunities or strange occurrences you hear of, you must keep to your duties. Never let greed arise in your hearts and become caught in a whirlpool of trouble."
"Yes, clan elder. I understand."
Xu An nodded solemnly, committing these words firmly to memory.
Then he turned and left as though nothing had happened, his figure soon disappearing along the herb-field path shrouded in dusk.
After seeing Xu An off, Xu Xuan sank into thought.
Sect conflicts, traces of the demonic path, ancient cultivators' ruins... the storms of the outside world seemed to be drawing ever closer.
Could the great tree that was the Azure Wood Sect keep providing shelter?
And how should the young seedling that was the Xu Household survive the storms that might come?
"Strength is ultimately the foundation."
He clenched his fists, feeling the early spirit treasury stage spiritual power within his body.
"I must break through as soon as possible!"
The path to immortality was perilous, and the future would only bring more challenges.
Xu Xuan knew the present calm was only temporary.
He had to make every preparation for the calamities that might come, and could not repeat the mistakes of his previous life.
Beneath the herb garden's lamplight, his figure remained stooped, but his gaze reached toward the distant horizon.
Time hurried past, and another three years went by.
Deep within the herb garden, inside that simple dwelling, Xu Xuan sat cross-legged, his figure looking so frail in the oil lamp's wavering glimmer.
At this moment, an immense transformation, like being reborn in flesh and bone, was taking place within him.
The first realm of the spiritual treasury, the "qi sea," had reached perfection.
Within his dantian, that vast ocean of spiritual energy surged with raging waves.
At the center of the waves, an enormous vortex furiously devoured the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathering from all around.
As though it intended to force open a new world within the void.
The spiritual treasury had three realms: the qi sea, the yellow court, and the life palace.
Each realm was another heaven.
The qi sea gathered spiritual energy and served as the foundation of cultivation.
Only by opening the yellow court could one nourish the soul and significantly extend one's lifespan.
For Xu Xuan, who was past sixty and whose physical body had begun showing signs of decline.
This was undoubtedly the crucial step toward reversing life and death and continuing his Dao Path!
In his hand, he tightly gripped a Spirit-Concentrating Pill the size of a longan, its color warm and lustrous.
This pill was precious.
In recognition of his repeated contributions over recent years, Li Jiangping had made an exception and obtained it through an exchange with the inner sect.
It was intended specifically to help him overcome his bottleneck and steady his mind.
Without further hesitation, Xu Xuan placed the pill in his mouth.
The pill instantly transformed into a mighty torrent of medicinal power, which did not disperse through his limbs and bones.
Instead, it rushed straight into the sea of consciousness between his brows.
It instantly brought utter clarity to his mind, sweeping away every distracting thought.
He immediately gathered his focus and guided the surging spiritual power in his qi sea, transforming it into an enormous, invisible hammer.
Again and again, he struck the unseen barrier that separated the "qi sea" from the "yellow court."
Every impact brought violent tremors to his soul, as though his entire sea of consciousness were shaking.
Xu Xuan steadfastly guarded that single point of clarity within his mind.
Through his tenacious will and the protection of the Spirit-Concentrating Pill's power, he forcibly endured the pain.
"Boom!"
A thunderclap seemed to explode inside Xu Xuan's mind.
At the center of the qi sea's vortex, a spark of spiritual light suddenly flared, like the first ray of light at the opening of heaven and earth!
That point of light rapidly expanded, dispersing the mist.
Finally, it became the phantom image of a courtyard, hazy but already formed, floating quietly above the qi sea and radiating a warm yellow glow.
The yellow court spiritual treasury had opened.