Mid-Grade Spirit Planter

Chapter 34: Mid-Grade Spirit Planter

Qingyang Market.

Fellow Daoist Qin came to the Spirit Feather Sect's Hall of Affairs once more.

This examination on mid-grade Spirit Plant knowledge was more formal than the first.

Inside a sealed private room.

There were only Qin Ming and the three examiners seated across from him.

The examiners in charge this time were three genuine Tier 1 High-Grade Spirit Planters of the Spirit Feather Sect.

The three examiners were all quite old men.

As they looked at Qin Ming, they could not help but show appreciation in their eyes.

They had long heard that among the Spirit Farmers was a young man with exceptional talent for Spirit Plants.

In just one short year, he had once again grown mid-grade Spirit Plants.

He had even mastered the most difficult Greater Spirit Rain Technique.

The key was that he was young.

Youth meant limitless possibilities.

A bald old man seated on the far left was the first to pose a question.

"Which other Spirit Plant cannot be planted together with the First-Grade Mid-Grade Spirit Plant, Blazing Firegrass?"

Qin Ming considered it briefly before immediately answering, "Earthen Pearfruit."

"Earthen Pearfruit drains a great deal of fire spiritual energy from the surrounding area, causing the Blazing Firegrass to lack nutrients."

"Correct." The bald old man smiled faintly, admiration shining in his eyes.

The question he had posed was rather obscure. He had not expected the other party to answer it so quickly.

And he had even analyzed the reason behind it. That was quite rare.

The next examiner immediately began asking questions.

"What are the requirements for the growing environment of Violet Sunbloom?"

As questions and answers passed back and forth, time slowly went by.

Qin Ming answered nearly everything fluently. For the few questions he did not answer right away, he only needed a moment's thought before giving the answer.

After the questioning ended.

There was also an assessment on identifying Spirit Plants and Spirit Seeds.

Two hours later.

The examination ended.

All three examiners unanimously gave him a superior evaluation.

"The younger generation is truly formidable."

"Keep working hard. Your future is promising."

After passing the examination, a Spirit Feather Sect steward stamped another seal of magical power onto Qin Ming's Spirit Planter identity token.

The second leaf on the back of the Spirit Planter identity token lit up.

This also signified that Qin Ming had officially become a First-Grade Mid-Grade Spirit Planter.

His status had risen by a considerable step.

Qin Ming stroked the token as he left the Hall of Affairs, his heart filled with emotion.

Three years ago, he had still been a lowly Spirit Farmer worried over being unable to pay his Spirit Rice taxes in full.

Now, even the High-Grade Spirit Planters within the Spirit Feather Sect had to regard him more highly.

The status of a Mid-Grade Spirit Planter would be recognized no matter where he went.

After leaving the Hall of Affairs.

Qin Ming followed the main road straight toward the Ruan Family Estate.

A short while later.

He arrived before the estate gates.

Qin Ming gazed at the courtyard and took a deep breath.

In the past, he would never have dared imagine it.

That one day, he would be able to move into such an imposing private estate.

Qin Ming looked at the two words "Ruan Family" on the vermilion gates.

The scene of Daoist Ruan opening the door for him for the first time back then was still vivid in his mind.

He raised a hand and made a grasping motion, and the plaque instantly fell down.

"From now on, it will be called Qin Estate."

A smile appeared on Qin Ming's face, and he nodded in satisfaction.

He took out the wooden token in his hand and opened the estate's restrictions. From this day onward, only he could freely enter and leave this place.

Afterward.

Qin Ming went inside and walked around, familiarizing himself with the estate's surroundings.

Everything inside had already been completely moved out, saving him the trouble of cleaning it up.

Not only did the entire estate have a concealment formation that blocked detection.

It also had a Spirit Gathering Array connected to Qingyang Market's Tier 2 Spirit Vein.

The spiritual energy was abundant, something the Shantytown and the houses outside could not compare to at all.

The higher a cultivator's cultivation, the greater their requirements for their spiritual energy environment.

Most importantly, it was far safer than the Shantytown.

There would not be incidents of murder and robbery every day.

After all.

Qin Ming had now become a Mid-Grade Spirit Planter and could very well become a target for Marauder Cultivators.

Unlike before, when he had been a low-grade Spirit Farmer, poor as a church mouse—Marauder Cultivators would have wept at the sight of him.

After making a round of the estate, Qin Ming turned and left through the gates.

He planned to move in tomorrow.

The next day.

In exchange for a meal and drinks at Juxuan Pavilion, Qin Ming called Cai Lao Jiu over to help him move his belongings.

"What? What did you say?!"

"You're moving into the market to live?"

When Cai Lao Jiu learned the news, he stood frozen in place, unable to calm down for a long while.

Still, he could understand it.

Over the past few years, Qin Ming had advanced at a breakneck pace, leaving old Spirit Farmers like them far behind.

Now that he had become a Mid-Grade Spirit Planter, it was not strange for him to move into the market.

Qin Ming was somewhat sentimental. There were some large items he could not bear to throw away, and his Storage Bag could not hold them all.

He and Cai Lao Jiu busied themselves for the entire morning.

They filled an entire large horse-drawn cart.

When they left.

Qin Ming looked back at the dilapidated little house filled with his memories.

Then he turned away, his gaze resolute.

The two walked briskly, driving the cart out through the alleyways.

When they passed the river channel in the Shantytown.

The cultivators living nearby heard the commotion and gradually came out to gather together.

"Fellow Daoist Qin."

"Cai Lao Jiu."

"What are you two doing?"

The middle-aged female cultivators who often washed clothes by the river glanced at the bundles piled high on the cart.

Unable to help themselves, they asked in confusion, "Eh? Fellow Daoist Qin, didn't you become a First-Grade Lower Spirit Planter?"

"Although the Shantytown's rent has recently become a little more expensive than in previous years, it shouldn't be enough to force you to move away, should it?"

Hearing this, the other cultivators also began asking, "Fellow Daoist Qin, the Shantytown hasn't been very peaceful lately. If you have somewhere good to go, tell us about it later too."

Before Qin Ming could speak.

Cai Lao Jiu, who was driving the cart beside him, could no longer hold himself back. "Younger Brother Qin successfully advanced to a Mid-Grade Spirit Planter yesterday. Now he's moving into a large estate within the market."

The moment his words fell.

The air around them went quiet.

One astonished, bewildered, incomprehensible gaze after another converged on Qin Ming.

The middle-aged female cultivators washing clothes did not even notice when the river carried away the garments in their hands.

A Mid-Grade Spirit Planter?

Moving into a private estate within the market?

Was this real?

A string of information battered everyone's minds without pause.

Qin Ming smiled faintly and explained modestly, "Some days ago, I was fortunate enough to receive help from a senior and luckily obtained a spot."

Whoosh!

With Qin Ming's casual confirmation.

In an instant, the stunned and astonished looks turned into envy, jealousy, and a trace of reverence.

The status of a Mid-Grade Spirit Planter was an entire level above that of independent cultivator Spirit Farmers like them. They could not be mentioned in the same breath.

No wonder Qin Ming could afford the exorbitant rent within the market.

A private estate in Qingyang Market.

Leaving everything else aside, the mere fact that it was protected by a Tier 2 defensive formation was enough to make these independent cultivators, whose lives hung by a thread, envy him endlessly.

Not to mention that it also had a Tier 2 Spirit Vein and a Spirit Gathering Array covering the entire estate.

Cultivating there would yield twice the result with half the effort.

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Qin!"

"Congratulations on your promotion to Mid-Grade Spirit Planter, Fellow Daoist Qin! You truly are a model and example among us Spirit Farmers."

"Fellow Daoist Qin, your fortune runs deep, and your connections are broad as well!"

In an instant.

Other cultivators along the riverside road heard the news and hurried over one after another.

The cultivators continuously flattered and congratulated Qin Ming.

One sharp-eyed cultivator cleverly cut in and asked, "Fellow Daoist Qin, do you happen to need a steward to manage the estate? Do you think I would be suitable?"

Hearing this, Cai Lao Jiu on the cart immediately flew into a rage and cursed, "Fuck! I haven't even gotten the position yet! What makes you think it'll be your turn?!"

PS: Thanks to Grand Agricultural Minister Niu Laozhi for the recommendation vote.